WITHIN WORKSHOP
Within the workshop, we experimented with portraiture altering the use of low and high lighting and the use of backgrounds. Here displays three images taken each demonstrating a different effect. The framing and manipulation of the image was simple to do within the studio and it felt like I had more control over the finished product. I liked the result of the low lighting portrait as the use of the shadows and the back lit as I feel it is more of an intriguing image to the eye whereas I feel the other two images are fairly plain. If I were to take another portrait image using high lighting with lighter backgrounds, I feel another element would have to be incorporated to make the image more interesting in the forms of objects, lighting or appearance.
OUT OF WORKSHOP
For my images, I wanted a more natural candid approach rather than framing the image in a particular way. I felt by taking this approach contrasting to my images in the studio it captures natural human emotion which is interesting to see in comparison. I used natural lighting with a brick wall as the backdrop with both female models offering a casual approach. The use of this different approach allowed me to see the difference of setting and the importance of this and the significance when it comes to deciding on my final project. I feel I preferred the studio setting as I enjoyed the manipulation of light within the studio which is more difficult outside. There are also more distractions outside which can put the model out of concentration if they feel uncomfortable with people or cars going past.
RESEARCH
Richard Avedon
“My portraits are more about me than they are about the people I photograph.”
Within researching portraiture, Richard Evedon’s work stood out to me due to the different styling between his work. He photographs celebrities including work of Marilyn Monroe, The Beatles, Andy Warhol and many more and his biggest stylistic impact has been described as his decision to have his subjects emote.
https://www.avedonfoundation.org
http://www.artnet.com/artists/richard-avedon/
Brandon Woelfel
“I hope to continue to create the art that makes me the happiest while meeting a lot of new creative people along the way. Ultimately, I would like my photography to convey a sudden spark of inspiration that influences others to go out and create.”
Brandon is mainly an Instagram photographer and his work interested me when I came across it a few years ago. The incorporation of colour and lighting effects made his work seem more intriguing rather than traditional portraiture with white lighting. He mainly works with Nikon cameras and lenses shooting outside or in rooms as opposed to the studio however he has recently experimented with a studio shoot as shown on his instagram and in the seventh image on the bottom row. He often manipulates his shots using prisms to create the rainbow and blurred effect which may be an interesting concept to incorporate into my work possibly in the use of experimenting with a CD to gain the rainbow effect as well as aperture.
Diane Arbus
“A photograph is a secret about a secret. The more it tells you the less you know.”
She was an American photographer known for her black and white portraits focusing on the identity of a variety of people including the mentally ill, transgender individuals and circus performers. I was interested in her use of shadows and how that frames the face especially in the forth image with the line running down the face. I feel the use of light and dark adds more to the portrait and I really like the effect this conveys.
http://www.artnet.com/artists/diane-arbus/