Week 4 Blog Prompts

#19. Can you think of anything that:

1) should not be photographed? Why?

       I think there are many instances when paparazzi take photographs that are highly inappropriate and invasive.

2) cannot be photographed? Why?

A process, from beginning to end, cannot be captured in a single photograph.

3) you do not want to photograph? Why?

       I am not at all interested in sexually based photography. I feel like it is overdone and there are so many other subjects that ought to be explored.

#20 Describe at least one photograph that you could take for each of the following “place” prompts.

·                An image of a synthetic “place” such as Disney World, Las Vegas, a Hollywood set, a diorama, etc.
       I imagine a fantasy world where all microscopic elements of the world and enlarged so that we can walk through them. This would allow us to photograph the three-dimensional nature of these organic and inorganic materials, their texture and their scale in comparison to other elements.

·                An image of a fantasy/fictitious environment concocted from your imagination.

        I have always been fascinated with the idea of walking on water. I would love to do a fashion photography shoot that had this as a backdrop.

 

·                An image of a placeless space such as the Internet, cell phones, e-mail, e-bank, surveillance, etc.

         This idea makes me think of circuit boards and the wiring that allows for these “placeless places” to exist. I think recording the incoming and outgoing signals to somehow portray their quantity and their speed would be interesting.

·                An image of a public space.
        I would love to take an image of a very busy street in the middle of a big city and digitally remove all of the advertisements. I think it would be fascinating to see the world without these influences.

·                An image of a private space.

        I would love to do a series of living rooms with families in them. I think it would exciting and interesting to compare and contrast living styles and behaviors .

 

·                An in-between space that brings to mind one of the following ideas: nomadic lifestyles, displacement, rootlessness, out-of-placeness, boundaries, movement, expansion, etc.

I am fascinated with the photographs of National Geographic magazine.  This prompt reminds of an article that described the last living truly indigenous people. They live completely off the land, devoid of much emotion and social context. They have absolutely no contact with the rest of civilization. I would love to follow them, to take candid photographs of a hidden form of life that lacks all outside influences.

#21

A. Describe some common aesthetic aspects of “news”-related photographs. Many photographs taken for journalism purposes are candid, and therefore capture a moment filled with emotion or energy. They are also factual; they tell us enough to inform us about the purpose of the article. Although they are straight to the point, however, they still contain some aesthetic pleasing elements. The candid shots often tell of extreme happiness or extreme grief. For these reasons journalistic photographs are engaging and emotionally charged. While lighting conditions cannot always be controlled, framing and cosmetic enhancements can be made in post-processing and therefore must play an important role.

B. Describe some common aesthetic aspects of “snapshots”, including family photographs, cell-phone shots, photos posted to facebook, Snapshots fill our own personal need to document our lives and relationships. I think the context of these photographs is what makes them different that professional photos. The scenes are often of positive subjects. The lighting is often enhanced with the use of a flash, which floods the scenes with front lighting. Little attention is paid to framing, as they are not usually processed, but instead simply “posted.”

C. Describe some common aesthetic aspects of advertisement photographs, including fashion photography, product photography, etc When I think of fashion photography and product photography I immediately think of lighting. Especially with fashion photography, lighting adds drama and depth. The sharpness, or lack thereof, and the colors, or lack thereof, help push concepts far in one direction or the other. 

D. Describe some common aesthetic aspects of film/movie and television stills. Clarity is the first word that comes to mind when I think of film stills. The scenes are impeccably lit and show incredible detail.

E. Describe some common aesthetic aspects of yearbook photos, senior pictures, and team/club/sports group shots. Staged is the common word for these types of photographs. The photographer is aiming for continuity is a series of images to be displayed in a common place for a common purpose. Therefore their framing, lighting, contrast, and subject matter are all very similar. Sporting group shots are often taken outdoors, mainly in the summer when there is ample sunlight. Yearbook photos often use side lighting with some type of filter. The framing of these photographs is tight and uniform.

F. Describe some common aesthetic aspects of stock images. http://www.corbisimages.com/ http://www.gettyimages.com/

G. Describe some common aesthetic aspects of fashion photography. I think the most unique aspect of fashion photography is positions of the subjects. Angles and perspective are always more interesting when the pose of the subject is also interesting. Marketers are searching for the most effective way to display a garment or accessory, and drama and interest are crucial.

H. Describe some common aesthetic aspects of paparazzi shots or celebrity photographs. These photographs are almost always candid. The photographer has little to no control over lighting conditions and are often moving themselves when taking the pictures. Many times they are also stationed at quite a distance from the subjects so they must use zoom lenses, or take pictures that are somewhat less descriptive. Of course the photographers who own the photographs are free to process them as they wish, and framing and zooming can be adjusted afterwards.