The first thing I thought about when getting inspiration for my composition was how the older photography stood out from the images that were taken during the Civil War. I dedicated my image to the start of the Civil War. I took photos with my Canon T5i at a hidden cut from a trail I have in my neighborhood, which people know as the ‘beach’ because of the sand next to the stream of water. I thought this would be a perfect environment to pull off the concept of my Civil War photo. You can see the level of the water change higher and lower as the months go by. I feel this is like a hiding ‘chill’ spot away from any ruckus and dangers that could have been taking place during the start of the war. I look at this image as an escape from a nearby battlefront in South Carolina, next to shore where the event had taken place with the uncertainty on safety; this is a gateway area to really relax and have a smoke break. Many people had economic disruptions taking place with people trying to flee from the nearby shores to get shelter and safety. I wanted to go for an off-guard shot where the person seems to be relaxing while having a smoke break while looking at nature through his secret getaway. I chose to do a majority of my edits with my Apple Pencil and iPad. I was able to really get the hang of using a variety of brushes/filters and also make different variations of them to put together my approach. I also used AI and edited in a smokey layer to exaggerate the smoke over the cigarette. Overall this was a really interesting and great experience, and I look forward to learning more about what Photoshop has to offer.
ReplyDeleteThe work displays the subject of a young man laying on the sand by a river, completely surrounded by nature while looking out at the moving river in front of him. The tone itself of the piece gives off a peaceful, serene feeling especially with all the nature. Additionally, the image is composed on a landscape orientation. While the aspect ratio seems to be slightly off from the typical 4:3 from the wet plate process.
It appears to be focused on the idea of relaxation or attempting to destress by escaping from society and going to a riverside. There’s no physical presence of anyone else or animals in the shot creating an isolating feeling, yet the tire swing still shows signs of human activity besides the subject. The fisheye effect, distorted background, and fog effect creates a hazy feeling, as if you’re almost separated from reality. While the cigarette in his hands with the addition of smoke further showcases the idea of trying to get away and relax. The treatment of the image in post-production appears more so to do with the style of wet-plate and old photography rather than a metaphorical idea.
Some of the technical aspects of the wet-plate process come across really strongly. Imagining possibly a windy day outside would result in sand, water, and the branches moving around which would result in the blurry, distorted effect. Especially since it’s not too overdone in the environment. Additionally, the depth of field that focuses on the male subject but slightly blurs towards the trees is strong. It could be even stronger if the contrast on the tire swing was lowered, as my attention as a viewer is battling between these two subjects. Plus the small scratches throughout the piece are interesting, dynamic additions.
However, there could be improvements regarding the emulsion.The left and top portions of the frame appear a little messy and could’ve had more time spent on it as there are many white spots from the masking. Also, I’m not sure realistically if the portions of the image itself would be distorted from the wet-plate process during this time, specifically the tree on the left side. This might’ve been conveyed more if there was a fingerprint in that corner. Also in terms of content, just from looking at the image alone, I’m unsure as to how it relates to the idea of history, the past or time. Possibly if the subject was wearing a different style of clothing or if there was another element there to convey that. Overall, other than some technical tweaks and playing around with some details the work is pretty strong.