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One Week Before... (Final Project)

Reman Ashraf Mokhtar

Zeina Mohamed Qasem 

Photo Description

In our project, we portray a very crucial issue regarding women all over the world. Actually, we chose to create a portraiture project about Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) that each and every woman experiences every month. We find this as an important field to portray, as we know exactly how difficult it is and also how not everyone appreciates/respects it. Thus, we want to raise awareness about it. Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) is a disturbance in women’s physical, emotional, and psychological well-being that starts between 5 days to two weeks BEFORE the period itself. It might not be clear, but every woman and girl goes through a PMS period. Therefore, we wanted to go deeper into this topic and reveal what women go through, feel, and think about during this period through our project.

One of the projects that we chose to compare to our project is about a day in the life of a woman around the world. This project aims to make people thankful to women and their contributions through small gestures and actions and despite all the restrictions and gender inequality that they go through daily. Our project is mainly about the period of PMS and what women go through monthly varying from mental, emotional, and physical instability is also to illustrate the power of endurance that a woman can handle yet act normally and perform their daily activities. By portraying this through our photos, hopefully people will gain knowledge and become aware of women’s struggle monthly to be thankful and appreciate them. 

The other project that we found relatable to ours, is called Below the Sea Level, by Joy Khoury. In this project Joy tries to show us how women face many daily struggles and breakdowns, however they still do their duties, and actually one of these struggles is their monthly cycle. 

In our project we tried as much as we could to show viewers a very little from what women actually experience monthly, so we tried to portray PMS symptoms that involve emotional, physical, and also social instabilities. There will be always more about this topic to talk about that not everyone is aware of and needs to be revealed. 

It is a week before my period. I will start PMSing soon. It might be very similar to Period symptoms, but it is more irritating

I crave unhealthy food, especially at night, like chips, chocolates, gummy bears, and even fast food. I mostly enjoy binge eating while watching something. 

I might not be an emotional person, but I become emotional and oversensitive at this time. I know it is a romantic, sad movie that will make me cry, but that is what I want now.

It is hard to be productive and focus. As much as I try to get my work done, I lose track…

...

Physical pain comes in waves. The most common one is breast tenderness and pain. Every time I confuse the pain as a breast cancer symptom, but that’s normal pain women go through every month.

I’m not an antisocial person. I just lack the energy to socialize or support others, so I tend to stay in my

They say meditation and flexibility are the best solutions. However, my mind is never clear. My body is aching. I feel insecure about my body.

One day left! I’m in pain, and I have no strength to do any activities. Knowing this depresses me more.

It is the first day. Hot cinnamon relieves menstrual pain and bleeding.

Heating pad relaxes the cramps and tight muscles

However, it is very difficult to deal with this every month.

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Assignment -5 Proposal

In our project, we are going to portray a very crucial issue regarding women all over the world. Actually, we chose to create a photo essay project about Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) that each and every woman experiences every month. We find this as an important field to portray, as we know exactly how difficult it is and also how not everyone appreciates/respects it. Actually, we did not find a photo essay that talks about this specific issue, but we found some other general ones that we related to our project. 

One of the photo essay projects that we chose to compare to our photo essay project is about a day in the life of a woman around the world. The purpose of this project is to celebrate International Women’s Day through what different women do to contribute to their communities everyday. For instance, the photos show women waking up early to collect water, starting small businesses to support their families, cooking healthy meals on budget, and others are teachers teaching young girls how gender is not a barrier to achieving goals. This project aims to make people thankful to women and their contributions through small gestures and actions and despite all the restrictions and gender inequality that they go through daily. The project we chose about the process of PMS and what women go through monthly varying from mental, emotional, and physical instability is also to illustrate the power of endurance that a woman can handle yet act normally and do their daily activities. By showing this through the photos, people will gain knowledge and become aware of women’s struggle monthly to be thankful and appreciate them. 

The article that was found was about a woman who shared photos of period stains as a struggle that women go through, but Instagram has removed it twice for being uncensored, bold photos. We checked her personal blog and saw more photos, and we thought about how this topic is underrated. It is not wrong to discuss a normal that is part of women’s life. Furthermore, there is more about this topic that not everyone is aware of and needs to be revealed. Premenstrual Syndrome is a disturbance in women’s physical, emotional, and psychological well-being that starts between 5 days to two weeks BEFORE the period itself. It might not be clear, but every woman and girl goes through a PMS period. Therefore, we wanted to go deeper into this topic and reveal what women go through, feel, and think about during this period through our photo essay.

Sources:

https://thenewdaily.com.au/life/wellbeing/2019/06/30/period-pain-impacts-women/  

https://www.healthywomen.org/created-with-support/chronic-pain-women-real 

https://www.lipotherapeia.com/the-peach-factor-blog/are-pms-chocolate-cravings-cultural-conditioning 

https://www.fh.org/blog/photo-essay-international-womens-day-visualize/ 

https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/menstruation-themed-photo-series-artist-censored-instagram-says-images-are-demystify-taboos-around-periods-10144331.html 

https://rupikaur.com/pages/photo-album 

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Assignment#4

Research:

The photo is called “Photograph to illustrate an advertisement of Jergens’ Lotion in 1923.”

Photographer: Edward Steichen

The hands in the image belong to Mrs. Stanley Resor, wife of the then president of J.Walter Thompson advertising agency, for whom Steichen worked at the time.

The woman was sitting on the floor with her legs crossed, and the photo was taken from a bit high angle to show her hands and the potatoes.

The type of lighting is natural. There seem to be a source of light such as sunlight from the right side because one hand is darker than the other.

Original

Recreated

Q- What makes a photograph iconic? 

I think for a photograph to be iconic it has to symbolize something that speaks to the viewers. The definite meaning of iconic is related to the icon, which is the graphic symbol of something or someone. In terms of photography, an iconic photograph is what appears to be symbolic to the audience. A photograph that holds a meaning that is communicated through the frame, composition, lighting, and objects. A good photographer can utilize all tools of a photo to create a symbolic photograph that speaks to the audience without putting words to explain it. In other words, a photograph that speaks to itself and symbolizes something is iconic.

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Class Activity #2 Photographic History

Gregory Crewdson, the American photographer, is well known for his staged, constructed photos. His crew is a filmmaking crew that prepares cinematic lights and tools to create “one perfect moment,” as Crewdson mentioned in the documentary. The question is whether the constructed photograph has the same value as the natural one or not? The answer is that they are both different and can be interpreted differently. It all depends on the photographer’s intentions, techniques, and point of view. For Crewdson, he only cares about the images and the scene that will be snapped. However, he admitted that he is disconnected from the camera, and he sees it as a tool to create the image he wants. This could be true and its value is different from the natural photo. Putting an effort into the scene that will be photographed adds value to the photo, which makes it more detailed, perfect, and planned. For instance, He stayed for eleven days shooting in various places with a large crew trying to snap one moment to create a total of only six photos. Surprisingly, these staged photos were priced at an approximate number of 60,000 dollars. Despite the price, this shows that the staged photos have their own values. I see that the staged photos are very deep and due to the detailed organization of the scene. Many of Crewdson’s photographs are mostly depicting reality, and he mentioned in an interview that he illustrates in his photographs the connection of ordinary life and theatricality. 

Regarding the natural photos, it has its own value and interpretation that makes it different from the staged photographs. The natural photographs are not planned, but they can be perfect with various meanings. The staged photos need more equipment and tools to create the scene that will be snapped, but the natural photo is more simultaneous. Natural photos also need tools and equipment, but less planning; this is what makes it valuable. Personally, I see that both photos are valuable but each is valued differently. Both styles are unique and can interpret various meanings. Despite the photographer's intentions and perceptions, a photo, whether natural or staged, can be perceived differently, which makes photography interesting and open ended. It only depends on what style or technique the photographer wants to follow. All in all, Photography is all valuable and unique on its own.

Sources: https://fstoppers.com/fine-art/creating-photographic-art-exclusive-interview-gregory-crewdson-40498

https://archive.org/details/tGoPhoto/BBC+The+Genius+of+Photography+-+01x06+-+Snap+Judgements.mp4

https://www.sothebys.com/en/artists/gregory-crewdson

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I chose this photo by Taryn Simon, from his project “The Innocents'' to analyze and emphasize on the three theories. In this picture the suspect, Larry Mayes was hiding from the police in Gary, Indiana. Police found Mayes hiding beneath a mattress in this room. Mayes served 18.5 years of an 80-year sentence for Rape, Robbery, and Unlawful Deviate Conduct, 2002. Simon believes that most innocent people jailed for violent crimes are victims of mistaken identity, a phenomenon that she explores to unsettling effect in his project “The Innocents''. Simon photographed wrongly convicted defendants in fateful locations. For instance, the scene of the crime (that they didn’t commit), or the room where they were arrested, and sites where a forceful fiction overpowered a fragile reality. Throughout her career, Simon has made the hidden visible. We’re not supposed to see these people, especially not in these settings. She shows us figures who find themselves on the wrong side of the border drawn by the phrase innocent until proven guilty, subjects who have been proven to be something they’re not, and forced to live as if they were. The suspect’s crime was that he had a gold tooth, which is the detail that matched the victim’s description of the attacker. However, Mayes was freed based on DNA evidence in 2001, one of 1,779 exonerations in the US since 1989. He spent twenty-one years locked up, with nothing to do but rue the day he did nothing wrong. Actually when I first saw this photo I thought it was capturing a depressed anxious person who does not know what to do or how to escape from his fate. It does not come to my mind that he was hiding from anyone, as he was so obvious. As a result, I believe that this photo applies to the idea or the concept that photos have hidden meanings that are difficult to reach without asking their creators about their meanings. Actually, the picture is very simple and spontaneous, but it caught my attention and triggered my mind to a great extent in order to know more about it’s meaning. It grabbed my attention that the photographer called her project the innocents, while she was not sure whether the suspect was a criminal or a victim. This idea made me think and imagine how a photographer can understand and perceive reality in a different way than what we see and perceive.

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Assignment#2

Throughout this assignment, I discovered that the composition of a photo can change it. First of all, the placement of the object matters in attracting the objects to the viewers’ eyes immediately. The composition is not about the object’s placement, but also a color, shape, texture, etc can affect a object’s composition. As long as the photo is in a good exposure, the object can be changed as we adjust its composition. Besides, adjusting the composition of an object can make the photo more dominant and appealing to the viewers.

Photo#1: Rule of thirds

Photo#2: Shape

Photo#3: Texture

Photo#4: Color

Photo#5: Frame within a frame

Photo#6: Creative light movement

Photo#7: Light direction

Photo#8: Point of view

Photo#9.1: Original photo

Photo#9.2: B&W photo

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Exhibition Review

In the live talk with Max Hirzel, a freelance photojournalist based in Italy, he talks about how his photography is interpreted differently from how the media present it. Hirzel was talking about illegal immigrants and how the media portrays illegal immigrants. Besides, this topic specifically is always politicized. Usually, this topic is used by politicians to scare people and take votes. Hirzel said that “perception of reality is more important than reality.” Therefore, he wanted to change people’s perspectives about this topic by presenting illegal immigration from a different perspective. There was a shipwreck accident with illicit immigrants who all died in this incident. Hirzel decided to take photos of the process of finding the dead bodies, collecting their belongings, the autopsy, and the burial. These photos are uncensored, which was emotionally provocative to the viewers, especially their families. However, the images were powerful, and they presented this topic from a different perspective that is not politicized. These photos were emotionally appealing. He was asked whether he received any backlashes on his photos, but he said it wasn’t published in any news outlet in Italy, but it was in other places. Hirzel thinks that a photographer should do what he thinks is right, even if it is different from what the media presents.

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Assignment#1

Photo#1

1/4000- f 5.6

Photo#2

neutral- 1/60- f8

Photo#2

Underexposed- 1/250- f5.6

Photo#2

Overexposed- 1/125- f 4

Photo#3

F4- 1/60

Photo#3

f 16- 1/30

Photo#4

1/30- f 5.6 (slow)

Photo#4

1/125- f 5.6 (fast)

Photo#5

1/250- f 5.6

Photo#5

1/250- f 5.6

Photo#5

1/250- f 5.6

Photo#6

1/500- f 5

Photo#6

1/500 f 5

Photo#7

1/30- f 5.6

Photo#7

1/30- f 8

Photo#7

1/30- f 8

 Throughout this assignment, I have learned that what makes a good photo is the amount of light used. What controls the lighting used are the shutter speed and aperture. The shutter speed is the amount of time we set to leave the shutter open. The aperture is the inner lens that lets the light in, so we choose how much to open it to let the light pass. If we could set both of these options correctly, we will get a photo with good exposure. The lower the shutter speed is set, the slower it will take to capture a photo. If I set the shutter speed on a high number, it will capture a photo faster. Therefore, If I want to capture a solid moment that’s in motion, I will set the shutter speed on a high number. The aperture affects the depth of field of the photo captured. When the aperture is low, the lens is open wider. The more the aperture is, the smaller the lens will open. If the aperture is set on a low number, the depth of field will appear shallower and blurred. The higher it is set, the less blurred the photo will be. 

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 Khalik Allah, the American filmmaker and photographer, is well-known for his documentary photography type. He represents reality uncensored and without filtrations. In an interview with Allah talking about his documentary, he mentioned that “his purpose in life is to extend the light into people’s lives.” He meant that he wants to show people that their lives are valuable and worthwhile by shedding light on their lives. He also said that the people he deals with are the ones who have been through a lot and others do not care about, so compassion and empathy can connect him to them and fulfill his purpose to extend the light in their lives and show them that they matter.

Photography can be an element used to help to achieve his purpose. Photography visualizes and represents its subjects to deliver a story, express an emotion, or appeal to emotion. When these people are the subjects, they get to be the center of attention, and they see themselves from a different perspective. Besides, the photos are unfiltered and raw, and people who are being photographed are acting normally, which makes it a documentary. Allah visualizes a truth through a camera lens to other people out there who are not aware of these people. The title of his book “Souls Against the Concrete” conveys that he represents their souls, disregarding the concrete world around them.

Additionally, this complements his saying, “ to make knowledge born.” I think he means that through these photos, he is creating a sense of awareness and knowledge of a particular aspect of people that are not seen or given enough attention. 

For Allah, photography is all based on his inspiration and what he feels like he wants to do or show. Photography from his perspective is not necessarily a standard, colorful photo that shows the brightness of life. However, he prefers taking explicit photos to represent reality. Unexpectedly, his photographs represent deep emotions that are stemmed from their faces and souls. Their unintended poses and expressions speak for themselves about unequal civil rights, discrimination, and police cruelty against them. In this way, he was able to expose all these underlying emotions through explicit photography. From his perspective, this is the role of photography; not to please people and show them what they want but to expose what is right.

Moving to the understanding, Allah mentioned that people who fear going to certain places and seeing certain people are because of a lack of understanding. In other words, they don’t see the bigger picture. Therefore, Allah says that it is his duty to provide understanding by picturing those neighborhoods and people through his lens to show that there is nothing to be afraid of. I think his photography type can bring out understanding by representing raw photos of the places and people and expressing deep emotions.

I chose the photo below because it contains all the elements that have been discussed. The man in the picture looks like he is screaming, which gives the feeling of internal pain and suffrage. Also, the background behind him is black, which contrasts with his skin color. This visualizes the darkness he might be living in with no light in his life. However, the camera is shedding light on him, making him the center of attention. Moreover, the red color he is wearing could be represented as the color of anger and brutality, emphasizing the civil injustice and inequality he is going through.