Model Releases.

This year I have been alternating between getting the models to sign the model releases with a graphics tablet and on paper. I have found the digital version much easier to keep track of and alot quicker to sort while on a shoot.

I will upload the digital signed releases here as evidence of a few of my model release forms.

Krunoslav Stifter - Redhead Girl With Freckles Retouch - Photoshop CS6 T...

While browsing youtube for an update on my retouching skills. I came across this video which is a very detailed walk through on how to retouch someone who has alot going on with their skin. This video in particular applied to a redhead with freckles but its also relevant so skin flaws, acne and discoloration.

I found this video so detailed and informative. The retoucher does use different skills to what I use when retouching so I feel as though I am now being opened up to new methods of retouching. While I have never photographed anyone with as many freckles as the model in these shots, there is a huge chance that I will in the future so I'm glad I now have this video to come back to to use as reference if I am struggling.

Reading about depression.

The British Journal of Psychiatry © 1996 The Royal College of Psychiatrists Volume 168 Supplement 30 June 1996 pp 101-108 The Relationship Between Pain and Depression

In 'The Relationship between Pain and Depression' Micheal Von Korff explains and theorises the relationship between different kinds of pain and depression.

I am most interested in the link between emotional pain and depression.
For example Sigmund Freud coined that depression was a similar feeling to mourning the death or the loss of a person or a subject in your life.

Von Korff says that 'At the neurobiological level, neurotransmitters (e.g. serotonin, norepinephrine) implicated in depressive illness have been found to play a critical role in pain modulation as well (Fields, 1987, 1991; Osterweis et al, 1987).  [17,18,28] This suggests that pain transmission may be altered by affective illness, while nociceptive input may also induce or exacerbate a dysphoric affective state. At the psychological level, it has been hypothesised that chronic pain is a particular form of somatisation in which negative emotions are expressed through bodily complaints, including pain.'

The last sentence explains the link between physical pain and depression as being expressed through complaining of the pain which in shot and simple terms, creates a negative environment for the person.

The sentences before this give a bit of an insight into emotional pain (depression) and explains that emotional pain transmission in the brain can be altered by an 'affective illness' (this could be the feeling of pain over the loss of something) which then may induce a negative affective state.. which would then be the depression.



I found it very helpful to read this and a few other texts and articles on different types of depression because they've started to help me understand how depression is formed and how different people react. I really think this will benefit my work because I have a much better understanding on how to portray elements of it now.

Competitions

BJP Breakthrough
AOP student awards
Calumet Student Photographer Award


I have recently had the opportunity to apply to all of the above competitions and some how I have managed to miss all of the deadlines. I'm really dissappointed in myself for doing this because competitions are such great opportunities to get national or even worldwide exposure at the expense of a £10 entry fee. Not to mention the prizes you can win.

To make up for the fact that I have missed these deadlines I will now be intently scouting for competitions to enter.

Graduate options.

When thinking about my life after university I have debated many paths.

Travelling for a gap year to take some time to focus on myself and then return to Norwich after.
Doing an MA in Photography at NUA.
Getting a job in photography and working full time.

All of these options are very appealing for different reasons.
I have always wanted to travel, I could build up my portfolio and assist photographers all over the world, or even just the uk and build up a solid network who will feed me opportunities.

An MA would be a great idea as I would be in education still and learning even more. Its an opportunity to keep shooting while not necessarily relying on it for income.

Getting a permanent job in photography would be a fantastic route as this would pay the bills and I would be putting my creative degree to good use.

Bearing in mind my financial status, travelling is not a realistic option for me. I have bills to pay, a longterm boyfriend and I would have needed to save for years in order to be able to get up and out of the country. There are many travel programmes and scholarships that could give me this opportunity but to me this doesn't seem realistic.

Being in education from the age of 3-21 has given me alot of time to ponder about getting out there and just living my life the way I want to. I think completing a BA is as far as I want to take my education at this stage. I may want to come back in several years and complete an MA at NUA which would be swayed by the fact I would get discount for being a previous student but right now I think I have been in education too long and I need a break from it.

I do have a job in photography and I will be going full time once I have graduated. It is so refreshing to know that I have managed to secure such a fantastic opportunity and this will help me to grow and learn people and sales skills which learning and refreshing my technical knowledge too.

Personal Statement

I started writing my personal statement by going through all of the questions on the Powerpoint on the VLE.
I answered the questions accordingly -

- I create my images because I love recreating forgotten trends and vintage themes

- Hidden depression is a common theme in my work, this is probably because of my own experiences and exposure to it.

- My work is different because it layers elements of contemporary and vintage fashions, beauty and commercialization over the top of depression disguising it as an everyday thing.

- My work raises questions as to why S.A.D is slightly over-looked when it comes to depression. It can be seen as a ‘less qualifying’ type of depression because it only strikes at certain times of the year and on certain days. Why is my depression not as legitimate as your depression and why are there ranks?

- My audience would be teenagers to young adults as this was the age where I was struggling with S.A.D myself and was confused as to what it was and why I was embarrassed to get help.

- My photographic technique disguises the depression in the images rather than communicates it. This is inspired by my own experiences of hiding my feelings at a young age because I felt as though my depression wasn’t truly depression and worth the time or money of getting help from a doctor.

When I looked back at my answers I realised I had information in there that I would have never of thought to even put in my artist statement. It was a great exercise to help me pin point what it is I like about photography and why I create my own images.

I chose to write in first person and not third as I feel it is more personal as I'm writing about myself.

My final statement -

Since the release of his book in 2012, I find myself permanently inspired by Richard Mosse’s Infra. The way he hides tragedy behind landscapes made fashionable through the use of unusual hues like magenta and cyan, is a huge inspiration in my own photography. By lacing elements of Alex Prager and Nadia Lee Cohen’s work into my own practice, it has become a mixture of cinematic fashion portraits infused with different aspects of realism; in particular, seasonal affective disorder. In an attempt to explore and understand my own feelings and experiences with Seasonal Affective Disorder, my current practice revolves around challenging the way seasonal depression is perceived by society. By juxtaposing elements of forgotten fashion trends and vintage themes against the emotive qualities of issues like S.A.D, I have disguised melancholy inside a flurry of colour and beauty, much like the everyday deception of depression. I try to challenge the way different depressions are stereotyped and ranked of validity in today’s society by hiding the obvious somber characteristics behind a mask of beauty and charisma.

Social Media

I recently applied to facebook to change the name of my social media page from Bethany Morton to Beth Morton as this is consistent with my website and business cards. This involved applying to them online and providing proof of my name.

I've come to notice that the best time to post my images on social media seems to be after 8pm so I have begun to schedule my posts around this time. This must be due to everyone finishing work and relaxing at home by that time. The posts that I have posted before this time in the past have not reached as many people and haven't gained as many likes as others. This is crucial on social media because the more likes you receive, the more likely the image is to pop up on the top of the timeline of your friends and their friends etc. It is a great way to get extra exposure so my posting time has become very specific. 

Paper.

I previously ordered a Hahnemule paper sample pack online so I could test out their papers before I went ahead with my portfolio printing.
Please see my sample book for examples of the prints.

The first paper I test printed was the Matt Fibre 200gsm.
I honestly thought this was a disaster. Matte is definitely not the finish most appropriate for my portfolio. The blacks in my images look grey and there seems to be little depth in my autumn example image of the left hand side of the page.

The next paper was the Matt Fibre Duo 210gsm.
An advantage to using this paper is that I would have been able to print double sided saving myself money on paper and space in my portfolio.
I found this paper to be very similar to the Matt Fibre, the only difference being that it was the tiniest bit warmer.

Photo Silk Baryta 210gsm
I quite liked this paper as the colours were punchy and the blacks were very black but I found the finish far too glossy and the texture was very distracting.

Photo Lustre 260gsm
I really like this paper. The texture is fine, the colours and the blacks are very punchy and the finish is great for my kind of work,

Photo pearl 310gsm
I also really like this paper. It is extremely similar to the Photo Lustre but what I like better about this paper is that the weight of it actually feels like a photograph and not a flimsy piece of paper. The texture is even finer with this paper too, its less distracting.

Photo Glossy 260gsm.
I hate this paper hands down. The finish looks cheap and unprofessional. The images scuffed before they had even come out of the printer which worries me about how fragile the paper is.

Light boxes?

I think the idea of a light box is a great idea. I have seen them hung in exhibitions previously and the illuminate the colours of images so vibrantly and uniquely. 

One company that offer bespoke light boxes are Metro Imaging. 

Just like the image in the image, light boxes are perfect for when a photographer is working with an artificial light in their images, for example, the cooker in the shot. This helps bring a realistic element of light to the images that a bog-standard print could not do.

As my images do not have this element of light in I feel as though considering my price range my images would be much better suited to a regular frame than a light box.

Framing

I have decided I will be using Norwich Frame Workshop to frame my images with.
I have given him my images with 18 days til the deadline and I will receive my frames in 14 days.
I will be going for black frames with an arctic white mount. I have chosen to use 2 portrait prints at a2 size as I found a3 too small and found that a2 had a much better breathtaking impact. Each of my frames will cost £60 with student discount which is an absolute steal for the quality and time and effort that will be going into each one. I am very happy with my choice.
I found choosing frame colour the hardest decision out of the whole exhibition preparation experience. I went into the shop thinking I wanted white frames but when Lee placed the black frames next to my work and arctic white mount it really helped the images pop. As the board the frames will be on will be white, if the frame is black, the mount is white and the majority of my 2 images are black, this will create several borders around my images leading the audiences eyes into the shots. I found that when the white frame was placed next to my images with the mount that it just got lost against the white table and what would be the white board the frames are hung on.

Here is a photoshop mockup of what the final frame with the print inside will look like.

Framing options

The Print Space - 

The print spaces website has alot of options when it comes to framing. You can choose the type of frame, then the frame effect, then the mount , then the glass and finally the fixtures for the back.

I personally like their box mount the best. The diagram is a great help into understanding how the print is framed. I like the box frame because it helps lead you into the frame by using the distance between the glass and the actual print. I would go for this in either black or white.

Another option for local framing I found was - 

Fabulous Frames.

They offer 12 different frames with assorted mounts. After looking through their choices I decided that Fabulous Frames was not for me. Their options are beautiful and classic but my work is contemporary and I would hate for a classic frame to hold back its potential. Frame 10 was my favourite out of all 12 options because it was simple and wouldn't distract from my images.

Norwich Framing Workshop - 

After using the workshop for the last 3 years I know that the quality produced here is excellent. 

I went into the shop to speak to the owner about quotes and he offers considerable student discount. I had a look through his frame options and I think when bearing in mind what is suitable for my work and my price range his box frame in either white or black is a great choice for my images.

TPG

After visiting the Photographers Gallery, I have been thinking about how I might get my work exhibited in a space like that.

The Photographers Gallery actually run a competition/award aimed at art school graduates called FreshFaced+WildEyed.

I found out about the competition through http://i-d.vice.com/en_gb/article/new-photographers-gallery-exhibition-promotes-young-photography-talent where I discovered some really cool emerging photography. As it turns out, I don't quite qualify for this yet as you have to have graduated within  year of applying but I will definitely be applying for this next year. You don't win a prize as such but get to exhibit your work in one of the most well-known places in London who're dedicated to showcasing photographic talent.

Tube Exhibitions

I was completely caught off guard in Westminster tube station while I was using the escalators and found numerous photographic prints appearing beside me. The idea of a pop up exhibition in such an overused public place is a great idea! It really surprised me and made my day. There were a lot of fashion portrait images by Cecil Beaton and other well known photographers too.

The Photographers Gallery

While I was in London, I took the opportunity to go and view the Deutsche Borse Prize like I do every year. I was particularly excited to view Nikolai Bakharev's images but I was also caught off guard by the punchy colours and abstract ideas in Viviane Sassens Images.

I really love the nostalgia of Nikolai's images. This image in particular was my favourite as I found it related really well to my current project and seemed to emanate an air of vintage depression.

I found Zanele Muholi's images very interesting in the way they documented the LGBT in South Africa yet the images look staged to an certain extent so they couldn't truly document anything.

PORTFOLIO

My portfolio has arrived!
I am extremely happy with it. It looks pristine and clean and the colours of my portfolio are really going to pop against the white leather.
I am now debating getting an archival presentation box to keep it in so I am able to carry it around. Sadly I cannot afford Plastic Sandwiches £150 presentation box option but I am debating Silverprint as I have bought one of their boxes before and it has lasted me a long time and is still in great condition.
Essentially keeping the portfolio looking in great condition is what is key to me as I do not have alot of money and cannot replace it every year like some photographers do.

Assisting

I have been assisting on more and more shoots recently. I have gathered some feedback on why m friends have asked me and they have all said that compared to some other students they find me very proactive when it comes to moving lights around and taking initiative in helping with direction. I am finding that the more time I spend in the studio with other people, the more I learn about what works and what doesn't work and its really broadening my knowledge of studio based photography.

Background edit.

I thought I should use this shoot as an opportunity to run through the edit process for it as the shoot did not turn out how I wanted to and I turned to photoshop to salvage it. When my fabric backdrop idea malfunctioned, in the heat of the moment I shot on a plain white background to try and save the shoot as we were running out of time. I decided to add a colour to this on photoshop to make the image more interesting. I did this by using a block colour fill layer on the 'soft light' setting which then changed the look of the colour to a more believable gel lighting look. I then masked out her body and face and spent a very long time masking her hair so that the background looked believable .

To do this for the whole shoot took me a VERY long time and I will definitely not be relying on photoshop to do something like this in the future as it is really not convenient. It did however give me an opportunity to practice my skills and refine them for future use.

Alex Prager contact

A few months ago I got in contact with Alex Prager's assistant Lia to ask her a few questions about Alex's photographic process. She was most helpful and linked me to several interviews that alex has done in the past.
One of the more informative and interesting links she sent me was this one.

In this interview Alex describes her process as a snap decision she made when she was 20. Some more interesting parts of her process was when she was figuring out what she liked to create and what her audience liked her to create. She would hang picture in her laundry room in her apartment building, go back a day later and see which images were gone. By doing this she could see which images were received better by the public. I think this is such a fantastic idea for a pop up exhibition as not only does it help figure out which images are more successful but its a simple way to gain exposure.

Alex explains that she uses colour to gain  peoples attention and then has them discover something underneath that is not as cheery. This is extremely relevant to my own work as this is exactly what I try to do. Gain peoples attention with a glamorous aesthetic and then have them discover the melancholy underneath.

Photo Books

I think photo books are a great opportunity to showcase your work in a travel sized way.
For example at an exhibition you could have your prints on the wall and a photo book on the desk next to them with images in that support your exhibited images but aren't quite as important.
This is different to a portfolio as this showcases all of your different images where as I would use a photobook to show case images from the same series as the framed images.

Blurb.co.uk do some fantastic deals on photobooks.

I find it a little bit disappointing that they don't offer a large portrait book but I do like the idea of a square as this would then take both portrait and landscape images. I think their prices are really reasonable for a good quality book to support your main images.

Blurb also offer portfolio quality photo books incase a leather bound or a box portfolio didn't suit yoru brand right. I think its great that they have so many uses for photo books.

Prints.

After hearing back from Karen at Tulle and Candyfloss and how grateful she was to receive her surprise prints, I have decided that I will be gifting prints to the rest of my collaborations too. When I arrange a collaboration we always decide on exchanging time for digital files, so I think it will work in my favour to gift these people a few physical prints for their portfolio's. Not only does this save them the hassle of printing it themselves but it is a nice surprise that will hopefully strengthen our professional relationship.