Connecting essay 5

Artist- Mareen Broadbeck

My image- Without

Broadbeck's image is a landscape image featuring bright colours and heavy saturation.  The image focuses on the blocking out of a building with a bright colour in order to create a striking sense of contrast.  This effect is effective and makes the image more eye catching and interesting to the viewer as it provides a look at how different silhouettes are still distinguishable without logos or texture being visible.  The colour blocking technique here was carried out in Photoshop CC 2014 as can be determined as a result of the smooth colour over the building and lack of texture in the colour block.

My image has been shot on an Instax mini instant film giving it the distinctive instant film appearance.  I chose to use instant film for my shoot as I wished to convert the idea of memories and nostalgia associated with instant film and how a memory can change as a result of a persons absence. This is why I chose to block myself out of images which I had taken of myself and friends as I wanted to explore the impact that I had on an image and the way that my absence affected the dynamic in a photo.  I chose to use vibrant pastel colours to contrast with the dark colouration of the polaroids as well as to convey youthful feelings to the viewer as pastel colours are often associated with childhood.

Broadbeck's image is similar to mine in styling and effect used however the image as a whole is very different in both meaning and appearance.  The most stirring difference is the subject matter in my images of people opposed to buildings as well as the fact that I chose to use an instant camera opposed to a more modern camera.

Connecting essay 4

Artist- David Shama

My image- Easter Family

Shama's image has square dimensions and features a women standing in it's centre third holding her purse in front of her.  There are buildings behind her which contrasts with the natural imagery of the lake directly behind her and the trees and grass surrounding her.  The black and white photography used as well as the subjects clothing gives the image an older appearance making it look historical opposed to contemporary.  The image has a wide depth of field allowing for large areas of the image to be at an equal point of focus this allows the viewer to more clearly view the objects such as the buildings in the images background.

My image in contrast has a landscape orientation with a shallow depth of field meaning that the images subject is at it's centre.  I feel that this draws better focus to the images subject and enhances the fact that she is in the centre of the image allowing it to be clear that she is the subject of the image.  This is important due to the fact that there is a crowd of people around the subject.  The image has a black and white colourisation with increased contrast this allows for it to appear very striking due to the high levels of tonal contrast featured in the image.  My image also appears to be very modern this can be seen through the subjects clothing and the cars featured in the image.

I feel that both images contain similar aspects such as subject positioning and image colourisation.  Other aspects are different however such as depth of field used and location used as Shama's image takes place in a more secluded area with large buildings in the background however my image was shot in a small but busy village on Easter Sunday in the countryside.  The historical appearance of the image also varies with mine appearing modern and Shama's appearing older.

Connecting essay 3

Artist- Martin Parr

My image- Easter Friends

Parr's image features a depiction of a British day out at the beach which is a traditional event.  The bright and saturated colours used depict connotations of joy and happiness associated with holidays.  This is contrasted however with the fact that the image features several disgruntled looking women and young children being made to dip their feet in the somewhat grimy water.  Parr's photography is interesting as it provides a somewhat satirical take on British culture and allows us as a society to laugh at our own traditions and habits.

My image features a group of friends engaging in an Easter egg hunt whilst more engrossed in their phones than their company or surroundings.  This is interesting as it provides insight into teenage cell phone culture and the way that we are sometimes more interested in documenting our lives than living them.  The bright colours used as well as the saturation conveys happy tones to the viewer however this is contrasted to some degree by the subjects apparent disinterest.  This is important as it creates a sense of cynical humour in the image.  

It can be seen that both images use bright colours and heavy saturation to convey positive emotions whilst mainting subject matter which contrasts with this idea.  Parr's image also contains a traditional holiday whist mine contains an Americanism of a religious holiday demonstrating the merging of cultures in a modern society as a result of the fact that the world is more connected through the use of technology such as mobile phones and social media.

Connecting essay 2

Artist- Julius D. High

My Shoot- What do you love...?

High's shoot focuses around what the subject feels that the word "Love" means.  This is an interesting question to pose to the viewer due to the fact that love can come in various forms and therefore means vastly different things to different people.  This adds a personal element to the series which is added to by the fact that Instax mini instant film is used here to take the images as this means that they cannot be altered in the same way as digital photos and are therefore truer to the subject on the day than an edited image may be.  The fact that two images are used enables the viewer to see various sides of the subject which is interesting as it allows the viewer to create a more personal connection with the subject.

My shoot focused around what subjects loved opposed to what they viewed love to mean. I felt that this was interesting due to the range of answers which I received ranging from people stating that they loved something seemingly important and deep such as "Knowledge" or something that may seem trivial to others such as "Ice cream".  This however is what my shoot was about as it enables the viewer to gain a better understanding of the subject by uncovering what they feel comfortable sharing and their personality.  Other personal aspects revealed in my shoot include the subjects handwriting which is shown due to the fact that they were instructed to write what they loved as well as their name in their own handwriting.  Their style is also shown with attention drawn to it as the images backgrounds are designed to compliment the subjects outfit and personality.

These shoots are both similar due to the fact that they both use Instant film cameras in order to create a more raw and personal link between the viewer and the images subject.  Other similarities include the fact that both artists required to subject to respond to a personal question.  My shoot was more personal in relation to learning about the subjects style and personality however High's shoot was more focused on a deeper understanding of the subject.

Connecting essay 1

Artist- Dash Snow

My image- Life

The artists image is by Dash Snow who specialised in documentary photography.  His work is interesting as it largely consists of compositions of polaroids.  Snow used polaroids with the intention of creating a means to remember the night they were taken when the memories may otherwise have been lost as a result of intoxication.  Snow's polaroids are often presented at galleries in composite selections against a white background in order to create a more interesting viewing experience.  Snow's work features a range of everyday activities from busy city streets and shop windows to post fight scenes of gore and graphic sexual content.  Snow's focus has always been on the decisive moment and a desire to capture life as it can only be lived once.

My images that I have chosen form a composite from my series of "Life" based shoots.  The aim from these shoots was to capture moments and days of my life by using an Instax mini instant film camera.  The composite featured above is from when I went to Brixton to see a concert by the Wytches with one of my friends.  I have composed my images on a white background in a composition which I feel is visually interesting due to the combination of both landscape and portrait images.  My images all have a similar colour scheme of dark colours as a result of the fact that my shoot took place in the evening in February where there are short nights.  I feel that this ties the images together nicely however as it adds a sense of continuity to the series.  The use of instant film also gives the images a nostalgic quality due to the fact that they cannot be edited in the same way as a digital image meaning that what is depicted is an accurate illustration of the events which took place.

There are numerous similarities between my images and Snow's images such as the composition of the images and colour of background used and the fact that both shoots used a form of instant film to capture the events which took place.  Differences between my images and Snow's images however are that my images were shot over a shorter period of time as can be seen from Snow's shift in location in his Polaroids.  Another notable difference is the fact that my images feature an evening of my life which I wished to remember however Snow's imagery features a much broader subject of life whilst still being tied to himself due to his fast paced and adventurous lifestyle.