Other work by Keith Dotson

windows

Windows into the mortality of being.

Paul Caponigro

Keith Dotson

mirrors

A mirror in to the fragile beauty of life.

Ralph Gibson

Robert Mapplethorpe

windows shoot.

I’m going to go out and get some pictures of trees mainly focusing on dead ones and maybe get some of abstracts of leaves on the floor depending on how damp they are cause if they are mushy it wont look brilliant. I’m going to look for mushrooms whilst I am out as they don’t have a very long lifespan. I will also look for weeds that have pretty flowers though it might be the wrong time of year or this.

mirror shoots

I’m gonna buy some flowers and use some that we already have in a vase at home and stage them to look romantic I may even get my father to hold some. And I may even experiment with shutter speed.

I am going to ask a friend if she would pose for me as we like late-night walks and especially in cemeteries

What are the differences between photographs that are windows and mirrors?

As stated by John Szarkowski, in 1974, in an essay he wrote that accompanied the exhibition, “is it a mirror, reflecting a portrait of the artist who made it, or a window, through which one might better know the world?.”

Key words associated with:

Mirrors: tableaux, subjective, romanticism, fiction, personal, warped, reflective, manipulated.

Windows: documentary, depictive, objective, realism, public, candid, straight, external.

Identifying windows and mirrors.

The below image is a window, it allows the viewer of the image to see the world around the boy and the influences that affected him. This photo was taken by Diane Arbus and is titled The boy with the toy hand grenade. It was taken in central park in 1962. The boy in the photo is Colin wood, according to a 2005 article by the Washington Post, written by David seal, Colin has no recollection of having his picture being taken. Colin told Segal that he wouldn’t of posed like this unless he where asked and he recons he was imitating what he saw in war movies. It is likely that Colin was out with his nanny when Arbus came a cross him and grabbed a few shots, due to this it is very much like a documentary image and can be seen as an image reminiscent of the decisive moment.

Final layout

Evaluation

All together I believe this was successful. The photos are ordered I away that the themes of the photos run smoothly running from living beings to geometrical photos, to more abstract images. I do wish I could of spent more time down at the harbour or maybe had a more concise plan for when I was at the harbour.

Organising the photos

I had a gorgeous image of the steam clock down at the harbour. Where there is a load of negative space in the top left corner which would be nice to put the title in. I bleed the image over the border to completely fill the page as it is one of my best photos as well it was an obvious choose to go as the cover page.

I tried to place this portrait next to the image of the dog, keeping the image of the dog small as to over shadow the meaningfulness of the portrait.

However, this didn’t work so I mover the dog to the next page. I toyed with the idea of putting a quote in the blank page, but I like the way all the focus is on the portrait.

For this one I spread this one I spread the image over two pages to highlight the in focus part of the photo, I tried to bleed the image over the edge. However, it cropped it too much and didn’t seem quit right, so I kept the white border.

I decided to try placing two images on one pages, as seen below. on the page can be see a pair of waders and a tied off cleat.

I then decided I hated this and removed image of the cleat completely. I then shrunk both images and lined then up on each page so they were then centred.

However, having both images small and centre looked an little clunky so enlarged the image of the waders.

Title

I wanted to keep the title simple. I settled on ‘St Helier harbour.’ This was an nice choice as it is broad and covers all images.

I lined the title up so it sat in the centre of all the negative space I placed it on its side so it ran upwards with the chimneys and the mast. and placed my name underneath.

I chose a font that was reminiscent of a typewriter as it sat nicely with the angles on the front cover image.

STORY: What is your story?

• 3 words

Sea – Shellfish – Sold

• A sentence

Fisherman go out to sea and catch shellfish that is then brought back to land and sold.

• A paragraph

The fisherman drive down to the harbour, going past the towering steam clock, down to the pier. Rummaging through the equipment and going through the daily checks. Making sure that there is a first aid kit and fire extinguisher on board and reporting back to the coxswain. As the engine rumbles to a start, they radio in through the VHS, coast guard give the ok that they are aware of their leave. The vessel chugs out of the port and around the dolphin, headed to towards their destination. The salt water pricks at their faces, wave after wave breaking against the hull. Throwing her into neutral and rushing to the side. They hook a buoy, hoisting it up to grab on to slimy rope, the sea tugging to reclaim its kin. Emptying the pots, listening to the shells clack and clash, securing them for the trip back, accompanied by the smell of oil and fish the trip back long anticipated, sore backs and hands desperate for some relief, though relief was a far long dream. Tanks filled with creatures, claws bound ready for slaughter, to be sold. The drive home is tiering and filled with the dread of the doing it all again another day.

The chosen photos

edits

For this shoot I really enjoyed focusing on taking abstract photos instead of romanticised or straight on photos.

For this photo, I brightened it up by highering the exposer. I did not want to straighten this one as all the angles and corners create a topographical image

This photo did not need to be altered however I did not like it in colour. The black and white adds some gravitas to the image.

favourites

This shoot was most definitely a success. I came out with a multitude of photos which could of been used in the zine and in other projects however my favourites were.

This is one that I find better than the others. the day was cloudy so the ambient light wasn’t blinding. I find that the black and white accentuates the deep meaningful look on his face. He is framed by the arch and the door frame which makes for a nice compassion angling the focus towards him.

Evaluation

This photo shoot was incredibly successful. I really enjoyed going out and taking photos of things I wouldn’t of thought of, and meeting people I wouldn’t of normally met.

Selections

I managed to narrow it down to 14 images that I found to be the best from this shoot.

Editing

I have cropped this image to centre the painting, the point of the roof is not centre to the photo, however, the flag pole balances it out. I have also cut our some of the negative space in order to have the focus not only on the building but on the painting.

For this one I lowered the exposure to give the image more depth.

For me, a black and white photo can create more emotion with in the viewer. The building in the middle is the jersey rowing club, it is also the old life boat station. The slip is where the first lifeboat, the Howard Davis, was launched from. By lining up the rowing club in the centre through the barrier and the boat it is like a window to the past.

favourites

This is one of my favourites from this shoot. the dolphin is in line with the breakwater and the horizon and creates a nice even line across the images that is only broken by the ?. There is a lot of negative space with the brightness of the sky which creates a nice contrast to the darker colour of the sea.

Evaluation

This photo shoot was fairly successful however I would of liked to be more creative with my photos. A lot of what I took was very straight on and a bit more classical. I would like to go back down on a less windy day.

About the island

Zakynthos is a Greek island in the Ionian sea. it is a major tourist destination with gorgeous beaches with crystal clear beaches, and the Zante strip drawing loads party people to the designation.

The island is home to 2 million olive trees which are turned into olive oil on island which can be found in a any store. The beaches are nothing like those that are found in jersey and are perfect for snorkelling, with an abundance of saddle seabream, mullet and the odd cuckoo wrasse and maybe even a octopus.

The island has been through many occupations including the romans and the Germans during ww2. However the Zante joined the Ionian islands in 1864, the year the Greek flag was raised.

Photos

After speeding a week on the beautiful island that is Zakynthos, and experiencing the town, the beaches and the food, and a couple of days in Liverpool, I have come out with some beautiful photos.

ZANTE

LIVERPOOL

Best Picks

As with any photoshoot there are favourites.

This photo, for example, this photo. It is a statue of Dionysios Solomos who was a Greek poet from the island and is considered Greece’s national poet. This feel majestic with with the ways the yellow and blue of the sky compliment each other and the negative space of the pavement and the sky help to make it feel spaced out more that it is.

Experimentation

I experimented with this picture of my dad sat on the side of the road, in photo shop.

I layered an semi-transparent dark blue over the to then removed elliptical shapes. I then created a layer of light blue over the top of both layers and, again, removed elliptical shape from that layer. Making sure the him and his hat are visible through the gaps.

Cropping images can alter an photos meaning. By changing the focus you can create a new photo, which in many cases this could make a photo better.

By cropping this image to have the line of focus go from the dive platform to the water to the beach, then town and then the sky,

With this one I have brought the bottom of the photo to the the barrier. By doing this I have made uses of the sky, to make the towers and cranes stand out.

Cropping can also alter the way a photo is perceived. This photo below is already quit elegant and ethereal.

However, when the model is put in a circle crop the viewer and focus in on her and their mind can explore the possibilities of who she is and where she is from.