Evaluation

At first I found this module completely frustrating due to my lack of skills and experience with Photoshop. However, after looking at online tutorials and asking friends for advice I was able to get a grasp of some basic skills.

Initial research had left me quite certain I wanted to do something with layers and textures. This was mostly influenced by Nick Knight, his video Antony, the series Dolls and the Pirelli Calendar.

Whilst carrying out the tasks I approached this idea quite widely as I was still uncertain of exactly what I wanted to achieve. The tasks were very helpful for me as I was able to experiment with Photoshop and test out the techniques I had learned. I was also able to begin considering ideas for the final images. I decided to develop the idea I had started in task two. This involved using scanned in materials and combining them with photographs. In Photoshop I selected shadows, highlights and midtones of photographs separately and layered them with various different papers and textures. The photographs I used were a combination of buildings and portraits, altered using Threshold. To further develop my idea I chose to photograph buildings and people again, in Leeds.

In task two I used photographs I had found in magazines to create the colours in the background. With my final images I wanted to use my own photographs to do this so I decided to take some product shots in the studio. This involved photographing sweets, jewellery, toys paint and random colourful objects. At the time I was quite happy with the photographs I had taken. However, afterwards I found myself struggling to get them to work as layers in the way I had intended. I could not seem to create anything quite as effective as the images I had created in task two.

Originally I wanted to take some portraits in the studio having been particularly inspired by Nick Knight’s Dolls series. I also felt the portraits I used in the images I produced for task two worked quite well. However, after encountering problems with booking the studio and discussing my work with Neil I decided to move away from the fashion based images I had been looking at and concentrate on buildings, and more specifically the buildings of Leeds. Choosing Leeds as a subject gave me a clearer idea of what I wanted to achieve with my images. I researched the history of Leeds and how the city had been represented over time. I used Leoids.org, a photographic archive of Leeds to see how the city had been documented in the past and Flickr, for more modern and artistic photographs. From this I was able to choose buildings and areas I wanted to photograph. The Corn Exchange was a subject I wanted to focus on due to its recent media coverage. It’s current restoration and transformation into a food emporium caused much protest and debate, I wanted to address this issue within my work.


Stephen Gill was a massive influence to me within this module. His Hackney Flower series involved him layering photographs of flowers over other images and in the most interesting images, using the flowers to make something unpleasant pleasing to the eye. This inspired me to do a series of work photographing a council estate and trying to make the unsightly high-rise flats more interesting and pleasing to the eye. To do this I used photographs of flowers I have taken in the studio and around Leeds. I also used paint, inspired by the Sony Bravia advert. I also applied the same idea and techniques to my work on Leeds and the Corn Exchange although this time using the photographs to create positive connotations towards Leeds and the Corn Exchange or express my disapproval and a large proportion of the publics opinions of the new plans for the Corn Exchange.

My images were becoming quite graphic and so I felt it would be beneficial to do some research into Graphic Design. I found this very interesting and enjoyable, as I had not looked at much Graphic Design before. I was particularly inspired by Jurriaan Schalken. His composition and use of text is especially appealing.

My images were spilt into four sections, Flowers, Council estate, Leeds and Corn Exchange. Although these seem like very separate categories and ideas they all link together quite effectively due to them all being based entirely on Leeds. Also I have approached each subject in the same way, using the same techniques. I am not entirely happy with many of the images I have produced for this module as I feel they are very simple. Although I did not intend for them to be complicated in any way I feel my limited skills have held me back from creating something more interesting. I also feel I did not achieve what I intended to in relation to colour. This was because my product photographs did not work well, they were not abstract enough and the choice of a macro lens could have been a mistake.

Having said this I did very much enjoy experimenting with Photoshop and I was able to express my own personal feelings and opinions about the city and the Corn Exchange. I also valued the opportunity for me to explore Graphic Design. I would like to continue to develop my Graphic Design skills in the future and will definitely look at Graphics again to inspire my photography.

The three images I have chosen for final pieces include one from the council estate series, one from the Leeds series and one from the Corn Exchange series. I feel these images were the most successful and work well as a series. This has a lot to do with the colour range being consistent throughout the series. Each image is similar yet completely different. All three of my final images were printed on fireproof paper. I chose this paper to emphasize the texture of the background.


Originally I choose the image of the Leeds buildings that did not include the white corn exchange on the right. I feel this image is a better choice to work with the series as it links all the images together in terms of colour range. I like that the white stands out and emphasizes the exterior corn exchange image below it.

The text I used with the council estate Image I think makes the image stronger and more interesting. The fonts I used work well with the form and composition of the image. They are simple and linear and therefore reflect the buildings within the image. I did not want the text to distract from the image, which is why I felt it was necessary to remove the hand-drawn text. I wanted to emphasise the shapes and form of the buildings with the text and therefore I did not intend the text to be entirely legible. The text includes a definition of ‘building’ and ‘class’, a reference to Karl Marx as his sociology of class and finally ‘LS1’, which is the beginning of the postcode for the council estate. The references to class within this image were particularly important to me, as I am interested in sociology and particularly enjoyed the subject of class, Marxism and social inequality. I began this series with the intention of wanting to make the unsightly high-rise flats look more appealing and pleasing to the eye, greatly influenced by Stephen Gill. However, as my images progressed I wanted to relate my images to class and social status highlighting Marxist ideologies of class struggles and the oppression of the working class. This is represented through council estates and the negative connotations that often accompany them.

Although I do like the Corn Exchange image I do not feel it addresses all of the issues I wanted it to. However one of my intentions was to emphasise the architecture, I do feel like I have achieved this. The text I experimented with expressed my opinions on the issue of the Corn Exchange and it’s change into a food emporium effectively, however, it did not work visually.


In terms of audience I can see my images being used for graphic design purposes such as flyer's and advertising. Whilst in Topman I came across a number of t-shirts and hoody’s with graphic prints that involved buildings and high-rise flats which made me think my images could be used as t-shirt designs as they are very simple.
I could also see them being part of a local art exhibition. Often we see local artists and how their surroundings have influenced them. They could also be used as a promotional tool for the city of Leeds or possibly Leeds College of Art and Design, on the website or in the prospectus. The images could promote Leeds College of Art and Design and the idea present on the website at the moment suggesting that the college can offer you the chance to gain experience from all areas of art.