Formalism describes that the most important aspect of a work of art is its form, the way its made and its visual aspects, Formalism includes line, shape, form, texture, colour, size and depth.

Line – The lines on an image or whether the photo has leading lines or lines that guide your eye to the focal point.

Shape – How interesting the shape of the image is, has the photograph been taken at a specific angle to make it look more interesting.

Form – Is the photography 3 dimensional, how is the object displayed or positioned.

Texture – The surface of an object is it smooth shiny, rough. How can that be photographed to make it look as interesting as it can.

Colour – The composition of the photograph is one of the most important things of a photograph, it guides the viewer to wear you want them to look on the photograph and where the main focus of the photograph is.

Size – How do you take pictures of the object to make it look larger than it is or smaller than it is or making it look like the same size it is in real life.

Depth – How much of the photograph is in focus and how much of it is in detail. Is the main focal point of the image in focus and the background blurred to make the focal point standout .

By making the depth of field wider and decreasing the shutter speed it makes the propeller blurred and not in focus. By Increasing the Shutter Speed the propeller will become more visible and will be in focus.

This picture is very overexposed as there is too much light in this picture and where there is motion in the photo it has been blurred out due to the slow shutter speed. To make this photo not overexposed I need to make my aperture smaller by changing it to a higher f-stop.

This image is very underexposed as the picture doesn’t have enough light so the image is not visible. The shutter speed is so fast that the motion in the image looks like its frozen. To make this image not underexposed I would have to adjust the ISO by making it higher to give the image the light back.

Photography Research 

1) What is the etymology (origin & history) of the word photography? 

Writing with light 

2)What year was the first photograph taken with a camera? 

1826 

3)When did the first photograph of a human appear? 

1874 (Julia Margaret Cameron) 

4)Who made the first ‘selfie’? 

Robert Cornelius (1839) 

5) When did the first color photograph appear? 

1935 (Kodachrome) 

6)What do we mean by the word genre? 

A style or category of art 

7) What do we mean by the genre of still-life? 

An image that shows inanimate objects from the natural or man-made world 

8): What was the main purpose of the Pictorialism movement? 

To affirm photography as an art form 

9): How do we describe the term documentary photography? 

Capture images that truthfully portray people, places and events 

10) What is exposure in photography? 

The amount of light that reaches your camera’s sensor 

11) What controls exposure on your camera? 

Aperture, shutter speed, ISO. 

12) What control on our camera records moving objects? 

Shutter 

13) How do we explain depth of field? 

How much of your image is in focus 

14) What factors affect Depth of Field? 

Lens focal length shutter speed and lens aperture. 

15): What is composition in photography? 

The arrangement of visual elements within the frame. 

16)What is your understanding of aesthetics in art? 

Aesthetic qualities refer to the way and artwork looks and feels 

17) What are contextual studies in photography? 

To provide historical, cultural and theoretical understanding of images. 

18) How many images are captured on average every day worldwide? 

4.7 billion 

19): Which portrait is the most reproduced in the world? 

The Queen (Elizabeth II) 

• Define what still life is 
• Show examples of still life painting and photography 

• Include specific artist references and choose one image for analysis using matrix 
• Provide a chronological timeline of still life photography 

Then Answer 

• What is Vanitas? 
• What is Memento Mori? 

• What kind of metaphors and symbols are used in still life and why? 

Light – Shape- Shadow – Composition – Metaphor – Symbolism – Memento Mori 

What is still life? 

 The work of art that shows inanimate objects from the natural or manmade world typically containing fruit, flowers or gold candle holders often to show wealth.

Artist Reference  

Vincent Van Gogh was a Dutch impressionist painter. He created 2100 pieces of artwork including 860 oil paintings. This painting shows kitchen bowls and glass bottles which contrasts against the brown wood table, this still life painting done by Vincent van Gogh explores old artefacts and possessions that are important or have meaning to him. 

Chronological timeline of Leonardo Da Vinci still life Photography ?

1442- He was accepted into the painter’s guild in Florence at the age of 20 

1476- Accused of sodomy publicly humiliated  

1483- Paints the rocks  

1500- Returns to Florence  

1519- Leonardo Da Vinci Dies  

What is Vanitas? 

It’s a still life painting of a 17^th century Dutch genre containing symbols of death or change. 

What is Memento muri?   

An object that is kept for the reminder of inevitbility of death. 

What kind of metaphors and symbols are used in still life and why? 

Fruit – varying symbolism  

Skulls – The certainty of mortality  

Flowers – Symbol of life and growth