Leslie Mead

Part 1: What I've done

F-stop: f/ 2.8 shutter speed: 10/4000 sec.

I believe that this is one of my stronger photographs because it has a lot of meaning behind it. When I came back from honduras i had just started this class and immedatly i knew that i was going to do urban decay to express the things i saw in that country. To make the pictures as dramatic, and really capture the essence of what i saw and felt when i was there I layered two different pictures on top of each other to make one. In the end, it was this process that really helped me express to the viewer what I saw.

F-stop: f/2.8 shutter speed: 10/200

I think that this project, portrait as a whole was one of my stronger projects because i was able to bring my friends into the project. When i decided to do this project I thought i could use name tags to clearly display for the viewer what a persons personiality is like. In my mind i though that this could be like the opposite of judging a book by its cover, because you cant see the person clearly enough to have a first impression, and what their true personality is is clearly displayed on the nametag. This photo was one of my stronger photos because of the light from the window in the background. This light gives the viewer a sense of where the person is. Also, this light helps bring more white into the photo and not have the black in the threshold take over the photograph.

F-stop: 3.5 shutter speed: 10/80

This picture is one of my stronger photos because of the way i presented motion blur. Because i decided to present motion blur. I took a risk by using food coloring and water, but it was worth the risk. This picture I believe is one of my stronger photos because of the contrast between the light and dark green. Also, I captured the die right as it started to blend in with the water, so the viewer can see the swirls that represent that the food coloring i took the picture of was moving. This really captured the essence of motion in the picture, and because it is hard to tell what the photo is of, it represents the blur.

This Photo is one of my stronger photos because it takes on perspective in a new light. This photo is strong because it shows someone perspective on what is going on in their life. This photo is strong i believe because it is in black and white, which bring out the ink on the persons skin. Also, the zig zag of the carpet next to the foot adds texture to the photograph. This texture draws attention to the words that are on the foot which helps the reader cleary understand what is being portraied.

Part 2: What I think.

1. I think that imagery has a lot to do with faith. In todays world, one photo can make a certain person believe something or not believe something. By evoking a certain emotion is someone through photography, it may be the "proof" that someone is looking for. Imagery can effect faith by depicting an opinion through a ceratin light. If your opinion corresponds with the viewers opinion, then you may enhance their faith on the subject. On the other hand, if the opinion you are trying to depict through the photogrpah does not correspond with the viewers opinion, you may decrease their faith. Personally, photography enhances my faith, because the more i take photos of something the more i believe in a higher power. The more i am outside and take a beautiful photograph, i think about how it got there and why it was important that i took the picture that i took. In my mind everything means something, and everyone of my photographs means something. When you are in a faith driven enviroment, it is easy to capture the faith that is there, even though you cannot see it. You can see it on the peoples faces and when you capture their emotions its easy to prove that faith is real.

5. ADI in general has caused me to look at my surroundings in a different light. Because of the different projects that we have done over the course of a semester, I can now look at something that is ordinary, like a crack in the sidewalk and see of that tilt shift or that would be great for urban decay. I find myself in a new place and seeing a "reflection" picture or a "contrast and texture". I guess the danger in looking at the world as a set of potential photographs is that you can miss what the true meaning of the object is. It may be possible to get so wrapped up in the type of photograph it is, we can forget what it really stands for. I believe that photography only enhances the meaning though, it helps us see the meaning of the object in all ways possible. I also believe that making a person think of a object in a new light helps their creativity and makes a person think outside the box. Although there is a danger that may always be there, i think that photography will do more to help than harm a person.

Part 3: What I'll do

1. I take photographs because it is a easy way for me to get involved and get to know what is going on around me. Photography is a easy way for a person to get to know their surroundings. Also, photography is a way for me to use creativity. I really enjoyed the challenge this year of having set guidelines for a project and having to come into that topic from a different direction. Overall, i take photographs to use my creative side and get to know the world around me.

2.My photography has changed because of my work this semester because i have learned to bend the restrictions of a certain project and take a different angle from it. Also, i have learned to look at things from a different angle. Lastly, my photography has become stronger because i am taking more pictures, instead of just taking 12 pictures and making them fit the critera.

3. I still need to develop my tilt shift and depth of field photography. i never really grasped the concept of those two projects, and i need to work on a creative way to show those two types of photography. I think when something will inspire me i will understand the meaning of tilt shift and depth of field, but until then i will look for those two types of photography in my daily life.

4.. To reamin a active photography i plan on taking my camera with e everywhere. Also i plan on updating my blog as often as possible. To remain active, i need to take my camera with me, and not forget so then i can document the places i have been.

5. In my urban decay project, i think the majority of those photos could be considered art. I believe this because those pictures go past just a picture of a person in a different country, it shows feeling behind it. Those photos show what those people go through everyday and what i felt when i saw how they lived. Also, in my portrait project, i showed how others feel about themselves. Photographs that show feeling are the ones that are art because the mean the most to someone. I can continue to get pictures like this by encorporating feeling into my pictures.

Thanks for a great sememster Mr. kraus!

For this project, i decided to take a different approach than the project description. The project description says that we were supposed to use the placement of the camera in relation to the subject to create a point of view. So, since our class was talking about how writing on your hands with sharpie is bad, i decided to take this idea and use it for my project. My idea was that what people write on their hands gives another person perspective into their life. So, this is a collection of pictures that represent what is going in other peoples lives and my perspective on what they write on their hands.