for my concept I wanted to touch on the time before humans and when dinosaurs existed. The Mesozoic was a time when creatures we can never know existed for sure. I recreated a scene before the comets hit earth which is a theory of the extinction of dinosaurs. The background is a photo I took which resembles volcanos and mountains. I used ground coffee and beans witch chocolate syrup and some warm lighting to give this ominous mood that something is about to happen. I used generative AI for the dinos and used the blur to my advantage to push scale. The original photo was to recreate a a made up world so I was inspired by sharkboy and lavagirl to create this scene but instead of adding them I thought dinosaurs would match the scene better
In this “fake it image”, Sanura Ezeagu presents the viewer with what it could have been like when dinosaurs roamed the earth prior to their extinction. She used a deep sunset backdrop with glowing oranges, yellows, and hues of pink and purple as well as silhouettes of four different dinosaurs at various distances. In the sunset of the sky, a comet is descending from the heavens, heading straight for earth. To create a sense of space, Sanura used a variety of perspective techniques like blurring the foreground and making the distant horizon and sky the main focus point, in focus. The bright spot of the fading sun draws the viewers eye not only to the horizon of the image but also to the dinosaur in the distance, which is looking up at the sky, awaiting their unavoidable doom.
ReplyDeleteThis image is very straight forward in its subject matter. Dinosaurs became extinct after comets hit the earth’s surface millions of years ago. This image sets up this concept clearly with the use of the bright, warm light of the sunset, creating a beautiful landscape where the dinosaurs thrived. The landscape looks prehistoric with valleys in the foreground and a rising cliff extending over the horizon, dividing the image into two distinct parts – sky and land. The two larger dinosaurs in the foreground are blurred and silhouetted, making them not as recognizable as the other two dinosaurs in the background which are also silhouetted but in focus. The diagonal path of the comet falling to earth and heading straight for the dinosaur on the cliff, indicates that death is near.
As an image representing a time when photography didn’t exist, it is a highly realistic perspective of what we could imagine this landscape looking like during the reign of dinosaurs. The use of out of focus in the foreground was well done and creates a sense of mystery, that we still experience today – what did they really look like? While we have some of their skeletons, it is very challenging to know exactly what they looked like with all of their external features. The distant part of the image, with the dinosaurs in focus, tells more of the story of what’s about to occur. The small dinosaur in front of the sun was nicely situated there, as a main focal point, while the comet points downward, also indicating where our eyes should start looking at the image.
ReplyDeleteSince the early 19th century, the study of dinosaurs has continued to intrigue scientists and audiences around the world. When the first skeletal remains of a dinosaur were found in New Jersey in 1858 by Waterhouse Hawkins, the concept of dinosaurs being displayed in museum settings became a popular trend (Thomson, 2005) as many people flocked to see these creatures which they could only imagine as myth. Even through our modern era, dinosaurs made their way to the big screen in the highly popular movie series, Jurassic Park, which has continued to attract audiences for over three decades. Tourists can even walk among the dinosaurs in the Jurassic Park land located at Universal Studios, Isle of Adventure in Orlando, Florida, which allows you to get up close to these amazing prehistoric creatures. In general, audiences are attracted to the mystery of the dinosaurs: who they were, how they lived, what they looked like, how they died, etc., and this fascination most likely will not go out of fashion any time soon.
Overall, I consider this image very successful in that what I originally assumed it represented, it in fact did represent from the artist’s original concept. I think the use of perspective, foreground blurring and background focus provide an excellent balance to make this composition understandable. While I know this was done in photoshop, I did not see many indications of that – it looked very realistic. The bending of the various elements within this image was well done, creating an authentic look back at the Jurassic period in history.
References:
Thomson, K. (2005). Dinosaurs as a cultural phenomenon. American Scientist, 93(3), 212. https://www.americanscientist.org/article/dinosaurs-as-a-cultural-phenomenon
Fake It, by Senura Ezeagu features a scene of dinosaurs moments before their extintion. We can see their dino silhouettes staring up a comet falling while the sun sets. There is a strong contrast between the sky and the dark landscape and creatures. The overall tone is fairly warm and optimistic. The blurred foreground directs our focus to the sky and incoming threat.
ReplyDeleteUpon first glance, I thought it was an image of dinosaurs just playing around in the sunset. The comet appeared to be a shooting star and I was given a sense of something more positive and almost magical. Senura intended the image to have more of an ominous feeling not only to show how dark this event was, but possibly to emphasize how mysterious these creatures are to us. Although cameras didn't exist during the Mesozoic era, the image seems more realistic with only the distiction of their figures. It would be challenging to make a realistic rendering of their features and the primary focus is the event itself.
The image doesn't entirely seem to be fake based on the technical execution, however, it's impossible to have a photo from the time period. The materials used for the landscape of highly convincing. I would have never guessed the mountains & volcanos were made out of ground coffee and syrup. The lighting and scale of each element looks accurate and everything is blended well. The use of ai to create the dinos also opens the conversation on this technology in the production of false information. I think just the fact that nothing except for the sky is actually real or represented as what it truly is, relates to today's culture. Based on images that have come out in recent years, I can count on a handful of people who would actually fall for it.
The photo beautifully and effectively captures the mysterious event of the dino's extinction. The techniques make this a successful fauxtographic compostion. Although the historical context takes away from its validity, the photographer shows how easy it is to fabricate something with the help of technology and, specifically, image generators.