Statement of intent
In this project I aim to produce content for this page, based entirely on my ideas on the theme, which is low light and create a variety of outcomes that I will piece together to devise my final portfolio. I further aim to portray my creativity through my unique interpretations , as I am truly fascinated by the way lighting works, how such a simple range of coloured lights can be captured and it compliments this theme greatly. I intend to delve into the approach of man made light and to explore the use of natural photoshoots. I would like to convey this idea outside of school to show the duality of the different lights.
For my initial research I will start by researching professional photographers who are known for their expertise in low light related concepts, one photographer that has influenced my ideas is Liam wong. He is infamous for his approach on the low light theme where he carefully balances both elements of modernism and low light, for example cyber photoshop. Although this is the key idea that I would like to proceed with, I am also open to the idea of conveying the theme through natural photoshoots, which expresses the idea of simplicity. A photographer whose work has also conveyed the low light theme through this style is Brett weinstein, he is known to take subjective photographs in using streak lights. I believe that this would be a unique approach to the theme but would be difficult to achieve as it requires many props and from previous experience from my first project I know that props are limited and I need to make use of my available resources, as I have learned that what I intend to do achieve does not always take effect.
When choosing the theme I had two options to choose from; Objects & Lowlight. I decided to pick low light as I felt that I could go further with this theme rather than objects. I also believe that objects is basic and I would not be able to mold it into something creative and unique. Low light consists of vast concepts that can portray a numerous amount of meaning and symbolism and that is what I hope to portray through my photographs. I wish to portray allure and a sense of mystery through a variety of innovative visuals. My initial thoughts were to just use simplistic yet effective colors, like just black and white, however I began to realize opposing colors can also have the same effect and make the photograph more stimulating and bold, which is what I want.
Creating an easy way to organize all my ideas will help me build a broad mindset, allowing me to plan my photoshoots and locations accordingly, resulting in high-quality photographs. Additionally, I will put together images to influence my later work in this project by using a tool called Coggle, where I believe I will be able to create and link ideas for this project, for example man- made light and natural light. The use of mood boards is yet another significant method of expressing what I want to show in my photographs. That way, I can look at images that inspire me, and add more during the project. Moreover, I have taken into consideration researching photographers whose images are based on my theme of low light to learn what they are doing to achieve such high quality images and what I should be doing to accomplish creating pleasing images. Additionally, I will learn how to use a camera skillfully. That would be valuable since I will gain a better understanding of what I need to know to take good pictures. For example, I will learn some "camera tricks'' in class. Given the tools I would have, I can go to the school photography website where I could view the past student work. This would enable me to find out what they did to achieve their grade.
I am hoping to conduct a wide range of photoshoots, showing the two sides of low light. For example, going to a natural setting,any parks during a time of darkness not the morning, and contrasting this with an industrial site, Manchester, would allow me to show the two sides of low light. (Natural and man-made). Also, I would make use of the tools that would be available to me at school, such as shooting pictures in the dark pexa. I would also make sure to go to Salford quays, where I would be able to snap photos of the rippling water. I also intend to go outside. Additionally, I could acquire appealing images of the Moors in the Peak District that demonstrate and display the natural side of this theme of low light.
The first thing I will do is experiment with the resources the school provides me, for example, a manual Canon DSLR which I will use to create photos that are more detailed. I may also experiment with photography outside of school with a phone camera. I will also receive training in photoshop, including how to change the layers, create shadows, edit unwanted inanimate objects, and use lighting to make them appear more aesthetically pleasing. To get an understanding of what setting most appeals to me, I could go to a variety of places to see which gives me the best results in my photographs, for example, I could go to the Peak District, London, and Salford quays. To get an understanding of what setting most appeals to me, I could go to a variety of places to see which gives me the best results in my photographs.
I aim to spend around 4 months on this theme, this way I will time to learn about not only this topic but with what I feel comfortable doing within this branch of photography. The progress tracker will also allow me to note my feedback and grade for graded assessments. I will also develop ideas in photopea, then refine and focus on one particular area. Finally, I will designate specific folders to allow me to stay organized. Additionally, it might be worthwhile to put specific images in a folder corresponding to the photoshoot. For example, all the natural low light images would be placed in the same folder. My homework relating to this theme will also be published on this website. For instance, I could start off with the research to do with low light.
My goal is to increase my knowledge of camera skills (changing the IOS, lenses), and to gain exposure to locations I might not ordinarily go to photographically. Similarly, I am going to reach out to my teachers and peers for a second opinion on my work, this will enable me to develop a growth mindset. Upon completion of this project, I will conduct an evaluation on the entire project in an effort to identify areas for improvement for future projects. I will also utilize PowerPoints and other resources to help me grow and find explanations for tasks I may not understand.
Liam Wong
Statement of Intent
Context
Liam Wong is a Scottish photographer and games designer. He was Artistic Director of Ubisoft Montreal and was involved in the design of game series like Crysis and Far Cry. He is known for his cyberpunk, sci-fi style of photography. Wong is the author of the book TO:KY:OO. Wong is from Edinburgh, Scotland. He studied Computer Arts at Abertay University, Dundee, graduating in 2010. His first game, Color-Coded, made in the final year of his degree was nominated for two BAFTA awards. He emigrated to Canada after graduating and became artistic director at Ubisoft Montreal, where he worked for six years. He bought his first DSLR camera in 2015, a Canon 5D mark III and, during a trip to Japan, started his Tokyo Nights series of photography, taking aesthetic influence from science fiction films like Blade Runner, Akira and Ghost in the Shell.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liam_Wong
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liam_Wong
Composition
This image has a range of colours which are really vibrant and capture the eye, I think perhaps Liam Wong has manipulated this image in Photoshop to achieve that really vibrant look, however there are many filters which he could of used on the camera and the setting of the camera would also add to that effect. The foreground and distance is quite far as you look towards the middle of the picture it sort of goes on and never ends which I think adds to the overall surreal effect the image gives off. By also taking the picture when the cars align like that, makes the viewer pleased with the structure and how clean it looks and its not all over the place with chaos. I think this image was not done on shutter speed as the image would project the movement of the cars and people. This is also an outdoor shoot at night, which adds to the dramatic and futuristic essence it gives off to the viewers. The weather also looks like it was raining and by the puddles on the floor projecting the light on the floor makes the whole image structured. The image is not a tight crop, its quite a wide image which captures a range of different things taking place, such as the different colours of light and the vibrant signs. The car is also the main focal point of the image and I think Liam Wong did this on purpose so that our eyes are attracted to the middle of the image where we are met with the long distance, the lights there also act like leading lines which all lead our eyes down to that part of the image. There is also a lot of leading lines above that which are all layered and by adding that to the image adds to the futuristic effect which Liam Wong has achieved and a deep depth of field. The contrast of the range of colours is really appealing to the eyes as it has been manipulated to be more vibrant and stand out against the colours, they also work really well together and dont clash. Liam did not use the rule of three thirds, however it looks like he was trying to achieve a sort of a symmetry look, which I think he has attained.
Connections
It is evident that the theme of this image is low light as it captures every essence of a typical low light portrait, which is relevant to my work as my theme is also low light. It links directly to my work as I plan to create similar outcomes as the photographer has, which is capturing the tranquility and beauty of cities at night. The photographer has executed this very well, as the image conveys the essence of cities through a low light image, without jeopardizing any element, every element of the image is unique, from the signs which becomes vibrant, the cars and how there are a range of different colours in one image. I also intend to focus on the beauty of low light throughout my work and this image has definitely inspired me to take images in such a way that all components of the image need attention not just the subject.
Comment
I enjoy viewing this image and I believe that it has many strengths, the main aspect of this image that I am very fond of is how the distance is and colour of the signs and the lights are portrayed through the image. It has been captured so clearly that I can almost feel the lights shining on you. The colours also contrast greatly as the white against as the purple clashes but also portrays the constant change of the lights, because these two colours contrast the rest of the colours compliment each other very well, creating an overall rounded picture. Furthermore, the reflection on the pudles and the element of colour in general in the image is quite powerful as there is lots range. If the image was captured at sunrise there would be little range of colour, so the photographer chose a really good time to take this image. I can certainly use this as inspiration as I believe this image was taken in a city , where I plan to go and hope to take similar outcomes such as this. Overall, I believe this is a very well composed and beautiful image and a message that I feel is conveyed is how alluring lights are and how humans can replicate such beauty , due to the fact there are people in the image. But also how powerful dark also is, which is ephemeral.
Bill Schwab
Context
Bill Schwab (born 1959) is an American photographer known for his emotionally charged yet peaceful urban and natural landscapes. Born in Detroit, Michigan he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Central Michigan University in 1983.Schwab's career as a photographer and publisher now spans over 4 decades with work in many private, corporate and museum collections around the world including The Art Institute of Ohio – Cincinnati, Detroit Institute of Arts and the George Eastman House. He has been a pioneer in the area of online representation and branding of his photographic art having successfully managed a worldwide collector base for many years as well as consulted with other artists and galleries on the subject. In addition to his work as a photographer, through his North Light Photographic Workshops, he facilitates classes in several photographic process a year at his northern Michigan facility as well as leads expeditions of photographers to Iceland, the Faroe Islands and more. Bill is also founder and host of the "Photostock Festival", an annual gathering of photographers, collectors and enthusiasts for workshops, reviews, presentations and demos. Having been shown in many group and solo exhibitions in the US and abroad since the early 1980s, Schwab's work continues to become more widely known and sought after.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Schwab
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Schwab
Composition
I believe that the rule of thirds may have been used as the bridge peak seems to line up with where the sweet spot is. There is a good use of space as the majority of the frame is used, the bridge is stood central and the lights ‘bleeding’ out to the left fills up more of the frame and uses the space in the photograph creatively and I think that this may have been schwabs’s intention when initially taking the photograph as the majority of his photographs are taken in similar ways to this before the space seems to be filled in the middle and then the ground or sky is often left mysterious. There isn’t a clear middle ground in the photograph, however the bridge lights is clearly the focus in the foreground and there is a desaturated grey background. I believe that a relatively low ISO was used as there is no visible noise. I believe a high f/stop (possibly F32) was not used as in the photograph it is out of focus or blurred. The photograph seems to be lit from the bridge lights and we can clearly tell it is a outdoor shot, schwab may have also used a tripod to capture this image, however the angle at which it was taken at is quite low so perhaps he put his camera leveled with the ground to capture the bridge as this massive structure. There are also a range of dark areas through out the image which add to the dark essences of low light. The photographer has also made that the lights be something your eyes follow because of how structured it is and the other aspects of the image are quite dim so our eyes turn to the lights.
Connections
It is clear that the theme of this image is low light as it captures every essence of a typical low light portrait, which is relevant to my work as my theme is also low light. It links directly to my work as I plan to create similar outcomes as the photographer has, which is capturing the tranquility and beauty of cities at night. The photographer has executed this very well, as the image conveys the essence of cities through a low light image, without jeopardizing any element, every element of the image is unique, from the bridge lights which becomes dim, how there are a little of different colours in one image. I also intend to focus on the beauty of low light throughout my work and this image has definitely inspired me to take images in such a way that all components of the image need attention not just the subject.
Comment
.I really like this image, as it is quite aesthetically pleasing and has a dark mood yet light mood to it and its really captivating to follow the lights with your eyes and I think all together its a well put image, that did not need a lot of thought to it which makes it so beautiful and surreal. I can certainly use this as inspiration as I believe this image was taken in a city , where I plan to go and hope to take similar outcomes such as this. Overall, I believe this is a very well composed and beautiful image and a message that I feel is conveyed is how alluring lights are and how humans can replicate such beauty , due to the fact the bridge was made by humans ,but also how powerful dark also is, which is ephemeral.
Brett Weinstein
Context
Brett Weinstein is an underground photographer and there's very little about him on his photography website. However, Brett frequently posts his images on flicr and has 1K followers on there and his work has even been published on a newspaper article for tips on how to take low light photographs.
https://www.brettweinstein.com/
https://www.brettweinstein.com/
Composition
I think that Brett has left the shutter which makes still things will be captured; slowly moving things which are relative to the camera and exposure time will blur which is how Brett captured this image. I think Brett set his camera on a tripod, and adjusted his aperture such that it appears totally empty at the end of the shot. Brett may have also used photoshop to enhance the trails made by the cars. It also seems as if he has made the background black and white so that the red trails left by the car stand out to the eye. The photograph seems fairly new as it seems that it has been taken on an advanced piece of technology due to the clear capture of the strobe effect of the cars throughout the image, this most likely would require the use of a modern camera to capture this effect as it is a more complex subject compared to older cameras which do not focus on such details. There is a main leading lines which branch into many different lines, they all lead out of the image and makes the viewer follow the patterns as it often trails. In the image, you can see 3 small bridges over the big bridge with the vibrant car trails and these act like leading lines and makes the viewers eyes travel across it by looking at those 3 bridges. There's also a range of light sparks thought the image which Brett might of enhanced or added in photoshop, this effects add to the overall vibrancy to the image and makes it look surreal. Brett also may have taken this image from a bridge perhaps as it captures another loads of other bridges, however the way this image is captured and looking down over the buildings could suggest it was a drone shot or taken from a helicopter in a busy city perhaps new York. The trails on the bridges are also quite structured, as the first one is quite light and vibrant and you can clearly see it and the second bridge its a bit dimmer the same for bridge next to it and I think Brett did this so that the viewer is only attracted to the first bridge and pays attention to that bit, also if all the 3 bridges were quite vibrant and loud it would ruin the feeling of calmness in the image and be a very chaotic image. The timing of the day is at night which I think is essential for a low light image so Brett has thought that out very clearly and because of the amount of car trails it makes the viewer infer that this may have been everyone's busy hours due to the busyness Brett has captured. The image is also cropped to be a portrait rather than a landscape and perhaps Brett did this because he has a flicr account where he uploads his image so this fits the phone view.
Connections
It is clear that the theme of this image is low light as it captures every essence of a typical low light portrait, which is relevant to my work as my theme is also low light. It links directly to my work as I plan to create similar outcomes as the photographer has, which is capturing the tranquility and beauty of cities at night. The photographer has executed this very well, as the image conveys the essence of cities through a low light image, without jeopardizing any element, every element of the image is unique, from the bridge lights which becomes dim, how there are a range of different colors in one image. I also intend to focus on the beauty of low light throughout my work and this image has definitely inspired me to take images in such a way that all components of the image need attention not just the subject.
Comment
I love the way that the cityscape has been made black and white in this shot leaving the vehicle light trails looking like a golden/red river flowing through the city. The colors also contrast greatly as the black and white against as the red river of car lights clashes but also portrays the constant busyness of cities, because these two colors contrast it creates an overall rounded picture. Furthermore, the color of the trails and the element of color in general in the image is quite lacking as there is no range, there are just multiple shades of black and white and red. If the image was captured at sunrise or sunset there would be a much greater range of color from oranges to pink etc. I can certainly use this as inspiration as I believe this image was taken in a city, where I plan to go and hope to take similar outcomes such as this in Manchester. Overall, I believe this is a very well composed and beautiful image and a message that I feel is conveyed is how alluring cities truly is and also how powerful lighting also is, which makes an image enchanting.
Mood Board
Mind map
Photo shoot Plan
For my first photoshoot , I will go outside and take images of the buildings in Manchester and lowering the exposure on my phone or camera, and photoshop to get low light images, the weather should be raining or cloudy to get a deep dark effect, I could get images of signs and perhaps in the car. This is going to be an independent photoshoot outside of school as I want a variety and my camera stetting on my phone are most likely just going to automatically adjust. For my props, I will just use my phone and go in the cat at nigh to get images of the vibrant lights inside the car. I need a model for one of the photoshoots by having someone hold an iPad and pretend to take a picture of the view whilst I take a picture of that.
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First shoot - Man Made low light
Best and worst
This is my best image because I feel like this reflects my mood board very well and captures the skyline of Manchester at night and the lights in the car. On my phone camera, I put the light low in one area of the image to make the lights more vibrant to the eye. I also really like the raindrops which reflects a dark atmosphere and mood of the image. The distance is also not that far off from the lights in the car however it is quite far from the building lights and other cars.
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I feel like this is my worst image out of the collective because of how blurry it is and doesn't focus on the main focal point which is the buildings in Manchester and you cant tell what the image is really projecting. However, because of that it does add a strange, mysterious essence which made it overall a decent image, but it could of been better if my shutter speed was high.
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Photoshoot plan
I intend to go down to Salford quays and get some photos to add to my exam, the reason why I am doing this is because I chose the theme Low Light, this means I would have to do it outside of school. The equipment I am going to use is my phone camera as I wasn't able to get my camera out. As my theme is Low Light, I've decided to go down at night so that the images I get actually match with my theme. However, there was some artificial light coming from the building but I think that would just make the image look better overall.
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Second shoot - Man Made
Photoshop
For this photoshop, I used a tutorial where I used the raw camera filter and changed the saturation and hue. This is allowed me to see the image but also have a cold tone to it.
https://youtu.be/yacHgH7ZzdU
Best and worst
This is my best image because the lighting is quite dark and intense and it really reflects my theme of low light. I like how the building is quite distanced and the foreground is far, it adds to the essence of low light. I really like how the street lamp also kind of reflects a moon and the shards of light which move across the image which make it seems like a moving image. My eye is also really attracted down the pathway as it is lightly lit up.
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This is my worst image because of how blurry it is and it is not tightly cropped which makes the image a bit unnatural as the background is black and so is the ground and it is just a string of lights which a blurry and not focused. However the reflection on the water is really attracting to the eye and if I cropped and focused it would of been really nice.
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Photoshoot plan
I intend to go down to Hulme and get some photos to add to my exam from the buildings I decided to not go straight into town and rather from a distance because I feel like my work already has up-close shots of the buildings in town, the reason why I am doing this is because I chose the theme Low Light, this means I would have to do it outside of school. The equipment I am going to use is my phone camera as I wasn't able to get my camera out. As my theme is Low Light, I've decided to go down at night so that the images I get actually match with my theme. However, there was some artificial light coming from the building but I think that would just make the image look better overall.
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Third Photoshoot - Man made
Best and worst
This is my best image because of the crop and how it captures the buildings and the pathway. I really like how it portrays my theme well. The lights from the building are quite dim as well which is what I was aiming for. The main focal area of this image is the buildings and I liked how I distanced myself from it to get that eerie look.
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I think this is my worst image because of how slanted it is and not structured and I don't like how its steam on the window. I think this could of been better by lowering the exposure because the red lights are quite vibrant which was not ideal as I wanted the buildings to be the main focal point.
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Photoshop
Steps
For this photoshop, I wanted a cyberpunk city essence to it, which I think I have achieved. I first duplicated the background to see my work change overall then I pressed filter and then camera raw filter and set the colors shadows and vibrancy to get the purple blue look. From there I set the saturation and vue to get the image looking vibrant. If I had signs in the image I would of added a glow effect to them. Perhaps next time I get a picture with signs I will do this tutorial.
Photoshop 2
For this photoshop I used no tutorial. For the first step I used camera raw filter where I could change the colors and enhance them to achieve the blue cyber punk look, I then duplicated it and transformed it by pressing control T and this allowed me to rotate it. I the selected the luminosity filter to enhance it further which created a strong blue look, however I was not too sure which outcome I liked best so I took the blue outcome and used camera raw filter on it again and auto enhanced the white balance which got rid of the blueness and added a more clear tone to my image.
Fourth photoshoot
Natural low light
Best and worst
I think this is my best image because of how the moonlight is reflected across the image and the clouds which surround the moon and how its not random but rather structured around it. I also really like how I zoomed and cropped it so the main focal point is the moon. The branches that reach out near it. I took this on my phone on portrait and night mode on.
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This is my worst image because of how dim it is, you cant really see the clouds properly and the moon is unfocused. I also don't really like how the light reflects and makes a dot from the light which ruins the image and makes it unflattering to look at. I also should of cropped it because the top bit is quite short then the bottom bit.
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Photoshoot
For this photoshop I used a way I have been practicing which is using the camera raw filter and changing the image from a purple light tone to a deep dark blue tone which was my main theme so it fits into my body of work, I changed various things such as the exposure, temperature, hue and contrast to achieve the first outcome. However, it was quite basic so to make it more complex I transformed the image and distorted it.
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Photo shoot 4 - Natural
Best and worst
This is my best image because of the way the window is structured and how the whole image is sort of bright yet low light. I really like the way I angled it too from like a bottom up top view. However, I should of cropped the bottom black bit so its more tight and the eye is attracted to the sunset. I also like how the tree is visible from both sides of the window and how it stands out against the sunset colors.
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This is my worst image because although it captures the sky very well and the clouds are leading lines. I don't like how it captured the bottom part of my road and the road makes the eye look towards the road rather the sunset which overall ruins the image. The angle of the houses is also very off putting and not very sharp for the image.
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Photoshop
For this photoshop, I used the camera raw filter and changed aspects of the image such as exposure and changing the tones of the colors such as red and purples, I then duplicated the layer and used control T to transform the image and almost show a reflection from the window.
Photo shoot - 5
Best and worst
This is my best image because of the composition of how this image was taken as. I really like how there a various few lights dotted around the image and then it is accompanied by the moon and I also really like the sky color and how its all dark and blue. The trees also get a nice shadow to it, I also like how I cropped it so it captures the moon.
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This is my worst image because it is very unfocused and blurry I also don't like how cropped it is so you cant see the lights in the house which really compliment the picture as you can see from my best image and the shadows from the tree aren't as visible.
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Photoshop
Shoot 6
Best and worst
This is my best image because of the darkness of the image and how it captured sparks of light in my low light theme objective and i strongly feel as if i have captured the clouds in such a position it becomes appealing to the eyes. I also like how the dark setting that i choose by shooting it on my iPhone camera and lowering the sun button was the right choice as my theme is low light so I need images that give off that vibe and feeling which i think this image does effectively.
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This is my worst image because of how light the photo is and i didn't set the button to change the exposure lower so the overall feeling of the image is sort of lost because its not low light neither high exposure. The house is also set in a different position to the other images which kind of ruins the patterns of how the clouds are moving if the house also moves which distracts you from the real objective point of the image which is the shard of light from the low light clouds.
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Experimentation ideas..
My idea for my experimentation is to have distorted outcomes of my low light images for example flipping it around, it is not a complex Photoshop however I want to create a cold cyber tone to my images before distorting it however it fits and I can do this from many ways using the camera raw filter and deciding how I want the tone of the image to be and then from this point, I distort the low light image which sort of mess with the eye not knowing whats fully happening in the image and it makes the viewer question the night and low light photography in places such as natural and city made like the two aspects I have in my main body of work.
Final evaluation
My main theme was low light and I feel like I have accessed different aspects of low light as I have explored natural low light and man made low light relating to my theme. I chose this theme because I enjoy taking pictures of the night or dramatic dark shots and especially in the busy night time streets. For me, I was focusing on my main bulk of work and where i live which was the man made aspect because i live in a very busy city Manchester and a night all the cars light up the street creating dramatic dark shots and I also love the colours and themes of Manchester so this played a big role in choosing low light as I knew it would allow me to bring my dramatic dark side of photography into my work. It really allowed me to be creative as I got to chose my locations, times etc so not only did I have to have knowledge in taking the pictures and setting the camera up but i had to be knowledgeable about what places works with what and what type of feeling I want in my work as I was also trying to incorporate natural light into my work so I would also have to be creative with how I was trying to get that across and managing my time effectively to get both sides of this world into my work and Photoshop.
In this project, I enjoyed taking the photos the most and going to the locations for the shoot because I could get creative with where I would like to get certain images from for example I could choose a popular place such as Salford quays or i could go for a quiet setting which is Old Trafford at night. For the man-made shoot I decided to go to Salford quays with my phone camera and capture the dark dim lights upon the water from the buildings all around me so there was an unlimited amount of ideas of what I could've chosen in my images. I also enjoyed manipulating my images in Photoshop creating a cyber punk tone and transforming the image to the point where its intriguing to the eye and this was very interesting as I had not previously done this before and the camera raw filter was new to me so I also had the opportunity to learn how this tool works and use for my later photoshops with the natural element of low light too.
I had never built a website before, so I appreciated the photography lessons that taught me how to create a good website and how to address it. I've also learned how to use Photoshop correctly, including how to make effects with the pen tool and how to use tutorials to guide me. Doing this helped me improve my listening and instruction abilities because I had to follow a YouTube video to achieve the required effect. As I previously indicated, I have learned how to use the camera properly, including setting it up before using it, for instance, by making sure to alter the ISO to the proper setting.
My next project's objective is to hone my photoshop techniques, which were influenced by a range of complex youtube tutorials on how to do a complex photoshop for example adding a certain image to another image and almost creating a new image from these elements these type of outcomes impressed me since they were so polished and appealing, which is what I aim for. Additionally, I also want to work on developing my Photoshop abilities because then I can create a piece of work on my own without the aid of tutorials. I need to review the foundations of Photoshop, such how to access history. I also need more body shots, like ones with me wearing something.
I researched three photographers to allow my work to be the best it can be and take inspiration from their work. I researched people such as Liam Wong who does street photography and cyber punk images at first this was my main idea of low light to do it all in street photography and cyber punk tones, however after researching into more photographers I stumbled across Bill Schwab who was famous for his shot of a bridge at night and it really got me thinking about natural low light and how I can get images like his work by using my surroundings to my advantage, however I used Liam Wong's camera tricks and how he set up her photos and used that in my knowledge in my other work so that research was really insightful for how to take my images and Bill Schwab mainly gave me my natural low light theme which I focused on throughout this project. I also researched Brett Weinstein who is a contemporary photography and his pictures are quite modern so allowed me to have an insight on what I should also be including in my work if I want a modern contemporary look for example he used a lot of props so I tried to cooperate props into my work, and lots of light trails from photoshop perhaps and how he got his toned images which influenced the camera raw filter mainly being my tool to use in photoshop because of how hes images gave a feeling of brightness and low light at the same time which really intrigues you which is what i wanted in my work.
I really enjoyed taking the pictures and setting up my location shots as I got to experience being there with such beautiful lights and views and put my creative perspective on what i wanted in my images.I really enjoyed seeing and being able to take pictures of it as I have always found the nighttime beautiful with the bright vibrant colours of street lights. It gave me more confidence to take more photos as I saw how beautiful the pictures were coming out because of the colours and how much they stood out. I think I worked the camera the best as most of my photos have high quality and you can really see the light and i could easily manipulate the brightness which I love as a main aspect of low light. I also got a lot of photos which is why I think i enjoyed and excelled most by taking a lot of photos and setting up a lot of photo shoots in order to have the best set of images i can which display my liking for this theme, low light.
I feel like my salford quays photoshoot was a success because I really love the detail given to the surroundings and each intricate light and textures of the lights reflecting on the water were so in detail that the image almost did not feel like an image but real life. In that photo shoot I managed to get lots of different photos from different angles and distances which really opened up my project as I had a lot of new images to manipulate however I did not yet manipulate some of them and only one of them is used in my final outcome so I think for my next project I need to consider using more of my best work in my Photoshop which I didn't do in this project as much as I should of.
I found doing Photoshop the hardest because there was a limited amount of ideas I had for manipulating my photos and I achieved my focus in just the original images so it was hard to decide what to do for Photoshop. I also struggled how to use Photoshop as I had never used Photoshop before so I did a lot of practise of a certain tool which made it a lot easier in terms in knowing what to do and from there, I learnt how to make lots of different outcomes in different styles which really aided my final gallery as I needed a lot of help with Photoshop, and this was a personal independent project so I needed to take matters into my own hands by practising out of school times.
I learnt a lot from practising the camera raw filter and this made up most of my final gallery, it was a quick and easy way to get high standard quality final images because I was behind on my final gallery however using the this tool and how to accurately use guided me to get there. I now know from this tool in future projects i can use this as an easy way to get outcomes really high standard and fast. I dont think if i did this project, i would know about this tool so this project has opened many new doors which will really help me in the future.
I think I could of done more high quality photo shops as my Photoshop skills need working on so if I followed more tutorials maybe at home with more time I would of completed a lot more and a lot of better ones. I also could of organised more photo shoots out of school or not at home and perhaps a place with a lot of natural light like parks in Manchester, as I was lacking on a few phootshoots for my nature element. I feel like my time management needs to be improved too as I felt like I had a lot of time in the beginning however I feel like my final gallery was rushed as I spent a lot of time focusing on just getting photos than my actual photoshop.
21st April, First exam, I will not add any more information or make any changes to the work above.
Exam number 1 - 21st April
For this outcome, I decided to go for a dystopian cyber outcome and I used my previous knowledge of using camera raw filter and changing the settings to get a blue tone to my image which reflects cyber punk type of vibe in an image like Liam Wongs, I then duplicated the image and transformed using the control T and made it reflecting the exchange sign, however I felt like this was basic so I added some text going down the image in the middle and added the word dystopia which I feel reflects my ideas of a distorted outcome.
For this outcome, I did the same steps using the camera raw filter and control T and transforming my image to make it distorted, however it was lacking so I also decided to put text over the outcome relating to my idea of a distorted dystopian outcome and captioned it "The world is your future".
I used the exact same steps to do this outcome, however I wanted to take it further because I felt like it was a bit plain in the first image, so I cropped buildings from another one of my images and set it as the same background color to blend well and placed it all around the image lowering the opacity so it blends well with the image. and added the words "Distortion" and duplicating this layer and transforming it upside down so it looks like its reflecting and I think this image is well suited to my idea of distorted low light outcomes.
This outcome was a bit basic in terms of the positioning of the layer however there was not much I could think of to do for this outcome and it still reach my idea of a distorted outcome so I tried to make it a bit more complex by the lettering following the roads path and turning the duplicated layer upside down to make it more intriguing and complex to the eye.
For this outcome, I decided to use the same steps as before but this time I felt that the text should go through the clouds as that area felt a bit plain with nothing on there so I choose to caption it "feel the light" and I right clicked to get the option skew and I positioned it almost as if to look like it was coming out the clouds.
These are the two light streaks I used in my work, I used the lasso tool and object selection which allowed me just to have the light beam and not the background and I then pressed control c and control v to paste onto my other image and I adjusted its position and opacity to fit the image.
For this, I did the same technique for the light beams, however I decided to add some text because it looked plain and it would add to my theme of dystopian cyber punk with the bright blue colors and caption "leading way".