Assignment 1 – Layout
I have decided to produce my prints using 35mm film instead of medium format as the prints tend to be more grainy with 35mm which I think will work well for my theme and will give them a more rough feel. I also won’t be giving the images a clean cut border, instead I will leave the borders as the enlarger projects them. Again, this makes them rougher and adds to the theme of abandonment as they haven’t been given much care.
When presenting the final images of my work, there are various different presentation methods I could use, as listed below:
Framed (On a Wall)
- I could print my images as they are and frame them on a wall. This would give me more freedom over their size and would allow for larger images, however I don’t think I really need to make them large. I could say that the size of the image represents the scale of the problem however, I think better results may be achieved through different presentation methods. The borders I chose to use within my work may also not be seen, or noticed as much. I would need to leave a lot of white space in the background. If I did choose to frame my work, I would use a black frame and a white background, the same colours as the print.
Within a book
- Presenting my images in a book gives a more personal experience as the viewer has to get more up close and personal with the book and hold it up to them to see the details more. This may make them focus on the content more and make them search for clues about what these places once were or make them search for all the signs of decay. A book is also more disposable than frames and is prone to more wear and tear which may compliment the message I am trying to send out. It will probably be cheaper than framing all my prints too which ties in with the theme of the economy having less money. It may contradict my project if I were to use expensive presentation methods. Text could be added within a book to explain the image or give it a title and could be handwritten to make it slightly more rough.
Within a box
- Putting my photos in a box could be the cheapest presentation method and is also the most disposable method. Boxes are probably the easiest thing to destroy out of all these methods and are seen as something we throw away and forget about as they are usually used to package more important items. This relates to my theme as the places are in a sense, being thrown away and forgotten about and left to rot. They are also usually the containers for more important things, such as family photo albums, the food people need to survive as well as many other things. I think putting my images within a photo box would probably work best and would best represent the message I am trying to getting across. I could even destroy the box slightly, maybe burn a couple of the edges, add fake leaves to it, make it look like an abandon house or have some of the characteristics of one.
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