Evaluation

EVALUATION:

My planning and research I believe greatly helped me in terms of achieving the pieces that I created. After researching one specific photographer and the different styles of work he possess, I took various styles and experimented them with my own style. I created 5 different designs mainly based on portraits to be featured in art magazine called ARTnews. This entire unit gave me the opportunity to produce creative photographic images (based on art) while experimenting with equipment and techniques. Pre-production was a vital part of the whole process. Creating both a mood board and mind map helped me make a decision on which idea would target a specific audience a lot easier because it allow me to state all ideas all together. Being an artist myself, I was able to ask the question "Would this feature appeal to me as an artist?"

Each portrait portrays a different image and message, while they may seem complex at times, the fact is that they are the opposite (whilst still being creative), which fits perfectly with the style of the magazine. The first image I chose to edit was really simple and plain, I thought this would allow me to develop a quick and easy idea based on my own artistic styles. However, the outcome wasn’t the one I initially wanted, the proportions lacked accuracy, which therefore led to misconceptions; the scribbles and lines were drawn on very unevenly. The dark colour of the lines against the saturation of the skin tone made the final concept stand out and look richer in both colour and value. The complex patterns across half the face added so much texture to the composition. But the accuracy made the choice very simple in the end. I decided to include another two pieces to the series with my style imbedded however, in order to show the versatility my artistic skills, I decided to use colour along with patterns. With the addition of colour and patterns the image has transformed, evidently making it feel creative and fit for the art life and magazine, due to the uniqueness and style in general. Presenting the images as versatile in this way will make them more appealing to the target audience since they would be fit for multiple different occasions and provide for a wider range of needs that the audience may have, this may apply in terms of inspiration for upcoming artists.

For these designs I used Photoshop to edit them depending on which style I was designing. For example the patterns. For the patterns I used some simple lining tools for the shaping of the base, essentially adding some more interesting texture to the composition due to the enhanced colour correction. There were slight pixels on the images so I tried to make the photo more interesting by adding the design varying the levels of the image in general. I think it was quite effective in making the composition more interesting because where there were once pixels are now patterns; this will allow the image to catch the audience’s attention through pure visuals.

The planning and development greatly supported me in coming up with my final concepts. Initially, I was planning to have the image with plain scribbles and patterns. However, as time went by and I did more research on Sebastien Del Grosso and soon realised that the idea was quite blank in comparison; there was no story within the concept. I decided to further develop and experiment with the materials and resources in hopes of seeing a storyline. My experimentations included colouring, remapping, colour corrections, and using all my styles on the same chosen image. By accomplishing this step, I was also able to make a judgment of what does not look visually appealing and what doesn’t fit the magazine’s style (my styles).

The final pieces fit perfectly with the magazine’s style and would definitely appeal to the magazine’s audience. ARTnews is an art based magazine and the audience this magazine is for people who are generally interested in art and photography, the target audience for the magazine isn’t precise because it varies depending on the content produced within that time. I decided to aim my work towards people aged 12-20 because I feel at these certain ages people find the curiosity to fulfil their hobbies/talent; I believe that my work can provide inspiration and motivation due to the visuals, as they present an artwork in progress. I think they would appreciate the minimalist style of the photographs and the way their layout because the product will speak for itself to them.

Once I had completed and published my work onto my blog, I received helpful feedback from my peers. This enabled me to get other opinions on my final photographs and make comparisons between my own work and other photographers. All students that commented gave positives and negatives but the majority were positive. All of the negatives commented on two of the photos from the styles ‘scribble and patterns’. One student said "The only thing I would change is the proportions of the scribbles because compared to the original, they do not correspond". I took this feedback on board and after some consideration agreed that changing the proportions would have been a good alternative. Another comment was "The only downside to your work are the images with your style, they are not as appealing as your final images. I would suggest you spread out and try combining styles".

If I had the opportunity, I would definitely experiment with different styles and images to see what I would be able to create with the combinations which I craft. I would definitely do research on more artists and photographers because, although the unique selling point of my photos were the visuals and story, I felt with more research I would have had more variety in terms of combining styles. If I experimented on more models the audience will be able to see how the style can change depending on the person. In the post-production, I could have made sure that the magazine included more information on the page along with slightly less visuals (as they became a bit overwhelming).

The entire production process was perfectly planned. The preparation, mood boards and mind maps were extremely effective in helping me to decide how I wanted my final photographs to look. It enabled me to produce a high quality and professional looking final product.