Selected photos

Below are the images from the photoshoot I selected based off of how good/successful I felt they are and ones that best fit the decisive moment. n.b. Some of the photos I selected may have been taken by Tama as we were taking photos together.

Edits

For this photo above I made the photo black and white except for the subject (Tama) and the house in the background, this makes the photo more interesting than the whole photo being in Black and white.

Edit 2

For the photo above of the man on the roof I cropped the photo to make him more lager and centred as well as applying a black and white with a higher contrast, as Henri Cartier-Bresson’s photos are in black and white and I wanted to incorporate his style. I decided to go a step further and add a Vignette which gives the photo more depth and tone and in my opinion makes the photo look a lot better.

Edit 3

For this photo of the lady sitting on the stairs I did selective colour for the lady to make her stand out as the subject of the photo as well as providing a contrast to the whole image being in B&W, I also cropped to image to make her look closer in the photo.

Edit 4 & 5

I edited this photo of the pigeon by cropping it to make the pigeon more bigger and centred as well as making the background black and white so that the pigeon stands out. I also added a vignette which isn’t incredibly noticeable but creates depth, it works really well on black and white candid photos. I like this photo as I try and be a bit different by capturing the deceive moment for the pigeon instead of just for people.

Edit 6 & 7

In the photo above of the man looking at the parking meter I experimented with blur by adding a Gaussian Blur in the background and made it black and white. I added a vignette and lowered the saturation of the person and the parking meter to make the colours blend in with the background more.

-Choosing a final image-

Henri grew up in a wealthy family, he was initially into art with him starting to paint at just five years old. in 1927 he went to a boarding school called the Lhote Academy which was ran by a cubist painter and sculptor called André Lhote. Henri Described André as his teacher of “photography without a camera.”

In 1929 Henri Cartier met Harry Crosby who had an interest in photography and gave him his first camera and they would take photos together, which was the awakening of his photography legacy and gave him an interest in it.

His work

The Decisive Moment

One of the things Henri was famous for was coming up with the concept of the decisive moment, He described it as “There is a creative fraction of a second when you are taking a picture. Your eye must see a composition or an expression that life itself offers you, and you must know with intuition when to click the camera. That is the moment the photographer is creative, oop! The Moment! Once you miss it, it is gone forever.”

In summery Henri is basically saying the decisive moment is the moment in candid photography when the composition is all perfect and you take the photo which can never be naturally re-created again, making it a once in a lifetime photo.

Image Analysis

The photo which Henri Cartier-Bresson took was at the Gare St.Lazare train station in 1932 and captures a man trying to jump over a puddle. The photo uses the rule of thirds, with the man jumping over the puddle being in the last third of the image and the man standing in the background being in the middle third of the image.

The photo is in back and white and contains no colour but there is still good a contrast between black and white, especially in the reflections in the water. Furthermore the Water also gives the bottom half of the image a smooth texture which contrasts with the top of the railings in the background, as the top of the railings look quite sharp and pointy.

There is a bit of shape in the photo. The roofs in the background create a triangular shape which makes the photo more interesting to look at compared to if the roofs were flat. The railings/fences in the photo create diagonal lines which gives the photo a bit more depth. They also help distinguish between the foreground and background of the photo.

I compiled my final images from the last few topics and placed them in a virtual gallery to simulate what my photos would look like in a real gallery as a way of presenting them.

Over Easter I went on multiple walks around St.Helier and St.Savour and took photos which show Anthropocene (the human impact on the planet)

Below are the photos I flagged as pick as they are the ones which visually look the best, look the most interesting and best show the theme of Anthropocene. I will also be choosing my final images from these photos.

-Edits-

For the photo above I wanted to enhance the sunset to add an element of beauty and romanticism to create a contrast from the anthropocene side of the photo. I did this by slightly increasing the contrast and increasing the colours by using the graduated filter in Lightroom to increase the vibrancy in the sky.

For this photo I took I enhanced the reds in the photo to make them look more deeper and eye catching. I also made small adjustments the the lighting to make the photo look better.

I Just made small changes for the photo above mainly to enhance the sky by making it look nicer as it contrasts with the smoke being released in the photo. What I like about this photo is the trees in the photo contrast with the man made chimney in the photo as it shows nature vs humanity.

In the photo above I also changed the sky to make it look more bolder and more colourful as it makes the photo more eye catching. I also increased the contrast and shadows as it improves the lighting in the photo because it was a bright day when I took it. Lastly I made the temperature in the photo more cooler as it creates more effect in the photo and makes the photo look less dusty and dry.

Final Images

Above are my final images I took which I thought best fit the theme of Anthropocene and look the most interesting and engaging. After that I narrowed it down to my top three by choosing the most visually appealing and ones that stood out to me the most for no apparent reason.

Out of all my Anthropocene photos I’d chose this as my best outcome. It was a hard choice as I liked all of the photos I selected, but I could only have one. I chose this photo out of the other ones because it combines anthropocene, agriculture and romanticism into one photo which I like about it.

My final photo is also similar to my artist reference as both our photos focus on an overgrown area with a few buildings in the horizon. The lighting is also similar in the photo as both photos capture the evening golden hour light. However the sky in my photo is a lot more colourful creating a bit of contrast between the two photos.

-Analysis-

My photo was taken of some development work going on in an abandoned field and aims to capture the impact humans are having on the area of land.

My photo has a warm tone to it with the light being from the sunset which contains lots of deep orange and yellows which give the photo a warmer feel. This sunset and warm colours partnered with the nature in the fields in the background give the photos elements of romanticism.

The photo uses rule of thirds with the wheelbarrow being placed in the first third and the containers being placed from the first third to the middle in the centre of the photo, this draws attention to them to show the human impact on the natural field, while having the rest of the image on the right to see where the humans have flattened the land.

The photo doesn’t have many lines, but has some horizontal lines from manmade houses to show the horizon point in the background of the photo, which contrasts to the natural lines of trees and bushes which divides the fields below the horizon. There is also a contrast in texture between manmade and natural with the land the humans have flattened having a rough texture, compared to the soft grass in the field next to the one which has not suffered from the impact of humans (anthropocene).

What is AI?

Artificial intelligence (AI) is technology which causes computers and machines to simulate human intelligence by making decisions, learning and reasoning as well as creativity through image generation and processing.

It works by using learning algorithms to process and understand huge amounts of data and uses forward and backward chaining to come up with conclusions to answers.

Experimenting with AI on my Anthropocene photos

Neural Filters

Generative Fill

Making the photo I took look more Anthropocene like

Generative photo expansion

Image Generation

Below are the photos artificial intelligence came up with when I used the prompt Anthropocene in adobe Firefly.

It is interesting to see how Artificial Intelligence understands the topic anthropocene.

Joel Sternfeld began taking photos in 1969 and started taking colour photos in 1978 with a large format camera. Reflecting the current times, as in the 70s colour photography was starting to become common.

1987 Joel published his first set of work called American prospects which features mainly landscapes but also people and buildings from trips around North America he went on. This ended up becoming his most known work.

Joel Sternfeld + Anthropocene

Joel Sternfeld’s approach to his photography work is a documentary style, documenting what is going on with the land and people in North America. He said “The surface of the earth and what we do with it tells us an awful lot about ourselves” This relates to anthropocene as he is talking about the human impact on the world and how we have a large effect on it.

His work

I really like his photos and I feel like they have a good connection with landscape, the new topographics and anthropocene. I also feel the photos are interesting to look at, this could be because of the way they are composed or it could be the difference in the landscape compared to Jersey.

I chose Joel Sternfield as an artist reference because I like his work and approach to photography, such as his photos of overlooked areas such as industrial areas and the way his photos depict Anthropocene which is similar to the way I want my photos of anthropocene to be like.

Image analysis

This photo was taken of the high line in New York City which was an abandoned over ground train line which has now been turned into a park with the first section of the park opening in 2009. The Image has the abandoned overgrown trainline as the subject in the photo, with it being centred in the middle of the photo.

The old train tracks are used as leading lines to lead the viewer into the distance/horizon, also highlighting the length of the tracks. The railings on the edge also are implied leading lines which are used to create distance but also provide a contrast between the overgrown, abandoned trainline and the urban city.

The Lighting in the photo is natural soft light due to the clouds diffusing all the light, this means there is virtually no shadows due to the soft light and not a strong contrast in the photo between the light and shadows. The clouds also give the image a colder white balance as it makes the sky a white/grey colour.

There is also a contrast between texture as the overgrown grass gives the abandoned tracks a soft texture, especially towards the middle of the photo. However the urban buildings contrast with this and the dark red brick creates a rough texture, this may be to further show the contrast between the abandoned trainline and the urbanisation in New York.

Anthropocene is the time which humans are having a substantial impact on our planet -basically the influence human activity is currently having on the planet.

The causes of Anthropocene are: agriculture, urbanisation, deforestation and pollution.

How and why are photographers exploring Anthropocene?

Photographers are exploring Anthropocene by documenting the impact humans are having on the planet. They are doing it to spread awareness and educate people on the damage we are causing to the earth. This is because Anthropocene causes Global warming, habitat loss, destruction of natural habitats and extinction.

The Anthropocene Project

Edward Burtynsky, a Canadian photographer, helped create the Anthropocene project, with Nicholas de Pencier and Jennifer Baichwal. The project aimed to investigate the human influence and the future of the planet. They did this by responding with photography, film and augmented reality.

Mood board of photos from the Project

Mind map

Virtual Gallery

I selected some of my final images and edits, as well as other images I like which I took, and placed them into a virtual gallery as a way of showcasing the photos I took for the new topographics.

I went on a photo walk around Harve de pas and La Collette. Afterwards I continued the walk and went around fort regent and pier road. I took these photos using a mix between a DSLR camera and my phone camera. In total taking 237 photos.

Edits

I edited this photo by cropping and rotating it, so it was more centred. I also increased the sharpening to make the image look more clear, and I made minor adjustments to the temp and contrast to improve the overall image.

I like this photo as I feel like it does a good job at depicting the industrial landscape due to the objects in the photo, like the metal fence and metal thing in the middle. Furthermore I am also pleased with the Lighting in the photo as there aren’t too many shadows and the lighting is consistent throughout the photo with no incredibly dark or light patches.

I also made an edited copy of the photo in Black & White in the editing style of John Schott’s topographic photos. I feel that the photo also looks good like this.

Photo edit #2

The photo above I took of the landscape of St.Helier and shows urbanisation. I like the way there is a church in the middle of the photo surrounded with buildings, it really captures the urban sprawl and is a good anchor point for the photo.

I edited the photo to improve the contrast and exposure, as the contrast wasn’t the best. I also cropped the image to make the church more centred and the image more level. After some small changes to the image levels and tones I felt it looked much better and less bland.

Photo edit #3

For my third edit I am going to experiment with creating a high dynamic range (HDR) photo. To start I got the three photos I took using exposure bracketing.

The Camera lens was a bit dirty when I took these photos so I removed any marks with the spot remover tool. I am really pleased with how the photo turned out and I believe it looks much better now the Photo is HDR. I also feel the photo represents industrial landscape really well as it contains the incineration plant and the chimney in it with them being the main focus of the image.

Photo edit #4

I decided to edit this photo to enhance the sky as I wanted to improve its exposure, I did this by using the graduated filter. I also Removed any marks caused by the camera and made minor adjustments to the whites and blacks.

Evaluation

Out of editing all my favourite/best outcomes from the New Topographics, this photo below is my favourite. As it really shows the industrialisation which is a common theme in the new topagraphics. I also feel that the photo has an interesting feel to it as there is a lot going on in the photo, architecture wise.

I struggled to choose between this edit or the one in black and white, but after careful consideration I felt that the colour looks more better in the photo compared to it being in black & White.

Analysing the photo I took

In the photo the technical elements are not really important, but the lighting is good and there are no badly lit areas making all the photo easier to see. The temperature is also on the warmer side which is helped by the way the sun was shining when I took the photo.

The colour in the photo is mainly beige and grey/silver which can be seen as being quite dull, reflecting on what people see industrial architecture as. The blue of the sky almost creates a contrast, brightening the photo up and making it look less dull, as I feel if the sky was overcast the photo would probably look quite depressing and gloomy.

The photo has a variety of lines with horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines, however there are no leading lines. The texture and pattern in the photo are quite evident as on the left the silver structure is kind of shiny helped by the vertical lines which wrap around it creating depth. on the right there are the bricks on the building which are repeated across the building, creating pattern. The structure on the left, the metal fence in the middle and the bricks on the building on the left help give the photo a rough texture which fits in well with the theme of industrial architecture.

Next Steps

Next I need to focus on presenting my photos which I could do as a collage and/or a virtual gallery.

New Topographics was an exhibition, curated by William Jenkins, which consisted of contemporary landscape photography from the 1970s which focused on man altered landscapes instead of the traditional natural American landscape photography. For example post war urban landscapes commonly car parks, industrial sites, urban housing and caravan parks, rather than completely natural landscape. Sometimes with a contrast between the man altered and natural landscape.

New Topographics was a reaction to the post war American landscape, changing from natural to more urban, and showing a contrast to natural landscape photography such as the work of Ansel Adam’s, which which was dominating landscape photography at the time.

The photographers featured in the topographics were: Robert Adams, Bernd & Hilla Becher, Lewis Baltz, Joe Deal, Frank Gohlke, Nicholas Nixon, John Schott, Stephen Shore, and Henry Wessel Jr.

Some photos from the new topographics:

Industrial

After the war lots of industrial sites were being torn down and forgotten about as they were no longer needed, or being used.

Bernd & Hilla Becher were a married couple from Germany, who saw an interest in these buildings and their architecture. They didn’t want them to be forgotten about so decided to photograph them as a way of remembering and documenting the existence of these buildings. The couple even said themselves “It seemed important to keep them in some way and photography seemed the most appropriate way to do that.”

The couple would go around the buildings and take eight photos of the buildings, capturing all the corners and sides of the buildings. The photographed the building with a large format camera in the same way Ansel Adams would take his photographs.

The photos they took would be presented in a grid layout showing all around the outside of the building. The photos were also all taken in Black and white and the couple would have to wait for the weather to be cloudy so there would be contrast between the buildings and the sky because if it was sunny the sky would appear dark in the photos because they are in black and white. They also preferred taking the photos when it was cloudy because the light would be softer meaning the building would be photographed without strong shadows and with a more diffused light in the photos.