Tag: red selection

Reflections: SET 2 Red photo analysis

Posted on by Josh

*Note: Couldn’t provide link to original PDF as it was too large to upload.

The above photos are the ones I selected to be a part of the red selection for set 2. As mentioned in a previous post, these photos were selected based on their correlation to my statement of intent and their overall aesthetic appeal. They are all taken in Shanghai.

Firstly, photos 1,2, and 3 focus on buildings at the banks of the rivers during nighttime. In these photos, most of the light is concentrated in the middle of the photo. This is where an imaginary line splits the water and sky. The tone of these photos is mostly dark in the surrounding perimeters, while there is a strong contrast between these dark parts and colored lights, causing a large tonal range. The range of view of these photos varies as some are taken in portrait, and some are taken in landscape. In general, photos 1,2 and 3 illustrate the reflections of light on water. It shows how modern technology can impact the beauty of nature.On the contrary, photo 4 focuses on the reflection of a shoe on the metallic side of a boat. The photo’s focal point is the light that shines on a white shoe. Apart from the focal point, the rest of the elements in the photo are not centered seemed positioned randomly. The tone and colors of the photo vary greatly, with no apparent pattern. I think this photo reflects the need to focus on one’s own identity and footprints in a society where everyone is reliant on technology and innovations. Next, photos 6,7, and 9 focus on the vast interiors of the Jin Mao Tower, one of the tallest buildings in Shanghai’s Pudong business district. The reflections in these photos mostly involve glass and light. Distinct geometrical shapes are defined in the architectural design of the building. These shapes are emphasized by the white line of light circulating around each layer. Photo 6 mostly displays the horizontal view of the Hyatt Hotel lobby. Lights from the interior and exterior of the building reflect on the spacious glass windows, creating abstract patterns and distortions. Photos 7 and 9 show the vertical layers of the building’s many stories. With a low ISO, even the uppermost layers of visible floors are distinct. The white line of light from each layer reflects off of the glass elevator shaft, creating a mesmerizing reflection. Overall, photos 6,7 and 9 display the beauty that can be found in the manmade structures. Next, photos 5, 8, and 12 show reflections of colored lights in different parts of the city. Photo 5 shows the reflections created by a purple structure by the sidewalk. The structure itself is clearly defined as a combination of 3-dimensional shapes by the purple light. In the dark lighting of the night, the purple light from the structure is reflected on surrounding objects, creating a completely purple biome for people walking by. Photo 8 is similar to Photo 5, but it displays subjects on a much larger scale. At a high elevation, I was able to capture a wide range of buildings. Using a low exposure, lights from the buildings were not overwhelming for the eyes and could be distinctly seen. Buildings reflected their light off of one another, but the most intriguing aspect of this photo is the subtle rainbow aura in the sky, created by the reflection of light on the air particles. This effect is created by using a narrow aperture, as all elements of the photo are in focus. In addition, photo 12 uses traffic lights and car lights to create an atmosphere of red. This effect is achieved by using extremely high exposure. In the foreground, a white car is captured at full speed, reflecting bright light off of its side and wheels, slightly blurry. This motion blur was achieved through a slow shutter speed. Overall, this photo shows the rapid bustle in the city. Altogether, photos 5,8,12 show reflections of light amidst different parts of the city and can be related to the photos of Craig Whitehead, my artist of inspiration. Lastly, there are photos 10 and 11. These photos depict reflections in areas that are less developed but still affected by modern infrastructure development. For example, Photo 10 shows the aerial view of a section of a hotel. Through a glass window, we can see a large green clover and the repetition of small wooden boards that form a section of the roof. Near the top of the photo, there are distinct rectangular shapes representing solar panels or small facility buildings. Above all, an unidentifiable object is reflected at the top left of the photo, making the seemingly normal aerial view feel surreal and uncanny. Photo 12 is also unique as it gives another perspective on the city’s suburban areas. The photo features a glimpse of an unclean back alley of a restaurant. However, filling up the entire space of the window is a reflection of the restaurant’s interiors. Reflections of perpendicular Chinese architectural designs can be seen along with a reflection of a silhouette. Combined with these reflections, the shadows of the spiraling stairs give an abstract feeling. Overall, the entirety of set 2 reflects the idea of how humans are influenced by modern innovations and carry-over techniques used by Craig Whitehead.

Reflections: SET 2 Contact Sheet

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This is my contact sheet for my set 2 on reflections. In this set, there is a total of 47 photos. Some of these photos were inspired by the photos of Craig Whitehead. Similarly to set 1, I have decided to categorize photos based on how much they relate to my statement of intent and their aesthetic appeal. Photos might be very related to my statement of intent, but if their aesthetic appeal isn’t the best, it wouldn’t be considered a red photo. For the set as a whole, a portion of the photos was taken at ISB, a portion was taken at home, and a large portion was taken in Shanghai. At ISB, the photos were mostly of mundane objects that emitted light or had a glassy surface since they were capable of reflection. The photos taken at home are similar to the ones taken at ISB. The best quality photos were taken in the Pudong business district in Shanghai. They consist of reflections on modern architecture, which are made of glass and have LED lights, making them a great source of reflections when the lighting is dark (night hours). In this set, the categories of yellow, green, and red still apply. The yellow selection consists of photos that have little relation to my statement of intent and do not show interesting reflections. There might be some photos that show reflection, but they lack quality in other aspects, such as focus, angle, or clarity. There are 19 yellow photos in total. The green selection consists of solid photos related to my statement of intent. Some photos might qualify for the red selection but might not be that interesting to the audience. There are 16 green photos in total. Finally, the red selection consists of photos that fit my statement of intent and have excellent aesthetic appeal. These photos were all taken in Shanghai. We can see the majority of the photos in the red selection have a dark backdrop, as they were taken at night. There are 12 red photos in total. I will analyze these photos in a subsequent post.

Reflections Unit: Set 1 Red Selection Critique

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The above photos are the photos I selected for my red selection. They all represent my vision statement from the beginning of the project. In general, they include reflections on technology. For example, the first photo at the top left of the contact sheet features a reflection of a book through a camera lens. The camera is the technology being used, and in the reflection, the book cover has a cut-off word “dig,” the abbreviation of “digital,” therefore, I think this photo strongly relates to my vision statement. This photo incorporates the techniques of Lee Friedlander, my chosen photographer. When I analyzed one of his photos, I realized that there was a focus on the reflected parts of the photo. In my photo, I decided to draw attention to parts of my photo by making the rest of the photo dark colors such as black, grey, and brown. In this red selection, this photo relates most with my vision statement and my chosen artist. However, my favorite photo in this red selection is the photo at the top right of the contact sheet. In my opinion, the aesthetics of this photo are the most eye-catching compared to the rest of the photos I have taken throughout this set. The natural red tinting of the entire photo gives the feeling of heat, intensity, and wickedness. I like how the photo is blurred on the borders and is extremely clear around the main subject. This creates clarity around the subject and makes the eyes of the audience immediately focus on it. In addition, the main subject of this photo is a pair of AirPods, which is considered one of the most popular technologies in modern society. Therefore, the popularity of the subject can be symbolized by the red tinting of the photo. The rest of the photos relate to my statement of intent because they also feature a type of technology. For example, lights, audio mixers, fountains, taps, and security cameras. Overall, I selected these photos for my red selection because they resemble my original vision statement the most.

Full Contact Sheet+Yellow Selection+Green Selection+Red Selection

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The Full Contact Sheet:

The full contact sheet consists of 32 photos in total. I took the photos in various places, so the scenery in the photos can appear quite diverse. All of the photos are colored and mostly abstract. Most of the photos target the formal element of focus through optical effects.

The Yellow Selection:

For the yellow selection, I discarded 12 photos of the 32 photos from my full contact sheet. They were discarded because they didn’t align with my vision or because they didn’t fully incorporate the formal element of focus. For this selection, I chose 20 photos.

The Green Selection:

In this selection, I chose 10 photos that really demonstrate my vision. In these photos, the use of the formal element of focus is demonstrated by diverting the viewer’s attention to a certain part of the photo. For example, in the 10th photo with the cello bow and notes, the viewer is intended to on focus the elements of the photo separately. They either see the bow first or the notes first. At least, that is my interpretation. Different people might see the photo in a variety of ways.

The Red Selection:

  1. The photo is in the top left corner. I chose this photo to include in my red selection because it relates to my vision and uses the formal element of focus uniquely. At first glance, you might not recognize that the photo depicts a night sky. The photo consists of one very bright red light and another very bright yellow light; they greatly contrast the whitish light near the middle of the photograph (the moon). These are the most appealing elements within the photograph. They catch my attention almost immediately when I look at the photo. I tend to ignore the clutter of buildings, cables, and clouds in the background and only focus on the lights. Realistically, the viewer’s eyes should focus on the lights first, but again, the photo is abstract and is open to interpretation. I would call this photo: ” Vision.”
  2. The photo is in the top right corner. I chose this photo because it highlights the formal element of focus very abstractly. The photo does not focus on any element, as it’s an array of transparent spaces in a commercial building. Thus, the viewer must use their interpretation and focus on an element that holds their attention. It is similar to choosing an item from a store in the mall. Instead of selecting items, you will have to choose what to focus on in this photo. Due to the fact, there is a huge number of possible interpretations for focus, this photo is abstract and aligns with my vision. Because of the above, I would call this photo: “Selection.”
  3. The photo is in the bottom left corner. I selected this photo for the red selection because the elements in this photo because it consists of a variety of lines and shapes that split the photo into different sections. The focus on the different sections is part of my vision statement. I took these photos at the gym in the corner between two mirrors; the objects in the mirror are actually in the opposite position in real life. The large brown portion in the middle of the photograph looks as if it split the photograph into two pieces. A muscular man is walking on the right side of the photo; he looks as if he walked through the large brown portion in the middle. All the possible interactions between the man, room, and large brown portion make this photo abstract. I would call this photo: “The Barrier.”
  4. The photo is in the bottom right corner. This photo is special because it appears to be an ordinary picture of a horizon but has extra elements that hook the viewer’s attention. First, the photograph aligns with my vision because it is abstract and focuses on many elements. The different elements include the sky, the buildings, the trees, the river, the bridge, the motorcyclist, and the finger. Each unique element is made imperfect because another element is interfering with it. For example, the buildings block the view of the sky, and the finger blocks the view of the bridge and the river. The fact that you can’t focus on one element without focusing on another makes this photograph abstract. I would call this photo: “Cohesion.” The reason behind this name is up to the viewers. 

The Red Selection

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These are the photos I chose for the red selection. They are photos that best represent my statement of intent. They represent my statement of intent because they are black and white and show strong contrast to bring out the subject. Negative space is present in all photos, emphasizing sharp lines and shapes. They somewhat relate to the style of chosen photographer Albert Renger-Patzsch. However, the fact that the photos had to be abstract made me focus on abstraction rather than straight photography.

The first photo is a close-up of the side of a train. It contains a variety of complex machinery and mechanical contraptions. The shapes and features of the machinery are brought out through the shadows from things behind. The white negative space gives the shadows a variety of shapes. The main focus would be the large wheel that takes the center of the photograph. I could improve this photograph by making its shapes and features more abstract. If I were to give this photograph a name, it would be called “Space mechanics.” The reason for this name is open to interpretation.

The second photo is taken by leaning back with the camera. It contains two triangular edges of buildings and a large complex industrial funnel that emerges in between them. The triangles’ simplicity really brings out the middle funnel’s complexity. There is nothing in the background except for negative white space. This makes the focus of the photograph extremely obvious. However, there are still areas for improvement. It would have been better if the triangles at the bottom of the picture were symmetrical, so the formal element of the repetition would be more clear. Also, there seem to be small things that distract the viewer from the main focus. For example, there is a thin line at the top of the triangle to the left and a small block beside the triangle to the right. One of the edges of the triangle to the right doesn’t seem smooth. It makes the shape imperfect. If I were to give this photograph a name, it would be “The Junk King.” The reason behind the name is up to the viewer because it is an abstract photograph.

The third photo shows electricity lines. This photo mostly focuses on the formal elements of shape, line, and repetition. There is a thick black vertical line towards the slightly right of the middle of the photograph. It contrasts the mass repetition of thin black horizontal lines. In addition, there are two circles that have a cross in the middle. They are virtually identical in shape. Therefore, they emphasize the formal element of repetition. The white background and negative space bring out the shapes of the main subjects. To be honest, there are not that many areas of improvement for this photograph because the features are already oversimplified. All in all, this photograph is pretty simple in nature and requires the viewer’s interpretation. I would call this photograph “Lines and Circles.”