Final Evaluation For Unit

Evaluation For Photos 

My own photo

A professionals photo

The main subject of the first photo I have chosen from the client requirements section is the shoes. I took this picture because I thought that using something rather than clothes for my fashion theme would be different and stand out more against the other photos I took.

     The photo focuses attention on the main subject as its taken from an above angle so the viewer is looking downwards at someone wearing the shoes. I positioned the camera at this angle because it looked better than a previous photo I had tried when no one was wearing the shoes and at a different angle. The textures around the outside of the picture are rough, but the ground where the shoes are, is smooth which brings focus towards them. Also, as the shoes are shiny they reflection of the flash is shown in them which I thought looked good. I had to edit this photo in photoshop to make the photo look more effective and not just plain and boring like it looked when I first took it. I changed the contrast of the photo and changed the colours around a bit to give it this effect.
      I think this photo could be improved by the shoes being a more exciting and brighter colour, and the ground for this photo being a duller colour. This would ensure the photo had stronger contrasts and would overall make the subject of the photo look better.
     Other people thought that this photo looked good because of the camera angle like I mentioned earlier. However they also thought that there needed to be something more exciting about the photo to create interest, perhaps a different pair of shoes. When comparing this photograph to a professionals photograph, I can see that the things I have said about using brighter colours for the main subject would work better and overall make the photo the best quality it could be.

A professionals photo ^

                                                      My own photo

My next photo that I am going to evaluate is from my black and white (concept) section. The main subject of the photo is the guitar and its strings. I took this picture because when researching what types of photo look good I saw one that looked similar to this and thought that taking my own photo of it would look quite good. I took this photo in colour and then used photoshop to change the colour to black and white, although the slightest hint of colour is still visible, for effect. This photo is still part of my black and white concept theme.
     The photo focuses attention onto the main subject as the photo is focused really well and you can see every aspect of the guitar. For example the strings and grains of wood appear very clear in this close up black and white photo. The camera is focused clearly at the top of the neck of the guitar and then towards the other end the focus goes blurry which I think makes the photo look good.
      The lines of this photo make the photo work; the lines are horizontal and make the photo look more interesting and well composed. The leading lines of the strings of the guitar help focus the viewer onto the main subject – the strings. The lighting of this photo also works quite well as towards one corner of the photo the lighting is really dark and then as you gradually get higher towards the top of the guitar neck the lighting gets brighter. The textures in this photo are mainly on the base and neck of the guitar, you can see the patterns of the wood and the smoothness of it quite clearly due to the lighting making it stand out a lot.
     This photo could be improved by possibly doing the opposite thing to what I have done in this photo and making the photo lighter and brighter with colour. I think that this would make the photo look more exciting. The flaws with the original photo were that until I changed the colours on photoshop it didn’t look very effective at all.
      When other people in my class viewed my photos they thought that the photo looked good, for example the lighting being dark in one place and light in another made people think that it was an affect I had used but it was just how the flash on the camera made it look. They also thought that putting it in colour would ruin the lighting affect it has now which was opposite to my own opinion.
     When comparing my photo to a professional photo I can see that the neck of the guitar a more exciting bright colour element to it, but not something so intense that it makes the guitar look too over the top. This photo is also in colour and achieves the same travelling lines affect that mine does. However, the background to the neck of the guitar also has lines that travel in the same direction as the strings which looks really effective to me and shows that a lot of thought has gone into the composition of the photo. I think that the overall quality of this photo is better than mine and if I were to take this photograph again I would use the idea of having a background with lines following the lines of the strings, or possible some that contrast.

                                           My own photo

                                          A professionals photo 

For the third photo I am going to evaluate, I have chosen another photo from my client requirements category. The main subject of this photo is the girls’ hair. The reason I took this photo is because I wanted to have a photo that wasn’t plain and the usual thing you see in a fashion themed photo. I thought that having a photo with a movement element, like the hair being flung around would look good and cause more interest than just girls stood staring into a camera.

      This photo focuses on the main subject ad this is the only part of the photo that is moving and blurred whilst everything else is still.

      The colour elements in this photo stand out and are very bright. I like the fact that the background they are standing against is cream/white/plain whilst their clothes are all brightly coloured so they stand out more due to the contrast. I think it was better to have them stood in a line rather than randomly like I was first going to do; therefore I am happy with the composition of this photo.

     I think that this photo could be improved by taking photos of people with more brightly coloured hair and against a darker background. I think that having the background and clothes all dark and then bright hair like a platinum blonde would look really effective and if I were to take this photo again I would definitely keep this in mind. Also I may include fewer people for a better focus and effect.

      Other people liked this photo because the colours made it effective and they liked the fact that as the light caught each girls hair, it made the ends look lighter. They thought I had used an effect to make this work, although I didn’t. However they also thought that the darker colours and darker background with brighter hair would of looked more effective.

      The professional photo that I have chosen to compare to my own has done what I wish I had done when I took the photo. It has made sure the clothes and the background were the same colour. However this has been done using a colour effect as their faces also match the colour surrounding them. The hair is dark and stands out a lot against the bright background. The two girls in this photo are also staring into the camera that looks good. However due to the camera I was using I was not able to capture a image quick enough without their faces being hidden, so I could not achieve what the professional has.      

Expedition section - theme of ballet

expedition section - theme of ballet

expedition section - theme of ballet

Expedition section - theme of ballet

concept - black and white

concept - black and white

 Concept - black and white

concept - theme of black and white photos

For the concept category - theme of black and white photos

client requirements

before colour adjustments on photoshop - for client requirements

for client requirements -

for client requirements -

for client requirements -

for client requirements-

for client requirements - edited on photoshop to make the colour adjustments

For my own photographs, i need to choose three category in which to base my photos on. The first category i have chosen is client requirements for which i will using fashion as a theme; i will be taking photos of friends in nice clothes, like you would see on a website or in a magazine. My next category is concept. I will be using black and white photos for this. my final category is exhibition, so I am going to take photos with the theme of ballet.

Rule of Thirds

Before applying the rule of thirds:

After applying the rule of thirds:

Using the rule of thirds makes a photograph better. The main image in the picture will always be focused towards the left as it is proved to be of a better focus for our brain. This will mean that the photograph will stand out more and appear more interesting, like i have kind of shown above.

 

In this photo i have published, i have shown using my knowledge, how to get a photo from the camera onto your blogger whilst including the processes of editing and saving onto a memory stick.

This is one of the photos that was taken when i went out with a group to practice. I thought that this was the best example of a photo with good lines.

An example of a photo with good textures

The texture of this photo makes the photo stronger as you have the rocks in the bottom corner of the photo that have a rough, brittle looking texture, you have a different type of texture in the middle with a more smooth looking, but still quite rough texture, and then you have the rest of the picture which has a smooth, solid texture.

Example of a photo with good colour

This is a photo with an obvious color contrast as the background is black and white and the skier is in bright colored clothing. Even though it is obvious, i thought it was a good example as its very exaggerated and is a strong contrast.

Improved photo

 When using photo shop there was not much i could do to improve this photos quality. I cropped the bulk of the background out from the left hand side and just left the door and girl in the frame. This way it ensures there is two main focuses (door and the girl). However this photo still has bad composition and quality.

Can you make a photo look good?

This is a photo with bad composition. The main focus is not clear and the only person in the photo has been cut off, you cannot even see their face. There is more space towards the left of the picture than the right.

Can you make a photo look interesting?

Example of a photo with good composition

The reason this is a decent photo is because you are able to see the main focus in the picture clearly (the girl), and none of the main focus has been obviously cut out. Yes, someone in the background is cut out but the main focus is still strong.

I may use the idea of taking the photo behind the a net when taking photos for my sports theme in this project.

This also shows the kind of things i will be taking photos of for this project.

This photo of someone ballet dancing is what i will be looking more closely at during my project as it also collaborates with the theme of sport i have chosen.

This is a photograph i liked, which is similar to the theme, sports, i am using during this project.

The effect of this photo really stands out to me. The thing that took my interest was the brightness of the flame with the really black dull smoke around it and the fact that the tank next to it is completely fine. Its a fascinating scene and even though its slightly boy-ish i really liked it.

I chose this photo to publish as i like the lighting the photographer has used. The effect making the photo lighter in the middle, when looking at the sky is particularly clever. The shot is looking upwards at tall things such as buildings and a tall statue so it makes it seem like the middle of the photo is further away. The birds in the sky make it something more than if the photo was just a plain sky to look at,

I think this photo is really clever as it makes the figures in the photograph look like ghost images. It makes me wonder how the photographer achieved this affect as it looks really good. The figures are brightly colored like the photograph, just not as clear, except the mans figure in the background which is further away but clearer, just a bit blurred.

I think this photograph is particularly good to look at because it captures an image most people would never see. The photograph is taken from underneath the surface of the water and is capturing an figure from above the surface of the water diving in. I like how the angle and timing for this photo must of had to be accurate for the image to work.

Year 11 Photography Unit

Holly Taylor
Studying Photography in OCR Media
Previously studied and completed CD covers, filming and magazines
I will be taking my own photos for this unit