The
aim of this assignment was to set up several different portrait sessions of the
same person. I chose my sister, Helena as I felt that her full and active
lifestyle would give me a varied set of ideas to work from. Although I
have taken many photographs of Helena, she really doesn't feel comfortable
posing for studio style shots so to make her feel more at ease, I shot most of
the images as documentary style, active portraits.
As
the theme of this project is to show the various elements of Helena's
life, I felt it only right to begin with a simple, clean shot of Helena
stripped of life's many hats, similar in style to the images of Thomas Ruff. I
set Helena against a plain, pale backdrop using natural light from a
window and used a reflector for fill lighting. She wore simple clothing with
hair tied up and minimal make up in order to give a more open, honest view of
her face. I initially asked Helena to keep her face straight as you would for a
passport photograph, however the resulting images gave a harsh appearance,
which did not reflect Helena's personality. The image used was achieved by
asking Helena to give just a hint of a smile, which lit up her face and brought
warmth to the shot. I softened the shot by using a narrow depth of field,
focusing on the eyes to draw attention to Helena’s direct gaze.
The
next image shows one of the biggest elements of Helena's life, yet the part I
have never witnessed. Her career since leaving school, nursing has
taken her through several hospital wards to her current role as a community
nurse. We used an extra model for this shot to show Helena carrying out a blood
pressure check in the patient’s home. I considered the possibility of making
the activity the subject by focusing on the blood pressure
gauge, however the added
clarity to the patient’s elbow made the image less appealing. For this reason,
I chose to focus on the concentration on Helena’s face as she completed the
procedure with a narrow depth of field to soften the focus on the elbow. The
shot was composed in Helena’s kitchen to show her work as a community nurse.
I
feel that this is the least successful image of the set. My original plan had
been to use my older sister’s house for this shoot as she has a more old
fashioned house with a lovely antique rocking chair, however it was difficult
to find a time when we were all available. If nursing hadn't been such a large part
of Helena's life, I think I may have omitted this image from the set.
Aside
from her medical career, Helena is a keen practitioner and teacher of yoga.
Helena is quite able to achieve some remarkable poses, which would make quite
artful images, however I felt that this image needed to represent
the emotional benefits achieved through her practice. For this, I felt
that sitting in the meditative lotus posture would be the most fitting. I
used a narrow depth of field to separate the model from the background,
enhancing the meditative practice of distancing oneself mentally from the world
around us. As I was shooting, a gust of wind blew Helena’s hair giving an
ethereal ambience to the image working perfectly with the nature of the shot.
I
chose to shoot the next image in the light of a low sun to represent the time
of day in which this hobby takes place; either early morning or in the evenings
after work. Lycra is not always the most flattering fabric and although Helena
has a slender frame, she would still prefer the image to flatter her curves
without enhancing too much. The pose I chose for this image fits with what I
learned in Kat William's article in Rock and Roll Bride, about ensuring that
areas we would rather look smaller be further from the lens. For this reason, I
decided to ask Helena to bend forwards in order to stretch her calves; this
pose directed her bottom away from the camera, making it appear smaller. I asked
Helena to face slightly towards the sun to give a warm glow to her face. This
has caused a slight squint, however I think I can just get away with it due to
the nature of the shot. A slightly larger depth of field was used for this
image to ensure that Helena was in focus with a soft background.
Helena
loves to get dressed up and on seeing her sparkly silver stilettoes;
I felt that they perfectly summed up her party loving side.
Taking advantage of the Christmas season, I decided to use the decorated
tree and colourful presents as lighting and backdrop. Although some
light was coming from a window to the left of the shot, a high ISO was needed;
any added flash would have ruined the effect of the Christmas lights. A slight
underexposure enhanced the light and shade in the shoes, legs and flooring as
well as boosting the colours in the gifts behind. We tried several positions
for the feet but I felt that this image had a fun element to it to match the
party season.
Some
of my children's favourite memories are of baking with Helena. Although a
fabulous baker now, not so many years ago Helena’s baking sessions often ended
in disaster, much to the amusement of my children. In true Helena style, when I
started to get props out for the baking photo shoot, she insisted on actually
making flapjack while I snapped away. Having learned about the active portrait,
I felt that this would be a good way to put Helena at ease so let her go with
it. I used a narrow depth of field in order to show the kitchen behind but not
make it a major focal point. The baking was put on hold as Helena answered a phone
call and her husband popped into shot to stir the tea but I decided to continue
shooting. This image is typical of teatime at Helena’s house, all hands on deck
and several activities going on in unison.
Of
all of Helena's sides, the one that cannot be left out is the fact that she is
a mother to two beautiful children. For this image, I asked Helena to read a
book with her youngest child; the book they chose came with actions much to my
delight. I used the plain backdrop of the bedroom wall and felt that the wicker
heart added a nice tough to symbolise the maternal bond. A window to the right
and a reflector to the left lighted the scene. As Evie is much smaller than
Helena, I placed her closer to the window to ensure that both models were well
lit. I slightly underexposed the image to show the lights from the heart and to
give a feel of a bedtime story.
Evaluation:
Demonstration of technical and visual skills
I am most pleased with the technical aspects of my first image.
The window light to the right has given some interest with the reflector to the
left ensuring that the whole face is well lit. Focus is on the eyes as intended
and the pale, plain background helps to show the subject in a neutral setting.
I am also pleased with the composition of Yoga, Run and Mum,
although I find the tree in the background in Yoga a little distracting.
My least favourite composition is Nurse as I feel that I could
have chosen a better angle. I am also disappointed with the quality, both
composition and focus of Baking.
Quality of outcome
I feel that all of the images clearly define the different aspects
of Helena’s life. We have used costume, set and the active portrait to portray
each aspect and I feel that the message is clear.
Demonstration of creativity
Although I haven’t used any studio lighting, the available light and
settings used have been varied and appropriate to the activity. In developing
my personal voice, I aim to create images that feel natural, showing emotion
and activity to create a sense of who a person is, not just what they look
like. The most successful image in showing a real moment is Mum, the shared
moment enjoying their shared love of a familiar story is clearly evident in
this image.
Context
My learning log shows awareness the different styles of portrait
photographers, both classic and contemporary. Following advice from these
photographers, I have aimed to create images which stand together alone as well
as being part of a set.
A quote from Phillipe Halsman, “A true portrait should, today and a
hundred years from today, be the testimony of how this person looked and what
kind of human being he was.” Has been an important element in mind as I created
this set of images.
Bibliography
Archive, H.
(2015) Philippe Halsman Available from:
<http://philippehalsman.com> [Accessed 20 January 2015].
Clark, T. and
Shutter Sisters (2010) Expressive photography: The shutter sisters’ guide to shooting from the
heart. Oxford,
United Kingdom: Elsevier/Focal Press.
Corporation,
A.W. (2016) Thomas
Ruff Available
from: <http://www.artnet.com/artists/thomas-ruff/> [Accessed
Thomas
Ruff, ‘portrait 1986 (Stoya)’ 1986 (1958) Tate. Available from:
<http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/thomas-ruff-2602> [Accessed
Williams, K.
(2016) Rock n roll
bride Rock n Roll
Bride. Available from: <https://www.rocknrollbride.com> [Accessed
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