Back of Heads Location Straight Images

Studio Back of Head's Straight Images

Studio Back of Heads Work Diary

Evaluation:

Ever since I started taking pictures in the studio for 'form', one of the formal elements commonly used in photography, I've taken a liking to being in the studio, due to the fact that I can control the lighting and colours within the photograph, rather than trying to find them in natural circumstances. Being in this room made taking pictures of the back of people's heads rather more interesting, for it was quite fun taking photographs against vibrantly coloured backgrounds, like hot pink or very dark blacks and light whites. The photos below are examples of how taking pictures of the back of people's heads in the studio came out

Progression:

Unfortunately, I was not able to take all of the photographs that I wanted to take, due to the fact that time simply ran out. I will endeavour to work faster, so I can then proceed to get my work to a more suitable standard. Also, some of my photographs were actually blurry when I uploaded them onto the computer. From this, I can learn that I need to learn to have more steady arms, and make sure to focus the lens before capturing the picture. Here is an example of such a picture, where the photographer was clearly able to keep the camera stable. This photograph was taken by Jessica.

Top Ten Photographs

Erik Johannson

Erik Johannson is photographer that takes pictures of surreal happenings. For example, in the photograph below, there is a picture of a road, yet at the end of the road, a man appears to be dragging some sort of light material, which connects into the road, so we then realise that it is in fact the road that he is dragging. This is a good piece of work, for we, as the viewers, find the photograph controversial to what we would normally expect, and has been done in a clever way. Also, a lot of colour has been used in this, which may have been made more vibrant during the extensive editing stage, so some formal elements have been used as well.

Johannson has also taken photographs, or portraits, or people. A formal element evident in these photographs is 'form', due to the shadows evident in the background of the person. These shadows have been positioned correctly via the lighting so as to allow us to understand the dimensions of this man. Also, there is not much colour difference in the photo, due to the man's lack of clothing, so all of the colour appears to remain quite dull, and blends into the background. This shows that Erik Johannson can take photographs of both surreal work, and take photographs of things that would be considered 'normal'.

Johannson has also managed to edit two photographs together to the extent that they look entirely different to what they looked like prior editing. In this example, Johansson took a picture of a house on a hill on a lake, and a close up of a fish, and then merged them together. This is yet another example of surreal photography, for it goes against what the viewers of photography normally see, (which would either just be a house on a hill, or a close up of a fish, not both merged together). I like this style simply because of it's uniqueness.

Finally, there is a photograph of Erik Johannson himself, as he climbs out a mirror. This surreality again matches some of the formal elements. Reflection is found in a mirror, and is described as one of the formal elements, so it is evident that Johannson keeps the formal elements in mind when he is taking photographs. This self portrait is effective, yet again, due to the unrealistic qualities is possesses, and the uniqueness that went into the editing of this photograph, so overall, I enjoy the majority of Erik Johannson's work.

Erik Johannson has been particularly influential to me in his work portraying the surreal through editing. I have thought more carefully during my shoots as to what I could make look surreal in the editing process, without making it look too unnatural or ridiculous. Eventually I came up with the idea to join two photographs of my classmate, Katy, together. In one photograph, she has a knife in her mouth and in the other photograph, she does not. These photographs were taken during the Mapplethorpe studio shoot, and edited together soon after. As Mapplethorpe kept his photographs natural, it is evident that I got my inspiration not from him, but from Johannson. Here is the final edited photograph:

To summarise, Johannson is one of my favourite photographer, due to the fact that he specialises in his editing skills, which is my favoured part of the course. Out of all of the photographers I have analysed so far, Johannson's work is the most inspiring, and a favourite of mine, due to the fact that it is quite unlike anyone else's work, and is completely unique in it's originality.

Location Back of Heads Work Diary

Evaluation:

I found it quite difficult to make a picture of the back of someone's head interesting to look at, so I also had to find locations that might also contribute to the overall quality of the photograph. The first picture I took was in the College car park, which worked quite well, for the sun was shining in the right direction, and reflected off Connie's hair.

We then moved back into the main college area, where we decided that a picture of Megan facing an extravagant plant would be suitable for the topic we were trying to capture. After taking a few photos of this to try and get it correct, (have the background slightly blurred whilst she is focused), this was the result of such an idea:

Progression:

If I was given the opportunity to go out and shoot pictures of the back of people's heads again, I would definitely try and make the backgrounds of the pictures more blurry, and focus on the actual heads more. I also think that my camera may not have been on the correct settings, so I would also ensure that they are all correct. Here is a photograph by Katy of someone's head that is not fully turned, which is also something that I would try to accomplish.

Portraiture Definition

Dictionary Definition: the art of painting or taking portraits.

Own Definition: A piece of artwork that depicts the emotions and characteristics of an animal or person.

Words to Describe Portraiture: Emotion, Faces, Features, Characteristics.

Four annotated pictures:

This portrait of a hooded woman has been taken with the effect of black and white. With this in mind, I can determine that the formal element of 'tone' has been used here. We can see that she is a white woman, due to the colour of her face, despite the fact that all colour has been removed from the picture. Also, the photographer has let the background become blurry, so as to allow the camera to focus solely on the woman.

The above portrait of this man has definitely been edited in specific ways by the photographer to allow the viewer to focus on specific parts of the photograph. All of the photo has been taken in black and white, aside from the man's eyes, which have kept their colour. The fact that they've kept their colour immediately makes us focus on that one detail, so the photographer has evidently succeeded with their intention.

This portrait is an example of what can fit into the portraiture category without the person facing the camera. Emotion can still be seen, and the lighting used in this photograph has allowed the viewer to be focused on the woman's face in particular. Colour could be a formal element that appears in this photograph, due to the woman's make up and dress.

The formal element of 'Form' can be seen in this portrait, due to the shadows that are noticeable on his face. Form is used to show the dimensions of a focus in photography, and due to these shadows, we can indeed see that this picture has not been drawn, and is in fact a photograph. Also, he is staring right into the camera, giving a connection between the photograph and the viewer, as if he is looking at them.

Portraiture Image Bank

Portraiture is a form of photography that allows the viewers to see the emotions or characteristics of people. As seen by the photographs above, these emotions and characteristics can be portrayed through the means of both coloured and black and white photography. It is also apparent that the photographs above have been edited slightly, to allow the viewer to focus on specific aspects of the people in the pictures. For example, the man with the blue eyes has had his eyes edited to be more vibrantly blue than they actually are (unless he has really, really vibrantly blue eyes without the need for any form of special effect).

Portraiture of the Back of People's Heads Image Bank

Taking photographs of the back of people's heads is evidently quite a popular form of portraiture to take. This might be because near to nothing about the characteristics and emotions of a person can be seen from the back of their head, so the photographer might want to convey what a person looks like without showing the viewer what their characteristics are. As seen by the photographs above, whether the picture is coloured or black and white, or even if the person's head is titled, they all count as plain portraiture of the back of someone's head.

Studio Form Straight Images

Colour Change

Shape Work Diary

Evaluation:

Throughout the last few shoots of formal elements, I have been lacking in the number of photographs that I take. Having been informed of this by my tutor, I decided that I would try and capture many pictures of shape to the best of my ability. As it was bright out, I decided that outside shapes would be the main focus of this session. I came across a path of stone tiles that I thought would suit perfectly into the category of 'shape'. This is what the tile came out looking like after I took the photo of it:

I then went on to find shapes inside any buildings, so I went to the university centre, and came across a reflective design with circles in it. Circles are definitely in what is deemed to be a shape, so I took a picture of it. This was the outcome:

Progression:

If I was asked to redo the session, I would try and find shapes that can be found outside college grounds, because all of my photographs were taken inside the college. Also, I would like to have found more shapes that were less basic than circles, squares and triangles, which would mean trying to find more shapes that are natural, and less that are man made. An example of a shape that someone has used that I liked is Keir's, who actually placed an object in a specific place in order to give off the desired effect.

Shape Straight Images