Shoot Seven - Work Record

 Plans for this shoot- For this shoot I want to contrast and compare how different owners live with their different pets, I also want to explore the idea that pets and their owners are similar. I believe by exploring this theme it will also cause me to explore how different people may chose the different pets that they do, and to investigate whether these differences may be due to their personalities or their other factors. I will aim to photograph the owners with their respective pets, I will not be giving the subjects much instruction as to what to do with their animals, as I want these pictures to be raw and natural, in order to capture the raw relationship between the pet and their owner(s).

For this shoot I will be using a tripod, as the pets are often restless, therefore the tripod will allow me to reduce the blur as much as possible.  Moreover, a camera and lens will allow me to physically take the images, I will also have the pets and their owners to photograph. All of these images will be photographed within my local town of Waltham Abbey. 
I want to capture images of the owner's both inside and outside with their pets, from which I will pick the best images to create my straight images, these will consist of no images of the pets alone, only images of them interacting with their owners. 

Inspiration- Elliott Erwitt's photographs of dogs (known as the series dogs dogs) and their owners inspired me to photograph these shoot, as some of his images are comical and humorous (for example, there's one image of a dog which appears to be driving a taxi), therefore they interested me and caused me to photograph this shoot, of owners and their pets. Elliott's images were taken between the years 1946-2004, and are all back and white
 images which explore our relationship between us ,and our canines. 


Best image from this shoot-

In this image the child appears to be innocently playing with her pet dog, this is interesting as some people would often consider this breed of dog (pit bull) to often be violent, however here it can be seen to be innocently, and gently, playing with its young owner- therefore this may challenge people's stereotypical views. Within this image I also admire how the subject is unaware that I am photographing her, as this makes the image more natural and believable to the viewer, also creating a type of fluidity to the image. 

I used a tripod to capture this image as animals and young children are often moving a lot, therefore the tripod allowed me to minimise any blur from the camera, and keep my image clear. I photographed this image on the following camera settings: shutter speed 1/200, ISO 400, and an aperture of 7.1, I believe these camera settings worked effectively together to create a narrower depth of field, in order to bring the viewers focus on to the owner, and the pet, this is due to my aperture setting of 7.1. 

Worst image from this shoot-

This photograph is on elf my worst from the shoot, as the image is overall slightly out of focus, this is due to my slower shutter speed of 1/60, meanwhile not having much light in the image as my ISO was 1800 meaning that the room was very dark. 

Furthermore, I also dislike the mirror in the background, as it runs through the subject's head which is ineffective, I would have preferred a clear background. Despite this, I believe the way the dog and it's owner are looking at each other is effective, as this shows love and care between the owner and their dog. Moreover, I would have liked to try photographing this owner and their dog at different angles, as I believe this would have given me a more variety of images to choose from, however the owner was reluctant to get the dog too excited by keep on moving it around.

If I was to reshoot this image I would photograph this outside, as there would have been more light there, in comparison to being in the dark living room, whereby the walls are red which again didn't help the overall outcome of the image. 

The Future: If I was to reshoot this shoot I wouldn't just focus on the owners and pets, but also where the pets food bowls may be positioned, or where their food is kept, I would then compare this to other pet owners, in order to explore these differences in the way people live with their pets. I would also have separate shoots for the different owners, and not include them all in one shoot, as I believe I could then compare their differences through my final images from the overall project. 

Shoot Six - Work Record

Plans for this shoot-  For this shoot I plan to photograph a subject doing their gardening, I want to do this shoot in order to explore how different people maintain, and keep their home looking presentable, or don't. By exploring how people look after their homes this links to my shoot numbers one and three, whereby I photographed individual's outside of their homes, and the objects inside creating links between their homes and how they present themselves; within this shoot I would like to carry this theme on and explore it in more detail. 

For this shoot I will be using a tripod, a camera, my lens, one subject, and lastly flowers/pots. I have chosen to use a tripod in order to make my images more sharp and focused, reducing any shake which may occur. The camera and lens will help me take the images, and obtain effective images as a whole. The flowers and pots will be used for the individual to be doing their gardening, which I will then be able to photograph.  

I have also decided to photograph the individual painting their shed, as this will show how there's different types of garden maintenance which individual's may complete. By painting over the old, to make the shed look new again, this may link to the individual's feelings about themselves that if they cover up any damage, they may wo

Inspiration- August Sander is the inspiration for this shoot as his portrait images of individuals working during world war two influenced me to photograph my images in the same structure, with the individual's holding their respective tools for the job (e.g. in this shoot this would be the compost and flowers.) Moreover the deadpan expression which many of Sander's subjects hold influenced me to try this within my shoot. 

Best image from this shoot-

The above image is my best from this shoot as the framing is effective in portraying my inspiration from August Sander, as the individual is starring deadpan into the image, whilst holding their tools they are using to complete their work. Within this photograph it makes it clear what the individual is doing, as the viewer can see what the individual is about to do, moreover the gloves on the individuals hands also correspond this. The bright colours of this image are different to Sander's photographs as he only used black and white, I chose to include colour as the subject is gardening, which is bright and colourful therefore I wanted to portray this within my images. By focusing on how individual's maintain their homes I wanted to attempt and create a link between the subject, and their home likewise to my previous shoot numbers one and three. 

Worst image from this shoot-

In this image the framing is ineffective as there's lots of objects cluttering the background of the image which take the focus away from the subject, and onto the cluttered and colourful background.  Moreover, the angle which this image is photographed is poor, as the subject's leg is in the centre of this photograph, also this then detracts attention away from the individual's hands and what they are doing. 

I believe a narrower depth of field would have been more effective in this image, as this then would have brought the viewers focus back on to the subject, and not the background as this would be blurred. In order to have obtained a narrower depth of field I should have made my aperture setting lower, causing the background to become blurred. The aperture setting being lower would have then made my image brighter, therefore it may have become overexposed, therefore to counter balance this I could have lowered my ISO, or decreased my shutter speed. 

The Future: If I could reshoot this shoot I would include images of other individual's doing their gardening, in order to create comparisons for the viewer- I didn't do this in this shoot as I didn't have time to due to the deadline being close. Furthermore, I could have photographed individual's maintaining (or not maintaining) their garden, whilst then photographing inside their house in order to create links  between the individual and their home this way. 

Shoot Five - Work Record

Plans for this shoot- In this shoot I plan to photograph images within a caravan which my grandparents are staying in, in Norfolk, whilst also photographing images of everyone on the beach in order to explore how different individual's live in different parts of the country (e.g. the coats), and also to explore how people who live in caravans may live, whilst also exploring Brits when on holiday in the UK. I chose to photograph images on the beach in order to explore what us Brits do when we are on vacation in the UK, moreover this would also explore what individual's who live by the coast may do daily in comparison to those individuals who live further south, for example in built up areas like London. Moreover, by photographing images within the caravan I believe this will explore what individual's who live in caravans may live like. Subsequently, this shoot will explore how different people live in various parts of the country, how individuals may live in different forms of homes- caravans, and lastly how us Brits live when on holiday in the UK. 

I will be using my camera and a lens for this shoot in order to allow me to actually photograph the images themselves, a tripod will be hard to use if I will be shooting on sand, as the stand of the tripod will sink and get dirty. 

Inspiration- Martin Parr is my inspiration behind this shoot as within his shoots he explored how Brits live when by the coast, his images are extremely bright and colourful which results in them being eye-catching for the viewer. Moreover, Parr photographed the lives of different people on different beaches around the world, this explores the cultural differences in various locations, I will not be able to do this for my shoot; however this shoot will be in Norfolk which contrasts my other shoots in this project which are all in Essex/Hertfordshire although they are not of beaches, this still explores the way different people in the country live.

Best image from this shoot-

The above photograph is my best from this shoot, as the movement of the dog and the young boy is captured, without blur. This image captures the whole saga of a 'British holiday', as this image is clearly taken on a beach, which is usually associated with hot weather, despite this the young boy in this image has his coat on; therefore, this links to the unpredictability of the British weather, which is evidently experienced anywhere in the country meaning that we all have to deal with this, no matter where we live or how we live.

The movement of the dog is captured with no blur, this makes it evident to the viewer this dog is running, with the child chasing the animal. Moreover, the stones on the beach link to the idea that holidaying in Britain can have it's down sides (e.g. stony beaches, unpredictable weather...), but despite this we make the best of a bad situation, as shown in this image by the boy laughing. 

I photographed this image on the following camera settings: ISO 200, F 9, and a shutter speed of 1/320. The shutter speed of 1/320 would have allowed me to capture this image without blur, almost freezing the scene that was in front of me; due to the quick shutter speed this would have meant a low amount of light would have been able to enter the lens, therefore the ISO of 200 would have been sensitive to light ,combining with an aperture setting of 9, which would have also allowed some light into the lens.

Worst image from this shoot-

This photograph is my worst from this shoot as the subject is very dark, due to the camera settings used, the quick shutter speed of 1/400 means that little light would have been able to get in the lens, this combined with an aperture setting of 10, and an ISO of 200 means little light would have got into the lens, making the image darker overall- to increase the brightness of the image I should have lowered my aperture and made my ISO higher, in order to allow more light into the lens, and subsequently make the photograph lighter as a whole. 

The subject in this image is in mid-speech, therefore they appear to be pulling a strange face, subsequently making the image ineffective. If the subject was starring deadpan into the camera then this image would be more effective, as I do like the background of this photograph as the viewer can deduct that this is shot on a beach, as sand and rocks are evident in the background. In addition, within this image I captured the skyline, showing grey clouds, this too is effective as it allows the viewer to see that despite being on a beach which is usually associated with sun, that this image is still taken in Britain whereby the weather can be unpredictable.

The future: If I was to reshoot this shoot and had more time, I would also photograph images on other beaches around the UK in order to show how different people may holiday, or live by the coast. I couldn't do this for this shoot due to monetary constraints, and time limitations for this project. Moreover, I would also like to have taken images of people in the sea itself, however the day I conducted this shoot it was too cold to get into the sea, therefore I couldn't execute this. 

Shoot Four - Work Record

Plans for this shoot- In this shoot I want to explore the way people eat, I want to photograph my mum and dad in the garden eating fish and chips, as this is a stereotypical British food. The reason why I want to explore food is due to the fact it's involved in everyone's lives everyday, no matter how rich or poor you may be, therefore this shoot will be relatable to everyone. 

I will aim photograph my images outside, as there will be less household clutter in the background of the images therefore taking the viewer's focus back to the main subject within the image. In addition, the subjects will have pictures taken eating their food and also starring into the camera, I believe this would help me develop my portraiture photographic skills. 

For this shoot I will need a tripod, a camera, my lens, two subjects, a chair, and lastly the food which will be fish and chips. I have chosen to use a tripod in order to make my images more sharp and focused, reducing any shake which may occur. The camera and lens will help me take the images, and obtain effective images as a whole. The chair will be used for the subjects to sit on, and the food for them to consume. 

Inspiration- Martin Parr will be the inspiration behind this shoot, as his images of the British sea side specifically influenced me to include the fish and chips within this shoot. Parr uses bright, eye-catching colours within his images which grab the viewers attention, and maintain this attention I would like to mirror this within my shoot, as I believe photographing my images in a bright colourful garden will also mirror this. 

Best image from this shoot-

The above image I believe is the best photograph from my shoot, as the subject is mid-eating whilst starring down the camera lens, this creates a personal link between the viewer and the subject as the viewer makes contact with the subjects eyes, which are considered 'the window to the soul.' The fact that the viewer is also looking into the subject's eyes whilst they're eating may also make them feel slightly uncomfortable, as people often don't like others to watch them eating. 

I chose to photograph this image portrait as I believe this includes the most detail, as the viewer can easily see the individual's face, as well as their food and how they're sitting. Moreover, the individual wearing all black allows the focus to primarily be on the food itself, as this stands out against the black clothing. 

I photographed this image on the camera settings of ISO 400, F 4.8 and a shutter speed of 1/80; the low aperture means that a lot of light would have been being let into the lens, in order to not make the image too dark, meanwhile an ISO of 400 would have aided this too, as the higher the ISO he more light is let into the photograph. A wide depth of field is used in this image, as the background and subject are both in focus 

Worst image from this shoot-

This image is my worst from this shoot, as the subject is pulling an awful facial expression where they are eating their food, I believe this ruins the image as I would have preferred to have the subject looking directly down the camera lens to create a more personal feel to the image with the viewer. Despite this, I like the framing of the image as the viewer can see the location of the shoot ,whilst also easily being able to see the subject and what they are doing. I also like the position of the subjects hand whereby he is holding an item of the food, as this shows his intentions- to eat the food. 

The background within this image appears slightly overexposed, by making my ISO lower, or having a higher aperture setting this would have made the background darker, and not overexposed, however this would have also made the subject darker, which I didn't want.  A wide depth of field is exhibited in this image, as the back ground and subject are in focus, however the subject is slightly more in focus in comparison to the garden in the background, this is due to the aperture setting of 7.1, as the higher the aperture setting the wider the depth of field (e.g. if my aperture was F22, then there would have been an extreme wide depth of field, whereas if it was F4 then a narrow depth of field would be shown.)

The Future: If I was to reshoot this shoot I would include more images of different people eating different foods, in order to allow the viewer to compare and contrast these differences; for example, I could have included images of people eating up the table with cutlery, not their fingers- this would differ from this shoot whereby the subjects are in the garden eating with their hands. Moreover, I would have possibly experimented with a narrower depth of field in order to make the viewer focus on the subject more, and not be distracted by the background at all. 

Shoot Three - Work Record

In this shoot I wanted to progress from my shoot one whereby I explored how different individuals live in their homes, whilst also creating links between the way people look and how their homes also appear. In this shoot I photographed my nans sister (Pat), and my nan. I chose to photograph these two individuals (my nan and her sister) as their houses are polar opposites, despite them both being similar ages and having the same upbringing, this shows how environmental influences as we get older can heavily impact the person we become. Pat's house is extremely minimalistic, whereas my hans house is cluttered and full of interesting/ old ornaments and quirks, this allowed me to create a contrast between the two sets of images easily. Overall, I believe that my shoot was successful due to the direct comparison that I created between the images, also I like my images and I find them interesting. Additionally, I believe the connotation within my images is transferred successfully through the visual aspects of the images, as in both houses I photographed similar objects so direct comparisons could be made (e.g. lights, chairs...)
I used a tripod in this shoot as I knew that my nan's house would be dark, therefore the tripod helped give me stability within my photographs, and reduce any shaking/blur. 
Inspiration: My inspiration for this shot was Mark Laita as he explores differences in the people of America, this inspired me to explore differences in the way people live their lives, and how their homes reflect environmental experiences people may have had. Bogdan Gîrbovan also influenced my shoot, by challenging me to explore the differences in people's homes who may be related/live in the same street, moreover to explore how their homes may link to the type of character they are.

Best comparison of this shoot:

Pat-

I believe that these two images explore the difference in how my nan and her sister live most effectively, due to the two images being polar opposites of one another whilst creating a profile for the individual. The image which I photographed in Pat's house is bright and colourful, whereas the image taken in my hans house is more dull, which corresponds to their personalities also. The physical objects in the images also tell a story, as the object in the image I photographed at Pat's house is a garden gnome, however the main object in the image from my hans house is a buddha- this contrast creates a profile in the viewers mind of whom may be spiritual or not, additionally, I believe these two objects themselves firmly represent the personalities of the homeowners, as Pat loves gardening, whilst my nan is very spiritual and culturally knowledgeable. Furthermore, the flowers themselves that are in the images also are significant as in the top image daffodils are displayed, in contrast with the image below whereby cactus' exist, this too may link to the personalities of the homeowners, and is also displayed throughout the rest of the house, with Pat's house being colourful and vibrant, whereas my hans house is more dull and edgy. 

Nan- 

Worst image from this shoot:

This photograph was taken in my nan's house, I dislike this image due to the way I framed the image, as the two windows are unevenly proportioned within the image; in addition the two objects hanging from the ceiling behind the light make the image appear cluttered and they take the viewer's attention off of the main object- the light. 

In contrast, I do admire the lighting in the image, as it's not too dark, or too light; this was due to my camera settings which were: ISO 6400, a shutter speed of 1/60 and F 5; moreover, the shadowing on the beams of the ceiling work well within the image, and the shoot as they help in the portrail of my nan's home. 

If I was to reshoot this image I would work on my framing, whilst also ensuring that the background of any image I was going to photograph was clear or worked well with the overall image. 

Progression:

For my next shoot I will again focus on two different people's houses, however I have not yet looked at men, and their homes- subsequently for my next shoot I would like to focus on two men, and how different their properties may be compared to one another. Within my next shoot I will also work on my framing, and use of my tripod in order to get the most effective images. 

Shoot Two - Work Record

In this shoot I wanted to challenge societies stereotypes surrounding age. In this shoot I decided to photograph one of my elderly neighbours smoking under a street lamp at night, I chose to do this in order to challenge ideas about youth and the elderly, as this activity would usually be associated with younger individuals, not an elderly lady. Moreover, this shoot challenges, and explores the way different people lead their lives, as usually you  wouldn't think that an elderly individual would roam the streets at night; however this is not normality but a mere difference in the way people chose to conduct their lives daily. 
In this shoot I wanted my neighbour to have her hood up, as this would link in the viewers mind to anti-social youths, therefore causing conflict in the viewers mind. 
I photographed this shoot using a tripod, in order to make my images as sharp as I possibly could, I experimented with my images by not using flash, however I found this gave my images a red/orange tone to the photograph due to the street lights- therefore, I believed that the images where I used flash came out better, and clearer as I could capture the wrinkles on my neighbours face, which allowed me to strongly portray to the viewer how old she is. 
Overall, I believe this shoot was a success as in my images there's no shadowing, which I tried hard to eliminate as I believe this makes the images look unrealistic; moreover, I believe the connotation I aimed to portray is done so efficiently as the wrinkles on the ladies face are evident, meanwhile exploring how different people can live.
Inspiration: Mary Ellen Mark inspired me for this shoot with her image of a nine year old girl smoking, this made me question about societal norms, therefore it caused me to want to explore our perceptions of society about how individual's live, therefore in this shoot I chose to challenge societies perceptions of elderly people, therefore I chose to photograph my elderly neighbour smoking on the street in order to challenge the perception we have of people, and how we, as a society, can be extremely judgemental. 

Best image of this shoot:

This image I believe is the most effective from this shoot, as the background is completely black, which allows the viewer to deduct that the subject is outside, alone- this consequently creates questions within the viewers mind as to why she is there, and what she is doing, as it's unusual to see an elderly lady out alone after nightfall; subsequently this relates to the different ways in which individual's chose to live their lives. The cigarette in the individual's hand is a symbol of death, as it's common knowledge that smoking kills, therefore this may be a link to show how the individual is close to death, possibly due to illness or old age? I wanted to capture the individual's hand, as the subject suffers with arthritis in the hands, therefore by capturing her crooked fingers within this image it allowed me to again exploit her age, along with the texture from the wrinkles on her face. Moreover, the individual's glasses exploit another weakness as she cannot see extremely well, therefore this creates conflict in the audience's mind, as if the subject can't see well, then why is she out at night? Furthermore, I chose to convert this image into black and white as I believe that it makes the image appear more edgy, and ambiguous as the viewer cannot see everything clearly (e.g. the background.)

I photographed the above image on the following camera settings: ISO 3200, shutter speed 1/60 and an F stop of 5.6....

Worst image of this shoot:

The above image is the worst from my shoot as there's deep shadowing within the image behind the subject, this is due to me using flash, but not using the correct angle; in my other photographs that I angled from the other side of the subject, no shadowing occurred. Furthermore, the audience cannot see all of the detailing on the viewer's face, which means it's not as easy to work out the age of this individual, therefore making it harder to work out the connotation of the shoot. I photographed this image on the following camera settings: ISO 3200, F 5, and a shutter speed of 1/60, I also used flash within my photograph whilst also using a tripod to reduce any shaking.

 However, I do like the portrait angle of the image, as it allows the viewer to see more details  in this photograph, including the subject's clothing and the brick wall behind. 

If I was to reshoot this image, then I would have positioned myself at the other side of the subjection order to eliminate the shadowing behind the subject. 

Progression:

If I was to conduct this shoot again I would compare my neighbours lifestyle (smoking) to another individual, in order to strongly focus on the two differences that can occur between individuals. More interestingly, I would like to focus on family members, as they would have been raised in similar ways, therefore any differences that exist when they're older are more interesting that any differences between complete strangers, who would have had completely different lives. 

How I edited my photographs:

Firstly in photoshop I opened the image I wished to edit, by clicking 'file' at the top of the screen, then 'open' before clicking on the image I wanted. Next, I moved my cursor to the bottom right hand corner of the screen and selected the button which is in the centre of the panel, which looks like a half moon:

I then selected the black and white option on the panel which pops up:

Another menu will then pop up (as shown below)

Once you have adjusted each colour slider to where you are satisfied then you must go the the 'opacity' option, which is located as shown below:

Then you must drag the slider in order to change how opaque you wish the black and white filter to be, once you have done this your image is complete.

Shoot One - Work Record

For this shoot I wanted to compare how individual's live, in respective to their employment; to do this I decided to photograph my mum outside of our house, and my aunty outside of her house, whilst also compering items which exist inside the respective houses. Within this shoot I also attempted to explore class divides, through looking at how people live corresponding to their wealth. 

I photographed my images outside of the individual's houses as I believe that the size, and objects inside of the houses indicate the wealth of the person; moreover, I chose to photograph my mum and my aunty as my mum works, whereas my aunty is unemployed, despite this my aunty has a more expensive house then my mum, therefore this explores class divisions and challenges peoples judgements and perceptions of people. 

I made sure that my mum was wearing her work clothes when standing outside her house, in order to highlight the fact that she works- whereas, I told my aunt to wear whatever she would day to day. I didn't instruct the individuals on what to do in the image, as I wanted my images to be candid as well as capturing the rawness, in order to see how they would naturally react to their homes, through their body language. 
Inspiration: Mark Laita was the inspiration behind this shoot as he compared Americans side by side, who were polar opposites, in order to explore the inequality which exists in America. Mark influenced my images as I wanted to show how although two individual's amy be sisters and of had the same upbringing, their lives can be completely different, with one individual working and the other unemployed, but living in luxury. Bogdan Gîrbovan also influenced my shoot, by challenging me to explore the differences in people's homes who may be related/live in the same street, moreover to explore how their homes may link to the type of character they are.

Best Images:-

The two images above and below are photographs which I took of the two individual's outside of their houses, I believe these two images show a direct contrast between classes, as the viewer can see both the house and the individual who owns the house in the same picture, allowing them to create links in their mind as to how much the subject may earn, or what type of job they may have. The fact that my mum has her hand placed on the door handle of her house suggests she has more of a personal connection to her house, or more ownership of it; in contrast to my aunt who is standing with her hands down her side- this may imply that due to my aunt not working she may not feel as much of a personal connection to the house, as she has not funded it (my uncle has through his work.) Additionally, the clothing differences between the two females was on purpose as I wanted to demonstrate again the differences between classes, I also believe I explore a juxtaposition as it's a common belief that if an individual doesn't work they must not be well off, however through these two images it challenges people's judgements as my mum who works owns a less expensive house in comparison to my aunt who doesn't work. The two subjects in my images are sisters, therefore by them being related this allowed me to explore how although they were brought up the same, they now lead very different lives to one another.

Worst Image:-

This image is my least effective from this shoot due to the heavy shadowing created by the car on the drive, as a result of the sun being towards the right in the sky, subsequently the subject is also squinting due to the sun being in her eyes. The car being on the drive also cuts out some detailing from the front of my house, subsequently if I was to reshoot this image I would move the car from the drive. The framing of this image is also slightly off as the camera is slightly wonky, this is due to me not using a tripod in this image- the result of this image lead me to reshoot these images, and use a tripod also which consequently gave me better images. Moreover, I do not like how far away I am from the subject, as I believe if I was closer to the subject it would create a more personal feel within the image, which would link to the fact this image is taken outside of someone's home, which is an extremely personal place. This photograph is taken on the camera settings of ISO 200, F 10 and a shutter speed of 1/400, I believe these camera settings were effective as the lighting of the image is acceptable, however the showing is not, also all of the image is in focus which is what I was aiming for, this is due to the camera setting F10 allowing me to have a wider depth of field.  

Progression: 
If I was to reshoot some of my images I would work on my framing, as in the photograph of my mum outside of the house the top of the door is slightly cut off, therefore if I was to reshoot this then I would ensure that this was in the frame of the image.