Photoshoot 5: Surrealism Change of Scale: Non-Studio: Work Diary Evaluation -

Photoshoot 5: Work Diary Evaluation - 

Equipment Used: 
Canon EOS 450D, standard lens, tripod. 

Settings: 
Beneath individual images.

Lighting: 
N/A. 

Theory: 
The surreal everyday.

Favourite(s):

(1/50, F/10, ISO 400, Manual Focus, No Tripod)

This image is one of my favourites of this series due to the successful satirical humour which is also employed by the photographer Slinkachu whilst using elements of Yorch Miranda's technique. The foreground blurring through depth of field was successful too in that it leads the viewers eye into the work and to the subject. Also, the lighting is one of the best examples within the series which means that the subject matter is clear. 

If I were to complete this image again, though, I would capture the photograph at either a different time of day when the natural lighting is at its best or in a studio environment. This would be to improve the natural lighting and to remove any distracting features such as the design on the backdrop. Furthermore, the above photograph was edited in Photoshop to remove some of the hello lighting that accompanies shooting in non-studio indoor locations; I did this by increasing the blue hue to neutralise the yellow. However, I would have liked to keep the natural hue as much as possible to avoid bringing out the darker shades in the subject. 

(1/30, F/10, ISO 800, Manual Focus, No Tripod)

The above photograph is in the better of the series due to its composition and natural lighting. The location that this image was captured in allows more natural lighting in and meant that subsequent editing to change the hue was not needed. Additionally, the composition is better as a result of the cropping and compliance to the rule of thirds grid with the subject sitting at the cross-section of the vertical left third of the grid. 

Despite this, this image could be improved by experimenting with various focal lengths due to the focal length used reducing the area of focus on the scenery and being more focused on the subject. As such I could have used various focal lengths to achieve different and varied outcomes. 

(1/10, F/8, ISO 800, Auto Focus, Tripod)

This photograph is also within the best of the series due to its direct relation and having taking inspiration from the work of Yorch Miranda. For instance, the location of the photograph is one also employed by Miranda although the meanings of the work vary in that I used photographs of the common people opposed to Miranda's vintage images of workers. 

The improvement of this image would be routed in the lighting and subsequent editing to reduce its dull and mono tonal current state which may not aesthetically fit as well with the other images. As such I could have shot in various locations and lights to ensure the best natural lighting for the image as increasing the exposure through means such as 'Levels' or 'Curves' in Photoshop could add unwanted noise and graininess.  

(1/8, F/8, ISO 800, Manual Focus, Tripod)

Penultimately for favourites, the above image is in the top percentage of favourites of shoot 5 in respect of its execution and ideas behind it. This image was a symbolic image in that its surrealism tells a story of irony. The 2D image is in a 3D frame which is made 2D by being captured in another photograph. Moreover, the other idea is a comment about humanity and how we so easily become trapped like a pinned butterfly.

However, the composition of this image could have been improved to fit the square crop that was completed post-rpdouction. Had I taken more consideration when taking the initial photographs then the composition could be more aesthetically pleasing once within square framing. Although, the supposed lack of composition could be symbolic in itself. For instance, the subjects within the photograph are arranged chaotically with the surrealist idea that art is not solely for the means of being aesthetically pleasing but also to challenge to conformity and such the image challenges the ideas of the rule of thirds compositional grid method or the fibonacci circle. 

(1/20, F/8, ISO 800, Manual Focus, Tripod)

Finally, this is the last of the favourites within this photoshoot and is so because of the lighting and focus on the subject. Shooting outdoors provided the natural lighting that had been the target for the other photographs and as such meant that it was easier to focus the photograph using manual focus. 

The only improvements that I would make on this image would be to reduce the contrasts between the tonal variations so that the background is not as stark in its transition from sky to background. 

Least Favourite(s):

(1/8, F/8, ISO 800, Manual Focus, Tripod)

The above image is a least favourite within this series due to the non-studio element of natural lighting which was poor whilst shooting indoors meaning that images were either of a very hello tone of had flash reflections. The camera flash meant that details are taken away from the subject as the eye is taken immediately to the light reflection. Also, the composition was not a desired and could have been considered more carefully to fit a square frame.

As such, to improve this image then I would choose a time of day when the natural light is at its brightest and shoot without flash. I would also crop and edit the image into a square ratio to fit the others.  

(1/20, F/8, ISO 800, Manual Focus, No Tripod)

The above image was not one of the best within this photoshoot due to the poor lighting, the reflection of flash and the composition. The flash detracts from the subject of the image whilst the composition is very static and hardly dynamic for a moving prop. 

 

Evaluation and Development -

 

Elements of this series were successful but the unpredictability of the non-studio environment such as the lighting resulted in some photographic images that were not of the desired standard.

 

I believe that I may have now exhausted the use of changing the scale of subjects in respect of the Yorch Miranda style within my limited models.