Final 3 Images

Final 3 Images - Inspirations

I find these two photographs by Carla Bruinsma (left) and Martin Greffe (right) very inspiring because I believe that the overlay effect on an image makes it look very eerie and unique. I feel that by using this effect it can give a photograph a lot of depth and emotion, as you can mix two ideas or more into one. I also believe that by using overlays in photography, it makes a photograph look very prominent, as well as aesthetically pleasing. Therefore, after completing both sets of ideas and researching other photographers’ work, I have come to the conclusion that I would like to use overlays in my final three images..

Final 3 Images

Image 1

Image 2

Image 3

Evaluation of Final 3 Images I have decided to choose these photographs as my final 3 images because I feel that they all successfully portray my theme of lament visually, and that this would be easy for my viewers to also decipher symbolically. For my first final image, I used the overlay technique to create an image out of two images that I felt portrayed the idea of lament well. I really like how the ripped technique from one of the images can be seen through onto the other image and I feel this makes the photograph as a whole a lot more interesting. My second final image is based on the idea that candles have burnt a photograph of my model. I think this idea is effective because I wanted to portray the idea that even though remembering a loved one that has passed away is good for some people, for others it can destroy them even more. I used the idea of a candle because this is an object that I feel is most associated with grief, and because I used it in a juxtaposition, (it being a negative way of grieving) I think it brings more excitement to the photograph. My third final image is my favourite, as I feel it could successfully be printed onto the front cover of slave magazine – portraying the theme of lament. I feel that by layering the two developmental images from my second idea, a sense of depth is added to the photographs, as well as making the mood of the photograph mysterious and dark. I also like having the contrast of the black and white photographs and the normal coloured, brown/orange Autumn leaves in the image because I feel like it makes the image so much more interesting to look at. Additionally, I used those two photos in particular to merge together as my model’s sad, lament face is clearly highlighted, convening the theme of lament. I believe that the majority of my initial photographs are effective and are of good quality – especially my second idea set. For some images, I feel like I could have improved the quality of them if I had taken more consideration to aperture and depth of field when I was taking my photos. On the other hand, I think that I did well in controlling the shutter speed and ISO in my photographs to ensure they were bright enough, but not over exposed.

Evaluation of Final 3 Images - Continued

I think that I pushed my creative bounds a lot further in my second set of ideas than my first. I believe this happened because I realised after evaluating my photographs from idea 1 the areas that I needed to improve on. When I first began Idea 1, I had a lot of different ideas of what I wanted to do and I feel that this disadvantaged me and resulted in my photos not being as good as they could have been. Therefore, when it came to taking my second set of photographs, I knew what aspects I needed to focus on in order to make my photos better. I think this greatly benefited me and has enabled the outcomes of most of my photographs to be quite successful. I think that my choice of artists and photographers to study were effective because they inspired me in different ways. Some inspired me with the composition of my photos, and others inspired me with the techniques I could use to develop my photographers. Even though the artists I studied were all very different, I think aspects of all their work contributed into inspiring my own ideas for my project. I am very happy with the final outcome of my project, and feel that I have improved when taking my photos and editing them throughout the duration of the project. Although I think that I struggled a little at the start of the project, I believe I found my feet quite quickly and I really enjoyed completing the project. If I had more time to complete the project, I possibly would have thought of other ways to develop my photographs that relate more directly to the theme of lament. In addition to this, I would research other photographers that focus mainly on people and their experiences of grief. On the other hand, I would also research the work of photographer Christian Boltanski because his work with different lighting interests me. By researching more artists, this would enable me to have a greater understanding of aspects that would benefit my work in order to make it the best it can be, as well as relating to my chosen theme of lament, very well.