During this quarantine, I have been restricted from what I can and cannot go and take pictures of, So I decided to do a comparison of life pre-Covid and life during. The images I chose for my pre-Covid are portraits of family members, and it has a more upbeat and normal environment then we are currently in now. I found that being quarantined with people you don’t generally see unless its the holidays or vacations its both tricky and great because you sort of bond while wanting to “strangle each other”. For my during images I played around with lighting and landscapes, but mostly portraits and lighting are what my project mainly focus on, specifically the types, like natural lighting as well as external lighting.

PRE COIVD

QUARENTINE

For my take on Cindy Sherman’s Project, I decided to go with a more alternate version of the common woman, generally women in day to day life are very reserved or dressed socially correct, but with my images I decided to take an anti feminine approach and create a lot more sex appeal. Women create their own version of it but its generally kept locked up until they are in a safe environment with a partner.

The Video on Robert Mapplethorpe was a whole new experience for me. I had never seen such graphic photography before and was both amused and caught off guard. Roberts life story and his version of “coming out” to the world was a different take that I found empowering but also unique since he was in many relationships with women as well. His photographs were very out there in the sense that it had never been done before as being directed towards the male gaze. Till Mapplethorpe’s graphic male photos, there was little to none that exposed the male anatomy and it was more shifted towards the female body. I feel as though his photographs were a bit too much for my taste however I respected his vision and his point.

His battle with Aids towards the end of his career sparked a different version of himself, as he focused more on taking portraits and floral images. His gallery was said to be a memorial of a living person and had all of his best and critically acclaimed pieces showcased in the best photography gallery.

This weekends assignment for me was actually one of my favorite shoots, I enjoy exploring the female gaze and how far I can push it but still leaving some to the imagination. The following three images are of breasts that I took in different angles and perspectives. All of my images were taken using an additional light source to create more shadow and contrast which in the end created a better black and white image. I found that taking pictures of the collar bone as well as the shoulders created a dimension and depth in the photos that would otherwise be different if I were to take an image of the actual breast which is generally flaccid and lacks structure.

In the documentary Generation Wealth, Lauren Greenfield creates an amazing depiction of wealth from money as well as wealth from your passion and work. Some things I noticed that wealth around the world had many definitions; for some it can be actual physical objects that show wealth. Fancy cars, black cards, big houses in all types of places and traveling. To others wealth is being young and powerful, or thin. Wealth in Florian’s eyes was of-course the money but he also described wealth as the female body. Calling it a commodity of our new found pornified culture. Sex sells, “People like dealing with attractive people”. Its created an unrealistic society that’s sex crazed but also calling it an extension of commerce.

For Lauren, her obsession with working is specific to her. Some may call her work an obsession, constantly taking photographs and recording every and anything that goes on in the house. Greenfield in the eyes of her children, Is seen as a “workaholic”, never once stopping to see what’s happening in the moment and always trying to capture it on camera without savoring the moment.

Greenfield’s battle with being a mother was a tough one, she not only came from a household where her own mother pursued work and spent less time with her children while Lauren was determined not to follow in her mother’s footsteps. Lauren’s partner was a key component to allowing her to pursue her passion and travel, she did miss certain things in her children’s lives however that in no way qualifies her as a bad mother. She proved that becoming a mother would not side track her career, and that her children became her biggest support system.

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My family project was one that was a bit more adjusted to my current living situation and documents both mine and my families life as we quarantined ourselves in the mountains. A big cabin in the woods, with lots of trees and snow, cold cold winter nights and beautiful and serene sunrises. Not to mention tons of little boys running around, all ranging from the ages of 13-5 years old. Being quarantined with my immediate family was both a blessing and a curse. Having siblings of my own, both of which are boys, I felt as though I was the outsider to their crazy and fun filled cousin paradise. Myself being the only female cousin/adult, I mostly enjoyed their excitement and fun. Documenting a full day of the snowball fights and movie nights and  all the little things we did. The people who have the most significance in my life are these people. My photographs are categorized by time of day and actions, (ie. Breakfast, noon, evening). Each image was taken without any thought, it was more of a natural moment that I captured, from everyone gathering around for breakfast or the kids getting ready to play outside, each moment was candid and real. I wanted to stick to a more G-rated version of Sally Man’s work. I took lots of inspiration from her Immediate Family book. I didn’t want to use images of the past because I felt that they wouldn’t connect to these new family photos. For my technique, I tried to frame my subjects and keep them centered, out in the mountains the natural lighting was absolutely fantastic and if anything I needed to lessen my exposure in lightroom. In addition, I used an alternate light source to enhance my indoor photos but most of my images had a bit of help in light room to create a more appealing image.

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Double Exposure

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PASTA

BANNANAS

ROSEMARY

SAFFRON

COFFEE BEANS

SPICES