Physical experiments

Personal collage

Process:
1. Edit image using Photoshop CC 2014 and print.
2.  Cut out image using an exacto knife and mount on craft board.
3. Give subject craft supplies and a brief of exploring personal identity and see what is produced.

(Images will be too large to scan so must be photographed).

When to use this:
This technique can be used when you wish to gain a truly personal response from the subject as it enables them creative control the images final message and allows you to see their personal identity.

Large collage

Process: 

1. Draw and cut out silhouette.
2. Stick silhouette to A1 mount board.
3. Paint rainbow decoration around the silhouette.
4. Edit images using Photoshop CC 2014.
5. Cut images until silhouette is covered.
6. Add pieces which you wish to draw attention to on a raised piece of mount card in order to create levels in the image.
7. Shoot with Instant film and Disposable film as well as DSLR in order to create a more versatile collage.
8. Add elements such as receipts, buttons and sequins to give the image a more personal appearance.

(Images will be too large to scan so must be photographed).

When to use this:
This technique can be used when you want to create a collage similar in appearance to a scrap book and is useful when attempting to create a documentary collage.

Joiner collage

Process:

1. Paint your images background with your chosen design this helps to tie your image to the rest of your series and gives it a more vibrant appearance as there would be large amounts of empty space without this.
2. Edit your images in Photoshop CC 2014 and print them to the scale the you with to use.
3. Cut out your images and begin to piece together your "subject".
4. An overlapping effect gives the best appearance as it is most reminiscent of David Hockney's style varying colours and levels of saturation of the images also help to focus on the chaos of youth.
5. When you are happy with your composition you can begin to glue down the pieces of the collage.
6. You can stop when you are happy with your final collage.

(Images will be too large to scan so must be photographed).

When to use this:
This technique is used when attempting to join various portraits together in a linking theme as it shows a sense of unity whilst incorporating one distinct style.

Computer experiments

Reduced Saturation



Process:

1. Open Photoshop CC 2014 and open your image.
2. Open the adjustments panel.
3. Reduce images saturation.
4. Increase images contrast until you have achieved a suitable level of tonal contrast.
5. Alter the images brightness and lightness until you feel that you have achieved a suitable result.

When to use this:
This technique can be used in order to give an image a nostalgic appearance often associated  with black and white photography or to give the image a striking and crisp appearance due to the high levels of contrast which will appear.

Increased Saturation


Process:

1. Open Photoshop CC 2014 and open your image.
2. Open the adjustments panel.
3. Increase the images saturation until you have achieved your desired result.
4. Increase the images contrast in order to enhance the effect.
5. Alter the images brightness and contrast until you are happy with your final image.

When to use this:

This technique can be used in order to give an image a lively and bright appearance often associated with youth and summer.  This technique can make an image appear more visually interesting without appearing surreal and garish if used minimally.

 Colour Gradient


Process:

1. Open Photoshop CC 2014 and open your image.
2. Crop image as desired.
3. Alter the images saturation, contrast, brightness and lightness using the brightness panel.
4. Open the rulers and evenly split your image into your desired number of section.
5. Create a new layer and select it.
6. Select the vector mask tool with the square mask.
7. Drag your mask until it is covering the first section of your image.  
8. Open the paintbrush tab and select your desired colour and fill your section you will be unable to draw over the lines.
9. Open the select tab and deselect the section.
10. Repeat steps 6-9 until you have filled your image.
11. Select the opacity tool and reduce your images opacity until you are happy with the visibility of your final image.

When to use this:

This technique can be used to create colour blocking in an image if you wish to show theme such as the rainbow being used as a symbol for LGBT equality and demonstrating the acceptance of youth.

Final Pieces

Introduction

The images found in my shoots are all focused around connected images and the concept of personal identity and collective identity.  I choose to execute this concept by completing a series of three collage based shoots using photographic methods from both modern digital photography and more historic disposable film photography and instant film photography.

Shoot 1

These images are both from my personal shoot where I was attempting to ascertain what the modern youths considered youth culture to be.  I feel that the act of taking their photos in the studio and then editing the images using Photoshop CC 2014 before printing them and returning them to the subjects to collage was an important stage to take in this project.  

I feel that what I discovered most was the range of personalities which are conveyed under the collective identity of youth and that whilst every subject produced a drastically different final image every subject has a reference to equality embedded in their image whether this was an explicit or non-explixcit message.

The bold coloration used throughout this shoot and the collage techniques used allows it to make a link to Eugenia Loli's collage style which focuses heavily on the use of bright colours and symbolic iconography in order to convey hidden messages throughout her work.  The composition of the studio portraiture can also be heavily linked to photographer Thomas Ruff who's signature portraiture style is the medium close shot which is what I have shot with in my series.

Shoot 2

This is my final image from shoot 2 and was heavily inspired by the work of Collier Schorr a collage photographer who largely focuses around youth photography and personal identity.  Links can also be found to David Shama and Martin Parr's bright depictions of both youth culture (7Eleven) and British culture (Life's a beach).  I have also included the mediums of Instant film and disposable film in this image in order to reference Dash Snow's work which was largely comprised of Polaroid images which he used in order to help him remember the nights that he felt his adventurous life style may force him to regret,I felt that this was appropriate as I gave my images a sense of nostalgia due to the fact that film is a historic medium of photography and Instant film is traditionally associated with scrapbooking.

This shoot is linked heavily to the collage style of shoot 4 from my preparatory shoots which featured one day out with one of my friends whilst this image spans over two days.  I have also taken inspiration from shoot 1 due to the use of polaroids in my final piece as well as shoots 5 and 6 due to the way that I used digital photography in order to capture my subjects in a form of personal documentary.  I have also incorporated colour symbolism as I did in shoots 5 and 6 with higher levels of saturation being present in some images as well as black and white imagery being used in order to channel a sense of nostalgia. 

Shoot 3

This image was heavily inspired by David Hockney's joiner photography where which can be seen through the way that the individual images do not join up perfectly but instead overlap and feature varying scaling meaning that some of the images body parts appear to be bigger than others.  This somewhat warped appearance helps to convey the chaotic and tumultuous nature of teenage life and the war that some elements of youth are focused more heavily on in the media than others are leading to a warped perspective of youth by the general public.

I felt that this Hockney inspired joiner was a suitable jump to make from my second shoot due to the fact that that was heavily influenced my collage artist Collier Schorr so the natural continuation for my project was to focus on another style of collage photography.

Conclusion

I feel that my work successfully links the aspects which I wished to focus on of youth and personal and collective identity.  This has been high lighted through the use of both portrait and documentary photography which has given my images a diverse appearance and feel.  

The style of each of the images of shooting at a medium close shot (or with the silhouette of a medium close shot) gives them a uniform and connected appearance which is further highlighted through the incorporation of the same vibrant rainbow colour scheme used throughout which gives the image a sense of vitality and highlights the energy of youth as well as the acceptance of youth due to the fact that youth are a diverse and accepting group of people.

Straight images- Shoot 2

Straight edited images- Edited using Photoshop CC 2014

Final composition- Composed using all disposable camera images and instant film images found in contact sheet.

Work record- Shoot 3

Information
Date: 09/05/17
Camera Used: Nikon D5300
Camera Settings: 1/125, F10, ISO 200
Lighting set up:  Studio light x2, Soft box x2, White backdrop, Tripod

Shoot aim: 

My aim for this shoot was to produce an A1 David Hockney inspired collage joiner.  I wanted to experiment with this concept on a large scale as I felt that it would enhance the final image as well as allowing me to make an image that would work as a piece beside my A1 shoot 2 collage.

I am interested in Hockney's work with joiner images due to the way that his portraiture joiners can appear to capture a splitting of self in a way that is symbolic of ones personal identity.  I felt that this was relevant due to the fact that my connected image series is based around self identity and particularly youth identity.  I feel that an interesting way to tackle this concept would be to create one large joiner collage featuring various different people to demonstrate the fact that although youth may appear different we are all the same internally and it is our collective identity that bands us together.

Shoot plan:
My plan for this shoot is to use the studio and to shoot images of between 4-6 subjects in around an hour.  I will then edit the relevant images using Photoshop CC 2014 and begin to print the images.  My canvas will have a splatter design in the style of Jackson Pollock I will then piece the images together to make a person and stick them to my canvas in a style reminiscent of David Hockney.

What I achieved:

I achieved the final result of one A1 joiner on white mount board with a rainbow Jackson Pollock inspired design.  I feel that this incorporation of Pollocks style and it's random appearance helps to convey the chaos of youth whilst the rainbow colourisation helps to tie the piece to my other two shoots as this was the main colour scheme used throughout my project.  The use of rainbows symbolises the way in which my images are designed to represent individuality and youth and the fact that we are all the same and should be treated as equals (as a rainbow is a well known symbol of equality).

I used five subjects in total to create one larger collage and feel that I was successful in creating a diverse collage due to the fact that I used subjects of various genders, sexualities and ethnicities in my shoot.  I feel that the use of some black and white images in my main piece as well as the rainbow edited piece in the images centre help to give it a more visually stimulating appearance as they break up the tones in the image.  The black and white images symbolise the stress associated with youth and the destruction of childhood and the rainbow image symbolises the diversity and acceptance of youth it is positioned centrally due to the fact that acceptance is one of the core values of youth today.

Favourite image:

This is my favourite image due to the way that the black and white coloration achieved through the low levels of saturation has given the piece a high level of tonal contrast.  This is made particularly effective due to the fact that the subject is wearing colours with a low level of saturation making the tonal contrast much starker in appearance than what may be achieved in an image with bright colours.

Denotation:  This image features the subject fiddling with his hands at his chest as the image is being taken it is a close shot.  There is large tonal contrast present in the image which is heightened by the fact that when the image was taken the subject was wearing clothes in blacks and greys helping to make the drawings on his hands as well as his rings stand out starkly when the image was converted to black and white and contrast was increased.

Connotation:  This image carries connotations of stress from the fact that the subject is fiddling with his hands in a nervous manner suggesting the modern pressures of youth.  The writing on the subjects hands suggests an elements of rebellion due to the fact that they mimic tattoo designs which contrasts with his smart jumper and jacket.  This demonstrates the way that modern youth are breaking away from societal conventions and norms.  The use of black and white coloration suggests the dull routine of youth in the 21st century and the way that society attempts to mould us into an ideal citizen.

Context:  This image has been used as a part of a larger composition featuring images of several subjects joined together physically in order to represent the fact that youth are all the same even though we may appear different on the outside. 

Least favourite image:

This is my least favourite image due to the fact that I feel that the image gives very little in regards to representation of youth and is not particularly visually stimulating however it had to be included due to the fact that I needed an arm for the final image.

Denotation:  This image features the left arm of one of the subjects and has an increased level of contrast and saturation this gives it a more vibrant appearance and creates a higher level of contrast with the black and white images.

Connotation:  This images coloration carries connotations of the vitality of youth due to the fact that it has an increased level of saturation and contrast helping to demonstrate the energy often associated with youth culture.

Context: This image has been used as a part of a larger composition featuring images of several subjects joined together physically in order to represent the fact that youth are all the same even though we may appear different on the outside.

Final image



This is my final image which has been composed from each of the individual images found in this shoot.  The concept for this image was to demonstrate the fact that whilst as a individuals youths are different we all fall into the same collective identity.

Denotation:  The image features bright tones making it eye catching and visually stimulating.  The image is also interesting due to it's joiner style which is similar to David Hockney's joiner work.  A range of both saturated and black and white tones are used giving it a high level of contrast.
Connotation:  This image carries connotations of the vibrancy of youth which is found in the bright colours of the images background as well the idea of collective identity and personal identity being enforced by the joiner composition.
Context: This image was designed to demonstrate the collective and personal identities of youth and how we are all the same.

Straight images- Shoot 3

Individual images- Edited using Photoshop CC 2014

Final composition

Contact sheet- Shoot 3

Final Evaluation

Introduction
My work has been heavily focused around documentary photography in this unit particulary that which revolves around personal identity and as a result of my personal identity and those around me youth culture as a whole.  

Research
I have been interested in the work of photographers such as Collier Schorr as a result of her collage series, which focus heavily on youth culture and the identity of youth as well as the photography of David  Shama particularly his series 7Eleven which is focused around a group of friends in a kind of mock-documentary style due to the fact that the actions and events carried out are orchestrated however are styled to appear natural.  Martin Parr's documentary photography has also been inspirational to me particularly his use of bright and saturated colour throughout his imagery due to the way that the colours used evoke the emotions present in the image.  I was particualry interested in his series "Life's a beach" which documented British sea side holidays in the 90's and the emotions of those at the beach.  His imagery is satirical to a degree due to the way that the bright colours used often contrast with the British weather giving his images a humorous and striking appearance.  In relation to artists who focus specifically on connected images my biggest inspirations have been David Hockney as a result of his work focused around joiner photography and creating images from various smaller images of a subject as well as the work of artist Eugenia Loli due to surreal approaches to collage and the way that she layers image to make intriguing compositions.

Preparatory shoots

My preparatory shoots provided a useful element of my planning and research to my project as they showed me the artists which I wished to primarily focus on such as David Shama and Collier Schorr. I feel that my most successful shoots were shoots 4, 5 and 6 from my preparatory shoots and this is why I choose to further explore the concept of collage photography in my exam component. I feel that the learning points taken from these preparatory shoots lead to me creating a series of striking collage based image with a unifying core style of a medium close silhouette similar to the style of Thomas Ruff in appearance with bold colours adding vibrance and depth. I feel that the shoot that developed most from these three prep shoots was shoot 2 in my exam due to the scrap book collage appearance featured heavily throughout the piece. I feel that my second prep shoot paved the way for shoot 1 from my exam as it focused largely around what the subject perceived their personal identity to be as did shoot 3 in my preparatory shoot. I feel that my final shoot in the exam displayed a natural sense of progression from shoots 1 and 2 in the exam.

Technical

My technical progression in the exam component can be evidenced by my inclusion of both studio shooting and non-studio shooting techniques. This varied approach to my shoots lead to me using both studio equipment such as light meters, soft boxes and backgrounds as well as having to adjust my camera to the elements in my external documentary shoots. I also had to use a range of photographic mediums to create my final pieces such as Instant film and Disposable film cameras which are often troublesome to correctly adjust in order to achieve a good set of images due to fixed apertures and flashes. I have enhanced my editing abilities using Photoshop CC 2014 this year by editing in varying methods such as using mask tools to select specific areas for editing in order to speed up the editing process. I have also been working with colour symbolism in my imagery such as heavy saturation and bright colours to demonstrate the energy and vitality of youth and black an white high contrast imagery in order to represent elements of nostalgia and harsh societal expectations of youth.

Aesthetic

I experienced a great deal of aesthetic growth in this project primarily in the way that my project is presented as a collage. I was largely inspired by the collage styles of Collier Schorr and Eugenia Loli which feature intricate cut outs as well as more chunky squared cut outs. In order to create my final pieces I had to learn how to use an exacto blade effectively in order to create smooth clean and crisp transitions. I also had to learn to allot an hour or more to each shoot in order to create each composition as this proved to be a very lengthy process. Time to paint the backgrounds also had to be taken as the paint had to have dried before I could begin to collage the images. All together I feel that the collage technique used throughout my series proved to make my series striking, bold and aesthetically original so I view it as a successful action to have been taken in the creation of my series.

Success

I feel that my final series does fit the exam brief of connected images due to the fact that in some cases my images are linked through the collage style used in each individual shoot piece therefore meaning that they fit the brief. They also fit the brief on a deeper level however due to the fact that they are all linked to the concept of self identity and the collective identity of youth meaning that on a conceptual level each of my images is linked to another. Finally the images are linked in aesthetic composition due to the way that I have used the same paint colours throughout my shoots therefore giving them a linked colour style which serves to demonstrate the bright energy of youth as well as the acceptance of youth (shown through the rainbow colour scheme used). A link can also be seen through the base appearance of each image as they all feature the silhouette of a medium close up of a subject. I feel that the only changes I would make if I were able to revisit this shoot would be too incorporate more studio techniques such as low key gel lighting in order to play on colour symbolism more through the inclusion of another studio shoot however I feel that this would not have been an appropriate inclusion to make in the series as it stands.