20200612-recorded conversation

I recorded this conversation a few weeks ago while being under lockdown with my wife. What was strange while doing this is that it felt weird recording it while she wasn’t aware. Not something I would do and wasn’t overly keen to do in the first place.

The conversation was over the repeat of the England and Scotland football euro 96 game.

We started to go over how the game had changed, the reaction from the fans compared to today’s fans. The atmosphere from within the stadium and how we thought this was the time football was coming home.

I knew exactly where I was on that day compared to my wife. I was on tour in Northern Ireland working alongside a Scottish Regiment. You could say that the atmosphere in our base was as electrifying too.

When listening to it playback the gaps are more than likely when we have been glued to the game. The tension can be heard and excitement when England scored. Interactions between us were when my wife was trying to attach something to an email for her work. I answer short and sharp so that I’m back in the game.

Elements that the brain forgets are normally small chunks of data compared to elements that can be related to visual points. I couldn’t recall what I was wearing or what the weather was. Had this been a photograph or picture it’s very easy to recall small amounts of information from that day.

People have used various ways to recall information by learning and exercising your memory. KIMs games and how to recall information by creating a virtual story in your mind.

Using 1-10 as example you place 1 item in the story, 2 and so on.

1 spoon, 2 blue cars, 3 apples, 4 men, 5 peacocks etc this creates a story that can recall over time.

Seeing a picture of yourself can recall memories and feelings from that day. The brain is a huge data base of information being stored. Even after so many years where data can be lost, it only takes a small bit of data to at times recall the full amount of information.

20200612-The archive

Exercise

Question for Seller re-situates images in a different context and in so doing allows for a new dialogue to take place. Reflect on the following in your learning log:

• Does their presence on a gallery wall give these images an elevated status?

I think from a personal point of view they do. By placing them as a gallery, people will look at them differently than in a magazine as a single picture. However, I don’t think it elevates them any higher just because they are on a gallery wall. I have seen gallery wall pictures and not given it a second glance because I thought it wasn’t worth it. A gallery wall is very hit and miss. Some people will respond well due to who the photographer is. Some will be just because of the pictures and how it attracts the viewer.

• Where does their meaning derive from?

Im not sure as to the meaning, the images seem very portraiture and not so much of a series that I can tell.

• When they are sold (again on eBay, via auction direct from the gallery) is their value increased by the fact that they’re now ‘art’?

I believe it will depend on who’s viewing them. I’ve seen many people use eBay to profit from someone else stuff. Place it in a frame give it some context or a small narrative at that adds weight and ultimately money and profit.

When anything is placed on a selling page whether this is eBay or social media selling pages. ”One man rubbish is another man’s treasure”.

Resources

20200606-Gregory Crewdson_additional work

I’ve recently found this BBC Two clip of Gregory Crewdson setting up for a series of images. The size of his team is outrageous. This isn’t what I thought he meant by a team. This is something like id expect to see on a Netflix film. He doesnt even take the picture himself. Not sure in. my eyes how he can be called a photographer, is this not a visual maker or something.

He has the vision I presume to see the compositions and how the lighting is used but, on the other had he has a touch up team editing the shot, which I guess a lot of professional photographers have but I presume they are behind the camera at least?

The clip goes on to mention that this particular series he was constructing was going to sell in regions of $60K to potential sellers. I wonder how much it cost to construct these series. Closing a street, turning the lights off, cost of the production team and kit, wages for the guy that takes the picture, etc.

20200526-Gregory Crewdson

Watch this YouTube video about Gregory Crewdson and his work and consider the questions below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7CvoTtus34&feature=youtu.be [accessed 24/02/14] to note link doesn’t work.

• Do you think there is more to this work than aesthetic beauty?

I have to say I’ve watched a few clips of his work; nearly all have a cinematic feel more than a photographic feel. I have to say I don’t find his style has much of a connection to me. Stage manage photography doesn’t do anything for me. I find it incredibly dull. There is a dark side to his images where I dont think I want to find out why. Some remind me of the Sky Atlantic TV series called Ture detective which covered crimes of a serial killer with a messed up killer and mentally challenged detective. Although some remind me of Edward Hooper’s paintings of Night Windows and Offices, Crewdson does go into to mention his work during the second clip.

edward hooper — © Edward Hooper nighthawks

• Do you think Crewdson succeeds in making his work ‘psychological’? What does this mean?

I found elements extremely hard to grasp and understand what it is he’s trying to portray to the point I find slightly disturbing. It might just be me. I just don’t get him. I find him a little confused. You could say he’s trying to show his mental state with these pictures however I’m not sure i would like to find out his mental state.

• What is your main goal when making pictures? Do you think there’s anything wrong with making beauty your main goal? Why or why not?

I’ve always tried to find something of beauty within a composition before it becomes a picture. Applying rules and how light, dark, shadows and subject are used will ultimately be your final piece. I like to think that a combination of those elements becomes the beauty of a picture. Why else would you take it. Beauty is, however, subjective as with everything else. It’s how you show that I feel. Crewdson’s work must have an element of beauty I see that in how he lights his pictures with that strong cinematic feel to it. I’m not looking at the composition or the subject. I’m seeing how he’s used light to create that beautiful effect—light is needed in the first place to build a photograph.

The first clip I watch, the music adds a sense of drama to the images of darkness and unknown.

Biography

Crewdson, G., Photography, -, & -, P. (2016, April 3). Gregory Crewdson II – Photography – David Lynch. YouTube. Retrieved May 26, 2020, from https://youtu.be/CrU9-KSHtdY [accessed 20200625]

in, P., & Crewdson, G. (2017, September 11). Photographers In Focus: Gregory Crewdson. YouTube. Retrieved May 26, 2020, from https://youtu.be/BpIRm5BsXeE [accessed 20200526]

20200516-Setting the Scene_Exercise 1: Martin Scorsese Critique

What does this scene tell you about the main character?
- Great film. When you watch this clip over and over again. a few things come to mind.
  - Top dog
  - man about town
  - wealth
  - corruption
  - knows everyone he needs to know
  - someone you’d like to know
  - mystery
  - power
How does it do this? List the ‘clues’.
- has a way with people
- gives the nod to people ie “do know who I am” look
- pays people off
- doesn’t queue like the normal people
- gets a front seating area through the power of who he is
- people around him give him a sense of respect
- doesn’t give anything away to who he really is
- scene-setting and music of the era helped set the scene

20200504-Learning curve continues- Ass 5 WIP

Learning how light falls on the face or a stand in face.

Playing with height, position and strength of the light source. By placing the modelling light above the subject and off at a roughly 45 degree angle, it’s possible to achieve the desired Rembrandt lighting see above image of my model Poli Head.

trainagle and light captures in the eyes

More reading a trail and error before the final assignment. The above image is in a square crop ratio, this may well be a workable ratio to use for a triptych A3 picture.