PROJECT2IDEA2

Idea 2

For the second idea, I’d like to take pictures of old and young hands, with a shallow depth of field so they’re in focus whilst the background is blurry. I then want to develop them, using photoshop by repeating the photos on top of eachother and manipulating them to make the look completely different and not like hands at all.

Artist research (technical)- Barbra Jaffe

I like the fact that this photographer has used a negative effect on her photos. I am not quite sure whether this filter has been achieved through the use of computer programs or the type of camera she used. I also like the fact that she has incorporated hands into her photo, as I think that they show a sense of delicateness, especially in the photo where she is holding the butterfly wings, as they tend to be very delicate and break easily.The composition of her photo is what interested me the most, as she has left large gaps around her hand where there the background can be seen. This makes me think that the main subject in the picture, being her hand is not that important because she has left so much space around the outside of it for the viewers to focus on. However, there isn’t anything particularly gripping in the background to concentrate on. In the second photo, the hands are cropped so that the viewers can only see part of the hands, I like this effect because it makes us wonder what could have been in the rest of the photo and leaves us wondering about it. By inverting the colours in the second photo, it gives the illusion of the colours being light and bright- in comparison to the first one where the colours are more dark and gloomy.

I would like to make some of my own photos have this similar negative filter on them, through the use of photoshop/other filters which distort the pictures. I want to make my photos slightly confusing, in the same way that she has made hers difficult to make out- at first glance the viewer might not be sure what is in the picture and through developing my photos I want to achieve this same outcome. I also want to duplicate the photos and place them on top of each other- I am yet to find a photo where Barbra Jaffe has used this specific technique and distorted her photos but I will try and find some similar artists to put in my journal.

Evaluation of initial photos

I wanted to take photos of hands because I feel as though they went along with my theme ‘delicate objects’ quite well. Also, the resources were easily available to me. Overall; I feel as though I got some good, clear shots of hands in detail, which is what I wanted.

In most of my photos, I used a deep depth of field, so I could blur the background and focus clearly on the hands. I think this worked well in all of my photos because the hands were clear and focused and the backgrounds of my photos were out of focus, making the viewer’s focus more on the main subject- the hands. I tried to take these photos on a clear, white background with no models in the background, however when I wanted to take photos of the hands I realised that sometimes the models had to be standing in the background otherwise I wouldn’t be able to do such diverse things with the hands. I think I could have improved the lighting in my photos- seeing as I took them in my living room I only had the ceiling lights to accompany the hands. I think the outcome would have looked better if I had taken these photos in a studio with professional lighting.

I think the composition in most of my photos worked quite well- especially photos 1, 4 and 7. I think this because I like the way the fingers and hands are entwined into each other as it makes it more difficult to work out what is in the picture. I also like the photos where the hand cannot all be clearly seen, as this offers some interesting shapes (photos 5 and 2 are good examples of this). In all of my photos, I wanted to achieve a gritty/dark outcome and so I edited the clarity and lighting in photoshop to make the photos darker. I wanted to make my photos black and white so that the lighting would look more dramatic and so that the viewers would be able to see the deep wrinkles and other details in the hands more clearly. I think the lines/wrinkles in the hands add to the photo because they add more tone and shadows- thus making the photo look dramatic.

These are my parents hands- they are middle aged and so they viewers may be provoked to think about age; their own age and the ages of everyone around them. Also, they might also think about the different things that they can do with their hands.

When taking these photographs, I wanted to suggest all of the things that hands can do- and the fact that they’re not really admired for what they can do. I think I have achieved this well- although some viewers might think that these photos represent relationships or love especially in photos 6 and 7 where two hands are holding onto each other.

Evaluation of developmental

photos

When developing my photos, my initial ideas were to use the kaleidoscope method to create a repeat pattern with them. Instead of doing this, I layered them on top of each other in photoshop to create a similar kaleidoscope effect but also distorting the images at the same time by adding a filter over the top. In photos 3 and 4, I used a filter, which made my photos negative- much like Barbra Jaffe’s photos. I particularly like these photos because it really confuses the viewer and makes them think twice about what is in the actual photo. With photos 1, 2, 5 and 6, I layered the photos over each other and used various different filters to distort the image and make it confusing to the viewer. With photos one and two, I was trying to achieve a repeat pattern by placing several of my photos on top of one another- this makes them interesting to look at. Particularly in photo 2, my model was wearing jewelry, which ended up looking good in the photos when repeated and placed over each other- because the metallic colours offer some difference from the skin. I think the outcomes of these 6 photos are scary; I did not intend to have this outcome, but I do like the way the photos look. These photos look more like textures and patterns than actual outcomes. For my last two developments, I created silhouettes of my hands in a studio using a projector, which projected white light into my hands. this (again) gives a distorted view of the image and makes the viewers confused as to what the actual photo is trying to suggest. On a deeper level- these photos could suggest that sometimes people hide behind a façade and only part of them is ever seen properly- this is due to the silhouettes hiding some of my photos, it makes some parts visible and some parts hidden.

Evaluation of final 3 and whole

project When thinking about my final three images, I wanted to do something that would bring the photos together in a hands-on way. I decided to draw on top of the photos because I quite like drawing and I knew that my ideas would look good on top of the developmental photos. On my first final image I decided to use oil pastels and draw over the flowers from one of my first developmental images. I think this worked extremely well because the colours of the flower petals were subtle and so I could draw over them without being too obvious. At first glance I think the viewers will be confused as to what has been changed- I really feel that the pastel petals blend in to the photos well. On my second final image I wanted to use a different medium to draw over my photos. I opted for a black biro and sketched a picture of some hands from my initial images. I think this worked well because the black biro is subtle but it stands out against the white background. With my third final image I used a biro again, this time I coped out a john keats poem called the living hand, so that I could write something meaningful over the photo. All three of these final images play on the same idea of drawing over my already developed photos with different media- overall I think my first final image worked the best because the pastels blend into the photo so well, it doesn’t look as though there is anything covering it at all. On the whole, I feel as though my initial photos weren’t up to scratch and could have been improved with sufficient lighting and use of the studio- although they did work well once developed and were at a suitable level of quality, ect. The outcome of my developmental photos came out the way that I intended them to look, and for this reason I am pleased with them. I have used a variety of techniques to develop my photos, which included digital manipulation and art based work. The developments lead on from my initial photos well because I used such a variety of different techniques and I feel as though the final three photos tie all of my photos together whilst bringing in a new element. Symbolism? My artist research inspired my photos because they showed me how to use techniques and materials to a better level than what I had already been doing. I gained inspiration from Dan Mountford to combine photos of the same objects, using silhouettes and photoshop to edit them on top of eachother.