1. 
montage and self-assessment for assignment 4 is up
2.
photos for assignment 5 were edited and score was revised.
3.
reflection of what i've learnt and score revised in assignment 1.
4. Photos for assignment 3 edited (lost in transit & corridor of change) for more definition.
5. score for assignment 6 revised.
montage and self-assessment for assignment 4 is up
2.
photos for assignment 5 were edited and score was revised.
3.
reflection of what i've learnt and score revised in assignment 1.
4. Photos for assignment 3 edited (lost in transit & corridor of change) for more definition.
5. score for assignment 6 revised.
If you were to pick a food to represent Singapore, what would it be and why?
this question had been referred to me a couple of times before and the first dish that emerged in my mind had always been unanimous: the 'rojak'.
so. what is a rojak? for the benefit of those who don't know, 'rojak', according to wikipedia, is a malay term for mixture and a colloquial expression for eclectic mix. in food terms, it is fundamentally a fruit and vegetable salad drenched with prawn paste and peanut shavings. here's what it looks like:
this black black dish contains cucumbers, pineapples, 'bangkwang' (turnip), 'dao gei' (beansprouts), kangkong (water convolvulous), 'you tiao' (dough sticks/fritters), 'tau pok' (fried bean curd) and sometimes century eggs and 'jiu her' cured cuttlefish.
okay. before this thing turns into a food blog, i'll come back to the main topic - why the rojak?
first, there's this thing about how the rojak represents the coming together of different ethnicities in Singapore (yeah. the stuff that we were all brainwashed with since the day we enter school). however, i believe 'rojak' actually holds more meaning than this race thing. rojak too represents the culture in Singapore - a mix of cultures coming from all sorts of places.
when i first saw the question 'what is Singapore culture', i was stumped for a while. for a moment, i believed that i have no culture (culture as in culture, not culture as in upbringing. hehe). then the kiasu (afraid to lose) and kiasee (afraid to die) thing came to my mind. but then again, these stuff belong to the 'aunty' generation right? so what is rightfully ours?
looking at the media, there is actually no one dominant form of 'influencing media'. there's actually a mix of stuff from different countries, mainly, the US, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong. With such exposure to an abundance of media, each specific country's impact/influence on the overall Singaporean culture is hence reduced.
this is especially so in terms of fashion, where the influence of visual images are the most evident. there are people adopting the western 'casual' style, people spotting taiwan's 'cutie' style, or others having the korean 'romantic' style. however, it is also wrong to categorise people into only one distinct image style group as there are often a subtle mixes of styles adopted. for example, someone who is predominantly influenced by the west may spot a Japanese-style skirt to compliment her look. with such, it is thus difficult to pinpoint which visual media is actually the most dominant.
this is actually contrary to (eg) India, as what was shown in the lecture. i presumed that they are exposed mostly to western media, hence its pronounced influence on India's urban culture. Singapore's situation, when compared to this, hence becomes unique.
for most of us, i guess we resemble a fusion of cultures. it is also this very fusion that made it so difficult to pinpoint what the Singaporean culture actually is for everyone 'fuses' differently. for example, i may be more influenced by images from the West while another may be more influenced by the Japanese. however, both of us may share similar values adapted from Taiwan.
hence, if i were to really define a Singaporean culture, i would say 'fusion' or in Singaporean language, 'rojak'.
Speaking of the Singaporean language, the Singlish (that Singaporeans are proud of and the politicians, weary of), where Singaporeans often claim is the Singaporean culture, it is, fundamentally, too, a mixture of the different local languages and dialects such as malay, hokkien and cantonese.
thus, it seemed that Singaporeans have this knack of adopting a variety of cultures from a variety of media and then calling the outcome their own Singaporean culture. this is, indeed, very 'rojak'. the rojak dish comprise of very ordinary food that can be found at every other country. however, it is the prawn paste that cemented these food together to finally emerge as a dish unique only to Singapore - just like how different cultures are internalised and then reproduced as a single unique Singaporean culture - ugly at sight, delicious when tasted.
this question had been referred to me a couple of times before and the first dish that emerged in my mind had always been unanimous: the 'rojak'.
so. what is a rojak? for the benefit of those who don't know, 'rojak', according to wikipedia, is a malay term for mixture and a colloquial expression for eclectic mix. in food terms, it is fundamentally a fruit and vegetable salad drenched with prawn paste and peanut shavings. here's what it looks like:
this black black dish contains cucumbers, pineapples, 'bangkwang' (turnip), 'dao gei' (beansprouts), kangkong (water convolvulous), 'you tiao' (dough sticks/fritters), 'tau pok' (fried bean curd) and sometimes century eggs and 'jiu her' cured cuttlefish.
okay. before this thing turns into a food blog, i'll come back to the main topic - why the rojak?
first, there's this thing about how the rojak represents the coming together of different ethnicities in Singapore (yeah. the stuff that we were all brainwashed with since the day we enter school). however, i believe 'rojak' actually holds more meaning than this race thing. rojak too represents the culture in Singapore - a mix of cultures coming from all sorts of places.
when i first saw the question 'what is Singapore culture', i was stumped for a while. for a moment, i believed that i have no culture (culture as in culture, not culture as in upbringing. hehe). then the kiasu (afraid to lose) and kiasee (afraid to die) thing came to my mind. but then again, these stuff belong to the 'aunty' generation right? so what is rightfully ours?
looking at the media, there is actually no one dominant form of 'influencing media'. there's actually a mix of stuff from different countries, mainly, the US, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong. With such exposure to an abundance of media, each specific country's impact/influence on the overall Singaporean culture is hence reduced.
this is especially so in terms of fashion, where the influence of visual images are the most evident. there are people adopting the western 'casual' style, people spotting taiwan's 'cutie' style, or others having the korean 'romantic' style. however, it is also wrong to categorise people into only one distinct image style group as there are often a subtle mixes of styles adopted. for example, someone who is predominantly influenced by the west may spot a Japanese-style skirt to compliment her look. with such, it is thus difficult to pinpoint which visual media is actually the most dominant.
this is actually contrary to (eg) India, as what was shown in the lecture. i presumed that they are exposed mostly to western media, hence its pronounced influence on India's urban culture. Singapore's situation, when compared to this, hence becomes unique.
for most of us, i guess we resemble a fusion of cultures. it is also this very fusion that made it so difficult to pinpoint what the Singaporean culture actually is for everyone 'fuses' differently. for example, i may be more influenced by images from the West while another may be more influenced by the Japanese. however, both of us may share similar values adapted from Taiwan.
hence, if i were to really define a Singaporean culture, i would say 'fusion' or in Singaporean language, 'rojak'.
Speaking of the Singaporean language, the Singlish (that Singaporeans are proud of and the politicians, weary of), where Singaporeans often claim is the Singaporean culture, it is, fundamentally, too, a mixture of the different local languages and dialects such as malay, hokkien and cantonese.
thus, it seemed that Singaporeans have this knack of adopting a variety of cultures from a variety of media and then calling the outcome their own Singaporean culture. this is, indeed, very 'rojak'. the rojak dish comprise of very ordinary food that can be found at every other country. however, it is the prawn paste that cemented these food together to finally emerge as a dish unique only to Singapore - just like how different cultures are internalised and then reproduced as a single unique Singaporean culture - ugly at sight, delicious when tasted.
this is the series of ads from the Singapore Environment Council that chew yue and I have analysed. we actually picked the one with the Cupid for the actual in-depth analysis as we thought it bore more symbolic meaning than the other two.
the tagline on the upper left hand corner actually reads 'Atmospheric Pollution Affects Everyone'.
the Text
Origins: Singapore Advertisement from the Singapore Environment Council
Genre: Commercial Photography
Target Audience: Singaporean youths to adults (probably 15 - 40 years old) who are educated, literate, and familiar with the concept of the cupid.
the Signs
Modality Issues
modality: reality status accorded to/claimed by a sign, text or genre OR status, authority and reliability of a message
medium - photograph: Photographs possess higher modalities than (eg) writing, hence are more likely to be judged as realistic.
organisation - The SEC: Reputable local environmental organisation, hence a strong message reliability.
Presence of modality markers: Real objects that the audience can identify with are used (eg: car, man, man's expression/reaction to the fallen cupid). Everything within the photograph can be considered a modality marker.
From the above modality analysis, this photograph seems to be a reliable reflection of the 'real world'
BUT presence of a surreal character - the cupid - questions the extent of realism and persuasiveness of the photograph.
as a result, these Questions arise:
- Is this belivable?
- Who will believe the story?
- Fictional characters are used to illustrate and abstract problem of atmospheric pollution. Problems?
- What if 'real' objects were used?
the above are similar photographs from greenpeace with the same concept of using surreality to bring out a serious message about saving the trees.
however, in this case, although the main signifiers used (the human body and leopard) are unreal, the audience can, nonetheless, relate with them more than that of the cupid as these signifiers actually exist in the real world (refer to 'social coding' below). furthermore, as these ads are connotative (hinging on the fear appeal), the impact of the message will hence be greater.
this is a photograph of a using a 'real' object as a sign to signify the consequence of an abstract pollution problem. the modality marker, in this case, is a real dead bird. hence, this photograph has higher reliability and persuasiveness and can better bring out the 'seriousness' of the issue.
Syntagmatic Structure
main meaning bearers
the Text "Atmospheric pollution affects everyone".
the text anchors the meaning of the entire ad. Without its placement, the meaning of the ad will be lost. (there's an abundance of possibilities to describe why the cupid is dead on the car). The text is actually indexic in nature.
the Cupid
the cupid brings out the essence of the text.
It is indispensable, but interchangeable (refer to pictures below).
In the series, the photographs will lose their sense without the witch, cupid and alien. It would make no sense if the fictional characters and the humans switch places.
However, if these three characters were to switch places (ie put the witch into the cupid photo, the cupid into the alien photo etc), the ads will still work and the message can still be clearly understood.
interaction of signs
the 'actions' and 'reactions', 'causes' and 'effects' are effectively brought out. for example, the man's expression is a 'reaction' to the 'action' of the dead cupid. the cracked glass is an 'effect' of the fallen cupid (cause).
spatial arrangements in the photograph are very crucial in meaning creation. as mentioned above, if man and cupid were to switch places, the ad won't make sense anymore.
social coding
the ad is denotative and is generally light hearted with not much emotional appeals. the anchors (ie the cupid, the text, reinforcements of signs) are also rather effective in limiting the room for differing interpretations.
however, the decoding process can go wrong if the audience are:
- Unfamiliar with the concept of the cupid
- Unfamiliar with the concept of air pollution
- Unable to comprehend the English language
- Misinterprets the man's expression
this is an example of how social coding is useful in the decoding process. this is another air pollution ad from greenpeace. the tagline reads 'it's up to you. either you defend the planet or it will defend itself'. this text does not clearly state how the planet is going to defend itself. hence, it all depends on how the audience decodes the photograph.
in this image, the lighter clouds are actually the polluted air while the darker portion belongs to the hurricane (signifying the planet's defence). however, this only works in places where hurricanes are frequently see, hence the audience's ability to recognise the natural disaster immediately (result of social coding). nonetheless, if this was to be placed in countries where such is rarely seen (eg Singapore), the decoding process may just go wrong as the audience attempt to make sense out of it by drawing their own conclusions from their experiences.
the reason to why fictional characters are used (refer to 'Modality issues' for the discussion) to represent the abstract problem of air pollution may also be due to the context of the photograph. In Singapore, the problem of air pollution may not be as great as in other major cities such as China and the USA. hence, the urgency to create heightened awareness in the target audience are not as great. as a result, a light hearted 'awareness' ad such as this may well be sufficient to generate and awareness.
Paradigmatic Analysis
paradigms: pre-existing sets of signifiers
paradigmatic: analyzes these paradigms embedded within the text.
paradigmatic relations: why certain signifiers are used instead of their alternatives, and the significance of the absence of such alternatives.
the binary opposites (contrasting oppositions) present in the ad are as follows
- clean vs polluted air
- Within the car vs outside of the car
- Man (real) vs the cupid (surreal)
polluted air, a feature of 'normal' air pollution ads, are actually absent in this text.
this is an example of how foggy and dirty skies are typically used to depict air pollution. such dark skies are common indexic signs to signal the presence of air pollution. thus, this 'dark sky' image can be a suitable alternative (which is absent) for our text.
SO. why did the text choose to dis-include this alternative and choose a clear blue sky instead?
the reason may be linked back to the 'modality issue'. air pollution do not normally appear with ominous skies. it is, in fact, always there, even if the skies are blue. thus, by opting for clear skies, the ad can actually increase the impact and make a statement that air pollution, though not visible, exists. the text, hence, chose to make use of an iconic sign instead of an indexic one to bright out the idea.
alternative considerations
- how about other flying objects to replace the cupid or other vehicles instead of the car?
- how about replacing this humourous tone with a more serious one?
rhetorical trope employed by the text is irony - the opposite of standard meaning.
there is an ironical portrayal of deaths of non-existent characters - empahsize the message that air pollution is so serious that even fictional characters (who are not supposed to die), are killed by it.
Technical Codes
colours employed are a little to the dull side (colours not as vivid as normal photographs) probably to coincide with the grave and grey concept of air pollution
small aperture used to keep everything in focus. hence, it can be deemed as a form of 'realistic' photo, increasing its modality.
a medium shot and framed to include only the essentials. as a result, clutter and noise that could distract the audience's decoding process are minimised.
shot from a straight angle, hence providing a sense of equality between audience and subjects within the frame.
Conclusion
a 'feel good', humorous ad at first glance.
however, when subjected to semiotic analysis, it is actually not as effective in highlighting the serious side of air pollution. however, in terms of creating awareness, the ad can generally leave an impression.
peer-review
the ad was generally well-received and everyone understood the intended message - perhaps due to the fact that we are amongst their target audience. they also thought the idea of the cupid worked rather well to bring out the meaning of the text. yikang also suggested that through the usage of the cupid, the ad may also suggest the death of nature's love for man, or something along this line.
however, someone did question the reason to why the humans not affected despite them breathing the same air as those fictional characters.the reason to this is that atmospheric pollution happens in the upper layers of the atmosphere. hence, these 'flying creatures', who happened to fly at that level of the atmosphere, are affected instead of the humans. with this little 'confusion', it is clear that despite the SEC's efforts to minimise misinterpretations, it is still inevitable to have every single one of its target audience to see the ad in the way they want to see it. nonetheless, the ad is still generally understood and hence, effective.
peer-assessment
Desmond's presentation left the greatest impression. he did a rather good analysis of the ad from his target audience's (people in China) point of view and i agreed with his conclusion - the ad is too 'westernised' to be read in a Chinese setting, especially when their sense of culture remains relatively strong. Besides, many of us actually misinterpreted the ad when we first saw it and we are definitely under a stronger western influence than the mainland Chinese. Hence, i agree with the conclusion that he had drawn about the ad.
one thing though, his presentation did not really touch on semiotics and the technicalities of the photos. Thus, i'll give his group a rating of 8.7/10.
self-assessment
for our presentation, i'll give ourselves 9.3/10.
the process
the objective of this week's assignment is to identify 3 types of images: realism, expressionism and formalism. to actually aid myself in remembering what these different expressions mean, i came up with my own little way of remembering. Realism - a genre that i don't really like - show everything, nothing artistic and nice about it. Expressionism - what's my point of view? Formalism - ART. so with these thoughts in mind, i proceeded to ponder over 'creep'.
creep actually has loads of meaning. the first one that hit me was the creepy feeling - taking scary stuff to portray a scary aura. creep can also mean something that's moving slowly and stealthily. creep also encompasses the creepy crawlies (yuck. i simply detest insects). later, i also found out that creep also has this meaning of a change of state that is irreversible.
my first idea was actually to get down to the market to snap pictures of the butcher. i intended, for the expressionism part, to capture his chopping action with his huge chopper but leave the contents under the knife out of the frame so as to unethically classify him as a 'murderous creep'. however, this wasn't executed partly because i was shy and the butcher uncle looked really fierce. =p
one of the first few attempts in capturing 'creep'. there's always this stereotype floating around that whenever a door is half opened without anyone standing outside, something creepy's bound to happen. hence this photo. i would have classified it under an expressionistic one. why is the door opening by itself?
shadows are another example of a popular 'creepy' stereotype. i attempted to capture one with a looming shadow appearing scarily behind somebody. but i can't find the right lighting and place to do it.
i think rubber gloves are creepy. esp if they are white and hung up to dry. this can actually be both an expressionistic and a formalistic shot. you can ponder over why the creepy glove is there or you can appreciate it as it is. hehe.
another glove thing. i seriously think they are scary. clowns wear them and i think clowns are scary too. hee.
this is a realistic shot of beetles. this picture absolutely gross me out. i actually went to the insect kingdom to attempt to capture the creepy crawlies in action (eg zoomed in legs, big bug eyes etc..) and i definitely regretted my decision. my hair was on their ends throughout the whole trip and i kept having the feeling that something is crawling all over me. bleh.
and as if watching them wasn't bad enough, i have to shoot them, get them into focus, look at them up, close and personal. my gosh. the worst experience of my life. i really have a phobia of insects. eeek.
another creepy crawly. it's a little blur, perhaps due to the bad lighting and my trembling hands.
the final copies
contrary to the attempted shots above, i actually chose a totally different creep as the final ones (however, if you think those on top are better, do tell me. i'll work on em.. hehe)
the ones that are chosen actually portrays creep as a 'motion' rather than 'feeling'.
hence, my final copies will be entitled: natural creeps - an attempt to show the battle between man vs nature.
the realistic shot.
just a window to the view. not supposed to carry any forms of meaning to it. from here, you can see a tree trying to grow on top of a building.
the formalistic shot.
i liked the way the roots reach out. the expense of it actually makes my hair stand while i was there at the actual place. all these fine hairy stuff in big bulks just have this effect on me. besides, if you look closely, you can see the white marks left behind by old roots some time back - another 'hair raising' source. well, i guess this is a form of creep as well?
from another (more normal) view, these roots of the tree are actually slowly creeping, reaching out, as if it is attempting to extend its claws onto man-made buildings, silently revealing its victory over man.
the expressionistic shot
i wanted to show how the tree works around man-made obstructions for survival. this is actually the best angle as i have no other access to other parts of the tree.
from this, i wanted to portray the 'fight' between man and nature. is man winning by forcing it's concrete slabs into the world of nature, or is nature fighting back by silently strangling man's cement with its roots?
peer-reviews
nick actually suggested that i rotate my formalistic piece to give the impression of an upward creeping motion. after rotation, it will actually look like this:
well. after rotation, there's a totally different feeling to it. it looked like more like a plant or some sort.
ok. now i'm stuck. i'll have a good look at them before deciding to change or not.
there's also a suggestion that i take a portrait shot of my expressionistic piece so as to reveal more of the roots to better bring out my point of view. i actually agreed with this comment. i was like 'yah. why didn't i think of it then? stupid me.' well, i'll be back with the image of the re-taken shot when i get back to the place.
right. i finally squeezed out some time to re-take these photos. fortunately, the tree is still there! (yayy?) i managed to re-shoot the 'realistic' and 'expressionistic' photos.
i thought these can portray the effect better than the initial (landscape) one chosen. so thanks for the tip!
another set of 'creep - nature against man' thing that i spotted while im back taking my tree. they are arranged like this: realistic -> expressionistic (it's not showing for some unknown reason \_/) -> formalistic. however, i still preferred my initial one as i thought the expressionistic was rather weak, perhaps because i didn't have anything in mind to 'express' at that point of time. i shot these solely because i thought the patterns that were created were interesting.
the final copies2
the realistic shot
i picked this shot instead as it shows the 'frontal view' of the tree. i shot this on my second trip back and preferred this to the initial one as it shows more tree. the idea of realistic photographs is to 'hide' as little as possible right?
the formalistic shot
i decided to stick with my landscape view after some deliberation. the portrait shot did signify 'growth' as the roots were sticking upwards, hence more meaning to the photo. however, it is this very pattern (growing sideways) that got my attention initially. besides, since this is a formalistic shot, i would rather it look 'odd' (so people will ponder for a while what it is exactly) than to let it look 'normal'.
the expressionistic shot
i picked this out of the 2 above as the roots in this photo were bigger and more 'intimidating' than the other one. just imagine thick roots clamming onto the man-made concrete wall.....
the final copies. really.
the photos are subjected to editing to further highlight my theme of nature vs man. to me, nature triumphs, hence the vividness of the tree.
realistic
formalistic
expressionistic
as mentioned above, i believed nature triumphs. hence, the tree was retouched to give it more life while the walls were desaturated to offer a contrast. less editing and contrast was done to the realistic shot as it is, nonetheless, a realistic shot.
peer-assessment
xinying's 'The Guy in the Alley' was one of my favourites and i thought it looked like some screen shot from a hong kong 'brotherhood' movie. in my opinion, the 'creep' in her photos come from the 'mysterious' and 'unknown' feeling that her photo gave out. as everything was dark and shadowy, no one knows who the guy was and what he's doing, hence the 'creeps'. i esp liked the 'expressionistic' shot - looked like the guy was trying to run away from someone and the background (with the blurring and stuff) made it look even more real.
however, i thought her realistic photo didn't look 'realistic' enough. it looked more expressionistic to me. i thought it would be better if the alley could be illuminated to reveal everything in the alley (although i know using flash will make the photo look not as pretty, but it's a realistic shot right? hehe). hence, i'll give her 9.3/10 for her great work.
sheryl's photos too made an impression as hers was radically different from the rest. she actually made an ordinary blanket looked surreal and it looked really velvety and nice to sleep in after knowing that it was a blanket =P. her realistic photo did manage to capture the idea of sunlight streaming in from her window quite well. my favourite was actually her expressionistic photo. i thought it was a human body under those covers and only realised that it was not when i saw her realistic photo. hence, i thought it was really well executed. thus, i'll rate her 9.5/10.
self-assessment
i did see a few other people doing stuff like mine - nature creeping over something kinda thing. hence, i did feel a little 'hmmm'.. ok. my idea wasn't unique.
hence, i retouched my photos a little to give them more 'life' and contrasts and i thought they actually looked better. besides, i did attempt to stick to the 3 categories - realistic, formalistic and expressionistic - that was required for this assignment. hence, i'll give myself a new score of 9.0/10.
the objective of this week's assignment is to identify 3 types of images: realism, expressionism and formalism. to actually aid myself in remembering what these different expressions mean, i came up with my own little way of remembering. Realism - a genre that i don't really like - show everything, nothing artistic and nice about it. Expressionism - what's my point of view? Formalism - ART. so with these thoughts in mind, i proceeded to ponder over 'creep'.
creep actually has loads of meaning. the first one that hit me was the creepy feeling - taking scary stuff to portray a scary aura. creep can also mean something that's moving slowly and stealthily. creep also encompasses the creepy crawlies (yuck. i simply detest insects). later, i also found out that creep also has this meaning of a change of state that is irreversible.
my first idea was actually to get down to the market to snap pictures of the butcher. i intended, for the expressionism part, to capture his chopping action with his huge chopper but leave the contents under the knife out of the frame so as to unethically classify him as a 'murderous creep'. however, this wasn't executed partly because i was shy and the butcher uncle looked really fierce. =p
one of the first few attempts in capturing 'creep'. there's always this stereotype floating around that whenever a door is half opened without anyone standing outside, something creepy's bound to happen. hence this photo. i would have classified it under an expressionistic one. why is the door opening by itself?
shadows are another example of a popular 'creepy' stereotype. i attempted to capture one with a looming shadow appearing scarily behind somebody. but i can't find the right lighting and place to do it.
i think rubber gloves are creepy. esp if they are white and hung up to dry. this can actually be both an expressionistic and a formalistic shot. you can ponder over why the creepy glove is there or you can appreciate it as it is. hehe.
another glove thing. i seriously think they are scary. clowns wear them and i think clowns are scary too. hee.
this is a realistic shot of beetles. this picture absolutely gross me out. i actually went to the insect kingdom to attempt to capture the creepy crawlies in action (eg zoomed in legs, big bug eyes etc..) and i definitely regretted my decision. my hair was on their ends throughout the whole trip and i kept having the feeling that something is crawling all over me. bleh.
and as if watching them wasn't bad enough, i have to shoot them, get them into focus, look at them up, close and personal. my gosh. the worst experience of my life. i really have a phobia of insects. eeek.
another creepy crawly. it's a little blur, perhaps due to the bad lighting and my trembling hands.
contrary to the attempted shots above, i actually chose a totally different creep as the final ones (however, if you think those on top are better, do tell me. i'll work on em.. hehe)
the ones that are chosen actually portrays creep as a 'motion' rather than 'feeling'.
hence, my final copies will be entitled: natural creeps - an attempt to show the battle between man vs nature.
the realistic shot.
just a window to the view. not supposed to carry any forms of meaning to it. from here, you can see a tree trying to grow on top of a building.
the formalistic shot.
i liked the way the roots reach out. the expense of it actually makes my hair stand while i was there at the actual place. all these fine hairy stuff in big bulks just have this effect on me. besides, if you look closely, you can see the white marks left behind by old roots some time back - another 'hair raising' source. well, i guess this is a form of creep as well?
from another (more normal) view, these roots of the tree are actually slowly creeping, reaching out, as if it is attempting to extend its claws onto man-made buildings, silently revealing its victory over man.
the expressionistic shot
i wanted to show how the tree works around man-made obstructions for survival. this is actually the best angle as i have no other access to other parts of the tree.
from this, i wanted to portray the 'fight' between man and nature. is man winning by forcing it's concrete slabs into the world of nature, or is nature fighting back by silently strangling man's cement with its roots?
peer-reviews
nick actually suggested that i rotate my formalistic piece to give the impression of an upward creeping motion. after rotation, it will actually look like this:
well. after rotation, there's a totally different feeling to it. it looked like more like a plant or some sort.
ok. now i'm stuck. i'll have a good look at them before deciding to change or not.
there's also a suggestion that i take a portrait shot of my expressionistic piece so as to reveal more of the roots to better bring out my point of view. i actually agreed with this comment. i was like 'yah. why didn't i think of it then? stupid me.' well, i'll be back with the image of the re-taken shot when i get back to the place.
right. i finally squeezed out some time to re-take these photos. fortunately, the tree is still there! (yayy?) i managed to re-shoot the 'realistic' and 'expressionistic' photos.
i thought these can portray the effect better than the initial (landscape) one chosen. so thanks for the tip!
another set of 'creep - nature against man' thing that i spotted while im back taking my tree. they are arranged like this: realistic -> expressionistic (it's not showing for some unknown reason \_/) -> formalistic. however, i still preferred my initial one as i thought the expressionistic was rather weak, perhaps because i didn't have anything in mind to 'express' at that point of time. i shot these solely because i thought the patterns that were created were interesting.
the realistic shot
i picked this shot instead as it shows the 'frontal view' of the tree. i shot this on my second trip back and preferred this to the initial one as it shows more tree. the idea of realistic photographs is to 'hide' as little as possible right?
the formalistic shot
i decided to stick with my landscape view after some deliberation. the portrait shot did signify 'growth' as the roots were sticking upwards, hence more meaning to the photo. however, it is this very pattern (growing sideways) that got my attention initially. besides, since this is a formalistic shot, i would rather it look 'odd' (so people will ponder for a while what it is exactly) than to let it look 'normal'.
the expressionistic shot
i picked this out of the 2 above as the roots in this photo were bigger and more 'intimidating' than the other one. just imagine thick roots clamming onto the man-made concrete wall.....
the final copies. really.
the photos are subjected to editing to further highlight my theme of nature vs man. to me, nature triumphs, hence the vividness of the tree.
realistic
formalistic
expressionistic
as mentioned above, i believed nature triumphs. hence, the tree was retouched to give it more life while the walls were desaturated to offer a contrast. less editing and contrast was done to the realistic shot as it is, nonetheless, a realistic shot.
peer-assessment
xinying's 'The Guy in the Alley' was one of my favourites and i thought it looked like some screen shot from a hong kong 'brotherhood' movie. in my opinion, the 'creep' in her photos come from the 'mysterious' and 'unknown' feeling that her photo gave out. as everything was dark and shadowy, no one knows who the guy was and what he's doing, hence the 'creeps'. i esp liked the 'expressionistic' shot - looked like the guy was trying to run away from someone and the background (with the blurring and stuff) made it look even more real.
however, i thought her realistic photo didn't look 'realistic' enough. it looked more expressionistic to me. i thought it would be better if the alley could be illuminated to reveal everything in the alley (although i know using flash will make the photo look not as pretty, but it's a realistic shot right? hehe). hence, i'll give her 9.3/10 for her great work.
sheryl's photos too made an impression as hers was radically different from the rest. she actually made an ordinary blanket looked surreal and it looked really velvety and nice to sleep in after knowing that it was a blanket =P. her realistic photo did manage to capture the idea of sunlight streaming in from her window quite well. my favourite was actually her expressionistic photo. i thought it was a human body under those covers and only realised that it was not when i saw her realistic photo. hence, i thought it was really well executed. thus, i'll rate her 9.5/10.
self-assessment
i did see a few other people doing stuff like mine - nature creeping over something kinda thing. hence, i did feel a little 'hmmm'.. ok. my idea wasn't unique.
hence, i retouched my photos a little to give them more 'life' and contrasts and i thought they actually looked better. besides, i did attempt to stick to the 3 categories - realistic, formalistic and expressionistic - that was required for this assignment. hence, i'll give myself a new score of 9.0/10.
the process
i have to admit that this assignment is very much a struggle for me. first, although i do have enough knowledge about photoshop to get by with photo editing, i seldom use the layer function. even if i have used it, it would not be more than 5 layers at one time. hence, this photomontage thing is a nightmare to me, not mentioning the bit where i'm squeezing my brain juice on what to take and how to take.
this is my first trial piece. was trying to figure things out while doing this.
the national museum came to my mind while i was pondering over the theme "the day after". i was flipping through some magazines when i saw how packed the place was during an event that happened there. and the day after this event, the museum was all quiet again. and since i haven't been to the museum since... (have i ever been there?), i decided to pay the museum a visit..
the second composite i've done and the first montage of the pictures of the museum. this is the montage of the dome. i was rather attracted by the colours of the stained glass above.
this is a cafe within the museum. it was rather quiet and the only people that were moving about were the waiters. hence, i tried to capture the movements of the waiters and at the same time contrast the scene with the lack of customers. however, as i was happily shooting away, i was stopped halfway by somebody saying that i can't take pictures inside. so i stopped and these are all i can get.
selected copy
this was taken outside the museum. i actually liked the structure. it looked magnificent and serene. hence, i brought this to class to depict the theme 'the day after the museum was built, nobody goes there anymore'.
i took quite some time to piece this thing together (im still trying to figure things out) and i actually thought i did fine. however, when i went to class, i realised my work was rather crappy when placed amongst the works of the others. i really needed to do alot ALOT more.
peer-reviews and reflection
the comments that i got was that the theme that i was trying to portray didn't really turn out well. all they see was a nice old building and that's all. somebody suggested that perhaps i should contrast this with a busy street of at least put movements or people into the montage. there's also a suggestion that i merge this and the one on the cafe together to create the effect. these are really good suggestions and i'll work on it to improve the thing.
at the end of the class, i have to admit that i was quite demoralised and unhappy with my own work. i did put in alot of effort in creating that thing but apparently the outcome didn't seem to show that.
after looking at the creations of my other classmates, i do realise that the things i lacked in my pictures were creativity and depth. perhaps it's because i didn't really explore the field of photomontage enough to identify the different things that i can play around with. it is also perhaps that i was too stuck on the belief that a photomontage should recreate the image that i see and not creatively putting random pictures inside or adding foreign things inside and tweaking colours etc.. as a result of these, i came up with a super boring piece.
the final copy
after all these reflections, i guess i have to come up with a more interesting piece. i am still in the process of re-doing it but i guess it'll have to take some time. (well, term break IS over and working on this thing all over again will take doubly long. =|) i do hope that i can produce something that is much better and less crappy as compared with the others' stuff.
peer-assessment
shena's Where will you be, the day after impressed me the most in the class.
i actually liked her idea on how she blew up some really small things to draw attention to them (eg the signboard, the dustbin etc). i also liked the way she pieced the montage together. When examined closely, all the pictures were actually inconsistently placed. however, when looked from a distance, everything just falls together nicely and they looked sort of like a piece of oil painting as well. hence, im giving her 9.7/10 for superb effort.
another montage that i'm attracted to was Mike's Ambivalence. I'm not sure if this is going to be his final piece (he's got 2 images up) but i really liked it. i liked his concept of piecing only the girl to effectively bring out his message. the red background too formed a really strong contrast with his model. overall, it looked really 'ambivalent'. hence, i'll give him 9.5/10 for his creativity. =)
the final copy. really.
sorry for taking so long but my photomontage is finally completed. *phew*
okay. the logic behind the montage of this particular HDB block in Tanjong Pagar is because such long & horizontal blocks are less commonly seen nowadays due to them being a feature of HDB blocks in the past. hence, i attempted to make use of this assignment to construct the panaromic view of the block, hoping to bring out the scale of its 'horizontal-ness'.
another reason for me to do this is because i used to stay here and i often find myself missing this place - the oldness and all. hee. because of it's long corridors, i have more neighbours than i have now =P. o well. this assignment may just provide me with a keepsake of my old neighbourhood.
hence, this piece shall be just "the day after" - the day after i shifted, the day after yesterday, the day after it became my memory, the day after new tenants moved in - the day after.. the hdb will still remain the same.
okie. now for the technicalities.
as of any other montages, this is better seen enlarged. hee. i tried to 'cube' each apartment and then piece them together to bring out this 'each photo tells a different story on its own' kind of thing. i did manage to capture and piece double images of some apartments as i captured changes during the shooting process (eg a woman standing outside her door in one picture and then being inside her house in another or a door opening and closed in some), fulfilling the 'multi-perspective' thing of photomontages i guess as you can;t do this sort of stuff in ordinary photographs.
some photos were cropped and resized to fit into the picture. i initially wanted to capture the whole building but that, as i gradually realized during shooting day, was a mammoth and task.
i had to go up to its facing block to capture the images and people are wondering what am i doing, loitering around their corridors. besides, the building has 21 storeys and people from the opposite too noticed me and started closing their doors and windows due to the close proximities between the 2 blocks. oops. so i decided to just focus on the level that i used to stay and get out of the place just in case anyone decides to call the police. =P
self-assessment
okies. i think i did a much better job this time as compared to those brought to class. alot more images are used and my photoshop did hang this time round during the stitching and editting process. hee. hence, i'd give myself 9.1/10 for the efforts and the final outcome.
i have to admit that this assignment is very much a struggle for me. first, although i do have enough knowledge about photoshop to get by with photo editing, i seldom use the layer function. even if i have used it, it would not be more than 5 layers at one time. hence, this photomontage thing is a nightmare to me, not mentioning the bit where i'm squeezing my brain juice on what to take and how to take.
this is my first trial piece. was trying to figure things out while doing this.
the national museum came to my mind while i was pondering over the theme "the day after". i was flipping through some magazines when i saw how packed the place was during an event that happened there. and the day after this event, the museum was all quiet again. and since i haven't been to the museum since... (have i ever been there?), i decided to pay the museum a visit..
the second composite i've done and the first montage of the pictures of the museum. this is the montage of the dome. i was rather attracted by the colours of the stained glass above.
this is a cafe within the museum. it was rather quiet and the only people that were moving about were the waiters. hence, i tried to capture the movements of the waiters and at the same time contrast the scene with the lack of customers. however, as i was happily shooting away, i was stopped halfway by somebody saying that i can't take pictures inside. so i stopped and these are all i can get.
this was taken outside the museum. i actually liked the structure. it looked magnificent and serene. hence, i brought this to class to depict the theme 'the day after the museum was built, nobody goes there anymore'.
i took quite some time to piece this thing together (im still trying to figure things out) and i actually thought i did fine. however, when i went to class, i realised my work was rather crappy when placed amongst the works of the others. i really needed to do alot ALOT more.
peer-reviews and reflection
the comments that i got was that the theme that i was trying to portray didn't really turn out well. all they see was a nice old building and that's all. somebody suggested that perhaps i should contrast this with a busy street of at least put movements or people into the montage. there's also a suggestion that i merge this and the one on the cafe together to create the effect. these are really good suggestions and i'll work on it to improve the thing.
at the end of the class, i have to admit that i was quite demoralised and unhappy with my own work. i did put in alot of effort in creating that thing but apparently the outcome didn't seem to show that.
after looking at the creations of my other classmates, i do realise that the things i lacked in my pictures were creativity and depth. perhaps it's because i didn't really explore the field of photomontage enough to identify the different things that i can play around with. it is also perhaps that i was too stuck on the belief that a photomontage should recreate the image that i see and not creatively putting random pictures inside or adding foreign things inside and tweaking colours etc.. as a result of these, i came up with a super boring piece.
the final copy
after all these reflections, i guess i have to come up with a more interesting piece. i am still in the process of re-doing it but i guess it'll have to take some time. (well, term break IS over and working on this thing all over again will take doubly long. =|) i do hope that i can produce something that is much better and less crappy as compared with the others' stuff.
peer-assessment
shena's Where will you be, the day after impressed me the most in the class.
i actually liked her idea on how she blew up some really small things to draw attention to them (eg the signboard, the dustbin etc). i also liked the way she pieced the montage together. When examined closely, all the pictures were actually inconsistently placed. however, when looked from a distance, everything just falls together nicely and they looked sort of like a piece of oil painting as well. hence, im giving her 9.7/10 for superb effort.
another montage that i'm attracted to was Mike's Ambivalence. I'm not sure if this is going to be his final piece (he's got 2 images up) but i really liked it. i liked his concept of piecing only the girl to effectively bring out his message. the red background too formed a really strong contrast with his model. overall, it looked really 'ambivalent'. hence, i'll give him 9.5/10 for his creativity. =)
the final copy. really.
sorry for taking so long but my photomontage is finally completed. *phew*
okay. the logic behind the montage of this particular HDB block in Tanjong Pagar is because such long & horizontal blocks are less commonly seen nowadays due to them being a feature of HDB blocks in the past. hence, i attempted to make use of this assignment to construct the panaromic view of the block, hoping to bring out the scale of its 'horizontal-ness'.
another reason for me to do this is because i used to stay here and i often find myself missing this place - the oldness and all. hee. because of it's long corridors, i have more neighbours than i have now =P. o well. this assignment may just provide me with a keepsake of my old neighbourhood.
hence, this piece shall be just "the day after" - the day after i shifted, the day after yesterday, the day after it became my memory, the day after new tenants moved in - the day after.. the hdb will still remain the same.
okie. now for the technicalities.
as of any other montages, this is better seen enlarged. hee. i tried to 'cube' each apartment and then piece them together to bring out this 'each photo tells a different story on its own' kind of thing. i did manage to capture and piece double images of some apartments as i captured changes during the shooting process (eg a woman standing outside her door in one picture and then being inside her house in another or a door opening and closed in some), fulfilling the 'multi-perspective' thing of photomontages i guess as you can;t do this sort of stuff in ordinary photographs.
some photos were cropped and resized to fit into the picture. i initially wanted to capture the whole building but that, as i gradually realized during shooting day, was a mammoth and task.
i had to go up to its facing block to capture the images and people are wondering what am i doing, loitering around their corridors. besides, the building has 21 storeys and people from the opposite too noticed me and started closing their doors and windows due to the close proximities between the 2 blocks. oops. so i decided to just focus on the level that i used to stay and get out of the place just in case anyone decides to call the police. =P
self-assessment
okies. i think i did a much better job this time as compared to those brought to class. alot more images are used and my photoshop did hang this time round during the stitching and editting process. hee. hence, i'd give myself 9.1/10 for the efforts and the final outcome.
the process
i had a really hard time working on this assignment. first, it's hard to get inspirations. then, when I do get some ideas, it's hard to take the photos. then, when I had both ideas AND access to venues for photo taking, the photos don't turn out well, not mentioning the futile photo taking trips. then the whole thing repeats. it can get really frustrating sometimes. but nonetheless, some of the stuff that i thought of are:
however, i did find out that i have a habit of displaying my subjects at the sides of the photos. i don't really enjoy seeing my subjects centered in the middle of the photos. i also came to realise that the nicest shots usually come from my weirdest poses and positions.
stuff that i picked up..
the point of this assignment is actually to understand more about exposure and i did learn a few things from it, especially the stuff on histograms and spot metering.
while i was on my previous assignment, i simply centered the metering thing due to my heuristics telling me that 'center is always good cos it's the average'. but it was only after this that i realised that 'metering thing' is actually a spot meter and centering it is definitely not the wisest decision to make.
another thing that i picked up was the usage of the histogram. i am simply addicted to it now. all my photos have to be examined with it before my decision to keep or discard it. the histogram is also especially useful when i'm trying to view a photo under strong lightings in the camera. under such conditions, the photo will become really dark, making it hard to see if i have taken a good picture. as a result, the histogram, at such moments, become a crucial element.
selected sets
below are some of the sets that i completed in the process. i actually liked all of them, hence the trouble to pick out the best set amongst the 4 (i presented 'lost in transit' in class though). thus, i hope you guys can help me with the selection by giving me some comments! =)
construction sites - the site of change
the different faces of construction sites, objects and people - the first step to change.
(see individual photos)
the technological era - change of times
focuses on the 'cold, hard, steel' side of modern technologies. i would have included some photos of stuff used in the olden days to complete the essay. but because this idea was abandoned halfway, i didn't manage to search for the appropriate pictures.
(see individual photos)
change infiltrate - how change modifies the old
demonstrates how old buildings are modified and modern day advances wreck the old, nostalgic surroundings
(see individual photos)
the final copies
set 1:
lost in transit - the only constant in the world is change and change inevitably occurs in constants.
rationale: the world is changing rapidly. objects and people who can't keep up are often left behind and hence being abandoned as everybody else moves on. people also often assume that these things will never change. but they do. in their own, discrete ways.....
paint
taken @ f5.6, 1/125s, 55mm focal length
The mood lifting effect that the colour yellow exudes is definitely appealing. however, as cheery as it can be, this effect is definitely not here to stay, esp when it's left unattended in a lonely back alley. slowly and steadily, happiness plummets while dullness and gloominess spreads...
have anyone noticed that yellow is no longer the only colour found on the tank?
the broken headlight
taken @ f5.6, 1/125s, 200mm focal length
the trishaw was once an important mode of transport. people used to chase after it, flag it and look out for it. this headlight used to be a significant tool, providing illumination on the dark alleys, ensuring the safety of its passengers. but now, having lost its benefits, no one bothered to look at it anymore, what more fix and polish it...
have anyone noticed that the metals have lost their shine and colour?
the fray
taken @ f5.6, 1/30s, 200mm focal length
nylon ropes - people only wax or burn the ends to keep it trim and proper when they deem it beneficial to themselves. if not, this is what becomes of it - from one thick rope, to several frays, then more frays and finally, a lot more frays.
have anyone noticed that the ropes didn't start out as dishevelled as this?
overused
taken @ f5.6, 1/40s, 200mm focal length
without the broom, the world will become a filthier place. hence, people decided to reward it by leaving it in a dark little corner, away from the busy street. brooms started out neat and proper. but...
have anyone noticed that it it has become dirtier even when no one has used it?
forgotten window
taken @ f5.6, 1/250s, 200mm focal length
the windows bear much story and heritage behind it. but people chose to ignore it and appreciate the red lantern instead. and those aging brown marks creeping down - perhaps the windows are tearing...
have anyone noticed the windows at all?
the ladder
taken @ f5.6, 1/200s, 165mm focal length
it used to be hidden underwater, silently providing useful assistance for the swimmers. now that the water's gone, it finally sees the light, finally able to let people see what it's like. but. deserted by time, it slowly blends into the background. you should have realised by now that the first thing you see is the bright blue container. not the aging ladder...
have anyone noticed that the ladder was a sweet baby-blue and the wall, a solid brown?
chipped
taken @ f5.6, 1/100s, 48mm focal length
classic tiles designed to reflect the rich chinese tradition. however, these are not as lucky as their museum exhibit counterparts. they are just like what the picture has portrayed - locked behind the prison of time...
have anyone noticed that a good part of the tile is gone?
lost in transit
taken @ f5.6, 1/125s, 98mm focal length
notice how people in the background are moving swiftly away from this old lady, perhaps not noticing her at all despite her having the brightest coloured clothing amongst them. time has pushed her into a corner, forcing her to lead a life that anyone else would have shunned. but does she have a choice? ...
have anyone noticed that she didn't start her life as a rubbish picker?
the summary
time is cruel. it waits for no objects. neither does it stop for man. as a result, those who can't keep up are lost forever - trapped in their own dimensions of time - dimensions that seem to cause the mainstream society to become oblivious to them, even if they are right in front of them, screaming for just a little more attention to correct the changes that shouldn't have occurred.
through this journey, one can actually see that these old and useless things are indeed living in their own colourful world, each of them boasting their own bright array of colours despite the signs of age. however, when placed beside the speed of time, they become just a whorl of grey, lost in the transition of times...
have anyone noticed...
set 2:
corridors of change - a journey through the construction sites
rationale: construction works are seen everywhere, no matter where you are and what you are doing. we find them noisy, dirty and spoils the entire landscape. but we can't deny that they are the most crucial element in the implementation of change. in short, construction sites are the 'corridors of change'.
danger
taken @ f5.6, 1/1250s, 175mm focal length
the first step before anything happens - erect a danger sign, regardless of whether anyone heeds it or not, as long as their part is fulfilled.
unseen sign
taken @ f5.6, 1/125s, 110mm focal length
the all familiar 'danger keep out' sign. i decided to capture only a portion of it to signify how people belittle this sign and ignore its warnings. in people's eyes, they'll only look at the first few words and then move on. can you remember what the rest of the board looks like?
at work
taken @ f5.6, 1/160s, 160mm focal length
the same 'danger keep out' sign. notice how this board is used more to separate the site of change and the rest of the world instead of it's ominous message to stay away...
workers
taken @ f5.6, 1/400s, 200mm focal length
workers - initiators of change.
road works
taken @ f5.6, 1/80s, 200mm focal length
this was taken to simulate the dangers that construction workers face (i can't go into the sites. so this is the closest i can get). this also comes to show one thing: change often comes with a price - a price that is often filled with risks and threats. for us, we are fortunate to have these workers to pay the price in our place. all we have to do is bear with the noise and dust.
heart of the crane
taken @ f5.6, 1/400s, 165mm focal length
the heart of the crane - the center of the main tool of change.
construction ribbon
taken @ f5.6, 1/100s, 55mm focal length
the red and white tape - the border between the changed and the unchanged.
rods
taken @ f5.6, 1/200s, 145mm focal length
where will these rods go and what will they become? they won't look like this anymore the next time i shoot them.
cranes
taken @ f5.6, 1/25s, 200mm focal length
cranes disrupting the calmness of the sky - what does mother nature think of these manual tools of destructions to her earthly land?
change
taken @ f5.6, 1/8s, 80mm focal length
change is happening all the time. there's always a 'next change' coming up no matter how recent changes are made to a certain structure or building.
hence, it is, as this concluding note implies, change is a cyclical process. thus, do 'look out for the next change..' it won't take a very long time.
peer-assessment
for this assignment, i actually liked Yikang and Gerald's works the most as their concepts, as compared to others, including mine, are relatively more refreshing and different.
the thing that appealed to me most in Yikang's This was my JC was actually him in his shots. i found the idea of him carrying out the different activities in the different venues rather amusing and the way he executed it (by putting a tiny him in a corner of the photograph) appeals to me as well. my favourite picture is actually the canteen picture where he was featured with a tray in his hands. although his theme of change is a more implicit one, i am still rather impressed with his work (and bravery to return to this dilapidated building along). hence, i'm giving him 9.6/10 for his impressive work.
Gerald's When you were young also left an impression in me. i liked the concept behind his essay, although i thought it would be better if his subjects could be a little more exaggerated.. i also liked his usage of a white background to reduce clutter (ironically, it is this white background that allowed it to stand out from the rest). for his work, i'll give him 9/10. (ps i think his hair in his PAP shot 'rocks'. lol)
self-assessment
during my presentation of 'lost in transit' in class, it was suggested that i remove this uncle:
from the set as he didn't seem to fit in to theme. i actually agreed with the suggestion (i wanted to put him in initially because i liked the colours. hehe), hence its removal from the story.
i also decided to remove this ladder:
from the set as i thought it's bears a similar meaning to 'the ladder'.
all in all, i'll give myself a 8.8/10, scoring more on effort because..
1. it was scary and smelly moving through the back alleys. i had to squat in front of a rubbish dump to take one of the photos. bleh
2. i was thinking about it so much that i dreamt of this assignment in my sleep. it's something about me taking a plane to england with my hairstylist <i seriously don't know why he's in the picture. mebbe i was thinking too much about how to approach him to let me take pictures for the 'advocates of change' thing. hehe> to capture the sunset on a rocky beach before meeting julius caesar in rome (?!) ..
in case you were wondering, this isn't made up. it really happened!! hehe. i decided to put it down here because i found the contents rather amusing. gosh. the absurdity of dreams. ;p
i had a really hard time working on this assignment. first, it's hard to get inspirations. then, when I do get some ideas, it's hard to take the photos. then, when I had both ideas AND access to venues for photo taking, the photos don't turn out well, not mentioning the futile photo taking trips. then the whole thing repeats. it can get really frustrating sometimes. but nonetheless, some of the stuff that i thought of are:
- Sites of Change (construction sites, hospitals, schools etc)
- Change Advocates (makeup artists, teachers, hairstylists etc)
- States of Matter (ice melting, steam etc)
- Perspective Change (taking photos from a child's angle, upside down photos)
- Role Changes in life (birth, becoming parent etc)
- Technological Changes
however, i did find out that i have a habit of displaying my subjects at the sides of the photos. i don't really enjoy seeing my subjects centered in the middle of the photos. i also came to realise that the nicest shots usually come from my weirdest poses and positions.
stuff that i picked up..
the point of this assignment is actually to understand more about exposure and i did learn a few things from it, especially the stuff on histograms and spot metering.
while i was on my previous assignment, i simply centered the metering thing due to my heuristics telling me that 'center is always good cos it's the average'. but it was only after this that i realised that 'metering thing' is actually a spot meter and centering it is definitely not the wisest decision to make.
another thing that i picked up was the usage of the histogram. i am simply addicted to it now. all my photos have to be examined with it before my decision to keep or discard it. the histogram is also especially useful when i'm trying to view a photo under strong lightings in the camera. under such conditions, the photo will become really dark, making it hard to see if i have taken a good picture. as a result, the histogram, at such moments, become a crucial element.
construction sites - the site of change
the different faces of construction sites, objects and people - the first step to change.
(see individual photos)
the technological era - change of times
focuses on the 'cold, hard, steel' side of modern technologies. i would have included some photos of stuff used in the olden days to complete the essay. but because this idea was abandoned halfway, i didn't manage to search for the appropriate pictures.
(see individual photos)
change infiltrate - how change modifies the old
demonstrates how old buildings are modified and modern day advances wreck the old, nostalgic surroundings
(see individual photos)
the final copies
set 1:
lost in transit - the only constant in the world is change and change inevitably occurs in constants.
rationale: the world is changing rapidly. objects and people who can't keep up are often left behind and hence being abandoned as everybody else moves on. people also often assume that these things will never change. but they do. in their own, discrete ways.....
paint
taken @ f5.6, 1/125s, 55mm focal length
The mood lifting effect that the colour yellow exudes is definitely appealing. however, as cheery as it can be, this effect is definitely not here to stay, esp when it's left unattended in a lonely back alley. slowly and steadily, happiness plummets while dullness and gloominess spreads...
have anyone noticed that yellow is no longer the only colour found on the tank?
the broken headlight
taken @ f5.6, 1/125s, 200mm focal length
the trishaw was once an important mode of transport. people used to chase after it, flag it and look out for it. this headlight used to be a significant tool, providing illumination on the dark alleys, ensuring the safety of its passengers. but now, having lost its benefits, no one bothered to look at it anymore, what more fix and polish it...
have anyone noticed that the metals have lost their shine and colour?
the fray
taken @ f5.6, 1/30s, 200mm focal length
nylon ropes - people only wax or burn the ends to keep it trim and proper when they deem it beneficial to themselves. if not, this is what becomes of it - from one thick rope, to several frays, then more frays and finally, a lot more frays.
have anyone noticed that the ropes didn't start out as dishevelled as this?
overused
taken @ f5.6, 1/40s, 200mm focal length
without the broom, the world will become a filthier place. hence, people decided to reward it by leaving it in a dark little corner, away from the busy street. brooms started out neat and proper. but...
have anyone noticed that it it has become dirtier even when no one has used it?
forgotten window
taken @ f5.6, 1/250s, 200mm focal length
the windows bear much story and heritage behind it. but people chose to ignore it and appreciate the red lantern instead. and those aging brown marks creeping down - perhaps the windows are tearing...
have anyone noticed the windows at all?
the ladder
taken @ f5.6, 1/200s, 165mm focal length
it used to be hidden underwater, silently providing useful assistance for the swimmers. now that the water's gone, it finally sees the light, finally able to let people see what it's like. but. deserted by time, it slowly blends into the background. you should have realised by now that the first thing you see is the bright blue container. not the aging ladder...
have anyone noticed that the ladder was a sweet baby-blue and the wall, a solid brown?
chipped
taken @ f5.6, 1/100s, 48mm focal length
classic tiles designed to reflect the rich chinese tradition. however, these are not as lucky as their museum exhibit counterparts. they are just like what the picture has portrayed - locked behind the prison of time...
have anyone noticed that a good part of the tile is gone?
lost in transit
taken @ f5.6, 1/125s, 98mm focal length
notice how people in the background are moving swiftly away from this old lady, perhaps not noticing her at all despite her having the brightest coloured clothing amongst them. time has pushed her into a corner, forcing her to lead a life that anyone else would have shunned. but does she have a choice? ...
have anyone noticed that she didn't start her life as a rubbish picker?
the summary
time is cruel. it waits for no objects. neither does it stop for man. as a result, those who can't keep up are lost forever - trapped in their own dimensions of time - dimensions that seem to cause the mainstream society to become oblivious to them, even if they are right in front of them, screaming for just a little more attention to correct the changes that shouldn't have occurred.
through this journey, one can actually see that these old and useless things are indeed living in their own colourful world, each of them boasting their own bright array of colours despite the signs of age. however, when placed beside the speed of time, they become just a whorl of grey, lost in the transition of times...
have anyone noticed...
set 2:
corridors of change - a journey through the construction sites
rationale: construction works are seen everywhere, no matter where you are and what you are doing. we find them noisy, dirty and spoils the entire landscape. but we can't deny that they are the most crucial element in the implementation of change. in short, construction sites are the 'corridors of change'.
danger
taken @ f5.6, 1/1250s, 175mm focal length
the first step before anything happens - erect a danger sign, regardless of whether anyone heeds it or not, as long as their part is fulfilled.
unseen sign
taken @ f5.6, 1/125s, 110mm focal length
the all familiar 'danger keep out' sign. i decided to capture only a portion of it to signify how people belittle this sign and ignore its warnings. in people's eyes, they'll only look at the first few words and then move on. can you remember what the rest of the board looks like?
at work
taken @ f5.6, 1/160s, 160mm focal length
the same 'danger keep out' sign. notice how this board is used more to separate the site of change and the rest of the world instead of it's ominous message to stay away...
workers
taken @ f5.6, 1/400s, 200mm focal length
workers - initiators of change.
road works
taken @ f5.6, 1/80s, 200mm focal length
this was taken to simulate the dangers that construction workers face (i can't go into the sites. so this is the closest i can get). this also comes to show one thing: change often comes with a price - a price that is often filled with risks and threats. for us, we are fortunate to have these workers to pay the price in our place. all we have to do is bear with the noise and dust.
heart of the crane
taken @ f5.6, 1/400s, 165mm focal length
the heart of the crane - the center of the main tool of change.
construction ribbon
taken @ f5.6, 1/100s, 55mm focal length
the red and white tape - the border between the changed and the unchanged.
rods
taken @ f5.6, 1/200s, 145mm focal length
where will these rods go and what will they become? they won't look like this anymore the next time i shoot them.
cranes
taken @ f5.6, 1/25s, 200mm focal length
cranes disrupting the calmness of the sky - what does mother nature think of these manual tools of destructions to her earthly land?
change
taken @ f5.6, 1/8s, 80mm focal length
change is happening all the time. there's always a 'next change' coming up no matter how recent changes are made to a certain structure or building.
hence, it is, as this concluding note implies, change is a cyclical process. thus, do 'look out for the next change..' it won't take a very long time.
peer-assessment
for this assignment, i actually liked Yikang and Gerald's works the most as their concepts, as compared to others, including mine, are relatively more refreshing and different.
the thing that appealed to me most in Yikang's This was my JC was actually him in his shots. i found the idea of him carrying out the different activities in the different venues rather amusing and the way he executed it (by putting a tiny him in a corner of the photograph) appeals to me as well. my favourite picture is actually the canteen picture where he was featured with a tray in his hands. although his theme of change is a more implicit one, i am still rather impressed with his work (and bravery to return to this dilapidated building along). hence, i'm giving him 9.6/10 for his impressive work.
Gerald's When you were young also left an impression in me. i liked the concept behind his essay, although i thought it would be better if his subjects could be a little more exaggerated.. i also liked his usage of a white background to reduce clutter (ironically, it is this white background that allowed it to stand out from the rest). for his work, i'll give him 9/10. (ps i think his hair in his PAP shot 'rocks'. lol)
self-assessment
during my presentation of 'lost in transit' in class, it was suggested that i remove this uncle:
from the set as he didn't seem to fit in to theme. i actually agreed with the suggestion (i wanted to put him in initially because i liked the colours. hehe), hence its removal from the story. i also decided to remove this ladder:
from the set as i thought it's bears a similar meaning to 'the ladder'. all in all, i'll give myself a 8.8/10, scoring more on effort because.. 1. it was scary and smelly moving through the back alleys. i had to squat in front of a rubbish dump to take one of the photos. bleh
2. i was thinking about it so much that i dreamt of this assignment in my sleep. it's something about me taking a plane to england with my hairstylist <i seriously don't know why he's in the picture. mebbe i was thinking too much about how to approach him to let me take pictures for the 'advocates of change' thing. hehe> to capture the sunset on a rocky beach before meeting julius caesar in rome (?!) ..
in case you were wondering, this isn't made up. it really happened!! hehe. i decided to put it down here because i found the contents rather amusing. gosh. the absurdity of dreams. ;p
the process
i love taking photographs. but i never interacted with a DSLR before. i don't see the need to engage in its service as i thought my digi cam can produce pretty decent pictures too. (note: this mindset was developed BEFORE i got to know a dslr camera)
my first impression of the DSLR: huh? i have to look through the viewfinder? such cameras still exist?
my second impression of the DSLR: o no. its so heavy.
my third impression of the DLSR: i really hate that square black bag that came with it. boo.
i hate my ignorance. =P
this was the very first photograph i created with my DSLR. i was still trying to figure out the features and controls and this was the only thing with strong contrasts in my house. i remembered myself getting all excited when i actually got my background blurred.
i spotted this outside my neighbour's house. he happened to have colourful clothes and i happened to find the arrangement and contrasts interesting. so i happened to shoot this photo. i was toying with the aperture settings while shooting this.
"Bollywood Veggies"
this was taken in the shuttle bus to the farm. i wanted to capture the ripples from the rain drops and the reflection of the road dividers. the left corner was a little overexposed though. but no chance to retake. the bus took off.
'the green from the green' - bananas in close up. i liked the effect that came through. the contrast is rather strong, in my opinion, despite the foreground and background bearing the same colour.
attempt to capture reflections again
i think i blurred the background a little too much. gotta work more on the aperture thing. wanted to create the silhouette of the couple fading into the background while focusing on a particular branch of flower that poked out from the bushes to create a 'framelike' effect.
these 2 same pictures of the kang kong were created while i played around with the focus.
this was taken at the kranji turf club (nope. i didn't go in to gamble. i was just loitering outside. hehe). i loved the old school ticket dispenser. this photo is a little dark though. i had to underexpose it a little to allow the sign to be seen.
i wanted to take more shots of this from other angles but i wasn't very comfortable hanging around a bunch of gambling uncles who stared at me as though i was an alien. so i left with this shot.
after a day of shooting, i finally realised why digi cams pale in comparison with a DSLR. there's still loads of unexplored stuff and functions within the camera. i guess i still have a long way to go....
the final copies
the 2 final photographs that i picked are actually my favourite amongst the many many photos that i captured. i can't say which one of them was favoured more as they both capture different things. the first photo, 'butterfly', is a plain attempt in capturing a subject at its best. the second, 'the straw hat', is an attempt to capture both the subject and the emotions involved.
'Butterfly'
taken @ f5.6, 1/200s (i made a mistake and said it was 1/20s during presentation. sorry for the error), 200mm focal length
amongst the other butterfly shooting attempts, this shot actually had the nicest angle and 'pose'. i was lucky to have this butterfly sit long enough for me to zoom and focus. the colours turned out quite well, though i shouldn't have blurred the background so much (i HAVE to work on that aperture thing. lol). i couldn't retake the shot as the butterfly was gone by then. nonetheless, i am still pretty satisfied with the overall feel, never mind the background. hehe.
ps: no butterflies were hurt in the process =p
'The Straw Hat'
taken @ f5.6, 1/60s, 200mm focal length
this was taken from outside a worker's shed in the farm. i really liked the old and vintage feel of the entire structure. it is not something that we can easily see in the city.
i was, however, particularly interested in the straw hat. it somehow gave me a nostalgic, empty and lonely feeling, perhaps because of the way it is placed. hence, i tried to capture it in hopes of expressing these mixed feelings.
this is a cropped version of the one above. i preferred this cropped version as i thought it could better bring out the 'feel' of the image.
peer-assessment
looking through everybody's blogs is just like viewing a photography exhibition. everyone has really cool pictures and i especially liked 3 pictures from Yikang, Mike and Jialin respectively.
Yikang's Drift actually looked like a photograph that was taken from a ship that was out in the stormy seas. i liked the way the island is silhouetted in the background and how he focused on the raindrops in the foreground. the photo also has the ability to draw me into the picture and give me a surreal feeling that i am actually looking out at turbulent waters from a boat or something. i can still remember him saying in class that he wanted to portray a moody feeling resulting from recent bad weathers. i think he nailed it. this picture also made me realise the power of 'framing'. if he were to take this from another angle or revealed some objects in front of him, the feeling of being in the ocean will never shine through. hence, i'll rate him 9.6/10.
Mike's Fire in the night sky is another landscape photograph that i loved. clouds never looked so stunning, even when i'm looking at them 'live'. his photograph also gave me this feeling of man's insignificance as compared to nature's vastness due to the size and position of the architectures in the background. whatever it is, i just loved the photo. =p. hence, i'm giving him 9.7/10 (there's always rooms for improvements right? hehe)
Jialin's Raddish is the last photograph that caught my eye. to tell you the truth, i have never seen raddishes in a bunch before and those that i have seen are never this white. they are always covered with mud and looking really dirty. hence, this photo really beautified the image a raddish have in my mind (yayy? hehe). furthermore, when taken in a bunch at this macro level, they actually looked like sea corals floating around in the sea and i liked this effect that came out. thus, i'll give her 8.5/10 for this photo.
self-assessment
there were not much comments from the class when i finished with my presentation and received THE deafening silence. furthermore, after looking at yikang and mike's landscape photographs, i know i still have a long long way to go. i have to admit that i can't really do landscape well (hence my choice in my 2 close-up shots) and i am currently more comfortable with close-up shots with one distinct point of focus.
for 'butterfly', using my favourites as a guide, i will give myself 9.4/10. i liked the way the colours stood out in the photograph and i liked the angle of the shot and the butterfly (this was the only photo with the butterfly perched like this). furthermore, i am afraid of insects. while i was chasing butterflies and shooting them, i was constantly fearing that the insect will suddenly fly towards me and result in my camera falling from my hands. considering the fact that i was both avoiding and nearing these insects, getting one shot like this is really quite tough. =p
for 'the straw hat', i will give myself 9/10. although it doesn't exude as much feel as yikang's photo, i do feel nostalgic when i look at this. (ok. i know. it's my own photo of course i'll feel this way. hehe). mr reddy did mention that he thinks that something, but dunno 'what thing', is missing. perhaps it's the feeling of emptiness at work? hehehe. this photo is attempting to portray an empty and a 'lost in time' kinda feel. :p
hence the overall score that i get is 9.2/10. although my pictures are nowhere near professional standards, im pretty satisfied with my 2 'first attempts'. :p
i love taking photographs. but i never interacted with a DSLR before. i don't see the need to engage in its service as i thought my digi cam can produce pretty decent pictures too. (note: this mindset was developed BEFORE i got to know a dslr camera)
my first impression of the DSLR: huh? i have to look through the viewfinder? such cameras still exist?
my second impression of the DSLR: o no. its so heavy.
my third impression of the DLSR: i really hate that square black bag that came with it. boo.
i hate my ignorance. =P
this was the very first photograph i created with my DSLR. i was still trying to figure out the features and controls and this was the only thing with strong contrasts in my house. i remembered myself getting all excited when i actually got my background blurred.
i spotted this outside my neighbour's house. he happened to have colourful clothes and i happened to find the arrangement and contrasts interesting. so i happened to shoot this photo. i was toying with the aperture settings while shooting this.
"Bollywood Veggies"
this was taken in the shuttle bus to the farm. i wanted to capture the ripples from the rain drops and the reflection of the road dividers. the left corner was a little overexposed though. but no chance to retake. the bus took off.
'the green from the green' - bananas in close up. i liked the effect that came through. the contrast is rather strong, in my opinion, despite the foreground and background bearing the same colour.
attempt to capture reflections again
i think i blurred the background a little too much. gotta work more on the aperture thing. wanted to create the silhouette of the couple fading into the background while focusing on a particular branch of flower that poked out from the bushes to create a 'framelike' effect.
these 2 same pictures of the kang kong were created while i played around with the focus.
this was taken at the kranji turf club (nope. i didn't go in to gamble. i was just loitering outside. hehe). i loved the old school ticket dispenser. this photo is a little dark though. i had to underexpose it a little to allow the sign to be seen.
i wanted to take more shots of this from other angles but i wasn't very comfortable hanging around a bunch of gambling uncles who stared at me as though i was an alien. so i left with this shot.
after a day of shooting, i finally realised why digi cams pale in comparison with a DSLR. there's still loads of unexplored stuff and functions within the camera. i guess i still have a long way to go....
the final copies
the 2 final photographs that i picked are actually my favourite amongst the many many photos that i captured. i can't say which one of them was favoured more as they both capture different things. the first photo, 'butterfly', is a plain attempt in capturing a subject at its best. the second, 'the straw hat', is an attempt to capture both the subject and the emotions involved.
'Butterfly'
taken @ f5.6, 1/200s (i made a mistake and said it was 1/20s during presentation. sorry for the error), 200mm focal length
amongst the other butterfly shooting attempts, this shot actually had the nicest angle and 'pose'. i was lucky to have this butterfly sit long enough for me to zoom and focus. the colours turned out quite well, though i shouldn't have blurred the background so much (i HAVE to work on that aperture thing. lol). i couldn't retake the shot as the butterfly was gone by then. nonetheless, i am still pretty satisfied with the overall feel, never mind the background. hehe.
ps: no butterflies were hurt in the process =p
'The Straw Hat'
taken @ f5.6, 1/60s, 200mm focal length
this was taken from outside a worker's shed in the farm. i really liked the old and vintage feel of the entire structure. it is not something that we can easily see in the city.
i was, however, particularly interested in the straw hat. it somehow gave me a nostalgic, empty and lonely feeling, perhaps because of the way it is placed. hence, i tried to capture it in hopes of expressing these mixed feelings.
this is a cropped version of the one above. i preferred this cropped version as i thought it could better bring out the 'feel' of the image.
peer-assessment
looking through everybody's blogs is just like viewing a photography exhibition. everyone has really cool pictures and i especially liked 3 pictures from Yikang, Mike and Jialin respectively.
Yikang's Drift actually looked like a photograph that was taken from a ship that was out in the stormy seas. i liked the way the island is silhouetted in the background and how he focused on the raindrops in the foreground. the photo also has the ability to draw me into the picture and give me a surreal feeling that i am actually looking out at turbulent waters from a boat or something. i can still remember him saying in class that he wanted to portray a moody feeling resulting from recent bad weathers. i think he nailed it. this picture also made me realise the power of 'framing'. if he were to take this from another angle or revealed some objects in front of him, the feeling of being in the ocean will never shine through. hence, i'll rate him 9.6/10.
Mike's Fire in the night sky is another landscape photograph that i loved. clouds never looked so stunning, even when i'm looking at them 'live'. his photograph also gave me this feeling of man's insignificance as compared to nature's vastness due to the size and position of the architectures in the background. whatever it is, i just loved the photo. =p. hence, i'm giving him 9.7/10 (there's always rooms for improvements right? hehe)
Jialin's Raddish is the last photograph that caught my eye. to tell you the truth, i have never seen raddishes in a bunch before and those that i have seen are never this white. they are always covered with mud and looking really dirty. hence, this photo really beautified the image a raddish have in my mind (yayy? hehe). furthermore, when taken in a bunch at this macro level, they actually looked like sea corals floating around in the sea and i liked this effect that came out. thus, i'll give her 8.5/10 for this photo.
self-assessment
there were not much comments from the class when i finished with my presentation and received THE deafening silence. furthermore, after looking at yikang and mike's landscape photographs, i know i still have a long long way to go. i have to admit that i can't really do landscape well (hence my choice in my 2 close-up shots) and i am currently more comfortable with close-up shots with one distinct point of focus.
for 'butterfly', using my favourites as a guide, i will give myself 9.4/10. i liked the way the colours stood out in the photograph and i liked the angle of the shot and the butterfly (this was the only photo with the butterfly perched like this). furthermore, i am afraid of insects. while i was chasing butterflies and shooting them, i was constantly fearing that the insect will suddenly fly towards me and result in my camera falling from my hands. considering the fact that i was both avoiding and nearing these insects, getting one shot like this is really quite tough. =p
for 'the straw hat', i will give myself 9/10. although it doesn't exude as much feel as yikang's photo, i do feel nostalgic when i look at this. (ok. i know. it's my own photo of course i'll feel this way. hehe). mr reddy did mention that he thinks that something, but dunno 'what thing', is missing. perhaps it's the feeling of emptiness at work? hehehe. this photo is attempting to portray an empty and a 'lost in time' kinda feel. :p
hence the overall score that i get is 9.2/10. although my pictures are nowhere near professional standards, im pretty satisfied with my 2 'first attempts'. :p
the process
frankly, i have no idea what a photogram is before this assignment. as a result, i didn't really know what to expect from all my scans while i was working on them and experimented with quite a number of stuff before i got my inspiration.
all the scans were actually done with my scanner cover open and i thought i wasn't supposed to block out the 'light from above' with anything. hence, all the scans were done without the use of any papers or films that will cover the scanner bed. it was only after class that i realised that i can play with them. x|
my first experiment. played around with my hands. and this was created by vibrating my hand on the spot. nothing artistic about it. but at least i managed to get my hand distorted. =p
i was looking around for stuff to scan when i noticed a packet of tiny safety pins. i played around with it and tried to create a picture of spilling pins. the plastic bag was actually thrown at the bottom right corner but it didn't show up in the scan, probably due to its transparency. there is, however, a blotch of shadow at the corner to signal its presence.
i generally wasn't very satisfied with the whole thing. just didn't like it. =X
the selected
'lemon in water' (original)
this was the piece that i brought to class. i noticed my plastic orange pendant on one fine day and thought that i could perhaps create something with my accessories as I love accessories. then, after many unsatisfying scanning attempts and playing around on my scanner bed, this idea struck me.
this is the original version. it looked very bright and devoid of colours as it was scanned with the cover opened in the day. this bright effect actually allowed the whole lemon in water thing to come through more convincingly.
firstly, the brightness made the pearls, beads and pebbles all looked translucent. the chains that were supposed to be the foams of the picture also appeared foamy because of the lighting and most importantly, the orange managed to pass off as a lemon. =p
peer reviews & "after-repairs"
the piece was said to be generally lacking in expression, perhaps due to the lack of contrast. i actually attempted to tweak the colour curves a little (as suggested by somebody) but it looked fake and unnatural due to the huge amount of overlaps around the orange.
i gave up on editing and re-scanned the stuff, this time experimenting with different lightings (now that i am more clear about what a photogram is).
'lemon in water' (night)
this was scanned at night. re-doing the scans can be quite frustrating as i just don't get the pieces to fall nicely into place and achieve the effect that i got before. i wasn't very happy with this. the chains looked very unnatural and the lighting condition made it possible to see the original colours of the various beads used. it just doesn't look right to me. the ability to see every detail made it hard to picture the effect i tried to emanate.
'lemon in water' (twilight 1) 'lemon in water' (twilight 2)
these were created with slight movements above the scanner bed with a torchlight at night. i liked the water like effect that was created though. however, the only downside was that i couldn't get the chains to fall into place like that of the original copy =(
i actually preferred the water effect in 'twilight 2' and the arrangement of the chains in 'twilight 1'. so im stuck.
'lemon in water' (contrast)
this is the original copy with the brightness and contrast levels adjusted until the background remains white while the main picture is darkened. i thought this looked more expressive than the original one.
the final copy
after some deliberation, scrolling and clicking between pictures, I decided upon this as my final copy:
'lemon in water' (contrast)
This piece had the effect that I wanted. After the contrast is tweaked, it actually looked alot better. Hence, this will be my final selection.
somehting i've done while packing my files for the portfolio. i didn't use to know how to use curves, dodge and burns, bla, to give my photos more definition (as seen from the above attempts) but i do now. and it's a small achievement for me. =)
peer-assessment
Two of my favourite works actually belonged to Samantha and Xinying.
For Samantha's photogram, i really liked the whole mysterious 'feel' that the image exuded. Everything that was within the frame (the net, the grids, the gun etc..) were there for a reason and not put there just for the sake of it. The different elements, when put together, also reminded me of a single page in some 'detective files'. However, one little flaw, in my opinion, was the position of the rose. It's head looked a little 'forced' to fit into the frame, hence looking a little awkward. Nonetheless, other than that, I really liked it. Thus, I would give Samantha a 8.5/10 for a job well done! =)
Xinying's work, on the other hand, appealed to me because of the vibrant array of colours. I had initially thought that she got the colours through Photoshop but it wasn't. The colours, according to her, were derived from the reflections of the soap bubbles she used, which was quite a brilliant idea. The effects of the bubbles also came out quite artistic and abstract. Thus, I will give her a 9.4/10 for her work.
self-assessment
It is really difficult to make a comparison between my work and my 2 favourites as we all have very different concepts and 'feels'. For mine, it will definitely appear very simple when placed beside the other two due to the lack of colours and the huge amount of paper whites. However, this is also my aim - to deliver a minimalistic work with a clear theme: lemon in water. I actually liked the outcome of my work, thus my own rating of 8.9/10 for the effort that i put in and the effect that emerged (it was really a pain getting the beads to stop rolling around and to arrange the chains to get the effect that i wanted). the effect is even stronger now after adjusting it's curves. hence the change in the score.
frankly, i have no idea what a photogram is before this assignment. as a result, i didn't really know what to expect from all my scans while i was working on them and experimented with quite a number of stuff before i got my inspiration.
all the scans were actually done with my scanner cover open and i thought i wasn't supposed to block out the 'light from above' with anything. hence, all the scans were done without the use of any papers or films that will cover the scanner bed. it was only after class that i realised that i can play with them. x|
my first experiment. played around with my hands. and this was created by vibrating my hand on the spot. nothing artistic about it. but at least i managed to get my hand distorted. =p
i was looking around for stuff to scan when i noticed a packet of tiny safety pins. i played around with it and tried to create a picture of spilling pins. the plastic bag was actually thrown at the bottom right corner but it didn't show up in the scan, probably due to its transparency. there is, however, a blotch of shadow at the corner to signal its presence.
i generally wasn't very satisfied with the whole thing. just didn't like it. =X
the selected
'lemon in water' (original)
this was the piece that i brought to class. i noticed my plastic orange pendant on one fine day and thought that i could perhaps create something with my accessories as I love accessories. then, after many unsatisfying scanning attempts and playing around on my scanner bed, this idea struck me.
this is the original version. it looked very bright and devoid of colours as it was scanned with the cover opened in the day. this bright effect actually allowed the whole lemon in water thing to come through more convincingly.
firstly, the brightness made the pearls, beads and pebbles all looked translucent. the chains that were supposed to be the foams of the picture also appeared foamy because of the lighting and most importantly, the orange managed to pass off as a lemon. =p
peer reviews & "after-repairs"
the piece was said to be generally lacking in expression, perhaps due to the lack of contrast. i actually attempted to tweak the colour curves a little (as suggested by somebody) but it looked fake and unnatural due to the huge amount of overlaps around the orange.
i gave up on editing and re-scanned the stuff, this time experimenting with different lightings (now that i am more clear about what a photogram is).
'lemon in water' (night)
this was scanned at night. re-doing the scans can be quite frustrating as i just don't get the pieces to fall nicely into place and achieve the effect that i got before. i wasn't very happy with this. the chains looked very unnatural and the lighting condition made it possible to see the original colours of the various beads used. it just doesn't look right to me. the ability to see every detail made it hard to picture the effect i tried to emanate.
'lemon in water' (twilight 1) 'lemon in water' (twilight 2)
these were created with slight movements above the scanner bed with a torchlight at night. i liked the water like effect that was created though. however, the only downside was that i couldn't get the chains to fall into place like that of the original copy =(
i actually preferred the water effect in 'twilight 2' and the arrangement of the chains in 'twilight 1'. so im stuck.
'lemon in water' (contrast)
this is the original copy with the brightness and contrast levels adjusted until the background remains white while the main picture is darkened. i thought this looked more expressive than the original one.
the final copy
after some deliberation, scrolling and clicking between pictures, I decided upon this as my final copy:
'lemon in water' (contrast)
This piece had the effect that I wanted. After the contrast is tweaked, it actually looked alot better. Hence, this will be my final selection.
somehting i've done while packing my files for the portfolio. i didn't use to know how to use curves, dodge and burns, bla, to give my photos more definition (as seen from the above attempts) but i do now. and it's a small achievement for me. =)
peer-assessment
Two of my favourite works actually belonged to Samantha and Xinying.
For Samantha's photogram, i really liked the whole mysterious 'feel' that the image exuded. Everything that was within the frame (the net, the grids, the gun etc..) were there for a reason and not put there just for the sake of it. The different elements, when put together, also reminded me of a single page in some 'detective files'. However, one little flaw, in my opinion, was the position of the rose. It's head looked a little 'forced' to fit into the frame, hence looking a little awkward. Nonetheless, other than that, I really liked it. Thus, I would give Samantha a 8.5/10 for a job well done! =)
Xinying's work, on the other hand, appealed to me because of the vibrant array of colours. I had initially thought that she got the colours through Photoshop but it wasn't. The colours, according to her, were derived from the reflections of the soap bubbles she used, which was quite a brilliant idea. The effects of the bubbles also came out quite artistic and abstract. Thus, I will give her a 9.4/10 for her work.
self-assessment
It is really difficult to make a comparison between my work and my 2 favourites as we all have very different concepts and 'feels'. For mine, it will definitely appear very simple when placed beside the other two due to the lack of colours and the huge amount of paper whites. However, this is also my aim - to deliver a minimalistic work with a clear theme: lemon in water. I actually liked the outcome of my work, thus my own rating of 8.9/10 for the effort that i put in and the effect that emerged (it was really a pain getting the beads to stop rolling around and to arrange the chains to get the effect that i wanted). the effect is even stronger now after adjusting it's curves. hence the change in the score.
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thisisahomework- yinG