002 - Initial Planning and Research

Initial Proposal Presentation

Initial Proposal Presentation - Feedback

Andy:

Start shooting now, making test images
Look at autobiographical pieces that look at the person or what the persons going through or their life etc., its going to fit into singular themes.
Describe the conditions you’ve got in long hand, bring out alternative words, metaphors using a thesaurus.
Explore the theme in depth, explore all the different words and visual metaphors and physical treatment of the theme
You may shoot it all one particular way which may work and it may not
Might be a combination of work like Francesca Woodman’s work
Look at Stephen Gill – His projects aren’t necessarily about him but his life, the way he looks and how he thinks, he uses different processes – latest book called Pillar
Anything physical, look at the physicality of it, look at the edits and always share all of your work
Eli Preiment – graduate – Did a book on his predicament, hospital bound for 2 years

Paul:

Test images is absolute and start shooting this now.
14^th Feb will be the final presentation – needs to include test images
Project to look at – Bryony Campbell – The Dad Project – About her dad passing away from cancer, its autobiographical and relates to her own predicament whilst her dad was ill.
Show it on a regular basis and ask for honest critique cause its hard to determine yourself because you are too close to it.

Final Presentation

Final Presentation Notes

Slide 1 - FMP - AD6804

Slide 2 - Idea

In college I produced a series of images called, ‘I’m too young to be ill’. I want to revise this project because I produced the series when I was still a novice and I would like to reproduce it with new skills and knowledge I have learnt throughout my University experience. Last time my series display comprised of 25 6x4 images in a 5x5 grid displayed on the wall with double sided foam. This time I would like to produce a book to display my images. By turning this project into a book I will have the chance to create a larger body of work if I wish. Some photographers I will be looking at for book layouts are Feature in Blow, Issue 14, Self-Portrait - Anna Fawcus, Family Matters - Gillian Laub and Instagrampier Book - Pierfrancesco Celada

Slide 3 - Format

I will be shooting digitally because film has become too expensive and I cannot afford it at the moment. Also I will be shooting self-portraiture and I will not be able to check if my images are in focus or in the right place. This could end up being even more experience if I chose to shoot in film.

Shooting digital gives me more room for error and experimentation. I would like to create double exposures by overlapping images to create a sense of emotion.

Slide 4 - Equipment

Over the past five years I have collected equipment, second hand and on sale now and again. I have been doing this little by little over years to help myself as a professional photographer along the way but also for once I have finished university as equipment is only ever getting dearer and dearer. Some of this equipment includes: Sony A7ii, 28-77 mm kit lens, macro LED ring flash, 62” compact tripod, wrist strap, RGBS LCD timer shutter release, two batteries and charger, three SD cards, Abeststudio umbrella continuous lighting backdrop kit (125 W), Adobe software, printer, paper and ink. After my test shoot and some feedback from Andy I have decided to start to use the studio. I normally avoid the studio but I would like to push myself to see what I can really produce. I will also not limit myself to equipment I have at home, I will borrow equipment from the stores if I need it.

Slide 5 - Cost

This project is roughly going to cost me £306.90. As I live at home going into university just to print will cost me too much in petrol so it is cheaper to print at home. As I’ve bought my paper in a box of five reams, it costs less than buying one ream at a time, which cost me £4.58. The four ink cartridges (Brother Genuine Supplies) cost me £40.30, the electricity bill at home is split three ways totaling at £36.60 per month, however since the rise in gas and electricity bills this week which are up by £920 a year this takes my bill up to £62.10 which increases my total to £332.40. For petrol, wear and tear working with petrol pricing at 149.67 pence/litre, factoring an MPG of 35 and 66 miles for a round trip from Wotton-under-Edge (home) to Cheltenham (university) and back to Wotton-Under-Edge = £12.88 x2 (Monday and Wednesday) = £25.66 x 6 weeks = £153.96 + £2.17 x 6 weeks for wear and tear = £180. I have chosen to use a book to display my body of work and I have chosen Blurb as my publisher. A hardcover image wrap, 20 additional images, to remover the blurb logo, have an end sheet upgrade and delivery = £50 roughly.

I have decided to use Blurb again because I found it very useful, appropriate and user friendly. I also found that InDesign is not very user friendly and found it extremely hard to navigate, however Bookwright is very user friendly and know I understand how to use it I think I can be more creative with it. For Reflections On The Real I chose Hardcover Dust Jacket, Premium Lustre Paper, and to remove the Blurb Logo. From this I now know that I don’t like the Dust Jacket as the edges are too easily worn. Next time I would like to use an Image Wrap to keep better conditions. I have chosen a book as my planned output with the possible addition of an A1, 2 or 3 Image alongside. As much as I enjoy seeing my work framed and mounted, I’ve never enjoyed going to galleries as much as I like looking through photobooks so for me, I am siding with personal preference. My choice to remove the Blurb Logo comes because I feel as though a book without a company logo of the publisher is more professional and the blue logo in my opinion ruins the end of the book.

Slide 6 - Initial Shooting Plan & Timescale

12th – 27th Feb – I have chosen these dates for initial planning, research and test shoots because its after I’ve handed in my dissertation, and before 002 is due on the 28th Feb. I want to leave extra time to send my book off to print because last time FedEx kept delaying it and it could have proven difficult for handing in, so I would like to leave plenty of time.

Slide 7 - Planned Output

I have decided to use Blurb again because I found it very useful, appropriate and user friendly. I also found that InDesign is not very user friendly and found it extremely hard to navigate, however Bookwright is very user friendly and know I understand how to use it I think I can be more creative with it.

For Reflections On The Real I chose Hardcover Dust Jacket, Premium Luster Paper, and to remove the Blurb Logo. From this I now know that I don’t like the Dust Jacket as the edges are too easily worn. Next time I would like to use a Image Wrap to keep better conditions.

I have chosen a book as my planned output with the possible addition of an A1, 2 or 3 Image alongside. As much as I enjoy seeing my work framed and mounted, I’ve never enjoyed going to galleries as much as I like looking through photobooks so for me, I am siding with personal preference.

My choice to remove the Blurb Logo comes because I feel as though a book without a company logo of the publisher is more professional and the blue logo in my opinion ruins the end of the book.

Slide 8 - Potential Issues

As this project will remain within the walls of my home and the walls at university it has a low risk of issues, however no matter where or when there is always the chance of issues. For this project issues such as:

COVID-19 – I am at a higher risk of getting the virus again but keep myself as safe as possible through regular mask use, washing my hands and hand held devices and keeping my distance, lockdowns however are unlikely as will be coming out of COVID restrictions and guidance later on this month.
My own health as it differs day to day, week to week. They may be days that I am not well enough to produce work which can hinder getting feedback.
Unpredictable weather such as storms like the couple the West Midlands has seen during this past month.
Not enough studio slots, with our FMP in progress and it being our degree year we do have priority over slots and equipment however there are still many students and limited slots.
Lack of studio experience, during my college experience I lived in the darkroom and throughout university I have only produced work through documentary, all true and real. I have limited studio knowledge and need to start getting in there and learning.
Car problems could be an issue depending on weather, road conditions, usage and luck! Any of which could be very expensive which could put a halt to my studio work.

Slide 9 - Practitioner 1 - Edward Honaker - Book II

This series caught my eye because of the artistic element to the series. The way Honaker has used different methods, digital and physical to manipulate his images to tell a story with extra emotion and depth. To demonstrate his feelings of depression, anxiety, and illness he manipulates his images by warping, post-production, and use of lighting. When looking at the images, you must look deeper to unravel the deeper meaning and he does that by adding multiple angles, faces and coverage such as water. By shooting his series as a black and white series it adds to the emotion and gives a little extra to the series delivery.

Slide 10 - Practitioner 2 - Amanda Crommet - SUFFERING THE SILENCE

Amanda Crommet produced a series of images called, ‘SUFFERING THE SILENCE’. This series shows 11 people in New York City, 11 invisible illnesses. Each person has a different illness that is hidden to the outside world. For example, this woman/girl has asthma but asthma is invisible to the naked eye, another had fibromyalgia and another had HIV. This woman/girl has been photographed on what seems to be an outside blue wall in daylight. The texture of the wall looks rough and looks like what you would see on an outside wall. This person has the word ‘ASTHMA’ painted on her arm. She is using the same arm to cover her mouth, which suggests she is being kept quiet for some reason (asthma affects the breathing from the mouth). With the added context from the photographer you get an understanding that this girl has asthma or is an advocate for someone with asthma and is showing that that asthmas is invisible to people around them. She is doing this by covering her mouth, essentially being mute.

Slide 11 - Practitioner 3 - Georgie Wileman - THIS IS ENDOMETRIOSIS

Wileman wanted to put the reality of her disease into images. ‘For many its crippling or labor like cramps during their period every month, for others its near constant pain they have to push through every day. And for some it’s a reflection of these photographs; months on end of being homebound, mostly immobile and in debilitating chronic pain’. Wileman was always afraid of the ‘crushing realization’ when surgery's and new treatments didn’t work. She would have surgery, get through it and then just when things were getting back to her norm it would all happen again.

I think Wileman was very brave to let out such personal information about herself and tell the world – I don’t think that would of been easy for her to do. Wileman’s, ‘THIS IS ENDOMETRIOSIS’ relates to my project because she has an invisible illness and she is telling and showing people what it is like behind closed doors and in her mind. In my project I am trying to do something similar but In a slightly different way. I am going to try and show what's behind the closed doors and the doors themselves. We both want to make the invisible visible.

Referring to the images ‘see previous’ I feel like they are very emotional and tell a very powerful story especially if you look at the whole series. She doesn’t just want to show her pain but the pain other women go through and transgender men too. All the images have different compositions. I think they were taken how she wanted on which days they were taken on rather than try to make them look studious. They are very real.

I think it is great that she has incorporated objects within her series, like the notebook depicted above. In my own work I would like to photograph and scan objects to go into my series. Showing an invisible Illness can be difficult, using more than just my body and space will help me show my story.