Night Traffic Video

Sequence

Depth of Field

Minimum Depth of Field

AS Evaluation

I feel that this AS Photography year  has gone really well overall, and made me want to continue photography further at University. I am happy with how all of my practical work turned out and how I developed my ideas with the use of the techniques I learnt. What I feel I done best at and what I developed the most is my Photoshop skills in creating and presenting my ideas better. For example, I used a variety of Photoshop tools for my exam to make the photos look more realistic and add effects.
When I started Photography is September I had not done any Photography work at all before and I picked it up well and easily. Although I am really happy with the overall look of my work as a whole, there was a few shoots that did not go according to plan because weather or location did not work out. For example, the shoot I done in the studio with Tom and Jack in suits was meant to be in London but the weather meant that was not an option.
My two favourite shoots were my exam shoot, and the black and white fashion shoot. I like my exam shoot because the variety of lighting I used to add to the horror effect and the editing to add to the realistic feel. The black and white shoot I used the ring flash which works well in creating a realistic and professional fashion shoot quality.

Peek - a - Boo

Katie Walking Animation

Face Melt Experiment

Target May 10th 2013

As I have finished all of my work, and it is all in my folder and on my blog I am going to spend today checking the labels and the organisation of my blog.

Overall Project Evaluation

Overall, I have found this project interesting and fun, as the topic of “Contrasts” allowed me to explore a range of different ideas, as the topic did not confine me to looking at only certain things, as almost everything has a contrasting idea or a way to show it in relation to contrast. There have not been any times where I was stuck on ideas on what to shoot, but sometimes it was more difficult to show the idea. For example, the shoot I done with a heart took more planning than other shoots and was more difficult as I had to find a model who would not be put off by the use of a heart. As the project went on, a theme started developing in a way as my ideas all related to horror and gore, including my exam shoot. This was because it is easy to show contrasts within this, and they are quite obvious, such as life and death. I also chose to do focus the majority my work on the idea of horror, as it is a topic I find most fun to explore

and create as I get to experiment more with different lighting, makeup effects and editing. Although I find this more fun, it is not something that I can decide to do last minute or with minimal planning as it takes a lot of preparation, such as for my exam shoot the makeup took me almost 2 hours. Other than the idea of horror, something else I have enjoyed looking at is portraits, and is what I am most interested in shooting. I have done various different portrait shoots showing contrasts such as age, both obvious and mental/physical age. The majority of these I used the studio for as they help give a more professional look and I got to experiment with different lighting. This included the ring flash and up – lighting, both of which I had not used previous to this unit and I really like how both add to the style of the shoot, such as the up – lighting creates a more eerie effect, and the ring flash goes well with portrait shoots, removing the shadow.

I feel that in this unit I have also developed my editing skills a lot, as I now know more techniques and have better knowledge on how to accurately use the various tools on Photoshop together to get the best out of them. As well as knowing more about editing, I know more about what editing goes better with what photographs. The main area I feel I have improved on with editing is makeup editing, recolouring and smoothing skin, as the majority of my work is portraits and work that needs smoothing out, for example the edge of the zipper on my exam shoot.

Out of all of my shoots, I think my favourite shoot was the either the black and white portrait one or the zipper shoot. This is because I think these had some of the best results and especially with the zipper shoot I had a lot of freedom with editing giving me space to experiment.

Best Work Unit 2

Best work unit 2 from alicesoph96

Work Record April 26th 2013

Preparation;

The aim for this shoot is do a portrait and fashion shoot in black and white. This relates to contrasts as it will be in black and white. I plan on using the normal lights and the ring flash to get high quality professional portrait images.

 

 

 

I like both of these images as they both show bright, high contrast black and white style portrait photography. I like the one on the top due to the classier, extreme high contrast style to it. I like the one on the bottom as I like how the model is posing and with some shadow.

To prepare I need to;

·         Get a model

·         Book studio

·         Plan lighting

·         Plan what I want my model to wear

·         Plan poses

What I hope to achieve;

In this shoot I hope to achieve a beauty portrait shoot that shows modern fashion and beauty through a variety of poses.

 

What I actually achieved;

I am really happy with how this shoot turned out, as it shows contrast well in a different way to how I usually show it. I did originally plan on taking the photographs in black and white, but I am glad I decided against it as taking them in black and white as having them in colour gave me more freedom with editing, such as tone and brightness. I also got a few good colour images, which was not my aim but as I thought they turned out well I saved them in colour as well as black and white. When taking the photographs, I did use various different lighting, but the one that worked out best for me was the ringflash as it gave a brighter, higher quality finish. When editing, other than making them black and white, I experimented with different amounts of shadow, brightness and contrast intensity. Overall I am really happy with the result I got.

 

This image was not intentionally in colour, and it is also in black and white. Although it is in black and white, I do prefer this one in colour due to the vivid colours and how bright it is. For this I used the ring flash, and therefore this image has no shadow. I like the pose that the model is posing as it looks fun and natural. I also like how the colours and sunglasses makes the image look happy and summery.

 

This is most likely my favourite image from the shoot, as I like the retro feel to it and how fun it is. Another thing about this I like is the reflection of the ringflash in the sunglasses looks like eyes which adds to the fun style. In terms of editing, I am really happy with how this looks due to the high contrast, bright style of it. The fact that I used the ringflash increased the contrast and the brightness as well.

 

 

This is another image that I think worked out quite well, as it is not as bright and shows less contrast than the rest of the images. I took this without the ringflash, but there is still minimal shadow. I like this one mainly because it shows movement which I think was captured quite well as there is no blur. When editing, I used the dodge tool to highlight the hair a bit more.

 

 

 

 

What I am going to do next;

There are ways I could develop this idea such as doing the photographs outside or changing the theme, but as this shoot is the last in my unit, I am happy with leaving it as it is.





Work Record April 8th 2013

Preparation;
The aim of this shoot is to do a “mock up” of the shoot and editing I plan to do for my exam piece with the topic being Contrasts. This shoot will show the contrast of dead/undead and inside/outside of the body by creating an effect that my face is being unzipped. One of the reasons I chose to do this idea is because it means I can use myself as the model, therefore I would not have to find an available model, and also because it links in with my work where I have focused on the idea of horror and used myself as a model
 
 

This image on the left gives me inspiration on how I am going to do my makeup. This is the most crucial part to get right, as if it goes wrong, it will mess up the entire shoot and the edits will not look as good either. Although it does not really go with my idea, I have chosen to include this image on the left as I like the way it is lit. Up-lighting is something I want to experiment with in this shoot as I like the eerie look it gives the images.

To Prepare I need to;

·         Decide on the lighting

·         Book studio

·         Decide on what background

·         Plan poses

·         Plan/do a practice run of the makeup

·         Decide on any specific editing I want to look at

What I hope to achieve;

From this shoot I hope to achieve shoot giving me a clear indication of how I am going to do my exam shoot, including things such as whether or not this shoot is a good idea, lighting, backdrop, and edits.

What I actually achieved;

I am really happy with how this shoot turned out, and not I have a clear idea and plan of what I am doing foe my exam piece. Due to the fact I feel this was a successful trial of this idea, I am going to continue with this idea. When it came to shooting, I got a range of images with different compositions and poses as well as different lighting. I chose to use the grey background for this shoot as it is not too dark, but with different lighting and editing I have the option and it worked really well. When it came to lighting that is something I am really happy with how it turned out as I experimented with having the light coming up to give the images a darker, more horror style feel. With the editing, I had to use the clone stamp tool, spot healer and paint on them all to smooth out the zipper so it appeared as part of the skin and looked realistic. This was something I was not sure would work out too well and one of the main reasons I wanted to text my idea, but it worked out a lot better than I thought it would.

This is one of my favourite images from this shoot as it was done with the lighting going up. It makes the image look more sinister and evil, which is different to the rest where I have tried to make them seem more innocent. I also like the composition with this as I am central and looking up above the camera which I think looks good.

 

 

What I like most about this is how it looks quite bright and normal – except the zipper area which is what I was going for as it shows the contrast well and in a natural way. I also like this as it is quite close up and you can see the zipper in more detail,  and it smoothly goes into the skin.

 

 

I decided to make this one black and white as I think the fact that it has quite a bit of shadow and shows a lot of form goes well. To get this lighting, I stepped closer to the camera and just beyond where the lights were which turned out to give a halo type of effect which I think works well. When editing, I used the dodge tool on the hair to make it a bit brighter and enhance the halo effect.

 

 

 

 

What I am going to do next;

As I am really happy with how this shoot has turned out, and how the editing went, I am happy to go ahead with this idea for my exam as it is goes with the theme of Contrasts and during the editing process, there are quite a few ways I can enhance the idea and images.

 

 

 

 

 

Work Record April 8th 2013

Preparation;

The aim for this shoot is to show nature and the contrasts I see within it, such as colour and the contrasts between natural and manmade. I decided to do this as the majority of my work is in the studio and I want to explore shooting outside a bit more.  

I don’t really have any specific plans with this shoot, but I do plan on using the macro lens when photographing things such as flowers as I like the way it makes the camera focus on the subject and its detail whilst slightly blurring the background.

To Prepare I need to; 

•   Plan where I am going to go

What I hope to achieve;

From this shoot I hope to achieve a range of photographs showing various contrasts within nature.

 

What I actually achieved?
I am really happy with how my shoot went, especially as it was something I am not used to doing, and I got a variety of images showing various contrasts and compositions. As I got a range of photographs showing different things ranging from churches to flowers, this shoot shows a range of different contrasts such as contrast between light and dark. When editing, I did keep them consistent, as each image is different and needed different editing, so it ranged from just using levels and curves, to using different filters to create different effects. Overall, I am really happy with how this shoot has turned out and the range of images I got.

This is one of my favourite images from the shoot, and it did not take much editing. What I like most about this is the sun shining over from one corner through the trees and slightly hitting the pipe, emphasising the form. I also like the composition, with the camera looking down the pipe showing depth. When it came to editing, I just enhanced the contrast using levels and curves, as it did not need over editing, just enhancing slightly.

This is another image that I really like, although it does stand out against the rest of the images as it is not to do with nature or the scenery of where I was. I took this with the macro lens, focusing in on the tear in the shoe, which is obvious as it is central of the composition. As this image without editing did not have much to do with contrasts, so during editing I decided to use the selective colour technique which also emphasised the subject.

I think this is a really effective image, as it is simple yet shows good detail and strong colour. I also took this using the macro lens as I wanted to capture the detail of the flower precisely. When editing, I made the background more blurred using Gaussian blur. When it came to colour, I only had to enhance it slightly using levels and curves.

 





What I am going to do next;

As this was a one off shoot, there is not much else I can do to continue this, as the idea cannot really be developed further so I will move onto a new idea.

Work Record March 26th 2013

Preparation;

The aim of this shoot is to show the contrast between life and death by creating a scene were a zombie is eating a human. For this shoot I plan on using myself and someone else as models.

To prepare I need to;

·         Get a model

·         Book the studio

·         Get any props – i.e. heart

·         Plan makeup

·         Plan poses

What I hope to achieve;

During this shoot I hope to achieve a shoot that shows the contrast between life and death through the ideas of horror. 

What I actually achieved;

During this shoot, I managed to achieve what I wanted which was to show the ideas of life and death in a eccentric and horror themed shoot. Due to the fact I was also part of the shoot, I was originally planning on putting the camera on a stand, but the stand would not go as low as I needed it too, I instead asked Paul to take the photographs with me directing him. I am happy with how the images turned out, however  there was not much variation in pose and composition due to the fact I knew what I wanted to get out of the shoot. When shooting I used a heart as a prop to make it look more realistic like the zombie was eating the heart. When editing I experimented with adding backgrounds and re colouring them.

This is my favourite edit from the  shoot as I re coloured it and gave it and green hue in order to make it look more eerie, whilst keeping it bright and vivid. I also like how the composition is, with the heart central, making it the focus with everything happening around it and linking the zombie and the human. I also like how at the top of the image you can just see my eyes, and it looks as though I have been caught off guard.



 
What I am going to do next;
 

As I am happy with how this has turned out, I am leaving this shoot as it is, but I like looking into the idea of horror so I am going to continue looking at this style.

Work Record March 12th 2013

Preparation;
The aim of this shoot is to show the contrast between fire and ice/ good and evil by using a model and makeup. I have decided to so this so that I can show contrast in a different way to how I previously have, and also use a model.

I like these two images as they both show similar ideas of what I hope to achieve. The image on the bottom shows a similar idea of what I hope to achieve in my shoot as I like how the each side of the face is representing different ideas, this is something I hope to achieve as it shows how one person is capable of both good and evil. The image on the top shows a more detailed look of what I hope to achieve in terms of makeup design.

To prepare I need to;

·         Get a model

·         Book the studio

·         Plan what I want the model to wear

·         Plan any poses

·         Plan a makeup design

What I hope to achieve;

By the end of this shoot I hope to get have a range of photos showing the contrast between good and evil using contrasting colours and makeup.

What I actually achieved;

I am quite happy with how this shoot went, as I got what I wanted which was to show the ideas between good and evil through the model and makeup designs and for it to look effective. Although I am really happy with how the shoot went and in general with editing, there was one edit which I have included but did not turn out exactly how I hoped, as it looks false and messy. During shooting I got a wide range of shoots using both lights and just one to show more form. I also got a variety of different angles and compositions so that I got photos showing both ideas together and on their own. I decided to use a white background as it reflected the light better and goes well with both the good and the bad ideas in this shoot. During editing, I decided to play around a bit with different effects and tools to create more natural and eccentric ideas. These generally worked out really well and overall, I am happy with the result.

This is most likely my favourite image from this shoot as I really like how it turned out, especially in terms of editing, as I spent quite a while editing this, such as using the clone stamp tool to even out the patchy glitter, used the brush and eyedropper tool to enhance the colour. What I like most about this image is how the colour and the strong colours on the eye make this seem a bit surreal and more like some fairy-tale type of shoot.

 This is another image I like a lot. I like this one as it looks really natural, but them the fact that the eyes are two different colours gives it a sort of supernatural edge. For this I kept editing quite simple, just touching up colour and using Gaussian blur to soften the image. I also like the composition for this image as there is some blank space left so the model is not filling the composition entirely.

 

 

Although this probably is not the best image from the shoot, it is something I really like as it turned out better than I expected. The aim from this computer experiment was to make the model look a bit like a reptile. I done this using the texture tool, and layering it about the image repeatedly, each layer creating a more graduated effect. I them use the clone stamp to erase the nostrils. Other than the editing, I like the composition of this, how the model is off to one side and looking directly at the camera as it makes the model look powerful.

What I am going to do next;

As I am happy with how this shoot turned out, I am not going to continue with this idea as I do not think there is much I can do to develop this idea. Next, I am now going to create an animation to show contrasting ideas of living and dead.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Film Strip

Edits from shoot April 26th 2013

Todays Targets (April 26th 2013)

In todays lesson, I have a shoot planned influenced by Richard Avedon's work, which is mainly black and white photography focusing on fashion. In terms of editing, I plan on keeping it simple as the main point of this shoot is black and white.

I also plan on getting some contextual work done, mainly the work records and I am also going to start picking out my final pieces after I complete todays shoot as it is my last shoot for Unit 2.

Outstanding Work Unit 2

All of my work is complete!

Colour/ Black and White edit