Proposal
I have chosen openings as my exam project because it is a creative and unique way of photography that I have never thought about doing. I like the idea of doing openings, even though it maybe difficult to find many photographers that do solely openings. However there is a well known photographer called Dragan Todorovic he makes creepy photos of people in doorways as a silhouette or looking away from the camera and many of his photos are, in some way, in the theme of openings. All of his photos are in black and white which makes it more eerie. I feel like I can recreate his effect in only my house or even a derelict building somewhere. I have a lighting kit at home, I can connect it with my camera so when ever I take the photo the flash turns on and makes the subject into a silhouette. I would need to go out at night when it is dark so there is no natural light other than the flash when it goes off.
Mind Map
Inspirations from my pinterest board
Photoshoot 1-Openings
Photo Evaluation
I went out into Hayfield to do a openings photo shoot. In this shoot I wasn't aiming to recreate an artists piece, it was solely to get a collection of opening photos. Overall I think these photos came out well. On the day of the photoshoot the sky was really clear so there was good lighting for all the photos.
Photoshoot2-Openings
Photo Evaluation
This is my favorite image i took at the canal on my 2nd photo-shoot. Overall I don't think it's an amazing photo, however I do like how the reflection in the water makes the tunnel look like an L shape. The photo consists of leading lines, rule of thirds, reflection and openings. I think the contrast of colours are quite good and I think the exposure is just right. The dominant lines in the image are clearly the outline of the tunnel. I don't like how the top frame of the bridge is slanted. The path starts in the dark and opens up into the bright green woodland.
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Photoshoot3-Openings
Photo Evaluation
I have chosen to evaluate this photo because, in my opinion, this image was the best photo out of the photo shoot to represent the openings theme. I love the mix of colours in the image, it looks like it has a chrome effect. In my opinion I think the bokeh in the background looks beautiful. I like hoe you cannot see inside the postbox, it gives the sense of mystery to the viewer. Up close the photo is not in focus which really annoys me. I was using the telephoto lens which has a x70 focal point so I had to step far back which resulted in my camera being shaky. I like the depth of field in the photo which is clearly shown on the ridge of the postbox, the left side is in focus while the right is blurred.
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Dragan Todorovic
Dragan Todorovic is an openings photographer. He takes photos of spooky people as a silhouette down a corridor or in a hallway. The pictures he takes are always in black and white which gives a more eerie effect. There is no information about Dragan Todorovic on the internet so he is quite an unknown photographer to me. His photography is appealing to the eye and you know that he has a unique style because all of his photos are linked together since they are all black and white. The composition of his work is good and sometimes send shivers down your spine. A lot of his images are taken outside in a dark and gloomy street with a subject that is usually a bike. While the other photos he captures are inside with a flash or light behind the door with a subject of a woman or girl which has an eerie effect to it.
Photo Evaluation
![Picture](/uploads/9/4/2/4/94248373/editor/b408dfce54505dc985c2963c71a3b736_1.jpg?1499678199)
This is my favourite photo by Dragan Todorovic I love the lighting and shadows. I don't think the composition of this photo is amazing, its a bit wonky. There isn't a good quality photo on Google so I can't judge the sharpness however the contrast looks good, there is a difference between the whites and blacks. The pose that the woman is stood in just makes the photo look amazing and creates the creepy and eerie effect the photo has to other. The dominant lines in the photo are the white door frames. The lighting is really effective for this type of image, it brings out the silhouette of the woman. Todorvic was in a dark room with a light shining through the doorway, This photo is mainly presenting the lights and darks that you can create with a doorway and a lighting kit, Todorovic has cleverly created the effect of the light streaming through the right of the doorway and casting a light of the wall. Overall I think the image is really good and effectively gets the point across that it is meant to be creepy.
Dragan Todorovic's photos
Planning
To recreate the photo of my choice by Dragan Todorovic I will need to find a suitable doorway (preferably without anything behind it) I will set up the flash kit behind the doorframe with my Mum in the centre of the frame. I will experiment with different poses and objects in the subject's hand. I will also try out the different settings of brightness for the flash kit, since on a lower setting it may not get rid of all the background objects. There is a carpet in front of the doorway which will hopefully give some texture to the shadow of the subject.
This is a sketch of the photo that I am aiming for
All the Photos-Circled photos are chosen
The 4 photos that I have chosen
Photo Evaluation
I love this image in many ways. First the contrast between the lights and the dark is amazing and the way the photo is in black and white makes it more cold and dark, which fits the reason the subject is holding knifes. I love how through the doorway it is completely blown out with light. The flash kit couldn't fire a bright enough light to remove everything that was in the doorway so I had to use Photoshop to remove any objects that were still visible afterwards. I think I did a good job at removing the unneeded objects from the background. Furthermore I like how not all the door is blown out with white, there is detail on the top right of it with the clear wood patterns and door handle. The light is spilling out onto the ceiling in a controlled fashion which is obvious from the sharp edges of the light, however in Photoshop I increased the amount of light in the photo which, in result, caused a spillage of light on the ceiling removing some of the sharp lines of light.
Before
This is the photo straight from the camera before using any editing software.
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During
This photo is of the image after being uploaded into silver effects pro using the biggest contrast template.
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After
This is the final image, I imported it into Lightroom to get rid of the the specs of black with the clone tool.
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Andrea Clare
There is no information about Andrea Clare on the internet. She does not do openings photography as a profession, I just happened to find her only openings photo. This photo gave me inspiration to do keyhole photography. Andrea Clare photographs nature, all of her photos are relevant to the theme nature. She mainly uses Photoshop in her images which gave them the fantasy effect that the pictures portray. All together I really like Andrea Clare's photo collection, she has great ideas for her images.
Photo Evaluation
This is the only photo that Andrea Clare has made of keyholes. I really enjoy looking at this photo, it makes me want to travel through the keyhole and follow the path. The photo includes leading lines which draws your eye to the middle of the image. Everything in the photo is central except the white rabbit which is on the bottom third of the picture. I like how the pattern on the top and bottom of the lock are out of focus. Andrea Clare has taken inspiration from Alice in Wonderland and can tell this from the white rabbit and the mysterious forest. This photo is clearly photo shopped as there wouldn't be a door into a wood. The colours are really nice and a choice. The shape of the keyhole is really common but when Andrea Clare used the lock with the patterns above and below combined with the colour and forest it made the photo really effective.
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My interpretation of Andrea Clare
Photo Evaluation
I really like this photo because I love how the flash has made a massive difference. I made it so the flash came in from the left to make it look natural. I think I chose a good keyhole to photograph because it looks old and ruined. The image through the keyhole fits well with the picture Andrea Clare chose (forest). I used photo shop to import the picture of the path through the lock. The bolts on the lock are not symmetrical, two of them have been taken out, which gets rid of the 'boring same', and changes it to a more unique image. Originally the keyhole was a brown colour, however when I used the flash it added the green effect.