Sarah Ahmed
My Response to Magdiel lopez's work
My Response Plan
To respond to the work of Magdiel Lopez, I intend to take and edit photos in Photoshop.
My work will link to my artist because I will also using similar effects on photoshop to edit the pictures I have taken.
I will need photographs of people for editing because Magdiel Lopez does most of his editing on people and uses different photoshopping skills on their faces to make them more fantastical.
The equipment I need will be my phone to use the camera to take portraits of my models where I will need to get close to their face's so that it looks similar to a headshot. When taking the pictures I would require a blank wall behind the models so that the editing process will be easier. Also I will have the models in hairstyles that don't cover their face as I don't want their faces to be hidden. The pictures will be taken during daylight and without studio lights as I think natural light perfectly accentuates and highlights the features of their face. The models should wear plain clothes without patterns so that it doesn't contrast with any of the other colours of the flowers that I am going to photoshop into the image. When taking the picture, the camera should be steady so that the image produced by the camera doesn't come out burry hence I will take many pictures to make sure that at least one of the pictures are perfectly still.
I have taken the picture of the hand, the backgrounds and images of flowers to use in my edits from the internet.
I will include the compositional rules of center eye dominant for my portraits as well as contrast between the subject and the background.The main formal element of I will be implementing is colour because it a very vital part of Magdiel Lopez's work.
This will link to my theme of strange and fantastical as the unique methods by which the faces and hands are cut out makes the image very distinctive and unusual hence gathering the viewer's attention.
My Raw photographs/ footage; Contact Sheet
My Three Photoshop Edits/ My Edited Film Response
For my first edit I opened it in Adobe Photoshop and I used the magic wand tool to remove the original background of the subject so that I could get rid of the negative space around her and apply a better background that complimented the model's eye makeup. I used the pen tool to make selections on the face and cut them out so that they could be filled with orange flowers. This helped me implement the formal element of shape as the parts of skin that were cut out are placed infront of the outline of the shape which is indented into the face. This makes it look like a puzzle piece which successfully captures the viewer's attention. The flowers added as different layers to fill the negative space in the holes which are left by crafting the skin out of the face adding an element of fantasy to the picture therefore engrossing the viewer and making them focus on the subject.
For the second edit, I opened it in Adobe Photoshop and I used the black and white filter to make the hand monochrome and I also increased the contrast by using the brightness/contrast tool to highlight the dark and light parts of the hand so that the background contrasts with the subject. Then I used the lasso tool to create eclipses at different parts of the hand which was then filled with gradient colours using the gradient fill tool. To pick the colours, I used the colour sampler tool to pick out different colours from the background to fill the eclipses. This was done as an attempt to create a pleasing colour scheme to make the colours of the background further compliment and empahsize the subject which creates a peaceful mood. I have demonstrated the formal element of colour because the various vibrant colours of the eclipses makes the picture colourful that makes a bold statement hence directing the viewer's attention to the subject. Also, the compositional rule of contrast is demonstrated as the monochrome hand contrasts to the background which helps to distinguish the subject and definitely draws your attention to the subject. I also added text to the sides of the image as it is something Lopez usually uses in his pieces and it helped my picture look more like a poster which is the look Lopez usually aims for.
For my third edit, I opened it in Adobe Photoshop then I used the black and white filter to make the picture monochrome so that the background and flowers that I was going to add later contrasted with the subject. This helped me implement the compositional rule of contrast as the subject had a more vintage and serious tone that contrasted to the futuristic and fun design of the background . After, I used the magic wand tool to remove the original background of the subject so that I could get rid of the negative space around her. I also went in with the soft brush to add back pieces of hair that were removed when getting rid of the background. I used the lasso tool to separate her face into two sections which helped me implement the formal element of shape which is present throughout Lopez's work.This technique made the picture very interesting and adds more depth to the picture as it is not just a simple portrait of a person therefore drawing the viewer's attention. I also added text to the sides of the image as it is something Lopez usually uses in his pieces and it helped my picture look like a poster.
I think my first edit was the most successful as the theme of strange and fantastical is demonstrated well by the unusual elements of the image. For example, the flowers emerging out of the face and the overall colour scheme is alluring as the eye makeup, flowers and the background go seamlessly together which is very soothing for the viewer. I also like the font of text that I used and white margin along the border- giving a poster style to the image which effectively represents Lopez's fun, authentic and casual style.
