“In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience if a form of exploration” – Ansel Adams

Adams was born in the Fillmore District of San Francisco, the only child of Charles Hitchcock Adams and Olive Bray and died April 22, 1984 (age 82 years), California, Untied States. He turned into named after his uncle, Ansel Easton. His mother`s own circle of relatives got here from Baltimore, in which his maternal grandfather had a a hit freight-hauling business however misplaced his wealth making an investment in failed mining and actual property ventures in Nevada. Adams`s first photographs have been published in 1921, and Best’s Studio started out selling his Yosemite prints the next year. His early photos already confirmed careful composition and sensitivity to tonal balance. In letters and playing cards to family, he wrote of getting dared to climb to the best viewpoints and to brave the worst elements.

Ansel Adams, America’s most beloved wilderness photographers, shunned romanticism to reveal the raw beauty of the outdoors. Ansel Easton Adams, arguably the most famous pioneering modern nature and landscape photographer.

Clearing Winter Storm, Yosemite National Park

Clearing Winter Storm, Yosemite National Park, California is a black and white photograph taken by Ansel Adams, c. 1937. It is part of a series of natural landscapes photographs that Adams took from Inspiration Point, at Yosemite Valley, since the 1930s. This picture of a clearing and spent winter storm was taken on a day in early December. The storm, first of heavy rain and then turning to snow, began to clear around midday so Adams drove to New Inspiration Point, a place where he had taken many pictures and which gave this breath taking view of the Yosemite Valley. I love the way the image is set and how everything is so detailed and has so many different shades of grey and black. During the years in Yosemite there was an almost continuous opportunity to monitor the changes light and weather moods, hilly and mountainous regions regularly experience spectacular weather conditions. Such conditions however are often very fleeting and there is rarely the time to arrive at a suitable location for a photograph and set up the bulky and labor intensive 4 x 5 in or 8 x 10 in view cameras.

Zone System

The 11 zones in Ansel Adams’ system were defined to represent the gradation of all the different tonal values you would see in a black and white print, with zone 5 being middle grey, zone 0 being pure black, and zone 10 being pure white.

Even though the Zone System is over 80 years old, it is still relevant today whether shooting modern films or digital capture. This article is for photographers wanting to learn more about the Zone System for their particular workflow.

Group f64

On November 15, 1932, at the M. H. de Young Memorial Museum in San Francisco, eleven photographers announced themselves as Group f/64: Ansel Adams, Imogen Cunningham, John Paul Edwards, Preston Holder, Consuelo Kanaga, Alma Lavenson, Sonya Noskowiak, Henry Swift, Willard Van Dyke, Brett Weston, and Edward Weston. 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.

Ansel Adams: Inspiration and Influence

Ansel Adams inspiration and influence is curated with the aid of using Drew Johnson, curator of images withinside the artwork branch and current winner of a California Book Award provided with the aid of using The Commonwealth Club for his book Capturing Light: Masterpieces of California Photography, 1850 to the Present (Norton, 2001). This exhibition is important, Johnson says, because “It locations Adams withinside the context of the records of images, specially West Coast images. Adams changed into strangely informed approximately the paintings of different photographers, each his contemporaries and that of 19th-century pioneers. This inspiration and have an effect on turns into obvious while his photos are studied next to the paintings of others.”

Cynthia Morris Sherman (born 1954) is an American artist whose work consists primarily of photographic self-portraits in which she depicts herself in various situations and in various imaginary ways. Her ground breaking work is a series of 70 black-and-white photographs of her performance that evokes typical female roles in media (particularly art house films and popular B-movies). It is believed to be a collection called “Untitled Film Stills”. In the 1980s, she used colour film and large prints, focusing on costume, lighting, and facial expression. Sherman was born in Glen Ridge, New Jersey in 1954, the youngest of five children of Dorothy and Charles Sherman. Shortly after she was born, her family moved to Huntington Township, Long Island. Her father worked as an engineer for Grumman Aircraft. Her mother taught reading to children with learning disabilities. Sherman said that her mother was very well behaved and that her father was strict and cruel. She was raised in an episcopal manner.

She challenges her audience to think about the fluidity and malleability of identity by subverting traditional gender roles. Her photographs invite us to consider how society shapes and imposes gender norms on individuals. Cindy Sherman’s work questions images and the authenticity of the self.  To create her images, she assumes the multiple roles of photographer, model, makeup artist, hairdresser, and stylist. Whether portraying a career girl, a blond bombshell, a fashion victim, a clown, or a society lady of a certain age, for over thirty-five years this relentlessly adventurous artist has created an eloquent and provocative body of work that resonates deeply in our visual culture.

Sherman works in collection, and every of her our bodies of labour is self-contained and internally coherent; but there are issues which have recurred during her career. The exhibition showcases the artist`s person collection and additionally provides works grouped thematically round such not un usual place threads as cinema and performance; horror and the grotesque; myth, carnival, and fairy tales; and gender and sophistication identity.

Sherman`s ground-breaking pictures have interrogated issues round illustration and identification in current media for over 4 decades. Since the early 2000s, Sherman has built personae with virtual manipulation, shooting the fractured experience of self in current society—a problem the artist has uniquely encapsulated from the outset of her career. As critic and curator Gabriele Schor writes on her method, `Sherman`s complicated evaluation of her face and her diffused employment of expression shows that the running technique of creating up and costuming the self allows processes: an intuitive and fluid method stimulated with the aid of using curiosity, and an meant method whose stimulus is conceptual and which has a ‘problem matter’.

Cindy Sherman’s photographs is a perfect example of femininity because it shows how girls are and what they normally do. For example the image above shows Cindy Sherman is looking at herself in the mirror and getting ready which is what girls love to do. And the last image shows that she is cooking which is also connected to femininity because back in the days women’s would always be the ones cooking and sometimes till this day its still same.

FEMININITY MIND MAP

MASCULINITY MIND MAP

Culture war

A culture war is a cultural conflict between social groups and the struggle for control of their values, beliefs, and customs. This generally refers to issues where there is disagreement or polarization of social values ​​across society.

Identity politics

Identity politics is when people of a particular religion, race, social background, class, or other identifying element form exclusive social political alliances and support political movements apart from broader coalition politics. It is a term that describes the political approach pursued. A special quality of identification with them. Its purpose is to support and focus on the concerns, agendas, and projects of specific groups in line with specific social and political changes. The term was coined in 1977 by the Combahee River Collective. It was popularized in the early 1980s, and was used in countless cases over the next few decades with completely different meanings depending on the context of the term. It has become more prominent with the rise of social activism and is present in various conversations such as feminists, the American civil rights and LGBT movements, disability groups, some nationalist and postcolonial organizations, such as the Black Lives Matter movement. Politics has a huge impact on our daily lives because it directly affects the world we live in.

Social identity theory posits that people strive to achieve and maintain a sense of positive uniqueness in their group membership (Tajfel & Turner, 1986). Positive uniqueness means feeling valued and different from other groups. However, the downside is that it can lead to social pressure and out-group prejudice. Outgroup bias affects attitudes and negative behaviours toward people who are not seen as part of a particular group identity. This can lead to stereotyping and exclusion. Furthermore, a shared ingroup identity can be created directly by increasing the importance of an existing shared parent membership (e.g., team, school, company, nation) or category (e.g., student) or by introducing elements. It can be achieved. Membership (i.e., a common goal or destiny).

Tribalism refers to the possession of a strong cultural or ethnic identity that separates members of one group from other groups on the basis of strong proximity. Tribe members tend to have strong identities. Psychologically, people feel safe and secure when they feel part of something bigger than themselves, but tribalism excludes individuals and groups and denies them rights, status, and independence. If used for this purpose, it can have very negative consequences. Tribalism is defined as a social phenomenon related to the identity of members of one or more competing communal groups who seek to protect and promote their interests in a political system. Relevant community factors may include language, culture, race, religion, and/or shared history.

There are loads of types of identity such as:

Cultural identity – Cultural identification refers to a person`s experience of belonging to a specific lifestyle or group. This system entails mastering approximately and accepting traditions, heritage, language, religion, ancestry, aesthetics, wondering patterns, and social systems of a lifestyle.

Social identity – Social identification is the part of an individual’s self-idea derived from perceived club in a applicable social group.

Geographical identity – An person or group`s feel of attachment to the country, region, city, or village wherein they live. The key traits with which a selected country, region, city, or village is associated.

Political identity – Political identification is a shape of social identification marking club of sure organizations that proportion a not unusual place conflict for a sure shape of power. This can encompass identity with a political party, however additionally positions on precise political issues, nationalism, inter-ethnic members of the family or greater summary ideological themes.

FEMININITY:

Femininity is the set of attributes, behaviours, and roles commonly associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as socially constructed and there is also evidence that certain behaviours considered feminine are influenced by both cultural and biological factors. The extent to which biological and social femininity is influenced by femininity remains controversial. It is conceptually distinct from biological sex and female femininity, as all humans can exhibit feminine and masculine characteristics, regardless of gender and gender. Traditionally considered feminine traits include grace, gentleness, and empathy, modesty, and sensitivity, although the traits associated with femininity vary between societies and individuals and are influenced by different cultural and social factors.

MASCULINITY:

Masculinity is the set of attributes, behaviours and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can theoretically be understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some behaviours considered masculine are influenced by both cultural and biological factors.

The extent to to which masculinity is biologically or socially influenced remains controversial. It differs from the definition of biological male because anyone can display masculine characteristics. Standards of masculinity or masculinity vary across cultures, subcultures, peoples, and historical periods. Traits traditionally considered masculine in Western society include strength, courage, independence, leadership, and assertiveness. As women’s participation in the workforce increases, some men feel less comfortable with their masculinity because it becomes increasingly difficult for them to reaffirm their status as breadwinners.

BINARY OPPOSITION: Is the system of language and/or thought by which two theoretical opposites are strictly defined and set off against one another. It is the contrast between two mutually exclusive terms, such as on and off, up and down, left and right.

common stereotypes of women:

Women are expected to be slender and graceful, while men are expected to be tall and muscular. Both men and women are expected to dress and groom themselves according to their gender (men wear pants and short hairstyles).

Personality traits — For example, women are often expected to be accommodating and emotional.

Domestic behaviours — For example, some people expect that women will take care of the children, cook, and clean the home.

Some people are quick to assume that teachers and nurses are women.

Common stereotyped of men:

Men are expected to be tall and muscular. Both men and women are expected to dress and groom themselves according to their gender (women wear dresses and make-up).

Personality traits — For example, men are usually expected to be self-confident and aggressive. Men on television are less likely to show emotions compared to the female characters, including empathy.

Domestic behaviours — For example, men take care of finances, work on the car, and do the home repairs.

Occupations — Some people are quick to assume that pilots, doctors, and engineers are men.

MOODBOARD

FEMININITY MOODBOARD

MASCULINITY MOOD BOARD

These are all the photoshoots I took.

This is how the stupid was set when we did the headshot photoshoot.

Below are some images of the photoshoot that I took and the edited version of those images.

These are the top 2 favourite photoshoots that I liked more.

I love the way its set and the colours in the image.

what is headshots?

means that the portrait photo is cropped somewhere in the middle torso – so that the focus is on your face.

To take photoshoots for headshots you can either use:

Flash Lighting:

Camera settings (flash lighting)
Tripod: optional
Use transmitter on hotshoe
White balance: daylight (5000K)
ISO: 100
Exposure: Manual 1/125 shutter-speed > f/16 aperture
– check settings before shooting
Focal length: 105mm portrait lens

or, Continuous Lighting:

Camera settings (continuous lighting)
Tripod: recommended to avoid camera shake
Manual exposure mode
White balance: tungsten light (3200K)
ISO: 400-1600 – depending on how many light sources
Exposure: Manual 1/60-1/125 shutter-speed > f/4-f/8 aperture
– check settings before shooting
Focal length: 50mm portrait lens

The deadpan aesthetic

The term “Deadpan” first appeared in print in 1927 in Vanity Fair Magazine, which combined the terms “dead” and “pan,” a colloquial term for a face, to create a noun. It was introduced as an adjective by the New York Times in 1928 to characterise Buster Keaton’s artwork. A deadpan aesthetic is a technically flawless shot with a straightforward, center-focused composition that captures a person, a landscape, or a still life. The background is typically neglected, neutral, and sterile, or it has a single primary topic (a face, a mound of clay, a mining tower, etc.); this does not apply to conceptions that are more sociologically oriented.

Passport Photos

The UK government has a specific list on what passports must include, this can be found on the UK government website.

FACE:

• eyes must be open and clearly visible, with no flash reflections and no ‘red eye’
• facial expression must be neutral (neither frowning nor smiling), with the mouth closed
• photos must show both edges of the face clearly
• photos must show a full front view of face and shoulders, squared to the camera 
• the face and shoulder image must be centred in the photo; the subject must not be looking over one shoulder (portrait style), or tilting their head to one side or backwards or forwards
• there must be no hair across the eyes
• hats or head coverings are not permitted except when worn for religious reasons and only if the full facial features are clearly visible
• photos with shadows on the face are unacceptable
• photos must reflect/represent natural skin tone

BACKGROUND:

Photos must have a background which:

• has no shadows
• has uniform lighting, with no shadows or flash reflection on the face and head
• shows a plain, uniform, light grey or cream background (5% to 10% grey is recommended)

enry Mullins started working at 230 Regent Street in London in the 1840s and moved to Jersey in July 1848, setting up a studio known as the Royal Saloon, at 7 Royal Square. Initially he was in partnership with a Mr Millward, about whom very little is known. By the following year he was working alone and he continued to work out of the same studio for another 26 years.

For a brief period in the 1860s he also worked in London, but judging by the collection of his photographs which is now held by La Société Jersiaise, he found plenty of willing sitters in the island prepared to pay half a guinea (promoted as “one half of that in London”) to have their portrait taken by him.

Diamond Cameo:

The patent diamond cameo photo was taken by F.R. Registered. London windows of 1864. On a diamond-shaped business card he arranged four small oval portraits, each portrait of the same person taken in a different position. A special Dallmeyer camera is used, and each time he takes a portrait he takes one piece of glass. His negative is moved to a new position on the back of the camera, and after gluing the paper print onto the card, a special press is used. and made a hole. The four portraits together form a convex cameo shape.

Henry Mullin’s famous images:

His speciality was cartes de visite and the photographic archive of La Société contains a massive collection of these. Their on line archive contains 9600 images, but the majority of these are sets of up to 16 photographs taken at a single sitting. In those times even 10s 6d was a substantial sum to pay to have one’s photograph taken, and included among his subjects are many of the island’s affluent and influential people, including Dean Le Breton, the father of Lillie Langtry.

He was also popular with officers of the Royal Militia Island of Jersey, for whom it was very popular to have portraits taken, as well as of their wives and children, for the more senior and more affluent officers. The pictures of these officers show clearly the fashion for long hair, whiskers and beards in the mid-1800s. Indeed, so similar is their appearance and so stylised the portraits, it is very hard to detect much difference between a large number of officers of the same rank and social standing.

Lighting is a key factor in creating a successful image. Lighting determines not only brightness and darkness, but also tone, mood, and atmosphere. Therefore, it is necessary to control and manipulate light correctly in order to get the best texture, vibrancy of colour and luminosity on your subjects.

Hard light is a concentrated, bright light that casts strong shadows and draws attention to specific areas of a photo. With hard lighting, the transition between light and shadow becomes very difficult and distinct. When a subject is exposed to strong light, its silhouette casts a sharp, harsh shadow.

Soft lighting is a type of light with few hard shadows that’s bright yet balanced. In soft lighting, the transition between the light and the shadows is more of a gradient and much smoother.

Warm lighting/cool lighting

Warm light, characterized by reds, oranges, and yellows, is often used in photography to evoke feelings of warmth, comfort, and intimacy. Just as warm colors in art and design can create a feeling of comfort and energy, warm light in photography can enhance the emotional impact of an image.

Cold light is the most common colour temperature of natural light, as it exists from about 1 hour after sunrise to about 1 hour before sunset. This colour temperature is fairly neutral.

“When I’m making a portrait, even when I’m doing my research and I have in my head and idea of what I might create, I’m thinking very carefully about building trust. Respect is very important to me. And so I hope there’s like a level of dignity in the way that they’re represented in the photographs. It’s all very much tied together.”

Alys Tomlinson is a British photographer born in 1975 (age 48 years), Brighton, and hove, United Kingdom. Alys studied English Literature and Communications at the University of Leeds. After graduating, she moved to New York for a year and was given her first commission for Time Out, before returning to London to study photography at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design. She recently completed a part-time MA in Anthropology of Travel, Tourism and Pilgrimage (Distinction) at SOAS, University of London, which ties in with her long-term, personal project about pilgrimage.

Below are some of Alys Tomlison environmental portraits:

I chose Alys Tomlinson out of all the other artist as an inspiration because I love the way she takes photoshoots and how eye-catching each image is.