statement of intent
My new theme is 'Light & Dark', which means dark and bright colours, black and white and colour contrast. However this can also can include shadows, which is what I am going to focus on throughout my project, as well as objects against a dark/black background. Weather/Time will not affect my photos, as I will be taking the pictures in a set up studio indoors. I will use Photoshop to improve my photos, particularly to make my photos black and white, as it clearly shows I understand my project, also the sharp contrast in colours can improve the picture. For my research, I looked at two photographers, Billy Kidd and Dan Lavric. My first photoshoot is inspired by Kidd's work, as both my photoshoot and his work consists of decaying flowers against a black background, showing a clear, sharp contrast in colour. However, differently to Billy Kidd, Lavric enjoys taking pictures of regular objects and settings, usually outdoors, but sometimes indoors, with no preference to the amount of light let into the image (to a degree), as his images are edited to be black and white, explaining why he is relevant to my current project. In my photoshoots, I will make sure my white balance and aperture are correct to suit the pictures I am taking, as too much or too little light can ruin the picture, whether it is edited or not. Despite the main focus of this project being the dark and light colours, and colour contrast, I will also put thought into composition, as this can improve the aesthetics of my images. During this project, I hope to improve my Photoshop skills, and learn how to use a indoor set-up studio effectively. I aim to have a set of at least 3 edited images that are creative and have thought and time put into creating them at the end of this project.
Mood board
Mind map (coggle)
Analyzing a photograph
Comment
I like this picture as the photographer has used the whole image to create a sense of mystery and the light falls across the person eliminates all the shadow and leaves him looking flat.when observing the picture how the light and darkness has been played with represents the everyday life as it has been transformed into an anonymous silhouette.
the whole image itself is hard to replicate as of the position of the forest and how the effect of light and darkness has been used to a very high standard.
the whole image itself is hard to replicate as of the position of the forest and how the effect of light and darkness has been used to a very high standard.
Composition
The pictures focus point is just a bit higher as the photographer looks higher at the man and clearly views all of the trees and it also creates a bit of a symmetric effect as you look down at the path and the trees on both sides are very similar which is intriguing to the person looking at the picture.Your eyes are also drawn tot he man standing at the middle of the path as there is a contrast between him and the immense size of the trees and how a lot of the light shines on him so he suddenly catches your eye when you look at the picture.A deep depth of field has been used to view the whole of the forest trees and i believe a tripod has been used as it looks like a very even and steady picture.
Connection
The theme of the image is black and white as the light and darkness of the whole picture has been played with to suit the needs of the viewer which is relevant to mine as i will have to play with the shadows to get a suitable image. It links to my works as it is a picture of content of forests which is one of the things i was going to do (with branches and leaves) I believe that there inst a message behind the picture but they have attenuated the depth of field with darkness to get a graphic and mysterious photograph. It is black and white as the light falls across the person in the image.
Context
(All this information i have researched and found on the internet).The picture was taken in northern Ireland, united kingdom in the city of Armoy by Giuseppe Milo on January 3rd 2015 with a Sony ILCE-7. The camera settings were at 1/125 shutter speed and ISO 100 with the flash not firing to take the picture.
My Theme: The theme I have chosen to do is 'Light and Dark'. I want to take pictures of bright objects against dark/black backgrounds and use the contrasting colors to make my pictures stand out. I may also try and go to different locations to find objects or even just inspiration. Some of my pictures are going to consist of black and white, as I believe you can make certain black and white images look very aesthetically pleasing. However I will also take some pictures that consist of light and dark colors as I have seen what Billy Kidd has done with bright flowers and dark backgrounds and it inspires me. A photographer that had very interesting work was billy Kidd
I have also decided to capture pictures of abandoned building and wrecked environment as i can create a really spooky tone and it will be a very detailed picture that will have loads of destruction all around it. i really like taking these pictures as they can look really cool and i will use the light i have created to make a contrast between it and the dark,dull buildings
My Theme: The theme I have chosen to do is 'Light and Dark'. I want to take pictures of bright objects against dark/black backgrounds and use the contrasting colors to make my pictures stand out. I may also try and go to different locations to find objects or even just inspiration. Some of my pictures are going to consist of black and white, as I believe you can make certain black and white images look very aesthetically pleasing. However I will also take some pictures that consist of light and dark colors as I have seen what Billy Kidd has done with bright flowers and dark backgrounds and it inspires me. A photographer that had very interesting work was billy Kidd
I have also decided to capture pictures of abandoned building and wrecked environment as i can create a really spooky tone and it will be a very detailed picture that will have loads of destruction all around it. i really like taking these pictures as they can look really cool and i will use the light i have created to make a contrast between it and the dark,dull buildings
Billy Kidd
Billy Kidd is an American self-taught photographer born in 1980.
He took a series of photographs of decaying flowers.
The flowers are in the natural process of dying,
therefore each flower is at a different stage.
I like how these photographs have a black background,
and you cannot see the whole flower, you can only see a part of it.
Some parts of the flowers are vibrant and bright,
whereas other parts are very dark and difficult to see.
These photographs relate to my theme as some people
might think the dead flowers are not perfect and shouldn’t be photographed.
Billy makes the flowers look delicate even though they are dead.
He captures the flowers in a different way, as he shows the natural shapes and forms the petals create. If I were to interpret his work, then I would take a series of photographs of flowers, using close up camera angles. I would use a low shutter speed for example 1/80, to make the photograph darker. I would use a variety of different flowers, one that has blossomed, and then one that is slowly decaying, and then one that is completely dead. I would use a black backdrop as it will make it easier to have the photograph darker, and the focus on the flower. I would then edit the photographs.
Billy Kidd is an American self-taught photographer born in 1980.
He took a series of photographs of decaying flowers.
The flowers are in the natural process of dying,
therefore each flower is at a different stage.
I like how these photographs have a black background,
and you cannot see the whole flower, you can only see a part of it.
Some parts of the flowers are vibrant and bright,
whereas other parts are very dark and difficult to see.
These photographs relate to my theme as some people
might think the dead flowers are not perfect and shouldn’t be photographed.
Billy makes the flowers look delicate even though they are dead.
He captures the flowers in a different way, as he shows the natural shapes and forms the petals create. If I were to interpret his work, then I would take a series of photographs of flowers, using close up camera angles. I would use a low shutter speed for example 1/80, to make the photograph darker. I would use a variety of different flowers, one that has blossomed, and then one that is slowly decaying, and then one that is completely dead. I would use a black backdrop as it will make it easier to have the photograph darker, and the focus on the flower. I would then edit the photographs.
My photo shoot plan
photo shoot 1
photo shoot 2
abandoned buildings shoot
cropping my images
photo shoot 3
editing in Photoshop
cropping the images
final gallery
my evaluation
Our project theme was Light and Dark, meaning photos that have a harsh contrast in color, or photos that involve shadows or black and white themes. I believe it was a great theme for me as it allowed me to use my creative side when taking pictures. The part I enjoyed the most is experimenting with shadows , as I found beautiful pictures could be taken while utilizing simple things. A technique I need to develop in order to improve my work is my Photoshop skills. If I had more advanced Photoshop skills, I could make my pictures look more professional. To help with my work, I researched the photographers Billy Kidd. Billy Kidd liked taking photos of vibrant flowers against black backgrounds, while Dan liked contrasting colors like black and white. they represented decaying flowers at there last breath of life which i really liked. The problem I encountered during my work was trying to edit certain photos to make them look professional, such as trying to edit shadows on to other pictures in order to create an interesting effect. I came to the conclusion that I bit off more than I could chew with that photo shoot, so I decided to take a different approach to photography with shadows. For my next project, I will ensure I have the Photoshop skills needed to improve my pictures.