JOURNEY (Reportage)

Because my reportage was to focus on a "journey", I had a hard time combining the "public transportation" part of my story with the "human" side. After a while, I finally narrowed it down to two storylines (which differ in only two photots).

Alternative Storyline:

Kabuki : Man (ECHO)

Burt Glinn, 1961


Olivia, 2008

So... I didn't get to talk about my photo in class... so I've decided to do my little critique speech here. I would say that I had the most trouble with the light in this project. As I was taking my photos, I was concentrating way too much on angles and placing. If you look at my picture, the light is coming in from the left side (at first I thought I had just developed it wrong... :( ). Comparing it to the "original" photo, it should actually be coming down from the top in the middle. Also, getting my models to cooperate was a little difficult too. I don't blame them though, seeing as I had painted their faces white and kept contorting them into uncomfortable positions :P I think I did pretty well getting props though, except for a mirror that was big enough and without a drawing of a little dog on one side of it.

Overall, I'd probably give this project a 5 out of 10... it was definitely challenging, and a little fruterating at times, but I recognize the importance of what is was trying to teach us... and feel like I learned a lot :)

Side note: Ok, but don't you think my model 's face is perfect???? That's one of the few things I'm proud of in this pic lol I mean - just look! it's scary - the nose, the eyes, the lips! :p

"low whistling thistles in the wind/she laid her head down to keep from falling/into the integrated circuits of history..." (Exquisite Corpse)

石獅子/shíshīzi (Montage)

In Black:



In White:

Out Of The Ashes Comes... (Theme)

This project required three prints... so the first three posted were "the originals". The last two were extra pics I liked from the roll. Unfortunately, I managed to get a sun spot on the picture of the leaves ( :( ) and caught the reflection of the stadium lights in the dark pic ( :( ). Also... though it hurts me to admit it, if you look closely on a couple of the pictures, they're a bit blurry because I often had to use a low shutter speed and couldn't keep steady :p It's random but... I think if you look at the pic of the houses being built for a while, it almost looks like they could be toys. :)

But... there's a funny story that goes along with the pic with the stadium lights in it. While I was turning into the school's parking lot one night - I'd gone to take pictures of a girl's basketball game - I noticed that the stadium lights were on. Curious, I parked and went straight for the field. To my surprise, I discovered a soccer team (not our school's) practicing there. After sitting off to the side for a couple of minutes, hoping a good picture might come up, I gave up and went off to the basketball game. However, I couldn't get the team out of my head as I sat in the gym, so I ended up returning to the field soon after. Though I felt a bit awkward watching the players (I don't doubt the possibility that I made some of them feel uneasy), it was amusing listening to their English coach yelling and reprimanding them. Eventually, the coach blew his whistle and the boys stopped playing. He called them to the edge of the field and started them on stretches. By this time, I'd stalked off to a nearby hill and hidden behind it by crouching down on the west grass covering it's slope. I stayed in that position, with my camera poised so that the picture had the top of the hill as a base, for quite a while. As the players laid on the ground and began lifting their legs up (a painful stretch, if I may add), I began taking the occasional picture - thus, the pic with the stadium lights. Several minutes later, out of nowhere, the stadium lights shut off. The field went black, giving rise to several gasps of surprise. When the confusion died down, the coach dismissed the team and I left.

Note: stadium pic 19, lowest light

Jam Jars (One Thing)

Ominous (Random)

This is a pick I did at the beginning of the year and I never got around to putting up. This was my first try at filtering one part of a pic... obviously it didn't go well lol Intimidated by the task, I gave up after the first try :( I wish I'd gone back to it - I kept saying I would. Ah well, there's next year, right? lol It could of been a really nice pic, I think. Though, if I may say, the effect the mistake brings to the pic is actually kind of cool. It seems like something is shooting from the sky or the sun... I dunno... I just really liked this pic. The reason I snapped it in the first place was that strange, random and ominous black cloud in the right corner. Hmmmm....