lorienbarkerpp - Tumblr blog

[lorienbarkerpp]

[lorienbarkerpp]

Risk Assesment

[lorienbarkerpp]

Really loose play around with images in a series.... Think there could be some alterations continuing a horizontal line between them - helping progress the series a bit.. just nice to see them together - also need to think about tonality across series and how it should gradate along/or not?

[lorienbarkerpp]

Point? 1D or just 3D with movement?

[lorienbarkerpp]

Started experimenting with a line (I suppose technically 2D - but different from earlier in that it has no width - like a square).. anyway, exploited focus and specifically shallow DOF to abstract the edge of cube. Didn't really work - as even then depth of cube was apparent, with texture depth etc.. Then flattened the light completely on both sides - but flagged the absolute apex - rendering this line which (with some work) should hopefully appear to have always been a flat surface. - Really like this image - would go well with others already shot.

Then tried to take that further and explore true 1D (which in my mind is a point?).

 Tried same as before - photographing corner  - with v. shallow DOF - and flattening light - but still looked like a corner. So thought back to earlier and decided to exploit movement to capture this... I basically made a Lazy Susan out of an old hamster wheel and some other bits - placed the cube on top of it - and spun it - resulting in ‘theoretically’ a point which relative to camera - never moved - and a unrecognisable blur around. 1D? Zoomed out a touch - realising a second point was created - this circle - from the cubes motion around a point - think there’s an idea here - but needs much work!

 Also was thinking 4D is time - so could explore that - not as in movement from the shutter - but in transition (such as a series/tryptic/moving image perhaps)

[lorienbarkerpp]

17/04

A change of direction again - was feeling particularly uninspired the last few days - so thought wherever I was going with the project needed a ‘realignment’.

Went back to absolute basics for inspiration - was thinking of other ways do describe exposure triangle - thought of this - ISO is fairly inconsequential for creative endeavours (perhaps not?)... So ways to manipulate images at point of capture involve focus and time. Seems quite obvious.... but..

Started thinking more about how we recognise things - and how they could be manipulated for effect - Started to think of physical qualities that my cubes have - and what could make for an interesting abstraction (a lot of which I have done - to some degree,). Realised that I started the project just composing ‘cool’ of cubes (3D structure into 2d - as all photographs are) then challenged that by flattening everything - representing in 2D. So why not challenge that again - and try and represent 1D onto a 2D plane, using 3D objects - should keep me busy for a bit!

[lorienbarkerpp]

Looking back....

Taking the time to look back - its now clear that throughout the project - I have been trying to challenge the way I use my camera. Tending away from a description - and can be used more generally to capture form - phase - dynamics etc. Both doing so physically (light, perspective, composition) and also digitally - Photoshop, editing, layering etc.

So I think I need to think of another/different/approach/way whatever it is - to not be descriptive or whats in front of it - but more generally/emotionally/conceptually? - Seems like I've come back in a full circle to Jessica Eatons work - quite similar?

Seems like a tall order...

[lorienbarkerpp]

Possible research ideas...

Sacred Geometry 

Deconstruction - Reconstruction

Tessellation

Chaos Theory - Fractals?

Islamic pattern/pottery/ceramics

Nature - repeating patters - Fibonacci - Phi - E...?

[lorienbarkerpp]

13/4

Had a few days off - and carried on with idea discussed below. Basically approached it as such - set myself a 2 hour period to simply, ‘play around’ with images - no expectation - no preconception - no limits if you like - just to see what was possible with the images I have shot so far abstracting in Photoshop. I These are the resultant sketches.

Certainly quite psychedelic! - not too fond of the very detailed ones.

However, the first 2, and a few later on - I really like conceptually - basically I tried gathering parts of cubes (an edge, corner, surface) from different images - and stitching them together - deconstructing and reconstructing the same form to quite surprising effects.

The idea of iteration, Chinese whispers almost - where successive attempts result in deterioration from the starting point - but allow for chance occurrences of interest - order - etc.

Do like the idea that the ‘building blocks’ of an object can be brought together - like corners and edges - and sort of work in describing the form which it originally came from - but does so in a untrue almost deteriorating way?

[lorienbarkerpp]

Quick bit.

was looking at the contact sheets - and saw the way they were laid out were creating tessellation like patterns between images (something I had planned to explore in the darkroom before lock down). Honestly - at a bit of a crossroads with this project - not sure where to take it - so feel this would be the time to take them into Photoshop - get a bit ‘weird’ with them - and see if anything inspires me. Thinking of playing with blending modes - luminosity masks - layering - deconstructing elements and forming new compositions completely.... 

[lorienbarkerpp]

8/4

Tried a similar shoot to before - attempting to add a sense of motion - dynamics.

First set up with dissection of frame using card - wanted a white on white - loose flowey - aesthetic but sadly just couldn't get light to balance with 2x LED panels.

Tried a darker setup -  middle shots - tried to create some curves using stacked cubes - reminded me of Fibonacci sequence - although I think the square crops are quite limiting - worked well for static shoot prior - but don’t allow for much movement in these images. Perhaps look again and aspect ratios.

Tried playing with narrow DOF (first time throughout whole project) interesting how only one plane is textured - rest appear blurred (but thought it just looked like a photo? instead of some otherworldly composition (in camera instead of manually abstracting - hard to explain - perhaps needs more investigation)

Tried some more movement shots - really struggled with timings - and not seeing the string stuck to side of cube - thought the last image was pleasing enough.?

[lorienbarkerpp]

Thinking....

Trying another shoot in the same style as the one below... trying to add movement and energy into compositions. Started with a similar square crop (which is fairly static in itself I suppose?). With camera directly above.... so ive flattened the image - all elements in two dimensions - so therefore eliminating any depth... trying to work out how this changes things... can I still light dynamically? obviously can only see one side of cubes - unless I balance on corner ( looks odd) - what does this setup enable me to do? lighting layers independently has become easier - already explored - cant ‘swing cubes back and forth (would see string) - angles - diagonals - yes but still feels static.... perhaps the cube crop is limiting? will explore..

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Just had a thought - curves- haven't explored anything like that yet....

[lorienbarkerpp]

Shoot on 6/4

Following up from the other day - tried to visualise what I had thought of...

Thought they actually came out quite well! Love VERY minimalist aesthetic. Almost non discernible as real object - apart from subtle texture.

As setup was constructed with a lot of depth - over 1m high - allowed for localised lighting on each ‘layer’. But - it does mean that I had to focus stack (or I have the files to do so rather if needed)

Early (main) images I like - and wonder where I could take similar idea adding in more dynamics - movement - energy etc. As they are very static. But an interesting starter idea.

I then tried a few painting with light - cool but not really ‘my thing’. Could do some interesting painting sketching the geometry onto the canvas... but feel its a tad gimmicky?

Finally, tried a few shots with glass again - and also loved these images. Like how reflections and refraction's in glass has created shape where one could not be seen before! - I would like to do more work with glass - however - knowing how infuriating it can be - especially with limited equipment and space, ill have to see how it goes.

For now... continue along a similar vein from the shoot above - trying to make more dynamic compositions.

[lorienbarkerpp]

An idea...

Just a thought - had an idea to eliminate the problem of why my images appear to be ‘table top’ still life’s - Basically, if i revert to shooting directly down onto the scene - and experiment with some of the ideas already developed - I can create a canvas - void of reality and ‘gravity’ if you like - and just have these elements appear floating with no anchor point or relativity?... will experiment later...

[lorienbarkerpp]

03/04

Inspired by Barbara Kasten

I did a few test shots with two sheets of glass - adding a bit of depth - reflection - illusion. Just tests for now

I really like the single cube images - adding layers (without anything physical obstruction) - Interesting distortion of light shadow.

I think the later images are a bit OTT. I do like the mixed colour study (warm and cool light) adds more contrast - depth - Perhaps with a more considered composition it could work?

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I did have quite a cool idea - at one point I found an interesting spread of light and tried to find it again (moving the LED panel). I photographed it - but realised obviously it wasn't captured (as my perspective was different to that of the lens).

I thought about it - and realised I was chasing light that would never be captured - and that I was capturing ‘moments’ that I was missing from my perspective (if that makes sense?)

- I wonder if I used two cameras simultaneously shooting the same scene from different perspectives - what would the outcome be?!

[lorienbarkerpp]

02/04

I’ve been having a think about progress so far - and why I don’t think the project is looking how I want it too -  So, I do like some of the images - particularly the very stark minimal ones - I do like some of the muted colour (just caused accidentally by mixed temperature lighting) - I like when there is subtle texture (especially in the paper bases etc)

But the thing I don’t like it particularly is the cubes themselves! I think its the fact they look ‘made’ instead of some perfect geometry structure (curved corners - bumpy edges etc)

I also think that the light and shadow is generally not being used to full effect (messy uncontrolled shadows which could add to geometry if refined)

I think use of angles has been fairly successful - very linear static images to very angular unbalanced compositions.... ones with less dynamics just appear directionless perhaps?

- So plan from here - I think instead of shooting the cubes straight - I need to be shooting geometric ‘things’ more so than the cubes themselves  -  What I mean is edges of card - harsh shadow/light contrast - edges of things - to create more abstract shapes - compositions - less realistic.... More like the mirror studies by  Eileen Quinlan.

-There was one image which I took accidentally where a shadow was cast by a bit of card in the way - making this zig-zag -  so I could use shaped flags etc to create interesting shapes?

-I think for next shoot, I will try a shoot which is more a study of light/shadow/geometry/line/texture - with little to no recognisable elements (full abstract) and see what happens....

[lorienbarkerpp]