Threshold Concepts 1
In photography there are many genres, such as architecture, fashion, or portrait. Photographers carefully chose the genre of there work to fully show their creativity and explore different ways to how they can view their work. Some photographers use only one type of genre in their career, however there are others who use a large assortment of genres to survey their techniques and skill. This doesn’t mean that photographers who only use one genre are inexperienced, this would in fact mean their skill is refined and honed.
I think that the threshold concepts in photography is important because it allows students to over time develop a deeper understanding of photography and to challenge how they see photography by giving them bigger ideas and opening their mind. The threshold concepts can teach you a lot of skills and assets, also different ways to view and make photography. It can help you think in many different ways, for example using new genres and knowing that photography is the capturing of light and that using a camera is only one way to do that.
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- What types of photographs are these? (You might consider genres such as Photojournalism, Street Photography, Still-Life, Snapshot, Candid, Abstract)
- Which (if any) seem obviously staged? And if so, why? What are the clues that suggest these might be 'constructed' images?
- Why might the artist want to mislead the viewer (but perhaps not fully)?
- Do any/all of the images leave you with questions or wanting further information?
- What role do the titles of the photographs play in shaping your understanding?
- Do some/all of the images have a similar style?
A common trope type i have noticed in these photos is the abstract, fashion and a sort of history element. in 'invisible man' you instantly notice the huge array of light bulbs on the ceiling with only a few turned on which raises curiosity, also the fabric hung on the side and what the man is wearing correlates to fashion. As for the 'Mimic' photo it definitely depicts architecture with the street they are on has buildings and the window on the buildings reflect the other side of the street, it shows the surroundings they are in and matches the mood. Also the way the actors in 'Mimic' are posing kind of makes them look like models and it makes what they wear pop a little. In 'the destroyed room' there is definitely plenty of history especially with the name giving the photo a little more context and helping us to imagine it better, there is also a variety of clothing scattered across the floor which fills the blank space and adds some character as to who the room belonged to.
All these photos are obviously staged, for example in Mimic it may seem real however there are a few aspects such as they the models are in a row and there are no people in the background, also in invisible man there is an obvious excessive amount of light bulbs which strongly depicts an abstract image. And for the destroyed room there could be indication of a candid photo i believe it to be staged as the way its been torn apart is unnatural, however this photo does convey a depression or anger as for the unnecessary way its been ruined. As for diagonal composition i think i may be candid as it has a simplistic design and there isnt much effort.
All these photos are obviously staged, for example in Mimic it may seem real however there are a few aspects such as they the models are in a row and there are no people in the background, also in invisible man there is an obvious excessive amount of light bulbs which strongly depicts an abstract image. And for the destroyed room there could be indication of a candid photo i believe it to be staged as the way its been torn apart is unnatural, however this photo does convey a depression or anger as for the unnecessary way its been ruined. As for diagonal composition i think i may be candid as it has a simplistic design and there isnt much effort.
Zoe Leonard
The series of images above were taken over a period of 10 years. In total there are over 400 photographs that were taken of shopfronts. Read this short article and view the images from the exhibition here. Choose a selection of 6 images and add them to your website.
- Write about why you choose these images.Are there similarities within the images?
- What are the differences with the images?
- What can you say about the colour within the shopfronts?
- Can photographing a series of shops document what may be happening within a community? Give reasons for your answers?
- What was the photographer trying to document with these images?
- How do these images make you feel?
These images of Zoe Leonard are all similar in the sense of them all being of shop fronts and the color in these photos seem to me dull and the common color is black and white. The difference ive noticed is that the shops are different types which varies from fashion to food and in some photos there is
Responce
I have taken inspiration from Zoe Leonard as i've photographed different types of shop fronts but i also used vibrant colors which she doesn’t use so theres a sense of originality and difference, i cut them out and stuck them on a card and cut them out again. I proceeded to add a stand to the back to each card, and i then arranged them in a 3D collage with a beige background which i chose and i took the photo. I had however a bit of trouble with the spacing, for example the cutouts are quite compact and cramped also in the foreground and background there is a lot of empty space which i could have used if i had taken more pictures of taller shop fronts nevertheless the space represents the sky and pavement in a way. On the other hand the shapes ive used are relatively simple as they are mostly square shaped, the textures are soft to an extent since ive used a warm color for the backdrop that symbolizes warm day or a weakened sun. I like how i've presented the shops to have a larger picture at the back and smaller ones at the front and also how it came out in general , however i dislike some of the shops i decided to photograph and i wanted a different lighting and i also wanted a way to show off the shops at the back as they are nearly covered completely, but i didn’t know how because they needed to be quite close together or else they wouldn’t fit in the backdrop.
Nick Meyer
Lets review some of the images from 'The local'
- Choose a selection of images from Nick Meyer's website.
- Do you think that these images reflect an area or a place?
- Do these images go together to form a sequence of images?
- What do you think that these images represent?
- What do you think that they 'say' as a community?
- Choose an image of Nick Meyer and write about it using your writing reso
Final Evaluation
In year 10 i have explored Documenting Communities, my first thoughts about this topic were it was different from what i had done originally and it would have been interesting to investigate my different communities as i have never tried to before in so much detail. However it wasn’t just my community that i would have been documenting, we interpreted many different artists and photographers work and in their own communities and it was much more enjoyable than i had thought previously. I have studied many different artists such as Nick Meyer, Zoe Leonard, Tyler Mitchell and a few more, i have observed how different photographers express themselves and how they interpret their community, i discovered them when i was trying to finding inspiration for my pieces of work and i have learned much from each of them. For example how to use composition in pictures ,and to effectively use props and colors, how to use nature, light and landscape to my advantage and the list goes on. Also the big idea i have tackled is threshold concepts to the point where i understand that threshold concepts in photography is important because it allows students to over time develop a deeper understanding of photography and to challenge how they see photography by giving them bigger ideas and opening their mind to other possibilities. The threshold concepts can teach you a lot of skills and assets, also different ways to view and make photography. It can help you think in many different ways, for example using new genres and knowing that photography is the 'capturing of light' and that using a camera is only one way to do that.
Through out my journey in documenting communities i have carried out many different experiments using the media, for example photoshop. At first i didn't know how to operate photoshop and i had to learn it myself, it took a while however now i can make a picture black and white and i can make them negative. This is a useful skill as now i can build on it and improve it to use photoshop to its fullest. Also i have used a variation of materials, for example a piece of equipment i use frequently is the scalpel and cutting board as its sharp, precise and easy to control. However it can get tiring to use if used for long, which can make your work sloppy. i have used this in my most recent response to Zoe Leonard as i had to cut thick card
Through out my journey in documenting communities i have carried out many different experiments using the media, for example photoshop. At first i didn't know how to operate photoshop and i had to learn it myself, it took a while however now i can make a picture black and white and i can make them negative. This is a useful skill as now i can build on it and improve it to use photoshop to its fullest. Also i have used a variation of materials, for example a piece of equipment i use frequently is the scalpel and cutting board as its sharp, precise and easy to control. However it can get tiring to use if used for long, which can make your work sloppy. i have used this in my most recent response to Zoe Leonard as i had to cut thick card