Summary of six week learning exploratory stage so far

This six weeks have gone by so quickly yet I have been able to carry out so much and learn so much in the process. Throughout the different rotations I carried diverse tasks which led me to ultimately to come to a decision in what pathway to choose. Each week also allowed me to work with a different Tutor where I could learn 'the ropes' as it was to the course. I had a lot of fun on every week which surprised me as I thought I would stay keen on only a couple but at the end of it every week was informative and allowed me to push my initiative and design skills. At the end of the rotation I have chosen Graphics as my final pathway.

I came to the conclusion of choosing Graphics because during the week in particular I felt my design skills were best put to use, I was able to design and make a poster quickly. I like the way this week pushed me to work independently and in quick time, this is something I need to get used to in my future career so I am glad I was able to appreciate this and apply it to the rotation week. I overall had the most fun this day as well therefore I feel that this course was the best one to choose. I also got on really well with the tutors and could relate to there experiences and It made me most inspired. The research I did this week as well influenced me greatly as I was able to see for myself the potential of great graphic design.

All the other weeks were also very informative and allowed me to explore different pathways but I did not connect to them in the way in which I did with Graphics. However the things which I did learnt such as designing without designing which saw me drawing a squiggle and turning into a shape was really helpful and is something I will use in my present work to generate ideas once I am stuck. In the fashion week I was able to see just how much developing from one sample/ shape could produce so many different possible outcomes again another way for me to fuel ideas. The lens based week gave me the opportunity to work in a group and think about narrative in a new way, I was able to push my ideas in a group and overall allow myself to become much more vocal which Is something I want to push for in the future. I think that the six weeks have been a very good experience and has allowed me o develop skills and explore all pathways before focusing on one. I would not change doing these weeks for anything as I feel because of them I have been able to make a well though out decision.

Lens Based Media Week Summary

This week has revealed to be really insightful, the majority of the tasks I found fun and taught me a lot. However starting some of the task proved to be challenging because I wasn't sure how to start it off. I used what I had learnt in Day 2 which was storyboarding or pinpointing random things can propel loads of ideas. Using this knowledge I was able to plot down loads of crazy ideas and produce the outcome for the task. This is one of the things (planning) which I have felt has been emphasised throughout the pathway and installed into my mind so that even on future tasks I will be able to do the planning automatically. Other tasks this week that have proved to be helpful for example was on Day one. The task in which we cropped out certain areas of a bigger drawing to create a different mood was interesting and gave me a perspective on creating atmosphere with composition. This will prove helpful for all pathways.

This week I have been really pleased with my outcomes especially the things which I had not ever previously done such as cropping to change mood. However there are some things which I could change to make my outcomes even stronger. For instance the last series of six photographs I feel I could develop more so that the story is clearer and also more interesting. I got a lot of different feedback as well as praise from fellow students and tutors. During the first say when we had to draw one of our photographs we brought in I was picked by other students because they really liked my drawing. They said they especially liked the medium I had used and worked into my designs. Moving from this once again the series of six photographs on Day 3 I discussed with Seb and Chris my tutors this day. They really helped me with identifying how I could push for a stronger impact. However they found my concept really interesting and said it was a really good starting point in which I could do a lot with. This provided me with a lot of enthusiasm to keep the idea going.

Out of all my pieces of work I really enjoyed creating narrative and learning more about story structure. The emphasis on this subject made me learn a lot about potential stories that I will create in the future be it for any of the pathways. I feel that I had most fun with and was most successful in creating atmosphere and mood in such works as cropping my drawing, story boarding in groups and my final six photographs. I have learnt a lot this week which I had not known such as the power of struggle and even realised more about the way I view films that even when I am at home now and a film is on I can't help but think about what I have learnt. The tasks which I found easy were the summarising of the words because I was able to interpret words in the way I saw them and present them to the world through my vision. I feel by doing that specific task I was able to use what I had learnt in my other interpretations for the rest of the week. Overall I have learnt so much about the history of film, my own creativity and craziness which I was really given the opportunity to use this week.

Lens Based Media- The shots that didn't make it Animations

For both the first sent and second set of stories I shot, there was obviously many photographs I didn't end up using. I wanted to show all the photographs to show my selection and discovered the pictures flowed in a sort of stop motion animation. Because of this discovery I placed all the Images together and allowed each photo to be shown for 0.12 seconds per frame so that it gave the appearance of movement. I think these videos are really successful and allow the stories to work as moving things.

SDS Lens based Media- Final draft

This Photograph was taken by me
The redrafting session on day 3 allowed me to recognise what my story was lacking and how to improve it to make the story more interesting. When reviewing the pictures I realised that the second and third images were a good starting point so when you look at this image you can see it is similar to the second image of the initial series. However in this image we establish the character doing her work but being hassled by an enormous fly. In one way I used the fly as a metaphor for distraction especially in relation to myself and how easy it is to get distracted with work like a fly annoying you with its constant buzzing. The fly is enormous and therefore emphasises the concept of a huge distraction. I wanted the subject to show the obvious annoyance therefore capturing facial expression, the work and the fly was important for the frame. This scene establishes the character and the setting of the story which is why it is vital to capture all the elements needed.

This Photograph was taken by me
The next shot shows what we as the viewers think is the solution to the problem. Again it is similar to the third image of the initial series because it allows the story to flow. The fact that the audience will see this image and believe that the character has eaten the fly will think the girl can get on with her work. I used the girl to depict this motion by pretending to eat it- this was challenging as the fly is really big so I tried to imply it to the audience by having the girl with a really wide mouth. Again the work is still obvious in the shot, showing the aim of what the girl is trying to carry out. Furthermore the  setting is still shot in the same place, this is to demonstrate that the girl can't really do anything until the work is finished as well it also allows the audiences to focus on the action taking place in the actual photograph.

This Photograph was taken by me
This is a new photograph based on my redraft different from the first initial concept. This photograph suggests the next struggle, the girl can no longer do her work once again because she feels sick from eating the fly- this is to demonstrate how the fly has laid maggots in her stomach and they are wriggling. This was difficult to show however I think this sums up the  emotion the subject is feeling. This image is important so that it shows the struggle and shows that the first solution of eating the fly was a wrong thing to do and could cause her a much worst consequence because of it. I think the photograph is successful because of the  way it is really easy to establish that the girl now feels ills as a consequence of her previous action. I think this picture is really successful because it makes audiences want to know what the girl is going too do next and if she will be able to carry out her work.

This Photograph was taken by me
Above you can see the next photograph in the series, in this photograph we see the girl burping and a baby fly has come up her throat and flew out of her mouth. In the background we can see a spider foreshadowing the next event perhaps. The girl has a clear scared emotion to show what she is feeling and allow the audience to connect with her emotionally which is really important. The close up on the face taking away from the work is to demonstrate how the event has know become a serious problem no longer caring about the work. The distraction has worsen and another struggle has been proposed for audiences to witness. I like this image but I think it was really hard to show the girl burping without any sound, I hope it is clear for the audience to recognise.

This Photograph was taken by me
Here you can see the solution to the problem occurring, the girl uses the spider which was previously on the wall and places it in her throat where it will spin a web and catch all the flies trying to fly out, In this image she catches the fly that escaped in previous shot and feeding it to the spider in her mouth. This photograph is not in focus to create a more threatening menacing side to the event. I think that this was the hardest photograph to convey because I am not using Photoshop instead a collage on a clear screen so it was difficult to display this image. However I feel the solution was really good and exciting. When I discussed this with my group they looked horrified but also really liked the idea so I feel happy with my decision to include the spider. This scene reminds me of a great battle between the girl and the flies we are still not sure if she will prevail or not meaning we have to view the next image to guarantee the girls victory or not.

This Photograph was taken by me
Above you can see the final image of all the shots and the final resolution to the story. The shot had to establish the finishing result to the girl struggle which I you look closely you can see the girl doing her work smugly looking at the giant web she scooped out her throat with the lies attached to it. Therefore depicting her triumphant victory. This was a vital shot to allow audiences to sigh a relief and therefore I am happy I carried it out. Having the shot out of close up and on a clear focused shot of her work shows how the distraction is no longer there and she can continue on with her work. Overall I feel this task was really enjoyable and I think worked really well. I feel all the days had allowed me to understand the importance of establishing a mood, redrafting the story to add struggle has meant the series is stronger. Finally my already knowledge of storyboarding and planning has been confirmed once more, storyboarding gave me a lot of great ideas and allowed me to fulfil a really good story which I am proud of.

Lens Based Media Day 3-Redrafting the series of six

This Photograph was taken by me
In order to progress from my first series of images I had to rethink my six photos to make a stronger and more interesting narrative. This is what Day 3 of the Lens Based media week allowed me to do. After printing of the six photographs I eliminated the images which I thought was not allowing the story to work as well as it could have. This elimination process  saw me get rid of our of the six images I had. Until I was only left with two. From this point I was able to make the story progress more. I used this day to establish the lack of struggles in my story which weakens the narrative in my opinion. I am glad I can recognise this however so that I can improve it. I decided that I would need to have more trials before the resolution takes place.

Above is a storyboard which I sketched out for the new photographs. As you can see the storyboard is really rough, before this I sketched our several other storyboards. I selected this one because I feel it is interesting and has the right about struggle. The story itself is subliminally meant to represent the distractions of a students and how to overcome this.

SDS Lens Based Media Exploratory- Creating A series of six

All Photographs was taken by me

 

Above you can see images of my sketchbook. My sketchbook was a big tool to helping me come up with the idea of this story. Whenever I was stuck I drew ideas and crazy storylines into my book even if they didn't make sense. Because of this I was able to take my initial ideas into the actual photographs which you are able to see below. This week as well as my other weeks have stressed how important to using your sketchbook as your brain source which I fully support and understand even more now.
 

 

 Above as well as to the right shows the six images which depict a story. This story was created in order to show a Girl who wants to finish her work but is distracted by a giant fly. The girl decides the best way to solve the problem is to eat it so she can continue on with her work. The photographs were not photoshopped as I wanted to play around with something new. I created this image by using a giant clear screen in which I collaged on top of which would then be able to photographed to appear like the fly was actually in the shot. I think this gave the photos a really nice effect and even more realistic- the subject was able to interact with the collage more than if I applied the fly after with Photoshop. Of course there was some downsides to this method because I was unable to photograph with a flash or many lights on because it would shine on the screen. This is why the photographs are not as strong as they could be photography wise. However as a representation of my thoughts and ideas I think it really works well.

I did have a challenge coming up with a concept to begin with however I decided to carry out what we did in class and plot down as many crazy ideas as possible into my sketchbook. This really helped and I was able to consider loads of ideas. I actually tried out two other ideas before this series which meant I could play around with different concept giving me more knowledge for this image. When I showed fellow students in class they found this concept really interesting as well as the tutors. My only problem with the set is I feel they are lacking an amount of struggle and events to prevent the subject from reaching the goal. This is something I will consider over the next couple of days in order to make them more strong.

To the left you can see an image of flies on a bus. The concept of using a clear screen came to me because of this. When I was on the bus on my way to Ravensbourne there was a fly on the outside of the window just sitting there but the fly looked big and weird in the landscape behind it. Because of this it gave me an Idea to create the series of photographs above. You can see from my pictures on the bus how my idea has flowed through to my idea.  

 

Lens Based Media Exploratory Day 2- Stop Motion and Group Collaboration Video

Above is another video which I created to show me working in my group on the storyboards (previous post) as well as showing my stop motion which my whole class and I created. A stop motion is a series of images which demonstrate life or movement when put together. I have worked on stop motion pieces before therefore I had basic knowledge of the importance of the camera not moving and the slight actions required to make the subject appear as if it is moving.

 

Watching the whole video together was quite interesting and showed how everyone chose to move it. We were only given a couple of shots to move it so the movement isn't thought out but quite spontaneous. This was really nice to work with and develop further. The programme we used is available for a trial and seemed very useful especially as I am used to working with the shots first and then applied to a programme instead on taking the shots on a programme like this one.

Len's Based Media Exploratory Day 2- Storyboards and Idea

This Photograph was taken by me

 The three images surrounding this text is showing the sketches of certain things the tutor asked us to draw. The first thing being six characters in your life that stood out to you. I drew six people, the first an old lady who comes into wear I work several times always wearing a the sae clothes and a massive bag, the lady also smells quite a bit. Every time I work and see her I always wonder what could possibly be in that bag. The other characters span from primary teachers, someone who saved my life to weird people who I have notice on my life journey. I really liked this exercise because it meant I could look back and use my own life to think about ideas something which will defiantly be useful in the future. Other things the tutor asked us to draw was a place which sums up a good or sad time. 3 characters from a dream and your idea of a place to escape to and hell. All of these things got you thinking about your self which was really interesting as well as seeing what others did. Four people drew on one sheet therefore at the end of it the whole paper was covered in many different drawings. The sheet at the end was really beautiful in itself.

This Photograph was taken by me
My idea of hell- A dark hole (the unknown)

This Photograph was taken by me
Finished drawings everyone did.



 

This Photograph was taken by me
After the first task in our sketchbook we were asked to start thinking of a narrative for an extraordinary in an ordinary life. We were then asked in groups to give the characters a problem and solution until eventually using six frames asked to create a story. I think our stories were really effective, we collaborated compromising different endings, with all our creative energy we kept coming up with new and interesting ways to create interesting stories for the audiences. We drew these final storyboards on our original idea sheet which showed how we shouldn't keep hold of our original ideas and explore different ways. I have learnt the importance of the narrative of a story and how narrative is important in all pathways. In order to create an effective story there needs to be a beginning an ending as well as a struggle. Without a lot of struggle I was able to see from the end critique how it can make a story mundane. Furthermore I have learnt how to let go of holding onto weird ideas and just let them out and use them. This to me was one of the most valuable things I learnt all day. One thing which I found struggling at some points was trying to come up with a solution especially when we gave a really hard problem this was resolved by changing the beginning storyline slightly.

Lens Based Media Exploratory day 2-Fridge

Image taken from www.craigarmstrong.com
Peter Mullan's creation of the fridge is spectacular. I really did not expect the short film to effect me in the way it did, when I was watching on the edge of my seat. I felt really connected to all of the characters emotional, it came to my attention all of the characters who are on the ground I felt sympathy and anger with other than the little boy who represent the innocence of the place of darkness. From the beginning the setting is portrayed as a mundane sinister place the different characters embellish the way in which we perceive certain areas for instance the young children playing made me feel it was a fun safe place to be but in contrast the areas with the youth gangs was more menacing. Infact the change of the fun neighbour changed dramatically revealing the potential story of the short film. This is important in creating a good narrative by setting an effective beginning for audiences. The Protagonist to this story is not really clear and at the end of it comes down to what we the audience perceive it to be, as I said before each of the characters on the ground have good and  bad in them which is why perhaps it is hard to pinpoint one good character. The claustrophobic camera work also creates a very powerful representation of the Mullan was trying to portray. Using the camera in the beginning for instance he was able to film a shot inside the fridge like we are encased in this tight area. Infact the whole camera work was amazing and added a lot to the film. When watching films I personally really pay a lot of notice to the camera work which is why I was really surprised to discover a really effective piece that made me want to read more into everything focused into. The short film all in all proved to be very effective making me think about what I would view on the subject if I was a character in the film- my social background would be closer to the mother who shut the window so therefore would I be like her and close the window and focus on my own problem's instead of the world around me. I wonder if this is what Mullan was trying tog et people to ask themselves.

 

Lens Based Media Day One- Capturing a word

The end of the first day of Lens Based Media saw me photographing certain areas around the Uni as well as inside to create certain Moods, but mostly to fit the given words. We were given six words with no other instruction other than to photograph to fit these words, this meant we were very much able to interpret the words in our own way. This was really nice because it gave me a lot of creative freedom to photograph something which could be completely different to someone else's meaning of the word. I think I was really successful, all the images go together but have individual relationships with the word. If I could alter anything I would try to focus on other camera angles other than close up as I felt I did quite a lot of close up imagery.

I really like 'Echo' if you look below it had really vivid colours other than the colour enhancement on Photoshop nothing has been altered meaning the contrast is the same as I took it- the light echo's onto the models face. Another image which I really like that I took was the 'Sad' photograph. This photograph was taken to summarise an event which happened during this whole photographing task. A fly flew into my eye and I got really upset because I couldn't get it out, therefore I documented this whole event therefore photoshopping the sink hole next to my eye, this in itself creates really good symmetry which is vibrant and interesting. If I could change this maybe I would make out 'sad' more.

The photographs that I do not like as much are the 'Happy' image and 'Fall'. These two photograph did not really excite me or sum up the feeling as much as I would like. This doesn't mean they are bad it just allows me to learn how to make audiences react and appreciate how I did not do this. The happy image was meant to show the relationships of people and the sun was used to represent the now and time in general. If I could redo this I would perhaps try to shoot someone who is happy secretly so I could see the raw feeling of happiness. The Fall image shoes me leaning over the rail with my hair loose to impact the audience in a sort of vertigo feeling. I feel this is my least strong image and could be reworked to be more effective. I do like the concept of making people scared when looking at the image however.

The two other images which I think were really successful was the 'Jump' and 'crush'. The jump image was me capturing someone constantly walking back and forth whilst talking- a habit many people can relate to. The constant going on to tiptoes as if to jump surprised me therefore I photographed my feelings in order to relate to the word. This isn't the strongest of my images but I really like it. The final image is the one summarising 'Crush'. This photograph is really abstract and can be analysed as many things. The photograph itself is a white space and black hair, I think the white space and black space is battling to crush each other, it carries the idea of Ying and Yang also(evil and good). Furthermore looking at it after I shot the photograph it reminds me of the sea and waves on the sea as well.

Echo
This Photograph was taken by me

Crush
This Photograph was taken by me

Happy
This Photograph was taken by me

Sad
This Photograph was taken by me

Jump
This Photograph was taken by me

Fall
This Photograph was taken by me

Lens Based Media Day 1- Cropping a drawing of a photograph

These Photographs were taken by me
Here you can see the process of me drawing one of the photographs I brought in. I decided on the image of my sister because I feel it was one of the most successful due to the natural look at the connection I have with my sister. You can see the real photograph above with the line drawing. I decided to use water and fine liner in order to make a distinguished look. I feel this was accomplished because a lot of people kept coming up to me and telling me they really liked the image and the way it stood out.

All these Photograph were taken by me

This task was really interesting as it saw me cropping away certain areas to create a certain mood or atmosphere. I feel that the task was successful as it allowed me to change the mood from the original drawing. The top image of cropping to the left shows only the eyes cropped out. This creates

a tension filled atmosphere. Almost as if the girl is watching someone. Furthermore you are not able to see if it is a male or female and the mysteriousness builds. Other crops such as the crop of just the lips creates a intimacy feeling. Especially in films this is relevant when close up shots of the lips are used to create intimate relationship between characters. Again changing the mood of my original photographs. I really liked this task and feel it will defiantly help me in the future when I creating something as diverse as a logo. It is an exciting way to change the mood of a design and therefore will be used again.

Lens Based Media Photographs for Day 1

Below you can see several Photographs which I collected like I was asked to for preparation for Monday's Lesson. We were ask to bring in photographs that have memories and linked with our environments. I photographed a lot of places within my house as well as using photographs of some of my favourite places in the world. All these photographs together show the important things in my life.

Bluewater
This Photograph was taken by me
Bluewater is a place that I have been going to since I was born. So many memories have accumulated here, so many happy times have been the outcome of this place. I feel this photograph shows how the shopping mall is not necessarily the thing I love( shadowed buildings) but the memories themselves which are connected to the place(represented here in the colourful sky). I think this photograph is really enchanting and makes you want to imagine where it is.

Shoes I have been out in so many times
This Photograph was taken by me
I used this close up shot to show one part of my life which Is going out and socialising. Using the shadow and light to add emphasis makes this photograph more effective and work better as a whole. I like the way the shoes look like they have just be thrown on the floor because it creates the impression that I just took them off inviting the viewers to empathise with the feeling after you come in from a night out and all you want to do is chuck our shoes on the floor. This makes the photographs feel as if they have a natural quality.

Above you can see a shot of my room
This Photograph was taken by me
My bedroom is one of the main places n my environment that I design and work. As well as this I use it to create my work and design. I spend a lot of time in my room therefore it is a very relevant photograph to use for this project. I like the angle I have used here with the sun shining of the building onto my TV lighting up my dark room. Furthermore the way the camera has been set up is the place where I do my work therefore puts the viewers where I usually work so they subconsciously see what I see.

The tree in our garden
This Photograph was taken by me
This is a tree in my garden in my environment which I have known all my life it literally makes up the majority of my view from my garden. This tree has grown bigger and bigger like me from a young age. It Is something whenever I am In the garden I find myself gazing at. Furthermore there is a family of pigeons that live in this tree which is quite random but yet is something really familiar with me and my family. I like the way I used the dun to create the glowing centre in the middle of the tree leaves. I used Photoshop to emphasise the green of the leaves to make the tree stand out even more to the viewers.



My Twin sister's mole
This Photograph was taken by me
Above you are able to look to see a close up shot of my Twin's sisters ear and mole. The mole is something that haunts me and my Twin really as when we was younger all our family would look closely at that side of the face just to identify us. Because of this I feel like this mole is linked a lot to my past I thought that it was worth photographing. I like this photograph a lot because the half of the shot is filled with light and the other half with dark which is similar to how I feel about the identification process of using the mole. I really like the unfocused green shape at the bottom right which is a cup, because it is unfocused we look past it to the focused area.

My staircase
This Photograph was taken by me
My staircase is anther place which I am used to seeing obviously but it is another place in my environment linked with hundreds of memories. I think stairs either lead you places which is what this foundation year will do for me therefore I felt it was appropriate for this project. I put my feet in the shot to put myself into the journey process of the photographing session.

Accidental shot in London.
This Photograph was taken by me
This is a photograph I took accidentally when I didn't realise, however I really like the positioning and the way the building looks triumphant like me. Furthermore even the way the sky is reflected on the windows adds to the beautiful shots here. I think that some times accidental unplanned shots can be just effective as planned shots. With this in mind the shot was taken in London somewhere I want to work when I am older therefore it adds to my future memory.



The View from my house at night
This Photograph was taken by me
Personally I love night time and  therefore I felt it was fitting to have at least one photograph in the dark. This is something you can see here in the darkness, the lights from the streetlamp make the photograph effective. I like the way the houses are completely in focus because it makes you wonder more which is something in a photograph which can be really important.

Nature shot
This Photograph was taken by me
Here is another shot from my garden a place in which I spend a lot of time in my environment. I think this picture is really successful because of the frame work from the foliage and the dark illuminated sky adding epic effect. Personally I really love the rain and stormy weather therefore I feel this picture establishes more things about my character which therefore makes it a successful shot.

My sister
This Photograph was taken by me
I really like this image of my sister I took. This picture is a really natural shot with no make up and straight from getting out of bed I feel it catches her in all her natural beauty. She appears like she is watching something and we are peering in on her from a far. Cutting away one her eyes with the laptop adds the mysterious quality making the picture more interesting for viewers.  

DVD collection
This Photograph was taken by me
Films are one of my favourite things in the world especially as I usually watch at least one a day, I have many different films and here are some in my collection. I feel like this is an important element of my life which I should capture for this project therefore I tried to capture the business of the different colours and DVDS like the different storylines I listen to. Furthermore as I am doing Lens based media I feel it fits this week perfectly.

My bed
This Photograph was taken by me
My bed is one of my favourite places in my environment because I love to sleep. Like the image of my shoes it has the appeal of me just waking up and leaving my bed. This is true as this is the way I left my bed this morning and therefore is completely natural. As well as the bed itself the pillow demonstrates my English association for people from different countries and shows the sort of patterns I like.

Tree stump covered in Ivy
This Photograph was taken by me
I really like the way I photographed this shot, the flowers in the bottom left corner seem collaged on but infact I took a really low shot at the same level as the flowers so it appears I am a flower. The subject of the photograph is the stump covered in ivy, a place where I used to climb onto and think on when I was younger. This was before it was covered in Ivy of course. However the composition of this photograph is really effective.

Car Journeys in the rain
This Photograph was taken by me
Anther thing I really like to do is driving in the rain, this is something which soothes me and is again another place with many memories linked to it. I feel like it is really effective because a lot of people can associate with driving in the rain and therefore it makes it interesting for everyone to recall.