Intervention - tom

Digital intervention

Digital intervention is creating an image that intervenes with the environment of scenery through digital processing. The most common type of digital intervening is photo manipulation.

Noemi Goudal

This image was created using digital methods and then printing the image to scale to create a new overall scene.  Her work is surreal and makes you question the method of the image.

This is an example of my own work. Here I have juxtaposed natural and manmade scenery into one new image. This digital intervention was done through layering and photo manipulation on Adobe Photoshop.  I chose these two images as I feel the converging perspective lines of the road lines up and corresponds with the window frames.

Physical Intervention

Physical intervention, unlike digital, is completely authentic. Though some images may appear surreal and fake they are all done without photo manipulation.  They usually include unnatural or unfitting items in an alternative environment or situation.

Andy Goldsworthy

Though this image may appear photo edited or unnatural it is all real. Andy Goldsworthy uses nature and natural resources for most of his work using shapes and colours to create an artistic piece.

Michael Paul Smith

Created realistic illusions of old automobiles using model cars and clever use of perspective in his work.

An example of my own physical intervention is below. This was actually already in position so I didnt even stage the image. I found it peculiar for a foot stool to be in the center of a walkway as it would usually be to the side.

 

Rune Guneriussen

http://www.runeguneriussen.no/wallno02/02_04.html

Rune does location photography placing everyday objects in peculiar environments. Unlike Andy Goldsworthy who creates an image using nature I feel Runes approach creates a more fairy tale setting full of contrasting colours.   This set up would be done with a large electric generator. If I had the money to support this photo shoot I would have liked to have tried something similar in terms of lighting set ups.        

Photo montage 

These images and links are to inspiration for my ideas, own project and work.        
 http://www.flickriver.com/photos/tags/frankjudy/interesting/
                                                                                  

Proposal

The concept of this piece of work is ‘going out to play’ this will be a slightly sarcastic and misleading title as I wish to photograph people playing videogames in outdoor locations such as woodlands, fields or perhaps beaches. The concept will show how absorbed people have gotten with technology and the contrast of playing as a child has altered over time.

Children have lost touch with nature and the outdoors in just one generation - the Wild Network campaign

I wish to get old video game consoles and use them as props out on location with the use of young teens/adults modelling. I chose this age group as it is the target market/audience to video games. I will perhaps also try and photograph the consoles in the environment alone as an extra.

Lighting and equipment

The lighting I have in mind for the shoot is very specific and would have to be taken at near sunset to get the appearance I would like to achieve. I may also consider doing some long exposure shots as the day gets darker on the shoot to see if I can get some interesting effects.

Below is an example of practice shots to get the lighting settings and style I would like to achieve. The image below is too overexposed due to the intense flash and does not give a sharp enough shadow wanted.  I wish for the image to have a dark background to focus on the glare of the ‘console’ monitor shining onto my subject.

(1/80 4.5 ISO 800) Flash 1/64 over exposed

Using this tube of paper works like a snoot focusing the light source and making more direct. The inside of the paper was black as this counter acts diffusing light. The use of the snoot gives the idea of an enclosed light source like a television or monitor. The image below shows features my new lighting set up which I deem more appropriate for the type of image I am wishing to achieve.

The new results show a better lighting style with a more accurate representation of the results I would like to achieve. These are test image setups and the real images will be out on location. This means I have to take into consideration weather conditions, natural lighting, location set up and more.

(1/125 4.5 ISO 800) Flash 1/128

Things I will need to take to my location shoot:

Props – consoles, wires, cables

Reflectors – silver/gold

OCF x2 – diffuser

Settings and scenery test shots for lighting

These images were taken before the initial shoot was taking place. This is to give me an idea of setting,lighting and a general feel for the environment I will be later shooting in.

The photo shoot was taken however there was a few issues i came across when doing the shoot. As I had no assistant to help me with directing reflectors or holding flashes it was difficult to place the flashes in the exact wanted positions. This in turn meant altering my technique and lighting positioning to better suit the situation as the flash was firing too low and not enough on the subject. As the flashes were wireless it occasionally cause them to not trigger resulting in black images.

As I had difficulty with the placement of the flashes this caused issues with getting light on my subject without overexposing and making the flash too strong. I wanted an ambient feeling and the flash being too bright would ruin this. I also found it difficult to get a focused source of light as there was issues with using the snoot.

(1/125 4.5 ISO 100) Flash 4:1 ratio

Once the shoot was over I selected a few images I feel fit the concept idea and style I was after. I intend to display them on a digital magazine or create a handbook to display my images.

Evaluation

I think that these images could have been a lot better if I had access to a model more quickly. My personal management and that of my models were both sloppy meaning the sessions did not run as smooth as initially planned. The physical intervention aspect may not appear as apparent as I would like however as the lighting doesn't highlight the controller/consoles as much as I would have liked it to. I would like to have considered some post production photo editing to see how I could adjust temperatures and colour through photo editing.

 If I had access to them; I would have liked to try alternative camera lenses and coloured gels. coloured gels would have created a more realistic tv glare and better use of snoot would create a more boxed light effect. I could have been more creative given I have an assistant to hold my camera flashes and hold reflectors. I would have liked to try it with alternative models of both gender and use a bunch of different consoles and scenery. This would have been possible given I managed my time and made contacts sooner. The image quality is to a decent standard and all work together as a set.