Presenting The Work...

Its time to present the photographs. I have had the pictures printed properly and I'm not overly pleased with the outcome as areas had to be cropped in order to be printed. None the less the pictures speak for them selves.I did have a change of heart when selecting the final pictures but i think i have picked the best ones.

The photos are mounted on black a4 boards with white labels indicating a time of which the the picture was taken.

Fingers crossed they are well received.

Photograph Editing...

I have taken my photographs and now i am at the editing stage.



ORIGINAL PICTURE




EDITED PICTURES

To create the first edit i changed the brightness and contrast of the picture, this made the black in the picture really stand out and the colours look more vibrant and eye catching.
The second edit was made by adjusting the exposure settings. I made the picture more exposed to get the bright white colours in the picture and contrasted that with the deep black. This was achieved by adjusting the gamma and offset controls.

The later of the edits make the picture appear more scary as the figures in the background have no facial features however i do think you loose the camera detail which is important to the shot.




ORIGINAL PICTURE



EDITED PICTURE

To achieve the edited picture i firstly started by adjusting the brightness which instantly highlighted the models face and facial expression. This makes the photo appear more personal.
The next thing i did was crop the picture down in order to really highlight the story in the picture. The edited picture shows the figure watching the two models more clearly and it has a creepier effect.




ORIGINAL PICTURE



EDITED PICTURE

 For this edit i used the same idea as the previous picture. I started by adjusting the brightness but adjusted the contrast as well. I then moved on to crop the picture, this was to remove the already existing CCTV camera and to make the main subject of the picture more central.



ORIGINAL PICTURE

EDITED PICTURE

To create this image i adjusted the brightness and contrast of the picture. I felt it was important to keep the detail in the floor as it gives depth to the picture. I then cropped the picture again as i felt that the subject could be seen more clearly.




ORIGINAL PICTURE





EDITED PICTURE


For this picture i started by cropping the picture down, so that it almost looks panoramic. This is one of the closest shots and Ive done this to show variety in my collection. The picture was then adjusted using the brightness and contrast settings. The contrast was particularly important as it meant the black really stood out against the background.



 



Camera Techniques...

Ive decided to look at using different techniques on different cameras. The point and click digital camera was limited as it didn't have any scene modes, just the ability to zoom in/out and to change flash firing conditions.

The other camera i used was a dslr. This gave me alot more freedom with the techniques and i found myself adjusting the aperture and shutter speeds to make different effects.

Black and white - pre loaded on the camera

change os shutter speed

change of shutter speed

under exposed, change of aperture

i really like these techniques and i think my practice pictures were successful  but i don't think they are suitable for my idea.

Final Idea...

The final idea is a substitution picture

influenced by 'The Son Of Man' by Magritte

However instead of covering the face with an apple, i will use cameras to reinforce the idea that we are continually being watched.

Ive drawn a quick story board to demonstrate my ideas for my final collection of images

:

I feel story boarding my ideas is a good way to plan as i have had previous experience in creating story boards. Although my drawing leaves a lot to the imagination, written details can be added for reference.

The first shot is set on the high street, its a crowd of people all looking at the camera with cameras covering their eyes. The idea is to include a wide audience of people to show it doesn't matter who you are or where you are, you're always being watched.

The second shot is set in a restaurant. The picture shows two people conversing and eating in whilst people surrounding them are watching again with cameras covering their eyes.

The third shot is situated on a park bench. It displays a few people sat on a bench. On the right hand side of the frame you see a woman walk past. The people on the bench watch her as she walks past using the cameras as vision equipment.

The last planned shot is in a supermarket. The model will be casually food shopping adding items to their trolley whilst bystanders are watching.

All of the shots will be long or mid shots purely because its the best way to include the extras which are pretending to take pictures.

Trying New Ideas...

One idea that came from my initial ideas was a exposure of the girls toilets. A realistic insight as to what women really get up to on a Friday night. The fights, the tears and the inevitable throwing up. The photographs are taken in the toilets of 53 degrees, which is a popular venue. I think i would produce a lot of material by taking the photographs here. The problem with this idea is that fact I'm taking the pictures without anyone consent, as i don't want the pictures to be too staged i wanted to use a guerrilla style. The images are quite successful but because of the colour scheme, i think they look bland and boring.

People Watching...

Friday I went people watching from a top secret location on Fishergate armed with only a camera and a window...

My results were successful, i got a few images but it was a rainy day so Preston wasn't very busy. The difficulty with taking the shots was really the fact i couldn't open the window to create a bigger space to capture. I was limited with the space i could photograph. 

Using a high angle shot makes the subject appear vulnerable and naive to whats really happening around them, something that CCTV does. The people in the pictures had no idea i was taking their picture and it just re iterates the point that someone really is watching you everywhere you go.

Photography Research...

"Peeping Tom" by James Hill

Self portrait work.

A photography collection all shot in the same bathroom, the reflections are created in the editing stage. To see how its done click on this: http://vimeo.com/3424613

This photographers work really inspires me because it relates to one of my initial ideas but it has a clever and funny approach, using a different reflection makes the picture comical. Great effort has been put into the continuity of each picture.

 

Matt Stuart 'Exposes Everything'



Matt Stuarts photography is interesting because its not always obvious to the eye what the picture is about. His photographs are humerous, which i think is what makes him a popular photographer.

The black and white photographs are my favourites because i like the clash between dark and light. His collection of images are shot at mid or long shots, not from high angles which i think makes them very realistic.

David Dunnico 'Reality TV'

An exhibition in the Mezzanine Gallery in the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester. The exhibiton was held from 24 February to 27 March 2010.

Read an interview about the exhibition here: http://manchestermule.com/article/interview-david-dunnico