105mm, f/8, 1/6, ISO 200
Small
It is
difficult for the viewer to discern the size of an object in the scene unless
something else is also placed in the scene for comparison. In this image I
placed my miniature model of a piano on my real piano, so that the viewer can
get an immediate sense of the scale of the object. Once the initial idea was
decided, I spent time deciding on the composition of the scene. I placed the
model right at the bottom of the frame, so that it felt natural and grounded to
the viewer, and placed it at a contrasting angle to the real-life piano. Using
a vertical frame orientation allowed me to concentrate on the real piano keys
and the daylight shining through the blinds provide leading lines through the
scene. I used a shallow depth of field so that the real piano didn’t act as a
distraction from the main subject.
10mm, f/4, 4s, ISO 200
Large
The subject
for Large occurred to me quite
quickly, as it is somewhat of a local landmark. I knew that it was floodlit at
night, so this is when I decided to take the shot. The statue of the ‘Tin Man’
is on a large traffic island, and I took images from all possible angles around
it, also experimenting with different frame orientations, how much the statue
filled the frame, including and excluding traffic trails, and including and
excluding trees and street furniture.
In the final
chosen image, I used my wide-angle lens at it its widest setting and shot from
a close and low vantage point to exaggerate the proportions of the object. I
decided on a horizontal frame to better accentuate the tall structure, and
included a couple of trees and lamp posts to give a sense of scale. I decided against
adding more to the scene as I thought this would distract from the main subject
and the message I was attempting to convey.
70mm, f/4, 1/1600, ISO 200
Straight
I was out
taking photographs of sheep for the exercise 'Object in different positions in
the frame' in the golden morning light. I turned round to look over the fields
and noticed these tall strands of foliage standing proud of the surrounding
grass. I immediately thought that they could be useful as something straight
for the forthcoming assignment, and set my tripod down low to ensure I captured
the morning sky as well as the field behind, for context. An image taken where
the camera is looking down at the subject would have a distorted perception,
and would not have captured the idea of Straight
successfully. I feel that the low viewpoint, shallow depth of field, and the
direction and quality of the light entering the lens gives for a nostalgic and
dreamy feel to the image.
105mm, f/8, 2s, ISO 200
Curved
I had quite
a few ideas for curved objects, but decided for this image I wanted a literal
representation of Curved and opted
for a group of brightly coloured paperclips. Shot with a true macro lens, the
curves of the paperclips are exaggerated and really made obvious to the viewer
of the image. I chose to simplify the image by only focusing on two or three
paperclips, letting the others fade out of focus and create a colourful and
contextual backdrop. I experimented with the placement and compositions of the
subjects, and the three mostly in focus were chosen for their contrasting
colours.
105mm, f/16, 1/500, ISO 200
Liquid
Water was an
obvious choice here, with the main consideration being how do I represent the
water? Did I want a lot of water, or just a droplet? Did I want to 'freeze' the
water with a fast shutter speed, or create a smooth, milky texture with a slow
one? In this particular instance I opted to freeze the action, and for the
concept I had in mind I needed to gather together some props. This image is the
one I think that needed the most set up, but I do enjoy the end result. I
decided I wanted to capture the effects of water dropping into a glass bowl
which was also filled with water. I envisioned that I would be able to record
what happened under water, as well as the resulting splash. I experimented many
times with the placement of the bowl, using a syringe to create the falling
droplets. When I was happy with the composition of the image, I wanted a more
interesting backdrop, and looked around the environment for a brightly-coloured
object that I could place behind the scene. I found a magazine that fit the
requirements, and I also enjoy the connotations of the juxtaposition of water,
electricity and the resulting skull! I like the final image a lot; I would have
preferred to use probably double the shutter-speed that I did, but 1/500s is
the maximum flash synchronisation speed of my camera.
105mm, f/8, 1/60, ISO 200
Solid
Ice is the solid
counterpart to water; the challenge was how to compose and present the image to
be more interesting than just a pile of ice cubes. I again employed my macro
lens, and took a low viewpoint, in order to present a more interesting
composition that a top-down view. I used blue material as backdrop which I feel
complements the cold feel of the scene. It took lots of experimentation which
the scene to finally get a composition that I liked, but I think the final
image is interesting, especially the small details in the ice. The macro lens
has also blown the ice cubes up to mega proportions, so it almost seems as if
you are looking at icebergs rather than cubes!
105mm, f/8, 1/60, ISO 200
Smooth
'Smooth as
glass' is an oft-heard saying, and I chose wine glasses as the subject of this
image. After settling on an arrangement for the glasses, I chose a tight
composition, and arranged my angle of view in such a way that I captured both
the dark work-surface and the red wall behind, in proportions of 2/3 - 1/3,
like how I might position a horizon. The bright daylight streaming in from the
window behind created the reflections of the glasses that I was looking for,
which accentuates the smoothness of the material. I also softened the image a
little in post-processing to further enhance the smooth concept.
105mm, f/16, 3s, ISO 200
Rough
Rough was a much trickier concept to work
with than I imagined. After much thought, I eventually settled on my cat's
scratch post as the subject, but with such an ordinary object finding a decent
composition was difficult. I chose to focus close to accentuate the roughness
of the object, and at this magnification individual strands of the material can
easily be seen. I think a wider angle of view would not have brought the
viewer's attention to the roughness of the material as much as this viewpoint
does. I think the main interest in the image lies in the texture of the
material, and the contrasting shades of light and colour.
105mm, f/11, 2s, ISO 200
Transparent
I quite
quickly envisioned a light bulb for Transparent.
I tried numerous different compositions and backdrops before settling on the
final image. I wanted a close-up shot, but I wanted to be sure that the
curvature of the bulb glass could still be seen. I directed my camera to focus
on the reflection on the glass, not the filament inside the bulb. I chose to do
this as I was keen to keep the transparent glass as the subject of the image,
not necessarily the bulb as a whole. By keeping the focus sharp on the
reflection and keeping the curvature of the glass in the frame, it is very
obvious to the viewer that we are dealing with transparency. My final choice of
backdrop was plain black, as I think this presents an excellent contrast to the
grey/white reflections and details of the bulb, and also simplifies the scene,
ensuring the viewer’s eyes don't wander elsewhere.
52mm, f/5.6, 1/80, ISO 200
Opaque
Opaque was incredibly difficult to think of
a subject for, but when the idea finally came I thought it actually quite
obvious. Being Christmas time, presents naturally are wrapped or enclosed in opaque
material in order to preserve the element of surprise. In my image, there is a
small part of the 'gift' protruding from the bag; the recipient knows that are
getting a bottle of some kind of drink, but the particulars are kept secret by
the opaque gift bag. I positioned the bag at an angle to the camera to create depth
in the scene, and placed the Christmas tree behind for context; the viewer
knows they are looking at a Christmas present. I used a shallow depth of field
as I didn't want the brightly coloured background to be a distraction to the
viewer.
10mm, f/22, 1/20, ISO 200
Much
Using water
as the subject for Much and Little, I travelled to a nearby
reservoir. I took numerous shots as I walked the perimeter of this large body
of water, experimenting with different viewpoints, frame orientations, and
elements within the scene. I was using my wide angle lens and low viewpoints in
order to exaggerate the proportions of elements within the frame, particularly
the water, in order to emphasise Much.
I knew that I wanted elements other than the water included in the image in
order to show context and create a little more interest than just a body of
water. By the time I had taken this image the wind had picked up and it was
making the water quite choppy. This, along with the dramatic sky and the water
foliage combined to create the image I was looking for. I decided to convert
the image to black and white as I felt that from a creative standpoint it
enhances the drama, but also the isolation of the location in the image.
105mm, f/32, 20s, ISO 200
Little
The littlest
conceivable amount of water is a droplet, and this image is of a droplet on the
needles of my Christmas tree. This image needed quite a lot of set up. I used a
syringe to place the droplet of water onto the needles, but due to their waxy
coating it was very difficult to place a good-sized one; perseverance won in
the end! I wanted a colourful and interesting background, and what looks a very
out-of-focus flower in the background is actually a Christmas card, held at a
distance close enough to fill the frame, but far enough away to create just an
abstract, colourful background without any details. One of the biggest
challenges when making this image was accurate focusing to make the droplet
sharp. The camera was struggling to auto-focus as such a close distance, and my
attempts at manual focusing were unsatisfactory. Eventually I did get the
camera to auto focus; I then switched the camera to manual focus to lock the
focus while taking the shot.
18mm, f/5, 0.8s, ISO 200
Moving
For Moving, I wanted to experiment further
with shutter speeds as looked at earlier in the course. I used a sufficiently
long shutter speed to turn ordinary moving cars into an abstract image, while
the vehicles further away and the non-moving objects such as the road provide a
realistic and contextual framework; the viewer knows that they are looking at a
moving vehicle even though they can't see the vehicle in the way they normally
would. I like to use leading lines in my images, and in this one the Christmas
lights, the single yellow line, and the railing all converge to lead the
viewer’s eye through the scene.
300mm, f/5.6, 1/400, ISO 400
Still
I found Still a very difficult concept to turn
into an image. My thought process revolved around portraying something that is
normally moving in a motionless state. I brainstormed several ideas, and this
one was the idea I liked the best. Cars are normally moving, but one situation
in which they are stationary for often long periods of time is when they are
awaiting sale. I zoomed in close to the row of cars in order to remove
extraneous objects from the scene, and to bring attention to the price signage
on the inside of the windscreens. I also included a little of the cars either
side to inform the viewer that they are observing a row of cars.
10mm, f/4, 1/60, ISO 400
Strong
I wanted to
use this vehicle to portray Strong.
I did this as in other images by using my wide angle lens to exaggerate
proportions, and by adopting a low-down viewpoint. I wanted to really focus on
the large wheels, and all the metalwork around the cabin, which I think makes
this look like a strong vehicle. I chose a composition that included the
signage for context, and which showed the vehicle pointing towards the road, as
if ready to start hauling its heavy loads.
105mm, f/2.8, 1/6, ISO 200
Weak
Weak I felt quite a difficult concept to
visualise, but something being damaged or broken was an idea that stayed with
me. In the end I combined two ideas, that of 'broken' and 'fragile' to form my weak image. Eggs are known for being
fragile, and as they are weak they break easily under pressure. Rather than
just having an image of a broken egg, I included the hammer to essentially show
something weak being dominated by something strong. I chose a close crop, and
included more eggs in the background of the scene as well as a blue backdrop. A
very shallow depth of field was used to keep the viewer’s attention focused on
the broken egg. This was a challenging but enjoyable image to set up and
create!
55mm, f/8, 1/80, ISO 200
Light and Dark (Combined)
I noticed
the light streaming through the window and projecting onto the wall behind. I
initially thought this could possibly make a subject for 'light', but while
adjusting my position and casting shadows onto the same wall, I thought it
would be better suited for the combined image of light and dark. The image is
my silhouette when I am taking the photo, but it would not be particularly
obvious to the viewer. I could just as easily be tipping my cap or doing a
salute! I de-saturated the photo in post processing as I only wanted two
distinct and highly contrasting shades. This was an interesting image to make,
because unlike the other images, I wasn’t dealing with a physical subject, only
the effect of light and shadow.
Meeting the Assessment Criteria
Demonstration of Technical and Visual Skills
I feel that
my previous 'hobbyist' experience with photography has given me sufficient
knowledge of the workings of my camera and of exposure theory to concentrate
more on the creative side of this assignment, rather than the technical side.
I'm fortunate in that I have a wide range of lenses available to me, of which I
have used almost all of them to produce the images in this assignment,
selecting a particular lens for the effect I’m trying to create. One area that
I do want to improve in, and which I will be working towards is
post-processing. Many of my pictures were tweaked in Adobe Camera Raw, as I
have all in-camera adjustments switched off. Adjustments made to many of the
above images include exposure (rarely), contrast, clarity, highlights and
shadows, saturation, straighten, and crop. My adjustments at the moment are
very instinctive rather than based on solid knowledge on how a particular scene
‘should’ look, and I change settings until I’m happy with the resulting image.
I'm pleased with how I have chosen to compose my images, making use of both horizontal
and vertical frames, and using the concepts touched on in the course so far to
place objects within the scene.
Quality of Outcome
I'm happy
with the images I have selected for the assignment, although I have found the
time constraints of keeping to self-imposed deadlines very difficult. I’m used to
taking my camera out and taking photographs as they occur to me, whereas this
assignment (and the exercises), were about planning what to photograph and then
photographing it. I do find myself self-critical, and will often retake an
image if I find it unsatisfactory when viewing it on the big screen. I use the
lowest ISO possible where possible to reduce noise in the image, and try to use
quality (usually natural) light. Where possible, my images were taken with my
camera mounted on a tripod, and the shutter tripped with either an infra-red
remote, or self –timer in order to make the images as sharp as possible. Care
was taken in post-processing to improve the raw images that came directly out
of the camera, making adjustments for technical and/or creative reasons. I hope
the images I've selected communicate the chosen concepts satisfactorily, but
this is something I won’t know for sure until I receive my tutor feedback.
Demonstration of Creativity
Creativity
is the reason why I started this course in the first place. I felt I had hit a
creative brick wall, and was struggling for inspiration and how to push my
photography forward. This first assignment, applying abstract ideas to images
is just the thing that will help me achieve that. I am already working in a new
way, by actively seeking images instead of waiting for inspiration to come to
me. I do feel that my images are creative, as I strive to create something
different to the 'vanilla' look, and often use props and equipment to set up a
scene how I like it before shooting the image. Creativity is something I want
to improve on more and more as the course progresses.
Context
I do enjoy
reflecting on my work, and I think it helps to improve future images. One of
the most helpful things I find is reviewing other people's images on websites
such as Flickr, and seeing how I can put my own spin on it. As noted earlier in
my listening log, a visit to an art gallery also provided an opportunity to
think 'photographically'. I have also been reading Michael Freeman's
photography books, which are very helpful at introducing new concepts to me, or
new ways at looking at already-known concepts.
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