New Media

Photography Blog

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Dallas Art Fair

A week ago I visited the Dallas Art Fair. I have been to many art museums, but I got a very different feel here. It was very interesting to see people from all over the world come together and display their work throughout the building. I feel as though maybe since it was art that is happening in the present versus many historical works of art that are displayed in museums, I had more of a connection to it.

The one piece I really liked that also relates to new media is the photo on the bottom left. This work of art was created by Sarah Anne Johnson, and is made with inkjet print and oil paint. I love how she mixed the traditional medium of oil pastel with the newer mediums like inkjet print. It gives it a look that is very real and natural from the photo and combines it with a more animated feel through oil paint, as if our reality and imagination are mixing before our eyes.

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Here is the GIF I created using 10 photos. I love how it turned out to look very candid, as she didn’t even know I took  her photo. I also love how it shoes laughter just coming out at any moment. It not only brings joy to the person, but makes everyone around them smile as well. 

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After finalizing my project, and compiling all my photos into a book, these are my favorite. Going through this process, I did have a difficult time in trying to take a good photo in places where I could not control the lighting and surroundings. I had to strategically place her and take multiple shots in one area to get a good shot that brings out the best of that location. Overall, I really enjoyed going out and shooting portraits in public places as it gave me a realization that we can find a connection and familiarity wherever we may go. 

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In-progress critique 2: After going back out to reshoot and go to additional locations, I found the hardest things about this project was trying to get good lighting in these stores. I did go back and edit my pictures to give it a brightness that lacked in the raw image, creating a more open ambiance. I love how this photo turned out, especially with all the colors in the background. I will be making a photo book with the images, and am still deciding on how I should display each photo on the pages and where to put the location of the pictures.

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In-progress critique 1: here is one of the photos I have taken in a grocery store. I put the raw and edited version next to each to compare how I liked it. After I compeletesd the edit, I didn’t really like the shadows creating around the border. I want the photos to have a somewhere vintage feel, but do not want to overdo the edits, so I will be working on that as I take more photos and edit further.

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Final Project

My outlook for this project is taking ordinary, everyday places we visit, and creating something beautiful or appealing from it. Looking at ordinary places with a different point of view. I will go into stores or locations that people visit on a daily basis and take a photograph to give it the look as if we were somewhere else. With this, I want people to see that even in the usual things, there can be something fun and beautiful about them. Taking the time to find these moments can evoke more gratefulness for what already have rather than longing for things we don’t. It also shows how our perspective can really change the way we view things. Going to ordinary places and finding what can be transformed into something different, can open our eyes to being more positive in optimistic.

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Visualizing Social Photography

As read in the article, Lev Manovich has used a combination of technology and photography to create an immense work of art display in the Museum of Modern Art in New York. He has included around 20,000 images in one work, which is very large compared to many other works in similar mediums. The rise of social media has open up a large channel for these digital images to be shared, all in one place. Monarch has combined this idea together, showing the effect of this dispersion simultaneously, rather than seeing thousands of images separately, as we do on social media.

Furthermore, This work of art has sedan older more original medium or photography and combined it with modern day technology. This shows the aspects of new media and taking what surrounds us currently and making a visual statement about it. Along with the technology that has been used in creating the images, computer scientists have dived deeper into the backtracking of where the images were taken and how it compares to popular spots. This “world heat map” they created explains which locations had a larger concentrations of photos, which was further analyzed to figure out whether they were taken due to their popularity or similarity in technique etc… One thing i found surprising was how the computer science department found that there was a larger concentration on the shorelines of many countries, with the centers being pretty sparse. I believe this is largely due to a large appeal of beaches and activities that can be done in such regions. As we travel further inland, there is more barren land and less variety is what may be captured.

Moreover, I found it very interesting that they were able to categorize the photos by who had taken them, showing patterns in who takes more pictures depending on the location they are at. Overall, social media outlets and technological advancements have given us an outlet to create more diversity in this medium. We now have the resources to have a variety of subjects as well as the tools to edit and change images to what we want them to portray compared to traditional photography.

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VIDEO: passage

When I think of a passage into something, the first thing that comes to mind is going into someone’s home. Someone allowing you to come into their home is letting you get a glimpse into their personal life, and what contributes to it. Everyone has a different lifestyle and through seeing how they live we can pick up many different qualities that the person can have, such as having a tidy home representing a neat and organized person. Opening up yourself to those around you doesn’t always come easy, and those who welcome you have trusted you enough to open up their passage.

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Construction

Here is photo of a myth I was attempting to capture. It is the myth that all small children hear, about having monsters under there bed. Here I have set up a little girl on her bed surrounded by all her toys, and a sharp light hitting her from the lower left corner to create a definite shadow. This shows how even though she is safely on her bed with things she loves, the idea of a monster being right underneath still scares her.

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Khushbu, 90 days.

This post did attract as many likes although I did gain more followers by the time it was posted. I believe it was because of the time of day. It was posted on a Tuesday afternoon right after lunch time. 

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Rasik, 180 days.

This post was my most liked post, even from those who don’t follow my account. I believe this was mostly due to in home improvement hashtag that attracted those who may not be as much into photography or art. 

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Lannie, 122 days

This was my first post for my project. I attracted a only a few followers at the time but still got several likes. 

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Happy Hearts - Instagram Project

The title I have given my project is Happy Hearts. I intend to take a photo of different people holding a piece of paper on which they have written something that makes them happy. I will be asking them when the last time they actually did what they have written was, and post the picture with their name and that time as the caption. With this I want to show that currently people don’t do what they truly love due to the many obligations they have or even because of the fear of judgement that society and the people around them may have. Many people today prioritize what society thinks and how much money they want to make rather than focusing on themselves and the things that bring them true happiness. True happiness is something that you achieve from within yourself, and surrounding yourself with things you love is a part of leading you there. 

Instagram: @happyheartsss

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Making the Familiar Unfamiliar

For this assignment I tried to capture things around me that I see all the time and frame in a way that was unusual. The first photo is of a cactus that has now withered in the stones just sitting on the porch. The second is of piano keys, and the third is an Indian plate used in religious prayer. This assignment was a bit difficult, because everything that I wanted to frame in a different way was still recognizable, so I had to think of different perspectives and angles to get the right shot.

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Photomontage

I decided to take a photo of myself and cut it up showing glances of what makes me who I am, showing the contrast between what everyone sees, versus who I really am. I included photos of travel, my passion of calligraphy, my Indian heritage and culture, and another photo of myself being carefree, also represented by the faded yellow lettering reading ‘live free’. I added the lettering in a way where it is not immediately seen and prevalent, but must be seen closer to make out what is said. This mirrors the idea of how when we meet people, we see the exterior and sometimes make a judgement about them; however, if we spend more time getting to know the real them, we can see their true selves. 

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Nature of Photographs - Stephen Shore

In this reading, Stephen Shore writes about the different qualities that play into photography. He described each of these qualities following a photo of its depiction. He does not simply comment on the photography itself, but what attributes are used in the photo.

I loved the way he described the paper on which the photo was printed on and how at the time different  materials were used. With each of these materials there is a different process involved in getting the wanted outcome. It was interesting to hear the description, as now most photos are digital. If they are printed they are typically on the same glossy paper for a clean finish. This makes me think about how even though the photo we take is simple, the materials used in the printing process can add more emphasis and create a whole new image.

Furthermore, I enjoyed his discussion on how color adds an extra layer of description. It makes our eyes move to a certain point in the photo, and can always portray a certain mood. For example, when we see the color white, we immediately think of pureness and cleanliness, which comes with positivity. With black and white photos, these aspects are more portrayed with value. The contrasting dark and lights of the photos can translate different meanings or motives.

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Light

These contrasting photos show how light can be different in each photo, using soft light on the left and a harsh light in the right. I love how the left photo takes you back and inside the mirror while the light above is glowy, seeming like the Hindu god towards the bottom is bringing the light in. I also like how the light created in the right photo is so prominent creating a unique angle seen above the headboard.