Research for Documentary Photography

Henri Cartier-Bresson:

This image is photographed by Henri Cartier-Bresson. He has captured the cyclist in the top left corner of the 'rule of thirds.' This captures the 'decisive moment', as if this image was photographed a second later, or earlier, then the photographer would not have got the same image. I like this image as the stairs act as a 'leading line' taking you downwards. In addition, the curve of the pavement also acts as a 'leading line'.

I like this image as Henri Cartier- Bresson has captured another 'decisive moment' as this image could not be recaptured again. The lines of the stairs are curved, which takes your eye on a journey downwards. The rushing pidgins contrast the empty, calm, quiet stair way. Furthermore, this image appears to be taken in a tube station, which are usually busy (especially in London), therefore it leads us to question why it is not busy…

This image interests me as the black, peeling paint appears almost as blood. In addition with this the boys almost pain stricken face complies with this, as it almost appears as though he has been shot? This image interests me further as it also it makes you question why only the bottom half of the wall has peeing paint? This image is interesting as a whole as it causes many questions to arise in the observers head. 






Richard Billingham:

This image is extremely  private as it's captured in their home, whilst the individuals are sharing an intimate moment. Richard Billingham therefore must have had a trust built allowing him to photograph these types of images. I like the saturation of the colours in the image, the vast amount of colours make the image appear busy and chaotic. 

This image interests me as the individual photographed is in a bright blue robe, this is the main focus of the image as the background is dark, with cluttered objects in the background, whilst the foreground is white. consequently, it's evident how the blue robe jumps out in-between the dark background, and white foreground. It's evident from this image that the individual does not live in a luxurious house, instead he perhaps may habitat in a council house. This is deducted from the cluttered surfaces in the background, which indicate a lack of pride and care in the house. Furthermore, this lack of care for the house may reflect it's owners lack of care for themselves- again this is highlighted in the fact the individual is smoking, despite obvious health repercussions. 







Richard Billingham is extremely different from Henri Cartier-Bresson. Henri's images are all in black and white, and all obtain a decisive moment. Whereas Richard's photographs are highly saturated and busy with colour. Richard's images are more private and intimate than Henri's, due to Henri's being photographed in public, in contrast to Richard's ones which are photographed in a home, with the same individuals. I prefer Richard's images to Henri's due to the colour as i believe it makes the image more interesting, also the intimacy we see in Richard's images is rare. 


Sally Mann:

In this image i believe Sally is challenging gender stereotypes. The young boy in the image appears to have a fluffy scarf around him, this would primarily be seen as a girls toy, however here we can picture it on a boy. Consequently, Sally may have been trying to portray how both boys and girls don't have 'set toys' they have to play with. In addition the boy appears to have drawing all over him, this could be interpreted as lipstick, therefore we can infer he was playing with make-up; this contrasts typical, generic gender roles as boys are meant to enjoy sport, and getting dirty- not make-up. 

This photograph is again challenging gender roles. The young girl is holding what appears to be a cigarette, however this is a candy stick sweet. This allows us to understand how our eyes can trick us. The girl appears masculine to an extent in this image, she is standing hunched over, not tall and poised, as a woman is portrayed. Furthermore, the girls expression on her face is bleak, portraying attitude. This image is one of my favourites, as the young girls hair is messy, which is seen as more of a masculine trait, as girls tend to be clean.

In this image the man appears as though he is protecting the young girls, i believe they all may be naked in the image as they're showing how they are exposed, with no front or fabrication. I admire how the background is blurred, allowing the viewer to fundamentally focus on the man, and the two girls. In addition, the image being black and white adds to the weariness of the image- as you do not know why they're in the forest?, and why they have no clothes on? Moreover, the black and white effect allows you to focus easier on the main aspect of the image (the people), rather than any surrounding objects. 

Work Diary & Progression- Shape Studio

Evaluation:

In today's lesson we were given the task of photographing shape in the studio. We had to learn different lighting techniques, and bring in our own objects to photograph. I found this extremely interesting as you can create shapes from the shadows the objects themselves cast. 

This is my best image i photographed of the day. I like how it is not a geometric shape, it's more of an abstract one. I edited my image, the photograph above is edited, whereas the image below is the original image. I edited the image to make the colours more cool, by making the background more white and the leaf a lighter, cooler green. I like the image as a whole because it's a weathered leaf, meaning it's flaky and old, this adds to the shadows as it has rips in it- this enhances the shape aspect of the image further as the shadows themselves create dark shapes. I like the angle in which i photographed the image as the light hits it from the right, creating a shadow to the left, which adds to the image as a whole. 

This is my worst image of the day; although I do like the outline of the compass, and the shadow it creates on the shiny table, I do not like the darkness of the image as a whole. I could use the dodge tool to make this brighter in photoshop. If i was to reshoot this again i would possibly use a snoot to direct the light specifically over the compass to show more of the detail, enhancing the 'shape' aspect of the image- however I would be carful to not overexpose the image. I like the angle at which i took the image, subsequently I would not change this, however I could possible take an image head on from the compass, so I could include all of the detail from the face of the compass.

Progression:

Straight Images- Shape Studio

Shape Studio Contact Sheet

Work Diary&Progression- Low key lighting- Portraiture

Evaluation:

To shoot these images we used a shutter speed of  1/125, F-stop 16 and ISO 200.

This was the set up in the studio (image below.) I had the reflector to the left of the subject, the light on the right hand side (I adjusted the distance and height of this), and the subject in the middle of this all.

In today's lesson we were given the task of using the studio to photograph portraiture, creating a low key lighting effect in our images. I used the camera settings of shutter speed- 1/125, F-16 and ISO 200. This allowed me to learn further how to used lighting to my advantage when photographing in the studio in order to create different effects (e.g. low key lighting.)


The image on the left is edited, whereas the one below is the original image. 

This is my best photograph of the day as i believe I've photographed low key lighting extremely well here. I believe this as although the left hand side of the face is darker you can see the light is reflected as you can see her left cheek bone. This occurs as i used a white reflective polystyrene board, to help reflect back the light from the flash, this is known as the reflector. 

When I edited the image i turned up the saturation, as previous to this it is was slightly dull, by turning up the saturation it has made the face have more colour. 
If I was to shoot this again i would ensue she was not bent forward, as her body looks slightly hunched over. 

This is my worst image of the day as the subject I'm photographing doesn't hold a direct emotion on their face, also it looks as though she's pushing her head forward, instead of sitting upright. In addition, the right hand side of the face is slightly over exposed, this has occurred due to the light hitting the face too closely. 

If i was to reshoot this I would place the light further away, and ensure she was sitting upright, not with her head pushed forward. 









Progression:

Final 5 Images- Low Key Lighting Portraiture

To shoot these images we used a shutter speed of  1/125, F-stop 16 and ISO 200.

Portraiture low key lighting- Contact Sheet

Computer Experiments

I used the vignette effect on the image, you cannot see much of a difference as the image was dark originally. If this image was on a white background you would see the vignette better. The image on the left is edited, whereas the image on the right is the original image. I like hope the vignette draws your eye into the face although i would do it on a lighter image in the future, as it would highlight the effect more. 

I created this image by firstly creating a new adjustment layer for curves, then name your layer, after this you must drag the curve down over exaggerating it, as shown below:

 You must ensure the squares at the top are black and white, as seen below:

then click on the gradient tool, and select 'gradient', next click on the radial button:

and then drag out from the centre of the photograph, to create the vignette. 

I edited this image using the white balance effect. I selected the white background and it then transformed the image from warmer oranges to harsher blues. The image on the left is the original, whereas the image on the right is the edited one. I believe the edited image appears better than the non-edited one as it looks almost HD due to the whiter, brighter background.

I edited this image using the spot healing brush tool. I applied it on the facial region, around the forehead and cheek area. This shows a slight difference and makes the skin appear smoother and more glowing, despite this there's not that much of a difference when zoomed out of the image.

You can achieve this affect by selecting the 'healing tool' on the left hand column of the screen, you then click the areas you wish to change. You can change the brush size, and density at the top of the screen.

The image on the right is edited, whereas the image on the left is the original. I used the brightness sand contrast tool to initially up the brightness of the image, then i used sensitive colour to edit the blues in the image. This creates a cool, crisp view overall. I prefer the image on the right (the edited one) as it creates a cleaner image overall. 
The brightness/contrast tool is on the right hand side of the page, you alter this by using the sliders. The sensitive colour tool is also located in the same place, and you select which colour you want to change and enhance this. To achieve the white balance effect, first you must click on the levels button the the right hand side of the screen, as shown below:

next click on the part you wish to balance, and it will change the colour for you. 

The image on the left is the edited one, whereas the one on the right is the original photograph. I believe by editing the image it has made it worse. I used the dodge tool to lighten the face, and the burn tool to darken the top and jacket. I believes it looks worse as due to the different colours on the face, it appears as though the face has darker and lighter patches. Despite this i do prefer using the burn tool on the top and jacket as it highlights the detail and shadows.
To used the dodge tool, you select it on the left hand side of the page. You then click on the parts you wish to lighten. You can change the brush size, and density at the top of the page also. 

The image on the right is the edited one, whereas the image on the left is the original image. I prefer the edited image as it exposes more tone and saturation, which makes the image more interesting. The screen shots adjacent show which settings i had the filters on the image on. 

This is an image I photographed, and then edited into black and white. I believe the black and white effect allows the detail of the bricks to stand out more. Overall I like the image as a whole, as you can also see the shadow casted. 

To achieve this affect you select the 'black and white' tool which is located on the right hand side of the photoshop page. You can then edit the different colours in the image, using the sliders, which change how dark/light some areas are.