A Compelling Video

The Police - Every Breath You Take

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMOGaugKpzs

          I find this video to be very compelling in many ways. First, in the lighting. The lighting for this video is just simple black and white which is less common in the 80's. The 80's was a time for brighter neon colours, or patterns and so it having more of a somber look makes it stand apart from other videos. When I say somber, I don't necessarily mean depressing but it doesn't make you feel good inside. The black and white look is also giving off a dramatic feel. Especially when the lighting switches from one side of the face to the other (0:45-46). Once it switches, the video seems darker and you realize there is a purpose for this switch.

          I find that when you first listen to this song or hear about it, you think it's coming from a romantic side. This video starts out in a way that could be, until he looks directly into the camera as saying, "I'll be watching you". This gives you the creeped out feeling and makes you realize that this video isn't really romantic, but looking at the darker side of things; the things that make you feel on edge.

          The editing is kind of choppy in this video. There isn't always a smooth transition. Sometimes it's just like the scene cuts, and in other times it slowly fades into another part. For example, at one point the bow from a violin becomes the end of the guitar and that works beautifully. But there is also another point where the footage just pauses and the screen splits in half as something from the background moves forward. However, for some reason, the choppiness seems to fit and work for this music. 

          The seriousness of the video and facial expressions give off the emotion of the song. The dramatic filming of the instruments also helps with that. 

Overall, I think this video is pretty well done.

Thanks!

Music Videos - Reflection

          1.) Going over the many different decades of music videos, I have noticed how things change throughout the years. Clothing changes, environment changes, people change, music styles change, quality of video changes. I like this because it encourages change now, and allows some room and options of how to film videos.

          2.) Moving backward from 2016, I love the Arcade Fire video idea to 'We Used to Wait'. Music videos are always better when the viewer can relate to whomever is the ''character'' in the video, and this one is perfect because you can literally see your own neighborhood in the background. It makes you feel as if you were there the whole time. This is such a unique way to make a video, but I can't imagine the work it took to put it together. That makes me believe it's art; not being able to wrap my head around the time and way the captivating and relatable video was put together. I also believe a-Ha's music video for 'Take On Me' is amazing. The amount of detail is insane, and truly stands out from other videos because of it's unique style and literal art put into it. One other of the many videos that I believe is art is OK Go's 'Here It Goes Again'. This idea is just so outside of the box and truly involved planning even though it is just a simple camera on the stand. They use themselves and dance on something you don't usually dance on so it gets the attention on the audience. I personally think it's kind of genius. Lastly, the final video I will mention is Blur's 'Coffee & TV'. This video is so cute. Mixing the cartoon feel with real life is so clever and I'm sure wasn't too common at the time. This once again is outside the box and inspires more of it's kind.

          3.) Things that I notice have changed throughout the years is clothing styles, environment, people, and music styles (like I mentioned earlier). Clothing doesn't necessarily have a dedicated time anymore because styles come in and out all of the time, but people go from wearing checkerboard patterns to floral, to outrageous costume-like outfits in music videos. Nowadays, there is also a lot of nudity, so... no style. Environments have changed going from just a white screen behind to running outside, or being in homes. Also other footage has been brought into videos featuring historical sights or planes and amusement parks. Artists have changed and the music trends changed too, so many times and in so many ways it's hard to describe and you must see for yourself.

          4.) Arcade Fire's 'We Used to Wait' is set apart from any video in the past because of it's interactions with the viewers. Not only can you maybe relate to the "main character" and how he feels, but you can see your own neighborhood all around and that is fantastic to see.

          5.) Music videos in the future can either get better or worse. I feel like they are going to get worse for a little while, but pick up. Right now, shock factor is what makes videos go viral and huge and nudity really gets attention from this society. I think this will continue until viewers get sick of it and then there will maybe be a new clothing style that brings in a whole new shock.

Thanks :)

Themed Portraits

          For this project, we were to come up with a theme that we would like to somehow incorporate in our series of photos. Originally, I wanted to do a group of photos where people were just laughing. It captures moments where happiness is present, and I loved the idea of that. But then, when I first started shooting I got a couple images where the subject was just singing and snapping. That's when I decided I just wanted my them to be 'Real Moments'. That could be laughing, smiling, or anything that captures a true moment that isn't usually captured. The photos below, in my opinion, show 'Real Moments'.

Relaxed and Just Doing Her Thing Before She Knew I Was Shooting...

When She Found Out Something Shocking That My Classmate Told Her...

One of My Classmates Had Complimented Her and This Was Her Response...

 She Heard Her Favourite Christmas Song Come on and She Started Jamming...

The Feeling of Being Photographed Made Her Feel Awkward...

          As you can see, lighting changed between the black background and completely white. For the black background, I had the black backdrop down and one light. This light was the bigger light and it was off the the side of the subject outside of the 'safe zone' (refer to diagram in post before). I had my assistant act as a boomer and hold the light almost above my model. This gave me a bit more of a harsher light and dramatic look, but I liked it with the black background and it seemed to go well with the girl I was taking shots of.

          For the photos with the completely white background, there was a little more set-up needed. To keep the background white and not grey, I changed the backdrop and then put two lights of the same height and power 4 feet from the wall. These lights were just along the edges of the backdrop and aimed just to the right and left of the centre giving even light all along. Then there was the big light being held by my assistant just above from the side once again. The power of that light was not as high as the portraits with the black background making it a little softer on the subject. There wasn't really a reason for why I changed the background, it was just a different day and other people needed the room meaning I couldn't turn off all of the lights for the intense dark background.

          I held the camera vertically because I wanted portraits so it follows the direction of the body. All of their expressions are in the moment. They were not posed or planned, I simply just sat there with the camera until the right time to snap came. Some expressions show what calm looks like, some show confusion, awkwardness or just happiness. I love real expressions and I'm happy I could capture just a few of them!

Thanks for reading this post!

       

Portrait Lighting Workshop w/ Steve Carty

*Please note that these photos were taken by me*

Open Shadow

          This photo was taken at the very beginning of our workshop outside in open shadow. It was a fairly cloudy day so most of the area was slightly shaded meaning still a lot of natural light around, but not as much as direct sunlight. I placed my subject on a plain blue door originally which was good because it wasn't distracting. However, I moved slightly to the right and took this shot. I personally like it because of the colours. The blue with the colour of the brick wall is great. The diagonal line separating the door and the wall actually leads you toward the face since it's in the same area. Because I was up close to the model, though, I got a shot where most of the frame is taken up by his face, leaving the background as not too much of a distraction. His expression gives a mood to the photo. He is serious, which are photos that I tend to take, and calm. His expression intrigues the viewer. This image is the first of three, each photographed vertically. Usually, when you take a portrait photo, you take it vertically because that's the direction the body goes. For this entire shoot, all photos stayed in the same direction.

Studio Lighting #1

          This photo was done inside the studio. The background, as you can see, is completely white. This is done by having two lights four feet from the wall, evenly distanced from the middle. It is important that the two lights are the same height as well. The light that is on the left has to be aimed just to the right of the centre of the backdrop, and the light on the right must be aimed just to the left of the centre. All of this gives you an even background as a crisp white which looks very professional. I was using another light for this shot that was directly behind me and above the both of us. This light was giving a more dramatic look which is good on male models. I also took the white side of a reflector and had it placed on the subject's lap. This lightened up the chin just a slight bit from the light reflecting off the white surface, making a noticeable difference. My model's expression is more one of worry. He gives off an innocent look, much different from the photo below. The positioning in the frame is vertical, once again, for the same reason as before.

Studio Lighting #2

          This photo was taken in the studio as well, and was the last photo that I snapped. As you can see, the lighting technique is different from the other two images. This time, I turned off the backlights so the backdrop would look more grey in the photo. Then, instead of having a light above the two of us, it was placed beside the subject. This gave off, again, a more dramatic look and also gave the rembrandt lighting where there is a triangle of light under the opposite eye. No reflector was used for this one. Expression has changed from one of worry, to confidence and mischief. It's like there is no shame when looking into the camera, which is intriguing. The colour of the background goes well with the colour of the sweater, tying the whole look in. Lastly, the image is vertical again because that's the direction of the body, and it works with the pose the model is in. 

This is a diagram of what the studio set up was like, including the lights that I used.

Thank you so much for sticking with me!