Born Into Brothels - assignment questions

Born Into Brothels

Part A:

1) I think that Zana described the reason for giving the children the cameras instead of her taking them herself, was because she wanted to the childrens point of view to be shared, instead of the point of view from an outsider. 

2) I think that the photographers point of view, or their unique voice is to be taken into great consideration because their living conditions and they way that they live, may be very different compared to ours. When I look at pictures, I also think about the way that the person may have been living. Different people take different pictures, so I have accepted the fact that all pictures will be different. Whether or not they are good or bad, I dont think I should be one to judge because its not like I have ever lived in the same conditions that they do. In every country, I think that there are different living standards, therefore there are also different standards that photography should be criticised with.

3) I think that when Avijit said this, it showed alot about his personality. It showed that he is very artistic in a way that he wants to show who is he is. Also, I think it is very sad as well, because the fact that the only way to express himself is with paint, and colours, makes it seem like in the conditions he lives in, his opinions and thoughts arent accepted or supported.

4) The way that I would define personal expression is all about the way you put yourself out to the world. The way you share your thoughts, opinions, talents, hobbies, feelings, ideas, anything that represents you, is all about personal expression or the expression of your personality. Photography, writing, and painting can be forms of sharing your personality because you can use colours and shapes to show who you are. Different colours have different meanings, and I also think that you can tell alot about a person just by looking at what they take pictures, or make pictures of. Whatever they may draw, write, or create, shows what their interests are.

Part B:

1)



    

I like this picture because I really like cats, and the way that the cat is positioned in the middle of the photo is really cool. The little red rug that the cat is sort of perched on, adds a little burst of colour to the neutral surroundings of it. To me, the picture looks very professional, and has a really nice colour contrast, just drawing my eye to it. It is also a very clear photo, not blurry or confusing, it is just simply really nice to look at.

I also really like this picture because the little girl is right in the middle of the page so I am immediately draw to her. The bright colours off to the right also keeps this photo from leaning towards the boring side. The way that the girl is wearing a dress that is very similar to the colour of the wall, adds depth to it as well. To me, the plain blue wall in the majority of the background represents her normal life of being a little girl growing up, where off to the right, it is like a little bit of her real life slipping into the photo. I get the impression that they arent very proud of their life, so when I see only a little bit seeping in, I feel as if she might be ashamed of where she really lives. It also makes you stop and think about the picture, instead of just glancing at it. 

2)

I think that this picture is one of the most effective photos for showing the issues in their lives because it is just a silhouette so it is hiding who this little kid might be. This ties into the fact that the issue of abuse of human rights is hidden as well, just the same way that this child is hidden. The bars in the background also look as if she is in a jail cell, just the way they might have felt by living in those conditions.

I think that this photo is very significant as well because of all the dark colours. To me, the dark colours symbolise sadness, and how this is one of the houses that they live in too. With the sky being dark grey and very plain, it shows me sadness. The roughness of the building shows how rough their lives may be also. I think that this photo can be linked to the way that alot of the children may feel about living here.

3) I do not think that a picture needs to be beautiful to be effective because alot of things that influence or effect people, arent always the beautiful and perfect things in life. A huge part of this video was to show the ugly sides of life, not the beautiful ones. I think that most of the pictures that the children took werent beautiful to look at, but the meaning of them, and what they symbolised was a beautiful thing. Also, I believe that the sad, ugly aspects of life are the ones that are most effective to me, because its the real thing. The not so beautiful photos never "sugarcoat" anything. I think that when a picture is beautiful, it is pleasing to the eye, but not always the heart. If it was beautiful, it definitely helps giving a happy impression, but happiness isnt always what life is about.  



Journal 4 - Depth of Field

These two pictures (the ones of the apple and pear and the one of my foot) are taken with a larger aperture. My aperture was at F4.5, which is when the focal point of the photo is emphasized and very clear, and the background (less important) is all blurry.  

These two pictures (the ones of the flowers and of me and my dad with my horse)  has a medium aperture of about F8, which makes it so that there is still a focal point which is clearer than the rest, but it isn't as dramatic and the background isn't as blurry as the one with a large aperture.  

These two pictures (me on my horse and the one of my family and friends) were taken with a small aperture. The aperture was at about F16, and this was to get everything that was in the frame, in focus. This way, there is no blur and there is a focal point, but the whole photo is clear. 

Shutter Speed Assignment

This is a photo of my dog, Sadi, running. For this photo, I used a shutter speed of about 1/1000. This is because this was an action shot, and I wanted to catch all the phases of her running. 1/1000 is a fast enough shutter speed to capture that. It was a very bright day, as you can see, but we were under open shade, which made her stand out more, instead of just being consumed by the light!

Journal 3 - Shutter Speeds

This was my example/attempt at panning where I am walking and am supposed to be clear when the background is blurred out.  I used a faster shutter speed of about 1/30 of a second, but is still really slow.



This photo is my example/attempt of light painting, using a flashlight. I waved it around in a flower shape to get this photo. This is with a slow shutter speed of about 16 seconds.



This is my attempt at a photo using a strobe light as the person moves to capture their every move. I used a slow shutter speed of about 2 seconds.

This is the example/attempt of an action photo, where I am jumping in the air, and snap the photo of me in mid action. I used a really fast shutter speed of 1/1000 of a second.

Journal 2 - Pinhole Camera's !

 These pictures were created using a pinhole camera. The first picture is supposed to be of the hall way in the school, facing a set of doors, but you can see that it didn't come out the way we intended for it to. The second picture is of the cemetery beside the school, which turned out a lot better.

The first photo of the hall way, which didn't turn out, was very under-exposed. You can tell that it is under-exposed because the majority of the picture is just plain black, except for the areas of direct light. The only areas that were lit up, were the doors (where direct sunlight was coming in) and the fluorescent lights in our hallways (which were obviously on). We kept the lens open for 30 seconds which, apparently, wasn't long enough. Due to the bright interior light, we should have kept the lens open for 8 minutes, or slightly under that time because it was pointed at direct sunlight. On the chart, it was called "Bright Interior Light" because it was in an area with bright interior light. In the photo, in order for the photo to come out the way it was supposed to, we should have let the lens stay open for a longer time, and then the photo probably would of turned out a lot better. If we did have the chance to retake this photo, I think that about 7 minutes and 30 seconds would a lot closed to the appropriate time needed to develop this photo. As I mentioned earlier, we shouldn't keep the lens open for the full 8 minutes, due to the fact that the camera was pointed at direct light sources.

The second photo that we took turned out a lot better. I would say that it was close to being perfect, but if anything, it was a little bit over-exposed. The photo is of the graveyard, which I think is an interesting subject to take a picture of in the first place. Since this photo came out very well, it makes the photo even cooler. We kept this lens open for 30 seconds, which was a good time. I think that if we were to retake this photo, we would shave off about 2-5 seconds, just to see if it would become less bright. You can tell that this is a little bit over-exposed because the light in the left hand corner is starting to cut off the profile of the trees. On the chart, it was called the "Direct Sunlight - Hazy" section. The weather on this day must have been pretty close to being perfect for this photo. Almost everything seemed went right with this try. The lighting was perfect for the time we kept the lens open for, and the sunlight was coming from a direction that hit the grave stones and trees so it gave a very cool effect. To improve this photo if we were to retake it, we would, as I said earlier, shave off a couple of seconds to make the photo sharper. Over all, I think that our try at this photo was very successful!

Journal 1 - My Culture

These pictures represent who I am in many different ways. The pictures of my cat and my horses shows just how much I care for them and love them, and the picture of the flower symbolizes beauty, which I love. I am a very girly girl, and I am very much into makeup, fashion, and anything that has to do with beauty. The photo of the ribbons shows my sporty, competitive side. I work very hard for what I want, and it always pays off. I thought it was very difficult capturing the culture of my life in 5 pictures, but I did my best!



Getting To Know Your Style!

Portrait Photgraphy





The genre that this photo is a part of would be portrait photgraphy. I like this one because the beams of fuzzy light in the backround draw my attention to the mans face, which shows alot of character and what he is feeling. His sweater that is partially covering his face adds mystery to what is really happening. I find it really amazing how portrait photography can bring out someones personality and sometimes a persons identity.

 

Name of photographer:

Andrew @cubagallery #photography #Lightroom

Website:

http://www.cubagallery.co.nz/