Growth and evolution
ageing task
When first starting to explore the theme of growth and evolution, we looked at using photoshop in order to make someone look older. This was done by merging a photograph of an old and young person together, the tutorial to the left shows this process. The first attempt using myself was more successful than the second. The second one of the males has a lower opacity on some sections which makes it look less effective. |
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Julien Germain
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Julien Germain was born in London in 1962. He studied photography at Trent Polytechnic in Nottingham and the Royal College of Art in London. He published a book called 'For every minute your angry, you lose 60 seconds of happiness', it featured a series of images that were taken over 8 years of an elderly man. He said that "Without ever trying or intending to, he showed me that the most important things in life cost nothing at all". After looking at his work, I then took a short series of images, looking at the mundane things in the subjects everyday life. This was an extension to the ageing task. |
Natsumi Hayashi
levitation experiments
After doing a simple jump experiment using a fast shutter speed, I took photographs of a person in the studio. I then used photoshop to put the subject into another image, in order to create a supernatural, flying effect. On photoshop I opened the studio image and selected the subject. I then pasted it onto the background, resized the image and used the eraser tool to neaten it up.
Chrisse Macdonald
Chrisse MacDonald is a London-based illustrator, maker and art director. For her series 'Overgrown' she collaborated with photographer John Short to create images that portray the relationship between nature and man. She created pictures of plants and trees growing in indoor, but abandoned, locations.
After looking at her work I then created a series myself, based on nature reclaiming land. I placed various vegetation in my house and photographed it. However, I am not too keen on the images, as the vegetation doesn't look natural and therefore if I were to develop this idea further I would look at the growth of the natural environment.
After looking at her work I then created a series myself, based on nature reclaiming land. I placed various vegetation in my house and photographed it. However, I am not too keen on the images, as the vegetation doesn't look natural and therefore if I were to develop this idea further I would look at the growth of the natural environment.
Man & nature task
For this task we looked at the work of Chrisse McDonald and then presented the relationship between man and nature. This was done by photographing vegetation in an inside environment, making it appear to have taken over mans space.
I then edited these photographs in black and white, which I think works well for the guitar image due to the high contrast. However, I think the other images work better in de-saturated colour due to the light green tone variation that appears. |
camera evolution
These three types of camera have been used over the past few generations. To show the difference between the camera types we took a photograph of the same subject using a pinhole, film and digital camera. As you can see below, the pinhole camera is the worst quality, due to the lack of detail and tones. When looking at the film image you can see a vast improvement, there is more detail and so it provides a clearer image. The last photograph was taken on a digital camera and so you can see that the image is crisper, with a higher range of tones.
pinhole:
strand 1
For my first strand I want to look at photo-stitches, and focus on city landscapes. The theme looks at the growth of urban environments, and the use of photo-stitching helps to portray the vision of growth, as the images sprawl out from one another, creating a growing web of pictures. I started looking at photo-stitches, and for the first one I used a church as the subject just to see how they work and look. Once I had taken the photographs I then edited them together in photoshop so that they fitted to create a full image. I think it is quite effective, although you must ensure to capture all of the subject (a small part of the church is missing). Also, next time I would keep the zoom at the same level, as it would make it easier to then fit the pictures together. I think it would also be effective if the photos were printed out and then arranged.
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After doing my first photo-stitch I then wanted to do some more complex ones, using more photographs to stitch together. I therefore created two more complex images, the first of a residential area and the other of the view from Alexandra Palace.
The image of the street is good because it shows a sense of perspective which makes it more interesting. However, section of the image is missing and the subject is still not what I would want to photograph for this strand.
The one over looking London was meant to present the growing urban environment. I like the one of the view, however it was very foggy over central London and therefore you couldn't see the iconic skyline buildings. This therefore hindered the images. Also, due to this the images have slightly different exposures.
To develop this further I think I should use a more relevant subject to my idea, such as a city landscape. Also I might try and stitch them using the automate feature in photoshop, rather than arranging the photographs myself.
The image of the street is good because it shows a sense of perspective which makes it more interesting. However, section of the image is missing and the subject is still not what I would want to photograph for this strand.
The one over looking London was meant to present the growing urban environment. I like the one of the view, however it was very foggy over central London and therefore you couldn't see the iconic skyline buildings. This therefore hindered the images. Also, due to this the images have slightly different exposures.
To develop this further I think I should use a more relevant subject to my idea, such as a city landscape. Also I might try and stitch them using the automate feature in photoshop, rather than arranging the photographs myself.
david hockney
David Hockney started to produce photo collages or 'joiners' in the early 1980's, one of his main aims to create an element of Cubism. This was achieved by taking photographs from slightly different angles and then joining them together. He also aimed to show landscapes and subjects from the photographers perspective. He created the joiners by taking a series of photographs and then assembling them to create a final image. The picture on the left is 'Pearblossom Highway' taken in 1986. It shows a cross road in the north Los Angeles which reveals the observations of a road trip, which include roadside litter, signs and cacti in the American desert. The photo is taken as through it was the view from a car. The separate images make it appear slightly surreal and disjointed, creating a more interesting landscape.
strand 2
To explore the theme of Growth and Evolution, I thought I would experiment with time lapses, as they can show the evolution of time, nature and space. I therefore set up a tripod and took photographs at different times of the day. I then edited these together in photoshop to create a montage of all the different images. |
After creating the first image, I liked the idea but thought that the picture could be improved. Therefore I took another set, but this time I took more photographs to merge together to show the gradual change in the landscape. I also used a less straight angle which worked better.
Sam Javanrouh
Sam Javanrouh was born in Tehran and moved to Canada in 1999. He is a Toronto based Creative Director, Photographer and Image Maker, who works in various forms of media.. He has a popular photography blog, where he posts one picture a day and has been doing so for 6 years, his blog has one two awards. He said "I love cityscapes, urban and street scenes, architecture and landscapes. The majority of his work is of city landscapes and I have looked in particular at his urban time lapse image. The photograph was taken over a 2 hour period and is a composite of 6 images. It works well as both the sky and city landscape change over the time period, showing the evolution of the city.
time lapse video
These time lapse images are good, as they can show the evolution of a day and how the area changes. However, I wanted to be able to present the evolution and growth of a city and I think this would be better represented through film. In film time lapse you are able to show many different locations and present the busyness of the city. I went to New York, one of the most evolved cities in the world, and created a time lapse by taking lots of videos ranging from 1-2 minutes in different locations around the city. Mostly I tried to capture crowds and cars to presents the size of New York and the energy within it.
To create the time lapse I sped up videos by 16x or 32x and then edited the different clips together, to create the final video below:
To create the time lapse I sped up videos by 16x or 32x and then edited the different clips together, to create the final video below:
new york
I think the video time lapse works very well in portraying the evolution of the city. Next I wanted to convey the growth of the city through images of the densely built up landscape. I went to the top of the empire state building and in a helicopter in order to capture the images from a height. This enabled me to show the full expanse of the city and the sheer volume of buildings. I edited some of the images in colour and the wider landscapes in black and white:
marcus lyon
Marcus Lyon is a British artist who was born in 1965. His early working life with Amnesty International in Latin America was the inspiration for his twenty-five year exploration of the issues at the heart of globalisation.
This image is from his body of work called 'Exodus', a series which he describes by saying it "provokes questions concerning the biggest changes in contemporary society through large-scale representations of the key themes that influence globalisation in the modern world".
This image was taken in South Africa (2011) and it presents urbanisation in less developed nations. People are drawn towards the prospects that cities hold and the huge wave of migration can be seen in his photograph. The densely packed buildings fill the entire frame, portraying the scale of the area. The exponential growth of cities is one of the biggest changes that has happened in recent years throughout the world and he manages to capture this is in his photograph.
This image is from his body of work called 'Exodus', a series which he describes by saying it "provokes questions concerning the biggest changes in contemporary society through large-scale representations of the key themes that influence globalisation in the modern world".
This image was taken in South Africa (2011) and it presents urbanisation in less developed nations. People are drawn towards the prospects that cities hold and the huge wave of migration can be seen in his photograph. The densely packed buildings fill the entire frame, portraying the scale of the area. The exponential growth of cities is one of the biggest changes that has happened in recent years throughout the world and he manages to capture this is in his photograph.
This image to the left is one of the photographs that I took in New York to present the growth of cities. I took inspiration from Marcus Lyon's work and wanted to show the expanse of the city. I think the aerial view works well, as it enables the viewer to look directly down onto the city. This allows you to see a view, which in everyday life, is not fathomable. The buildings and cars appear very small and this helps to portray how large the city is, as one large building has little significance when shown among so many others. I also like the symmetry that is created in the image through the grid of roads and buildings. It shows that the city has evolved systematically over the past centuries. However, the photograph could be improved if it captured slightly more of the space, as this just shows a very small section. A wider angle would have allowed me to present more of the city. |
strand 3
The third strand I want to explore is light painting, it incorporates the evolution of light, as trails and shapes can be created. I could look at the growth of a light source, creating a GIF or video to show it growing and evolving through different landscapes. I have looked at the work of Michael Bosnako, Toby Keller, Dean Chamberlain and Ben Matthews and some of their images are below. From this I have gained ideas, and these are some places I have considered going: Skate park, Junk yard (old cars), woods and mirror the image, ally pally by the view and arches, around toy figures, rainbow or different colours in places, empty road, by famous landmarks, open and empty spaces.
ben matthews
Ben Matthews is a Dentist from Guildford who dedicates lots of his time to photography. He is from Guildford and has been taking photos for the past 9 years. His main interest is in light painting, and I found the images he had taken in a skate park the most interesting. The image on the right was clearly taken using a slow shutter speed in order to create the light trails about the ramp. He appears to have shined a light on the ramps in order to highlight them, creating a blue glow which. This in combination with the wispy, bright light trail creates a futurist effect.
Before going to take light painting pictures I used the dark room to test out different types of light, experimenting with colour, pattern and shape. A few of the trials are shown above. I then went to a local skate park and took a range of photographs, trying out different techniques to see what worked well. I took with me a tripod, my phone with different lights on it, a head torch and some string.
skatepark
Here are my edited photographs. For a few of them I have edited them in both colour and black and white, as I wasn't sure which looked better because they create different effects. I think some of them create quite interesting images, I prefer the ones in which a shape is made, as these are more visually interesting than just trails of light. I want to experiment further with the orb shape as I didn't attempt it enough times to get a perfect one. I also want to use a hula hoop and fairy lights, as I think this will create neater patterns.
Edits- The original images were full of red and orange light due to the street lamps, therefore when editing them in photoshop I added two cooling filters and one green filter. I then edited the colour curves, getting rid of the red lights and enhancing the green and blue.
Edits- The original images were full of red and orange light due to the street lamps, therefore when editing them in photoshop I added two cooling filters and one green filter. I then edited the colour curves, getting rid of the red lights and enhancing the green and blue.
woods
To explore different light painting techniques further I went to a woods to take some more photographs. Below are my chosen edited photographs, I like the ones that have both geometric shapes and colour, as it creates two dimensions to the image. I also think that the one with the outline works well. I discovered that using a torch to highlight the trees, in combination with the light painting worked well as it creates different tones and highlights the background. However, my camera ran out of battery and so I didn't have time to take all the images that I wanted to. |
Using some of the images that I took in the woods I then created a GIF.
To do this I had to take several images from the same place but of different light patterns. I then layered these on top of each other in photoshop and used the animation bar to create the different frames. I like the effect that is created as the fast movement shows how the light source evolves. However, this is only made up of around 7 images and so it only creates a very short video. |
licht faktor
A group of friends from Cologne, Germany create light painting stop motion videos. The one to the right was created over four nights and features the creation of plants, animals and various patterns. It won the German Web Video Award in 2012. Although this is much more complex than what I can achieve on my own, it has given me lots of ideas of the places and light trails that can be achieved. |
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light painting video
I then wanted to create a longer and more complex stop motion. I went back to Alexandra Palace where I photographed in five different locations. I wanted to create the journey of a light source and then have it interact with the things it meets. I think it is ok for my first one, however it changes location too quickly and so next time I should try and repeat and rewind some of the images. Also it could interact with more things. However, I have found that this is a long process, as lots of pictures only create a small amount of film, and when taking the images it is difficult to stay in the same place to make the light follow a trail. |
tokihiro sato
Tokihiro Sato is a Japanese photographer who is best know for his abstract use of light. He was originally a sculptor and received his MFA and BFA in Music and Fine Arts from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. He then decided that he wanted to pursue photography, and he creates unusual light patterns in empty spaces. Sato uses an exposure of up to 3 hours, enabling him to draw various patterns, creating detailed bodies of light. This can be seen in the image to the left, where he has drawn lots of light trails going up the staircase. He has chosen an empty location and used black and white, and this then makes the light stand out, as it follows the path of people from earlier that day. The light transforms the eery location into a surreal and mysterious scene.
response to artist:
After looking at Tokihiro Sato's work I wanted to explore with more refined light paintings. I therefore created these three images below just to see what it would look like. To create lines I needed a less powerful light, as they are too thick and prominent, after doing the vertical lines I covered half the torch to create thinner light trails. The scribbles create a good effect but work best when they follow the base of the steps, rather than hovering above. .
After creating the indoor light paintings I wanted to test them outside.
The images below are the edited ones from this experiment. I like the floor scribbles, although I think they would work better in a different location, the exploding bins therefore work better. In future I need to go out later to take the photographs, as it was slightly too light. Although, this is becoming more difficult as the evenings become lighter. |
light mark: Cenci goepel & jens warnecke
German photographs Cenci Goepel and Jens Warnecke travel the world, finding hidden landscapes and creating light paintings. They often photograph dramatic and eerie landscapes, and use a moving light sources to produces creative and beautiful light trails. They focus on their photographic technique, rather than relying on post-production and often use shutter speeds of up to an hour in order to highlight the area. The image on the left was taken in Norway, the photographers took a three-hour uphill hike to reach the foot of the glacier. They prefer to use a bright yet simple light source, and this works well as it produces elegant images. The composition of all their images is very interesting, for example in the photo of the glacier, the ball is perfectly positioned on the edge of the water and an interesting perspective is creating with the trail of snow and ice behind.
alexey titarenko
Alexey Titarenko is a Russian photographer that began taking photos in the 1970s. He received his Master of Fine Arts degree from the Department of Cinematic and Photographic Art at Leningrad's Institute of Culture in 1983 and has had numerous exhibitions in both European and American galleries. Titarenko has also been credited for his work, winner a number of awards, for example from the Musee de l'Elysee in Lausanne
This image is from Alexey Titarenko's series 'City of Shadows' (1992-1994). He said "The mass of people flowing around the subway station formed a sort of human tide. Giving me a sensation of unrealness, of phantasmagoria. These people were like shadows". Titarenko wanted to find a way to present this which led him to experiment with long exposure. This creates the blurred swarm of people in his images, which gives way to haunting and disturbing images, with what appears to be the ghosts of people.
This image is from Alexey Titarenko's series 'City of Shadows' (1992-1994). He said "The mass of people flowing around the subway station formed a sort of human tide. Giving me a sensation of unrealness, of phantasmagoria. These people were like shadows". Titarenko wanted to find a way to present this which led him to experiment with long exposure. This creates the blurred swarm of people in his images, which gives way to haunting and disturbing images, with what appears to be the ghosts of people.
I have used Alexey Titarenko as inspiration and I want to adapt his work to light paintings. I want to present the movement of people in empty places that would have been busy in the day and I will do this using light trails.
south bank
To explore light painting further I visited the South Bank. I created different types of light painting, for example some looked at the Alexey Titarenko / Tokihiro Sato ideas and for the others I just used the landscape for inspiration.
I think some of the images look better in black and white, as it helps to highlight the light. Although other worked better in desaturated colour, for example in the skate park, because there are lots of different tones. I think the image of the bridge works well, as the trail of light effectively presents the people that would have walked over it, and the sense of perspectives creates a more interesting composition. I discovered that the background cannot be too bright, or else the light can't be seen. Also, it works best when there are different elements in the foreground and background. The location however, was very good as there were lots of interesting scenes in which I could do the light painting. Another point I noted was that for some images such as the one on the bridge, you have to take several images and edit them together, as the shutter speed cannot always be that slow. |
janne parviainen
Janne is a full time artist from Finland who takes light painting images. He was out taking long exposure images when he accidentally jogged his camera, creating interesting lines, and from then on he fell in love with light painting. He mainly draws lines around people and rooms, creating a surreal effect.
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response to artist:
After looking at Janne Parviainen's light painting's I wanted to experiment with this technique. I took 6 separate images using a 60" shutter speed and drew over and around the various objects. I then edited these together in photoshop to create the final image on the right. If I develop this further I think I would also used a torch to highlight the different objects, as it may work better if you could see them slightly. Although my light painting was fairly successful, I don't find these images as interesting as the other light paintings I have done. |
ww1 memorials
I took these photographs in Belgium at one of the smaller WW1 memorial graves. It was about 10pm and was therefore very dark, and so I had to use a torch to highlight the landscape as well as doing the light painting. It can be a problem when it is very dark if there are no lights around, however I managed to highlight the area, Although some of the images would have been better if they were a bit lighter. I tried to create light patterns to represent the deceased soldiers and highlighted the grave stones. My favourite image however, is probably of the monument, as the light trails and balls highlight its grandeur and create a mystical yet eerie effect.
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experiments in central london
I wanted to explore the technique of drawing scribbled light trails. I therefore took some more photographs at London Bridge, South Bank and St Paul's. The three below are demonstrate the different things that I tried. However, now I have decided that I prefer the light trails that follow a path of where people would have been. For my final images I am therefore going to create pictures using that method.
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Using some of the images I took at London Bridge I created a GIF.
In order to create a light painting image I often have to take a series of images and edit them together, therefore the GIF helps show the creation and journey of the light source. Although, unfortunately it doesn't play very smoothly on Weebly and often misses out frames. The whole GIF is a composition of 30 single image frames that have been edited together in photoshop. |
final piece 1
I have chosen to create three final images which present the movement and evolution of people through light. After looking at artists such as Titarenko and Tokihiro I have refined my ideas and technique to produce images which I think best represent my idea. I chose to photograph in these locations because they are popular London landmarks that are usually always busy and full of people. Therefore they are the most appropriate locations.To display these I will print them off and put them into light box frames, as this will enhance the light painting.
In addition to this I also wanted to create another light painting piece. I therefore combined my previous work that was in response to Janne and the idea of making a collage of one of my final images. I came across a piece of work by Dana Maltby and therefore decided to recreate my image of Tower Bridge using only light.
In addition to this I also wanted to create another light painting piece. I therefore combined my previous work that was in response to Janne and the idea of making a collage of one of my final images. I came across a piece of work by Dana Maltby and therefore decided to recreate my image of Tower Bridge using only light.
Dana Maltby
In his work Dana combines photography, graphic design and performance to create unique and interesting images. He received a Bachelors of fine arts in Graphic Design from CVA the College of Visual Arts in St. Paul, Minnesota but like many light painting photographers, stumbled across the technique accidentally. The specific piece I have drawn influence from on the left is not his usual style. It is a composition of 80 images which make up an abstract light painting image. He uses different pattern combinations and colours in order to create an image out of light and I want to use this technique to create a further final piece.
vincent van gogh
To gain some more ideas on this technique I looked at some of the artwork of Van Gogh, as he uses a painting technique which creates a similar effect. In the image to the left he has used small, lined strokes to create the different objects. I am particularly interested in different patterns he uses, which include swirls, circles and straight lines. I want to use these patterns to produce my own version while painting with light.
experiments:
- Initially I tried to create coloured lines using the light painting app of my phone, however this created a too translucent and thick line, and so I realised I would have to add the colour later in photoshop
- I then proceed to use a torch, however this was too bright and the lines were still too thick
- After I tried moving the torch more quickly, although this just gave the light a glow which I didn't like
- I then changed to a weaker torch and covered half of it with my finger, although this didn't produce enough light and so the line was not visable enough
- Eventually I managed to create the line that I was looking for by putting tape over a specific proportion of the torch and this gave the correct thickness and brightness
This was the first piece that I made which is a composite of 35 images, however I didn't feel as though it was complex enough. I had used different colours to present the different sections of the image, but it still seemed to be too flat. I therefore worked on photoshop to make each section more detailed:
To display this I will print each of the 35 sections off separately and assemble them on a large piece of black card, this can then stand along side my image of Tower Bridge.