Gilbert and George

Gilbert & George started working together in 1967 after they met at St Martins School of Art and believe that everything is a potential subject for their work. The  inspirations and overall ideas are mostly a reflection on society. They are known for their distinctive brightly coloured graphic-style photo-based artworks and have always addressed social issues. The backdrop and inspiration for much of their work is the East End of London where Gilbert & George have lived and worked for over 40 years. From street signs to Ginkgo trees, from chewing gum stains on the pavements to vistas of urban grandeur and decay, their work is both an ongoing portrait of a city and a reflection on the human condition.

 

I find this photograph by gilbert and George strange yet intriguing in that the background and subject are almost unrelated in terms of colour scheme. The picture is heavily dominated by lines, leading the eye in many different directions and confusing the audience as to where they are supposed to be looking. The composition

is fairly balanced and symmetrical by having both gilbert and George on either side of the picture. The grid lines create an element of the composition 'rule of thirds', where things are placed purposefully to create focal points.

 

 

The early work in this style is black and white, later with hand-painted red and yellow touches. They proceeded to use a range of bolder colours, sometimes back-lit, and overlaid with black grids. Their work has addressed a wide variety of subject matters including religion and patriotism.

 

 

To achieve a Gilbert and George style picture I flipped and duplicated my original photo and edited the colour and style using photoshop. I also put a grid over to the top to add to the Gilbert and George effect.

 

 

I feel that this was a successful edit because it relates well to my chosen photographers with the grid, repetition and bright colours. There is also an element of fun and isn't a serious photograph. the positioning of the subject looks like she is holding hands with herself, offering a sense of unity and connotes happiness.

Nick Chaffe 'Combining photographs with design'

Nick Chaffe 'Combining photographs with design'

Nick is half English half Swedish and currently lives in Manchester. Trained in graphic design, Nick went on to work full-time  for many different companies. Since 2008 he has operated independently from his own small studio in the UK. The image below expresses thoughts and feelings in the background patterns and shapes. This picture helps me to understand more about the subjects personality also the black and white effect makes the picture seem more significant and emotive.

 

 

My image has the same effect but with words and pictures to summaries the meaning of 'life' expressing my interpretations which include both good and bad aspects. I achieved this picture by using grey scale and removing the background of the images of people. l chose not to do the lines on my piece because I interpreted it in a slightly different way, however I still learned the same skills as everybody else but produced an alternative picture.

During the Chaffe project I have learnt new skills such as drawing and editing lines on a picture, below is a step by step on how to achieve a Chaffe style photograph.

 

What is ISO?

What is ISO?

When you change your ISO setting  you're adjusting your camera's sensitivity to light (which can be anywhere from 24 to 6,400). This is the most important part of the camera  because it is responsible for gathering the light and transforming it into an image. If you were to use a higher  ISO number, the level of sensitivity will increase. However if you were to lower the ISO number, the level of sensitivity will decrease. Higher sensitivity is expensive but with increased sensitivity, your camera sensor can capture images in low-light environments without having to use a flash. without a flash your camera may take too long to shoot, resulting in images that are blurry and out of focus.  Alternatively, a photographers  option is to increase the ISO number to 800 or higher. Some photographs are intentionally grainy/blurry to help create mood in a scene.