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condemnation

Time for a new picture! Like the previous one, this is part of my series about how we relate to ourselves, which I have decided to name “foundation”. Soon I will make a new post telling you all about it!

I think the theme is quite obvious here and the title is also very descriptive. I believe we all tend to blame ourselves a little too much sometimes. It is an awful feeling that often leads to depression. I have seen many people around me blaming themselves for everything constantly and I have also felt it myself sometimes. Of course we should accept our responsibilies, but consuming ourselves with guilt is something completely different. The sooner we realize we are not perfect, the better.

condemnation

condemnation

 

I shot this at a historical monument that is very close to my house. It is a byzantine castle that also served as a prison until the early nineties. I have wanted to go there and shoot for quite some time. I tried another spot first but it wasn’t working. Then I went into one of its towers which is easily accessible. It was a rather small space and the ground was uneven, but I had to make do. People were passing by all the time, which made me feel rather uncomfortable but I kept at it. At first I was not very happy with my shots, but when I started piecing them together I started to change my mind. I had to change the color of my dress, because it is originally purple and it was not looking good. I also expanded the frame a bit.

The final image came out moody and maybe dull, but I suppose it suits the concept. I am not 100% happy about it, but I am not sure what more I could change. So I decided to share it and move on. I hope I will have another image ready soon this time!

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in between

This is a concept I thought of a while ago and although it is rather simple, I hadn’t managed to shoot it until now. I wasn’t sure at first about the location I wanted to use, so I kept my eyes open for something that would fit. Last week when I was visiting my family back in my hometown, I was determined to find time for shooting and so I did. My first attempt was unsuccessful for various reasons, but I got luckier the second time around. I found this stone wall outside a little church very close to my house and I thought it suited my purpose. So I took the shots I needed and even had time to shoot for a couple more pictures in the same area. I can say that I was quite satisfied with myself that day.

in between

in between

 

The dress I am wearing belongs to my mother, she used to wear it when she was about my age and I have always loved it, especially the color. Ever since I started in conceptual photography I had this dress in mind but I couldn’t find anywhere, so it made me really happy to finally find it and wear it in one of my pictures. I actually altered it a little in photoshop, making it longer than it really is. I hope I get to use it again in some other photoshoot, although its design could be somewaht restricting.

I also had to extend the stone wall too, because its original height seemed too short. It makes me feel really good that I get to learn something new with each picture, after all that is the whole point of experimenting.

With all these alterations that I had to make, I ended up expanding the frame so much that the final image is about 7000pixels wide. The original file got so big that at some point Photoshop was not able to save it and I had to split it into two different files. That was new as well!

All in all, I am quite satisfied with the end result and it is very near to how I had first pictured it. The only thing I am still uncertain of, are the colors. I have this feeling that maybe something is not quite right there, but I decided to publish it as it is. I’d love to hear your opinions about it!

Oh and I should also mention that this is the second image in the series that I decided to make, revolving around how we perceive ourselves. I still haven’t found a title that I like though. I am thinking about “reflections”, but I am afraid it might be too cliché … Let’s make that a working title then! Any suggestions for a title are welcome!

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misidentified

It has been so long since my last post. This past month has been very busy for me. After the Christmas holidays, I had to go back to work as usual and also resume my academic obligations. I had to complete two projects for the university, one after the other. And of course as soon as the new year came we started our plays at the theatre, too. I don’t remember if I have mentioned this before, but I play in a local theater. This year I take part in two different plays, both based on Agatha Christie’s novels. Luckily we only play on Fridays, so it doesn’t take up too much of my time. So in between all these activities, I had little time for photography, which saddens me very much. I ‘d like to at least go out shooting on the weekends, but sometimes even they are filled with other things. I hope that as the days start getting warmer and longer, I will find more shooting opportunities.

Although I didn’t have time to actually shoot, I did a lot of productive thinking on future projects. I already have some ideas that I have been working on and last Saturday I set out along with my boyfriend to shoot one of them. I had hoped that I would have time for two shoots, but in the end I only had time for this one. I had even made a scetch for the image I wanted to make and it was very clear to me what I needed to do to make it work. So, we headed to a place I had visited before on my own, a small forest near the city. It’s a very beautiful place and it was so calm and quiet when we got there. As soon as we arrived I started looking for the right spot, quite in a hurry, because the sun was already slowly starting to set. I found a spot I liked and I started posing. I had not rehearsed the pose, so it took a while to get it right. Having a second opinion from my boyfriend was indeed very helpful. All the time I was shooting I could hear some mountain bikers in the near distance. I guess they must be very fond of this place, because I had also heard them the first time I was there. Luckily, they didn’t come our way, so I wasn’t disturbed. After a few shots I was happy with what I had and we headed back home.

I have been editing this picture on and off, throughout this last week. I really like the way it turned out. I even compared it to my initial schetch and they were very similar! I am really happy that I was able to create the image almost exactly as I had it in my head. I hesitated about the fog a bit, since it’s the first time I have created fog in a picture, but in the end I think it suits the mood very much and it completes what I am trying to portray. I have used two texture layers in this image, both offered by Brooke Shaden on her blog a little while ago. She uses textures a lot herself and from time to time  she offers these free texture packs for anyone to use. I have started making my own texture collections too, but nothing of mine seemed to suit this particular image, so I thought why not trust Brooke, she is a huge inspiration for me anyway.

misidentified

misidentified

I don’t want to explain the image this time. I’d like each viewer to make their own meaning out of it. The only thing I will tell you is that this is the first image of a series that I have decided to make. I have not yet decided on a name for the series, but it’s main theme is going to be the relation we have with ourselves. I decided to make the series after realising that a couple of ideas that I have been working on, are linked together around this theme. After thinking more about it, I came up with even more ideas around this theme which I  have started working on. The idea of making a series excites me beyond words. I feel that I know have a purpose, a direction that I am eager to follow and I can’t wait to shoot more and show you what I come up with.

Next Monday is a public holiday, so no work for three days! Yay! I have already started planning all the things I am going to shoot during those three days… So, hopefully you will hear from me again soon this time!