Straight Images - Contrast Studio

Straight Images - Mapplethorpe Studio

Work Diary - Mapplethorpe Studio

Evaluation:

During this shoot in the studio I tried to replicate the way Robert Mapplethorpe used tone and shadow to show off his subject. I enjoyed coming up with ideas like Mapplethorpe's work. For example I got images with subjects holding a knife, someone tied up and people looking dead and lifeless.

Not quite the menace I was hoping for but I was trying to replicate the tone and shadow of the original image. Even though this is no were near as menacing as the image Mapplethorpe did this is still fairly menacing and still would create a little bit of controversy between some partys of people.

I like the almost mannequin feeling to this shot and the feeling on the subjects face is uncomfortable and slightly manic. Which appeared in some of Mapplethorpe's work. This type of expression can be seen in many of MApplethorpes works.

Progression:

If I were to continue this I would try and use more exaggerated lighting from extreme angles with greater contrast.  Mapplethorpe appeared to do all this particularly in his Black and White work.
I would like to get some body builders in the studio and try and light them as Mapplethorpe did. Mapplethorpe had a very controversial type of taking photos which i have decided to take in to controversial and have already taken some more interesting shots that are also controversial. He liked images that lend themselves to contrast and he lit from angles that showed off the body.

Herre we see a rather menacing image of Mapplethorpe with a knife which make him look more like he is in a gang of some sorts. I like this image because to shows that Mapplethorpe isn't afraid to show people what he thinks of himself.

Here we see Mapplethorpe in front of an inverted pentagram which is the main sign used in worshiping satan and is seen as a symbol of satanic cults. We also see that he is holding a Thomapson submachine gun with a circular clip. This image implies that he is going to go out and kill lots of people in the name of satan. This would have defiantly been seen as being controversial because during American in this time we know that most of the population is Christian and have very strong views on stuff like this.

Work Diary - Studio Contrast 2

Evaluation: 
In this section we did some more work with the contrast between people. Some examples of this are height, gender and clothing colour. I enjoyed getting different types of people and coming up with interesting contrast.

In this image I have two people of different sex, ethnicity, height, shape, colour and hair. These were the two most different people in our class. These two people were polar opposites so for me this was a good example of contrast, not with regards  the way it was shot but in the subject matter.

In theses two images I wanted to show a happy woman and sad man and vice versa in the second image.  I wanted to add to this emphasis by the use of props hence the knife and boa. Looking at the shots after the shoot it did not work as well as I had hoped as both models were not animated enough to show the emotion I wanted.

Progression:

If I were to continue this project it would be great to extend this by using people from outside of my pier group. I would like to use a range older and younger people and people of different race. I would also like to have to use a stronger lighting on both the background and the subject as below.

In this we can see that we have two people wearing fur. The one on the right is wearing an expensive fur coat, while the  one on the left is wear random bits of fur that he has hunted and put together himself. The photographer appears to have lit the background from one side and the people from the other. This light against dark and dark against light gives the shots a nice quality, throws the subject forward and adds a lot of contrast.

By using the same background for a homeless man and wealthy man the photographer has added emphasis to this series of images.   The same photographic style of lighting the background from one side and the subject from the other emphasises the clothes and contrast of the subject.

Straight Images - Contrast Studio 2

Work Diary - Studio Contrast

Evaluation:
In this section we did some work with the contrast between lots of things for example height, gender and clothing colour. The main part of this that I enjoyed was getting different types of images and coming up with interesting contrasts.

In this image there is a contrast between the both the male and female and then there was also a contrast between the two heights of the subjects the male is natually taller then the female but because the male subject is giving the female a piggyback ride it makes her taller then the male.

In this image I decided to get two people of different hair lengths stand back to back so there could be an easy  comparison of the different hair lengths.

Progression:
If I were to I would like to continue to do the same thing but with a wider range models to use to get more interesting contrast. I would also like to have some types of contrast on the background for example a model wearing white on a black background and anothetr model wearing black on  white background.

Here is an image of a young boy with little muscles and an older man with lots of muscles. There is both a contrast of physical structure and the age of both. There is also a contrast between the blacks and whiote in the photos which show off the blacks and white in the photo.

In this image we can see the difference between a young in shape man and an older out of shape man which is the contrast. There is also a contrast between the blacks and whiote in the photos which show off the blacks and white in the photo.

Work Dairy - Studio Portraiture Back Of Head

Evaluation:
The thing I liked about this section of my photography A level was taking photos of people from the back.  Just using different backgrounds can give a totally different feeling and mood to each shot regardless of the person chosen.

In this shot I choose a reddish pick backdrop. The colour complimented the models hair and gave a warmth to the image that I would not be ale to achieve otherwise. I achieved this by using a reflector and lighting from one side so some light would bounce back into the hair. I also lightened the shot in photoshop.

In this image I did the reverse of the first shot in that I chose a black background and had my model wear black clothes.
I only lit her hair and then in photoshop turned up the shadows to leave just the back of the head lit. This draws the viewer to the head only which I like.

Progression:
If I were to continue to do this in a studio I think I could have more fun with it like in the example below. You could make this into a series and by using people like punks, skinheads, goths and other people to make an interesting  series of images without ever seeing a face.

Here is a very interesting image where the photographer has put on the models clothes back to front. I think thjis image is hard to look at as it messes with the natural order of things.  This could be turned into a series.

By using people from different ethnic backgrounds we would get a great variety of hairstyles. This photographer has shot this man on a white background to emphasise his dark hair with tights curls. By showing a little of his skin we can see that the man is black. It is a bit of a boring shot from a photolibrary. But does get over that this  black man is a white collar worker so is making a point.

Studio - Form