Task: PROJECT REVIEW
Creative projects change and adapt all the time - they evolve. The point is to make sure you are constantly reflecting and adapting to make sure your photos are good quality, and your theme is being communicated successfully.
A project review is essential for you to step back from your project and review everything you have done so far, and to ascertain whether you are making progress. Most people start their projects with a very broad theme (like nature etc), but to reach the high grade criteria, you need to narrow it down (like close up nature etc or leaves in nature etc). Suppose you chose people, and you have been focusing more on ‘emotions, or mental health etc, then you could pursue this as your focus area.
So, as you can see it’s about choosing something within your theme or a technique and focusing your attention on it for the remainder of the project. It may be that you have worked on a particular form of experimentation that you have really enjoyed and are pleased with the outcomes. Or you have been photographing particular content within your theme which you wish to pursue.
By now you should have at least 2 – 3 photoshoots for your project and have researched at least 3 photographers. Review your work, (your research and shoots) and think about where YOU want your project to go. What do you really want to do with your project?
300 - 500 words. Answer these questions to help you:
•Are you happy with your project so far? Please explain your answer
•What has changed since you started your theme?
•Do you think you are making progress?
•What problems have you encountered so far? And are you putting things in place to overcome them?
•Are your initial intentions still the same (go back to your statement of intent)? Please explain your answer
•What techniques have you used in response to your photographer research?
•What other experimentation have you done? (photoshop?!)
•What form(s) of experimentation have you enjoyed the most and find the most effective for your theme?
•What are you going to focus on within your theme?
•What do you need to move forward? (resources, models, locations etc)
A project review is essential for you to step back from your project and review everything you have done so far, and to ascertain whether you are making progress. Most people start their projects with a very broad theme (like nature etc), but to reach the high grade criteria, you need to narrow it down (like close up nature etc or leaves in nature etc). Suppose you chose people, and you have been focusing more on ‘emotions, or mental health etc, then you could pursue this as your focus area.
So, as you can see it’s about choosing something within your theme or a technique and focusing your attention on it for the remainder of the project. It may be that you have worked on a particular form of experimentation that you have really enjoyed and are pleased with the outcomes. Or you have been photographing particular content within your theme which you wish to pursue.
By now you should have at least 2 – 3 photoshoots for your project and have researched at least 3 photographers. Review your work, (your research and shoots) and think about where YOU want your project to go. What do you really want to do with your project?
300 - 500 words. Answer these questions to help you:
•Are you happy with your project so far? Please explain your answer
•What has changed since you started your theme?
•Do you think you are making progress?
•What problems have you encountered so far? And are you putting things in place to overcome them?
•Are your initial intentions still the same (go back to your statement of intent)? Please explain your answer
•What techniques have you used in response to your photographer research?
•What other experimentation have you done? (photoshop?!)
•What form(s) of experimentation have you enjoyed the most and find the most effective for your theme?
•What are you going to focus on within your theme?
•What do you need to move forward? (resources, models, locations etc)
Example
•Are you happy with your project so far? Please explain your answer
I am happy with my project so far. I have at least five photoshoots and six photographer research tasks. I have been able to work on my project in class as well as take pots outside of school, so I have been consistent with work production.
•What has changed since you started your theme?
My chosen theme 'animals' started very broad as I wanted to photograph all animals. I and an idea to photograph different types of animals. The problem is accessing them. I found I started to photograph mainly dogs and cats, and was also enjoying this the most. My theme has changed because I want to focus on dogs and cats, but I will probably end up narrowing this down again to just focusing on dogs.
•Do you think you are making progress?
I believe I am making progress because my photography is improving and I am enjoying the project. When I first started out I didn't really know how to photograph the animals and my photography was very much like snap shops. After I completed some photographer research tasks I started to use their techniques. This improved my work and made my photographs more interesting. For example, I started to use 'close up' and 'fill the frame' so i was focusing on features of the animal. This means I am paying more attention to detail and making my work more abstract.
•What problems have you encountered so far? And are you putting things in place to overcome them?
The main problem I am having is finding dogs and cats to photograph, and also getting them to stay still. I go on lots of walks as I take my dogs out alot. I usually ask other dog owners permission to photograph their dog, but the dogs are always very excited as they are out o a walk and end up running around which creates a blurry image. As I want to focus more on close up areas of the dog, I need the dog to be clam and stay still. To over come this I have arranged to meet with three different friends (they have dogs) on three different occasions. I will then have more time with each dog and be able to give them treats, my friends can also help me.
I also need to use a different lens, as my phone camera isn't quite giving me the quality I want. I will talk to my teacher about the best lens to use but I believe I may need a telephoto.
•Are your initial intentions still the same (go back to your statement of intent)? Please explain your answer
My initial intentions have changed, because it's difficult to photograph the animals that are most in need of help (endangered animals). Some dogs are abused and even sold for meat in some countries. I would like to further show that animals are like us and have emotions. I think that zooming in on their features does this to an extent, but I need to experiment more to make sure this is clear and has an even deeper impact.
•What techniques have you used in response to your photographer research?
- Close up
- Fill the frame
- Black and white
- Selective colour
- Focused on the interaction between the dog and the owner to show how happy they make each-other
- Distortion (glass)
•What other experimentation have you done? (photoshop?!)
I have used tiles. I duplicated various areas of the dogs face and created an abstract portrait. This was really fun to do and I am [pleased with the result. I don't want to pursue this form of experimentation though, as some of the images look quite funny which then draws the viewer away from the seriousness of my theme and overall aim to get people to help animals.
•What form(s) of experimentation have you enjoyed the most and find the most effective for your theme?
Close up and fill the frame has been the most useful and I have produced my best images using close up photography.
•What are you going to focus on within your theme?
I am going to focus on close up photography, and filling the frame. I want the features to be enhanced so I can show how much dogs are like us. I want to show their characters and personalities. I will need to do some more research as I need more forms of experimentation. Eyes are so important and the expression 'eyes are the windows to your soul' has inspired me. I will do a shoot focusing mainly on the dogs eyes initially. If it goes well I can continue this but combine with other forms of experimentation. In 2008, the World Wildlife Fund ran a campaign that used pixelation to represent the number of animals left for endangered species (see below). One pixel represents an animal, so an image appears more pixelated when there are fewer animals left. I like this idea. I could look at statistics of how many dogs are abused in a week in the UK.
•What do you need to move forward? (resources, models, locations etc)
- I will need to continue to use photoshop regularly to develop my skills.
- My friends and their dogs
- Experiment with lenses