Evaluation

In this project I have tried to capture the natural innocence of children while they are playing. Where I live the street is always full of children running about and my series try's to show the different children who are there over the course of a day. My single image try's to convey the memory of seeing family and the connection between family members.

Major influences in my work have been Sally Mann and her book Immediate Family as she works with children, I have been influenced by her because she captures the children while playing and also poses them. Another influence has been Diane Arbus an her photograph 'crying child' as she captured the child naturally showing emotions.

In my opinion this project has not been successful because I struggled to find an idea to photograph as I did not understand the narrative could be something very simple and I over complicated my work by thinking too deeply.

I think my work could be improved by continuing to shoot because a few of the children felt and look awkward infront of the camera, I think this could be resolved by continuing to photograph them so that they become more relaxed. I am also going to work on keeping my ideas simple so that I can start photographing from as soon as I get the briefing for the project.

All of my images have been taken on a canon DSLR. I took a studio light home for a shoot and although I have not used any of the images using this lighting set up I enjoyed working in a natural setting with a flash. All of the images I have used for my final set have been taking natural lighting.

The only major problem I have encountered has been that I do not have confidence in my ability and I found that this has held me back in exploring different ideas and being able to find a sequence of images that I am happy with presenting.

I do not feel like I have developed any new skills but that I have continued to develop and practice skills that I already had.

During this project I have shown my work in two different crits, I feel as though as I have received constructive criticism that is going to help me improve my work in future projects. These crits made me realise that I need to be careful how I frame my images and to ask somebody that has not seen my work to evaluate them so that I can see if the connotations are what I am aiming for.

This project has challenged my ability to work on location and to be able to make good photographs without being able to pose and style the image. I do feel as though I could challenge myself further and I will try to do this in further projects.

If I were to do this project again then I would start by keeping my idea simple and easy to work with, and try pushing myself out of my safety zone as it has held me back in photographing new models as I was very nervous behind the camera.

Dawber Photography

Also in Masters Magazine was an article called cherubs corner, this showed photographs taken by Dawber Photography.

They have an offer which means they will take photographs of your baby's first year and the photographs they take that were featured in the magazine show a range of ages, but all the images show a positive and high key image.

Faye and Trevor Yerbury

Reading Masters Magazine which I got from the Photography Show '14 in Birmingham I saw an article  about Faye and Trevor Yerbury so I looked for more images that they had taken and found these:

Low Key or High Key

High Key

High key images are  not overexposed images, they are correctly exposed images with a light overall look, these images range from grey to white and although the background may be white or overexposed the subject remains clear and light does not bleed into the edges of the subject.

These often create a happy and bright feeling and can be used in glamour and fashion shots because of the positive connotations, they are also used in family portraits and many stock images.

Low Key

Low Key images are correctly exposed images with a black background, these types of images have almost negative connotations depending on the subject however can also be used to create bold and dramatic photographs, typically portraits.

This type of photograph is usually used in musical gigs and performances because the set up has been designed to work well in low light. It can however also be used in portraits and still life's.

Black and White or colour ?

After looking into the connotations of Black and White photography I found that many people seem to think that monochrome adds a historical feeling but others feel that colour can be distracting when the photographer is trying to focus on showing the light and shadows. Monochrome can also be used to draw attention to details that may have been lost inside a colour photograph or print.

The world as we see it is in colour which makes me think that black and white has a lonely and sad connotation because of the lack of colours.

Colour photographs are seen as contemporary because when photography first started everything was printed in black and white because of the technology available. Colour is still relatively new within photography so many people feel like this shows new and modern images.

Colour photography can be used to both extremes of making the colours bounce and pop so that the world seems happier and brighter yet can also be used to make the colours dull and look desaturated.


For where I wanted to go with my idea originally the black and white would have given the photographs a dark upsetting atmosphere which would have played on the viewers emotions, however with changing my idea I think colour photography will create a happy and playful atmosphere.

Shoot three

I have taken another shoot of some of my neighbours children, however the parents asked me if I would not put them online.

I took images of the two brothers and sister playing together on their trampoline and outside their house.

I think the shoot went good however I feel it could have been better because the girl was very nervous infront of the camera and would stop to smile for the camera instead of playing, I think this is because I have not photographed them before and she felt nervous around me.

Another one of the neighbours children who was playing with the others did not wish to be photographed so many photographs have her only slightly in the background.

Home Studio Shoot - evaluation

So I took a studio flash light home over the weekend so I could try studio style lighting in a natural setting (taking a three year old on a long train journey and photographing him in the studio seemed like a bad idea at the time - so why not take the studio home with me!)


However trying to ask him to pose for me was difficult as he was more interested in playing than being photographed (I expected nothing else) so I continued photographing him while he was playing and decided I liked those ones better than what I had intended to do.

So I am going to change my idea and photograph children while they are playing and not focusing on me, I prefer photographs like this as they look more natural and the child is relaxed.

Damian McGillicuddy

While reading Master Photography I came across an article about the photographer Damian McGillicuddy, one of the images in the magazine caught my eye (top image) and while looking into his work I found his blog (Here) and found the other images shown here.

Diane Arbus

Diane Arbus, A Child Crying, New Jersey, 1967

Diane Arbus, Child in a Night Gown, Shelter Island, New York, 1957

Diane Arbus, Child with a Toy Hand Grenade in Central Park, New York, 1962

Sally Mann

Sally Mann, Candy Cigarette, from series Immediate Family, 1989

Sally Mann, Damaged Child, 1984

Sally Mann, Naptime, 1989

Sally Mann, Night Blooming Cereus, 1988

So ... Model Release Forms ?

After talking with my tutor about my idea he suggested I go into a local nursery and photograph the children against a plain wall.

I am thinking about going with this idea however I do not know how to create Model Release forms or to create a form so that the nursery can see my idea and give me permission to photograph inside.

I looked at the book "AOP Beyond the Lens" as in the back they have examples of model release forms for both adults and minors. I feel the language they have used to too technical and many of the parents would not understand the form so they would not give me permission. This means I am going to be creating my own form, only I have no idea how to do this.

Examples from AOP :

Standard Release Form

Adult Release Form (short)

Adult Release Form (long)

Minor Release Form (short)

Minor Release Form (long)

Retouching

These are the retouched versions of the shoots I have done so far. Personally I prefer the black and white images as it generates a darker atmosphere which is what I want to create.

This is the final image (shown above) I have chosen to be my " Single Image Narrative " for the first section of the brief, I think the black and white version creates a memory like atmosphere which works with this photograph as it is the connection between two people, the lack of faces allows the viewer to remember a person that they know.
During the crit I was told that the colour version of this image would have been better to show the memory as it creates a mood that is too sad. I was also told that I should reshoot this image as the composition is not the best as I have cropped the top of the fingers off.




These images are from the test shoot that I have done for my second section. I like the idea behind the images however I feel these images could be better and I am planning a reshoot to expand my idea.

Second Section -Test Shoot Contact Sheet

For my second section of the brief I am thinking of creating a series of images that raise awareness of Child Cruelty. However I do not want to force a model to cry so I am going to find ways of showing no model or no face in the images, I feel if I do use a model then including the face will personalise it to specifically the model however without knowing the models face the viewer fills in the blanks with an  image of somebody they know and it creates a deeper connection between them and the photograph.

These are the photographs that I feel work :

My sister agreed to model for me, so I asked her to hide in my wardrobe but with her hand holding the door, this was to be showing the child feels the need to hide so that they are safe. She is also shown posed as though she is crying, she is backed into the corner and this is to show she has nowhere to go.
The teddy bear is to show the child's security comfort but it has been left behind as though the child has been caught hiding or that the child's innocence and childhood is being taken away.

I am planning on reshooting these images because I have redecorated my room and now there is more space for different camera angles and positions. I am also wanting to use a younger model instead as my sister is a teenager and does not look child like.

Duane Michals

Michels has created many sequences and I think his work is going to be a great influence on creating and arranging my sequence.

Things are Queer

I like this sequence of images as it creates a full circle and makes me stop and think about them. This series creates a continuous sequence that could continue forever and I like the idea of creating a loop, I could do this by showing age progression as everybody grows old but I could make the loop continue because of having children and them growing older.

A Dream of Flowers

In this sequence the man is shown to be sleeping and the flowers are appearing around him, I think this means the man is at peace with himself and because flowers remind me of summer it makes me think that he is dreaming of summer and relaxing. I could create a series in this style however show all of the different seasons and how people change over the year.

Paradise

In this sequence the young couple start out at work but as the sequence is taking them back to nature. I think it is too remind people not to focus only on working and the mundane but take some time to themselves and relax away from work and enjoy the beauty of nature.

The bogeyman

 This sequence shows a young child reading and it shows her fear of something being in the shadow of the coat. It shows a fear that many people have and how many people go and check the shadows, however the sequence continues to show the fear that the girl had was for a reason as the monster in the shadows was real.

I think it would be a good idea to show peoples fears and how everybody has different ways of coping with them. It would also be good to show people in different situations both working and relaxing and how there is differences between them.

Second Section

Now that the first part of the brief is over I am going to be creating a series of images that hold a narrative within them.

I thought about creating a series about the Urban legends and myths so I started looking for some online and found this website (Here) that list's some of the legends and tales from the North East.

During the crit the tutor said that many peoples prints were dark subjects and that maybe we should try to find happier subjects, but I have no clue of any 'happy narrative stories' that I could photograph other than family and I was wanting to challenge myself with a different subject as I have photographed them for the first section.

The start of a new project is always the worst, as it takes me a while to find my idea.

Hands - Contact Sheet

I was photographing my family and their hands for my project and I feel that these are the most successful from this theme.

These were taken over the weekend as we were looking after him for the day, this has been the only time I've been available to see him as I have got home too late from university the last time my mum was minding him and he has been ill for a few days so I have not gone round to photograph him while he is ill.

There was issues with other family members being available so I have taken many images of my cousin however I was not sure about the photographs so I did not take as many as I normally would (image shown above is not the full shoot.)

Hands - Post Crit

For the first part of the brief we had been asked to create a single image that held an engaging narrative within it that was due by Tuesday the 17th as we had to show them to the rest of the group in a Crit.

My chosen idea for this was to look at my family as we are very close together and all live in the North East. I wanted to show the connections


For my single image I have chosen :

This is two different generations of my family together, this image shows the age differences between both. The photograph also shows the close connection between the two people even without knowing who they are, in this photograph it is my mum with my cousin, we used to see my cousin on a weekly basis as we would collect him from his nursery down the road from my house, however now we rarely see each him so it is a joy when we spend time together as he is so lively and bubbly.

Idea Generation

When I first started thinking of the brief ( North East Stories) what comes to mind is local landmarks such as the transporter bridge and the bottle of notes, however those are very cliche and over done (in my opinion) plus I don't enjoy that type of photography.

There are lots of different ways I could show the North East, the people... the places... the history.

I thought about different urban legends such as Bloody Mary, The Candyman and others I heard in primary school, I then asked my friends if they knew anymore and found The Lambton Worm and the story of Carmen Winstead. Her story reminded me of the chain mail emails I used to get, which in turn reminded me of the project SPAM by Cristina De Middel (Link Here) Middel takes the junk emails she receives and creates a photograph with that theme.

I also thought about showing my emotions and how I come across to my friends to how I'm actually feeling. I could use mirrors and reflections to show this (hopefully with some crafty Photoshop techniques mixed in). But I'm not very comfortable with photographing myself so I don't think this idea would work.

What about my family? We've all lived in the North East for years, so I got to thinking what can I use to show us and I thought about using objects that represent us, but I couldn't see how it would tell a story to anybody, so I thought what about hands, we all have them but use them for different things. I decided I was going to use hands to show the differences between generations.

Stephanie Sinclair

Her project " Too Young to Wed " shows the struggles of young children who are being forced into marriages with older men and the problems surrounding this culture's traditions. Her photographs are powerful and striking yet she is documenting what is normal practice in some cultures, there is now help being put in place to protect these young girls however until communities change then the marriages will continue, as many families are shamed and outcast from villages if their daughters are not wed.


Community Expectations

Tehani, age 8 (Yemen)

Tehani works in the fields just outside her village in the rural areas of Hajjah, Yemen

This image is showing a young girl who should be in school or playing with friends but instead she is working in the fields, possibly to support her family and gather food for them. Although the information given with the photo does not say about her marital status it is my belief she is already married or engaged. It is a touching image because it makes the viewer feel a connection to the girl and want to help her have a real childhood.


Journeys

Leyualem, age 14

Leyualem is transported by mule to her new home on her wedding day. The men later said the cloth was placed over her head so she would not be able to find her way back home, should she want to escape the marriage.

I think that the huge impact of the photograph comes from not only the scene within but also the caption. The choice of words that the men have given the photographer shows the marriage was not consensual as they say the newly wed bride would want to "escape the marriage" rather than saying "visit her family".

Don McCullin

“ We should move our attention away from the privileged and those who were born with the looks. There’s one thing about people who are terribly good looking is that they’re the least interesting people you come up against. " Don McCullin interviewed by David and Jacqui Morris

These two portraits make me want to know the story behind them and to look further into why and how these were taken, I think perhaps it would be best for some text to appear with these images explaining the photograph.

The eyes draw me into these photographs both because he has direct contact with the viewer and because she looks to me as though she is avoiding looking at the camera. I like the way both styles are effective in making me feel connected to the subject.

The portrait of the man was taken in England during a project in which McCullin has photographed in East London in the 60's and 70's - showing just how people lived in poverty, this was a dangerous project, no less dangerous than documenting the wars, as he could have been attacked by anybody from anywhere. He says he fully expected to be attacked but it never happened, he was friendly towards them learning about their lives and he says that everybody's story was different and that if we could hear them they are riveting.

" There was a lot of tension, and there was a lot of smell too. You see, these guys don’t wash. And they smell of alcohol, of methylated spirits, which is like cat’s piss. But, for me, that smell was like champagne. I knew I was in the right place, because you know when you’re among poverty. There’s no misidentification. You can smell poverty. " Don McCullin interviewed by David and Jacqui Morris

This image was taken for a newspaper article about racism and prejudice concerning the police, this is not the full scene of the crime however this is the photograph that was printed. It has been shown like this to make the readers form their own opinions about whether the policeman is chasing a criminal or harassing an innocent man, the article then explains that is is neither and that both men are in fact police chasing down a suspect (not shown.) I like how photography can be used in a way to make people think and form their own opinions about something so staged then give them the real event and watch opinions change instantly.

This in an advert design warning people about how doing drugs can affect not only them but family. It is also an an example of how text can amplify an image, because without the text the picture would have less meaning as the text explains who has been stolen from in order to get the money needed for drugs.