FORCE
Images by Other Artists
All of these images show a sort of explosion with the main focus being in the centre of the photo. They are all very colourful and because of this they grab your attention instantly whereas if the colours were dull or dark then you would feel less inclined to look at them. The photographs are interesting because you can't see how they are being exploded and each individual part of the exploded object is captured and not blurred which adds dimension to them. There are clear colours in each image and you can decipher each different shade in them. The way that the images have exploded items in them creates a sense of chaos.
The Force of Nature
I took these photos to demonstrate the force of nature, my favourite images are of the rusting pipes as it shows decay. The images show plants growing and objects rusting which happens naturally and has a small impact on our day to day lives. Most of the photos are taken from a log angle which creates the sense that the plants and main focuses of each photo are larger than they actually are. Overall, the main colours running through the series are brown and green so as you look at them they don't all stand out as much as they could, to improve this I could have taken a wider variety of shots of different aspects of nature.
Derelict Pool
As a class we went to the pool Fortismere used to use, to take photos. The photos show the force of nature in the sense of how derelict the pool is and it is decaying and rusting all over. The images are quite effective as I have experimented with angles and level of zoom in each photo. The water is green and stagnant and the surroundings are quite eery. The lighting is helpful as it brings out the colours and makes them more bold and noticeable. I think these images are effective as I have taken them at different positions and angles in and around the pool.
|
Force Mind Map
The Motor City - Kevin Bauman
Kevin Bauman is a documentary, fine art, architectural, interior, and commercial photographer in Denver, Colorado. His project 100 Abandoned Houses has been by far his most popular. Bauman travels around Detroit looking at and photographing the many abandoned house that inhabit Detroit. In some of his photos you can see plants growing out of parts of the dilapidated houses. He says 'The abandoned houses project began innocently enough roughly ten years ago. I actually began photographing abandonment in Detroit in the mid 90's as a creative outlet, and as a way of satisfying my curiosity with the state of my home town. I had always found it to be amazing, depressing, and perplexing that a once great city could find itself in such great distress, all the while surrounded by such affluence.' All of these images are taken mid-view as if you are standing straight ahead of them looking directly at them. The lighting is quite bright in all of the pictures and they are all sharp and clear however the lighting is also quite intense and dramatic which may be to emphasise the destruction of these houses. Bauman always positions the houses in the centre of the frame to make them the main point of focus.
52 Week Project - Amelia Fletcher
Amelia Fletcher is a freelance photographer, she says 'I am a beekeeper, a gypsy soul, a storyteller. Stories are what drew me to photography way back when I first shot my friends' portraits with a disposable camera years ago. My roots in the Carolina mountains have heavily influenced what inspires my work now. Natural elements and personal histories tend to be the red thread that runs all throughout my portfolio. I strive to create work that is meaningful, from the simple food photo to a wedding collection.' Her album '52 Week Project' has a variety of photos in, I picked the three above as they show the extreme impact force can have. The first image is of a woman standing beneath the moon with a piece of string that has clearly been manipulated to look like it is attached to the moon to make it appear as a balloon. In the second Fletcher has captured someone coming up from the water, she has used a fast shutter speed in order to show the sprays and droplets of water that emerge with the person. The lighting in the photo is very mellow and has been taken at dusk. The final image has clearly been manipulated to seem more intense. The photo is of a young woman surrounded by what looks like clouds with sun seeping through, the lighting on her is brighter where the most sun is and it is golden which is quite soft. In all the photos the subject is in the centre of the image to make it clear it's the main focus.
Chernobyl, Half Life - Nadav Kander
Nadav Kander is a London-based photographer, artist and director, known for his portraiture and landscapes. He went to Chernobyl in Russia to take photos of the destruction-after a nuclear plant exploded-for his 'Half Life' project. The photos he took shows the sheer force of the disaster and the damage it caused. The photos I found the most interesting are the three shown above. The first is a photo of a classroom which is falling apart but still looks like it is in the arrangement it was before the explosion. The next photo gives off an eerie effect; it is a kindergarten nursery which is, of course, completely empty but is in order and still has pillows on the beds and are laid out neatly which is strange after so many years. The final image is an empty, destroyed room with a few plants growing from the floor. This is unusual to see as plants can't usually grow from our homes but as it has been abandoned for so long and is so ruined that now plants are able to, this makes the audience look at the image longer as it captures their interest, the tree is the main point of focus in this image. All of these images have a creepy, almost sinister, feel to them Kander manages to make them pretty still. Kander experiments with slightly different points of view in each of these photos. The lighting is bright yet there is a slightly ghostly, sinister effect.
Physical Force
To create these images I used some old plastic bags and other materials I could find and took photos of them to display force. We played around with the different materials and manipulated them, in some we forced our hands through the plastic and captured it stretching and breaking. All the different crevices and wrinkles in the plastic help add dimension to the photographs and add depth. The lighting is very bright and makes the photo more clear and crisp. In some, it isn't obvious at first that you're looking at a plastic bag.
Continued
I created these images by crushing pieces of chalk using a wine bottle, I experimented with different angles and focusing on different parts. Then I tried taking photos mixing the different colours together, however I didn't like this as much as when they were clearly laid out next to each other. In order to improve this project I would have taken more photos of the chalk before crushing it instead of just taking one. There is a clear difference between each colour in most of these images which help them stand out and he angles they're shot at is quite interesting and allows you to view them from all different angles and directions. I like the way part of some of the images are blurred and the closest or farthest point is the main focus of the photo and the rest is blurred and not so clear.
Antarctica in a Bag - Francois Delfosse
Francois Delfosse is a Belgium architect and photographer that takes photos inside crumpled up, used plastic bags. His work is mostly abstract and resemble a glacier cave in the North of the South Pole. He says that the images were taken in a “glacier cave just North of the South Pole”, before adding that they are “viewed from the inside of a plastic bag”. If they really were photos of a glacier cave we’d probably be in awe of their beauty, yet because they’re plastic bags it feels odd to think of them as beautiful yet somehow it works. When you first look at these images you believe they are photos of caves in the Antarctic, Delfosse has captured the sporadicalness of the glaciers and caves in the 'Grottos of Antarctica' through the crumples in the plastic bags. The first image has a ray of light shining through the bag which creates an illusion that it is the sun shining into a crevice of the cave. The second image is taken as though the photographer is on a ledge in an enormous glacier and shows the enormity of the glaciers in the South Pole, however it is simply a larger area of the bag. The final image is quite abstract, leaving the audience wondering which way to look at the image; after knowing it is a plastic bag you can tell the photo is of the bottom of the bag. I don't find these images very interesting as at first I didn't understand what they were of and when I did it still wasn't very interesting to me. However, I understand how it could be interesting to some as you can look at all the detail in the photos and there are different things they could look like.
Imposing Architecture
Alexander Rodchenko
All of these images are taken from a low angle to emphasise the huge scale of each building/structure. The structures are very detailed and can be quite confusing to look at, and the contrast of the black material with the white/grey of the sky helps them stand out more. These photos help show the intricacy of architecture.
Allen Klosowski
These photos have the same overall theme as the previous pictures although are taken in slightly different ways. My favourite is the photo of the rectangular building that is actually taken in the reflection of another building's glass windows which almost gives off the effect that you're looking and the reflection of the building in water. The first image is taken from below a glass panel that is built above the photographers head, there are three different buildings that look to be growing from this panel and towering over the person looking at the image/taking the image. The middle is a classic photo of a sky scraper, only taken from a low angle and although the colour is kept in it, it is made slightly more grey which creates a more melancholy feeling.
Dave Heather
These images are more specifically close-ups of intricate architectural designs which helps you appreciate the amount of detail in the buildings. Two of these photos are in colour with blue standing out instantly. The complexity of these photos makes the viewer look at them for longer and appreciate the architecture more. Because the photograph in the middle is in black and white it feels slightly more atmospheric, the lone person in this also adds atmosphere. The feeling created is quite depressing and lonely.
Imposing Architecture
I took these photos around my local area, trying to create a sense of imposing architecture using the buildings (primarily churches) around Muswell Hill. I took the images at different angles to dramatize/emphasize the size of the buildings. The second contact sheet have photos that are taken in black and white to take attention off colours and purely the building and feature. To improve this, I could go to a better location with more interesting, imposing architecture.
Destruction
I chose to further develop this strand as I found the destruction of different objects interesting. I also didn't take very many photos the first time we focused on this topic. I have taken photo's of a variety of things being broken by dropping them or hitting them with a physical force (the axe).
I then made two gifs of some of my images using photoshop. I did this to create some diversity and to make the project more interesting.
Force of Emotion
These photos were taken in front of a plain white backdrop so as to not take away the focus from the person in the picture. They were taken to show the force of emotion on different people's faces and to show the differences/similarities in the way each person express certain emotions. The first vertical row is of people being happy; they all raised their eyebrows and smiled, however only one showed her teeth which is the usual sign someone is very happy. The next row is showing sadness; the first person lowered his head and looked towards the floor, they all lowered their eyebrows and let their mouths droop. The final row is showing shock; two raised their eyebrows and widened their eyes whereas one drooped his head even further. The two that widened their eyes also let their mouths gape which is the classic sign of shock.
Levitation Force - Yoa Yoa
In these images women are shown to be levitating, they are the main focal point drawing your attention. The colour saturation has been enhanced to make the image stand out more, she has chosen specific every day locations to make viewers be able to relate and find it funny that this is going on around them. The Viewpoint is head on as if you are standing watching.
These images are created by setting your shutter speed so it is very fast and then getting your subject to jump in front of the camera without appearing like they are jumping.
Chemical Force
First Response
Second Response
Final Piece
All of these photos were taken of the reaction of an Alka-Seltzer and food dye in a bowl of water. They show 'Chemical Force' and have created some very interesting images. In some of the images, I added oil to the bowl and you can see the yellow bubbles underwater. I have selected three of the images and edited them on photoshop to intensify them and experiment with what they can resemble (for example the middle image looks quite like the moon).