Final project

Composition: When composing each photo, I always had the goal of framing the scene in a way that captures how the figure is interacting with the scene. In  order to set a tone and give an otherwise inanimate figure personality and life. This meant going down to the level of the figure(s), and seeing things from their point of view. I experimented with scale, lighting and depth of field to achieve the tone I wanted to set in each photo. I generally kept a rather small depth of field, and kept my backgrounds rather simple--sticking with mostly just one object that the figure is interacting with-- in order to keep the focus on the interaction playing out in front. I used lighting on the figures just like how one might for a real person, to draw attention to a face or create a certain shadow.

Concept/Motivations/Method: I loved Disney's Cinderella when I was little. Knowing this, one of my friends in high school gave me these figurines for my birthday, and they have remained desk ornaments ever since. I thought that it would be fun to create different environments for them, and imagine how they might react within that situation. For example, if Cinderella came across a shoe lying on the ground, would she feel compelled to try it on for size? Would seeing the clock strike midnight send a little shiver up her spine? Some of the scenes I created harken back to the Disney movie-- Gus and the beads (http://bit.ly/fMpqbo), the shoes, the carriage and and the clock striking midnight. However, I also created a few of my own, such as the spider plant and the figures trying on jewelry. I felt that while it was fun to recreate scenes from the movie, it was also interesting to create these new scenes that might provide more room for thought and interpretation. 

Context: When brainstorming for this project, I didn't have a particular artist in mind that has done this sort of work. As I think of it, I suppose I drew upon ideas like the Toy Story movies and what classmates have done with this kind of idea across the semester. Also, now that I think of it, the series "What Stormtroopers Do On Their Day Off" could be similar, though I think that there is much more humor involved than in my series.

Assignment 3 : Place

Place

 The places that I decided to photograph ended up relating to each other, although I didn't exactly intend them to. The three bottom photos were taken at home and have a sort of sentimental/ homey feel for me. They include my great grandmother's first piece of furniture (with another great grandmother's framed Bible verse in german), a wind chime hanging from a tree in the back yard, and one of my mom's bonsai trees on the deck. The first photo is taken of a building on campus, but something about it still feels like it belongs with the set. 

For the bonsai tree, I wanted to make the tree seem bigger than what it is--- like it creates a space, rather than being part of a space and that you could just go and sit underneath it. I really like how the lighting and texture turned out

The wind chime was to demonstrate a fast shutter speed. I had a lot of trouble with this photo though. I wanted to bring out the wind chime from the background, but when I increased the contrast, the light on the left side of the photo began to become very washed out.

I really enjoyed the texture that the cabinet had, and wanted to bring out as much of it as possible. This photo ended up having an antique feeling to it, which I think is pretty accurate. I chose this for the prompt that asked to create a narrative. Antiques have so many stories to tell, so this photo seemed like a natural choice.

The final image is looking in from the outside of the MSU Alumni Chapel. I really liked the contrast between the orderly vase of flowers and the wild ivy, as well as the reflection of the tree that is cast on the window. 

#25 : Motivations

Write a detailed description of your “motivations” for your final self-proposed project. Why are you interested in this subject? What do you want to convey? How do you want viewers to respond? Why are you inspired to make these images/this project? Do you want to evoke emotions in viewers? Shock viewers? Make them laugh? Make them think? Inform them? Reveal something about how you see the world? Reveal something about yourself, a person, a place, a feeling, a memory, a moment in time?


I'm interested in my Cinderella subject because I loved the movie and books so much as a small child. The "adventures" of Cinderella and the mouse are meant to be lighthearted and enjoyable --- reflective of my associations with these characters. Perhaps it will trigger a similar memory in viewers. 

Assignment 5 : Created Realities (continued)

Narrative


My goal in these photographs were to tell the story... of me reading a good story! I did my best to be very expressive in regard to my body language. Probably the hardest part about taking these photos was struggling with a self timer and having many failed attempts to properly frame and focus what I wanted in the photo. I wanted to only have myself and the book in the photo, with the book primarily in focus.

PART II


Overall, the group said that the series was very expressive-- that the outward appearance is very reflective of what I might be feeling inside while reading. They said that I could probably add more photos to this series, or create even more narratives of myself doing a variety of tasks.

Final Project: work in progress

Assignment 5 : Created Realities

Social/Cultural Statement : Balance

The concept for this photo is an attempt at visualizing the amount of tasks/people/problems/stuff we must all juggle on a daily basis.

To create this image, I simply took objects that I have around my room and piled them on my head in a haphazard manner. It  truly was a challenge to keep the objects balanced while reaching over to hit the shutter button to start the timer!

I had several versions of this photo to choose from, and I kept going back and forth between this one and one that was not blurred. Obviously, I chose the one with a slight blur. I felt that it added a sense of movement and discomfort for the viewer, and I though it related well to the idea that balancing all of the activities in one's life is not always easy or comfortable.




PART II


One interpretation from the critique was that "it looks like life is weighing you down." I could see that. They also liked the expression on my face and the blur/movement of the books. One jumping off point possibility was that I could try balancing different combinations of items on my head.
 

 

Collages/Installations to be photographed

For this photograph, I wanted to create a kind of sculpture out of everyday items I have sitting around my room. I did my best to use a variety of items that might not normally be found together all in one place. I tried capturing the "sculpture" from several angles to try to get the most interesting composition.

Something that I think I would like to have spent more time on is lighting. I think that the shapes within the sculpture would have done interesting things with the light

PART II

One person noticed that all of my final photos from this assignment involve books--- which I hadn't really noticed before. They especially drew a connection between the photo above and my sculpture photos. I hadn't noticed that!

Someone else suggested that I could continue creating sculptures to be photographed, and to have a certain type of shadow I might want to create in mind (echoing my thoughts on the lighting).

Constructed realities: Works in Progress