In this photoshoot, I focused on producing photographs inspired by the ideas and features of stereotypical and general make/masculine bodies and outlooks. Whether that is a pose or body art I decided to include it in my work. I took photographs highlighting the muscular parts of a male body and or experimented/played around with poses the male subject felt comfortable with (UFC Face-Offs).
One aspect that I would have changed in my opinion would have been the lighting in the photographs as many of the photographs have a black/generally dark background so therefore I would change that so that the editing of the photographs would be easier to modify like the levels as the photographs are already dark enough. Creating a brighter/lighter atmosphere would ensure that the photographs are easier to edit and therefore look better/ more presentable, the subject looks more focused and important.
In these specific photographs, I decided to focus on the subject’s defined features like muscle and especially flexing something that can be specifically connected with masculinity and the themes of power, strength, and force. For all three of these photographs presented above I edited and modeled in black and white for the centered body part to be even more defined and structured as I believe these tones paired well together in the monochromatic style.
In these photographs, I presented a less formal approach and decided to play around with the position of my subjects in the photographs, and considering both the subjects are male I s]wanted them to feel what they felt most comfortable doing.
Overall I wanted both subjects side by side representing the difference in head and structure, for example, if the male subject has broader shoulders or not (something that can be described/thought of as more of a masculine feature)
In these two photographs, the image is taken from a closer perspective of the subject. The features of a masculine-like body can be presented again as Adam’s apple is presented as well. This particular feature is more prominent in male bodies and the “thyroid cartilage”. Therefore the recognisable Adams apple can be recognized as a more male-like attribute and something to bring attention to.
In this photograph the subjects are presented opposing each other, as mentioned before at the beginning the subjects are in a similar position as a UFC face-off. Despite the positioning not being formal, I believe this positioning can represent this childlike boyhood playfulness and immaturity coming from two teenage boy subjects with bright and cheerful facial expressions.
In these three photographs presented, I wanted to include and compose basic close-up portraits of the male subject. I wanted the photographs to focus solely on the subject and to look formal and somewhat strong through the stare in the camera, through the side profile emphasizing a masculine jawline, and once again Adam’s apple making an appearance. In the last photograph from the right the subject appears to look smiley and breaks the contrast from an intense glare/ confident approach towards the photograph, though the subject doesn’t have the stereotypical and sturdy look of a masculine-like individual, the photograph still presents an open display of emotions (something that may have been demonstrated less in photography a couple of decades ago).
