Composition: Lighting and perspective played very important roles in this photo. The lighting from my window gave this photo great detail and some powerful shadows. Perspective also accomplished giving this photo an advertising feel. It is a close up view with a brand name and product in focus.
Concept: This image is a literal and abstract commentary on advertising photography. Instead of looking like a constructed scene, this interpretation takes on a more movie-like quality and focuses on a product that is not commonly featured.
Method: This image was taken while I sat on the floor in a spot where direct sunlight was angling in. I used a very fast shutter speed because of the bright light. This allowed me to capture very crisp details and textures.
Motivation: My goal for this image was to imitate advertising photography in terms of quality while taking on a much more artful composition and lighting usage.
Context: This image is much different that most advertising photos. Its shadows and lighting looks at the product in a new way. This image is also a social commentary on what is cliche in the advertising world.
Interpretation: It was not understood what my angle on this photo was until I explained it. People saw it as an advertisement, but not as the intended "Nikon until I die" theme.
Evaluation: The clarity and tones in this image are working well. They give crisp advertisement-quality details while also giving the photo a moody and subjective feel. The subject, the lens cap, is what was discussed that could be improved.
Extension: I would jump off from this image and create a series about hands, either in different places or doing different things. They are so versatile and detailed that I could capture a lot of options.
Composition: Lighting and focus were what I believe made this photo great. A desk lamp provided sharp details and an interesting light pattern on the lens, while also highlighting the blurred brand name. Focus also made this photo interesting. The most detailed part of the lens is shown while all other parts of the photo are blurry.
Concept: This image is about advertising photography and how it could be. This is another more abstract photo of something that could have been a very plain and literal photo shoot. The focus and blurred brand name bring more attention to the beautiful product only.
Method: This image was taken using a very low aperture and a desk lame as my directional light. Some photoshop masking and burning/dodging was used to accentuate the vignette around this image.
Motivation: My goal for this image was to once again imitate advertising photography in terms of quality, but also explore integrating abstract art into that theme.
Context: This image is also a much different take on normal advertising photography. Blurring the brand name one of the most important elements of this photo. Maybe it is time for our culture to focus more on the product than brand names.
Interpretation: The group saw this image for what it was, an advertisement. The Nikon brand and product placement made it very clear.
Evaluation: The focus and tones worked the best in the image. The focus gave a very unique viewpoint on the lens, right in the center, while also obscuring the Nikon name. Tones also created a powerful contrast and it overall feels professional. What could be improved is the blurred Nikon name could be more in focus like most advertisements.
Extension: Jumping off of this, I would create a set about advertisements that aren't so typical. Normally the product and brand name are shown clearly, but maybe I could find a way to display those things, or not, in different ways.
Composition: Framing and lighting are what worked well in this photo. The door peep hole was central, adding to the realistic feel of looking through it. Lighting also is what made the outside area more recognizable. It was necessary to be able to tell that a person was standing outside.
Concept: This image is about the privacy we think we have. Peep holes are normally meant to keep someone on the outside from looking in. However, what if the person on the inside should be kept from looking at the people outside? This concept works in this photo becuase the outside person is not near the peep hole, or even looking at it, making the photo viewer feel like they are watching them.
Method: This image was taken by holding my camera up to the peep hole in my door. A very low aperture was used to blur the photo and create a more mystic/eerie effect. A somewhat slower shutter speed was used to capture the rings of light inside the peep hole.
Motivation: My goal for this photo was to capture a scene not often caught by a camera. It was meant to explore the theme of privacy and give the viewer a firsthand look at their spying habits.
Context: This image is much different than many photos commenting on privacy. Instead of looking at the people affected by spying and security cameras, this image transforms the viewer into one of the people harming our right to privacy. It is socially and culturally relevant for everyone living in today's electronic and robotic world.
Interpretation: This image was seen how I wanted it to be, as an invasion of privacy and a view of people's more creepy spying habits.
Evaluation: The focus, tones, and blurriness of this photo are all working well. It gives the viewer the feeling that they are actually looking through the peep hole at the person outside. The contrast and blurriness work together to make the photo more subjective and murky, what you would kind of expect from someone spying on you from an alley or whatever else.
Extension: A set I could do would be about spying on people with things obscuring my view. Examples could be from in a bush, around a corner, through a window, just all places that make the viewer feel like they're in the scene.
Composition: Framing is what made this photo successful. It created a very symmetrical composition with some interesting parts, such as the background lines being more diagonal and not following a straight up and down pattern.
Concept: This image is a commentary on social network site photos. I have not seen pictures like this on sites like facebook. It is a much more artful interpretation of what is normally photos of people making weird faces, at parties, or shot at angles that make the person look good.
Method: This image was taken in a bathroom mirror and used the bathroom lights. I held the camera myself and used a low aperture which ended up blurring most elements of this photo except my hair. I then went in with photoshop and added contrast with levels, along with darkening the tile background to help make my face look brighter and get more focus.
Motivating: The goal for this photo was to explore other ways of making social network photos. Instead of the cliche photos we all know, I wanted to obscure faces, and using lighting/editing that would be obviously different.
Context: There are many ways to comment on social network photography and I chose the method of going against many cliches that it normally presents. It is a social commentary on how we assume we're always supposed to look good or show how many friends we have in our facebook photos.
Interpretation: I had to explain that this image was for a social networking site, and that it was more of a commentary on how this image differs greatly from normal Facebook pictures.
Evaluation: The group like the overall composition. They said the angled wall tiles made it much less linear and more interesting, and that my facial expression and hair could create a narrative within itself. It was suggested that I lighten my eyes to show more details.
Extension: Jumping off from this, I would create a set about Facebook photos that aren't so typical. I would use none of the cliche angles and faces commonly known to those on Facebook.
