Tag: Photography

Final images

For our final images we decided to go with three images double printed into a selection of six to place throughout the campus for our exhibition. Here are the three final images.

Image 1 finishedImage 2 finishedImage 4 finished

Each of these images were edited with text and graphics by Amy and once that process was finished the images were finally complete. The images that have been selected to represent our collaborative project each do a great job portraying the effects of mental health issues and also provide the means of potential help from officials in the field. The way each of them have been taken and edited complete the theme we were going with.

We placed the images throughout the campus as established here.

Editing Process

After the shoots were completed we needed to perform some editing for the specific photos we were going to include in the exhibition. I was responsible for the editing of two of the chosen images that were possible inclusions to the exhibition.

Image 1

DSC_6449.jpg

For this image I needed to transform this image into a more dark and sinister to fit the mental health issue theme that the exhibition is going for.

Original photo

So the first thing i did was insert it into Photoshop so that I could begin the editing process of the image.

Saturation Edit

I then added an hue/saturation adjustment layer and proceeded to remove all of the saturation from the image to give it the black and white colour scheme.

Brightness Contrast Edit

I proceeded to add a brightness/contrast adjustment layer to the image to darken the image even more.

Brightness Contrast Brush Edit

I then followed through with adding another brightness/contrast adjustment layer to increase the amount of darkness to a good enough level to make it look very dark. To avoid this effect consuming the model as well I used the paint brush tool to remove the masking off the person in the photo.

DSC_6449 edit

This is the final image.

 

Image 2

345A7843

For the next image I tired to go for a more creative route and decided to remove the background excluding the toilet and placing a more pleasant background to add some contrast into the image.

Original Photo

I first imported the image into photoshop so I could proceed the editing process.

Magnetic lasso tool use

I used the magnetic lasso tool to highlight the person and the toilet in order to separate them from the image.

Masking Layer

I then clicked on the masking tool to remove the background all together.

Inserting new background

Following this I added a new background into the file.

Modifying background layer

And then used the moving tool to reposition and resize the image so it covered the background fully.

Repostioning Layer

I then repositioned the original layer of the person on the toilet seat into a more suitable position.

Removing saturation

I followed up by adding a hue/saturation layer and removing all of the saturation.

Saturation Paint tool

Lastly I utilised the paint brush tool to remove the adjustment layer effect from most of the image apart from the person on toilet and bit of the surrounding area.

345A7843 edit.jpg

The final image.

Shoot: Personal Bathroom

For the shooting process, our group has split up the work amount in terms of shoots, I am featured in Kerry’s disabled toilet shoot as the depressed person. This shoot is my contribution to the photo obtaining element of this project.

ContactSheet-001 chosen copy

Shoot Analysis

This shoot went well for me as I was able to utilise the bathroom to obtain a great variety of different poses and expressions in each image that captured the elements of depression. Mix that in with a dreary bland bathroom to act as background and I’ve got a potentially good set of images to contribute to the final exhibition.

  • The images that are highlighted are the ones that got I chose as my final choices as contributions to the exhibition.

Exhibition Research: Liverpool Biennal

The exhibition that the group went to is the Liverpool Biennal in the Open Eye gallery. There were two photography works featured at the time of visit, the first one was a photo gallery based on Nigerian monarchs from the photographer George Osodi and a film and photo based exhibition featuring the change of Pakistan language from Urdu to English by Madiha Aijaz.

George Osadi

The way George Osodi’s work was showcased in two big rooms with a TV that played the documentary based on the work placed in the middle of the two rooms. The photos were displayed in large gold frames and were all placed on the walls that surrounded the room. The way this was shown allowed each of the monarch photos to stand out in their own way allowing onlookers to look closer at the details of each Monarch’s picture to differ them from the rest allowing the character and expression of the Monarch to be the main draw of the photos. The way the images are placed allow the cultural and ethnic diversity of the different Nigerian Monarchs to be the sole focus of the gallery, this is confirmed by the artist statement located in the 1st room of the gallery.

Madiha Aijaz

Madiha Aijaz’s gallery space is nowhere near as big as George Osadi’s as it is located in a small room up in the 1st floor. This gallery does not have much lighting and because of the black walls it has little to no light. There are some small photos located to the right of the room from the entrance perspective. The images are not in frames and are entirely focused on numerous Pakistani civilians in different areas either observing, reading or inspecting. At the very end of the room is a big screen which plays a documentary that focuses on the changing language of the Pakistani community from Urdu to English. The way this is displayed allows onlookers to be directly drawn to the documentary due to it’s size and brightness due to the dark room. The way the work is displayed shows to me a dark tension that is occurring due to the change of the community’s language, something agreed upon from the artist’s statement.

Ideas Blast

Before the group can chose the whereabouts for the exhibition, we need to all agree on a specific subject of interest to take pictures of to display in a location of our choosing.

Idea 1: Car Park (Automobiles)

Photos for this idea will be based around photos of different types of vehicles be it parked or on the move. For parked cars the photos will need to focus on detail as well as provide unique and different angles of each vehicle that is involved with the shoot. For moving vehicles we will need to capture the sense of motion from the vehicle which can be achieved by altering the shutter speed on the camera used. The desired spot for the exhibition of automobiles shall be placed outside the campus within the car park as that will be the most relevant spot in the campus to involve automobiles. The problems involving this though involve outside interference from bad weather.

Idea 2: Cantina (Sweets)

The intended target for this photo idea is to capture a diverse arrange of sweets and have them be the sole focus of the shoot. The desired effect of the diverse arrange of sweets is to create a unique pallet of colours in each picture as well as create patterns and shapes that mixed in with the colours will be eye catching to any onlookers in the exhibition. Photoshop can be used to increase the amount of contrast and saturation of the images to allow them to provide even more colour. The desired location to place these images for an exhibition will be the cantina which is the main food area of the campus.

Idea 3: Shed (Gardening)

If we are to go with this idea for our exhibition than the main focus of the images shall be based on the sort of equipment and activities that occur within and outside a shed. These sorts of activities usually involve gardening as that is where most sheds are located. This means that the photos we take for this idea will involve people working on a garden either cutting the hedges, mowing the lawn, fixing the fence just to name a few examples. The chosen area for this exhibition idea is based on an actual shed located within the premises of the campus. If we went with this idea we will need to gain permission to utilise the shed for the exhibition.

Group Idea: Toiletries (Mental Illness)

The main objective of this idea is to capture the effects of mental illness on a person. To do this we will need to utilise a model to pose for our photographers and we will need to chose a suitable backdrop in which a person that suffers from mental illness would chose to locate themselves. These locations would have to be dark and secluded meaning somewhere like the toiletries in the campus for example would be a great fit for this idea. This would mean we need to get permission to use these areas during the shoot.