Has the media shaped our vision of women through photographic portrayal and is their true purpose and identity betrayed as a result?
Amy Byron Photography
ANNETTE PEHRSSON INSPIRED
MY PHOTOS
Annette Pehrsson is a swedish photographer who created a series called "Iconology" For me this shoot stood out due to her stylistic was of capturing movement through long shutterspeeds. Her images are very simplistic which is achieved by the plain, dull, dirty coloured backgrounds against the paleness of the models skin tone or vibrancy of her clothing, making her body and movements stand out. The fact that the model is pale suggests no particular representation is trying to be achieved other than what meets the eye, which is what I wish to achieve in my own photos, by dressing the model in very simple items of clothing. Although her photographs are hardly materialistic they seem to represent elegance, which is what I explore throughout my project, as I want to portray the idea that women should not need to be materialistic to be deemed as feminine or attractive. The composition of her images imply the structure of the model's body is the main focal point of the images, as there is no other focus within the composition, also her face is often blurred. It is these qualities that I will aim to adopt within my own work.
To create these images I used the studio with a white backdrop so that the background was plain and simple directing our attention to the model, much like the photographer does. I used the studio lights and a tripod for this image in particular as I used myself as a model to try out the settings of the camera to create a double exposure effect. I used colour gels over the lights to create a light leak effect and give a tint to the image, also with a slow shutter spead the colours blend along with the movement of the subject. With this image in particular I added an overlay of a similar image blending the two together making a double exposure, ensuring to decrease the opacity. The reason why I chose these images was because I like the way the movement was captured such as the face. By applying another image beside it, it enhances the idea of movement. I applied a pink/yellow overlay to increase the blur in the photo bringing it all together.
I lowered the lighting for these images which I think worked really well, suiting the skin tone of the model and changing the light from the gels to a muddier colour which shone through the light that is given off either side of the model. As this image was manipulated throught the camera, I had no need to further manipulate the look of the image in photoshop, other than the colour, which I subtly enhanced with a gradient bringing out the greens and warm pinks more, and enhanced the levels and curves. The fact that I used minimal clothing on the model, much like Perhsson and Fagan's style, is to symbolise the idea that the audience should appreciate the beauty of the model in a cloth naked form without objectifying them, representing the contrast of beauty within warm and cold colors, and pale and dark features of the models.This can be noticed in my photos especially through the use of the scarf, as a piece of cloth represents something in its simplest form.
These images are all very similar but experiment with the different shapes that can be created through movement and a long shutterspeed. I was particularly happy with the way that the images had been shot with the camera, therefore I chose not to edit them too much but leave it in its original form. I found that the dimmer the lights the warmer the colours of the image due to the colour gels, whereas ordinarily the outcome of the darker images without the gels would make them under exposed, however in this circumstance the darker light worked well therefore I varied the lighting from darker to bright.