study of digital artist two

Introduction

I have chosen to study the photographer Magdiel Lopez.
I chose him because I really liked the way he used contrast and bright saturated colours and interesting photos manipulation techniques to complement his subjects. I think these methods perfectly combined add a fun element to all his images and definitely make his work very appealing.

Analysing 1 of their pieces of work:

The subject matter of the work to the right depicts a young black man with braided hair, with his face sliced down the middle, with flowers emerging out the hole. There is a gradient behind with bold but pastel colours or purple, pink and green which compliment each other well and the models skin tone and flowers emerging out of his face. The background is very wild which contrasts the calm and natural tones of the model which draws the viewers attention to the peculiar photoshops and outstanding concepts of the image.
The digital artist also includes text in his work, to highlight his poster-like work, which his work is common of, as well as magazine type photos.
Lopez has paid particular attention to Compositional Rules in this work, as they have intentionally used Contrast Between Subject and Background and Tone and Colour.
Lopez has also used the Formal Elements of Shape and Form, Negative Space, Colour and Tone/Light.
The effect of these visual devices cooperate to form a captivating and strange image, capturing the viewer’s eye. For example, Contrast Between Subject and Background is used to reinforce the strength of the colours used and to highlight the subject and bring it out more, while also having a background to complete the image.

Mood:

I think the work feels electrifying and fascinating. The artist has created this mood by having flower emerging from the centre of the face which is very bold and strange and I think it helps to create an amusing, fantastical and enthralling component to this image.
The colours used in the work are bright colour gradients as the subject's background which contrasts to the warm neutral tones of the person's skin and dark hair. The lack of colour contrasts to the colourful background and vibrant flowers that are photoshopped in. The formal element of colour is dominant in this photograph as pops of colour and vibrance are used, brightening the image, which makes the image less dull.
The person has a very calm and neutral expression on his face, with not much to it which differentiates to the buoyant of the background which effectively make the subject the centre of focus.

Technical analysis:

I think that this work was probably taken using a camera with the studio lighting. He uses photoshop to edit these pictures which gives his work a professional look and his digital manipulation methods give the photos a delightful and enchanting finish.
The artist has used both studio and natural lighting as the lighting in his photography is very strong, and would have been taken in front of a plain background to make the subject stand out and easier to edit.
The work has been edited in Photoshop. Magdiel Lopez uses many photoshop tools for his manipulation such as the lasso tool to cut features of the subject and add things such as flowers & gradients to empower the image. Text has also been added to make it poster-like.

In this work the camera has been focused on the subject- the faces of the models and the hand.
The artist has used a small aperture to create a Long Depth of Field. I can tell this because everything is focused which enhances the details of the subject and helps draw the viewers attention to these elements.
I can tell that Lopez has also used a fast-medium Shutter Speed to prevent motion blur and lack of focus. This ensures the subject is in high resolution and is sharp.
It would have been best for them to use a big ISO like 3200 to take this work because it reduces grain to depict a well-lit image.

Intent:

From looking at it, I think the work is about exploring the extraordinary and your creativity and how interesting images can be made through thr power of photoshop and your imagination.
Researching Lopez’s work, I have found that they made this work because he did a challenge called ‘A Poster A Day’ where he would the magnificence of photoshop in each of the 365 days.

Relate to your own work:

I find that Magdiel’s work is very fascinating and appealing to the eye. His aesthetics are just what i need in my theme and his work is the representation of the term ‘Strange and Fantastical’ and matches to my work, to showing colours and perculiar manipulations in digital art.

Eldon Kika