Photo Documentary - Work Diary

For my Photo Documentary project, I used "my life" as a theme when taking photos. I decided I was going to take photos over the christmas holidays, with no schedule, but just when I felt it would be a good time. They were taken on my phone, therefore I was using auto shooting mode, which I feel may have limited me a bit.

Here is my favourite image from my Photo Documentary project.

I like this because of the very large contrast in tones. The only light tones are the headlights and rear lights of the cars, and they take up very little of the image. The dark tones create a sense of negative space, with the lights being the only things visible in the image. I feel that the mood created in this picture is very dark, scary and creates a sense of ambiguousness; the meaning of the photo and what you view it as is open to discussion. I feel that the editing of this photo helped add to the mood. I took the image in colour, and it was already very dark, with very little light tones. I opened it in photoshop and converted it to black and white, using the maximum white setting, so that the headlights of the cars would light up the road slightly, rather than just glowing in the background. I then changed the curves, levels and brightness of the photo, so that the black became so dark it was negative space, and the headlights were light enough to create a very strong contrast to this.

This is my least favourite image from my Photo Documentary project.

I feel like this is a good photo on its own, as it is well composed, well lit and is framed quite well, but I feel it doesn't hold nearly as much meaning, mood or ambiguousness as most of the other images from my project. I feel like if I had taken a photo of the carousel with some people on it, it would have fit more into my project and carried more meaning. I also feel that if I had taken it from different angle, possible a worm's eye view or an extreme close-up it could have been much more dramatic, and could have possibly had a narrow depth of field, which would have focussed the person viewing the image onto the horse. For editing, I only used the burn tool briefly and did nothing else to it. Maybe converting this to black and white or changing levels, curves and colour balance would have made the image more effective.

If I were to do a photo documentary project again, I would try and plan it out a little bit more before taking photos, and narrow down my theme so I know exactly what to focus on. I would also want to take my photos on my camera, so that I can control the Shutter speed, Aperture and ISO settings.

Movement - Work Diary

For my movement photoshoot, I decided to focus on using long exposures in order to capture lots of motion blur. To use these long exposures, I needed a very narrow aperture, so i stuck at f22 or narrower for the entirety of the shoot. This the depth of field was very wide in the images taken.

This is my favourite image from my movement photoshoot.

I like this partly because of the framing. I feel that the car in the image is positioned well; it looks like it fits with the rule of thirds composition rule, therefore, your attention is drawn towards it. The fact there are not any other cars apart from far off in the background also helps in drawing your attention to the car in the foreground. Additionally, I felt that there was the right amount of blurring on the moving car; I used an exposure of only a couple of seconds, so that the car would remain recognisable but will be blurred enough to create an effect of fast motion.

This is my least favourite photo from my movement.

While this does show motion, I feel that there is not a lot of interesting motion happening in this photo. I

also don't like how much the background has moved, which was due to camera shake. If I had used a shorter exposure, or put the camera on a tripod, there would be no camera shake, or at least a lot less. 

I also feel that the person who was waving the light could have tried to create a more recognisable shape, as that would draw the viewer to the image more than the shape that was drawn.

If I were to shoot movement again, I would bring a tripod when i'm going out to shoot, as that would have helped combat camera shake. I would also try and find more candid forms of motion, that were not directed to move for the picture e.g. people walking through the town, cycling and vehicles.

Depth - Work Diary

For Depth, I took photos on two separate days, on one day taking some photos in the studio as well as photos in public on both days. During these photoshoots, I focused on capturing narrow depth of field, and changing where the focus points were.

This photo is my favourite of the photos I took out in public.

I like this photo because it clearly presents depth through a narrow depth of field. This image also presents both saturated colours and muted colours, creating a contrast in colours as well as a contrast between dark and light tones. The contents of the photo present a contrast in moods, as the flower represents summer, whereas, in the background, there is a brick building that creates a contrasting mood to the flower. The focus point has been set well, as only the branch with the flower on it is in focus, and all of the bushes behind it are out of focus.

This is my least favourite of the photos I took out in public.

 

 

 Although this image shows depth through a narrow depth of field, there are other aspects of this photo that I don't like. I feel like it could be framed badly; some of the bench is not in the frame, and it is not quite in the center of the image. There is also a person in shot, who has half of his body out of the shot. Finally, I feel that the background was not very interesting, and should have been the part of the image that was out of focus, as I feel the wooden bench would have created an interesting texture if it was in focus.

Below is my favourite photo from my studio photos.

 

I like this because it displays a subtle but clear use of depth. While it doesn't create a dramatic narrow depth of field , you can see that the camera is sharply in focus, while his face is only slightly out of focus, therefore, attention is drawn to the camera. Also, with the focus point being at the front of the image, we are drawn to the first thing we see. I also like the way this photo has been framed; the subject is neatly placed into the middle of the frame.

This image is my least favourite from my studio depth shoot

I feel like the subject held the camera to closely to his face, therefore, both the camera in his face are in focus, and there is little depth shown. I feel that there is also a lack of other formal elements used in an interesting way, meaning the image just shows a very small amount of depth between the camera and the subject. This photo may have benefitted from being taken closer to the subject to further defocus the background, and being taken from a different viewpoint would have given it a difference from the rest of my studio depth photos.

If I were to shoot depth again, I would try and look at taking photos in a certain place, but changing where the focus point is and what is in focus, which is something I only touched on lightly. I would also bring in some props for the studio, and try and get some depth images in there from different viewpoints.

Texture - Work Diary

For my texture photoshoot, I walked around my college and surrounding areas, and kept an eye out for rough or worn textures. I took some of natural rough textures, and others of man made objects that had been worn out over time.

This is my favourite photo from my texture shoot.

I like this photo because everything seen in the frame has an interesting texture. Also, the narrow depth of field means attention is drawn to the rock in the middle, which was my attention. There are a mixture of textures in the photo; there are smoothed out textures with some rough blemishes on the rocks, whereas the edge of the stone pot they are in shows a very rough texture, with clearly lots of bumps and
different stones poking out of it. I also like the fact there are lots of dark tones and muted colours.

This is my least favourite image from my texture shoot.

I didn't like this photo because I feel the texture was not very interesting to look at; it has some visible marks though is not clearly very rough or smooth. I also feel the background is distracting, as there is a large plant in it which draws your attention away from the texture which is in focus. I don't like the reflection it casts on the bin either, as it also draws attention away from the marks on top of the bin, which we are supposed to be looking at. Additionally, I don't feel that there are any other formal elements prominent in the photo to make it more interesting.

If I were to shoot texture again, I would attempt to take some texture photos in the studio, as I feel it would be interesting to try and capture some textures in controlled conditions and I feel that it would expand my knowledge and skill with the topic.

Joiners - Work Diary

For my photo joiners, I did three photoshoots, as i planned to create three joiners. For each joiner, I went to a location I wanted to capture and took pictures of it while moving the camera across and then lowering it, then repeating until the camera was at a low viewpoint.

This is my favourite of the three joiners I made.
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I like the fact a person was used in the image, as it creates an interesting form that you can manipulate to create a very broken up and distorted joiner image. I also liked the fact you could see past the studio background, as there are more things to the side of it that created interesting broken up forms. I feel that this added variation to my set of joiners, as it was the only one which involved people and was taken int he studio. I think this joiner benefited from me not using a tripod as I was able to physically able to move the camera and get different viewpoints.

This is my least favourite of the three joiners I made.

I didn't really like this photo joiner as much as the others. I think that the place i took it was not particularly interesting, as it didn't have a lot of complex structures that could be warped by the joiner. Also, I feel that i should have physically moved the camera to capture the images, as I used a tripod and simply turned where the camera faced, and I feel this resulted in a lack of different viewpoints.

If I were to create photo joiners again, I would try to experiment more with capturing people in my joiners, which I only did in one joiner. I would like to try incorporating props with the people in my pictures to try and create a few different visible pictures within the joiner.  

Pattern - Work Diary

For my pattern photoshoot, I went to an urban environment as I thought there might be lots of man made patterns there. I also found some natural patterns on the way to the town. Lots of my photos are images of patterns in floorings and walls.
This is my favourite image from my photoshoot.

This photo shows a man made pattern. I like it because the metal bars that the pattern is made up of also show texture as they are dirty and show some dark tones. I also like the narrow depth of field shown in the photo; the middle of the pattern is in focus but the rest is out of focus. The background behind the pattern is also out of focus, so attention is drawn to the pattern. Finally, there are a wide range of colours shown around the pattern, and some darker tones in the background.

This is my least favourite image from my photoshoot.

I don't think this shows pattern very well; it's too disorganised for my liking, as i prefer a pattern that shows symmetry and neat repetition like the one above. The image is also under exposed. Additionally,  

I feel that it doesn't show any other elements such as depth of field competently.

If I were to do this photoshoot again, I would try to focus on natural patterns, as in this photoshoot I focussed on man-made patterns.

Portraiture - Work Diary

For Portraiture, I did both a studio and public shoot. For my studio shoot, I got somebody to stand against the background and people to talk to her, while i took pictures of her expressions as she spoke. I also got somebody to do some set poses against the background. For my public shoot, I took some pictures of somebody else i took with me to do the shoot, and also used some people walking around the town.

This is my favourite image from my studio shoot.

 

I like it because it is quite close to the face so you can see the facial expression, but it also shows the shoulders so that you can see a bit more of the person in the photo. I like that a white background is used, as it means more attention is drawn to the subject of the photo. The black and white means the blacks are very dark and the light tones are very light, meaning it has a large tonal range. I also like the fact there is a shallow depth of field, as this means everything is in focus so we can see the details of the subject.

This is my least favourite image from my studio shoot.

I don't like this because the stool the person in the image's face is obscured by the stool they are holding up.  Also, i don't really like that the subject didn't quite fit on the background; you can see past the red screen that should be used as a background. Additionally, I feel that the image was not framed very well, as it has been taken not perfectly horizontally. Finally, I feel like prefer close up portraits than this full body style, as close ups show the subject's face in more detail.

This is my favourite image from my public photoshoot.

 I like this image because it has been taken with the subject leaning up against the wall, which is different to all the others. Also, the close up format means there is less background to be distracted with and attention is drawn to the subject. This image has quite a narrow depth of field, which means the background is not in focus, and therefore more attention is drawn to the subject.

This is my least favourite image from my public shoot.

I don't like the angle this is taken from as i feel it would have looked better if it was taken from at eye level of the subject. Also, it would benefit from having some background in shot so that a narrow depth of field could be achieved to drawn more attention to the subject. Finally, the image is not in focus, due to a mixture of the subject moving and camera shake. This could be prevented by using a tripod to take the photo.

In conclusion, if I were to do these photoshoots again, I would try to get more portraits from different distances, as mine were mostly close up portraits and I would like to explore full body portraits.

Reflection - Work Diary

For Reflection, we did both studio and candid shoots. For my Candid shoot, I focussed on finding reflections around an urban environment. I mostly went for glass windows and shiny marble floors as you can often get reflections of people in them, which I find an interesting subject matter. In my studio shoot, I used a mirror we had in our studio and captured symmetrical reflection of parts of peoples' bodies.
Here is the best photo from my candid photoshoot.

This image was good because the glass I used was stained white, meaning the image in the reflection almost looks like it is foggy. I also like that you can still tell it is a reflection as the people look like silhouettes; their features are not clear and they appear entirely black, like a shadow.
Here is my least favourite picture from my candid photoshoot.

I think this image could be a improved, but the place I took it, which was at a walkway in a shopping centre, meant that the colour of the floor was similar to the colours in the image reflection, therefore the reflection was not very clear. Also, I would use a monopod in future to avoid my feet being caught in the shot.

Here is my best image from my studio shoot.

I like this because it shows a sort of distorted reality. It has a reflection horizontally

Form - Work Diary

For my Form Photoshoot, I took pictures of mostly main made objects that were attached the floor or a wall, as well as some objects that were not attached to things and some natural objects.
Here is what I think is my best image from the photoshoot.

This is an image of a chain on some gates near a car park. I like this as it has a narrow depth of field. It shows some interesting forms, as they are not very regular and are positioned in a disorganised layout, which makes the photo more interesting to look at than if the chains were neatly organised. It also uses other formal elements such as texture and colour to create a very dark and menacing mood.
I think the image below is probably the least successful image of the photoshoot.

I don't like this image because I think it doesn't really inspire much emotion or mood. It does show form, however the forms it shows are not very interesting or unusual like those in the picture above. Also, it doesn't show other formal elements in great detail, meaning there is not much to notice other than form.

If i were to shoot this again, I would try and find more varied and interesting forms such as first image pictured, as I felt that a lot of my images were very simple forms with sharp corners and often based on regular shapes. I would also like to try and implement other formal elements into my formal elements pictures to add more variation and interest to them. 

Shape - Work Diary

For shape, I did two photoshoots: one in the studio, one candid. For my candid shoot I mainly took images of shapes I found around the town, most of which where litter and other objects that had been thrown on the floor. Then, for my studio shoot, I got ones of my badges, which has a star shape on the front, and put a spotlight on it, then took images of it from different angles.

This is my favourite photo from my candid shoot. It shows a sign, which is a sort of rectangular shape with slightly rounded edges. I think the rounded edges add more interest to the rectangular shape and the fact I took the image at a diagonal angle gives the photo a dramatic quality, almost as if it rapidly zooming into the sign.

This is my least favourite photo from my candid shoot. I felt like it was better at showing pattern than shape. Although there was shape there, I prefer shape pictures to be a single shape on a mostly plain background, so that your attention is drawn to that shape. I think this image just doesn't draw your eye to the shape enough.

This is my favourite photo from my studio shoot. It shows both a circle and a star shape within a circle. It also casts an oval shaped shadow. I liked the object used, as i felt it was an object you would notice, and I also like the way it is lit so that the front of the badge is bright and clear, and a large shadow is cast.

This is my least favourite photo from my studio shoot. Although it does show shape, specifically a circle with a circle inside of it, I feel that the object used was very uninspiring, partly because it doesn't show any of the other formal elements in an interesting way. Also, the image contains a little bit of the background in the top right while it should have only shown the table, which I find to be an imperfection.

Overall, I think my candid photoshoot went very well because I focussed most of the pictures on a single shape, with a narrow depth of field, so that the background is defocussed, meaning attention is drawn to the shape. However, if I were to do this photoshoot again, I would probably try and get more regular shapes in my images, as the majority of mine were very irregular and complex.

Overall, I think my studio shoot went fairly well. I liked the badge as I felt it created an interesting shape that was not too irregular but not too regular. I also liked how to the light was positioned as it helped make sure the front of the badge, where the star shape was, had light on it. However, if I were to  do this photoshoot in, I would bring in more than one object, and make sure some of them are a bit larger so that I can put several objects together in one photo.

Colour - Work Diary

For my colour Photoshoot, I wanted to focus on mainly bright colours, as I felt that images with bright, saturated colours in them would draw attention more than those with muted colours. I think that the photoshoot went well, as i managed to capture lots of saturated colours in my images, and because of where i shot, which was at Harlow town, there were also lots of muted colours in the background, which created a good contrast to the saturated colours in the foreground.

Above is my favourite photo from the session. I really like the colours presented on the bike wheels and how saturated they are. I think that it contrast very well to the rest of the picture, which mainly consists of muted colours, especially the pale yellows and blues on the buildings in the background.

This is probably my least favourite image on my contact sheet. Overall, just don't think there was an interesting range of colours or contrast in colours. Although there are some muted colours in the burned part of the sign, I feel a more saturated backing colour would have improved the effect of this.

If i were to retake this photoshoot, I would probably try to take some photos which contain analagous colours, which is a colour type I didn't really address in this photoshoot.

Line - Work Diary

For my image shooting for Line, I focussed on leading lines and diagonal lines as i found these the most interesting types of line. For the Photoshoot, we went to the park, as we knew there were lots of climbing frames there that would have lots of lines as part of their structure.
I think that some of our photographs went well, as a lot used leading lines. There were also lots of good demonstrations of vertical, horizontal and diagonal lines.

Above is my favourite image of the shoot. I like this image because it shows leading lines, which direct you to the grass. However, the bench also presents a rough wooden texture with lots of different shades of grey on it and shades of green from moss that had been on the bench. It also represents several leading lines rather than a a pair, as there are several wooden planks making up the bench.

The image above is probably my least favourite of the photoshoot. I didn't like it because I don't feel it showed lines strongly enough; there are lines there but they are not very prominent, partly because of the angle the photo was taken at. I feel that if i took it from the right instead of the left, I would have captured the lines between each plank of wood, meaning the image would have had more prominent lines in it. 

If I were to do this photoshoot again, I would try to avoid taking photos of things that don't show prominent lines, such as the one above, and try to focus on strong lines. Here are some examples of what I would like to create.

Tone - Work Diary

For my tone lesson, I mainly focussed on the contrast between parts of an object under the light and parts that are cast under a shadow, as this creates a contrast between two a very dark and a very bright tone.

We started by taking some studio pictures, in which we used spotlights to cast things under a shadow. We placed an old baby doll on a chair to be our object we were shining our light on, as the doll was very white, so the part that had the light shone on it would contrast well with the part cast in shadow.                                 0

We also used a small plant, as the green tones of the leaves would create a good contrast to the shadows 

on the side of the plant that will have a shadow cast upon it. The light cast on the plant also created a good tonal range between the different leaves, as they had different levels of light on them.

After this studio shoot, we went out and took some tone pictures at a multi-storey car park. I think this was less successful than the studio part of our photoshoot, as we couldn't control the light levels and where the light was aiming, due to a lack of controlled conditions and a spotlight. 

There's less of a dramatic range of tones, or highly contrasting tones here, but you can still see some tonal contrast between the black tarmac and the bright sky. There are also a few tones in between, more prominently in the bottom image, as there are lights on the ceiling that create some lighter tones amongst the black tarmac.

I think the best shots in the photoshoot were the ones taken in the studio, as they showed a big contrast in tones. 

Above is my edited version of one of my images. To create this, i converted to black and white using an adjustment layer. I spent a few minutes experimenting with changing the intensity of colours, until i discovered that setting the red to minus values would bring out the black tones in the image, so i moved the slider to -45 to create a greater contrast between the dark and light tones. 

Here is another image that converted to black and white. This one was also manipulated through the colour level sliders on the adjustment layer menu. In this i put the yellow up to 100 as that seemed to bring out the light tone of the leaves out more, and the red went down to 10 so that the dark tones were darker.

If i were to shoot tone again, i would keep the idea of taking some pictures in the studio, as i felt that this part went well. However, I would try to use a wider range of objects to try and achieve different types of tone and wider tonal ranges. After the studio session, I would try to go somewhere else that isn't a multi-storey car park, as i felt there were little opportunities to capture tone there. I would try and pick somewhere which has sculptures or interesting buildings, as they would cast interesting shadows that will contrast well to the light tones of the sunlight. 

Here is an example of something i would like create. It has the unsaturated tones of the building and some of the clouds, compared to the sky on the top right, which has very deep and dark tones.