Final Reflection

One of the most memorable experiences of Photo III was when I created my first big black and white print. I was planning on putting a black and white print taken at Grand Central Station in the Clayton's Art Show, so I got to use the big, fancy, delicate printing paper. I was super careful during the entire printing process, making sure my hands were completely dry and I didn't dent the paper while transporting it. When the print was finally done, I was proud of the work that I had done. Seeing my print blown up so much larger than I had ever seen it before got me really excited to continue my work in the darkroom and inspired me to make more large prints!

Another memorable experience of Photo III for me was going to the Capa in Color exhibit at the International Center of Photography in New York City. The exhibit was showing the work of photographer Robert Capa. Capa is widely known as a black and white photographer, but began working with color film in 1941. His photographs were absolutely striking. The colors were incredibly vibrant and stood out to me as the highlights of the photographs. This inspired me to begin to play with colors in my own photography, though not my film photographs. I used tools on iPhoto to adjust the colors in my digital photographs, especially those that I took in New York City.

Lobstering

The whipping wind
and
my hair do not get along.
Nor
do my nostrils
with the stench of
fermenting
bait.

The whaler sloshes
up to the buoy and he reaches
out to grab
it. Wondering
what
he will discover
when
it finally reaches the deck.

Salty hands
and
salty boat
and
salty sea.

Clayton's Art Exhibit

"Brooklyn Bridge"

"Jump"

"Grand Central Bustle"

Having my work on display at the art exhibit at Clayton's was a new experience for me as I have never before  been involved in an art exhibit. From this experience, I learned about the process of putting on a successful exhibit. The most important thing I learned from my participation in the Clayton's art exhibit is that the pieces cannot just be thrown up on the walls; instead, they have to be strategically placed in a way that allows them to compliment each other. I didn't realize how much work it would take just to organize the pieces in an eye-pleasing manner. My biggest challenge relating to the art exhibit was definitely picking which of my photographs to hang. Of all the hundreds of photos I have taken this year, picking just two was quite difficult. I kept in mind that my work would be hanging alongside everyone else's, so I tried to pick the photographs that I thought would be original and unique to me. I didn't want to choose photos of popular subject matters that would look similar to other people's work, because too much similarity would take away from the exhibit as a whole.

North Carolina

The cool breeze whispers
through my hair,
somehow sweet
and salty at the same time.

My eyes focus
on the fiery orb,
then on the reed,
letting the setting sun
melt into the horizon.

The subtle click
of the camera
punctures
the peaceful silence.

Self-Portraits

Sun shining,
Leaves flying,
Hair swaying.

Sleeves bunching,
Eyes staring,
Toes pointing.

Up in the air,

Frozen in movement,

Frozen in time.

Darkroom

        

I have spent the past few weeks working in the darkroom. So far, I have successfully printed three photographs. I began by processing, drying, and cutting my film. I then printed contact sheets for all of my film. Finally, I picked the photographs with the best exposure and composition to print.

Since it had been a while since the last time I worked in the darkroom (in Photo II), I had to briefly review the developing process. Over the past few weeks, I have learned that if my initial timed test strip (from 5 seconds to 25 seconds) does not produce any acceptable exposures, I should change the F-Stop on the enlarger. I have also learned to "burn" parts of my photograph that are too light by placing my hands under the light to cover the part of the photograph that is dark enough.

My goal for the next few weeks is to print at least three still-life photographs. I also hope to become more efficient at the whole developing process so that I can print my photographs more quickly. Finally, I hope to become better at judging my test strips so that I can minimize the amount of test strips that I have to print.

Portraits

While doing this assignment, I felt like such a professional photographer; I had time slots booked for a bunch of different models. I used a portrait lens and a very low f-stop (1.8, mostly) to create the blurred background effect that makes the subject's face stand out as the focus of the photo. I tried to not just photograph classic, smiling faces. Instead, my goal was to capture emotion through varying facial expressions.

NYC - Portraits

NYC - Legs

NYC - 9/11 Memorial

NYC - Brooklyn Bridge

NYC - Times Square at Night

NYC - Apple Store

NYC - Grand Central Station

NYC - Highline Walk

NYC Reflection

       For me, the highlight of the trip was most definitely our dinner at John’s Pizza. It is by far my favorite restaurant in New York, and I loved being able to share it with everyone else in the group. Another highlight was staying in Chinatown. This is because we were able to see the stands set up on the street with fresh fish, fruits, and vegetables each time we came or went from the hotel. The food being sold from the stands are quite different from what you may find in a typical grocery store in Maine, so it was very interesting to see this exotic variety. I also really enjoyed photographing Grand Central Station. I thought that the lighting in the building was really cool, and I enjoyed playing around with my shutter speed while trying to capture the blurred motion of all of the people rushing by.

       Of the many things I learned about in New York, ISO manipulation stands out. Before the trip, ISO was one of those things that I just left alone because I was unsure about it. I thought changing it would mess up my photographs. I now know that ISO is a crucial element of camera settings. It can allow you to take clear photos at various times of day or weather situations. For example, when it was sunny on Saturday, I changed my ISO from Friday’s 400 to 200. When we were photographing Times Square at night, I set my ISO as high as it would go (1600).

       One thing in particular I would like to remember is the importance of adjusting my camera’s ISO. This way I can account for the natural brightness or darkness of any day or night. I would also like to remember that adjusting the manual settings of my camera for each photograph has become a much quicker and more efficient process for me. When I first began photographing with manual settings, the process was long and cumbersome. Now, it is much easier, and hopefully will continue to become even more automatic. I would like to remember this when I experiment with new aspects of photography in the future; this will remind myself that even though a process may seem frustrating and impossible at first, with practice it will become much easier.

Words

"Ringside"

I took a deep breath and opened the door. The smell hit me like a book in the face- sweat, equipment, and testosterone. Mainly sweat. The intimidating rap music playing was slightly dulled out by the methodical pounding of fists against bags. The walls were plastered with a century’s worth of posters, articles, and photographs, many yellowed by the passing of time. Raised up above the concrete floor was the centerpiece of the gym: the ring. It had an almost heavenly aura, glowing from the impact of the harsh ceiling lights.

Winter by the Sea

"Summer Skeleton"

Summer months have come and gone

Their light and colors dancing by

Leaving carefree fun withdrawn.

The weight of snow and darkened days

Creeps across the endless shore,

Smothering the last flicker of summer haze.

Lay idle do the remnants of brighter times

In peaceful slumber, dormant.

Waiting for once again, the summer chimes.

Light Painting

"Globe"

"Ferris Wheel"

 "Candle"

 "Dream"

 "Scribbles"

Three Things I Learned From Completing This Assignment:

1. Photographing with a slow shutter speed may result in a lighter background than is seen from the photographer through the viewfinder.
2. It is often a good strategy to experiment and entertain a variety of ideas in order to reach successes.
3. My grandmother has a very short attention span, especially when dinner is involved.

Goals

I would like to learn more about the effects and tools involved with digital photography. More specifically, I'd like to become better at using the manual settings, like shutter speed and f-stop on a digital camera. I would also like to become more skilled at film photography. I noticed that most of my photographs that were taken on a film camera and developed in the dark room came out kind of blurry. I like film photographs to have a bit of an antiquated look, but blurriness that I did not intend to create is difficult to overcome in the dark room.

Two subject matters that I am interested in are movement and people. From my experience, I think that portraits can convey an enormous depth of emotion. I would really like to be able to create portraits that show the uniquenesses of each person I capture. Also, I have had difficulty in the past with photographing movement. So, I aim to develop my skills in the manipulation of camera settings in order to display movement in a way that preserves its purity as well as its energy.