Connecting Essay Four

This is an image I found on the internet, which uses the technique of depth of field. The main element here is colour; the photographer has used this to his/her advantage and represent the subject's culture through his clothing. This has also allowed him to create significant contrast between the dark blue and red clothing and the background, which is not as bold as colours. By doing this, the photographer was able to really emphasise the depth of field, allowing the viewer to see the blurred background. This forces them to focus on the subject as the view has been restricted, however, this gives out the theme of journey as it shows another culture and implies the idea of travelling, which has been enforced through the depth of field technique. The photographer has also chosen to use a close-up angle of the subject and having him look straight at the camera; this bonds the viewer with the subject as they pay most attention to him, trying to figure out his personality and understand his culture. Therefore, this engages the viewer with the picture and encourages them to spend more time on the image and its context.

This is my own image from my depth of field shoot with a subject. I have used dark clothing on my subject so that he stands out from the rest of the scene, which is quite bright. This makes him the main focus of the photograph and ensures that the viewer pays attention to him prior to looking at the rest of the image. I use the depth of field technique here but the background is not as blurred - this is because I wanted the viewer to understand the scene and engage with it most than with my subject, this is a reason why I have my subject with his back to the camera; this breaks the bond between him and the viewer.

In summary, both pictures are similar but have some differences. For example, the subject in the first picture is facing the camera, whereas my subject is facing his back to the camera - this creates different aims and creates a different atmosphere for the viewer. Also, the use of colour is not very similar, as the first image uses bold colours such as blue but I have decided to use plain black instead. Having said this, although the use of colour is different, this element was still use for the exact same aim - to allow the subject to stand out, so that they are the first thing the viewer sees when laying eyes on the photographs.

Connecting Essay Three

This image on the internet uses the technique of depth of field in order to illustrate the theme of journey whilst including elements such as colour, shadows and lights, as well as blur. This adds diversity to the image and creates curiosity in the viewer, almost inviting them to spend more time working out the image. The dark colours throughout the image shows connotations of mystery and invites the viewer to explore the photograph, working out the context. The light flares around the picture also adds to this mysterious atmosphere and further contributes to the theme of journey - the depth of field technique has prevented the viewer from what's ahead, along with the lights, but the subject looks as if he is about to start walking that way, heading towards the blurred path, emphasising journey.

This is my own picture I have created using a depth of field technique. I decided to use a low angle to restrict the viewer's view and include at little as the subject as possible so the viewer can't connect with the subject. This is so the viewer concentrates on the scene and the theme of journey rather than the subject, however, I still allow them to notice the subject and understand that the subject is going on a journey. I also made sure the path is not clear at the end, and I used this angle to my advantage, blocking the view after the bend. By doing this, feelings of curiosity are evoked in the viewer, making them wonder about the scene and where the subject could be heading to. I have also used the element of colour and shown great contrast between the grass and the rocks. The green grass act as a guiding line, starting from the bottom of the picture and guiding the viewer through the path, taking their eyes on a short journey, which further emphasises the theme I am trying to put out.  The rocky ground does exactly the same thing but due to the fact that it's a different colour, it creates a pattern, adding repetition and the element of lines to the image, further improving the photograph and makes it even more exciting.

Overall, these two pictures are similar in the way that they use the same angles and techniques to achieve similar aims. By using low angles, both images are able to restrict the viewer's view of the scene in order to make them wonder and add an adventurous atmosphere to each photograph. Another way the pictures are similar is through the use of colour creating contrast. The first picture uses dark colours as well as lights in order to create this contrast and most of the colours fade into each other, creating an ombre effect and allowing the image to flow, whereas my photograph uses bright colours which are completely different from each other. Despite this, both images still use the colour available in the scene to their best advantages.

Connecting Essay Two

I found this image on the internet when looking for inspiration for my shoots. The photographer has used possessions so portray the whole idea of journey as well as try and communicate to the viewers about the subject's possessions. From this image, the viewer can imply that the subject has been to India and America but is a British Citizen, evident from the passport. The compass is ambiguous; it could suggest that the subject is a male as a compass is normally associated with males, especially those who hitchhike and camp a lot. This gives the viewer an idea of the subject's personality and hobbies without actually including them in the image. The whole image shows contrast through the colour of the notes, as the passport and the compass are quite dark compared to the rest of the image. By doing this, the photographer ensures that the viewer immediately focuses on the passport and then the compass, before focusing on the rest of the notes and trying to work out the context. This is done through the use of colour, where the photograph places the object with the darkest colour where he/she wants the viewer to focus first. This is a smart technique which allows him/her to manipulate the image is such a way that  they can control where the viewer pays attention in the photograph when they first look at it.

This is my image from my shoot, where I focused on possessions/objects, which show the theme of journey. I have used the element of colour a lot here, in order to make the image more attractive and makes it seem as if there are a lot of objects present. I placed the brightest objects closer to the camera and the darkest ones further away, this is so that I can focus on the brighter image and blur the background in order to create depth and give out a 3-dimensional feel from my image. There are also some objects in the background that have quite bright colours - I have done this so that the viewer pays attention to the whole image rather than just the parts on focus. Although the objects in the background are not associated with the theme of journey, I have still included them so that the image looks less staged and more realistic so that it allows the viewer to connect with the subject more, as they can see the environment that the subject is in rather than just the objects portraying the theme of travel. The sunglasses imply that the subject is a female and from the watch, the viewer can understand that the subject is stylish and travelling with other people, due to the fact that there are 2 passports.

In summary, both images use colour as a way of manipulating the picture and control what the viewer pays attention to when first looking at the image. Despite this, the angles in which the photographs were taken are not the same but they still achieve the same techniques. The picture from the internet has an angle which allows the viewer to see the objects clearly and judge the subject from this, deciding on their personality. On the other hand, in my picture, the angle has allowed me to blur out some objects, which enables me to prioritise some and prevent the viewer from working out too much about the subject. For example, from the first picture, it can be implied that the subject is a British Citizen through the passport. On the contrary, in my picture, the passports are not clear enough for the viewer to find out where the subject is from.

Connecting Essay One

I found this image on the internet - the photographer has used the busy London nightlife to his/her advantage and created an exciting image. By using the technique of motion blur, he was able to show movement and put emphasis on the speed of the bus. This shows journey through the lights, which highlights the motion blur that has been used and making sure the viewer focuses on the bus more than anything else in the image. The element of colour has also been practiced to a large extent - there are warm red colours that are placed around the picture. This creates significant contrast between the background and the main focuses of the image. It is clear to the viewer that the bus is the main object in the picture, however, the red telephone box has been included so the viewer also pays some attention to it. Despite this, the photographer has made sure that the lights from the bus are bright and clear so that the viewers understand that the bus is the main focus in the image - this allows them to first look at the bus before focusing on the telephone box. These two objects have been emphasised as they show the movement clearly; with the still, sharp telephone box, the photographer is able to exaggerated the blurred bus, making it seem faster and further adding to the theme of journey.

This is my own image, which I have created using the technique of motion blur. I have chosen this angle because it allows me to show a contrast between the sky, the other cars and the bus. The bus was my main focus and I wanted my viewer to focus on it as soon as they look at the image - I achieved this  through the use of colours and lights. I ensured that the street lights were bright enough to allow the viewer to see the rest of the scene, enabling them to engage in the image and I did not want to restrict their view too much. The motion blur technique I used allowed me to manipulate the speed of the bus - by using a low shutter speed, I was able to show the bus travelling faster than it actually was. This creates an illusion and allows me to depict the theme of journey whilst still including other elements such as shadows and colours, adding diversity to my work and making it more exciting.

Overall, these two images are extremely similar. The exact same techniques have been used for the exact same aims. by using the technique of motion blur, the photographer and I were able to manipulate the speed of the buses and create an illusion for the viewer in order to achieve the theme of journey. We both also decided to keep the rest of our scenes still and crisp sharp so that the motion blur was even more exaggerated and highlighted. This ensured that as soon as the viewer looked at the image, they would automatically focus on the moving bus, which is further achieved by the use of lights from the bus in both images. On the other hand, although both images have very similar aims, I wanted my background to be darker than the bus so I made sure that the bus was the only bright object in the image, this was not the case for the image from the photographer, where he included other bright objects such as the telephone box and the warm red colour on the road.