Fantasy Shoot 8 - Magical Potions

Plans for the shoot:

My plan for this shoot is to simply repeat what I did last lesson (see previous work diary) but instead use the light-box as my source of light to create colour which glow a lot more. I am then going to use the smoke brushes again, as well as bubble brushes to bring the images to life more.

Evaluation:

I loved the contrast between the 'glowing' colours and the black background and how this made the 'potions' look more realistic. It was quite hard to focus these images as they were done using the macro lens to capture the finer details, but I feel that what I was able to capture looks stunning and is great for creating various experiments. Here is a selection of my favourite images from the editing today:

- computer experiment

- on the actual picture inside Photoshop, the background appears to be a lot darker and blacker like the other pictures below and above, so hopefully the printed version will look better, there has just been a slight alteration in colour as I have uploaded this image.

Progress Check for 31.03.14

Mindmap – for THREE of the questions..........
Mindmap - complete to 3 levels..........
Discussion - complete and illustrated..........
Definition – Dictionary Def….. describing words….. Four annotated pictues, ….real example… your definition……

Image Bank - complete with 30 images and annotations…..

Research Log - completed with at least TWENTY entries

No1 why picked..... 4 photos......evaluations....... influence....sum.....
No2 why picked..... 4 photos..... evaluations....... influence....sum.....
No3 why picked..... 4 photos..... evaluations....... influence....sum.....

Contact sheets – Shoot No 1…. Shoot No 2…. Shoot No 3….
Shoot No 4…. Shoot No 5…. Shoot No 6…. Shoot No 7…. Shoot No 8….

Straight prints - From your shoots at least THIRTY

Print Techniques - Black & White.... Duotone..... Repetition,.... . Selective Colour....... Multiple Imagery…. Image within image.... Image and text........ Framing......

Work Records - Shoot No 1…. Shoot No 2…. Shoot No 3…. Shoot No 4…. Shoot No 5…. Shoot No 6…. Shoot No 7…. Shoot No 8….

Exam plan for your 15 hour exam..................

Computer experiments - one...two...three... four.... five.... six.....

Physical experiments -  one...two...three...

Electronic portfolio (best work so far)...........

Fantasy Shoot 7

Plans for the shoot:

With this shoot I want to explore the theme of 'magic' within Fantasy, taking films such as Harry Potter as inspiration. I really enjoyed doing some colour-inspired close-up work last year in Unit 3 with my coloured roses, so I am planning on doing some more close-up work today, creating 'potions' using food colouring and water, with different shaped glass bottles. I hope that the food colouring will disperse in the water slowly to allow me to capture pretty patterns within the water. Afterwards, I am going to experiment by using smoke-shaped brushes to bring the potions to life.

Evaluation:

The images that I captured today didn't really fulfil what I had in mind as the colouring was quite old and didn't come out as bright as I had hoped. It was also very difficult to get the lighting correct in the studio, as I wanted the water to illuminate and make the colour 'glow'. 

However, in some of the images, the darker colours actually created a nice eery effect, giving the effect of 'dark magic'. I particularly like this image as the brush strokes blended nicely with the coloured waters  and looked quite realistic:

After I had shot, I had a quick discussion with Paul about my issues with the colours and the lighting, and so we came up with the solution of using the light-box to illuminate the water from underneath, and using a dark background to contrast this. Not only did it give the images a nice glow, it made even the darkest colours look brighter and so the one trial picture I captured, I used to created an animation, changing the hue by 10 each time to make the potion look like it is real and developing:

I was really happy with this result, so now I am going to re-shoot this idea next lesson completely using this technique and with some newer, brighter food colouring to creating some different patterns and effects.

Fantasy Shoot 6 - Origami Birds!

Plans for the shoot: So I spent most of my weekend making origami birds out of thick coloured paper! I have quite a few made now, so I am going to use these in my shoot in the studio, in a similar manner to my previous shoot with the 'floating' letters. However, this time I have purchased some thin jewellery-making wire, which I hope will be less visible in the shots  and will allow me to potentially erase these without any evidence of Photoshop-ing to give the impression that these paper birds have come to life and are actually flying. I am going to experiment with the ways I hang the birds and the wire, as well as perhaps incorporating the book element which I used in one of my initial shoots.

Shoot Evaluation:
This shoot was very tricking to set-up as the shots I was originally achieving weren't bright enough and the colours didn't stand out as well as I had hoped. To do so, I had to change the lighting so that I had two lights on the background, and two lights in front of the birds - which meant I had to shoot out of lesson time as the set-up took a long while, but this meant I was able to shoot LOADS and I was able to get a nice variety of shots. I also experimented with the 'story book' I used in one of my first shoots, as I wanted to make it look like the birds were appearing from inside the book, a bit like a spell or magic trick.

Fantasy Shoot 5 - Letters in the Forest

Plans for the shoot:

My plan for this shoot is based on an image I once saw on Tumblr where somebody had created an authentic-looking road sign made of wood, with each arrow pointing in the direction of a well-known Fantasy land. I want to take the names of a few of these well known Fantasy lands, cut them out of letters like I had done in the previous shoot and hang them from trees in the nearby woods. I also plan to experiment by sticking them to the trees ad securing them to skewers and standing them in the ground.






Evaluation:

I actually really enjoyed this shoot, despite being worried about pulling off a relatively large shoot on my own. I would say it's the shoot that has produced the most shots I have EVER done, as I was in the forest for nearly 2 hours shooting on my own. It was a really interesting experience as it actually led to me developing a strong idea for my exam. I think the ideas definitely worked well, and I now want to potentially do this idea again, but take more time and effort in the preparation stages to complete the 'look'. For quickness, I cut very basic letters out of the paper, and actually they looked quite sloppy, whereas I think I should have used an existing font and cut them out more neatly, but this is something I will take into consideration when I do my shoot. Sticking the letters and the arrows to the trees worked really well and created an effective look when you could see multiple trees in the frame at different depths. However, I should have thought about the sunlight and the colour of the paper as this made it more difficult to see the text against the colour of the trees, and I should have also spent more time choosing which trees to use as it was hard to find a set of trees which were close enough together to all clearly fit in one frame. With some of the letters I also hung them from the branches - again another effective look but went wrong at times because of the wind effecting the letters' positions. Finally, I found a nice spot near the stream which allowed me to get right up close to the water without getting wet. This provided a really nice backdrop for the letters which I stuck in the ground, spelling out 'Atlantis' the famous underwater kingdom. The stream backdrop provided a nice effect for the photos as it allowed the text to reflect and add to the theme of the text. This part of the shoot is what I want to develop for my exam, as I know this particular location will be great for a mermaid shoot. There is space for my model to sit without having to get too wet and I would love to create underwater-themed silhouette shapes to stick in the ground similar to the letters I have tried today to create a pop-up like setting for my mermaid 'story'.

Photographer Research 5: Eugenio Recuenco

About this photographer:
Eugenio has worked for a range of different clients, from Nina Ricci perfume adverts to Vogue UK magazine covers and everything in between from Yves Saint Laurent, Diesel and Swarovsky. The fashion/portrait photography stands out to me because of his use of statuesque models, with facial features that almost replicate that of a doll's, giving his work an eery, fantastical element. Eugenio also uses a lot of larger-than-life props and settings, which makes his work seem unreal yet captivating.


Why have I picked this photographer?:
I have often seen Eugenio's work for Nina Ricci on TV, and every time I see the advert I often comment on how beautiful and magical they look. I like how Eugenio's work clearly has the Fantasy element within it, especially with the props and the costume, but it is not too over-the-top 'Disney-fied' and has a more grown up touch to it.

Evaluation:

This is one of the images taken from the TV advert of the Nina by Nina Ricci perfume. I love the use of colour - especially as the dress mimics the same soft colour within the paint on the walls, giving off a soft, elegant glow, whilst not over-doing the image. The ivory colours suggest sophistication, which works well with the grand photo frame that she steps over, and the colours contrast nicely with the pinkness in the perfume bottle she is holding, allowing us as the viewers to be drawn to it and making it stand out more.

I don't know what this image by Eugenio was used for, but I love the Gotham-City/BatWoman vibes that are given off from it. Whilst the use of dark colours and imagery that suggests something evil, such as the statue of the bird, the haziness of the clouds in the background and the twinkling lights give the image that element of Fantasy that I love. The composition of this image is really clever also as not too much focus is given on the background that we also get to look at the two characters at the same time and we can identify them easily as a superhero and a villain.

This image is again from the Nina by Nina Ricci perfume advert like the first image above. I like that the lighting is a lot brighter in this image compared to the first, suggesting elements of purity and beauty. The use of the snow in the background suggests an idea similar to the Disney fairytale Snow White whilst it contrast nicely with the red lips of the model's makeup. The use of the flying owl is also effective as along with the model, our eyes also follow the across the frame to where the owl is flying.

Whilst the above two images were subtly inspired by Snow White, this advertising image has been inspired by Cinderella, having the model sweep up all of the leaves whilst looking tired. The textures and patterns are key in this image as they all contribute to demonstrating the idea of the Renaissance period, adding drama and realism to the picture, whilst also combing with the fairytale story of Cinderella. Brighter colours could easily have been used in this image also to make it stand out better, but I actually quite like that these duller colours add to the idea of the characters' sad emotions.




Influence:
Whilst Eugenio's work has directly influenced me yet, I would love to be able to use his idea of a subtler colour scheme in my future work to emphasise on emotion and the elegance which is often associated with fairytale maidens. If my plan goes correctly, I should be able to get a young female model in for my exam, which I would like to experiment with by using soft materials as props and pale, innocent colours.

Summary:
I think that Eugenio's work is beautifully elegant and perfect for the adverts he has so far helped to construct and design. Interestingly, he is a modern-day photographer with a love for shooting models and props in a way that suggests a more traditional or antique design or time-period, which I think is really unique and beautiful, and I wish that more photographers operated in this way, considering that most modern photographers will try to add youth and elements of the future so often.

Photographer Research 4: Thomas Barbey

About this photographer:
Originating from Switzerland, Thomas now lives and works in Las Vegas where he takes inspiration from the big and bold lifestyle there. He only ever works in black and white, and his final images never come from just the one shoot. Working for more than 20 years now in photography, Thomas takes little parts of images from different shoots spanning across these 20 years as he likes to incorporate the past with the future, which is what gives his work that unique twist.
Why have I picked this photographer?:
Whilst i was originally drawn to the photographer Jerry Uelsmann, Thomas' work proved to be very similar, but I preferred that his work had the unique twist of combining the contrast of the past and the future. I liked that he uses a technique that I already often do with my work, which is to combine images from different shoots, which I have already done with my shoots 1 + 2 for this current project. I LOVE how with combining different images in unique ways, he can make the impossible look very possible.

Evaluation:

I think the way he has photographed the textures in this image is really cleaver as they all seem to blend into the one image, rather than there being distinct differences which is what makes it look realistic. He has also clearly thought about the shape well as the curves within the horse's structure mimics what shapes are also within the mountains. The nature of this photo is also very believable as it could quite simply be a horse laying down in a substance such as snow or sand, but really the photo is telling you a story of a mountain that comes to life as a horse.

Although I find that this concept is quite common in photography, using a door to lead the eye into another surreal location, I really like how Thomas has placed the door leading to a location inside the mouth - adding another complete layer to the image and therefore adding depth to the image, which leads the viewers' eye on a visual journey. I also really like that he only works in black and white or sepia, and I think it looks particularly effective with this image as it adds a particular grittiness to the image, and for some reason I feel that a full-colour image would have been too overpowering because of the level of detail in the whole image.

I would really like to be able to construct an image like this myself as the attention to detail is beautiful yet very complicated at the same time. His attention to detail especially in textures is stunning as this is what makes the image seem like it really is real, with the intricate folds and creases in the woman's skin as it is being pulled back like a curtain. Although I don't usually enjoy photographs with a lot going on in them, I think that in the case of Thomas Barbey, it really works as his pieces are made to entertain and they allow for different levels of depth for the viewers to look at.











I think this is my favourite piece of Thomas' work as I love just how surreal it really is, as, when would you ever see pianos and zebras in the same image!? I think the use of pattern is really clever, matching the stripes in the zebra up with the keys on the piano, creating lines for the viewers to follow further back in the image, adding depth. This particular image gives off a really nice happy tone, purely because of the positive emotions associate with listening to music and seeing animals, especially as the two zebras are enjoying each other's company.









Influence:
I would defiitely say that Thomas Barbey's work has influenced me, especially as we both use different elements of separate shoots to create unique and interesting pieces. I found that his work particularly influenced my first and second shoots for this unit, as I not only combined different images but I also kept the work in black and white as I felt that adding a more serious tone to the work. I am definitely going to take some of his work for inspiration and attempt to make my own images like his.

Summary:
I love Thomas' work as he mostly focuses on the editing-together of his images, rather than the shoots himself. Whilst this is not to say that little thought should go into the shoots themselves, it is equally important to be as creative as you possible can during editing, even if it means trying out experiments that might not work. I look forward to combing many of my images together to attempt a surreal piece just like Thomas.

Photographer Research 3: Elena Kalis

About this photographer:
Born and raised in Moscow, Elena Kalis studied the Fine Arts, before marrying and moving to The Berry Islands, a small cluster of islands in the Bahamas. Surrounded by nothing but water, Kalis took inspiration from the ocean, and turned her love for painting into photography when she discovered the endless possibilities she could achieve under the water, where everything moves in a different way and people become virtually weightless. She compared this venture to Alice, the girl who jumped into an adventure feet first, and so called her exploration, Waterland.

Why have I picked this photographer?:
I am completely fascinated by underwater photography and would give anything to have the opportunity to try it myself. I love Kalis' exploration of colour, especially how the natural sunlight reflects and refracts against the water and the colours; bringing them to life. I also enjoy her exploration of the fairytale character, Alice, and the unique ways she depicts the characters' time in Wonderland in her own unique way. The floating movement of her models and the use of soft, delicate clothes and props adds a certain dream-like feel to all of the work she produces.

Evaluation:

The composition of this image is so clever and confusing to the mind - it must have taken a lot to get the 'perfect' shot. I love how there is so much reflecting in every angle of the image - reflections in the water surfaces and reflections in the mirror. Part of it doesn't even look like the model is in the water, but you can tell by the movements of her body and clothes that she is. I love the lighting in this image also as from both the top and bottom of the image evokes a strong, but warm glow which illuminates all the colours within the water and the models' costume. Combined with the models' dance-like positioning, this image really does look like a picture taken straight from someone's dream.

The contrast in the colours from the balloons with the sand and the ocean is really striking and makes this image stand out from most others. The surreal ballet-like movement of the model makes the image seem all the more unbelievable, but at the same time adds a nice dream-like tone to the image. The way she has also captured the image's reflection in the top of the frame gives the picture more depth and thus also increases the colour within the shot. The refracted light through the water also creates interesting patterns along the sand, adding more interest for the viewers to look at.

I LOVE the contrast between the whiteness within the water bubbles and the jet black backdrop. These droplets seem magical and make the model look quite angelic, especially as they appear to dissolve around her. The pattern created from the water droplets adds more depth for the viewers to look at, whilst it also allows for them to identify that the image is in fact underwater. Te fact that these tiny bubbles are clearly interrupting the shot which would otherwise probably be quite clean actually adds something more to the image as it continues that theme of dreams and the water.

Taken using the same black-dropped tank like the previous image, this one is technically a lot cleaner. I love how clearly you can identify the model floating in the water, showing the soft textures and movements within her clothes, because of the strong tonal contrast between her white dress and the black background, as well as the strong orange-ish hues within her hair. Aside from this, I like that Kelis has still captured the reflection in this image, allowing the viewers to fully identify that this image was taken under the water. However, it would have also been interesting to see the reflection cropped out as the ambiguity of the models' movements would have made the image more dream-like. 

Influence:

Although Kalis' work is yet to directly influence me, her work will definitely constantly remind me to consider the theme and impact of my photography work at all times, as like with most media, photography has a purpose and it needs to be identifiable by audiences. There doesn't have to necessarily be a set definition for the theme of 'Fantasy', so I can essentially interpret this in anyway that I want, as long as I ensure the theme is definitive in all of the work I do create. Kalis' use of soft, floaty materials and pale colours really reminds me of the traditional Princess theme, and this will definitely influence some of the costumes and props I use in my own shoots.

Summary:
I think that Elena Kalis' work is really stunning and I just wish I had the facilities and the equipment myself to do such underwater shoots.I love this immediate perception of underwater models as 'mermaids' which adds to the theme of Fantasy beautifully. I also think that I have learned that I do not have to replicate an existing Fantasy 'character' from the media using costume and makeup; I can simply create and design my own characters from my own imagination as long as certain elements of them conform to the genre of Fantasy.

Photographer Research 2: Carl Warner

About this photographer:
Like the Minimiam collaboration, Carl Warner, an English photographer from Liverpool, takes interest in photographing food, but instead he uses it as a way to expressively create stunning landscapes and settings - something he calls Foodscaping. At some point in everyone's life, they dream of a world filled with their favourite foods, at for Carl, this was great inspiration for creating stunning photography pieces. 


Why have I picked this photographer?:
I have picked Carl for one of my photographers to research because i think his work style is completely different to anything I have ever seen. and his themes are excellent inspiration for my own Fantasy work. I love the idea that everyone has that one favourite food that they wish they could eat all the time - and at one point most of these people have probably dreamt of being in a world created entirely from this food. His attention to detail and eye for perfection is exactly what I look for for inspiration for my own work, and I would definitely love to be able to create such a production like Carl has.

Evaluation:

This image was constructed entirely of red cabbage and a watermelon for the boat. The intense colour really brings the image to life, giving it an eery. dangerous twist which normal cabbage might not have shown. He perfectly captures the texture and pattern within the cabbage leaves, giving the image more depth and allowing the viewer to fully identify what the concept of the image is.

The lighting in this concept of the London skyline is really essential as it gives every 'building' that realistic glow, bringing each of the individual colours to life - making it a much more eye-cathching and visually pleasing piece. I also love that Carl has used real water to make up the Thames, adding a sense of realism and it also reflects the patterns and shapes nicely from the buildings. The contrast created from the shadows and the highlights on each building also help to bring the buildings to life - giving them character and replicating the exact patterns and lines seen on the real London skyline buildings.

This is my favourite photo of Carl's because of the intense pink tones which are reflected in every single item within the picture. The picture is really busy, but it works surprisingly well as the different shapes and textures create interesting patterns for the viewers to look at, leading up to the main feature - the house. I would definitely suggest that most people have at some point dreamt of living in a world entirely filled with their favourite sweets, and this image definitely also has a reflection of the fairytale story Hansel and Gretel. The composition is put together with perfection - he ensures that every element within the background and the foreground is visible, whilst photographing it with such precision that it looks like a real building - it looks good enough to eat straight off of the page.

The colours are also just as essential in this photograph as the warmer hued colours add to the realism and belief that this is a warm, sunny, tropical landscape. The composition and angling of this image is really nice as it gives depth and dimension to the work, making the water appear to be disappearing into the far distance; Carl definitely has a rare talent for immense attention to detail. What i love about this picture is that you can't see that it's entirely constructed of food, it looks that real. The water is actually in fact salmon, whilst the rocks are constructed of stewed beef and new potatoes.


Influence:

Carl's work is yet to directly influence me, but I would definitely like to try out this idea for one of my shoots. I like that Carl hasn't always followed existing images, a lot of what he creates comes straight from his imagination and what he would like to create, which is definitely something that has influenced me as I too can perhaps make a scene which reflects my own imagination. Attention to detail is definitely something which is important to such work, so I know that if I do do something like this, I can't be half-hearted about it and thus it might be a better idea for my exam shoot.

Summary:

Although his work is yet to directly influence my work, he has definitely inspired me - inspired me to let my imagination run wild and I know that I can practically create anything out of anything. The use of colour is vitally important in any work that I create as this helps to establish the mood and the tone of the setting, whilst also helping to add verisimilitude to my work.

Fantasy Shoot 4 - 'Wonderland' Letters

Plans for the shoot:

My plan for the shoot today is to explore one of my ideas of stringing letters to spell out words associated with the theme of Fantasy. I am going to use the word 'Wonderland' today for an Alice In Wonderland themed shoot, and I will use a font that reflects this. Then I will cut each letter out and string them between the two ladders in the studio and experiment with hanging them up in different orders, heights etc. I am going to use the cyan blue backdrop in the studio as I think this reflects the movie nicely as Alices' dress in the cartoon was of a similar colour and it will also contrast quite nicely with the black letters. Today I also want to make an animation with the letters, which I can do by photographing the same still image every time I cut a different letter off, but I will have to do this at the very end of my shoot so that I don't have to tie them all back up again afterwards. 

Shoot Evaluation:

I am really happy with the result of this shoot - the idea worked really well and I can't wait to develop it. This was potentially something that I wanted to explore in my exam so I saw this as a bit of a practice, and I could definitely potentially do this again with more complex objects. I am also going to develop the idea by taking the letters outside into different locations. For this time only, I think the thicker string worked well as it was associated with a cartoon, but for my exam pieces if I do the same technique, I will use thin fishing wire to make it seem that the letters are magically 'floating'.

This is the animation I created. I like the flow of the letters and how they aren't all in a perfect line, giving the impression that they are actually about to fall. However, I wish I had waited and thought about the sequence as I think it would have made more sense for the letters to fall from left to right, and it's not as simple as reversing the sequence as it would then look like the letters are jumping back up rather than falling. 

This is a computer experiment I conducted with one of the shots. I took a rainbow gradient and reduced the opacity to give off a magical look. I like the effect and it does change the mood of the image entirely, but this could definitely work better on a different shoot, such as location work. 

With this image I added a text layer and used the same font which I cut the text out from to complete the title of the film as another computer experiment. I also darkened the edges which I think makes the colour look even more effective and moody - almost resembling the opening sequence for the film.

I chose to use this shoot to conduct the theme of Photojoiner as I liked how disjointed the hanging letters would look, and especially as you can still read what the text says, I think I have done a good job  with the technique. 

Photographer Research 1: Kirsty Mitchell

About This Photographer:
I came across Kirsty's work when reading her story in the news, and I was immediately captivated by her 'Wonderland' series of work. When Kirsty's mother, an English teacher, died of a brain tumour, Kirsty was inspired to go from fashion designer to photographer in order to create some of the characters and scenes her mother would create for her in stories when she was a little girl. She lives and works in Kent, the 'Garden of England' where she photographs many of her beautifully breathtaking scenes. I love her use of intense colour which makes her images really stand out, as well as how creative she is with her set designs and costumes.

Why Have I Picked This Photographer?:
I have picked this photographer for many reasons. Firstly I think that her inspiration for her work is inspiring - I love that she is creating these characters based on the stories her mum used to make up for her when she was little. It just shows that I don't have to look at existing characters for my work - they can look and behave in any way that I want them to which is what I find fascinating about the topic of Fantasy. I LOVE how she combines her love for fashion, and I adore the different costumes and colours she uses in each photo - they are really eye-catching and beautiful and perfectly reflect the type of work I would love to replicate myself.

Evaluation:

The use of deep, dark colours are perfect for reflecting the theme of Fantasy in this photo. The use of the rich purples with the darker shadows are symbolic of the themes of magic and fantasy which actually contrasts nicely with the bright reflections from the model's skin. Everything has been thought about in this composition - everything has a purple hue to it from the make-up to the butterflies, the clothes and the flowers behind her. The depth of field technique she has also followed allows for us to completely focus on the model, whilst the blurred background nicely fills the rest of the composition with a soft pattern.

The character within this picture really reminds me of 'Effie Trinket' from the Hunger Games series - a character who I also think would be great to replicate for this topic as I love the eccentric costume, makeup and colour associated with her. The plain black backdrop works really well as this allows for a stronger contrast in the model's pale skin and also the colour within the flowers draped around her. This technique also looks effective as it gives the model more of a silhouette, creating an extravagant and over-the-top shape. Kirsty's background in fashion and design really shines through in this image, as the whole headpiece constructed entirely of flowers perfectly demonstrates this, and nicely reflects on the natural perception of Fantasy and 'Wonderland'.

The complimentary colours in this picture work so nicely as they help to set the autumnal theme of the costume and the character. The brighter yellow in the costume follows the path nicely, creating a line for viewers to follow until they come across the main focal point, which is the character. The texture is also important as that within the costume clearly matches the surrounding leaves on the floor and in the trees, adding a sense of continuity and also telling the story that this character forms a big part of the setting Kirsty has shot in.

The contrast between the purple of the dress and the balloons and the greener surroundings is so strong and vivid, making for a beautifully attractive and eye-catching picture. I think that the use of powder/smoke around the model works really well as it helps to further lift and define the purple colour, whilst it adds a more mythical, magical element to the work. The overall feel of this photo is drama which is why the black balloons work extremely well as it adds more depth to the image and also gives the viewers different points within the picture to look at.


Influence:
Kirsty is a huge influence on me because I love the individual stories behind all of her work, and how creative she is able to be. I've learnt that the use of colour is extremely important as this helps to carry the mood and the emotion, whilst props and costume are equally as important and can be constructed from almost anything. Whilst I may not have the money to buy extravagant costumes for each of my shoots, looking at Kirsty's work I have learnt that I can use a variety of materials as long as I continue to use this as a theme for each shoot, such as her pictures with the dress made out of books. Therefore, I have already pre-planned for some potential shoots, such as sticking paper butterflies across someone's face and constructing a dress out of newspaper.

Summary:
Although I'd not even heard of Kirsty until December last year, she is easily one of my all-time favourite photographers simply because her work to me is magic. Every inch of detail she puts into her work is perfect and definitely inspires me to plan more for my own work, including building my own props and sets to make everything I do seem more real. Her work is so colourful and eye-catching, and she definitely understands the concept of symbolism when it comes to colour and emotion, which I understand now is really important to the theme of Fantasy as it helps to portray the identities of different characters.

Progress Check - 6th March

Mindmap – for THREE of the  questions..........

Mindmap - complete to 3 levels..........

Discussion - complete and illustrated..........

Definitions – Dictionary Def….. describing words….. Four annotated pictues, ….real example… your definition……

Image Bank - complete with 30 images and annotations…..

Research Log - completed with at least TEN entries

   No1 why picked..... 4 photos......evaluations....... influence....sum.....

   

Contact sheets – Shoot No 1…. Shoot No 2….  Shoot No 3…. 

Shoot No 4….  

Straight prints - From your shoots at least SIXTEEN

Print Techniques - Black & White.... Duotone..... Repetition,.... . 

Work Records -  Shoot No 1…. Shoot No 2….  Shoot No 3….  Shoot No 4…. 

Computer experiments - one...two...

Fantasy Shoot 3 - Snow White Storybook

Plans for the shoot:
My plan for today is to shoot in a simple Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs theme. I have bought a red apple and a big, chunky book that resembles a traditional storybook and I am going to play with the composition of the objects to recreate a part of the story. I am going to place the apple inside the open book and experiment with text in the edit, as well as perhaps making the apple 'float' using thin wire and editing brushes afterwards. I also want to see if I can bring the letters on the page to life as such, possible resulting in an animation.

Shoot Evaluation:

I didn't get as much time to shoot as I had hoped as a lot of it I actually spebt discussing with Paul about some of my future ideas and developing them into actual plans, which actually took up a lot of time. However, the images I was able to produce nicely reflected what I had in mind and will definitely help me with the future shoots I have planned. I was able to experiment with the 3D tool in Photoshop for the first time which was a lot harder than I had expected but I think it will come in handy knowing how to use it with a few developmental shoots I have planned. It was actually also very hard for me to make an animation with the resultant images because it proved very difficult to erase all the text from the pages to allow me to write my own text, so if I want to do it again I feel I should probably buy a blank journal to use instead. Here are a few of my edits from the shoot, including my image for 'Duotone' I have created.

Discussion

I was very excited after the completion of Unit 3 and I highly anticipated the release of the Unit 4 exam paper. Furthermore, I wasn’t in the slightest disappointed with the choices given to us for this Unit, and in fact, I found it rather difficult to choose just the one. However, after much research into past and present photographers, I chose the ‘Fantasy’ topic as I felt it would be the one which would allow me to develop the most, creatively. There are many different routes I can go down with this topic and I am very excited to trial and test them all. ‘Fashion’ and ‘Close Up’ were two of the other topics that I was torn between, and as I liked certain elements of them both, I think I will also strive to combine some of these elements into my ‘Fantasy’ project. With ‘Fashion’, I felt that I was rather restricted and I knew it could potentially mean I would need to do a lot of shoots with models, which I have previously struggled with in Unit’s 1-3. I also felt that any particular shoots with Fashion that I wanted to do could possibly be altered to fit the Fantasy theme. On the other hand, I really liked the sound of the ‘Close Up’ topic after I had used the macro lens with the coloured roses in Unit 3 to create beautiful, abstract pieces, and I felt like I could potentially do more work in this area. However, again I felt that I would be restricted in terms of creativity, and I could nevertheless use the macro/close-up technique in my work on ‘Fantasy’. After Unit 3, I don’t think there is an awful lot I need to improve upon; I simply need to remember to stay organised and keep on top of my written work, whilst I just want to be able to experiment more, expand my creativity and have fun.

            I was really excited to see Annie Leibovitz’s name when I researched ‘Fantasy Photography’, she is one of my all-time favourite photographers because I absolutely adore her portfolio of work for Disney. I find her work enchanting and inspiring and I think that re-creating famous fictional characters through props and costume could be a really interesting approach to my chosen topic. Not only does this give me the option of looking at popular Disney characters, there is also the opportunity to look at traditional folklore fairytale and children’s rhyme characters such as Hansel and Gretel and Little Red Riding Hood. Following this path will ensure that I get to explore a lot more with costume and makeup, as well as creating vast intricate sets and surroundings to make the ‘Fantasy’ element more realistic in my work. Aside from Disney and fairytales, I will also take work from other eras; such as mythology, astrology, Gods, Goddesses and even some horror or sci-fi elements.

            With this Unit I also greatly want to maximise my Photoshop/editing abilities to create something

really eye-catching and different from anything else I have created over the past 2 years. With this, I think the idea of Surrealism Photography will be a really interesting way to explore the theme of Fantasy as a way of making the impossible possible. The ideas that I have include looking at Multiple Exposure/Overlay/Texturising to recreate figments of the imagination and optical illusions, as inspired by Jerry Uelsmann, such as creating imaginary worlds and buildings appear in the sky. 

Fantasy Shoot 2 - Surrealist Body Parts

Plans for the shoot:

During today's lesson I am going to spend some time in the studio initially taking photos of various facial features, particularly the eyes and the mouth. I am then going to take some basic location images, such as brick walls and trees, and then erase 'cracks' in the images so that the facial features can appear from behind, giving off the impression of a haunted environment. The work that I produce today will also be a combination with what I shot last week.

Shoot Evaluation:

I really enjoyed today and I think that the facial features I have shot today look really effective combined with the location work I produced last lesson. My edits were heavily influenced by Jerry Uelsmann and his work in the dark room. Obviously, this is digital technology, so I created mine by using a combination of the quick mask tool to remove facial features and then Overlay-ing them onto the location shots. I also did some work with just the facial features alone, experimenting with Surrealism to place facial features within facial features. 

With this edit I was also experimenting with colour-editing, by changing the eye colour to give it a surreal, magical look to it. This was just practice for any modelling work I may conduct at later dates in order to 'create' full characters. 

Fantasy Shoot 1 - Unicorns & Creatures

Plans for the shoot:

My plan for this shoot is to initiate experimenting with the theme of Fantasy to just see what sort of effects I can create using Photoshop, and to also determine what sort of a route I want to go down with the entire project. I plan to take a camera to the forest/fields opposite Asda to shoot different locations which I can 'build' upon to create my own settings and scenes. I also want to photograph some of the horses that are kept on the fields to experiment with the character of a unicorn, as well as shooting the sky to experiment with my editing skills.

Shoot Evaluation:

I was stopped from doing a lot with this shoot as it began to rain heavily and therefore the camera was at risk of getting damaged. However, I did manage to get a few nice shots of the horses which I was able to experiment with in terms of changing them into unicorns. I used a photoshop brush especially for making horns to create the said element which characterises the unicorn, and then a range of swirly brushes to add the element of magic to the creature. I am pleased with the result, especially how the colouring of the horse extends up the horn to make it look like it really is a biological part of the animal, but I know that the quality of this type of shoot could look a lot better if I had more time and could get up-close-and-personal with the horses more, whereas these horses weren't very keen to stick around a lot especially when it started to rain. 

What I also achieved today was this edit. With this particular shot, I was inspired by a series of Doctor Who actually where this monster from another universe kept appearing in cracks in walls, the sky etc wherever they went. I thought that this could be a really interesting idea to replicate in my work, so I photographed the sky and, using brushes, created the 'crack' in the clouds. I didn't have enough time to shoot someone's face, so I used an image from the internet to simply test the idea and this was the result.  I like the effect, and so next lesson when I conduct another shoot I will be sure to photograph my own facial features and I can perhaps progress to create the cracks in other surfaces.