Based on the theme of ‘OBSERVE, SEEK, CHALLENGE’

3 images that are documenting reality – ‘windows of the world’

 3 images that are staging reality – ‘mirrors of the world’.

A window is a resource that offers you a view into someone else’s experience. A sliding door allows the viewer to enter the story and become a part of the world. A mirror is a story that reflects your own culture and helps you build your identity.

Documentary– Windows

Realism-A way of thinking and acting based on facts and what is possible, rather than on hopes for things that are unlikely to happen.

Factual-Something that is factual is concerned with facts or contains facts, rather than giving theories or personal interpretations. 

Public– Public means relating to all the people in a country or community

Candid-. free from reservation, disguise, or subterfuge; straightforward.

Ewen Spencer

Ewan Spencer’s work is primarily of youth and subcultures which I find fascinating and appropriate for my age group. His work started as he photographed shows from their first UK tour onwards, including candid backstage photographs. He has now mostly moved to capturing the ‘grime’ music scene in London. I like how how much these photos are rich in detail and almost make the viewer feel like they are there at the scene. Although I would like my photos to differ slightly as they display the mayhem and emotions that you feel in that scene by using a longer exposure to show more blurry and hazy pictures which make the viewer feel more 1st person as if they are there amongst all the people.

Tableaux– Mirrors

Romanticism– Romantics celebrated the spontaneity, imagination, and the purity of nature. Along with these elements it also incorporated a deep feeling of emotion as an authentic source of experience which put new emphasis on emotions such as apprehension, horror and terror, and awe.

Fiction– A fiction is a deliberately fabricated account of something. It can also be a literary work based on imagination rather than on fact, like a novel or short story. 

Staged– Contrived for a desired impression. It was a staged, rather than spontaneous, demonstration of affection. Something that has been ‘set up’ manually to create a certain message.

Sarah Jones

I have been particularly drawn to the work of Sarah Jones due to the fact she focuses on topics such as art history, as psychoanalysis, adolescence, and the Victorian period. This interests me as It is easy to replicate myself around the topic of adolescence, loneliness and confusing surrounding he topic of ‘growing up‘. Jones enjoys photography for its capability to scrutinize something, freezing a moment to look more closely at it. Her work is also Jones’ images are narrative in nature, and she is interested in how a narrative is constructed. I also would like to take into consideration, the format in which Sarah Jones photographs. By using the square format of a standard 150 x 150 cm, this makes this photos unique as they are a specific shape and size.

I also like this aspect to her photography and I think I would enjoy attempting to replicate these photographs. I would put them into this black and white format.

Editing Practice.

In Adobe Lightroom, I have experimented with black and white editing, whilst having a beige/yellow tint to it, In case I decide this is the approach I would like to take when editing my photos. This has helped me to develop my skills when editing. However, I think the photoshoot I may go with is the Sarah Jones work on adolescence and identity as I feel this is easier to convey a story through my work.

Be creative and use this opportunity to experiment with ideas or approaches to image-making that you might want to extend further in your Personal Study. The expectation is that you make a set of images during the lesson using the school environment (inside or outside) creatively. The photographic studio is also available where you can explore different ideas using different lighting techniques…Rembrandt lighting…Butterfly lighting…Chiaroscuro…reflected light…coloured gels etc.

Photoshoot 1 Planning–

I would like my two female models to pose in similar poses and I would like to do a photoshoot that gives a feeling of darkness and miserableness as this is the feeling I feel Sarah Jones’ work conveys. For this I am choosing my two friends to pose in settings such as bedrooms, living rooms and bathrooms around my house. I want my photos to differ from Sarah’s work slightly and I want them to be less bright and eye-catching, and more deep and meaningful through lighting.

I have chosen to have a blue tint to my photos as sadness has been associated with blue since the 1600s around the world.  blue represents sadness or melancholy, which is why I’ve chosen it to further portray my narrative and tell my story about isolation and loneliness.

For Example, In Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’ The main colour of blue helps to show the intention of the picture of as the meaning can be derived from the large cypress tree which is a symbol of graveyards, mourning, and death. This helps to encapsulate the essence of human emotion and creativity. Van Gogh used the different blues in the sky to show his emotion. I found this information from the quote ‘The vibrant blues are a common colour during his bouts of mental illness.’

Photoshoot 2 Planning–