Music Videos Over The Last 3 Decades - Part 2

Adele - Send My Love (To Your New Lover)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk4BbF7B29w

1) In this music video, I really enjoyed the simplicity of it. The lighting was very dim and relaxing. It puts you in a calm mood. I liked how Adele was put behind a black background, right in the center, that also contributed to how simple the video was. Since the song doesn't have that party beat that makes you want to dance, the dimness and black background made the song feel and sound better. I liked how she was dressed in different colours and she didn't change her clothes in any of the scenes. It made it seem as if their was barely any editing in the video and made it look more natural and it also looked like it was all one scene. In the video, throughout it, Adele had floating lights of her reflection around her. The colour choice of the lights were good because they used very relaxing shades every colour. Overall, I enjoyed the music video and the song. It was simple but very creative.

2) The music video's lighting, placement, editing of the music video all contributed to the final product and how Adele's song was portrayed. I think that the simplicity of the song really delivered her emotional message to the audience watching. The floating lights of her reflection symbolize her love floating to her ex-man's new lover, but she stays in the same place throughout the whole video. It is very creative because their could have been many other ways in showing that specific part of the video, but she chose a simple but creative and meaningful idea that really symbolizes and definitely sends the message she wants to convey. 

Music Videos Over The Last 3 Decades - Part 1

1) I watched 9 different music videos from different decades to inspire the one I am going to make. What I learned from watching them is that all music videos are different and have their own unique style to them. Some of the older videos that I watched have very different technology offered to them compared to the newer ones. For example, in older music videos, the quality of the filmed video wasn't as clean as newer videos because of the difference in technology. Another thing I noticed was in the older videos, their were a lot less lights, props etc. to add more decoration into the music video, it was a lot simpler than newer ones today. Although each music video from any generation has a different style to it, something that inspired me actually ties all the music videos from any generation to one place, they all share a story. That's what I want in my music video.

2) I considered the music video, Runaway by Kanye West as a work of art. I consider this a work of art because the video was 35 minutes of absolute talent. Kanye West directed and starred in the work of art. He sang, dance and played different roles in different situations through out the video. Kanye's music emphasizes and makes the scenes in the video more powerful because of how strong his lyrics are. He sings from the heart and displays how he feels in the 35 minutes of pure talent. For example, closer to the end at about 20 minutes into the video, he sings and has ballet dancers display his feelings. The ballet dancers are soft and emotional as they dance and this emphasizes and really makes you understand how Kanye feels and the message he conveys in his work of art and his music video.

3) There are lots of changes between older videos and newer ones in terms of lighting, editing and sophistication. For example, in older videos, the lighting is a lot more dim and calm so you can focus on the music in the video rather than the distracting lights (colour, flashes). In older videos and newer videos, editing changes a lot. In older ones, the editing is a lot less. You feel as if nothing is edited because the editors want you to feel like the video is real and less edits. In terms of sophistication, the difference between older and newer videos is huge. In older videos, people are a lot more sophisticated. They are respectful towards how they dress (covering clothing) and how they speak (less swearing). In newer videos, you would see less sophisticated people. More intimate scenes with lots of explicit language.

4) The Arcade Fire video compares to the older decades because its similar to the older ones. It has audience interaction and is filmed in populated areas, like a neighbourhood filled with people living there. The lighting is very dim and creates are simple tone.

5) In my opinion, I think music videos will eventually go back to the more sophisticated tone. I think there will be an artist that eventually decides that having more intimate music videos, or videos with people doing drugs will think that it isn't right to expose these things to viewers. That artist will not fully go back to the original music video from older decades, but maybe will combine both new and old with an appropriate taste.

Final Themed Portrait Photographs

Disgust

Anger

Joy

Fear

Sadness

 
     For my final themed photographs that I took, my theme was the 5 emotions from the Disney movie, "Inside Out". The 5 emotions that I used in my photos were: Disgust, Fear, Sadness, Joy and Anger. I chose this theme because in the movie, it shows how these 5 emotions build character in a person. In these photographs, the different expressions on the model's face show how character and personality in humans are shown.  To take these photos, I had my model sit in front of a light coloured chair that contrasted with the black background so the photo didn't look too dark. The chair the model is sitting on is arms length away from the background. I did this so there was a depth in the background. For lighting, I used the big light and placed it in the safe zone so I had some shadows on her face. I did not use a reflector for lighting of the photo. In photoshop, I edited some features in her face. I increased the brightness, contrast and vibrance. I increased those things to make her look more full of life. I used the same settings for all 5 photos. The only difference in my photos were the models's facial expression. Overall I am very proud of everything I learned in the photography unit and I look forward to adding everything I learned in this unit to my future photos as I did to these ones.

Art History Presentation - Baroque Art

https://prezi.com/3lnrvky1aoea/baroque-art/

Photos from Lighting Workshop with Steve Carty

Open Shadow #1

This photo was taken in open shadow. I used natural light and the shade to light the photo to the way it is. The model was placed in a way that the sun doesn't face her. I used the blue background because it was simple and it makes her stand out more. She is also sitting right in front of the door rather than a space between the door and her because it looks better because she is sitting. If she was standing, it would have looked better if she had some space between the door and her, but because she is sitting, it looks better without that space. I had her face away from the camera because I wanted the photo to seem more natural than planned. I also wanted her facial reaction to more real than planned, so whenever she would laugh, I would take the photo so it was real. I did not use a reflector for the lighting in this photo, it is all natural light. In photoshop, I changed the brightness of the photo making it lower. I also took some colour out of the photo because it was really bright in colour before. I also lowered the colour to match the theme of not too much colours in the photos during the workshop. I also added more contrast to the model because before it the model look very dull compared to the background. The contrast was to emphasize her more in the photo. 

Open Shadow #2

This photo of the model is very similar to the first open shadow photo that I took, but it still has many differences.  Like the first open shadow photo, this photo uses natural light from the outdoors to light the photo. I didn't use a reflector in the photo for changing the lighting in the photo. I also kept the model facing away from the sun so the light from the sun doesn't over expose the photo. I used the blue background again because it is simple and doesn't take your attention away from the model. She is also sitting right in front of the door rather than giving that space between her and door because it just looked more realistic and natural than planned. Once again, I had the model face away from the camera because I wanted the photo to look natural. Her facial expression and the way she is sitting is different in this photo then the last. The previous photo looked more fun and free but this one looks more serious and something is on her mind. In photoshop, once again, I lowered the brightness and added more contrast to it so she didn't look dull.  I also lowered the saturation because I wanted a theme of not too much colour, but some colour in my photos. 

Studio Lighting

This photo unlike the others that I took, was taken with studio light. It is a photo of my model but with a profile angle of her. In this photo, my goal was a silhouette. Although I didn't get an actual silhouette photo of the model, it still has some good features to it and it turned out to be a really nice photo. To get the white background and have my model a little darker, I used backlights on the background. There were no other lights. The backlights were 4 feet from the background of the photo. The model was in front of the backlights and far from the background. I did not use a reflector to change up the lighting in this photo. I put her in the profile angle because you can see some features of her face but not all of them and it looks purposeful. If she was facing directly at the camera it wouldn't look good because you would see some facial features and it wouldn't look as purposeful but it would like a mistake. After I took the photo, I took it to photoshop and I brightened her face just a little so you could see some features but not lose the silhouette feel of the photo. I added some contrast to her so she could stand out the background and once again not look dull.

Diagram of the Studio Lighting I Used For Photo #3

Overall, I am very happy with the photos that I took in the Lighting Workshop with Steve Carty and  I'm also very proud of the new skills I learned to add more to my photos and make them better. 

Thanks for reading :)

3 Best Portrait Photographs

Direct Sunlight

This photo was taken in direct sunlight. It is direct sunlight because it uses natural sunlight to light up the photo. I chose this photo to represent the use of direct sunlight because it is a happy, natural photo of the model. In this photo, her laugh/smile is real and you can easily tell that it isn't fake or planned. It is right in the moment. The flare from the sunlight looks really nice with the background of the photo and it makes her stand out more. You can also tell that it is direct sunlight because of the shine on the right side of her hair. My goal for my photos was to take a nice photo in each lighting situation that has a story or meaning behind and makes you want to know more about the photo. I think I achieved this goal because she has a natural smile and laugh in this photo and it makes you want to think about why she's laughing, therefore, making you want to know the story behind the photo.

Open Shadow

The photo above was taken in Open Shadow. I chose this photo to represent open shadow because I liked the way the model is placed in this photo, her facial expression and the sun flares in the corners. This photo is an open shadow because the photo is dark, but it is natural darkness which is the shade. I liked how the sun flares showed up in the photo because yes the photo is dark, but it adds the colour that photo needs. The model is positioned in a good angle because she is looking away from the camera and because she is looking away from the camera, it makes you want to know what she is looking at or is there something she's looking for. Her facial expression is also very hard to read because you are not sure if she is smiling or not. This is good because the fact that she has unreadable face expression and she is looking away makes you think and want to know whats behind the photo. 

Window Light

This photo was taken in Window Light. It was taken in window light because the light from the window lights up the photo. You can see the window reflection on the models face and you can tell that the photo uses light from the window. I chose this photo to represent window light because I liked the reflection on the models face. I liked how serious it looked and how that facial expression matches with the mood of the photo. The facial expression she makes along with window light adds once again that mysterious effect that makes you think there is a story behind the photo. I also think in terms of placement, she is placed in a very nice angle so that the light on the window gives her face some light but not too much.

Overall, I am very proud of the photos I took because they all achieved the goal I had in the beginning, which was to have a story or meaning behind each of my photos and to make someone want to know what the subject in the photo is thinking or feeling as well as also capturing a good photo of them. 

Thanks for reading :)

What to do About Online Art Theft & Plagiarism - Response

   We all have been on social media and seen something we really like. When we see something on social media that we like, we typically save it or repost it. Some people like to copy and paste that something that they like on a different website, but have you ever thought "Hey, Shouldn't I be giving the artist some credit for this?"

   Art theft and plagiarism is a huge problem in society in the world we live in today. The internet is it's benefits and it's flaws, some being different to others. For artists, some benefits of the internet are that it's a fast way to research to get new ideas, it's an excellent place to post your works so others can see it and it's very easy to look at other works for inspiration. The benefits for the internet are amazing but the benefits can also lead to flaws. Since the internet is so easily accessible in todays world, it's very easy to open up a web page and look at art works for inspiration or ideas. As easy as that sounds, It's is just as easy to copy and paste that same work and say that you did it. There are handfuls of people who have been caught for this but there are many still out there continuously doing this and it isn't right.

   Now, this issue of art theft and plagiarism isn't just happening between artists,  it is also happening in big name brands such as ZARA and Urban Outfitters. They were caught stealing designs from artists and not giving credits for it. The artists did find out and tried to do something about it but because of the popularity and amount of money the store has, the artists were left with nothing and no credit for there designs. So if a big name steals art and doesn't get any consequences, who says a smaller artist can't get any too? This also happens on social media websites like snapchat. On snapchat, the company stole a design from an artist to use a filter and did not get any consent to use it.  The artist also couldn't do anything because she didn't have the money to do anything about it.

  Artists who get there art stolen are obviously all very upset. Now some can handle the issue up front and some can't because of various reasons such as money, the companies being too big to sue, and many others. This shouldn't mean they can't do anything about the issue. The artists that had there art stolen by ZARA and Urban Outfitters created a website to compare there original designs and the recreations from the stores to shame the store in hopes the website will go viral to uncover what the businesses really do. The same thing happen with the snapchat filter and the artist it was stolen from.

  Art theft and plagiarism are both unacceptable and just plain rude. It isn't right to steal a persons' original idea and make it your own without there consent or giving them credit. There are ways to stop this such as finding out your country's copyright laws so you know what to do if your art ever gets stolen without hesitation, you can also gather evidence to prove that your art was stolen if your questioned about what happened and many more. Some people may be okay with doing it because they know they most likely will never get caught, but the next time you think about doing this, think to yourself, "Would I want my art stolen too?'

Thanks for reading! :)