Portrait Self Assessment

See the shots here..


Interesting Background Portrait

The idea for this shot came after Jos was talking about a dress that her boyfriend had bought for her that she loved. We were talking about it and I told her that we should do a shoot using it. She told me it was black with white polka dots and I was trying to decide how I wanted to shoot it with an interesting background. I came up with the idea of a matching background so that she almost camouflaged into the background so that her face stood out. I then thought that I should try do something a little extra with makeup and hair to draw more attention to the face.

I purchased red eye shadow and did some test shots of my girlfriend Rachel. The test wasn’t too promising, but we put that down to poor makeup application. At the shoot I tried both a white with black polka dotted background as well as this black with white dots. The black polka dots were too small and blended in too well once out of focus. The white dots on black fabric worked really well and though they are out of focus (as required by the brief) they help the subject pop out of the shot.

I lit it with a nice soft 2:1 ratio, using a snoot as a hair light. Next time I will drop the snoot down a lot more as it ended up being too powerful. I also feel a reflector may have worked better than a flash for fill.

I had to be careful with the background as the fabric really showed creases and sagging, so it was clamped to the background with six clamps plus pins.

If I had my time again I would have shot looking down on Jos a little more to get a more “cutsie feel” which is what I was after. I would turn down the hair light and try a reflector for the fill. I would still like to try the red eye makeup done well by a professional makeup artist. I would also get more fabric to do a full body shot.


Multiple Exposure Portrait

This portrait came up after trying to teach a few other students to Juggle. During my practice for this shot I tried using juggling balls and one person juggling lots, however the image almost looked too real and there was no obvious element of multiple exposure. It was also too contrasty and anything in shadow disappeared to black.

To overcome the detailess shadows I shot with two lights, one at about 20* and the other at 60* again trying to get a 2 to 1 ratio on either side. They were flagged with the white reflectors with the bright side facing the camera. I used reflector dish shooting from behind the subject towards the camera to give a slight rim light and to help separate the subject from the background. This is why the black side of the flags faced away from the camera.

I then did two flashes of the subject so it looked like they were juggling with themselves, then I did another flash to add more balls into the air.

If I had my time again I would re-shoot with a different model and auto flash’s to eliminate the requirement for the “go” command, giving ugly facial expressions. I would also throw the balls in the air in their own flash so they do not overlap.

Presentation Methods Rational

I chose to use my image that was a reflection of the Poem “The Second Coming” by William Butler Yeats. I researched the poem and understood that it is about the second coming of Jesus and the apocalypse. I reflected on the poem depicting the apocalypse as it would appear to me, in my own city.

I shot a panorama of Canberra from Mt Ainslie and photoshopped the image to appear apocalyptic with the cross (the universal sign of Christianity) appearing. I printed the image large, so the viewer can see the detail in the image. The intention was to make the image appear as a record of the apocalypse as if displayed in a museum, the attached identification plate is also a reference to hanging in a museum.

Click this link for the full image (like last time it is 6mb.. so be patient)

Helicopter trip

Thanks to Belinda and Christine for an awesome day.. regardless of how much I resemble a tomato.. curse you sunburn..

I kinda liked the Juxtaposition of the two aircraft.. and if you look close, you can just make out Steve in the open door/window..

seconds before the incident..

A little shingle back lizard I spotted on the way home.. go team Cheals and Jez..

Single tree on a hill just for Julian..

Location - Social Commentary/Documentary

These are my final images as discussed with Belinda today. Next step is deciding printing/presentaion options..

Final Products

So here are my final 6 product shots. I hope they're suitable.. Still need to talk to Julian about them (in person and not on Facebook)..

My Story

My story was that of my trip to Sydney for my grandmothers 89th Birthday. I chose to do a "photo album" type work.. I chose to do a slightly quirkier view on the family even as opposed to the normal get people to look at the camera in groups and say cheese as you walk around the event.







The final image is slightly more loaded than your average group photo. It is subtle but you can see my grandfather holding a sign saying "Get well soon Edmund".. this is reference to my 2nd cousin (my grandparents nephew or my aunt and uncle's cousin if you prefer to think like that) who was recently injured by an IED in Afghanistan.. he almost lost his life, then almost lost multiple limbs, then almost his eye sight.. each time medicine came to the rescue. He should recover with some serious burns/scarring and less a foot, however considering what could have been, he will be a new man..

Given my grandparents have 26 grandchildren of their own, I feel this indicates a rather interesting perspective of their life..

Creative Writing

A Puzzling Storm by Rohan Hepburn

Raindrops caress the window pane,
wind rattles the roof tiles,
a cup of coffee steams kindly,
a table strewn with puzzle peices.