My Photoshoot plan is to take images in the style of Cindy Sherman and go to different locations to take the photos and to wear many different outfits and do different makeup looks to get the idea of different stereotypes of women. The locations that I go will be linked to the locations that Cindy Sherman used for her photos, so that the photos look like they are in the style of her work. I will also take some photos in my house and in my kitchen to get the photos that Cindy Sherman took in her house.
The photos that I’m going to take I will change into black and white so that the pictures will be more realistic to Cindy Sherman’s work.
Claude Cahun
For my Claude Cahun inspired photoshoot I’m going to wear outfits that are seen as neither feminine or masculine and taking pictures in locations that are similar to were Claude Cahun took her photos and also the locations that she took her images in.
I’m going to try and recreate the outfits and looks that Claude Cahun did and try and use similar props to what Claude Cahun used. For Example for the first photo I’m going to use a mirror and use the pose that she uses in the image to replicate the photo. I’m going to make some of these photos black and white and the ones that have colour I’m going to keep in colour to get the photos more exact to Claude Cahuns photos.
Cindy Sherman explores femininity by dressing up in many different costumes and wigs and then did many different makeup looks to create these different feminine characters to show the vulnerability of women.
In this image Cindy Sherman is seen posing in front of her mirror with her jacket over her shoulder, this pose shows her being vulnerable as her back is shown through the reflection of the mirror. The colour in this image is in black and white and her black dress is showing her femininity.
The meaning behind Cindy Sherman’s photography is to emphasise the many roles women have and that they have to cook and clean and be a housewife but then women have to be this desirable person for there husbands as well and her photography expresses these many roles that women should have. Cindy Sherman has said herself ‘When I’m shooting, I’m trying to get to a point where I’m basically not recognising myself. That’s often what it’s about.’ The quote suggests that the whole point of her photography was to create these stereotypes that didn’t look like Cindy Sherman at all and looked like a completely different women.
Barbara Kruger
Barbara Kruger does lots of poster type images with slogans and quotes that represent her ideas. Barbara’s images look at femininity and masculinity.
The contrast between the black and white image and the red and white writing makes the slogans stand out on the image so that the writing is clearly presented to the person viewing her work.
The meaning behind Barbara Kruger’s photography was to express the many stereotypes of women and her photography and slogans often exposed women for things that they might of been insecure or conscious of.
Claude Cahun
Claude Cahun’s photography was very surreal and was about very realistic, raw pictures. Claude Cahun’s photos only had her in the images and a lot like Cindy Sherman she dressed up in different clothes that were seen as neither feminine or masculine and did many different makeup looks to create these stereotypes.
The shape of the chair in Claude Cahun’s photo almost makes her look royal and important. The contrast between the shadows and the white top she is wearing makes the stereotype of the woman she is trying to be stand out and become more visible to the person viewing her image.
The meaning behind Claude Cahun’s photography was to explore gender identity and the subconscious mind. The outfits that she took her photos in were designed to be neither feminine nor masculine which made her photography so unique and different because she was exploring being neither gender. Claude Cahun was not originally called Claude Cahun, she used to be called Lucy Schwob this shows that she changed her name to be Claude which can be either a women’s name or a mans name. Claude Cahun’s hair also got shaved off from her being captured by German’s and being put into a concentration camp which makes her not look feminine and explores the idea of her not being feminine or masculine. The quote from Claude Cahuns book from The Gardian says “No, I will follow the wake in the air, the trail on the water, the mirage in the pupil … I wish to hunt myself down, to struggle with myself.” This quote suggests that she wants to go through all the struggles of her career and learn and fail and try again to get to be successful.
How identity can be influenced by places or belonging
A persons identity can be influenced by where they live and if that particular area has a positive or negative image. The positive or negative image of the place that someone lives in can have an affect on the peoples identity around them aswell.
Gender Identity
Children from a young age who are told whether its appropriate or inappropriate for them to participate in activities because they are a girl or a boy tend to keep these teachings in their adult life which can influence their view on gender identity.
Cultural Identity
The physical environment can affect someone’s cultural identity because they might feel a sense of belonging and community ties to there environment.
Social Identity
Social Identity is affected by many internal and external factors such as family, ethnicity, race and culture.
Geographical identity
The connection to a place or an environment or a physical space is essential to our identity and can play a crucial part in shaping our identity and self perception.
Political Identity
Factors such as family, education, media and peers influence political lenses that frames ones perception of political values, ideas and attitudes.
Loss of Identity
Peoples backgrounds and the way they were brought up can affect the attitudes and beliefs people have on themselves and how they make decisions.
According to Ferdinand de Saussure, binary opposition is the system by which, in language and thought, two theoretical opposites are strictly defined and set off against one another. Using binary opposites can often be very helpful in generating ideas for a photographic project as it provides a framework
Good vs Evil Black vs white
peace vs war Man vs women
Masculinity and Femininity
Femininity
Qualities or attributes regarded as characteristics of women or girls. Women after world war 2 were expected to stay in and cook and look after the children. They were often seen as weak and not powerful and less than the man
Masculinity
Qualities or attributes regarded as characteristic of men or boys. The man was suppose to go out to work all day and earn the money for the family and he was seen as the powerful one in the family and who supports the family.
Culture Wars
Culture wars are cultural conflicts between different social groups and struggle for dominance and there values, beliefs and practices.
This is my favourite photo because of the contrast between the outline and the red colour in the background as it makes the shape a lot clearer and stand out better. The colour in this image is bright red in the background and then the blue light that is shining on the model contrasts against the dark shadow from the head.
These are my best photos because the lighting and the contrast between the bright coloured lights and the models faces look the best. The shape in the first image is my favourite because the outline of the head is sharp and clear and gives a very defined shape.
Diamond Cameo
This is my Diamond Cameo for headshots and the headshot photos have to be facing all different directions they are not just headshots were the model is facing the same direction.
Ole Christiansen a Danish photographer who graphically emphasised landscapes which reflects in his portraiture. Ole has over the years provided pictures for a myriad of books, magazines, record covers and annual reports.
Henry Mullins is one of the most famous photographers represented in the jersey photo archive. He produced over 9,000 portraits of islanders from 1853 to 2873 at a time when the population was about 55,000. The most famous type of photo that was printed by henry Mullins was the diamond cameo, which was 4 headshots cropped in to an oval shape and displayed into a diamond shape.
The three types of prints Henry Mullins did was the receipt print which was a small rectangle and was printed on to very thin paper. The second type of print was his most famous the diamond cameo which was 4 headshots cropped into an oval shape and displayed on the paper in the shape of a diamond. The last type of print was a bleached headshot and its multiple headshots with the colour fading from the head.
Butterfly lighting is a technique where the studio light is placed directly in front of the model so it creates a butterfly shape underneath the nose and gives defined cheekbones. Its also known as paramount lighting named for Hollywood glamour photography.
The importance of Butterfly lighting?
The butterfly lighting technique was used to take portraits of some of the most famous Hollywood actors. The photography technique creates a dark shadow underneath the neck and on the cheeks to make the model look thinner and leaner.
Image Analysis
The colour in this image is black and white and the contrast between the bright light in front of the model and the black background gives contrast which gives the photo a much more dramatic look. The texture of these photos is quite blurred, by having the light directly in front of the model it covers up the blemishes on the models face and covers up the imperfections.
My response
My best photo
This photo is my favourite because the shadow under the nose and on the cheekbones best showcases the butterfly lighting technique and the contrast between the green jumper and the dark shadow on the face gives a really nice contrast.
Chiaroscuro lighting is a high contrast lighting technique that utilises a low key lighting set up to achieve contrast between the model and a black background.
The importance of chiaroscuro ?
Chiaroscuro is important as it looks at the contrast between light and dark and emphasis and illuminates important figures in a painting or drawing.
Image analysis
Chiaroscuro uses colour in this image by contrasting black and white light. The form of this image is 3D and there is a pattern of striped light on one of the example images. The space of the images is the depth perception. 3D objects are defined by the three spatial dimensions of height width and depth.
My response
My best photo
This is my favourite photo because of the contrast between the dark background and the highlights from the light. The colour from the green jumper also gives a nice contrast between the dark background which highlights the eye.
Rembrandts origin came from the Dutch painter. Rembrandts lighting technique is where he has a spot light at a 45 degree angle to the side of his model and the shadow from the light creates a triangle on the side of the face that does not have the light on it. This creates the triangle and it lights up the other eye making it become more visible.
This technique makes the models face brighter and highlights the eye to give the image a more interesting complexion.
Photo Analysis
The model is having their photograph taken on a black background, and the colour from their faces and their clothes contrasts against the black background and it gives a vibrant bit of colour. The form of these photos are all 3D and the texture is trying to represent the texture of one of his paintings but his photos all have a clean look.
