Need advice for my final project for photo class...

[JoeFriday]

one theme that I want to explore this year is shooting people at a biker rally.. getting photos of the very interesting characters that attend those events.. gnarly dudes with lots of facial hair.. women in leather halter tops.. tattoos up the ying yang.. it's almost visual overload.. how could you go wrong? and most of the people at those events are fairly exhibitionist.. they'd love the attention of having their photos taken

 

[wtl]

Kyle,

I know we got enough people here who do little assignment work themselves but won't hesitate to offer this and that, but, if I am guessing correctly, your instructor wants YOU to think of a project, not to pick on other's brain. For any PJ, it is more important to find the story and decide on the approach to achieve. Doing it is the easy part.

Not sure the purpose of you taking the class. But again, if I am guessing correctly, you want to improve your skill and move ahead in the photo field. Then I think you should stick with the rules and carry through the assignment, yourself.

If I am off of the base, forgive me. But if you find any useful susbtance in my saying, scratch everything you have heard so far and start from fresh...

 

[wtl]

oh yeah, you might want to think of the project first before deciding on the format and the print size. you are doing ths a bit backward here...a bit...ah, how should i put it...too much influence from RFF.

 

[f/stopblues]

Being a color photography class, you might consider doing something with bold colors, complementary colors, or something like that. Since you're specifically working with color, show it off.. put some pop or zing in it. There's a great example of the use of color that way over in the Poloroid thread.. *Click me, I'm the Poloroid thread*

Above all, enjoy the project! I'm sure you'll come up with something solid. Good luck!

 

[Kyle]

If I am off of the base, forgive me. But if you find any useful susbtance in my saying, scratch everything you have heard so far and start from fresh...

You are not offbase at all. I understand your concern that I'm relying too much on other people's input.

At the start of this thread, I had a few ideas for potential subjects in my head. I did not start this thread to use or steal other people's ideas, I did it to get reassurance of sorts, that some of my ideas are good enough. Looking through some of the examples presented, I see that if I can follow through with what I had in mind, my project can be successful. Hopefully that makes sense. To clarify, it was not my intention to use another's ideas that were posted in the thread, fire escapes, for example. However, after seeing that series of work, it gives me assurance that similar ideas I had could be successful if I execute them well.

The only thing I feel I am really taking from the thread is the triptych idea. However, I would only use that if the subject matter deems it appropriate. Nothing is decided yet.

 

[Simon Larbalestier]

I wouldn't get hung up on 5 perfect shots - choose a theme/subject you feel comfortable with and start shooting - sometimes a series suggests itself as you begin to build a body of work. Make the pictures that interest you and find the links later. Then pick the 5 that work best as a set - perhaps a weaker one is supported by others but you need to include the weaker one because it works with tha particular set. Sounds easy and i know it isn't but unless you photograph on your terms you've got nothing to edit with later. My whole work is based on long term series or bodies of work and i explore the links as it develops - sometimes it's taken several years. I appreciate you don't have this timescale im just explaining where i'm coming from.
Good Luck.

 

[FrankS]

Tattooed, nude female body builders in bondage, in deserted urban heavy-machine factory. (Oops, did I say that out loud?)

 

[drmatthes]

Frank,

this is one of the posts I always wanted to create myself... didn't dare so far...

But - there is something specific to it:

It is not an issue of something strange or weird or completely new, it is an issue of what comes out of your mind in your personal situation in the community you live in and take your kind of photographs.

I saw an exhibition of photography students in Berlin last year.

The first prize was given to somebody who had taken photographs of abandoned immigrant homes in Berlin.

Seems awkward, but it hit an issue that is often discussed in my country, how we deal with immigrants seeking refuge in this wealthy part of our world.

There may be such an issue that is part of your interest in every-day life.

What field of interest might that be?

Work? Leisure? Street life? Love? Loneliness? Politics? Art?

Or might it be the simple interest in the presence of things and structures (like the people in Straight Photography taught in the 1920s).

I always come back to the thought that many aspects of photography are still dealing with the old issues of painting:

Portrait, landscape, architecture, still-life, nudes, tales, religious worship - it's been all the same from the renaissance to expressionism.

Or do something abstract. I did some shots of scaffoldings or water surfaces with the simple interest in structure, and some of the results still do please me.

Another idea could be to rely on anniversaries. We have 150 years of Sigmund Freud, 250 years of Mozart - there may be more local heroes in your area that might be worth a thought.

What is special of your area or community that meets your interests?

What has been bothering your mind, your feelings, your spirit apart from photography?

Go out and shoot it.

That should make enjoyable shooting, and that's the way I feel I get the best results.

I wish and assume it may be the same in your case.


Jesko

_______________

2006 AD
800 yrs Dresden
80 yrs Zeiss Ikon

 

[dreilly]

I knew I had a tryptych somewhere. Choose one subject and shoot it from every possible angle and choose shots that:

1) say something individually, and
2) say something larger (together) than the sum of their parts

Not saying my example does that very well, but it's something to shoot for (pun).
These are photos taken with a Flexaret TLR in Erzerum, Turkey, a few years back.

 

[wtl]

Jesko, now we are OT so a question...

Since you mention the immigration in Germany, I have always been a great fan of Rainer Werner Fassbinder who did (probably the most famous of his) The Marriage of Maria Braun. I wonder how immigration situations have changed in your part of the world since the film "Ali: Fear eats the soul" was made.

Kindly,

 

[RML]

Another idea could be to rely on anniversaries. We have 150 years of Sigmund Freud, 250 years of Mozart - there may be more local heroes in your area that might be worth a thought.

400th birthday of Rembrandt
800th anniversary of the Great Mongol Empire
860th birthday of Chinggis Khaan (aka Gengis Khan)

36th birthday of RML 🙂

 

[Steve Bellayr]

I had the (mis)fortune to teach photography many years ago. If you can't come up with a project take as many photos that you can (that's a lot). Look at all of them. Somewhere along the line you should begin to develope as the French say an oeuvre or a way of seeing. There will be a consistency in your photographs. That consistency will be your answer.

 

[remrf]

How about 5 shots of you shooting your "candid" street shots.

1. getting ready.

2. Choosing the street.

3. Finding the shot.

4. Shooting it.

5. Looking at your completed work.