Critical Report; Lessons

Session 1
In these lessons we will be looking at increasing our knowledge of photography so that we can write a 1000-1200 word essay ("critical report") on photo manipulation.
  Harvard Reference - name of writer/speaker of chosen quote
                                 - date said/written (if no date write (N.D.))
                                 - site/book name quote is from
                                    - publisher, author and year published
                                    - full address of site

Example: "...the act of turning a subject into an arrangement of tones without colour is an act of transformation and the photographer must decide how the subject is to be transformed into the language of light and shade." (Milton, 2005)
'100 Ways to Take Better Black and White Photoghraphs' Michael Milton, D&C, 2005

Errol Morris said all photographs are posed - watched first part of short film about his (then) new book 'Believing is Seeing'
Looked at the different meanings of words related to the project:
Pictoralism: movement that believed in making, rather than taking a photo
Appropriation: act of taking and reworking images, typically without owners agreement.

Historical and contemporary image manipulation
Mulmer - created 'spirit' photography - due to the long exposure of the photographs, he would have a member of his company stand behind the subject for a short amount of time at the end of the photo's exposure. He than edited the face of someone close to the sitter that had died.
Pictoralism - a movement encouraging people to see and use photography as art, started ny Henry Peach Robinson in the mid 1800s, the idea was to use several different photographs to make up the finished image. This took some time to be realised - when 'Fading Away' was first shown, the public saw photography as just a form of documentary and were appalled by Peach Robinsons lack of consideration for the girl and her family in the image. Jerry Ulesmann is his contemporary, but pictoralism is generally better understood.
Charles Dickens visited America in 1867. Photographic rights were given to Gurney & Son. A photograph not by Gurney & Son was published by Matthew Brady Studio - it was a highly edited version a photograph taken in London.


I gave up trying to decipher my notes - so thought I would prove I had taken them instead (sorry!)

Timeline - Cutlery

First Lesson: with Julie, we came up with idea and taglines, typing potential taglines into InDesign and testing fonts. We also considered how to avoid reflections. My first idea was very simple, but it gradually got more interesting towards flying cutlery.

Second Lesson: in Tom's lesson my idea evolved again to dancing of walking cutlery. We then took test shoots in the studio; through testing I discovered that walking cutlery (such as on a cat walk) would be easier than dancing cutlery

Third Lesson: in Matts lesson we had a crit of each others work and edited images from the lesson before.
Crit: 
Is the image fit for purpose: Yes
How could the images be used (what products could they advertise): Cutlery, Video/Stop Frame/Poser
What good practice can you see in the image: Layout, Logo/writing placement, Idea - different, interesting, makes you look and remember - Lighting - cutlery looks shiny.
How could the image be improved: Use rulers when placing/lining up images, possibly move logo to other side of text, swap top corner image, decide shadows or no shadows
Any other constructive comments: try to avoid reflections in cutlery

Fourth Lesson: in Tom's lesson we took our final photo's and edited to the final image.

Fifth Lesson: with Mike we finished off everything  and started writing up work

Proposal

For my final project I would like to look at the strange period of time when a group of friends officially become adults - this year many of my friends will be turning 21 or 20 - if they haven't already - or leaving University and finding their first full time jobs. This, for many will be the year they grow up.
I would like to show this by using several different photographs - some old childhood photos my subjects have let me photocopy, some current ones, that I have taken - at home, Uni etc - and potentially, if there is time, since it is exam season, a 'future' photo showing where they would like to be in so many years time (probably 10). I would also like to include symbols for their age, such as bills or acceptance letters.
In the new, current photos I would like to avoid taking any obviously posed photographs and show them working, with their heads down. Many of the older photos I'll be using will be posed - from on trips, at some sort of occasion
For a small example of what I hope to be doing: http://cerijuddphotography2.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/then-and-now-basing-on-me.html
I will present all this in a scrapbook with a couple of pages for each participant showing a brief, slightly jumbled, history of their lives. As this is a group of friends and they all know each other fairly well, the last pages will be devoted to some group photos showing that these people have grown up together, at least for part of their lives.
For the exhibition, I would like to recreate our 6th Form kitchen. All the people in my project went to the same high school and 6th From. There is a small room with a work top in it, that I can paint and add kitchen-y objects to. I plan to paint 2 walls blue, add a kettle, toaster and microwave (if I can find one).

I plan for this project to be of a proffessional standard - photogrpaphs will be in focus, well printed and proffessionally mounted.

New skills that will be covered/learned are following people and changing the setting on my camera quickly - I will be doing a mix of location and studio photography, so I will also be improving my studio skills.

Health and Safety
In order to keep safe while taking my photographs - me and my subjects my be careful and avoid/be aware of certain potentially hazardous situations.
1) We must be careful when crossing roads
2) Be careful when travelling
3) Make subjects aware of power leads and tripods in the studio
4) basic common sense

Evaluation - Paper Clips

For this project, we had a choice of: bin liners, paper clips, takeaway boxes, plastic cups, plain black or white socks and dish cloths to advertise. I chose paper clips, I liked the idea of trying to make paper clips fun - and after a little research, I decided to make figures out of them. Initially, I tried to bend them using just my fingers, but it was very difficult, and painful, so I used pliers instead.
The first photographs I took were on a plain white background, which was very dull and did not convey the idea of paper clips being in any way fun for bored people.
For the second shoot, I had a computer keyboard and mouse in the background - the images were much more interesting with these included, however the keyboard was very dirty, and I spent a lot of time on Photoshop 'cleaning' it up. I could have solved this problem before shooting by using a different keyboard, if I had noticed. I should have taken some more photographs, using a cleaner keyboard, once I had noticed, but wasn't sure I had the time - although I now realise that I would have done. I would also like to add the other paper clip scenes - the engagement and the wedding, for example - but in the photographs I took with them, all the dirt in the keyboard and mouse were very visable.
I like the tag-line that I have used, 'Bored? Paper Clip!', and that the pictures now look office-y - they work together to provide an interesting, but simple image, that grabs your attention and draws your eyes to the paper clip. I do feel, however, that the images would probably work best in a magazine, rather than on a billboard or poster - but I have an edited image for all 3 mediums; I think I should have made a TV/film advert, showing the paper clips being bent.

lighting set ups

First Shoot

 

Grey: clips
Red: table
Black: camera
Peach: lights
Yellow: using Umbrella, not soft box
Line at far end: background

Final Shoot

Grey Circle: clips
Grey Boxes: Keyboard and mouse

Red: table
Black: camera
Yellow: lights

Pack Shot

Grey Circle: clips
Red: table
Black: camera
Yellow: lights

Edits - 1st and 2nd

First Attempts 

These pictures seem forced - unnatural and badly thought through. The bold, colourful text doesn't suit them and the story (on the left) is difficult to understand - they make friends (taking under the moon/sun) they get engaged, they get married. Also, the groom is upside down in the wedding.

Second Attempts - much better, final pieces?

I prefer these ones - they look more sophisticated and give the clips context with the keyboard and mouse in the background. However, I don't like the 'Bored' one on the bottom left -  the angle and lighting combined to make the picture look dull and rather lifeless. I like the contrast in the portrait picture (poster), I got this effect from 'Colour Lookup', a layer add-on in Photoshop CS6. 

Proposal - Paper Clips

For this project I would like to look at creating people out of paper clips. I like the idea of creating scenes with them - such as a trip to the park or some at their desk. In order to create these people, I need to bend them - ideally using pliers -  and make some sort of scenery for them. I'm not sure whether to have the clips standing - using blu tack - or flat on the table. Standing would give the paper clips more life; I shall have to experiment with it.
I would like to make poster, billboard and magazine adverts.
The main objective of the campaign would be to weaken the boring, work only connotations of paper clips being to clip paper, and show the wider world that you can actually have fun with them - and not just completely straightening the clips out so you have a bit of wire. The campaign would make paper clips useful/interesting to a wider audience and increase sales.