ASSIGNMENT 2 : Final Submission

Full sized images are available on my flickrPro site shown below.  The images in the blog post are compressed by the Picasa album holding them for Blogger and it does images no favours!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/davebartlett/sets/72157630160161012/

I have spent much time reviewing images from my London series as potential submissions for Elements of Design Assessment 2.  Images have gone in and out of favour and some have changed categories as it is clear that several design elements can feature in the same image.  My final selection of 15 images appears below as small pictures and the full sized photographs can be assessed in flickr as above.   I have explained in each case why I have chosen a particular image.

(a)  Single point dominating the composition.  This is an intentionally simple image which I originally shot in both vertical and horizontal formats, with the person representing the single point being placed on different  ‘thirds’ in each case.  I liked the horizontal steps and the way that the eye moved up them to ‘find’ the figure.

(a) Single point dominating composition

(b)   Two points.  I had originally considered some images of boats on the Thames for ‘two points’ but I kept coming back to an image I took at The Scoop on the Embankment as I felt that the boats were rather dull and uninteresting.  The image I returned to is a sculpture of two differently sized, very large, black stone balls and there was some great interaction between the people trying to push the balls along  as well.  I did give this some second thoughts as although the balls are definitely two points, there is quite a lot else going on.  However, I feel that the sculptures are sufficiently dominant over the rest of the components of the picture to make it a good choice for this element – that’s all you really see in the image until the eye starts to rove around.

(b) Two points

(c)  Several points in a deliberate shape.  The old man on the bench and the three pigeons each represent points in a fairly featureless background and arrange themselves into the shape of a triangle. 

(c) Several points in a deliberate shape

(d)  A combination of vertical and horizontal lines.  I had a number of contenders for this element, all of various architectural features along the river, from which there were many to select.  I liked the image I have chosen, although quite complex,  because of the reflection of the building which was behind me in the primary subject of the photograph as it also shows the same horizontal and vertical elements as in the foreground.

(d) A combination of vertical and horizontal lines

(e)  Diagonals.  The Gherkin offers a huge number of options for diagonals both in the glass panels and in the steelwork that supports the building itself.  I considered both these options and took images from a number of different angles before deciding on a shot taken from the bottom of the building looking upwards.  Not only did this show the diagonals from the glass panels themselves, but also allowed the two dark diagonal lines that run across the building to be highlighted.  I cropped these images in a number of ways, both showing the top of the Gherkin and excluding it, and elected to submit and image showing the top a I felt this added more to the image and identified it as it as one on London’s iconic buildings.

(e) Diagonals

(f)  Curves.  I have chosen to present two images here as I wanted to exemplify both single and multiple curves.  The single curve is a view of the London Eye which I took from underneath the superstructure looking upwards at part of the wheel; I chose to eliminate the central hub to emphasise and isolate the curve I wanted to show.  The multiple curves are the arch at the main entrance of the Natural History Museum and show a sequence of arches that I think exemplify curves well.

(f) Curves 1

(f) Curves 2

(g)  Distinct, even if irregular, shapes.  Again, many options presented themselves here, but I finally decided to submit a pair of images, one of an event and one of a structure.  The first image is of the series taken along the river that originally appeared as ‘The girl in the bubble’ in my post of Feb XX.  It has now been reworked in black and white and is much the better for it. I really liked the definite but irregular shape of the bubble and the fact that its shape is constantly changing, so the photograph just captures a moment in time never to be repeated.  The second image selected was the Airstream caravan, certainly a distinct if irregular shape, and I thought rather bizarrely mirrored by the litter bin in front of it.  The Airstream was probably my favourite from the whole London collection of images and even within this one structure it is possible to find curves, points, diagonals and rhythm as well as the elements I eventually selected it for.

(g) Distinct, even if irregular, shapes 1

(g) Distinct, even if irregular shapes 2

(h)  At least two kinds of implied triangle.  I found this the hardest of the series to capture, largely because so many images can be construed as displaying three points or a pair of straight ‘sides’ which could be interpreted as triangles. The assignment brief requires ‘at least two kinds of implied triangle’ so I finally elected to go for a shot of people, a shot of a single person and a structure.  The first image shows three people arranged so as to suggest a triangle and I think the apex being at the bottom of the image creates a certain energy through the imbalance caused – added to by the foot of the photographer being off the ground and implying movement as well.  The second image is the bubble blower again, this time with her arms and stick held aloft and suggesting a triangular form with her feet positioned closely together at the base.  Finally, Hungerford Bridge over the Thames was my last selection, with the support structures being arranged in a number of triangular designs, depending on how you look at them, as well as each structure being itself a triangle.

(h) Implied triangle 1

(h) Implied triangle 2

(h) Implied triangle 3

(i)  Rhythm.  I decided early on that the Barclay’s sponsored ’Boris bikes’ in London would be my example of rhythm, but it took a lot of shots from different angles and with different depths of field before I finally had one I was happy with.  I eventually selected a complete row of bikes and really liked the way that the orderly rhythm was broken at the end by the underground sign and the untidy jumble of people’s own bikes that had been parked there, and also by the individual loafing against the pillar ..

(i) Rhythm

(j) Pattern.  Pattern needs to extend beyond the confines of the borders of an image, and was not that easy to find within the geographical confines of the shoots I had imposed.  The image I selected in this category was of what I thought to be a rather strange architectural arrangement that looked like a series of shelves ..  However, it does leave the viewer wondering what else was there, where did they go and was anything on any of them!

(j) Pattern