Lens Based Media - Photo/Lighting

Lens Based Media: Photos with Narratives

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Lens Based Media - Drawing from Photographs

Prior to the lesson I was asked to produce a number of photographs which I thought related to me, such as my likes and dislikes, memories or even objects. 
I kept the theme of my photo's around my home/general life and showed my interests and day to day life through them.

During the first lesson I was asked to chose one of the photo's and draw it on a A1 page.

I chose this photo of my messy work area as I feel it's something that represents my day to day life, because this is what I spend most of my time doing.

Next I was asked to highlight certain areas of the image I had drawn, in order to give across a particular feel.

The original photo gave of a messy vibe, as it shows a cluttered and unorganised space. I used pencil, biro and other thin marker pens to draw out my own interpretation of the image.
I kept the mark making very sketchy to translate the overall messy look, this also created a sense of movement as the lines used for shading looked all over the place and could have started or ended anywhere on the page.

I think a lot more could have been done with this piece of work, such as spending more time on the shading techniques to create different looks/effects, also to add detail to the image which would improve the overall appearance, however I was limited on time. 

Lens Based Media - Films/Narratives

During the Lens based Media week we looked at narratives and putting them into films. For this task I was to work in a group of six and create a short- no edit 1 minute film, using a tape camera.

First we set about generating ideas about what our storyline would be, so that we could make a storyboard and plan what shots we would need carefully, as we could not edit anything.

Brief storyline: Our film would be shot from two perspectives; the protagonist and then the antagonist, who would not actually be shown in the film in order to create a sense of mystery and a slight thrill.

(Left) Our basic storyboard, showing a visual reputation of the main shots we would like.









Our more detailed Storyboard, where we expanded the initial shot ideas and added a written description, so that our shots made sense and were easily understood with the pictures.

We then moved on to the production of the film which I personally thought went really well, we made few mistakes whilst filming, but this was almost unavoidable as we were only able to to pause our recording to cut between shots.

I was also pleased with how our narrative worked with our shot types and perspective, due to the fact we shot in first and third person, almost giving two storylines at a time.





Part 2

Still looking at narratives: I was asked to think of a memorable character/person I had seen at any point in my life, and then draw them. Next I was asked to draw the person, obviously I did not know anything about the person, however I was then asked to create a background story and information about the person and how they got to where they are now. My character was a homeless man who always had a white rat with red eyes kept on his shoulder, he has no family connections and also had a rough childhood. I then had to introduce an antagonist which would disrupt their day to day life, and the obvious antagonist was a child, as my protagonist did not have a particularly good childhood, therefore it would be interesting to see how they would react in a situation where a child is introduced.

With the antagonist introduced I was then able to create a storyboard and narrative about the two characters.

Graphics Week: Poetic Migration poster

During the Graphics rotation week we looked at poetry and how we could use typography to create poems/words that were visually interesting.















Still on the Poetry theme I was asked to make a 'poetic migration' poster, initially I did not really know how to interpret this theme into something visual as I didn't really know what was meant by 'poetic migration'. I took on the theme as the way in which word of mouth spread, and how stories and poems come about, which is through experience/journeys and thoughts. I focused more on the experience and journeys side of things and came up with a sort tagline, "Journeys create stories".

In terms of imagery I wanted to make a calligram, this would allow me to get across my tagline, but keeping it very visual. I kept the imagery very obvious to empathise on the 'journeys' theme. I used Adobe Illustrator and imported pictures of a boat, train and airplane to get the outline of the words in the correct shape so that they would resemble the objects intended.

I was moderately happy with my outcome as I think it has good aesthetic qualities and I was able to visually translate a message, yet I still think there is massive room for improvement, such as the train that has the word 'create' on it. I think I could have taken more time and care when drawing out the word, because the words don't actually create the shape of the train, instead the letters just sit inside the shape of the train. To avoid mistakes/imperfections like this in future I should spend more time planning ahead, experiment more so that I can produce multiple outcome variations.

Graphics Week: Workshop

These are two pieces work I produced during a during an introductory workshop to Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop and Lightroom.

In photoshop I was asked to chose one image and then gradually add other images in which I could layer over each other and try different effects.

Having already had experience with photoshop I found this task very easy as I knew about the majority of the editing and effect features, so I was able to create my outcome how I had initially visualised it.

Overall I was happy with my outcome as I had intended to keep my outcome simple in terms of imagery and colour, but making up for the simplicity using a range of dark and light tones to give across a certain vibe/atmosphere to my work, where I was trying to suggest there is a narrative or reason behind the image.

If I could make any improvements I would most likely add more detail into the image, such as adding more layers to overlap each other and create something more complicated but still aesthetically pleasing.

Another thing I would change is my use of colour, I think using small and discreet amount of colour would enable me to highlight certain areas of the image, such as the balloon in order to show it has some significance compared to other objects in the image. Using colour could have also created something more visually interesting to look at.

Next time I would take more time to plan out my composition and choice of imagery, so that I would be able to create something even more effective and to a higher quality.

As well as creating an image I was also asked to use Illustrator to make a logo, I started with something basic and wrote out my name. Initially I had only changed the kerning and the size of the individual letters, however this was a very boring and plain logo, even with colour.
To push my logo slightly further I added a more personal touch which was an outline of my hair, to try and give my logo more of an identity relating to me. 

Even though I had modified my logo I still think a lot more could have been done, for example using more colour and texture. If I had more time I would change the word 'Anouska' into a caligram, as it would have been a more creative outcome and something I could have experimented with in terms of colour, shape and composition.

Week One- Identity/Self objects/Passport

As one of the self exploration tasks I was asked to bring in objects that I felt represented who I am.

I bought in objects such as camera film, Cards, and pens.
I was then asked to draw these objects, I found this task quite simple as we were told what to do, however could interpret it in anyway we wanted, resulting in different outcomes between each individual.

I feel like I could have made my drawings more personal, by using a wider a range of materials which would express my personality more, and give a bit more character to my work, which drawing with regular lines and a basic pencil/pen did not achieve.

- Hands drawn by everyone in the group put together