Photography:Shooting the Truth Virtual Essay

The photographer I chose to focus on for this assignment is a photographer named Yasumasa Morimura.  He is a Japanese artist, well known for being a "master of self-portraiture".  He uses photography to create self-portraits of himself portrayed as different iconic figures such as Mona Lisa, Marilyn Monroe, and Adolf Hitler to name a few.  His work ranges from art history, to politics, to even famous celebrities.  It is said that Morimura uses this self portraiture as a means to explore "his own identity behind the lens, and charts an evolution with his characters."

Morimura's photography looked very interesting to me because of its boldness and familiarity.  Each piece quickly makes a statement and opens up familiar and iconic images for reinterpretation.  The pictures below also gave me a similar thought in one way or another.  Also, even though Morimura's artwork focuses on meshing Japanese culture with western society through iconic images, I have to admit that some of the pieces were quite hilarious and entertaining (in a good way).  This also helped me in choosing the pictures below.  To say the least, Morimura's bold photographs leave a lasting impression, which is what I searched for in the images that I found.

Image 1

This image reminded me of Morimura's "Mona Lisa in the Third Place (1998). The use of the iconic picture with something added completely changing the context of the original meaning.

Image 2

This image made me think about the reinterpretation of gender roles, something at Morimura's photographs made me think about as well.  He often portrays himself as iconic female figures, so this image to me shows an interesting switch of genders as well when it comes to this iconic figure.

Image 3

This image is another one that uses Mona Lisa to portray a different thought.  Using another iconic figure portraying another one, in this case, Barbie being portrayed as Mona Lisa, made me think about the western culture and how it is perceived by other cultures.

Image 4

This image is politically based and makes me think about the more political works that have been done by Morimura.  This is an iconic picture that has been reworked to send out a different message while still relating to the original. The original picture which this one is based off of is an iconic picture of Barack Obama (ironically both pictures are by the same artist).

Image 5

This image reminded me of Morimura's work more visually than all the rest. To me it directly relates to a portrait of someone, portraying themself as someone else and also shows a gender switch. This picture shows the Iconic Marilyn Monroe being portrayed by a familiar character Mr. Clean.  The image is intriguing and hilarious!

"Taking photographs is generally an act of 'looking at the object, whereas 'being seen' or 'showing' is what is most interest to one who does a self-portrait...self-portraits deny not only photography itself but the 20th century as an era as well...an inevitable phenomenon at the end of the 20th century." 

- Yasumasa Morimura

Sources:

http://www.luhringaugustine.com/index.php?mode=artists&object_id=66
http://outsiderjapan.pbworks.com/w/page/9758570/Yasumasa%20Morimura%20-%20The%20Art%20of%20Self-Portaiture%20in%20a%20Post-Modern%20Global%20Japan
http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/artists/yasumasa_morimura.htm
http://www.luhringaugustine.com/artists/yasumasa-morimura/#/images/1/

http://randommization.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/art-pieces-barbie.jpg
http://www.buzzfeed.com/jpmoore/shepard-fairey-remixes-his-iconic-hope-poster-for
http://posterchildprints.com/blog/2012/03/new-terry-o%E2%80%99-neill-exhibition-sees-iconic-images-reworked-for-first-time-ever/
http://www.robotmutant.com/2012/01/22/fine-art-kitties/
http://www.menobodyknows.com/nobodyblog/?tag=obama-art

Shooting the Truth: Press Photography versus Art Photography

The main similarities and differences between art and press photography

Art photography and press photography are both mediums that use the camera as a tool to express a certain thought, or to convey a message, however, the intent of these messages can differ greatly, due to the fact that these two forms of photography serve a different purpose.

Press photography is intertwined with photojournalism, which means its main purpose is to tell a story, a factual story, about a particular moment in time. It is commonly expected that press photography follow a set of guidelines that uphold the integrity of its purpose. The most important of those guidelines which is common throughout different parts of the world is that the image must not be staged or altered, as to not mislead the viewer into thinking that what is displayed is the truth (if it in fact isn't).This component which categorizes press photography as what it is separates it from other genres of photography such as art photography.

Press Photography:

Photograph: Michael Appleton

New Orleans, September 4, 2005.

Photograph: RV Spencer/ AFP/ National archives

Haengju, South Korea, 1951

Where as press photography can seem to have a strict defining point, art photography, for many, is very difficult to define, due to its subjective focus.  Art photography is defined by some as capturing beauty through photography.  However, since beauty is in the eye of the beholder and cannot be solidly defined, this in turn broadens the perspective of what art photography can be defined as.

Art Photography:

Photograph: Laurent Baillet

Photograph: Julie Blackmon

Some commonalities between both press and art photography is the subject matter. Both have a shared purpose for sending a message, telling a story, presenting something in a way that others may not otherwise see.  The subject matter ranges from many different subjects such as contemporary pieces (in art photography for example), to a documentation of wars, or just daily life.  Both take a keen eye and intuition of the photographer to capture a fleeting moment at just the right time.

Is it ethical and acceptable to alter art photographs?

I think that it is acceptable to alter photographs in the case of art.  Art is something allows people to express their ideas, and sometimes those ideas are not things that can be fully explored just though the click of a camera.  Since art photography is so expressive and in the hands of the artist, I believe there is more freedom to approach photography this way. Also, because art photographers are not obligated to stick to true events like press photographers are, they should have the discretion to make those decisions. Art photography is something that can be appreciated for the idea as well as the process because it is not necessarily trying to tell a factual story.

Is it ethical and acceptable to alter press photographs?

In terms of press photographs, I don't think altering these types of photos should be acceptable, only because of the purpose that they serve.  They are meant to be a recollection of events that have taken place in reality, and as such there is an expectation that the photographs being presented are indeed that, a presentation of realistic events.  I think the purpose of the press photograph can be easily lost if they are not the truth.  There is certain alterations that do occur in press photography and photojournalism which can be acceptable, such as color correction, but there should be a line that is drawn, in order to keep the honesty of the image.





Sources:
www.blackboard.com (course readings aided in research)

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/gallery/2009/nov/10/100-years-press-photography

Source: http://www.laurentbaillet.com/#a=0&at=0&mi=2&pt=1&pi=10000&s=1&p=2

Source: http://www.julieblackmon.com/Portfolio.cfm?nK=6953

Shooting the Truth: Photojournalism

What is the role of photojournalism?

What separates photojournalism from other forms of photography is that it used for the reporting of news through means of photography. These photographs can be found in the media printings; newspapers, magazines, internet reporting and on television. It also plays a role in recording historical information. The earliest forms of photojournalism us during the Crimean War in the mid-19th century. Photographs were taken of soldiers in the field in action. Since then. the technology of the camera had improved rapidly from a box camera to portable cameras. This was a major benefit for newspapers that wanted to capture developing stories as it was happening in the moment. It allowed for newspapers to get the story faster than others. Photojournalism gives a visual image of issues that are current and gives an emotional connection with the public with the image alone or with an article.

Photographers that gained attention during the 1930s to 1950s were Robert Capa and Alfred Eisenstaedt.

Robert Capa

Alfred Eisenstaedt

Robert Capa is most famous for a photo he took during the war of a GI landing on Omaha Beach on D-Day.

Alfred Eisenstaedt is a German-born American photographer that was highly recognized for his photograph of the V-J Day celebration.

Are there rules that photojournalists should follow? Why? Why not?

There are rules that photojournalists should follow. Photojournalists follow a code which guides them through their work. The set of guidelines that make up this ethical code can vary, depending on what region, country, or even what company a journalist works for. These codes are put in place in order to maintain the integrity of the photograph, as well as to maintain the trust of the viewers. There are rules that tend to reoccur in different journalists ethical codes, which include:

-The photograph must be accurate and it must give a fair representation of the context of event to the public.

-Photographs should not be staged; if they are there must be clear indication given in order to notify the viewer, therefore preventing the viewer from being misled by the photograph.

-Any photo-manipulation done to the photograph must not degrade the integrity of the photo, or the context in which the photo was taken (the degree of manipulation for photographs can vary for different codes; some allow color correction for example while others do not).

Though photojournalism gives off a type of serious form of photography because it must follow the guidelines of professional news it slowly began to develop an artist look. By the 1970s the photos looked like an art and still expressing the message it had to. One British photojournalist that was most recognized for his unique artist photos is Don McCullin.

Don McCullin

He captured images of the lower class society; the unemployed and the impoverished.

Is the ethics of taking journalistic photographs different than the ethics of writing a news story?

The ethics of taking journalistic photos is different than the ethics of writing a news story because they both need to address accurate, detailed, serious and current information for the public. Since the form of the media is different, there are different ways to display information and present events to the reader. This means that there may be different specifics in the code that a writer follows versus the code which is followed by a photojournalist.

For example, a photojournalist may follow a code that says not to stage a photograph. Doing this can mislead the viewer, because it is a fabrication of an event, and not an actual image of that event taking place.

Did this happen in reality? Or is it a staged photograph? Viewers can make assumptions and be misled if it isn't clearly indicated.

For a writer, they won't follow that code necessarily because they are not taking pictures, they are recording an event with words. However, they will follow a code that states not to fabricate information to enhance a story. Doing this also misleads the viewer, because, like a staged photograph, it is not an accurate record of the actual event.

The form of media used is irrelevant, as long as you are capable of getting the message across in a truthful manner. Though the two are separate forms, they both still carry the same responsibilities of presenting facts, and connecting the public to the accurate occurrence of events.

What a photo does for a viewer public that differs from a written article is that it gives more of a connection with a visual and allows the reader to think more of what the photograph is trying to tell.

Let us know of your thoughts in week 9's discussion board.

Presentation by:

Nicole T. Defreitas, Justin Warsita, Andrew Wong, Libo Su,Cindy Vasques

Sources:

A Brief History:http://www.photography-schools.com/photojournalismhistory.htm

NPPA code: http://www.nppa.org/professional_development/business_practices/ethics.html

*(BlackBoard Course notes for Module 9 were also referred to for research of this presentation)

Assignment 1: My Shot at Photo Manipulation

For this courses first assignment,  I found two photographs, both taken by Michael Anthony, and manipulated them to look different from the original.  Both photographs were edited in Adobe Photoshop CS6.  I titled the first one Standing Alone, and the second one Bambi Alive.  Below are the original photographs and the edited versions to compare.

"Standing Alone"

Original Photograph (by Michael Anthony)

Edited Version

This was the first photograph that I came across and I really like it.  It was very simple, but a lot could be done with it for that very reason.  The way that the girl was positioned and her staring upwards at the sky gave me the idea to make her look at something.  For this photo, I first thought about adding fireworks coming out from her chest, because her pose reminded me so much of  Katy Perry's song firework.  However, I decided to go with a darker theme, since it seemed to suit the deserted parking lot a lot better.  So I added a spider looking creature.  The spider was cut out from a different picture found online and added to the picture of the girl.  I modified the size of the spider to make it fit in with the scene and also gave it a shadow to ground it.  I also edited the colour balance, contrast, and vibrance of the whole photograph to change the mood of the scene. I then finished it off by adding a vignette around the outside of the photograph.  I wanted it to look a bit more dark and sad, almost as if to imply that what is coming next might not be so great.  This was really fun to play around with, and I really like how it turned out.

"Bambi Alive"

Original Photograph (by Michael Anthony)

Edited Version

For this second picture, I really like the picture of the deer. It is beautiful.  I had thought of many interesting ways to edit this photo, like adding weird and interesting things to the deer such as wings or antlers and even a unicorn horn (which all turned out looking ridiculous)!  What I eventually ended up doing was modifying the photo to look like a scene that could maybe remind some people of their childhood.  The deer was fortunately in the perfect pose to pull it off. I used Bambi (The adorable Disney character) as the inspiration for this photo.  I added spots to the side of the deer by playing with the blending options and also found a photo of a yellow butterfly to add on the tail of the deer (similar to one of the scenes in Bambi where a yellow butterfly lands on his tail).  I then adjusted the brightness, saturation, exposure, and colour balance to brighten the photograph and make it look more light felt and "magical" (perhaps) to match the mood from my inspiration.  I also adjusted the same things for the added butterfly and then finished it off with a vignette around the edges of the picture.  This second one was a bit harder to do than the first one, but I still think it turned out pretty interesting.  It was very fun to attempt it and seeing the final result.

Resources:

http://djktala.wordpress.com/2010/05/07/ktala-yellow-butterfly-kristal-mixes-33/

http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/gallery/2007/oct/03/spider

My Introduction:

Frame 500 from my Stop Motion short film project from year 2 animation program.  Mr. Kitty is about to fall all over Sunny's gift.

Hello!
My name is Nicole and I am in my third and final year of George Brown's game development program, specializing in animation.  I love being able to bring my ideas to life through animation.  Being a part of this program has been such a fulfilling experience. I've had the privilege of meeting so many interesting and awesome people who are just as weird as me, and we all share the same love of bringing things to life through movement, whether by rigging, animating, or adding special effects and lighting that make everything come together.
Being an animation student has allowed me to experience some really cool stuff such as experimenting with motion capture, or taking a stab at Stop-Motion production for the very first time.  The picture above is from a stop motion short I made last year for one of my classes.  
People probably don't really think about how closely link animation and photography are.  I was able to learn that through stop-mo creation.  The animation in stop-motion is created through taking a multitude of photographs while posing your character and set slightly differently to create the illusion of movement.  The photos are then strung together and played like a movie.  Therefore, having a good sense of the camera and photography in general is very useful for animation.
I hope I am able to learn new things in this course that can help me develop my animation skills even further.