Nebula Photography Blog

Wednesday, 12 March 2014

Group work review and feedback

So we had a little session where we had a look at everyone's work so far and gave our thoughts on which way we could see it developing and any ideas we had on each others finished pieces.

Everyone seemed to understand my narrative which is good and can give me confidence to keep going in the same direction. Also probably not really surprising was that nearly all said it would be good to accompany my images with either some vocal narrative or music.

Still undecided if its the right way to go to add either of these,must decide soon!

Adobe Premiere

For presentation of our narrative images I have chosen to use Adobe's premiere as ive got a cloud subscription and am not keen on Apple products it seems like the obvious choice. Having never used it before and still undecided as to what will accompany the images, I took on a job to make a short basic promotional video for a nightclub that is opening up in Teesside in a few weeks. The presentation is solely film without any photography but the principle in making a time line are the same, so im pretty confidant ill be able to do my hand in justice which ever way it goes.

Its very similar to Ableton music making software in that you just add the parts you want to a timeline with markers set to either just time,or in time with chosen music then apply layers on top for graphics and tittles. A seemingly endless amount of effects can be added with filters and special fx between the transitions or it can be just straight forward for a set time changing hard between your set of clips/images.

Premiere Layout

The finished promo video is here -------------------> HIT ME

The Buzz Club - Rineke Dijkstra

Liverpool

Zaandam

The idea itself is quite simple,get clubbers on a night out from 2 different venues,in different countries to come into a purpose built temporary marquee studio in the club. Tell them they are going to have their photo taken but then film them whilst under the influence of intoxicants for 10 minutes instead.

The results are pretty gruesome,twitching and dancing seemingly uncontrollably to the music playing in the club around them its fascinating and sometimes uncomfortable viewing. Slipping in and out of semi consciousness as the drugs they are on take effect,sometimes smoking cigarettes and occasionally remembering where they are and looking into the lens of the camera hoping it will soon be over to go back out into the action.

Liverpool

As a narrative its pretty close to what i am hoping to achieve. The format is different but both convey the same message to me. This is not a bad thing that these people have chosen to do, Its an escapism from every day monotonous life by coming together to dance to a specific genre of house/techno in a very primitive and tribal gathering.

Zaandam

Liverpool

Different clans can be identified by the music,body ornament such as tattoos,piercings and even the clothing they wear. The 2 clubs on Buzzclub are very different culturally but joined by the same basic need to party in this drug fueled hedonistic way. There were clubs of each kind in the others country when this was set in the mid 1990's but these were the most popular of each and the sounds represent them accurately.

Liverpool

Zaandam

"Buzzclub, Liverpool (1996), features teenagers dancing to a soundtrack of 1990s acid house and rave in a studio erected in a Liverpool nightclub, in an intimate and revealing snapshot of urban youth identity. Focusing on adolescents, young adults and people in a transitional stage of life, Dijkstra’s portraits aim to capture ‘uninhibited moments’. By using pared down, reduced backgrounds she produces striking and beautifully rendered works which slowly unravel personalities, heighten emotional responses and emphasise the psychology of her subjects." Source - Text and Images

Shoot 2 - Concept

The group of images to form a narrative will be continuing along the same theme as the single we handed in for group critique. I had the opportunity to go to another house music event in Darlington with different feel to that of RiffRaff.

Held in the back room of a nightclub come bar,Seen hosts the promoters event called Concept. Run by 2 legends of the north east scene Paul Stoker and Chris "The Bear" Ryan.

A much higher space than the Dungeon in what looks more like an old warehouse with a stage at one end. A back lit projector and some moving head lights behind a camo net add to the ambiance of this underground house affair. The sound is as bass heavy on a large system that engulfs the surrounding area with ease. I had been here a few months earlier and had struggled initially with the darkness and smoke so had to use a flash instead of my preferred technique of using ambiant light. Using the flash off camera with on the rear curtain setting got interesting results I was hoping for.

Here are the images I selected from the shoot,again minus any of just people posing in groups and are more of a candid look at the night.

The Full Size Images and rest of the set can be seen here on Flickr

Skinningrove - Chris Killip

Skinningrove:

a 15 minute film by Michael Almereyda, of Chris Killip talking about his unpublished photographs of Skinningrove: a small fishing village in the Northeast of England, won the "Short Documentary" prize at Sundance 2013. It went on to be shown at 14 other festivals in Europe and the USA.

I was quite fond of the film as it shows the photographer (Killip) reliving the scenes in great detail and affection for the subjects. This is a current theme for works i like. If they have been in among the daily lives of these people i feel it gives a much more genuine feel to the finished works. The way he presented the prints chronologically and had a story to say for each on there own and as a collective is evidence of the connection he felt and how much time he must have spent there.

Giving a narrative vocally as your presenting the images works on another level and fills in many gaps,although i feel that does take a little of the imagination away from looking at something subjectively and working it out for yourself.

This is something i would like to try , although for this narrative assignment im still undecided if its suitable either with nothing,voice or even music.

Tuesday, 11 March 2014

The Sochi Project

One of the most interesting and comprehensive examples of work I came across is The Sochi project. Described by the creators as slow journalism, A team of photographer and writer went to visit the proposed Winter Olympics 2014 site over many years as the area was being slowly transformed. They covered many different aspects of life in the region and mixed well with the locals who seem to be quite amused by their interest and presence.

My favourite part of their work is a set of location portraits which capture the restaurant singers and acts that spend much of the summer months entertaining the hordes of Russian tourists. Very similar to what you would expect from a series set in the 1980's at UK working mans clubs.