Exercise 3 - Analyse a photograph

Analyse one of your own images and write approximately 500 words using the checklist below:

• first impression - what strikes the eye
• the genre
• intended use
• immediate situation facing the photographer - not relevant to this image.
• unplanned or planned photograph
• technical details if important
• style or mannerism
• photographer's intent
• is there sufficient information available?
• success

My first impressions of this image is that it is a composition consisting of various artifacts attached to or designed into a wall in full sun. The image is a fairly abstract one and having little variety of colour is mostly about form and texture in a contemporary style. The genre is "found still life." My gut reaction is that it is a piece of architecture from the coast or a piece of old 1930/40s swimming pool infrastructure. I think it is the rendered surface and the strong sunlight that remind me of similar structures that I remember were slightly decrepit and still in use as a child in the 1970's. Of course, as it is my own image, I know that the photograph is of a section of the harbour master's station at the end of the Harbour Arm, Margate.

The intended use is to produce framed prints for a gallery space or the production of a photo-book comprising a series of images detailing the changes over time to a small and detailed part of a building's fabric. The image was planned and time was spent considering the subject matter and which parts of the building to include or leave out of the composition to create a harmonious balance. Technically the picture is well exposed in bright sunlight without visible signs of burnt-out highlights or deep shadow. A small aperture has been used to produce a large depth of field so that all aspects of the image are rendered in sharp focus.

From an analytical viewpoint the style is considered contemporary, consisting of mundane aspects of surfaces/buildings. The photographers intent is to create a sequence of images of sections of buildings and present them in an aesthetic manner - showing detail such as the cracking of the render, indicating movement and ageing of the building, and changes to its surface as pieces of apparatus are fitted and eventually become obsolete. The interplay of light and shadow allude to the physical changes that have been made over time as the shadows change and lengthen across the buildings surface.

A lot of information can be garnered from the image. A glimpse of window in the top left corner indicates that the image consists of a piece of vertical wall that is the side of a building and that the focus is on various items attached to the wall - pieces of unknown apparatus incorporated into the structure such as the air-bricks or the mysterious wooden block and metal strip, bottom left. The glimpse of a plastic office fan in the top left corner indicate that the structure is still in current use.

Is it a successful image? A bit hard this one, when it's my own image. Personally I like it and think that it is. The simplicity of the composition appeals to me and the image shows the characteristics that I wanted to portray - mainly, the curious pieces of attached infrastructure, (its use at one time important but probably now unknown.)

Exercise 2 - write a caption

Exercise 1 - describe a photograph

This image was taken a while ago now. I was on a days shooting in Whitstable, a small seaside town, in Kent. I'd spent the day looking for detail shots of doors, windows, anything quirky that caught my interest. Looking back a number of good images have come from this one day's shooting - I must have been in the zone.

This one was taken on the high street - outside a pub. The narrative possibilities of the red chair, folded newspaper, pen, and little toy rabbit's head caught my attention. I'd stopped to make the image and I remember placing the chair off-centre in the frame and angling the camera to tilt the ground upwards. At the time I'd been analysing the work of William Eggleston and trying to work out what it was that made his compositions of mundane objects so interesting to look at. The sun was strong that day and reflecting off the white wall making it difficult to get a good exposure. However I didn't want to exclude the wall as I liked the the combination of red, black and white colours.

When I analyse the image I imagine the person that sat in the chair:

He's taken some time out from working in the pub kitchen before the lunchtime trade comes in for lasagne and chips. He found the bright plastic chair, part of a stack, stowed in a back room and covered in dust. He likes to sit on the pavement, in the sun, tucked away in a corner just off the main street as the tide of holiday-makers and locals swarm past. The spot catches the morning light and he's sat here many times before. Only yesterday, while carrying his chair and paper in one hand, he tripped and tea splashed from his mug onto the bottom of the door. He likes to read the paper and do the crossword as he can get bored with the seasonal work but it helps to pay his university fees.

He's still on a break but a voice from inside calls him in to answer the phone. He carefully folds his paper, places it on the floor and puts down his pen. He puts the furry rabbits head that was resting in his lap to his lips and gently blows on it - feeling the synthetic fur sway and flow around. After a moments hesitation he places the toy head down too. He's sick of his OCD. It's taking over his life. He picks up his mug, tipping it to swallow the last of the tea, and steps back inside the pub. As he passes through the door he glances down at the rabbit head - secretly hoping that someone will steal it.

Because, at times, I've used a number of more prominent images from the shoot the image has languished on my hard drive. Depending where I am mentally in my courses it has either grown or diminished in my estimation. I keep coming back to it though - so it must have something. And, finally, it seems to sit fairly well with the other images in creative content and purpose of this new blog.

Edward Chambre-Hardman - Open Eye Liverpool

The trip to Liverpool for the OCA study day consisted of two exhibitions at the Open Eye Gallery. The first has been posted in my previous blog entry. The second was to see the work of Edward Chambre-Hardman. The photographer produced a large body of work made between 1923-66 which consisted of commercial portraiture (including many notable figures from the period) and Pictorial landscape work.

Hardman has created a large body of work and it was his landscape images that were on display. The remainder of the archive is being brought together after many years to be housed at Liverpool library (refurbished and due to open May 2013.)

My tutor for this module, Keith W Roberts, is actively involved in resurrecting Hardman's archive and gave a talk to the students at the exhibition. It was interesting to hear about the fate of the collection and the challenges that faced those that wanted to preserve it over the years. Hardman was a bit of a rogue and when he initially sold his entire body of work to Liverpool Library in 1975 the Library was unaware that he had removed some of his best pieces including some of the famous portraits - unethical yes, but the story made me smile.

I'm not a traditional landscape person myself. But, the images are technically accomplished, and it was interesting to hear about the dark room techniques used to control the exposure for maximum Pictorial effect. The best treatment to apply to an image is something I am still learning. Selective processing is a technique that needs to be used with a lot of thought in the digital age. It is easy to overdo it and I definitely think less is more.

The visit was rounded off by an unexpected mini-drama as a gallery visitor (not connected to the OCA study visit) took umbrage at the comments of the other tutor, Peter, on the nature of landscape photography. The notion that the images portrayed an idealised countryside that never really existed and ignored social change, creeping urbanisation and rural poverty were too much for the visitor and she gave us her scornful opinion and then stormed off - discussion about art can make people so angry!

A Lecture Upon The Shadow - Liverpool Open Eye Gallery

The title of this exhibition is based around a poem (A Lecture Upon the Shadow by John Donne.) The poem is concerned with the phases of love and it is the theme of phases that I picked up on with some of the artists work. Six artists were featured - three from Britain, three from China. The exhibition has already been on show in China and has now travelled to the Open Eye Gallery in Liverpool.

The Eldon Road image by Tabitha Jussa was impressive in scale - the largest image on display in the exhibition. It shows the now derelict housing project that has been abandoned and the work exudes traces of past lives, dreams and the hopes of those now gone. This image reminded me of the phases or cycle of life in keeping with the exhibitions title. The conception and building of a Utopian housing project, the lives that were lived there, the abandonment over time and decay as time passes and peoples aspirations change.

I could see the same cyclical element in Man Yi's Memory of Water. The set of images were dark and grainy and they almost felt like they had a velvety texture to them. A puddle of water moving slowly across a pavement, storm clouds, the bottom half of a woman standing in a soaked dress, a sort of aquarium montage of dead fish, all the images seemed to be concerned with phases of water as it cycles through the planet, affecting all of us - not on a biological level but an emotional one. I found the images and concept fascinating.

Two of Us by Fan Shi San was concerned with China's "One Child" policy. The exhibition hand-out describes the work as, "Constructing images of young people together with their imaginary reflections, the works are suggestive of separation and loneliness, as the two characters in the images never seem to be able to communicate." I found the images very moving. On a personal level I could totally relate to the sense of loneliness and separation that was being communicated. My siblings fled the nest as soon as was physically possible leaving me as the youngest to hone my survival skills in a chaotic environment. It was interesting to note the reactions of the other students at the coffee discussion afterwards. Some of the them, based on their own childhoods like me, related to the work - others felt no connection whatsoever.

Some of the other photographers work were harder to read and left me intrigued and/or confused at times. I still feel that I need to develop my knowledge of contemporary art practice to broaden my understanding of photography today.

Klein/Moriyama at Tate Modern

This is a belated post about the study visit to see these two photographers at Tate Modern. I thought the show was excellent. There was so much to see and the work was presented in such a variety of ways from small prints to huge blown up images filling whole walls - not to mention the many photo-books from Martin Parr's vast collection displayed in low-level glass cases and video too.

The collection was divided into two areas dealing with each photographer and then placed into smaller divided sections within them. The collection of work on display seemed, to me, to exude energy. William Klein is well known for his graphic design skills that he brought to his photo-books incorporating full bleed layouts that were considered innovative at the time. His work seemed more concerned with people and the dynamic hustle and bustle of life on the streets.

Daidi Moriyama on the other hand seemed to have a more modern and darker approach to his photography - giving unclear or blurred and out of focus movement showing strange glimpses of life. His worked tended to be shown in groups of objects creating strange juxtapositions. It is clear that both photographers like to get up close and personal with their cameras.

I was inspired by the tilted horizons and crazy angles featured in many of the compositions. This is where a lot of the energy came from in the photographs. I have attempted to incorporate this technique into my image making in my latest assignment.

I needed much longer to take in the exhibition and would like to have made a couple of visits but it has closed now unfortunately - but it is one of the best I have seen in a long while.

Assignment 1

Preparation for assignment 1:

This is the first time that I've studied an OCA course that has begun with an assignment. No projects or exercises, just get straight on with it. Is this a level 2 thing? I'm relishing the challenge though. The brief is to photograph your local town - so, quite open with regards to how the project can be approached.

I've written down some notes with my ideas into my workbook and drawn some sketches. I already have an overriding theme for the assignment and one that also ties in with the blog as a whole. I've looked at a number of photographers including William Eggleston and already been out and taken some images. I need to review what I have so far and take it from there.

I will probably keep this post updated for the whole of the assignment rather than make multiple posts. I think I prefer that idea and all the information from the planning to the final images will be kept together.

Workbook:

After processing the images from my first day's shoot I was pretty happy with what I had. I'd completed the first part and managed to convey a sense of the newish development where I live on the outskirts of town. This was to be phase one of the shoot. I'd planned another day closer to town to give a sense of Ashford and what that meant to me as a relative newcomer. As usual I was up against the projected number of images - between 10 and 15 needed for the set. I already had over 20 development shots that I wanted to use and I'd have to edit them quite strongly to squeeze in any more from further afield.

Looking at my workbook notes I can see that if I keep what I have then I will stray from what I'd originally intended to do. This always happens to me. I find that the story, as envisaged, is too wide to tell in the number of images allowed. For there to be any meaning in the sequence it needs to be narrowed down and focused on a smaller topic. But am I getting the balance right? Will the development sequence have enough variety? I'm already shooting the assignment with a particular theme and style in mind that could make the images look similar.

After a couple of days I've managed to include some shots at the local station to bookend the sequence. I'm fairly pleased with how it looks now. I still do not have any wider shots to show a more varied aspect to the town but I will leave the set as they are for a few days before I decide if any changes need to be made.

 The images:

The brief was to portray my local town. I wasn't keen on including postcard type aspects like a tourist brochure or guide book would. Ashford is as old as many other towns in South East England and has plenty of picturesque buildings and good and bad areas. It is also surrounded by a number of large new developments and I live in one of them.

I decided that I wanted to show how I personally live in Ashford and to do that I would need to narrow down what I include in my sequence.  We moved here for the good transport links - fast dual carriageways criss-cross the town. There is easy access to two motorway junctions and a high speed train service to London and Europe. When we are not at home most of our time is spent travelling out of Ashford and beyond. The occasional trip to the library and a cup of coffee is to some extent our only connection with the more traditional part of the town. To my shame, after five years or so of living here I know hardly any of the road names outside our development.

So, that is the narrative I wanted to show in my images. There is also a more subtle undercurrent running through the images that I will describe at the end of the sequence.

You've more than likely noticed that all of my images are photographed tilted towards the floor. This is a conscious style decision that I made for this assignment and is also alluded to in my blog title. The ground will at times be a recurring theme in my work for this course.

The ground is significant in a conceptual way for me because it refers back to my childhood. My dad was an alcoholic and died when I was twelve years old. The only piece of advice that I can remember he gave to me was to, "Always look down. Never look up." I suppose he thought his words useful at the time and he was probably referring to finding money on the floor - who knows... Now, I view the words as a metaphor that pretty much encompasses what it's like to be a child of an alcoholic parent.

This is my attempt to turn a negative into a positive. Photographically, to look down at the ground can reveal some interesting objects, juxtapositions and insights into the world around us. I want to use my creativity to explore that, put some of myself into my images and find my creative voice. The beer cans and bottles allude to the alcoholism and along with the broken fence try to show that no matter how much society tries to create order and neatness and nice clean suburban streets the darker aspects of humanity will kick back.

At the moment the sense of what I'm trying to explore and portray of my past may not appear in the images that strongly. I think that subsequent assignments will help with that and at any rate they are only a side issue and I'm not too worried if the images are not read in this way at this early stage.

20 Feb update:

I made a switch to one of the images in my sequence. I was concerned that my subtext of private and public faces wasn't coming through strongly enough. So, I have constructed an image to allude to this by photographing my partner through our kitchen window. This replaces the cycle lane sign as I thought that I had too many images of signs and lines in the sequence. I think the set strikes a better balance now.

14 May update:

I've had my feedback on this assignment from my tutor for quite a while now. I've been mulling over his comments which were on the whole very positive. Keith's overall thoughts helped me to move forward. I am very glad to have received these as, for me, the assignment felt a bit off-key. It hadn't quite come together in the way I'd intended and I'd already decided to re-shoot some elements almost as soon as the images were posted off to my tutor.

I've been given a photographer to do some further research on and have ordered the books on inter-library loan. I will update my blog with these and provide links back to this post soon.

Nicky Bird - Tracing Echoes

Nicky Bird - Beneath the Surface/Hidden Place

5 Jun update:

It has taken me a while to catch up and report my tutor feedback for this assignment. On the whole the feedback was positive with special mention of the constructed image using my kitchen window and partner, plus the image showing the base of the electricity pylon. My tutor notes that I photographed a quite narrow slice of the town that I live in and from quite a subjective viewpoint. He wonders what relationship the new development has with the older part of town and suggests investigating the archive.

With this in mind the feedback has sent me on an interesting train of thought and has helped to clarify my thinking. I have a few ideas up my sleeve to expand the sequence with consideration to Keith's comments and I hope to start making some new images to add to this set to be ready for assessment by March 2014.

6 Jul update:

One of the exercises in part 3 of the course is to re-work assignment 1 in the light of the tutor comments. I have started a new post to accommodate my thoughts and new images here:

Assignment 1 re-work

Daido Moriyama

Daido Moriyama

The Daido Moriyama book that I bought at the recent Klein/Moriyama exhibition at Tate Modern is another that I have looked at in respect to my first assignment. Moriyama has a similar style to Klein although I would say that it has developed further along more personal, darker lines. I have an affinity with this approach and it is one that I may adopt with my assignments.

My first impressions of the work is that like Klein, it has a dynamic feel to it. The images are very often blurry and faces seen in extreme close up loom out of the darkness. The work has a much greater variety than Kleins I would say. Whereas Klein seemed to be ostensibly concerned with people, Moriyama is just as interested in the essence of our modern lives to be found all around us. This can mean that highways, bottles in the grass, the shadow on concrete steps etc, can be just as important to Moriyama as the people that he photographs.

Photobooks play a big part in the work of Moriyama, and I have ordered a number of them from the library to take a more in depth look.

William Klein - ABC

William Klein

I'm reviewing William Klein's book, "ABC," as part of my research into my first assignment for this module. I bought it after visiting the recent Klein/Moriyama exhibition and study day. My first impression of the work is that he doesn't hesitate to get up close and personal. He has a bold approach to street photography that many people would shy away from. Because of this the dynamism and spontaneity shine through - the street images, the graphic design of the posters, his film and fashion work all show this element in some form. Many of images are shown as full bleed and this helps to enhance the effect of life springing out of the page. This is a trademark of Kleins and is used in many of his photo books.

One of my favourite images is the one of the young black guy holding a Coke bottle. All around him the street is in motion and as he passes he gives the camera a big clear smile, participating in the moment between himself and the photographer. The image oozes joy and happiness. I have printed this image for my physical learning log where I talk about my impressions of the exhibition at Tate Modern.