Evaluation

For the Advanced Photographic Practice brief we needed to create a moving image piece using video footage, stills or both, including audio but not a piece of music. It had to be 80-240 seconds long, and be edited in Premier Pro.

Initially I was worried and uncertain about this brief as it was something completely new. I knew we would have to learn new skills to edit, and shoot our footage. Skills I have never thought about using, for example, having the right settings for the lighting, how to record good audio, and how to pan and zoom effectively. I felt it was a lot to take in in such a short space of time. But the workshops with John were a great help. Learning a whole new skill set in 6 weeks was very daunting, but I felt I have done quite well with the time restrictions. Once I had grasped the basics in Premier Pro I found it easy to use, and would happily use it again in the future.

I feel with more time I could have learnt a lot more aspects of the program to create a more dynamic and interesting video. I struggled with the idea of memory, and how I would portray this in a moving image piece. I had a few ideas; each had their own problems. Firstly I think I wasn’t thinking personally enough, and tried to do something about a topic I didn’t understand fully, brain injuries.  When I moved onto the idea of working with the Prosthetics and Orthotics course, I was unable to get a response from the lecturers. There was no time for me to carry one with this idea, with no response from emails and phone calls after a week. After talking to John, choosing to do something more personal was better for me. I feel the idea I finished with was the best, and I was able to create something I was very happy with, and personal to me.

I chose to take pictures of things in my Grandad’s house that reminded me of my childhood. The images are of the things I felt reminded me of my childhood. These are objects that trigger my memory of being at my grandparent’s house as a child. I haven't edited any of the images, as I want them to be as I see them, and use natural light. The objects are not particularly special in any way, but sentimental to me. They are things that have been in the house a long time, and would always remind me of being there. Some are every day items, that where what I remember being used in the house. It was emotional to take some of these pictures, as they triggered memories of happy times with family members. I want to add these into my video, over laying the video footage of me as a child. The final video edit shows a video of me as a child of around 1, playing with my grandma in her home. I added my own images in to the video, and kept the video audio all the way through. I had all the images faded in and out over the video to keep it smooth and consistent. I am happy with the final outcome, and feel it shows my personal memories as I planned. I am happy with how it is edited together with the basic skills I have learnt. I like how it feels almost home movie style, and is very personal, but others can relate to it with their own childhood memories.

Over all I found that once I had a solid idea of what I wanted to create, I wasn’t as worried as I originally had been. The skills of creating a video was initially concerning being something so new. Taking on board all the tips from John allowed me to create a video I was happy with. With more time I feel I would have been able to create something more interesting, and had more ideas to incorporate in. But I do feel happy with the video I created, and feel it shows the idea of memory. Even though this is a personal memory for me, I feel it is relatable and shows the idea of childhood memories as a whole.

Final Video

This is my final video edit that shows a video of me as a child of around 1, playing with my grandma in her home. I added my own images in to the video, and kept the video audio all the way through. I had all the images faded in and out over the video to keep it smooth and consistent. I am happy with the final outcome, and feel it shows my personal memories as I planned. I am happy with how it is edited together with the basic skills I have learnt. I like how it feels almost home movie style, and is very personal, but others can relate to it with their own childhood memories.

Video Edit

I edited my video together using the skills I have learnt on Premier Pro. I used time frames to edit the size of my frame. I was able to film an existing video I had of myself at my grandparents house. I used this as background audio, is consist of the video and myself and my Grandad talking about what is happening in the video. I found it was easy to find and crop out which parts I wanted to use. I was able to get the audio at the right volume to suit both the video audio, and the conversation. 

I was able to fit in 5 images into the video, any more would have looked rushed and cramped. I faded each image in and out of the video, and had them on for around 3 seconds. I also dipped in and out to black of the video, making sure there were no harsh changes in the video. I feel I am a lot more confident now using the program, and would feel happy using it again for any other moving image project. Having the basic skills is vital to be able to create a good, none complicated video. I feel I created a good video with the skills I have learnt in the workshops with John. 

Images

These are the images of the things I felt reminded me of my childhood. These are objects that trigger my memory of being at my grandparents house as a child. I haven't edited any of the images as I want them to be as I see them, and use natural light. The objects are not particularly special in any way, but sentimental to me. They are things that have been in the house a long time, and would always remind me of being there. Some are every day items, that where what I remember being used in the house. It was emotional to take some of these pictures, as they triggered memories of happy times with family members. I want to add these into my video, over laying the video footage of me as a child.

Proposal

For this module of Advance Photographic Practices we were asked to create a moving image piece, that is 80-240 seconds long, and based on the theme of Stillness and Memory. We will create this using the Adobe Premiere program, editing together our footage, still images and audio. This program is something I have used before, but will need to recap my skills. I will use all three elements in my video, moving footage, still images and audio.  I want my piece to be interesting but still personal to me.

For my final idea I want to look at my own personal memories. When thinking about memories, I think about what I remember about an event and what I remember thinking about. I think that we all remember and see something different, even if it is about the same thing. I want to show a personal event in my video, and talk about what I remember.

I chose to look at my memories of being at my grandparent’s house over the summer holidays as a child. I remember a lot of these days, spent playing around the house, and I want to show this in my video. I want to add images of how my granddads house is now, and the items I remember. I was to mix them together, over lapping the images onto the video, and use the audio through out the video.

I have looked at the work of Miranda Hutton, and her The Room Project. I want to use this as my inspiration, and show the personal elements in my images. I want to concentrate on items, rather than full rooms. I will aim to take around 10 pictures, and fit in as many as I can. I want to mix these into my video in points with the video audio still playing in the background.

Even though this piece will be very personal to me, I want the viewer to think about their childhood memories. I want people to want to look back at any images/videos they may have of their past and think about what they remember. I want the video to give a happy emotion, not a feeling of sadness thinking about what we no longer have. I want to show my personal feelings and memories, and something that means something to me.

Miranda Hutton - The Room Project

“At 19, I’d never known anyone who had died, with the exception of my grandfather, who’d been old and far away. I’d never been to a funeral. I understood nothing of that kind of loss – of the crumbling of the physical texture of lives lived, the way the meaning of a place could change because those who used to be in it were no longer there. I knew nothing about the hopelessness and the necessity of trying to capture such lives – to rescue them, to keep them from vanishing altogether.” M Hutton.

This project was done by Miranda Hutton, focusing on the rooms of deceased children in their parents homes. It shows how the parents have left the rooms exactly how they were used by their children. The amount of time that the children have passed differs from each image, some are months, but some are many years. The room still holds a lot of memories for the parents, and they probably want to keep it the same to preserve their memories. 

The images are shot from a distance, and the angle is almost like someone is peering into the room. She would have had to be respectful to the family and the surroundings in their home. The rooms show they have obviously been used once, but now is more of a memorial space that the parents can come to reflect. In each image there is a bright light that streams in from the windows. It brings life into the room and illuminates the children's possessions in the room. 

I find the images very moving, and very personal to the parents. It shows how they can reflect on their children's memories, but being in their space and their surroundings.

Idea Progression

After deciding that I could no longer move forward with my idea, to work with the prosthetics and orthotics, I chose to go back to my original idea. But after speaking to John, he asked me about my personal experience with memory, and how I see memory. I talked about how I feel I have a very good memory of my childhood. With details such as what I was wearing and the weather on that day. 

I talked about my summer holidays spent at my grandparents house, and how his house hasn't changed much in 20 years. I talked about how I have a lot of video footage of me and his house, and the summers I spent there with them. 

I want to use this in my final video, it is personal to me and can show first hand the memories I have being there as a child.  I want to mix together old video footage, and images I will take of the things and items I remember as a child. I want to audio to be of old footage, and maybe myself talking about it in the background. 

Shimon Attie - The Writing on the Wall

 

The Saddest Streets In The World - Berlin.

Shimon Attie uses on-location slide projection images of Jewish past imagery, on to present-day Berlin in this body of work. Attie describes this work as 'a kind of peeling back of the wallpaper of today to reveal the histories buried underneath.' he is trying to to restore the memory of people and events forgotten by history. Most of the black and white projection images are of Jewish shops, their shopkeepers and the pedestrians in an everyday scene. He was able to find these images through archival research and community members own images they shared. The area Attie chose to take these images were in an area know as the Scheunenviertel, the residents in the area were among the first groups to be sent to Nazi concentration camps in World War Two.

The installation project in Berlin lasted a year, but Attie was able to make them permanent through a series of photographs. These both documented the projections and, through the artist’s manipulation of composition and color, added layers of meaning to them. The work has good contrast with the use of both black and white, with the old images, and the new scene in colour. The lighting gives the images an over all dramatic and emotional feeling. I find these installation images powerful, and show history in our time. I like how it connects both the past and the present of Berlin together in one piece.