Tag: Photography

Final Major Project – Project Development Research – 5th February 2019

Hiroshi Sugimoro – Seascape series 1980 – 2002

To give the bigger picture of the enormity of mental health, showing large expanses of water was always going to be an important step to take.

It was at this point that Hiroshi Sugimoto was suggested to me, particularly his seascape series.

Sugimoto’s work reminds me in some ways of the artist Mark Rothko. Which I also fin interesting to me as Rothko was also an individual who is said to have suffered with mental health issues, and in 1970 he was found dead in his studio having committed suicide.

Mark Rothko Untitled 1969
Mark Rothko – Untitled – 1969 – Tate
Hiroshi Sugimoto –
Baltic Sea, Rügen, 1996
Kirsty Logan, 2019

Many of Sugimoto’s images seem to have a cloudless sky, and this was one of the elements that I knew was not going to work for my project. the clouds are important to my images as to me they express the feelings, stormy skies and water express the struggles an individual can feel when struggling with depression and other mental health illnesses, so this is a point where my work differs greatly from Sugimoto’s

One thing that I do take from Sugimoto’s work is a sense of calm.I’, not sure if this is due to all of the images being black and white. Through my studies it has become well known the impact that colour can have on mental health, which leaves me with the decision of whether I should keep my images with colour or convert to black and white for more impact.

Another are that really interested me was his use of the fog in his images, many people that I have spoken to describe depression as a fog that descends upon you, and is perhaps one of the images that I should consider trying to capture because of this metaphor.

Sugimoto travelled the world to capture the images of ancient seas. This is not something that I would look to replicate, I will be remaining on the North East Coast. I find that when depression and anxiety set in there is an urge to stay within the confines of the familiar, where there is a clear route back home to safety – or possibly the prison of a person’s emotions, it will not be a worldly view like Sugimoto’s but it will be an almost tunnelled approach aiming to survive and sometimes struggling to exist!

References:

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2008/sep/14/art1

https://i-d.vice.com/en_uk/article/ywdjkk/the-fraught-relationship-between-creativity-and-mental-health

https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/exhibition/rothko/rothko-room-guide/room-9-black-on-gray

https://www.sugimotohiroshi.com/seascapes-1

Final Major Project: Development Photo shoot, 3rd February 2019

Location: Blyth Beach

Intent: I wanted to achieve some better quality seascape images. I had tried out some better vantage points and hoped this would give me a more solid grounding for this part of the project.

Equipment: Nikon D3300, Tamron 70-300mm with Macro, Tripod and Gobe ND Filters.

Methodology: I set up my equipment on top of the Blyth Battery, built in 1916 which is a visitor attraction from World War I. The Battery has an artillery house, and this was the perfect place to provide shelter from the snowy conditions and give the perfect vantage point. I wanted to use some long exposure techniques for some of the calmer images of the project, as this was my first time using ND filters I wasn’t sure how it was going to go.

I used the same mindful techniques – on this occasion because I was introducing the filters I did check some of the images to make sure I managed to capture something.

Images:

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

Research: I researched Paul Sanders this week as his history is really quite interesting but can easily be linked to my own on an mental health basis.

Reflection on the Shoot: This was very much an exploration that in a lot of ways cannot be deemed that much of a success and I should have done more research into the technique of long exposure and how to make it a success.

References:

Paul Sanders on mindful photography https://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk/technique/interviews/photography-saved-my-life-photography-as-therapy-117567

Final Major Project – Project Development Research – 30th January 2019

Roni Horn – Another Water

This project was a very good insight into how art can represent troubles of the human existence. It raised thoughts that I hadn’t considered about water before but it also confirmed some of the thoughts that I had considered when working on my own work.

When using water in my own work, I think of the depth of water and how this can refer to the depth of emotion or the depth of my own anxieties and depression. When you look out to sea right out to the horizon, it seems never-ending, just like the feelings that come with low mood, it can also feel it is never going to end. The crashing of the waves or the bubbling of the tide coming in is how an anxiety attack can hit you and how it can bubble in your throat, with the feeling of suffocation or drowning.

As a person with mental health issues there are occasions where I have experience of this feeling of drowning. it feels like you aren’t going to make it back to the surface and be able to breathe again – but with the techniques that I have learnt, I now know that the water can help to get these feelings to go away, listening to the rhythm of the water actually assists me to breathe again.

However it is this feeling of drowning that is the link between my work and Horn’s

Horn focuses on the darkness of the water and the actions of dark forces that allow suicide to happen.

Horn’s images remain very dark and whilst this is the nature of many mental health issues and of course it is the dark thoughts that can lead an individual to suicide. I don’t want my work to go down this particular route, so whilst there are some dark images in my project, I want to also include the light as I want to ensure that there is a visible route to recovery and I want others to feel that there is hope.

An element that I did find very emotional with Horn’s work was each report of an individuals suicide, this put the images into context. Some individuals don’t find the light, some do succumb to the depths, to the darkness. Whilst not by drowning I personally have experience of losing people who have been taken into the darkness, also linked to struggling with their mental health, and perhaps this is also why this project is so important to me.

All of Horn’s imagery focused on the surface of the River Thames, however I am very keen to bring some seascapes to show scale, whilst I understand that Horn probable did this as it was this body of water that was her specific interest – with my work I felt it important to show the large scale of how big the problem is but also the more focused images to show how it feels for me.

Horn’s work has assisted me to see how I can use text alongside my imagery to achieve a successful outcome for my project.

References:

Horn, R. (2011). Another water. Göttingen: Steidl

Final Major Project: Development Photo shoot, 26th January 2019

Location: Blyth Beach

Intent: After yesterday’s disappointing shoot, I was just looking on this shoot to obtain more imagery and this could be a combination of the macro pattern shots or a seascape. I also wanted to restore more confidence in the techniques that I was intending to use throughout my project.

Equipment: Nikon D3300, Tamron 70-300mm with Macro, Tripod

Methodology: I wanted to get a good mixture of images. Luckily it was a lovely weather day on the North East coast, which made the process very enjoyable. Again I used the steps of stop, look, use the breathing techniques and capture the image.

Mainly on shoots I don’t use tripods, but due to my arthritis this was not possible today. However it did mean that I could get the horizon perfectly straight today, which is something that I hadn’t achieved without editing prior to this.

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

Research: My main focus is still on Hiroshi Sugimoto and Roni Horn.

Reflection on the shoot: This was much improved on yesterdays efforts and I got some images that I am really happy with, it restored my faith in the process a little. Although I do tend to get a little sidetracked. I have started thinking about the emotions when I shoot, as today I was somewhat limited at what I could achieve due to the difficulty in movement.

Reviewing the images: I am beginning to consider the final appearance – as I feel the subject of my work is quite dark and I have been very lucky on most of the days I have chosen to shoot on, they are really quite bright which I don’t think is a true feel of the project I have chosen to consider. I think I need to think about this carefully.

Final Major Project: Development Photo shoot, 25th January 2019

Location: Seaton Sluice Beach.

Intent: Further to discussions with tutors and my research, I want to try some seascapes to assist the viewer see the scale of my project.

Equipment: Nikon D3300, Tamron 70-300mm with Macro

Methodology: I wanted to ensure that the water was represented in more than just detailed shots, I had to carefully pick the point I stood carefully as the North East Coast is a hub for wind turbines! I continued to use the mindful techniques that I had learnt and this is becoming pivotal to my work.


  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

Research: Hiroshi Sugimoto was recommended to me by Wendy. My first thoughts of the initial images I have seen is that the are too perfect for what I am looking for. As I delve deeper into exploring mental illness from my own perspective, I feel the clouds are essential as they feel like the thoughts good or bad that go in and out of a persons mind

” Every time I view the sea, I feel a calming sense of security “


Hiroshi Sugimoto

Reflection on the Shoot: I think this was a good introduction to seascapes – However due to the time of year I lost light really quickly and this was a good reminder that I really need to think about how I want my images to look and consider when I plan my shoots to think about the time of day and the light at that time of day, along with checking the weather forecast.

References:

Hiroshi Sugimoto –
https://www.sugimotohiroshi.com/seascapes-1

Final Major Project: Development Photo shoot, 12th January 2019

Location: Plessey Woods Country Park

Intent: I wanted to try out the techniques that I had been learning reading around the subject of mindful and contemplative photography.

I was not to look at the images until I had returned home from the shoot and had a break.

I also wanted to practice some of the breathing techniques that I had learnt as I was struggling with quite a high degree of anxiety. Which was another reason that I wanted to see if photography really could be a therapy like it had been explained in the books that I was reading.

Equipment: Nikon D3300, Tamron 70-300mm with Macro

Methodology: I wanted to focus on water primarily but if other subjects caught my eye I didn’t want to rule them out. At first I thought I would simply be looking for water reflections. However once I started shooting I had the feeling that the reflections was not what I was drawn to and in fact it was the water patterns that I was finding intriguing.

I did not look at the images in camera as per the lessons that I had learnt. I also worked with the concept that I should stop, look at what I was taking an image of, take a moment to use the breathing techniques and then take the image, and then move along on my journey, my meanderings through the forest and take the time to enjoy my surroundings.


  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

Whilst these are unedited, I’m not sure that this is how I want to present them and I edited some of them.


  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

  • Kirsty Logan, 2019

Research: I started to research some photographers and came across Fleeting Reflections by Mike Curry. He also included some water pattern images but his was quite focused on the reflections that the world had as a whole on the water and I think it really was just the water itself that I was interested in.

Reflection on the shoot: I felt that this shoot not only held the therapeutic benefits that I was searching for but also the process was very enjoyable and I think the images that I achieved really speak to me. This is very much something that I want to take forward with me.

References:

Final Major Project: Project Development, Practice Shoot, 28th December 2018

After reading and researching Mindful photography I decided to give it a go. I took my partner to a local country park and we just went for a walk, I took a small bridge camera to just see what happened.

It took me back to last year, and I had gotten injured training for the London Marathon, what was expected to be a small easily fixed injury, was really quite major, but part of my physiotherapy was to go for walks in an attempt to remobilise my joint after being in a moon boot. It helped so I feel it should help again.

We came to a lake and just watched the swans and ducks and I decided to take a photo, I didn’t look at what I had taken (I guess this is what it would feel like when shooting on film!), we just continued on our walk stopping every now and then taking in our surroundings. When we finished the route we went home and then I decided to have a look and see what I had taken.

I felt relaxed and happy, and this was made even happier by my favourite image of the day.

Kirsty Logan, 2018

I have decided to keep trying this technique, as there may not only be some value to it for my FMP but I feel this will also be good for me personally. Combined with the walking it can only do me good.

Final Major Project: Project Development, 21st December 2018

Mindfulness and Photography

Recently photography has been tough because I am struggling with mental and physical issues. Whilst doing some research I came across the terms contemplative photography and mindful photography and it made me want to know more about it.

As I feel like I am in a creative fog and haven’t really found what it is I want to do for my FMP that really excites me, I felt there was no harm in having a look at some different subjects. I felt I needed to kick-start my creativity, as I had so much self doubt due to my low mood. I found lots of articles and books but I think what I take from it is as follows.

An individual needs to stop putting pressure on themselves to get a certain picture at a certain place at a certain time, and it is more about stopping for a moment to actually see what is going on around you, and not just looking but seeing, to allow yourself to breathe and not feel pressured, and once you have taken everything in then start taking some images.

Perhaps in a loose way it can be linked to Cartier-Bresson’s Decisive Moment. You have to be able to properly see what it is you are focusing on to really make the connection and decided to commit that moment for eternity in an image.

I had been putting so much pressure on myself to find my subject, to make images of what I thought I should be doing I wasn’t even enjoying any of it. I was just trying to achieve a goal and not doing it successfully because it wasn’t about anything it was of something!!

I read an article with a viewpoint from a counsellor who advised that sometimes it isn’t so much about the photography which is beneficial but also the walk to get to it, the journey to get to the place to get the image is also part of the therapeutic benefits.

So over the next couple of weeks I have decided to try these techniques, and the activities in Zen Camera and the Practice of Contemporary Photography and see where it takes me, and also to read a bit more about the subject as a whole.

References

Karr, A. and Wood, M. (2011). The practice of contemplative photography. Boston, Mass: Shambhala.

Ulrich, D. (2018). Zen Camera. New York. Watson-Guptill

https://ayearwithmycamera.com/blog/mindful-photography-what-is-it-and-how-do-you-do-it

https://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk/technique/interviews/photography-saved-my-life-photography-as-therapy-117567

Final Major Project – Project Development Research– 14th November 2018

After yesterdays tutorial I have had time to think about what we discussed. In truth I am not sure that the Rephotography in the way that we discussed is the way that I want to go with my work.

I have been reading deeper in to the photography of dementia and the links that can be made ice as one example.

A person is frozen in time with the memories melting away.

Nicola Onions Photographed flowers in ice, in her Memoriam collection. As the type of links to the disease is so fitting I wondered about also using the ice but in a different way. Having an image in ice and watching it melt away hopefully taking with it some of the ink until there is no more and the memory has gone. The bubbles in the ice would also represent moments of lucidity. I have got the sense that this could turn into something really special if explored further and I have to say has peaked me interest.

I also thought if not using an image then it would be something that reminded me of the person that I have lost.

  • Grandma – Love/Glasses/Brooches
  • Auntie Joyce – Dogs/Birds
  • Uncle Raymond – Three Lions Emblem

References:

https://cargocollective.com/nicolaonions/Memoriam

Final Major Project – Photo North Festival – 10th November 2018

This weekend I went to the Photo North Festival at the Harrogate Convention Centre.

There was several really great exhibitions looking at the social issues of our society. What was really interesting was the Kenny Brown section and the images in the project Cranhill: Images of Place and Memory. Having a similar topic to what I have been considering made it clear what I need to start considering for my own work.

I also had the opportunity to see part of the Invisible Britain Exhibition – it was a buzz seeing the Jenny Lewis image after seeing her at the Falmouth Symposium earlier in the year.

In earlier modules of the MA we covered Jane Hilton and seeing her work All Lit Up in reality it is possible to get up close and see the colours that you cant get full appreciation of from a computer screen.

Well Known Getty Photographer Tom Stoddart had some images on show as part of the Remembrance weekend. It was truly wonderful to get up close to these images and see the beauty of the light. I was also lucky enough to be able to speak to him and discuss his work. I was thrilling to find out he is from my local area and still lives there and he offered me help if I ever needed it with my studies and gave me his contact details. This was truly the highlight of my experience and made it a very worthwhile visit.

This is also an opportunity I intend to follow up.