Semester 6 - Folio Ideas

2 Surreal Composites

For my surreal composites I intend on doing a similar style to what I did last semester. I want to push the limits of surreal photography and come up with original and interesting ideas. I really like work that can have several confronting meanings, but it is left up to the viewer’s interpretation. My ‘Prosecution’ composite (see above) of the masked man shooting a goat is a prime example of this, as I got many comments about religion, the meat industry and terrorism, but the image itself doesn’t have a set definition.

Last semester I planned my composites very meticulously, but found this was not helpful as I ended up changing all of my ideas. This semester I am going to stay away from any set planning and let my ideas develop as I go, as this is what proved most effective last semester.

2 Surreal Straight Photographs

I have decided to do surreal work without Photoshop to set myself a challenge. Created abnormal things using Photoshop is not difficult as you can create almost anything that comes to mind. Creating a surreal image straight out of the camera is a complicated process however as the definition of ‘surreal’ is simply not real, but in order to photograph something it has to exist, so trying to make it look out of this world will be quite difficult. I have a few ideas on how I can achieve a surreal image without the use of Photoshop; techniques like multiple exposures and light painting can be done in camera but can create unusual images, so for one of my photographs I intend to use one of these techniques. 

For the other one I will focus on the presentation of the image to make it look surreal. Presenting an image upside down for example can give a photograph a completely different look and meaning, so if I shoot cleverly I will be able to create a surreal image without any in camera, or post production techniques.

2 Alternative Processes

I have always been interested in alternative processes and I would love to try different techniques to create interesting artworks. I have decided to try and create cyanotypes, as the process is relatively simple and the chemicals are easy to acquire. I really like the look of cyanotypes, as you are able to print on art papers and materials to create beautifully textured works. I will most likely be capturing images digitally and printing out inkjet negatives on transparent paper to then create my cyanotypes. I may also try exposing actual objects, much like a photogram. 

For my other alternative process I will be experimenting with double exposures using black and white film. I have always loved working with black and white film, and creating a double exposure in film gives a very ‘authentic’ appearance to the image, as it is much more challenging than creating something in Photoshop. There are many other alternative processes out there and I intend to do more research and find techniques that interest me and hopefully try them out.

Cover Artworks

For my cover art I want to stick to a similar style as my surreal artwork intended for exhibitions, except I am putting the art to commercial use. I want it to be in a similar style as conceptual art with surreal content and bizarre meanings has become my forte and I would want a client hiring me because of my unique and individual approach.

Unlike my other artwork, the cover art will have to be restricted in forms of size, ratio and placement of content, as room for text will be needed. The cover art will also have to be related to the music, or theme of the book. I would like to try and create cover art for local authors and musicians, but this may prove to be a difficult process, so I may end up creating work based on albums and books I really like.

Fusion

Creating a fusion video will be a new experience for me, as I have not attempted at using video on my camera as of yet. Fusion is a new technique which is becoming increasingly popular, particularly in wedding photography, but it can also be used for advertising or showcasing art. I want to try doing Fusion as I believe that keeping up with new technologies is very important in the photographic industry if you want to make the most out of your career.

For my fusion entry I want to focus on landscape and nature photography. I have always been interested in landscape and nature, and I would love to create a video to showcase my skills in this genre. Being able to take spectacular photographs and videos of the natural world would give me an advantage if I want to go for a job as a travel or wildlife photographer, which is one of my desired options after the course. In my video I plan to put together a combination of Stills, videos and time lapses to create a beautiful showcase of the natural world. By using a combination of these techniques but shooting the same locations I can create different aspects of the same content which will fit together very nicely in the end product (for example a time lapse of stars and a long exposure photograph).  As the Fusion video will be 2 to 5 minutes in length, I will need to take approximately 40 photographs and videos to fill that time (a 4 minute video comprised of 40 pieces allows 6 seconds for each).

Some of my current Fusion ideas are:

-Time lapse of a flower blooming

-Flower and insect macro photographs

-HD video of rain in a creek

-HD video of a butterfly or insect in slow motion

-Time Lapse of grass growing

-HD video of waves

-Long exposure photograph of waves

-Time lapse of star trails

-Long exposure of star trails

-HD video of a waterfall

-Long exposure of a waterfall

In order to get a variety of different landscapes I plan to do a lot of travelling, and possibly returning to the Grampians and Dorrigo National Park, as they were both excellent locations for landscape photography. The backing music I have decided on is Miss You by Trentemoller. It is a beautiful instrumental piece that I find very visually stimulating.

Semester 6 - Folio Proposal

For my folio I am going to focus on surreal artwork that could be sold or represented by a gallery or exhibition. Last semester I began to establish my own conceptual style and I intend to progress this further by trying new techniques and by building on my skills. I also want to put my artistic style to a commercial use, so I am also going to create artworks that could be used as album or book covers.

Fusion photography, a combination of still photography and video is a upcoming technique that is becoming increasingly sought after, and in order to keep up with the ever moving trends in photography, I intend to create a fusion video.

6 surreal artworks

 These artworks should be stand alone pieces that could be sold to a exhibition, gallery or to a private buyer.

-2 must be composite artworks, using a mixture of studio and location shots.

-2 must be unedited, straight photographs. In camera techniques may be used, but only minimal post production is allowed.

-2 must use alternative processes (non digital).

3 CD or book covers

CD covers must include front and back cover and text of the band and album name. May be inspired by existing albums, made up or created for a local band. Book cover art may just be front cover but the back blurb must be included and be appropriately designed. Book title and author must be included and may be based on existing books, made up or created for a local author.

1 Fusion video

Must be 2 to 5 minutes in length and incorporate a combination of still photography, time lapse photography and HD video. Can be about any topic but the video should follow a consistent theme and flow together nicely.

Report Methodology

In order to create my report I intend on posting regular blogs, and keeping them organized so at the end I can create my report using previous entries, this will be extremely helpful as a lot of blog entries are about 'in the moment' feelings, which can be hard to remember if you are doing it all at the end. The kind of blog entries I intend on doing are:

Section 1 - Folio Development

• Respond to brief and plan out ideas, including all of the shots I will need and possible locations
• Create mood boards for composites to display my ideas and intended style
• Write about the techniques I used to create my composites, and post 'in progress' material to make sure I am on track
• Post any tutorials I refer to and use for my Photoshop work
• After the composites are finished write a summary and a critique of my work
• Comment on where I want my work to take me after CIT

Section 2 - Context

• Post a blog on any photographers I find inspiring and talk about them and there work
• Also post any music / stories /  events I find inspirational to my ideas

Section 3 - Industry

• Talk about my findings after researching other photographers; what styles are effective and how they achieve them, how they find work etc
• Research my chosen field further, and learn the best ways to get work as a photographer and digital artist
• Contact other photographers and agencies to find out more information
• Report on any photographers contacted, and anything I learn from workshops

Surreal Photography

Things I have learnt so far:

• Combining common inanimate objects to create a surreal image is very compelling as people see these objects all of the time, so when they are put out of context they can seem very strange and interesting Surrealism as a visual movement had found a method: to expose psychological truth by stripping ordinary objects of their normal significance, in order to create a compelling image that was beyond ordinary formal organization, in order to evoke empathy from the viewer. - taken from wikipedia
• Square crop Vignette really is the way to go
• In order to be a good Surreal photographer you have to be European
• Overlaying textures is a good way to enhance a surreal image
• A very desaturated, one tone look helps blend the image together
• You can't plan surreal photography - in order to create an effective a surreal image it has to come from the subconscious, so is therefore rarely planned out. 
• The aim of Surrealism is to evoke emotion in the viewer

Semester Plan

This is the brief I was given for this semesters work:

• Produce a series of 6 fantasy based location composite images that include people shot in the studio
• Select 5 existing advertising campaigns and create a composite photograph for each that could be used in the campaign, the product and therefore the campaign is completely up to you
• Produce a series of 4 magazine front cover portraits that use constructed composite backgrounds in the style of the painting, the Mona Lisa
• Submit at least 1 recorded step by step compositing process - a tutorial of the compositing process for that final image

6 Fantasy Composites

For my fantasy composites I plan to challenge the perceptions of reality. I want my images to convey strong emotions, and have characteristics of a dreamlike state. I will be adopting a surrealist style for my composites, and draw upon photomanipulation artists such as Luis Beltran and Michal Karcz for inspiration (see below for examples). For these composites I intend on shooting the landscapes first, and the studio portraits second. As all of my landscapes will be shot using natural lighting, I have no control over where the light falls, In the studio however I can manipulate the light to match that of the landscapes, therefore making my composites more seamless.

The shot lists only include the major images I need - most of my composites will include many little aspects and artificial elements.

1. City Nightscape

This composite will be of a man looking over a city at night, with a dramatic starry sky with planets. I plan to paint the sky using Photoshop. This is one of my ideas I intend on building on a lot, as I dont have a solid idea of how I want it to look, and I want it to be original.

Shots I need:

• Man
• City - I plan to do nightshots of Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra and use parts of each.

Tutorials: http://designreviver.com/inspiration/31-breathtaking-planet-space-tutorials-for-photoshop/

2. The Room

For this image I want to turn a photograph of a rainforest into the walls of a room. I plan to include a window, in which there will be a desert scene. There will also be someone in the room, but what they will be doing is currently undetermined. 

Shots I need:

• Rainforest - I plan to go up to the Dorrigo rainforest near Coffs Harbour.

• Desert - Perry sand dunes near Mildura
• Person
• Wooden floor

Tutorials: http://photoshoptutorials.ws/photoshop-tutorials/photo-manipulation/surrealistic-room-photo-manipulation.html

3. Oasis

This composite will be of someone riding a horse through the desert towards an oasis.

Shots I will need:

• Desert - Taken at the Perry sand dunes near Mildura.

• Tree and pond
• Person
• Horse

4. Leap

The idea for this one is to make it look like someone is leaping off a cliff. I was thinking about adding wings to the person, but I think this might make it look a bit too cliche. I was originally thinking of having a person sitting on the cliff, but thought it would be much more dramatic if I had them jumping.

Shots I will need:

• Cliff and landscape - I intend to shoot these at the Grampians National Park in Victoria, this way I wont need separate shots for the cliff and the landscape

• Woman - jumping with long hair and long flowing dress

5. Abduction

This composite will be of a UFO abduction. I plan to have a house, (which I will shoot at night and light up with a speedlight, and also use the speedlight to create a light spot where the tractor beam will be) and a girl holding a teddy bear being beamed up by an alien spaceship.

Shots I will need:

• House - I plan to do this at Orroral homestead, as a real house would be too cluttered and I will have more control over the homestead as it is not owned by anyone.

• Girl - Holding teddy bear and levitating
• UFO - I obviously can't take a picture of a UFO, but I will be painting this in in Photoshop using other artworks and models for reference

6. Wizard

I haven't finalized my idea for this composite yet, but I want to have a wizard in a mountainous area performing a spell of some kind. It will most likely have a dark style to it and the spell will be painted in in photoshop.

Shots I will need:

• Wizard - Old man in a grey cloak
• Mountains - I will see what I get out of the Grampians National Park and decide if I need to shoot elsewhere. I will most likely end up merging multiple landscape shots together

4 Magazine Covers

For my magazine covers I have chosen 4 different personalities / professions that I can link appropriate backgrounds to. I will be shooting all of my portraits waist up or head and shoulders, as the focus of magazine covers is on the persons face. For this series it doesn't matter if the portrait is shot before the landscapes, as I will not be 'inserting' them into the landscape, merely placing them on top.

1. Zoologist

My first composite is of a zoo keeper or zoologist, so the portrait is going to be someone dressed in khaki with animals behind him.

2. Clown

My second magazine cover is going to be of a clown. It will be an older man with his face painted and a clown suit, with circus tents, a ferris wheel, balloons etc in the background.

3. Pirate

Another composite is of a pirate, with an ocean, islands and his ship in the background.

4. Noblewoman

My final magazine cover is of a noble woman, most likely set in the 1800s, with extravagant clothing. In the background will be luscious gardens, a pond and a gazebo.

5 Advertisement Campaigns

My final 5 composites are of advertisement campaigns. I have to choose 5 existing campaigns and plan a composite that will fit the campaign. With most of the campaigns I will be shooting the landscapes first and then the portraits. With the product campaigns however it doesn't matter if I shoot the products first as the lighting on products is always perfect.

1.L'Occitane

My first product composite will be reasonably simple. I will just take a photo of a product in the studio and make a pretty background out of a nice sky and flowers.

2. Panasonic 3D TV

This composite is based on a graphically drawn advertisement, but I will obviously be using photography. The concept is that the TV is so realistic that the character escapes out of the TV, and the person is telling it to get back in. As I am a beginner in Photoshop painting my character will be of human form, most likely a Spartan warrior.

3. Subaru

Again the car in this advertisement is a 3D rendering,  but I will be taking a photograph in the studio. The tagline of this ad is 'Performance Enhanced' and pictures a horse that has been modified to be better. I will be doing a similar thing by modifying a person with computer, car and speaker parts. I am yet to decide on the location.

4. Spring Valley

This advertisement is of juice where a beautiful oasis is sits on top. I will need to combine different photos of trees and water to make it look like it does in the advertisements.

5. Campari

This is my favourite campaign of the 5 I have chosen. There are 12 images in this series all depicting characters from famous fairy tales. The image portrays powerful women figures with a bottle of campari, and often half naked men pining over them. I will be doing a composite of Rapunzel, and have her sitting in a tower with a campari cocktail and a bottle sitting on the sill. A man will be waiting below. I will be painting most of the hair in Photoshop.

Images from: (in order)

http://alexiuss.deviantart.com/art/Machinery-of-the-Stars-69638365?q=boost:popular%20in:digitalart/photomanip&qo=1

http://drewyboy.deviantart.com/art/The-Devide-142027906?q=favby:joscos/4429701&qo=19

ttp://browse.deviantart.com/digitalart/photomanip/?q=room#/d2k8l29

http://phill-j.deviantart.com/art/Sand-Dune-88699157?q=favby:joscos/4429701&qo=16

http://www.genkin.org/gallery/landscapes/alpine-mountains/the-grampians-national-park-vic/grampians-0011.jpg

http://media.photobucket.com/image/L%252527Occitane%20anti%20aging/orange2la/st_AntiAging.jpg

http://www.adsneeze.com/files/media/2010/panasonic-3d-tv-print-ads-01.jpg

http://adsoftheworld.com/files/images/Subaru-Liberty.jpg

http://www.campaignbrief.com/assets_c/2010/09/Screen%20shot%202010-09-24%20at%204.37.29%20PM-thumb-300x435-34712.png

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBg74BlrRbnrvz-ue01syijw5P8jkw6Jt-O2LuLTKzHnMgu9nEo5QITLr3872b6x6P-DFieqlNKeFhDb770tkjnrAEGD9OjFuSP3Q2zZXy3vMfi6R0xu4MJfzpkIf2M_GuSKi3ymoW2nGj/s400/04-+April+-+Snow+White.jpg

Semester Goals

When I first started the course I had a great interest in landscape photography and I loved capturing the beauty of the natural world. Throughout the course I have gained a great interest in Adobe Photoshop, and the possibilities it provides in photo manipulation and image composites. My love of capturing amazing landscapes still remains, however now my interest has moved into creating works of art with these landscapes by adding other components (objects, people and artificial elements). I admire surreal work, as it is impossible to capture such things with a single shot, however for composite images to work they have to look convincing. So my goal for this semester is to work on my skills to create realistic image composites in a surreal style (it may sound confusing, but in this context I am using surreal to mean the style and realistic to mean the blending skills). In order to create convincing image composites I am going to work on:

• Lighting skills - One of the most important aspects to an image composite looking realistic is the lighting. I need to make sure my lighting in the studio matches the lighting of the landscape.
• Photoshop blending - I plan to do some tutorials before I start my work to finesse my Photoshop skills
• Creativity - I plan to challenge my creativity further this year than any other as now we have the freedom to capture almost anything we wish. I want to work on coming up with original ideas, and building on them to create a fantastic final image.
• Organization - This is a big one for me as I am not normally an organized person. I need to work on that this year so I can make sure all of my work gets finished in time.

After third year I would love to continue with my composite imagery. Possible jobs might include working for an advertising agency, or in fashion, but I would love to focus on more artistic pursuits. Doing book and album covers would be an ideal job for me as it includes a lot of composite imagery but also allows me to express my creativity. I also intend on teaching Photoshop classes or workshops on the side.