For this edit I wanted to keep the green grass and the orangey tone in the background as it contrasts very well with the lighter sage coloured moss on the broken branch. I just adjusted the exposure to bring out the colours in the photo and then used the other adjustments to balance the images colouring.
Edit Two
Edit Three
Final Images
Evaluation
From this photoshoot I had three good photos, I found I liked these three photos as they all had a lot of textures and showcased the damage caused by the storm on a small woodland area. I like how all three have the same tones and colours, this was because I made a conscious effort to match the colours when editing I think this helps keep the idea that all three photos were from the same location which was important as I wanted to show how much damage had been caused in only a tiny section of the island. I don’t however think this is a very strong photoshoot as I don’t think it captured the intensity of the damage nor are the photos particularly in a romanticism style. I have redone this shoot in a different location as I did like the textures created by capturing the fallen trees as I think that does provide some context of the severity of it and creates interesting photos but I chose a location I could compose the photos differently and showed a wider expanse of land.
An artist I have decided to research for photomontage is David Hockney. Brno Del Zou is a French artist who started his series ‘photo sculptures’ where he took a picture of his model and rearranged their features to make a new image.
Brno Del Zou said that the concept behind these sculptures that he does it to “use the fragmentation of the body in order to better understand it”.
I choose these three image as my final pieces I think the middle image is the strongest due to the very der5ama split lighting which makes the model appear very intimidating and as if she is very powerful.
femininity vs masculinity
I choose these for my mascinity and feminity due for the one on the left having multiple means with playing into the idea of how wen are strong and woem are weak vunerable emtional men dont cry but women do. Then the image on the right i tried to show the differences between the masculine body and the feminine body by showing off female curves which is quite a stereotypically feminine trait and then have more stereotypically male traits like muscles. And more strong features with vein
Landscape is the visible features of an area of land often with an aesthetic appeal, and could be anything from natural to urban landscapes.
When did landscape emerge as a genre?
In western civilisations landscape emerged as a genre in the 16th century during the renaissance era. However it can be tracked even earlier in ancient China.
When did classical landscape emerge as a genre?
Classical landscape emerged in the 17th century and was influenced by classical antiquity, which means the culture and art of ancient Greece and Rome, and was used to illustrate Arcadia, a mythical, legendry place in ancient Greece known for its beauty.
How did the Landscape genre become popular?
During the late 18th century Romanticism started becoming increasingly popular in Europe due to the end of the French revolution and the increase in industrialisation. Romanticism has a large focus on nature, hence causing landscape genre to become increasingly popular.
Ansel Adams was an American landscape photographer and environmentalist born 20th February, 1902 and died 22nd April, 1984. He is mostly known known for his photography capturing black and white landscape images. Adams favoured sharp focus in photographs and advocated for photographers to use the full tonal range in their photographs by helping found ‘Group f/64’. He also developed the ‘Zone System’ with Fred Archer, which is a technique of determining optimal film exposure and development.
The camera equipment Ansel Adams used to take his most well known photos were with 8×10 and 4×5 view cameras. He also used other types of equipment such as 35mm and medium format roll film through less common formats (Polaroid type 55 and 7×17 panoramic cameras).
During Adams early childhood, he experienced the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, in which the aftershock led to him breaking and scarring his nose, with it remaining crooked for the rest of his life. He was interested in playing the piano at age 12 and taught himself to play and read music. Once visiting Yosemite National Park in 1916 with his family, his father gave him his first camera during the stay. Adams enjoyed the beauty of nature since he was a young age, and he would explore landscapes such as beaches and sea cliffs.
Zone System
Developed by Ansel Adams and Fred Archer, the Zone System is a photographic method of determining optimal film exposure and development. This system assigns numbers beginning from 0 and ending at 10 to different values of brightness. These brightness values typically include 0 representing pure black, 5 (V) representing middle grey, and 10 (X) representing pure white.
Visualisation
A principle of the Zone System is Visualisation, which is when a photographer manages to capture an evocative and eye-capturing photograph which involves the consideration by the photographer of where the camera is placed, which lens is used, and possibly the movement of the camera.
The artwork (called “Noon”) clearly presents as the central focus on the three horses pulling what appears to be a large “farm wagon” across the river from the cottage on the left. The people presented in the off centre look like some sort of workers if not labour for the individuals that live in the well established cottage. The artwork can also highlight the social class of the subjects, even though there are not any “higher class” individuals present in the image the house speaks for itself as it can show that the house is in a higher position than the individuals therefore it stands in a higher class compared to the workers opposing the household.
Information of the artwork:
Originally called Landscape: Noon.
The image can depict a rural scene on the River Stour between English Counties Essex and Sussex.
Is one of most popular and greatest english paintings as well as being regarded as “Constable’s most famous image”.
Willy Lott Cottage still survives practically unaltered, but none of the trees in the painting exist today.
reflections on water, the shadows beneath the willows, the smells, the sounds – while waiting for a bite.’ Constable wrote of a “painting of a mill” by Jacob van Ruisdael, that he could ‘all but see the ells [eels]’ in its water. ‘The most famous of all Constable’s statements was sparked/adapted by the topic of fishing.
In 1821 the younger John Fisher wrote, mentioning that he had been up to his middle in a fine/ deep New Forest river and as happy as a ‘careless boy’. He caught two pike and thought of John Constable. In reply, John Constable produced an amazing sequence of free sensory cooperation:’
“The sound of water escaping from Mill dams… Willows, Old rotten Banks, slimy posts, & brickwork. I love such things… As long as I do paint I shall never cease to paint such places….“
I am going to try to recreate his romanticism and landscape photos.
As well as taking photographs the storm that affected jersey and here are some of the examples I am going to go off.
Adams inspired me because he takes nature into a different perspective and I want to recrate the aesthetic beauty that he used to capture in photography and see how I can analysis his photos to do the same with mine.
Areas to visit and document…
cliff-paths
beaches
sand dunes
fields
country lanes and paths
woods
valleys
SSI
One of the key techniques that Adams applied in many of his images was to place the horizon about two-thirds of the way up the frame. This would mean the composition was biased in favour of the landscape rather than the sky.
So I am going to apply this and many of his techquines to try and replicate similar photos to Adams.
Ansel Easton Adams was an American landscape photographer and environmentalist known for his black-and-white images of the American West
Ansel Easton Addams was born February 20, 1902 in Western Addition, San Francisco, California, United States, he went on in his life to marry and have three children, he died April 22, 1984 (the same year as his wife) at age 82 years old at Bariatric Surgery Centre at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, Monterey, California, United States.
Addams grew up in a wealthy family in the sand dunes of the golden gate, at 4 years old Addams was nocked over in the aftershock of the large earthquake and fire in 1906 and broke his nose, this created his very distinct appearance as he broke his nose so bad it formed differently.
Interestingly enough this tragic accident is partially what we have to thank for his major contributions to the world of photography. his misshaped nose, naturally shy nature and to an extent, his genius lead Addams to become a bit of a social outcast within his years of schooling. Addams moved schools a lot throughout the years not only because of his inability to fit in but it is also suspected that he was diagnosed as ‘hyperactive’ it is also speculated he would be diagnosed with dyslexia in the modern day. Eventually after his farther grew tired of constantly moving Addams from school to school he decided the he and Addams Aunt would tutor him. This is when Addams love for nature and photography really developed.
A year after the earthquake the family lost their fortune in the global financial crisis in 1907, his farther then spent all his life fruitlessly attempting to rebuild what they had. As Ansel mum gave birth to Ansel in her forties and Ansel’s farther was over two decades older than his wife both parents were on the older side when Ansel was still a teenager, this lead too his mother becoming increasingly obsessive over what they would have to leave behind for their son once they both inevitably passed. After the financial crisis she feared she would have nothing to leave her son and had limited time to rebuild their once fortune. The Addams were typically a very conservative house-hold both socially and emotionally, with the combination of his much older farther, his mothers maiden sister and the affluent family history the house hold could be considered a typical Victorian environment. This all combined definitely effected Ansel in his later life. Ansel’s farther however was very supportive of him and all his endeavours and extremely patient with Ansel’s slower ability to learn and his failures in typical schooling.
Ansel’s childhood was unmistakeably different from kids his age and this allowed him to cultivate the deep love for nature he carried with him throughout his life, he was found outside more often than not during this period either going for hikes across the dunes or long walks in the wilderness near his home.
At twelve Ansel picked up the piano and leant how to read music, he became extremely accomplished at this and by 1920 it was his intended profession but eventually Ansel realised his true passion was I photography, despite giving up on piano the years of discipline and commitment helped thoroughly with developing Ansel’s creative vision and inspired him to write influential and educational literature later I life.
in 1927 Addams created his first visualised photograph, this set off a passion in him, the switch from pianist to photographer was rapid as Ansel discovered a passion for capturing what he envisioned in his ‘minds eye’.
Monolith, The Face of Half Dome, 1927 by Ansel Adams
this is when he became acquainted with Albert . M Bender , his influence was immediate and the next day after their first encounter Albert was in the process of helping Ansel with the publication of his portfolio.
Albert supported Ansel financially and physiologically as his passion grew and fundamentally changed Ansel’s life forever with his encouragement.
Addams travelled wide and far during not just his summers but throughout the year climbing mountains and going on week long hikes with all of his heavy camera equipment just in attempt to capture the perfect picture
The zone system
The Zone System assigns numbers from 0 through 10 to different brightness values, with 0 representing black, 5 middle gray, and 10 pure white; these values are known as zones. To make zones easily distinguishable from other quantities
The Zone System is a photographic technique for determining optimal film exposure and development, formulated by Ansel Adams and Fred Archer. Adams described the Zone System as ” not an invention of mine; it is a codification of the principles of sensitometry, worked out by Fred Archer and myself at the Art Centre School in Los Angeles, around 1939–40.”
visualisation
Visualization is a simple technique that you can use to create a strong mental image of a future event. With good use of visualization, you can practice in advance for the event, so that you can prepare properly for it. And by visualizing success, you can build the self-confidence you need to perform well.
Group f/64
Group f/64 or f.64 was a group founded by seven 20th-century San Francisco Bay Area photographers who shared a common photographic style characterized by sharply focused and carefully framed images seen through a particularly Western viewpoint
The name of this Group is derived from a diaphragm number of the photographic lens. It signifies to a large extent the qualities of clearness and definition of the photographic image which is an important element in the work of members of this Group.
group f/64 was a loose association of California photographers who promoted a style of sharply detailed, purist photography. The group, formed in 1932, constituted a revolt against Pictorialism, the soft-focused, academic photography that was then prevalent among West Coast artists.
His Influence On Others – His Legacy
Ansel Adams work is still universally admired throughout the work and has inspired many amazing photographers throughout the years a couple key mentions are:
Wyn Bullock – Wynn Bullock was an American photographer whose work is included in over 90 major museum collections around the world. He received substantial critical acclaim during his lifetime, published numerous books and is mentioned in all the standard histories of modern photography.
Edward Weston – Edward Weston (born March 24, 1886, Highland Park, Illinois, U.S.—died January 1, 1958, Carmel, California) major American photographer of the early to mid-20th century, best known for his carefully composed, sharply focused images of natural forms, landscapes, and nudes.
in both their photography you can see a clear use of Ansel Adams zone system and Ansel’s style of very exposed black and white photography.
To create these photos I went to various areas within St Ouen and took photos of things such as pathways and man-made building which are amongst the natural landscapes.
Contact sheet:
During my photoshoot I took over 100 photographs of different exposures (over, under, neutral) so that I am next able to combine them using the HDR option in Adobe Lightroom classic to create photos similar to Angel Adams.
I edited these images using the same method which I used during my previous blogpost where I used the HDR option in Lightroom to merge three images together to create a more intense contrasted version.
Final photos:
Analysing:
This first photo was taken in Saint Ouens area on quite a rainy day which added a darkness to the clouds. This is a successful image as it has very bright areas as well as very dark which was my aim in order to create a similar effect to Ansel Adams. I like how the foreground of the photo consists of many fine details for example the tree branches and the windows, whereas the upper half of the image consists of a simple yet effective empty space with only the darkness of the clouds. I find this allows the photo to be nice to look at as there is not too much going on bringing the viewers attention to each area. The intense dark clouds create a feeling of the sublime as it makes the clouds and weather appear extremely powerful and makes you almost intimidated by it as it has a large amount of control.
Other photos:
Experimentation
I decided to also edit one of my photos in colour so I am able to compare the black and white version with the coloured one to see which style I prefer. The coloured version has a completely different feeling to it in comparison to the black and white. It doesn’t produce the feeling of the sublime as it doesn’t make you feel intimidated in the way the black and white photo does with the dark and intense clouds and weather. Instead this one produces a happy tone as the weather appears to be sunny and all the colours within the photo are bright and saturated. I find the coloured one interesting as through increasing the saturation colours which weren’t there before start to appear creating almost a new image.
Virtual gallery
I created a virtual gallery using the website ‘Artsteps’. I added a simple black frame with a white border to each of the photos and made two photos the same size and I made the main photo larger.
A small portion of my photos were taken in France and I think they are linked with Ansel Adams quite because of the use of his mountain photos.
Colour to Black & White:
I edited these images on photoshop by going to adjustments and then black & white. from there, I was able to adjust the different colours with the scale. this meant that I could make some parts of the photo look darker and some look lighter. i like the ones where the snow is very clear and visible because it means i could have a very bright white which would be considered a rating of 10 on Ansel Adam’s Zone System.
Final Images
Storm Damage:
For this photoshoot, the focus was on the storm that hit the island in November 2023. the impact of strong winds resulting in a tornado reached speeds up to 186mph and resulted in major damage to jerseys homes and nature. thousands of trees were downed or damaged, a lot of attractions were closed due to the impacts and most importantly people lost homes.
My photoshoot was focussed in St Clements where the storm hit badly and my focus was on the trees that were damaged but I also took some of various buildings. I focussed on forest areas such as La Blinerie which is a lane that is along side the golf course. I also photographed some of the golf damage as well.
I think I could’ve done better by going further around the island for damaged as I only focussed on where I live so I didn’t get all the damage. I think also it would’ve benefitted me if I had taken the photos earlier on as by the time I began taking photos, the damage had already began being cleared.
