Introduction
My relationship with natural world is quite close as i enjoy taking images of the natural world as people see the nature in different ways which leads to endless opportunities. If i was to go anywhere to take a constructive landscape it would either be in blackheath or Greenwich as there are many areas that landscapes can be taken and each area can be adapted. I think people take pictures of the nature as each person can depict nature and explain it in their own words. I think photographs can change the way we see things because of the small details in the photographs will be seen by one person and not seen by another.
What is a Landscape
When i hear the word landscape i think of sunsets and mountains as to me these correlate together like the images above. Also when i hear the word landscape i always think about nature as i believe that is a very important component in landscapes. Words that i associate with landscapes are: sun, sky, stars, nature, water, colourful, day, night, trees, flowers and clouds. When I google the word landscape i see a variety of landscapes ranging from day night and in all different types of locations and each adapted in their own way by the artist some were edited and some are completely natural. My ideal landscape would be a sunset looking over London and the sky being either red or purple as these colours would look good over the landscape of london.
Landscapes Photoshoot
These are landscapes that i took throughout south east London from Greenwich to Lee green and in various different locations. Most photos i decided to take was while the sun was setting as it tints the sky's colour which gives the foreground and background a better look. The other landscapes i tried to focus on the buildings and the nature as they both contrast eachother and it gives a real good look on south east London and the way each location is slowly adapting into a new place and even a whole new environment. I personally like the landscapes that focus on the sun set especially when the sky is pink as it gives the foreground a new look.
The idea of a Landscape
The purpose of the landscapes are to capture the surroundings and to give a better look then you would in a portrait. Each photographer has decided to include the ground and the sky despite one being black and white. However the black and white photo does not include a person or a main object. Both images are taken at low vantage points but the second photo has a better look at the sky as this allows the image to expand have many different ideas depicted. each images are taken at different taken at distances with the black and white one taken from a far perspective and the coloured one taken at a closer distance.
Both images are landscape and both images are of the sea but they are just taken at different times and each photos are taken using a method like using a negative however one is coloured and one is not. There are some obvious similarities in these landscapes like the fact they are both about the sea and also the fact they are made by using a negative. The main differences in these photos are that one is coloured and one is not and another difference is that one is a collage. The best words to describe the coloured photo would be: different, abstract, colourful and snazzy. For the black and white photo the words i would use to describe it would be: old, run down, neutral and hopeful. If i was to live in any of these landscapes it would be the black and white one as it is clearer to see a place to live and i think i could have better experiences there.
Minimalist Landscapes: What Remains
Liz Nielsen- Gardening with you
Liz Nielsen is a photographer who actually works with out a camera and it can be called light painting. Liz does this by using a darkroom and exposing light sensitive paper and processing it through traditional colour chemistry. Each of the photos Liz has created have all been different allowing all of her work to be unique and no work being repeated these can also vary in size.
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Geraldo de barros- From the series Sobras, 1996
Geraldo began a new series of photography in 1996 calling it sobras which means remains in Portuguese. He creates collages of negatives on glass plates re-using his old negatives from the 50s or his family images and was helped by his assistant to do this. The first time the work was released was in 1998 only a couple of months after he had passed away.
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In the photo 'Gardening with you' you can see the outlines of the bushes and she clearly highlights wear theres possibly a darker scheme of colours in the bush. Liz also uses the lines to give a clear photograph and its very simplistic and holds a lot of detail at the same time, its also clearly missing a background which makes it stand out and makes the bush the main object in the photographer. In the photograph from Sobras you only have a look at the tree and this means its missing a lot as mainly a tree would be in the background however clearly here Geraldo has decided to change it up and make the tree the main subject removing everything however your still able to faintly see the sky through the twigs. This photo is clearly missing a foreground and background which makes it stand out more as this is quite abstract not seen as much throughout the industry. Im surprised that i can clearly see an image in Liz's photograph despite it lacking colour or actual visual aid, i like the fact i can see each subject clearly and not having to guess what is what. What i find unusual about Sobras's image is that Geraldo has decided to delete everything and leave the tree as the main subject as i wouldn’t usually consider having a tree as a main subject in a piece of my work. When i observe the images i feel a bit creative as in my head i can change the background to whatever i would like which can also give me ideas for any pieces of work i have. If i was to attempt to take a picture like this i would find a real abstract object which you wouldn’t consider a main subject as thats what can be seen in Sobras. If i was to pick a favourite out of the two i would chose Geraldo's as i feel more creative as in my head i can picture the tree in any location i like.
Here i decided to experiment using the same technique as Liz as i think that her technique is way more abstract and you can experiment much more with different photo graphs and it can just give you a different idea of how you view nature compared to normal photographs. I decided to mainly focuses on the lines in the photo as implementing curves or non straight lines would change the photo completely and would not give the same effect it would with the straight lines. We also turned the photo to a positive which we was meant to turn to a negative however it still came out surprisingly well as you can see in the 3rd photo. I also think i can improve on possibly adding more detail allowing you to fully see the image without looking at the original.
trip documentation
The theme of the exhibition at the centre of british photography was landscape trauma. This explores different ways we impact the landscapes and may suggest nature may not be viewed with out considering our relationship with it. At the exhibition i quite like how all of the work was displayed as there was different floors and it had a good description next to it which allowed us to fully understand the meaning behind the photographs that were being shown. I also liked how they had videos which help you get more of an understanding of the work and the backstory which is very key to have a good piece of work.
Uta Barth
This photo was taken in 1997 by Uta Barth, she used the technique of blurring her image and she does this as it allows us only to see the outline the buildings or cars. The main thing you can see in photos like this is the colours for example the traffic lights you can clearly see that its red and it also contrasts all of the other colours as they can be seen as neutral. Uta started her work in 1992 this gave her a lot of time to experiment with different images or techniques and on of the techniques she tried was trying to take the photos in a more filmic possibilities she did this by instead of out of focus she would shake the camera as it could give a more abstract look and could change the image dynamically. I like how this photo would be quite easy as you can find a traffic light anyway as i believe this is the main subject in the image because of the red. I also think you can adapt this by taking the same photo just waiting for the traffic light to change colour to green this would go quite well with an image of a tree in the back as the colours can complement each other. Uta's work is mainly based on timing as you need to find the right image because if you take it at the wrong time it can affect the image a lot for example if Uta had taken the photo when the light was orange or yellow it would make the image look wrong. I think this because the image here is neutral and would not help compliment yellow. I choose Uta as i like how creative you can get with this as these are urban landscapes and living in a urban area will make this a lot easier.
Experimentation
Here i tired taking inspiration from Uta Barth's work throughout school, i did this by using my phone and putting it out of focus this allowed me to take up to 30 images that are quite abstract and vary. My favourite picture that i took was probably the photo that i took in between the two buildings as you can see quite a few outlines of benches and if you squint your eyes enough you can possibly see some people. There was a bit of a barrier that i had to overcome and it was a bit difficult to take a variety of images as there was limited space to change the image, however i did manage to make the images as abstract as i can i also took the images in different styles like portrait and landscapes. I saw a big difference when doing this as landscape gave you a broad view of everything but portrait also gave you a definite look at the foreground. I liked being able to switch between the two because this means the images will be different especially at different locations or places. I think the best place to take these images would be in busy urban areas like shopping centres and busy roads. I also think that you will be able take good images on public transport as theres so much difference each time you use it. I then tried using different angles like low down or high up this would change the image and the focus of the image which makes abstract in different ways and easily adaptable.
Inspiration from Uta Barth
These photos i experimented with the technique used by Uta Barth which was using the camera when it’s out of focus to get the image to be different and make the photos unclear however give it some life with the use of different lights. I took photos during the day and at night as this will give me a different look at how the images came out, for example at night you can get clearer images of the lights and it makes it stand out even more. And with the photos during the day i found you can get a clearer image but the lights don’t stand out as much. At first i had trouble with adjusting the light but realised what i had to do to change it which helped me with my experiment quite well. However i think the image i did take with the brightness being wrong gives it a more burnt look and which makes it probably my favourite out of the collection that i took
Diptychs
Here i experimented with the photos i took outside of school from the inspiration of Uta Barth to make diptychs, they are two or more images next to each other that can be used to contrast each other. I started by just doing two images next to one an other that could possibly contrast the different photos. The photos being out of focus allows you to get all the colour out of it this actually allows you to find the proper contrast or similarities, for example the first diptych is in similar locations just different lights and different heights they were actually taken on as i took the first photo on a bus while it was moving as i thought it would give me a really good image. After experimenting with just two photos i moved on merging two different diptychs to make it four photos, i think the images i have are not the best as there either to similar or not the same at all however i do see the endless amount of possibilities that you can do with the right images. I do think that more than two could be better as 4 or more can actually tell a story which i think is key as especially if you want to turn your work into a book or even any form of work. Turning this into a story would be what i try next and i will attempt to get the right images compared to this time and possibly reach up to 8-16 this would make the work look much better.
Dafna Talmor
This video is about Dafna Talmor and how she constructs her own landscapes, she goes into depth on how she does her work. In particular i liked how she described how she wants her constructed landscapes as she says she wants them to have a utopia look, i agree with this as when i think of constructed landscapes i like to think about and make landscapes that you know you wont find but you want to be able to see. I also liked the video as it shows us the way she actually constructs her work and i think that can give me and a lot of people true insight to how a professional does it.
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Landscape- digital collage
Dionne LeeThis video is an example of constructing landscapes as she destroys one landscape to make another that is more abstract and has the same elements as before. i quite like how one image can be changed and become a whole different reality and is a type of dystopian feel. I think i can use this to create my own piece as this is a very smart way because of how she uses multiple images to create one full image.
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Here is the video i created a time lapse of constructing landscapes this was inspired of by Dionne Lee, i used her technique of ripping paper, this idea is quite innovative as it allows you to make multiple images that are unique and different. With my piece i decided to do like a story as each image is a different place that i passed when i was walking home, i also chose the song as it matches what im doing in the photos. Each image i would try and adapt to make different images each time which means i would rip differently to make a utopian type of look. These photos were all landscapes and i decided to take them when it was dark as there will be some photos with bright lights and some with barely any light.
Final piece: Tracey Moffatt, Suburban Landscapes
This photo is from Tracey Moffatt and her series called Suburban Landscapes, these images were of where Tracey grew up and she used the light crayon texts this acts like a semi-transparent veil of memory. My favourite image would be 'To guitar lessons' as this one has quite a clear landscape, i think that the use of the crayon is how she sees the place in her eyes, she still sees the colour from her childhood however the black and white background shows how she sees it now and how dull it may be. If i was to experiment with landscapes like this i would take elements like the writing and the background however i think the words will be in a black and white and the images coloured. I will also take images in different locations from around areas that i grew up and take an image for each year that ive been alive.
This photo is my favourite photo out of the collection, i like how the image is taken as its taken of a place where she grew up and this idea will help me finish my final project this is because this will be my first experimentation espically with the use of words if not i would like to use music when making my final piece. The main thing that stands out is the writing i like this idea as its very abstract, as when creating a collection typically you make sure you can see the whole image and nothing obstucting it. The words arent just there to make the image look nice it helps tell the images story, this is why i would add music or lyrics to the image because i think music can tell a story. i also think that because the images are black and white they truly show who tracey is and i think thats the most important thing in photography as if the images arent personal or do not have a true meaning they wont be good images.
Experimentation
These are some of the images i took to experiment with, using ideas from Tracey Moffat work suburban landscapes. These images are taken in around my area this is because my idea is to give each photo an explanation as i think that works well with a final piece and i think its very different compared to other pieces. I would add writing to the images as i want them to tell a story and not just be basic, i was thinking of taking images in different locations multiple times to get the correct landscape for my ideas; i also want to incorporate music as thats one of my favourite things and it would represent me like the other images. My favourite images in this experimentation are the ones in open land and have a lot greenery, I think these images can give me many ideas on how to develop my work further thats because images of open land can have multiple images if you zoomed in and some people may see landscapes like that differently to others. For example one person might see the trees in the image and another person might focus on the house i want to be able to highlight all subjects in the image.
Experimentation
These are the images that i used to create my experimentation, i also used some lyrics that i put on to tracing paper that i then put over a photo. To create this piece i used a wall and i decided to arrange them quite abstract which i liked because wherever you look in the frame u can see a different image. I also used some duplicates as it balanced out the piece as when your looking form a far then it will look different espically because i tired to half the colour scheme with the photos being at night and during the day. To improve this i would try have more variety of images and keep the same theme of dark on light as i feel its a perfect contrast. This also helped me think about my next idea as im thinking about using a frame and also keep the same idea as music and try add some writing on the frame as it will have the same idea as Tracey Moffatt.