Independent Project

My project will be a series of 20 photos that will explore the interaction between the written language and the visual language. Mainly, how does words visually communicate something? I used a mixture of graffiti text, commercial signs and different languages. So far, I went to Colonial and took photos of signs, graffiti, English letters and Vietnamese characters.
Below I have two approaches. One is a more graphical approach in which there is no outside context. The other one is more reliant on the scenery. I know that people in the class liked the one on the left, but do you think that the series can have both styles and still seem unified?

Another question is about the readability of the text. Should the text be readable or should I crop the text? If the text is not readable, then the viewer must interpret the words based on the visual elements.

My last question is about one last image. This photo wasn't shown in class last time and I was wondering if it fits with the rest. I was thinking of comparing photos with text. In this photo, an old Vietnamese photo is next to graffiti text. What do you think? Does the style match the rest?

Client Interpretation

I will discuss how the Rollins students and the client at UCF described and interpreted the photograph at the top. In the classroom, the students described the photograph using some nouns: statue, photograph, papers. After close inspection, the tilt of the photograph in the frame was an interesting topic. The client used similar words to describe the photograph, also mentioning the colors, especially the gold shine in the frame. However, the client didn't noticed the tilt of the photograph until someone mentioned the tilt. A difference between the students and the client was the interpretation of the papers. The students believed the papers were bills while the client believed they were homework. Another difference was that the client focused more on the statue, trying to inspect the material of the statue.

The students and client had similar interpretations of the photograph as a whole. Both viewed the person in the photograph as an important figure and viewed the person as a lost family figure. The client mentioned her as someone that was loved. The shadows had an important part in everyone's interpretation on the photograph. After the obvious objects, the shadows were mentioned by both the client and the students. I believe both viewed the photograph as somber yet I don't remember their exact words. Among my three photographs, this one was selected as the favorite among the client and students.

Assignment 3: HOME

My first photograph is a picture of an old photograph of a relative. I chose this image because I liked the lighting of the photograph and how the gold on the frame reacts to the light. I also liked the juxtaposition of the stern face of the Napoleon statue and the smile of the photographed person.

The second photograph is a picture of Peruvian decorative figures. I was experimenting how flash affects the photograph since I mostly take my photos without flash. I was focusing on photographing small details around the house. I chose this photo because I believed that they showed a small aspect of my family’s culture.

My third photograph was difficult to decide because I was stuck between the one of the family portrait and the photograph of the stuffed bunny. I liked how I was included in the reflection of the picture as well as in the photograph itself. However, the lighting of the stuff bunny was very appealing and was more successful in creating a mood. So I decided with the stuff bunny because it just had a sense of a narrative and I felt the composition was more successful. I liked the balance of the green numbers on the left and the green of the bunny. If anyone is curious, the photograph is a picture of my niece’s room.

Practices of Looking

The myth of the photographic truth

One of the things that stand out in the reading was the skeptic eye towards photography as an objective truth. So often we see photography used to portray a specific position. The article mention the example of the Time and Newsweek‘s portrayal of O.J. Simpson. Time was accused of altering Simpson’s mug shot by making him darker and more menacing. A recent example of altering photography is the Iranian missile test in which Iran added an additional rocket to “enhance” the photograph. With the increased usage of Photoshop and digital photography, people are increasingly skeptical at photography as an objective truth.

However, photography—and images in general—still provide a way of communication. The subjectivity and presence of the creator in photography gives the images a more personal touch. Photographs are not just images that a machine created but an image someone else wants to share. Instead of reading the Photoshoped image of the Iranian missiles as “the truth”, we can read it as what Iran wants to share with the world. The image expresses Iran’s desire to impress the world with their military advancement and show off their power.