Landscape

Landscape

Definitions and Theory

• Landscape- all the visible features of an area of land, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.
• In landscape photography, depth of field (The depth of field is the amount of the photo that is in focus) is a critical component of every image. Some photos require minimum depth of field to place more emphasis on a single element of the scene. Classic landscape images have extensive depth of field to provide front-to-back sharpness.
• In landscape photography, you'll typically want to use a higher f stop, or narrow aperture, to get more of your scene in focus. Generally, you'll want to shoot in the f/8 to f/11 range, topping out at around f/16.
• You should use a tripod whenever possible.

Image bank

Artist research

For this study, the artist in which I have chosen is Ansel Adams. Ansel Adams was an American landscape photographer and environmentalist known for his black-and-white images of the American West. Adams helped found the anti-pictorialist Group f/64, an association of photographers advocating "pure" photography that favoured sharp focus and the use of the full tonal range of a photograph

Contact sheets :

My best photographs

Photographs that require improvement

Due to these photographs being taken on a late autumn morning, there was poor light at times and the general colour of the leaves on the trees were faded. In many of my photographs I have used photoshop to bring out the beautiful colours in order to make the photograph better. 

 In the photograph above, I feel like although the background is very nice, the picture is ruined by the out of focus leaves. if the photo had been set up better I think that this could have been a very beautiful photograph.

I think that this photograph lacks a focused object. I feel that no object particularly stands out and that there is nothing that would catch an eye and draw it into the photograph.

This photograph above was taken with an f-stop that was too high, which created a bright and out of focus photograph.

AO1: Develop ideas through sustained and focused investigations informed by contextual and other sources, demonstrating analytical and critical understanding.

I feel that the artist research was helpful in this study as it helped me understand the theory on landscapes and made me look for interesting objects in nature. 

I feel that I have created good standard photographs using the techniques the Ansel Adams used however I also feel that I put my style of photography into it too. I do think that, however, I do not think that my photographs would look good in black and white because one of the main features in my final photos are the autumn colours. 

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

My idea for recording Landscape was to photograph the finer details in nature, and find how different objects. colours and settings can influence a photograph. I feel as though I was inspired by Ansel Adam's work.

With reference to my best selected images: I feel that these images link to the topic and to the artist that I studied. 

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

To take my photos I used a Canon E10 1000D, with multiple lenses. I tried to increase the aperture setting to as high as possible so that I could end up with a sharper picture with a wider depth of field, however in some cases this was not possible as the lighting was poor.

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 Ansel Adams.  The final images produced were refined by developing the photo in photoshop using a range of techniques.

Portraiture

Portraiture

Portraiture - A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person.

 This picture represents their inner emotions. this image is very powerful because of the use of editing, making it into a black and white photograph which highlights the tones and forms, as well as the use of props.

Task 1 :

This photo shows Winston Churchill's fierce exterior by using his stern and serious expression. The photo emphasises the assumptions that Winston Churchill had accumulated at this time. During the war, he was seen as a powerful, strong, stable, trustworthy leader and this is shown by using a high exposure. 

Research: 

Annie Leibovitz, considered one of America's best portrait photographers, developed her trademark use of bold colours and poses while at 'Rolling Stone.' 

Photographer Annie Leibovitz was born on October 2, 1949, in Waterbury, Connecticut. In 1970 she landed a job at Rolling Stone and went on to create a distinctive look for the publication as chief photographer. In 1983 she began working for the entertainment magazine Vanity Fair, continuing to produce images that would be deemed iconic and provocative. Having also worked on high-profile advertising campaigns, Leibovitz's images have been showcased in several books and major exhibitions around the world. 

The style of Annie Leibovitz's photos are to capture a very moody and "calm in a storm" type atmosphere. These images are created using dark tones and simple back grounds. I feel that is creates a very strong and powerful image that draws the viewer in.

Thomas Ruff

Thomas Ruff (born 10 February 1958) is a German photographer who lives and works in Düsseldorf, Germany. He has been described as “a master of edited and reimagined images”.

David Lachapelle

David LaChapelle is a celebrated American photographer and video artist. He is perhaps best known for his commercial fashion portraits of celebrities and models such as Amanda Lepore and Angelina Jolie. LaChapelle’s signature blend of colorful, conceptual imagery bears the influence of both Surrealism and Pop Art.

Alec Soth

Alec Soth (born 1969) is an American photographer, based in Minneapolis. Soth makes "large-scale American projects" featuring the midwestern United States. His work tends to focus on the "off-beat, hauntingly banal images of modern America" according to The Guardian art critic Hannah Booth. His work has been compared to that of Walker Evans and Stephen Shore

                      

Image bank

Contact sheets

Best images 

I personally don't think that any of my photographs that I have taken are suitable to be in the 'Best Images' as they all need adjusting. Some need a brightness and contrast adjustment and others I feel need finer details refining using the 'spot healer', 'clone tool' or 'dodge and burn'. 

Photographs that require improvement

In all the photographs bellow the lighting needs to be adjusted as the models are too bright. 

 In this photo above I do not like how the model is not fully in the frame. 

In these two above photos, I feel like they need to be more serious. for me, my style of portraiture photography is very serious and almost moody as I feel that this type of photograph sends the biggest message. 

In the above photo I experimented with the different editing options available on Adobe Photoshop. I created this photo by using the clone tool and turning down the hardness and opacity of the brush and I do really like the outcome of this image.

AO1: Develop ideas through sustained and focused investigations informed by contextual and other sources, demonstrating analytical and critical understanding.

I feel that the artist research was helpful in this study as it helped me understand the theory on portraiture and made me think about the composition of my photos and the lighting set up that I was using.

I feel that I have created good standard photographs using the techniques the Annie Leibovitz used however I also feel that I put my style of photography into it too. 

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

My idea for recording portraiture was to photograph the finer details in the models, and to try and capture the emotion in the photograph. I feel as though I was inspired by Annie Leibovitz work.

With reference to my best selected images: I feel that these images link to the topic and to the artist that I studied. 

In reference to my first image, I used a tripod that was central to the model. This photograph is similar to those of Annie Leibovitz's. 

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

All of my photos taken were shot in the studio. For the Low key shots a soft box was used to soften the light, filling the light in shadow areas. we also used a Snoot, which created a rim light effect. This was placed in front of the subject, opposite the Soft box. This controlled the light spill and keeps the light flowing in one direction. 

To take my best photos I used a Canon E10 1000D, with an EF-S18-55mm lens. My F-stop was set at f/11 however I did change it at times as I experimented with the out comes of the different settings. The exposure was set at 1/125 and ISO 400.

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 Portraiture and the images of Annie Leibovitz .  The final images produced were refined by developing the photo in photoshop using a range of techniques. I am happy with my final images as they convey a sense of isolation and create some very emotional images that are eye-catching and interesting.