The title of my creative independent project is ‘abandonment’. I’ve always been drawn to the apocalyptic/overgrown aesthetic of town and cities in different medias. My main inspiration that I looked into first, to do with this theme was the PlayStation game ‘The Last Of Us’. The game begins with a zombie outbreak and the main character (Joel) loses his daughter: 20 years pass and within these his brother leaves him, and he loses more people.
‘The Last Of Us’ is a game filled with loss and ‘abandonment’ not only within the storyline but also with the game design –hence I see it as a huge inspiration for my project. Other medias I have been inspired by based off the game/soundtracks are ‘Everybody’s gone to the rapture’ and ‘Life is Strange’.I find my theme intriguing since ‘abandonment’ can come in many forms, whether it be in people or buildings and even when something has been left for a long while, I find beauty in their history and remains.
For example, in my work you will see sparks of vibrant colours where nature has begun to accompany and envelop these historical buildings and I find that beautiful. A new life growing within an old building and using it as a support and even a home –an interesting an example of nature reclaiming architecture.Abandonment is carried through multiple stages of these structures.
The building is first left to get old, and rot away as do the people who used it. After so long these people eventually pass away and although of course people go and visit graves, majority of the time the passed person is there, they are left alone. Linking well with the theme of my project, I also find it interesting how in a graveyard there are so many abandoned bodies all together in comfortable distance from one another, yet each still having that cloud of loneliness above them.
Finally, with the buildings in which I have photographed, they all look relatively similar in the way they are derelict, but we have to remember the history and story they carry along with them.
This project was designed to subtlety shock, scare and make the audience aware of their relationship with horror. Through discrete prop placement, referencing existing horror conventions, I aim to create photographs inspired by contemporary and vintage horror themes.
In doing this, I like to introduce subtle elements into my images, such as placing red balloons in a forest to suggest links to Stephen King’s IT and using light as a silhouette to create an atmosphere of fear and dread in the viewer. Although I’m interested in horror, I’m also interested in how an audience reacts to different levels of fear within the image. I’m aiming to build tension within the image using levels of anticipation through reimagining famous horror conventions.
This approach will focus on revealing less of the main horror ideas, such as blood and gore and instead aim to provoke fear through the mere presence of something, as opposed to the full picture being revealed. Within this project key influences included Joshua Hoffine and Kyle Thompson.
Kyle Thompson has informed many aspects of the project through his use of lighting to create a sinister atmosphere which is also supported by props such as red balloons, single models and silhouetted figures. In terms of the body of work, the decision to enter three images as a triptych would help the audience to imagine a narrative running through the photos.
The audience’s role is to bridge the gap between each image, creating their own horror scenario. My progression after graduating is to seek employment within the industry and to continue utilising my existing skills.
I chose these topics because it fits in with what I attempt to do with my photography: raise awareness on issues, often ones that are stigmatized. I explored how these affected different people to gain insight on them and used that to influence how I approached it from a photographic standpoint to help me remain sensitive to the issues at hand.
As a photographer, I feel like it is my responsibility to highlight these issues, respectfully, to start a positive conversation.
My title “Re:CLAIM!” symbolises mine and my model’s response to these issues, “reclaiming” them. It allows us to be creative, how we can change it, take back and make it positive. I felt inspired by their stories and wanted to help these models tell their stories.
My project is called ‘It’s a small world’ and is inspired by Joel Robison. They are photoshopped images that are raising awareness to the lack of care that humans treat the planet with.
It explores the idea that we take not only Earth for granted but also animals that you might not typically see on a day-to-day experience. If you wouldn’t expect to see these animals in these environments, then why are we treating them like that. You might just walk past an empty coffee cup in the wilderness and not think much of it, but what you don’t see is the impact of that object is.
Photoshop was a big part of creating my images as they are not realistic. I used a large vary of tricks and skills to form the fiction I wanted. Most of the animals I used photos of, were taken in Dudley Zoological Gardens. I have worked with zoo many times before and have won a competition with them.
I have also used ‘more common’ animals like a seagull and a lamp to so its not just animals you would find in a zoo, but it’s affecting these animals more so as they live where we do.
All I want from my images that while they are in a comedy setting, to take them seriously as well. Learn that the world needs us to act better and live more healthily, not just for us, but for them too. It’s not just our world, it’s their world too.
The theme I have chosen for my final project is mental health, particularly portraying the effects of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). Whilst I don’t have the condition myself, one of my closer relatives has been diagnosed with the disorder.
Getting diagnosed with BPD is very similar to autism in the way that it’s a long process, especially as a woman with either of the conditions. Doctors are not as well trained to spot the signs in women as they are men, and I don’t think this is something that should be ignored.
The disorder is often heavily stigmatised by the media and the psychiatric field. My project is a visual representation of the condition as, my subject whom the project is related to is uncomfortable to be showcased in images.
My project consists of a series of images that reflect the unacknowledged parts of cities. I wanted to convey my perception of areas and how I think they should be showcased. We often take no or very little notice of what surrounds us, and I feel as a society people want things done almost immediately and the most efficiently, so it’s easy to let things go unnoticed.
I would hope my FMP can show that if you pause and look at the environment around you, that there is a lot more to places than just convenience. My idea for this project was to photograph parts of cities that no one takes time to acknowledge because those seemed to be the parts that held the most character and the most interesting stories.
I wanted to do this by taking quick snapshots of city streets, not just main high streets but side roads too. I felt unplanned shoots helped reflect the realism of the community as they were genuine shots, not posed. My images don’t have a lot of people in frame however a lot of my work, for example, in Birmingham a lot of the photos I took were showing people’s art that they had left for the public eye. Society’s views are often tainted by social media, and I think having a platform for public expression in whatever form displays the true opinions of the public.
For my FMP project I chose to depict the things I see daily through a first-person perspective. One of the reasons behind this was because I feel that a personal element can often make a project more memorable.
I decided to choose this idea for my project, as I think that the most important part of photography is to create. Often, the things that inspire you the most are the things that surround you at home. I feel this is an honest way of showing my creative vision, as the technical approach ensures that I include every single detail.
Sometimes when we focus intermittingly on the banal and the ordinary, in a fresh almost forensic way, it becomes exciting and a new way of seeing.
I have decided to do this for my FMP because I wanted to do fashion photography, but I wanted to make it different, so I have made them into magazine covers using the rolling stone title because I feel that it fits the pictures better than the vogue title.
What I have gained from doing this project is more experience with fashion photography and I have gained more skills within photoshop, I have also learnt to use natural lighting for my photos because all my final images were shot outside in Birmingham.
I feel that this project has helped me excel with photography because it allowed me to explore a range of different things such as using the studio for test shots and using the lighting in the studio, it has also helped me gain confidence with location shoots and having the confidence to take my camera out in public.
For FMP I wanted my project to show the more creative and artistic style of photography, combining illustration and photography into one. I love all forms of art, drawing especially so I involved the two together to create a 2d image crossed with 3d objects.
Combining drawing and everyday objects into an image brings a unique and creative flair into photography. Exploring different medias of art creates unique images and I wanted this to show my creative side. I have delved into all styles of photography from street to portrait to still life and now wanted to put a spin on it and try illustrative photography.
