Yr 10 Assessment
Ming Smith
In this photograph made by the photographer Ming Smith, we can see a wide range of used colours on the figures in the picture mainly white however, it contrasts well with the background which is dark and gloomy which shows the negative side of the image. Furthermore, Smith use of blur and distortion is a common technique used by many artists however, isn't so easily used or refined. In addition, the soft and hazy strokes of light and dark evokes a transcendent quality within the image. To add on, the blur further highlights the contrasting relationships with her subjects. Normally in street photography, a common trope among them all is that the subject is mainly humans but Smith deliberately made it so the faces of her subjects are hard to distinguish which is mainly achieved by her use of motion blur by the figures moving and long shutter speeds. We can also see that the light which is displayed in this image isn't the usually lighting one would see, as it is a more of a crimson lighting. I feel like Ming Smith has chosen to take everyday photos and she captures the 'movement' of the everyday life of the civilians, in this case of the New York. Moreover, in this specific image, a sparkling torch is used, this was purposefully used so the sparkling effects of the flame/torch can look like it is bursting out. You can also see that Smith isn't aiming for a perfectly taken image but instead focuses on capturing the blur and the light which is key aspect of her photographs.
Ming Smith has mastered the use of blur and distortion in her images where she is able to do it so subtly in her image and some could argue her photographs are candid whilst some could say it was staged. Smith used a camera to take the photograph and the way I believe she made this image could be the use of around 8+ humans in her photoshoot where the people are placed in the centre standing relatively close/next to each other and simultaneously move around so the outcome of the photo can be blurred and distorted. The way the blur is also achieved by Smith is she uses of motion blur and long shutter speeds but other photographers can use different methods to get a similar result. She also surrounds the subjects with a light source giving that red light effect. Also one thing that I enjoy about these types of photographs is that it helps the viewer to grasp a feeling towards the image. In this case, the photograph to me, gives a sense of ghostly and illusionary feel to it as the blur and distortion of the image makes the image seem as though it is moving and further more, because of the over-exposed lighting, it makes the image seem soft and smooth as if it is flowing. Also the blur also looks faint so it could give a feeling of lost. However, the purple sky in the background gives a feeling of nostalgia and a peaceful and calm vibe. Furthermore, the image has a feeling of welcomeness in it as some may view the group of people as welcoming as it looks like a community. And if I was given the opportunity to speak and ask the photographer questions, I would want to ask 'What about this image did you want to stand out and be the centre of attention of the viewer'?, 'Whilst taking the image, what was your goal and aim and what did you want your outcome to look like?' and 'If you was given the chance to retake this photo and refine it, what would you change to result in your desired outcome?' Research is a key element in photograph to grasp a full understanding of the photographer and the photograph. Here I researched about Ming Smith, Ming Smith is a black artist who was raised and grew up in Columbus, Ohio who later moved to New York in the early 1970s. This was when she started her career in photography and later was the first female African American to have her work acquired by the Museum of Modern Art. Even though, this research helped me to understand the background of Smith, most of my views towards her and her art hasn't drastically changed but it did allow me to have an insight on why her photos are presented and captured in the certain way it is. However, it did allow me to understand that this is the one of the many among of photographs where she utilises blur and use of light in her image and capturing distorted faces etc. One common trope and theme in Smith's photograph is the creative use of light among most of her photographs. Smith. In this photograph specifically, we can see that Smith used an artificial source of light which is why the photo has a red lighting effect within it. This use of light is subtly used as it doesn't take your focus away from the subject of the photo, distorted face etc. But one thing it does allow is for the blur of the images to be created. |
My method
For my method of recreation of the theme 'Creative use of Light' I'm going to use a partner to help be the subject and core image of my photograph. I will then use a professional camera to be able to take high quality photographs. Then I will use a source of light to help define the image which I am taking and make it stand out. Furthermore, I will use a method where I use motion blur by commanding my partner to move in a specific way and then proceeding to take long shutter shots.
In this photoshoot, I used one of my peers to keep him the centre/focus of image. My photos are directly inspired by Ming Smith who utilises creative use of lights and makes the image distorted and blurred and the images of her subject hard to distinguish. Furthermore, in my photoshoot I make use of the artificial lights in the dark room. I experimented by using difference colours of the light and sometimes using the torch from a phone. First we used the red artificial light from the dark room which emits an imitating and menacing vibe from it. We then chose to take a photo where we use a complete dark room but we use the torch from the phone to be the source of light for it. We wanted a more realistic black and white theme instead of editing the photo itself to make it black and white, furthermore, the black and white photo we had is to show a contrast in theme that one side is light (good) but the contrasting side is dark (bad). Lastly we use a ring light and an orange panel where the ring light is behind the floating orange panel which helps to reflect orange light. One thing which I think I most succeeded in with those response was the story telling and use of artificial light. Although I was given very little and small options in terms of light, I was able to improvise and use different and unique ways of using lighting. Furthermore, with the lighting, I was able to narrate a story within one of my photographs which was the use of the dark room red light which displayed a sinister look and the use of the light of the torch which illustrated duality of good vs evil. To add on, I was able to subtly distort my subjects face by use of motion blur as-well which is a common theme in Ming Smith's work. However, one thing I wish I could've done better or improved on is by using more sources of light as the equipment I was given today was very limiting, in addition, I feel like I need to quicken my pace as I took very little amount of photos.
This is particularly one of my favourite photos which I had taken. The reason why is because I like the red light emitted from the dark room which can represent a sinister, menacing look to it. Furthermore, another light source which we had subtly used in this photograph is the torch from a phone placed beneath the subject. The torch helps to make the subject a little more clear whilst directly not contributing in making his face clear as the motion blur here used distorted my peers face which is a common trope in Smith's work.
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Whilst taking this image, one thing which I was hoping and aiming for was to take a photo which could have different interpretations. In this photo, some may look at it as though the human is on the light side which can signify and be represented as the good side facing towards the dark side which is represented as the dark side, so they interpret it as though he is fighting evil. However, some may look at it at another view point and say the figure is walking towards the dark side from the light side he is originally from. The way we was able to capture this was by using the torch from the phone placed on a table towards the right side, shining light on the left side whilst the right side is left dark as we fully turned off the dark room's light and made it pitch black for the effect to take place.
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In this image, we tried to experiment and use the surrounding equipment to our advantage and we used a ring light and an see through orange panel. We place the ring light on the opposite side of the subject so the light doesn't become the focus and is subtly placed so we are still able to see the figure. Furthermore, we once again turned the light fully off so the orange light is mainly the focus and once again we use the motion blur to distort the figures face.
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