Development One

My Plan

Taking my Photos/Footage

In this Photo I intend take portraits of myself with my camera on a timer as well as using a tripod. I have chosen to take pictures with a person as the subject as Jessica Kobeissi's portraits usually have a female subject and my deeper skin tone will contrast with the clothes I am wearing therefore bringing more attention to the clothes reflecting Kobeissi's fashion photography.

The equipment I need will be DSLR Camera to allow me to change the light exposure triangle. I will pick the outfits I need to take pictures outdoors in an urban location. I will use props so that it links to the fairytale I am taking inspiration from eg: a red apple for snow white.

I will include the compositional rules of the rule of thirds, central eye dominant, contrast by using colour . I will include the formal elements of focus, strong lines and colour.

Contact Sheet of the Raw, Unedited Photos I will use

My Outcome

To edit my first photo, I opened it in Adobe Photoshop and I cropped it to remove negative space so that the subject dominates the frame replicating Magdiel's compositional rule of filling the frame

I used rectangular and elliptical marquee tool to create vibrant gradient shapes around the model therefore implementing the formal element of colour which makes the picture colourful and makes a bold statement hence directing the viewer's attention to the subject. It also helps to add contrast with the white dress, like Jessica uses colour to contrast with subject therefore directing the viewer's eyes to the model.

I used the pen tool to make selections on the face and cut them out so that they could be filled with red flowers. The flowers added as different layers to fill the negative space in the holes which are left by cutting the skin out of the face adding an exquisite beauty to the picture because of the dainty, delicate flowers linking to the ethereal aspect of fairytales therefore engrossing the viewer and making them focus on the subject.

To edit my second photo, I opened it in Adobe Photoshop and

I used colour mixer and calibration to increase the saturation of the reds in the image to increase the contrast with the white dress to implement the compositional rule of contrast which replicates how Jessica uses colour to create contrast in her pictures. I improved the shadows and highlights of the image of the image using the curves layer to enhance the lighting of the image, like Jessica does. I used the magic wand tool to remove the original background of the image so that I could apply a gradient background using the gradient tool and I also overlayed a gradient over the figure to reproduce Magdiel's fun and colourful style and his frequent use of gradients. I used pastel colours for the background so it creates a peaceful mood reflecting the calming dreaminess of fairytales.

To edit my third photo, I opened it in Adobe Photoshop and I increased the brightness and contrast of the image using the curves layer to improve the lighting of the image. I cropped the picture so that the model was centralized so that I didn't have as much negative space and it gathered the attention of the viewer. I used an ellipse tool to cover the face and later delete that section of the face and cover it with red flowers instead which adds contrast with the white dress and adds an element of fantasy linking to the dreamy nature of fairytales as well as Magdiel's playful editing style. I also added text and a gradient ellipse to fill the negative space. The addition of text to the sides of the image is something Magdiel usually uses in his pieces and it perfectly creates a poster effect.

Review

I have used visual effects and composition by using the white dress and the red props like the apple and the red ribbon of the dress to make the picture more dramatic and add an element of amusement inspired by Kobeissi's use of colour. I think the message of my theme is conveyed effectively because the white dress represents the innocence of children and snow white herself as a spiritually pure person with good morals. It also acts as a to tool highlight happiness and fulfilment linking to the contentment of children due to their exuberant outlook on life.

In addition, to add more colour I have also successfully edited in Photoshop by adding gradient backgrounds and gradient shapes with brighter colours to increase the vibrancy of the image to create a jovial tone. This links to my theme of strange and fantastical as the unique methods by which the I have used colour makes the image very distinctive and unusual hence gathering the viewer's attention. Moreover, colour is a vital part of childhood as young children love colouring books and they like to play with colourful toys. I loved colourful clothes as a kid because they exhibited cheeriness and joyousness hence I think children are more drawn to bright colours. Therefore I have used vibrant ,cheery colours as it demonstrates the positivity and excitement of children.

I think that my composition is effective because I have used these compositional techniques of the rule of thirds, central eye dominant and fill the frame. I have included the formal elements of focus and colour.

Despite the fact Snow White is an entertaining fairytale, I have also linked my work to context by addressed problematic messages within Snow White such as colourism and the depiction that you need a man to come and save you. These messages would be unsettling to a modern audience as women are more equal to men and we are more accepting of people of all colours and ethnic backgrounds. Hence, by having myself as the subject targets those issues as by having a person of colour and by having a woman at the forefront subverts the story by portraying everything it rejects and giving it a more feminist outlook helps to modernise the fairytale.

In my next Development

To make my next development work even better I need to:

Keep doing: From this development, I should keep doing gradient backgrounds as it helped to make my pictures more colourful.

Do less of: On reflection, I think I need to add less gradient shapes as it can be a bit excessive if there's too many.

Do more of: I think I could further develop the effectiveness of my work by improving my photoshop skills to add more face manipulation techniques to enhance the bizarreness of the image