Katy Norgate AS Photography Component 1: Line

Line

Definition & Theory

A line represents a "path" between two points.
A line can be straight, curved, vertical, horizontal, diagonal, or zigzag.
Lines imply motion and suggest direction or orientation.
A line can also be implied and is then filled in by the mind when several points are positioned geometrically within a frame.

The direction and orientation of a line can also imply certain feelings

Horizontal lines imply tranquillity, peace and harmony
Vertical lines imply power and strength.
Diagonal lines imply movement, action and change.
Curved lines or S shaped lines imply quiet, calm and sensual feelings.
Lines that converge imply depth, scale and distance - a fence or roadway converges into the distance provides the illusion that a flat two-dimensional image has three-dimensional depth.

I have included the following visual examples which relate to the above theory

Research (of artists and techniques)

LASZLO MOHOLY-NAGY

One of the photographers that I decided to research was Laszlo Moholy-Nagy. Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (born Laszlo Weisz) was born on the 20th July 1895. He was a Hungarian painter as well as photographer, but he also spent some of his time as a professor at the Bauhaus School. Additionally to this, he was also a part of the Bauhaus movement, which began in 1919. He was heavily influenced by constructivism, which is evident in his work and he was also an advocate for the integration of technology into the arts. The following images are samples of his work and the type of style that he adopted throughout his time as a photographer.

All of the above images were photographed using black and white film. They are all similar and it is clear that he has his own photographic style when it comes to creating images and putting together his compositions. Most of the images that I have selected as examples were taken at either high or low angles, there is only one that I have chosen that seems to have been taken from a central angle. The use of high and low angles could possibly have been used to show status and power, high angles being a significance of higher status and images taken from a lower angle could signify a lower status of power or a lower place within the social hierarchy. additionally to this, I feel as though they could have been taken at these angles to accentuate the various different lines, such as horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines that are present throughout the images.

I gained inspiration from this by producing my own images based on buildings and taking images from various different angles, and then further editing them into black and white using Photoshop.

Image Bank

The following images were added as part of my visual research.

The above pictures are a collection of photographs that represent the visual element of line. These are also images that I felt that I could recreate well myself. These images convey various different forms of lines such as curved or S shaped, horizontal, vertical and diagonal. They are also taken with a variety of different angles which I hope that I am able to do within my own work.

(AO1: You must ensure that several of the visual ideas/inspirations within the image bank are pursued.)

Selected Images

Contact sheet(s)

My Best Images (target 4 - 6)

I selected the following as my best images:

Images that require improvement.

(AT LEAST 2 IMAGES)

There were two images that I selected that needed improvement for a variety of reasons. The first image that I selected I decided needed improvement because I felt as though I needed to get closer to the road sign in order to really show the detail of the lines that make up the sign. Additionally to this, due to being exposed to the sun, shadows were in the way and blocking the road sign, meaning that I wasn't able to get a detailed image of the 'Look Right' road sign. If I was to improve this image, I would get closer to the road sign and would also possibly take it from a different angle to accentuate the detail. I would also take it at a different time of day when the sun is not out, or again take it from a different angle to ensure that the shadows were not in the way of the sign.

The second image is an image that I felt needed improvement for various different reasons. One of these reasons is that I felt as though the image was too dark and that the flash is the focus of the picture, when I wanted the main focus of the image to be the lines and the way they are situated within the image. Additionally to this, although the flash was on, it did not illuminate all of the image and only focused one the central part of the gate. If I was to improve on this image, I would try to move away from the gate and use the zoom feature on my camera to get a more detailed image. If I was to do this, the flash may not be the sole focus of the image and would allow me to show the lines of the image in more detail. I would also try to take it from a different angle, as I may be able to capture the lines in a more abstract and interesting way.

AO3: Record ideas, observations and insights relevant to intentions, reflecting critically on work and progress.

The main idea that I had and the main reason for creating images of lines was that I felt that throughout Harlow, there are various different places and building structures that convey lines in an interesting way. Some are more traditional and others are presented in a much more abstract way, and I felt I was going to be able to capture this well. A lot of my images were inspired by the work of Laszlo Moholy-Nagy and Walker Evans due to the fact they focus on the photography of things such as street signs, road signs and taking pictures at an abstract angle. I tried to recreate this in the photos I took with the visual element 'line' in mind.

The images that I retrieved from my time exploring Harlow turned out well and I felt that overall, I captured the visual element of 'line' well. However, due to this being the first time I have used my camera for a long period of time, there were certain aspects of my work that I felt could have been improved due to not knowing a lot of the camera settings.

With reference to the Best selected images...

The image of the car wheel was shot at a close up angle so that I was able to capture the different kinds of lines that made up the composition of the wheel, as there were curved (S shaped lines) as well as vertical and diagonal lines that created the shape of the wheel. I tried to recreate the image in the style of Peter Keetman.

The image of the skylight was shot from a low angle looking up and I felt this was a good image to capture because the line mainly containing vertical and horizontal lines. Additionally to this, I tried to create this image in the style of Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, who often too pictures at both high and low angles as I did with this image.

The image of the structure of the building was also shot from a low angle looking up at the building, as I thought that this would accentuate the vertical lines and show that vertical lines usually connote power and strength. when editing the image, I decided to contrast the image by editing it into a black and white image. I feel that this kept to the style of Moholy-Nagy and enhanced my image in a positive way.

The two images that I chose as my images that needed improvement were images that I felt that I could take again and work on the composition of the image. I would have either placed the camera at a more central angle or I would change the angle in order to accentuate the lines present with the image. In order to improve my images, I would also like to understand how my camera works better, as I think this would improve my images a significant amount.

AO2: Explore and select appropriate resources, media, materials, techniques and processes, reviewing and refining ideas as work develops.

For all of the above images, I used a CANON EOS 1300D. I have not used my camera a lot before so I feel as though I could still learn a lot about the different settings and that this would improve on my image compositions in a hugely positive way. For most of these images, the flash was not on due to the fact I was shooting in the daylight. To capture more detail, I would shoot with a flash as I feel like this would capture more detail in the image.

If I were to reshoot this image again I would use a tripod to hold the camera steady and try to improve on the sharpness of the image, as I feel that I would be able to create a better composition in terms of contrast and detail.

In order to improve on the images that I took, I decided to import them into Photoshop in order to enhance them and improve on their composition and the way that they have been shot. In order to do this, I decided to put them into black and white in order to accentuate the contrast within the image.

The screen grabs that I have selected show how I used Photoshop to create a high contrast black and white image. To do use this, I used the Curves tool and the Black and White tool, gradually adjusting the colour sliders to get the clear contrast effect.

AO1: Develop ideas through sustained and focused investigations informed by contextual and other sources, demonstrating analytical and critical understanding.

The artist research that I did was extremely helpful in the fact that I was able to gain an understanding of the different artists and their different styles. Knowing about when they were born and where they were born helps me to interpret their work and understand what they were thinking when they took a certain image. Researching images that they have created helps me to try and recreate these images and then shooting my own images in their style. For example, my research on Moholy-Nagy helped me to choose to take photos from abstract angles, rather than just at the normal central angle used for most images. Additionally to this, I was able to get a better understanding of the visual element 'line' and how different lines convey different emotions and feelings.

AO4:Present a personal and meaningful response that realises intentions and, where appropriate, makes connections between visual and other elements.

Overall, I think that I have produced a good series of images inspired by my research of line, composition and the images of both Laszlo Moholy-Nagy and Peter Keetman to an extent... The final images produced were changed by developing the contrast and converting them into black and white images. I think if I was to improve on this, I would try and take photographs that relate more to the artists, as looking back I feel as though I have not fully captured the style of both photographers.

The image that I took of this building has a variety of different lines. The main type of line within this image are vertical lines. Vertical lines usually imply power and strength and because I took this image at a low angle looking up, it makes the lines look even more powerful and implies a significant amount of power. I changed the contrast of the image to accentuate the lines and show even more power and strength within the image.

This image of the skylight has a variety of different lines, all of different shapes. The mix of horizontal and vertical lines show a contrast between peace, tranquility and harmony, and the power and strength that the vertical lines show. To me, this image connotes being trapped, looking out to the sky and wanting to be outside, instead of being trapped inside.