Shape

Definition:

•        A shape is an area enclosed by a line. It could be just an outline or it could be shaded in. Shapes can be either geometric, like a circle, square or triangle, or irregular.
•        When drawing shapes, you must consider the size and position as well as the shape of the area around it. 

•        The shapes created in the spaces between shapes are referred to as negative space.
•        A geometric pattern or arrangement is made up of shapes such as squares,triangles, or rectangles:
•           irregular- without symmetry, even shape, formal arrangement

Image Bank:

Task:

This Photograph was taken by Bill Brandt.

Brandt uses  tight composition cropping the image creates three negative spaces. In the photo, Brandt

uses light and shadow to convey how women are sexualised objects. This could be shown through

the negative spaces that covered half her face, showing the message that men only look at half of a

women and only see them for their body.

Artist Research:

Edward Westson:

Edward Henry Weston (March 24, 1886 – January 1, 1958) was a 20th-century American photographer. He has been called "one of the most innovative and influential American photographers…"and "one of the masters of 20th century photography." Over the course of his 40-year career Weston photographed an increasingly expansive set of subjects, including landscapes, still lives, nudes, portraits and genre scenes.

Intrigued by the many kinds and shapes of kelp he found on the beaches near Carmel, in 1930 Weston began taking close-ups of vegetables and fruits. He made a variety of photographs of vegetables including his most iconic image, peppers. Of these, Pepper No. 30, is among the all-time masterpieces of photography.

I took inspiration from Weston's photos by getting shape of a food, like a Jamie dodger, because it has many shapes. I also used his photography to take photos of unique and abstract shapes, like wooden seats or playground equipment. I wanted to make my photos more like Weston's by editing them into black and white after taking them.

Bill Brandt:

Bill Brandt was born Hermann Wilhelm Brandt on the 2 May 1904 and died on 20 December 1983. Although he was born in Germany, Brandt moved to England, where he became known for his images of British society for such magazine as Lilliput and Picture Post, later he distorted nudes, portraits of famous artists and landscapes.

Brandt became Britain's most admired photographer of the 20th century. Many of his works have important social commentary. His landscapes and nudes are dynamic, intense and powerful, often using wide-angle lenses and distortion

Brandt's images show connotations of dark and lonely emotions, with empty places and horrible dark weather. The natural shapes show a feeling of a normal-like atmosphere like the photographer was used to being alone, maybe always feeling lonely within himself.

Contact sheet:

Best Images:

 

Images that need improving:

These images were selected as I feel they were not the best angle and didn't look aesthetically pleasing.  For the top photo, I tried to take a photo of the windmill to capture the shape of the blades. However, i only had one lens which didn't zoom it very well so i ended up with a far away image with the houses in the view. I think this may have helped by showing loads of different shapes in one photo. If i was to do this again i would have like to have a close up image as well.

The last image presents the shapes on a tire. I like this photo because its a shape on a shape. However I don't like the angle this photo was taken at. If I was to reshoot this photo I would have the camera on the floor to get a closer look and have a better angle.

AO3: Record ideas, observations and insights relevant to intentions, reflecting critically on work and progress.

My idea for recording shape was to photograph abstract and man-made shapes like road signs and buildings.  I was inspired from my research of both Edward Weston and Bill Brandt. These photographers inspired me edit my best images into black and white, adapting the contrast and more.

The images came out as I expected, however I wish I had a lens with a better zoom to get the more detailed pictures.

Best selected images...

The image of the lamppost was at a low angle so that I had the shape of the light inside as well as the circles in the décor. I also wanted a plain background which I did by having the clear blue sky. This was done to create more focus on the lamppost.    

Another image in my best images, is the buildings in the street that was inspired By Brandt’s images above. I then went on to edit this picture into black and white to look more like Brandt’s work. I like how the many different shapes there are in this picture.
With regards to some of the images that did not come out as I expected, my camera could not allow me to get up close to the details with the zoom as the lens is a simple lens.

AO2: Explore and select appropriate resources, media, materials, techniques and processes, reviewing and refining ideas as work develops.

I used my Nikon D3500 camera to take these photos. I tried to adjust the camera setting, like shutter speed, aperture and ISO to make the photos look their best. However when taking these photos I didn’t know what each of these things did properly so rarely changes the setting. I can’t remember what every photo was taken it however I know that most where taking with the aperture of f.22.

The settings of my best images are:

The lamppost:

Shutter speed= 1/100

Aperture=f/22

Zoom=55mm

The street:

Shutter speed=1/320

Aperture= f/9

Zoom= 55mm

The light shade:

Shutter speed=1/160

Aperture=f/3

Zoom= 24mm

Editing:

 To edit these photos i changed them into black and white . I then changed the Photo into black and white.  I then changed the levels to darken the darkest parts and to add more depth to the shadows. After i changed the curves to add a more  smoother contrast. Lastly, i added a higher brightness to highlight the more whiter areas, and lowered the contrast.

AO1: Develop ideas through sustained and focused investigations informed by contextual and other

 sources, demonstrating analytical and critical understanding.

The artist research was helpful as I realised that I could edit my photos of shape to make them more effective. My research of Edward Weston helped me focus on abstract Shapes. For example the photo of the curved tree was inspired by Weston’s famous ‘pepper’ photo. The research of Bill Brandt, helped me explore more landscape side of shapes like buildings. This inspired my street photo and the photos of the Stansted Mountfitchet castle from afar.

AO4: Present a personal and meaningful response that realises intentions and, where appropriate, makes connections between visual and other elements. 

 I believe that I have produced a strong series of images inspired by my research of shape and the images of both Edward Weston and Bill Brandt work.  The next images I have edited to black and white to fit the inspired photographers work and to look more effective. I also changed the levels and curves. 

My Final Photos:

 

How my camera works

The Main Apertures:

• 2.8
• 4.0
• 5.6
• 8.0
• 11.0
• 16.0
• 22.0

The main Shutter Speeds:

• 2''
• 1''
• 1/2
• 1/4
• 1/8
• 1/15
• 1/30
• 1/60
• 1/125
• 1/250
• 1/500
• 1/1000
• 1/2000
• 1/4000

if the dial is on zero the exposure is at the right setting for the picture.

if the dial is on -3 the exposure is too low and will come out light

if the dial is on +1 the opposite will happen.

Texture and Pattern.

Definitions:

• Texture refers to the tactile qualities of the physical surface of the object.
• A pattern is an arrangement of lines or shapes, especially a design in which the same shape is repeated at regular intervals over a surface.

Theory:

•        Texture can be accentuated by the side light of early sunny mornings or early evenings, or by overhead light when the sun is vertical and high in the sky.
•         The two main elements that impact the appearance of texture in an image are the quality of light and its position. That means it doesn’t only matter where you place the light relative to the surface of the subject you’re illuminating, it also matters whether it’s a specular, hard-edged source or a large, diffused soft-box type of source. 
•        Patterns are simply repeated shapes, colours or objects, ordered in either regular or irregular formations. As a photographer, using pattern is key to good composition and, when used effectively, can transform an otherwise bland image into something dramatic and eye catching. 
•        Patterns are formulated all around us - in both natural and man made settings. 
•        Some of the most rewarding patterns to shoot consist of shapes, lines or colours that repeat in a strict formation. 
•         There is often the presumption that a pattern has to involve straight lines to produce something recognisable as a pattern, but in the natural world, patterns can be found in irregular formations

Image bank:

Artist Research.

Nadege Meriau:

Nadege Meriau's is best known for her use of organic matter - bread, chicken carcasses, honeycomb - her visceral and sensuous imagery both seduces and disorientates.  Mériau completed an MA in Photography at the Royal College of Art in 2011. She was shortlisted for the Bloomberg New Contemporaries and the Conran Award in 2011 and was nominated for the Arts Foundation Fellowship 2012.

The above images were shot using Lighting to highlight the texture of different food. In these photos, Nadege uses the theory that texture can be accentuated by the side light. In the first photo, the texture of the inside of the pumpkin creates connotations of a cage and uses the light of the 'moon' and sky that is edited in the background to highlight to texture on the pumpkin 'floor' near the camera. The light has also shown the contrast of the texture in the light and the shadow.

The last photo shows texture in the inside of a pomegranate. This also shows pattern as there is a repetitive shape of the seeds. 

I took inspiration from these photos and tried to find various textured food to take photos of. I also tried to use light from the flash to accentuate the texture.

Aaron Siskind 

I decided to look at another artist to get a another look of a way i could take my photos. Aaron Siskind- in the 1940's- started using his camera to capture the graphic patterns, shapes, and forms he observed around him. By carefully framing his subjects, he would transform strands of seaweed on the sand into calligraphic brushstrokes, peeling paint into low-relief sculptures, or graffiti on a wall into a Franz Kline canvas. 

The above images show everyday textures that have slowly decayed away to create more texture. These photos influenced me to look at concreate things and natural things that have a rough texture. These photos show a more natural effect as there is no bright or highly effective light being used to accentuate the textures. 

Contact sheet:

Best Images:

Images that need improving:

These are the photos i believed did not turn out right. I believe this is because i didn't spent enough time to properly choose the right angle and lighting. The top image is a photo where i tried to use natural light. However,  i feel like the camera was too close up to the material and made it look like a 'cheap' image. The second picture is good because i look the lighting from the flash. However if i was to redo this i would have the skirt straighter so there wasn't the small curve that is in the right side. Lastly, the thing the last picture could be improved not having the dark circle that is on the bottom of the photo.

AO3: Record ideas, observations and insights relevant to intentions, reflecting critically on work and progress.

My idea for recording Texture and Pattern was to photograph the texture of food and material from clothing..  I was inspired from my research of Aaron Siskind and Nadege Meriau.

Nadege Meriau's use of lighting in the Pomegranate image in my research, inspired me to take the picture of Pineapple with a flash in my best images.

 The images came out as I expected, however I should had paid particular attention to getting the right exposure settings.   

 Best selected images...

The image of the Onions was shot as a group so that I had texture of the onion layers and a pattern. I like hoe the lighting accentuated the texture and highlighted smooth and rough textures of the onion.

Another image in my best images, is the photo of the concrete floor that was inspired by Siskind's photo of the bricked floor. I tried to use a similar angle to Siskind as I liked how i could see more detailed textures.

 With regards to some of the images that did not come out as I expected, my camera could not allow me to adapt my settings as I was an auto bridge camera. i also didn't have the right angle for some photos. I believe I can overcome these issues through more practise.

AO2: Explore and select appropriate resources, media, materials, techniques and processes, reviewing and refining ideas as work develops.

I used a Nikon B500 Coolpix Camera for all the shots taken. this is a bridge camera with auto settings, so I could not adjust to find the best range to shoot in. However I can use photo shop to find out of what settings the camera was in by going into photoshop. For example, the photo of the onion was in the setting of the screenshot below. 

If I were to reshoot my photos again I would use a different camera and a tripod, so I could get more focus and be able to change the range, shutter speed and more.

Editing:

When editing, i decided to turn the images into black and white to add tones to the Texture. I then changed the curves levels and contrast as shown in the screenshots below. This made the texture of each photo enhance.

AO1: Develop ideas through sustained and focused investigations informed by contextual and other

 sources, demonstrating analytical and critical understanding.

The artist research was helpful as I realised that I could take texture and Pattern in many different ways and could change a view of a photo by the lighting used. My research of Aaron Siskind helped me focus on decayed textures of materials used in buildings like plaster or concrete. I was able to capture this as the college is located next to Harlow town with urban buildings with decayed or 'broken down' parts.  The research of Texture and Pattern helped me know how certain changes like lightning can effect the texture by adding shadow etc.

AO4: Present a personal and meaningful response that realises intentions and, where appropriate, makes connections between visual and other elements.  

 I believe that I have produced a strong series of images inspired by my research of texture and pattern and the images of both Aaron Siskind and Nadege Meriau's work.  The next images I have edited to add highlight to show more texture and look more effective. I did this by changing the brightness&contrast or saturation. 

My Final Photos: