Reflections on Interim Review

Since having my work assessed in the interim review, I have come to the decision to change a few things in my work. I appreciated the feedback because it made me realise how to improve my projects.

• I am considering whether or not to reprint my Object image. I think the colours are appropriate for the issue I have explored but my initial desire was for it to look warm. I may reprint and decide which looks better; the warmer image or the colder image for the point I am trying to put across.

• I have also decided to reprint two out of the three environment photographs I displayed to make the colours perfect and evoke the right feelings in people. I want to reshoot the other photograph because it didn't fit in with the series very well and was two different from the others. I want them all to relate well to each other and really work as a series.

• The other adjustment I might make is on my pastiche. Due to low contrast in my exposure it was hard to print without either getting an image slightly flat and bright or an image too dark.

As it stands, I feel like I need to make these changes before I'll be happy to submit them again. This time when I print I will leave enough time to walk away from my images and hopefully be able to decide when I look at them the next time if any further improvements need to be made.

Critical Appraisal: The Object (300 words)

Upon being asked to create a still-life concerning a current social issue, the concept of my photograph is a significant contributor to Global warming; the melting ice caps. Everybody seems to be aware of it and understand how it is affecting our planet. Through this I also display rising sea levels by photographing the melting ice floating on the surface; aiming to visually recreating the scene as it would be occurring.

Through my research I discovered that some people call the issue of Global Warming a theory. Others believe it is fact. One strong viewpoint is that natural climatic adjustment is causing the changes in our Earth and that this is inevitable. For this reason I wanted to portray Global Warming from a somewhat outside perspective as I was unsure of where my loyalties lay on this particular issue. I managed my studies through taking advantage of gaps in my day and spending time in the library doing my research and taking my whole idea to the tutorial to enable me to really explain my idea and receive developed feedback to help me.

The most challenging thing about creating my image was lighting it. I back lit my photograph specifically to create this glow which represents the sun and it's affect over this social issue. It plays an important role in my photograph as well as simply lighting my image. The use of a snoot on a light head being directed through full tough spung allowed me to successfully create my desired effect as well as utilising a soft box overhead to prevent reflection from the glass.

To improve I would consider incorporating more colours into my image; lack of time prevented me from doing this. However, I am happy with the almost neutral, cold feel which my image holds.


My still-life: (line only on scan)

Still-life Object Production Shoot and Printing

Shoot

Last week I shot my photograph for my object project. When the day was over I had mixed feelings about how it went. I managed to take and process two photographs and had help with taking two polaroids but didn't have time to process my last two negatives. I put these in my locker over the weekend so I was unaware of how they would turn out.

Two of the photos I'd taken landscape and wasn't keen on the way they looked in that orientation. The other two were portrait and in one of them my object was not straight but luckily I ended up with one I was happy with.

I had a lot of help with my shoot because I was working with ice and water in a glass vase so this immediately made it more difficult. I was also trying to work to a desired lighting effect which had to be particularly catered to. Along the way so many light packs and leads and flashes wouldn't work when I needed them which is what too up so much time.

I ended up taking my first photograph at half past 3, an hour before the processor shut. I was worried I wouldn't be finished in time and would have to do it all over again which I really didn't want to have to do.

I am not very familiar with studio lighting and maybe if I hadn't changed my idea the night before my shoot I would have had time to ask someone about how to light my object how I needed to and be prepared for the day as this is what took so long to do. Before my shoot I'd done two test shoots. One was not a complete still life and the second I just wasn't happy with in general; it didn't work.

My best photograph:

shot at f 8.5
shutter speed 500
power 6 on bron colour pack
used a snoot, soft box and full tough spung
used a horseman and 210mm lens


Printing

Today I made my final print of my object photograph. I managed to use only 4/5 sheets of my paper to do this which I was happy about. When I did my step wedge (cyan 0, magenta, 60, yellow 80) it came out very yellow but I went back in to the darkroom and printed another test strip at 22 seconds with +40 yellow and the strip looked great despite making a mistake when exposing it and exposing it for 2.2 seconds and then 22 on top of that when I got confused with the switch which changes the value of the numbers. However, the colours were all neutral as they should have been and it was in focus and exposed perfectly.

When I came to print next, I changed it so it was exposed for 22 seconds but did not alter any colour levels. The loss of 2.2 seconds made my whole image too green so I had to -5 magenta.

Not long after this I managed to print my image at f32, for 24.2 seconds, at cyan 0, magenta 75 and yellow 100. This is my final print which I am very pleased with: