This post is a cross post from another blog I am writing. I will explain why at the end...
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In the past couple days, I was looking into how one presents their photographs.
It is followed by a discussion on the OCA blog about assessment. I have very strong opinion about it, but then I step back and wonder how this is done in the real world. After all, I can rant all day, but ranting alone does not solve my problem.
Why presentation? When you go to job interview, you won't wear pyjamas, right? Even if you are smartest, most hard-working, most beautiful and friendliest person in the world, you still have to dress for the occasion to get the job. If you wear pyjamas, people won't take you seriously in the first place, regardless on how good you are. I guess, good presentation open the doors for future opportunities. Bad presentation just shuts it right down.
Of course, this is not new to me. The re-work for assignment 3 (The churches in the city) was done in inDesign (https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B9vxityaDZ2WVmpIbm1ibjhieFE)
. I felt that I need to put my work together to strengthen the message. I used open office word and power point in the first version of assignment 3 (Urban Landscape), but the presentation is not clean enough.
Now I have to think one step further. How about if I have to create a portfolio of my work? I think, the assessment has a similar accent to this. I was looking around online and try to find what other people have done, and what the rules are. The most relevant I find seems to be commercial photographers or fashion photographers putting together a portfolio of their work to present to client. There are a lot of details on how to pick the images, even on which box you should use. One example is Martin Bailey's portfolio:
http://blog.martinbaileyphotography.com/2012/04/11/podcast-330-creating-a-photography-portfolio/
In general, I notice there is a big emphasis on consistency. It seems to me that there is an effort to present your work as one piece. For example, it is bad to use different colour of frames, or frames of different sizes. However, it will be a tough call in TAoP because we have five assignments, and each assignment is about something different. Not to mention that, assignment 1 is likely to be my weakest shots (assuming that I am improving). Why do I want to put it in front? Should I put the best shot at the beginning and at the end?
I think everything I have seen in an art gallery is mounted. So let's look at mounting image. The tutorial is here:
http://www.reframingphotography.com/content/mounting-matting-and-framing
So far so good. But think about this: each assignments requires roughly 16 images in this course. Forget about the re-work for a moment, so we are talking about dry mounting 80 images, and sending out a box of 80 images to the assessment. How much weight are we talking about here? Forget about cost at the moment, is this the best way to present my work? The images in assignment 1 is not so good anyway, does it look a little bit moronic to dry mount them. Wait, but those in assignment 3 probably worth dry mounting. Ok, then where is the consistency?
I need to think a little bit about what message I am trying to send and how to present it. I will definitely go for dry mounting if I am submitting my portfolio of a set of coherent work. For assessment on five separate topics for 80 images, I am not sure the traditional way of presenting photography portfolio works.
I seems to sign myself up for putting them in a book format, so I should investigate on how to layout a book. I only layout a 8 double spreads in the last assignment. This time I will have chapters and what not. Hmm...
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I got a comment from Catherine about the visibility of putting white letter on black background. To be honest, I have not thought about it. It is probably I see black letter on white paper all the time at work, so I wanted to pick something different when I pick the layout of this blog.
Well, the question is: does it make it difficult for people to read my blog? Should black letter on white background better? What is the general atmosphere I am creating?
I am not sure, but I think the best is to try it another layout and compare them side by side. Therefore, this post is cross-posted with the DFP blog, which I have not started the course yet :P
It just recently occurs to me that I have a lot of difficulties in learning under this program. I am not sure if it is just because this is a distance learning program. To be honest, I prefer working independently, so less interaction with people actually works better for me. However, when I have question, where should I turn to.
The first day when I sign up for this course, I got warned (by OCA staff) on the forum that we cannot bother our tutor on every tiny question. The interesting part is then somebody put up a post saying that his wife quitted her degree in anger, because her tutor told her that he only get paid for grading the assignment, not the exercises. I don't know if I am "lucky" to run into all those posts just at the beginning of the course, but I always feel that I should not ask too much question but think more myself.
I don't have a problem with that, but what if I do need some moral guidance? It is sort of silly to ask, but is this blog setup ok? Can anyone navigate around here? By the way, is there anyone reading my post? To be honest, no one ever commented on my exercise, so I assume they are fine. Sometime (I think) I get what the exercise for, sometime I don't, but I just let it be. No one ever said I did something wrong, so it is a "good assumption" that it all goes perfectly. I have a feeling, that I won't hear anything about this until the assessment day, when somebody has to (hopefully) look at everything I do and comment on it.
By then it is too late to do anything to improve.
It is the reason why I set up Spiral Labyrinth, the blog of my side project and my main blog, that I can mess around without any of the OCA stuff on it.
Anyway, why I am writing about this? I have officially passed midway of the course. As a reflection, I have to face all the short comings in studying in OCA, and find a way to work around it. The OCA course note on Colour (previous section) and Light (current section) are too limited. It is not possible to get even the basic understanding just by reading and doing the exercise there. There is a reading list. However, at this stage, they are not just recommended reading materials, but necessary reading materials.
I have some doubt if a degree in Photography is what I seek. I feel the current syllabus in this BA in Photography is not sufficient for me. I think I will have a better idea when I get closer to the end of this course on if I should consider the BA in creative art instead.
Last but not the least, I have a quick read from the degree handbook. It gives and idea on what we are aiming for at each level. In summary:
At Level 4:
1) Learn to study independently, set goals, manage your own workload effectively, and meet deadlines
2) Develop and ability to identify, present, interpret and research works of art
3) Learn to problem solve in relation to the processes and execution of your chosen disciplines and communicate creative ideas effectively
4) Experiment, explore, and take risks.
I think I have no problem in #1 and #4. Whether I know what is art and what is work of art is an issue. I am constantly presented with images, with many of them seriously shit, even if they manage to make it into a museum. #3 is more about execution, ie operating photographic equipment and doing post processing, I think I need more practice.
Interesting enough, there is something for level 5 and 6 as well:
At Level 5:
1) Develop your individual research methodologies to find the material for assignments.
2) Cultivate working routines from which an independent style will evolve
3) Develop proficiency in comprehensive range of practices and techniques
4) Show a creative, critically informed and self-reflective approach to creative art practice
At leve 6:
1) Understanding of the professional considerations ... including an understanding of the vocational context... personal intiative and responsibility and decision making in challenging contexts
2) Aware of the social, political and economic issues which affect your chosen discipline
3) Demonstrate and underpinning understanding of theory and concepts and show that you can articulate and comment upon through debate.
4) Demonstrate a breadth of inventiveness, idea generation and techniques in the creation of your work.
God, I wish that I have the time to write about the study day I have been to. This is from last week OCA study day to the Photographer Gallery. If I have time, I will write more about this exhibition some day. I am not writing it all out in one shot. However, there is one thing I want to mention: atmosphere as it presented to the audiences.
The exhibition took place in two floors.
The upper one focus on the structures that are used to drill oil , as well as the advancement (car, highway) the oil bring. The wall of this floor is painted in white and the room overall is brighter amd airy.
The lower floor focus on the aftermath: the destruction on land dur to drilling in Baku, the pile of tires, the graveyard of air planes, oil filters, helicropter. Then there is picture of oil spill and fire. The wall of this floor is painted in grey and thevmood is sufficiently darker.
Whatever the work is, the exhibitor have setup the room in a such way that the lower floor is gloomy. It might be because the aftermath of oil drilling is gloomy, but we don't exactly figure that out: the exhibitor guided us there. Although there is no personal commentary from Burtynsky, it is quite clear what he had in mind.
Most of the photographs are taken during overcast day, early morning or late at night. As a result, the colour looks slightly washed off. There are only two pictures in the whole exhibition are taken in bright daylight where the colour is most saturated. In another word, most of the shots that are tken in an overcast day or near sun rise and sunset, look quite gloomy, or banal. The only two image that is taken in bright day light is the drilling platform fire, and the oil spill. The oil spill image looks the most confusing among all the images because it looks beautiful. If not by reading the description, you won't notice this is actually an oil spill.
I have not got to the photographic content, background and history yet, but the intention is clear. You don't even need to shoot anything, the setup and presentation already set the tone.
