Review of Final Piece

After completing my final piece I am happy with the range of picture that I have taken. Each photograph contains parts of nature and parts of the city.
I edited my photographs each differently to capture the different aspects of the city. One of my photographs contains flowers and trees and green grass, that shows the nature side to the city, another shows the more urban side to the city including graffiti and busy city life.
I am happy with my final out come I think it I have shown my ability to capture different elements of Alfresco in the city.

Plan of Final Piece

For my final I plan to take different elements I learned whilst doing my experiments and come up with photographs that include the element of busy city life and the countryside and nature around it.
I will use different angles to enhance different aspects of each picture and use different effects to change the mood of the photograph.

I took this photograph to try and combine the city and nature that I have photographed separately before. 

When framing this photo I included the traffic lights, pedestrians and more natural trees and grass over in a park across the road. In the foreground of this picture is the traffic light which is in on the right side of the photo. In the mid-ground are the pedestrians crossing the road and heading towards the park which leads to the background of the photo where you can see a tall and grand looking building which towers above the other buildings and leads up to the sky. 

A broad depth of field is used in this picture, all of the image is in focus due to the great amount of light let in whilst taking the photograph. 

I like the bright colours of the grass and trees contrasting with the dull grey of the road. High contrast lighting is used in this image which creates the defined lines of the branches and dark shadows. The high contrast lighting makes the photograph very clear and the lines very sharp.

This image is taken at a long distance to get all the different things I wanted to group together, the road, the man made and the nature, together. 

This photograph has helped me think of way to bring my ideas together and I will use the ideas and things I have learnt from this in my final. 

This photograph I took of the daffodils in the sunlight really inspired me. I love the bright yellows and the darkness of the buildings behind. 

I wanted to capture the angle of the hill and also the outline of the castle buildings behind. I took a long shot to include all of these elements in the photograph. In the foreground of this picture are the daffodils on the hill, then in the mid-ground are some trees which are on the hill and lead on to the sharp outline of the castle behind in the background of the picture. 

A very broad depth of field is used in this picture, I wanted to have the whole picture in focus as I liked the clean edges and outlines that are in this picture. High contrast lighting is used in the picture, there is a very high contrast between the blacked out castle which is only an out line to the bright sky and the colouful flowers. 

I like idea of using the bright flowers in contrast with dark outlines and I think this will be something I will take into consideration when photographing my final. 

I framed this picture with the two people either side of the camera looking out onto the city. This was to aim the viewers eye to the city and what they would see if they were to look out from that point. 

In the foreground of this image are the two people who are closest to the camera, they look out onto the city which is in the mid-ground of the photograph, further agin in the background is the sea and then the sky. 

A more narrow depth of field is used in this photograph, this made the people looking out, out of focus and the city in focus. I did this as I didn't want the people to be the main focus of the photograph, I wanted the city and what they could see to be the focal point of the image. 

There is fairly high contrasting light in this photograph, the city has lots of shadows within it, this is partly due to an effect I put over the city which enhanced all of the lines in the buildings and streets. 

The angle I took the photograph at was very high above the city floor, but on eye level with the people who are stood looking out, it gives a very wide angle of the city and lets more into the frame. 

I liked using the different effects in this image, I think the contrast between the black and white blurred people and the bright city help get across what I was going for in the picture. 

The architecture in this picture is why I was drawn to it and created the photograph. 

I framed it with the two people to the left of the image and then the architecture in the centre and then over to the right the natural trees. This creates three different materials separate, but put together in a photograph. 

In the foreground of this photograph is the metal post at the end of the fencing which stands tall in the image. Then in the mid-ground are the two people I photographed stood by the fence. In the background is the statue, trees and buildings beyond that. 

A large depth of field is used in this image, the photograph was taken on a very bright sunny day which let lots of light into the picture and creating this broad depth of field. 

The lighting is high contrast, there are many shadows and highlights in this photograph. The shadows I particularly like are the shadows cast by the fence which line up horizontally across the pavement. The photograph is high quality, the shadows and highlights help this become high quality by creating sharp lines. 

This photograph worked well in black and white, I did cut out the lamp and give it a slight orange hue to give the photograph some warmth. This is something I would use in my final the use of warmth and cold in images. 

This photograph I took of the curved path way through the park in Edinburgh. The trees that had blossomed and followed the path was what I found this image so striking. 

I framed the image to make the curve in the path stand out and also to capture the trees that are lined either side of it. The photograph is a long shot which captures nearly all of the height of the trees which I wanted as the branches add contrast. The viewers eye should follow the pathway down, as they do this they will follow the trees either side. 

In this photograph there is a broad depth of field, making all of the image in focus. I wanted all of this photograph in focus as there is already a pathway in the photo which leads the viewers eye, so I didn't feel it was necessary to draw the viewers eye to a specific point by only focusing on a certain point. 

There is high contrast lighting in this photograph. The sun created natural shadows which I later enhanced on Photoshop. I also added an effect to the photograph which gave a slight glow to the blossom, making them look brighter and almost like they could be lights. 

I am happy with the out come of this photograph, this is similar to something I would like to achieve with a final picture, maybe adding some people into the final picture. 

  This photograph is a very bright picture taken of the buildings that face opposite the park in Edinburgh. 

In this picture I included not only the buildings but some of the nature surrounding them. I made sure I had the pink blossom trees in the photo and coming from the left  the hanging branches of a tree in the park. 

In the foreground of this picture is the dark branches of the tree that come in from the left hand side of the photo. Then in the mid-ground are first the pink trees and then behind, moving into the background are the row of old town houses. Behind them is the bright blue sky which creates contrast between the buildings and trees. 

There is a large depth of field in the photograph, there was a lot of light coming in from the sun which created the crisp lines. All of the image is in focus due to the broad depth of field and this gives you a clear view of all of the different elements in this photograph. 

There is high contrast lighting in the photo, the branches of the tree on the left are very dark and shadowed, this contrasts with the bright blue sky which is full of light. Also under the blossom trees there is a lot of dark but as you look further up the trees a lot of light is let in. 

This photograph is very bright and full of colour which is more what I am looking for, I think I could have made this photograph more interesting by changing the depth of field, to focus on a certain element of the image.

I took this photograph of the benches because I liked the way they descended down the path I also like the texture of the wood and the grain. I wanted to get a close up of the first bench and still have the line of benches in the background so I placed my camera just by the arm of the bench to get different ranges on size in the frame. 

In the foreground of the picture is the arm of the bench this is out of focus and leads on to the rest of the bench which is in the mid-ground and this is in focus. In the background are the other benches decreasing in size as the get further into the distance. There is a fairly broad depth of field in this image as the majority of the picture is in focus. It is just the arm of the bench in the foreground which is out of focus, this draws your eye further down the picture to the rest of the benches and the trees that grow above them. 

There is high contrast lighting in this photograph, there was a lot of natural sunlight when this photo was taken, this created strong shadows. I did edit the photo to black and white and also I enhanced the shadows and highlights which were already there but looked much clearer after editing. 

The photograph is high quality, on the main part of the bench the grain of the wood and where it has decayed are clear. I added an effect to this image which created vertical lines over the image and give it a grainy effect which I thought would enhance the grain of the wooden bench. 

This photograph turned out quite well, but I think the cold feeling it has is not quite what I would want in my final. 

This is a photograph I took of an archway onto a street, it caught my eye as I was walking along and it seemed perfect to photograph with all the blossom growing over it. 

When taking this photo I just wanted to focus on how beautiful it looked, so i zoomed in and captured just the top of the archway and the surrounding blossom trees. The old fashioned looking street light added character to the picture so I made sure that it was fairly central.

In the foreground of the picture is the bottom half of the trees and the structure of the archway, as your eyes move upwards to the mid-ground you see the street lamp the main archway and the flowers on the trees that have blossomed, the archway slants up towards the top right of the picture drawing you eye up again. In the background of the photograph, behind the trees are two old building, they are very tall and help accentuate the angle of the camera. 

There is a broad depth of field in this picture, everything is in focus and this is due to me letting in the light. I edited this photograph and turned it black and white and added a slight glow to the blossom. This made the picture look quite wintery and gave it a cold feeling. 

The quality of the photograph is good due to high contrasting lighting, the darks and lights are very strong, this creates sharp lines and a clear photograph. 

Review of research

After researching different photographers and seeing the different techniques they used, I have thought of some different ideas I would like to experiment with. I would like to experiment with warm and cold tones, and photographing country side and town environments to see what works best. I like the use of different colours and how that effects a photograph and also how different angles effect how you see or feel about a picture.
Although the settings where all very interesting and I really liked them, they would not all be possible to try and recreate, so even though they gave me some ideas on how to set things up, I think that would have been the less useful thing I found whilst researching photographers.

This is another photograph by Jessica Zais, this one included much more colour, which is what first drew to the image. The image is again in a natural environment, this one looking much prettier, but still with an edge of wildness to it. 

The picture is framed with the lady just off centre to the right and looking side on to the camera as if she is walking forwards through the flowers. The lady is the focal point and that explains her positioning in the centre of the picture, with the surrounding flowers complimenting her. 

In the foreground of the photograph are the flowers which continue to spread throughout the entire picture. The flowers that are in the foreground are out of focus which leads you eye up to the mid-ground where the picture becomes more focussed, this is where we find the lady. Her white dress blends in with the flowers but her bright hair, although a similar colour to the flowers, is much brighter and stands out making her more visible. Further back up the picture again is the background which consists of the flowers continued and then fading into a greener foliage in the far background. 

A broad depth of field is used in this particular image, this is apparent because of the small area in the foreground where the flowers are just off focus. The depth of field is effected by light and as this photograph contains a great deal of light it produces this broad depth of field in which a lot of the image is in focus. 

The lighting isn't particularly high contrast as there isn't a huge amount of contrasting shadows. The photograph would have been taken on a bright day, where the sky is bright, therefore letting in light from more than one angle and weakening any shadows. As there is so much light in this image, the lines are crisp and clean, there is not graininess to this photograph and it is in high quality. The photograph has a light feel to it, the pink and white colours indicate a happy and romantic feel which is then reinforced by the lady in a wedding dress. 

The photograph has been taken at eye level and as she looks across the field into the camera, it looks as though she could be looking into the eyes of the groom. This helps create feeling within the viewer by making them feel like she is looking at them. 

This is a photograph taken by Jessica Zais and is in a wild and overgrown setting. I was first drawn to this image because I like the subtle colours and tones used in it. I also like the wildness to the picture, the way the environment has been left and has become overgrown, it reflects the brides attitude which also comes across wild, in her dress and rebellious look. 

The picture has been framed with the bring central in the mid-ground, with the long grass and plants surrounding her. In the background of the picture is a darker strip where the foliage and grass turns into trees and creates a lot more shadow a darkness, this is level with her head and compliments her very dark hair. Your eye is drawn from the centre and the foreground right back to the background of the picture, you notice a lot more of the natural surrounding as she look almost a part of it in her dress and style. 

There is a very broad depth of field in the picture, meaning all of it is in focus and therefore letting us see everything in the frame clearly. There is also a lot of contrast between the grass and the dark trees in the background, there are no shadows created by this but a high contrast between dark and light. The quality of the photo is high but there is a light brown hue over the image, making it look a little less clear and more like an old photograph. 

A long shot is used for this photograph, this captures not only the bride who is the focal point, but also a lot of the surrounding environment which helps reinforce the look she has and add different tones to the picture. The photograph has been taken at a head on angle letting the viewer see exactly what the photographer would see standing directly in front of her and making it look more like she is looking directly at you. 

This photograph was taken by Amelia Lyon, it is a wedding photograph set in county side fields. The first thing that I found striking about this image and what drew me to it was the extreme contrast between the chair and flowers which are so crisp and in focus and the background which is completely out of focus. 

The picture is framed with the chair to the right of the frame and the long grass in the field dominating the left hand side of the image and fading into the background and distance. The chair, which is in the foreground of the picture is clear and in focus, but the rest of the image, the grass in the field is all out of focus. This means there is a very narrow depth of field in this image as a lot of the picture is out of focus, There is still quite a lot of light in the image considering the narrow depth of field but the light looks like an evening sun when it is not at its brightest. 

There is a lot of warmth in this image due to the sun setting and creating an orange/yellow hue to the picture. There is a lot of the colour yellow used in this image, again giving it a sunny and warm feeling, there is yellow in the flowers, chair and in the grass in the field. There is a lot of light in the picture casting a slight shadow on the right side of the chair but the rest of the image is in light. A close up shot is used on the chair, focusing on the back of the chair and then the background. 

This picture was photographed by Red Fly Studio and the location is 15 miles south of Valdosta, Georgia. The most striking thing I found in this image was the contrast in styling. The brides dress and beautiful shoes contrasting with the mans trainers and Pringle socks on show. There is also an informal and fun feel to the photograph as the bride hitches her dress up to show off her shoes and legs and the man next to her does the same. 

This picture has been framed with the two peoples feet in the center of the image and the brides dress spreading out of the frame to the right hand side of the photograph. Both people are facing towards the camera but each of their inside feet pointing towards each other indicating a closeness and a liking to each other. 

The feet are in the mid-ground of the photograph therefore making them the focal point of the image, at the very front of the picture, in the foreground, is the wooden floorboards that lead to the feet and draw your eye to them as they vertically meet the feet. In the background and to the left of the picture the focus  blurs as the floor boards get further into the distance. There is a broad depth of field in this photograph as  most of the image is in focus, it is only a small proportion, the back left, of the photo that is not in focus. There is a lot of light in the image, this helps make the depth of field broader and makes the photograph look happy and light hearted. The high levels of light create this crisp and sharp image with clear lines and outlines. 

The photograph has been taken at a low angle, level with the floor. This shows only the feet leaving the viewer to think about the photograph and make up their own scenario. 

This photograph first stood out to me because of the lovely green colours and the unusual furniture outdoors.

Included in the camera frame is a sofa, a door, trees and outdoor furniture in the background. The furniture is placed in the mid-ground of the photo, making it the main focus of the photograph. In the foreground is a pathway and then grass, and then in the background are trees and more furniture. 

There is a fairly large aperture used here as most of the image is in focus, it is just the far background that is not in focus. There is also lots of light in this image making it feel very springy with the green tones. The focussed picture is very sharp ad crisp due to the light being strong and depth of field being broad.

This photo has been taken at eye level giving the picture a long distance as far as your eye could see. It is a long shot which also lets you get more in the frame, in this case there are large pieces of furniture in the frame. 

This picture is a combination of two photographs, one is a long shot of the furniture outside in a park setting and the other a close up of one particular piece of furniture, a door lent against a tree. The focal point is the sofa and door placed in the center of the the image, the sofa to the left and the door to the right leaving a slight gap in the middle which leads to a table and chairs set up in the distance out of focus, but still part of the picture. 

This photograph was taken by Fresh Photography and is set in a decaying environment. It incorporates decay and death with life, the rusty old metal with the two girls sat on on it. The girls are to the right of this image and the decaying materials to the left separating the two. There is a misty filter over the image creating a ghostly look to it and making the image look old like the decaying metal. This image looks as though it could be inside, but the leaves over the floor make it seem like it could also be outside, like the first image I analysed, bringing the outdoors indoors.

In the foreground of the photograph is the girls face, looking up to the camera, across to the left of her is a rusty handle of some sort that has been left to decay. In the mid-ground of the photograph is the second girl, also looking up to the camera, to the left of her are some old rusty pipes which they are sat on and run diagonally through the picture. In the background is a wall, which again has been left to decay and on the floor are leaves and debris.

The depth of field is fairly narrow, although it is not that noticeable at a glance. When you look closely the background to the right is all out of focus which is helped by there being very little light in the photograph. This also creates a graininess to a picture, like this one has. There is quite a lot of contrast in this image. The dark floor and pipes contrast against the girls white dresses. As well as this there is light shining in onto the pipes which creates different tones and colours within the photograph. There is also a diffusing mist which is clearest over the girls faces, this gives the picture and cold feeling.

This photograph has been taken at a higher level to the objects being photograph. The camera looks down to the girls and they look up to the camera. This creates an innocent and helpless look for the girls, like a small child looking up to an adult, the adult being intimidating and tall. 

This photograph was shot by Amelia Lyon and is set in a sunny field on a summer evening. I was first drawn to this image because of the striking white dress and white horse against the sunny green background. 

This photograph has three clear sections to it, the foreground, where the lady is leading her horse and the surrounding grass, the hill in the mid ground and the skyline in the background. These three sections ascend upwards and get lighter in colour. The lady is central in the image and the horse off center to the left, making the lady the main focal point of the photograph. Your eye is drawn from the focal point and then left to the horse and then again upwards to the skyline.

There is a lot of light in this image, natural light is used and is coming from the right side of the photo and behind the camera. There is a broad depth of field in this image, lots of light is let in to create focus on the whole image.

There is high contrast lighting used in this picture, the sky and background is very light and bright and the grass in the foreground is very dark and shadowed. There is also a warm feeling to the photo because of the sunlight giving the picture a slight yellow hue.

A long shot is used to create this landscape photograph, this way you get more whole objects in the image and a longer skyline. 

This photograph was shot by Vania and Christine of simply bloom. It is shot in the desert, with mountainous scenery and landscapes. The lovely colours of the car and bouquet was what first drew me to this picture. 

The vintage car and rural setting indicate the couple lent against the car have run away to get married. The camera is focused on the car and couple in the foreground and the landscape in the background becomes out of focus, concentrating the eye on the couple and the car. A small aperture is used in this photograph, letting lots of light in and creating the focus on the car and blurred background and foreground. 

The car is in the mid-ground of the photograph, with the two people leant against it, as that is the main focus of the image. In the foreground is the top of a desert plant which is out of focus, this draws the eye of the viewer up to the focal point. In the background are the mountains and hills, which are again out of focus to draw the viewer inwards to the center. 

The photo has been taken a little lower than eye level to get the whole of the can in the frame. It is a long shot and includes lots of scenery and surrounding foliage, this creates a lovely backdrop for the couple. 

I like the scenery in this image, the mountains and deserted looking car, it creates a different atmosphere to a greener photograph. With the desert background, the story seems much more like a runaway tale. I would like to create different scenarios and stories with different photographs and different settings and this image has inspired me to do this. 

This image was photographed by Blue Kite Photo, a boyfriend-girlfriend team, based in Charlotte, NC. I was originally drawn to this image because of the contrast of nature and man made. The way the chest of draws has been placed in the field like it has been taken straight out of a house and with the lady leant up against it as if she is unaware of her surroundings. I also like the mystery in the image, we can't see the face of the woman, it leaves your imagination to work out or put your own interpretation to what the story behind the photograph is. 

The woman and chest of draws are the focal point in this image, they dominate the picture and have a central position in the mid-ground. The camera is focused on the grass at the foreground of the picture and becomes less focussed towards the background. This is because of a slightly narrow aperture used, the aperture determines how much of the picture is in focus, in this case, about half of the photograph is in focus. 

The sunlight shines in on the top left corner of this photograph and creates rings of light making the photo look like it was taken during sunset and giving it a romantic feel. Also the setting is very peaceful and tranquil which enhances the feeling of happiness or romance that is given off. 

I like the composition of this photo, the way that the doors are in the foreground and you get drawn through the doors into the picture inside. At the very centre of the photograph is the focal point, the couple kissing, and surrounding them is a mixture of inside and outside, the furniture making you think it's inside and then the plants and greenery bringing the outdoors indoors. The light comes from the left of the photo and lights up the top left of the image giving it a warm orange glow.

Alfresco - Ideas/story board