Technique Page - Sequencing

Definition: Sequence - A following of one thing after another; succession.
How do you do it?
Part of my transition work from AS to A2 saw me experimenting with a technique called sequencing. The technique is very similar to an animation, as it may be represented in the form of a GIF. Here's how it was done:

STEP1 (After formatting the camera): Standing still, take the first photograph of the subject - this could be a person who is about to walk away, a full flower etc.
STEP 2: Without moving the camera's distance from the subject or the zoom, change what the subject is doing to start the 'sequence' - again this might be getting someone to take a step forward from their original position or removing a petal from a flower - and take the picture.
STEP3: Repeat STEP2 a few times, each time changing what the subject is doing slightly to increase the sequence i.e. removing more flower petals or asking the person to walk further away. The best sequence will include 4 or more images - the more images, the more detail!
STEP4: Download the images onto the computer and open Photoshop.

*ALTERNATIVELY* - Instead of moving the subject, it may be interesting to experiment by moving the photographer/camera or the zoom on the camera, but not a combination of the techniques as the sequence will not flow very effectively.

STEP5: Open a new blank page in Photoshop.
STEP6: Open each of the images for your sequence and make adjustments like levels, curves etc. Make note of the specific numbers/options used so that you can apply the same to each image to make the sequence consistent.
STEP7: Divide the width of your blank page by the number of images you have and re-size each image so the width is roughly the same as the result you get. *this may need to be adjusted later*
STEP8: Under Preferences or View, apply a grid to your page to make the layout consistent.
STEP9: Starting with the first image of the sequence, place it to the far left of the blank page.
STEP10: Move to the next image, and leaving a small gap, place it next to the first image.
STEP 11: Repeat step STEP10 until all of the images fit on the blank page, following the sequence from left to right.
STEP12: Flatten the image, crop around the sequence, print and save!

What does it look like?

Image Banks

Image Banks for the following techniques:

• Sequencing
• Animation
• Depth of Field

*ANIMATION*

The GIF images sometimes do not play. For the mean time, the animated images can be viewed here:

• Top-Left GIF
• Top-Middle GIF
• Top-Right GIF
• Bottom-Left GIF
• Bottom-Middle GIF
• Bottom-Right GIF

Unit 3 Project Proposal

A2 Unit 3 Ideas - Contrast

• Colours
• Fantasy amd reality
• Good vs. evil
• Elements - fire, ice, water, air, earth
• Sweet vs. savoury
• Nature vs. Urban
• Seasons
• Weathers
• Flora and Fauna
• Fashions
• Men and Women
• Textures
• Shapes
• Old and young
• Night and day
• Black and white
• Hot and cold

AS Year Evaluation

Over the last year during my AS time in Photography, I feel that I have really enjoyed the process, as well as learnt new skills, and I am thoroughly looking forward to the A2, especially Unit 3 where I will write my own project proposal.

Personally, I think I enjoyed Unit 1 compared with Unit 2 more as I didn't enjoy being restricted to just the one specific topic. Partly, this was my fault as I felt half way through Unit 2 that I had chosen myself a rather specific and difficult topic - Musical Instruments and Musicians - whereas now, looking back, I would have rather chosen either Contrasts or Multiple Imagery. However, although I know that I will be restricted to my chosen brief for Unit 3, I am going to take more care into choosing a better topic for myself to ensure that I work harder and more creatively throughout the entire six months of the unit.

Although at first I felt like the techniques were learnt about during the formal elements topic was rather repetitive and less interesting, I feel like I have now learnt to take all of these new skills into account whenever I am shooting anything - whether it be part of my coursework or just casual, personal projects at home. I also feel that during this year I have learnt to manage my time a lot better, as often at times I may have struggled with the work load associated with the contextual side of the course, but I definitely  improved this by getting myself much more organised and spending more time outside of college hours on the contextual work, leaving lessons for mostly physical work. I also feel that progressing through my portfolios from start to finish, my creativity, imagination and technical skill has improved since when I first started in September, as you can see physically how much better my work looks, which has effectively prepared me for the types of shoots I would like to conduct during the second year. My Photoshop skills have also improved greatly, as I now have a much clearer understanding of the software, and I feel like I can use it much more effectively in the improvements of my work.

Overall, as I feel that I simply have a strong passion for the subject, however hard it has been or how hard it will get, I have and will work to the best of my ability and will continue to show interest and improvements within my work, despite the fact that at times we will have a lot of work to do ourselves based on research and planning. I have really enjoyed my time in photography and I cannot wait to start my personal project over the summer. 

Focal Length - Standing Still

Horror Film

Using camerawork skills to film a sequence of events and using iMovie to add suitable music and effects.

The Journey

Animation!

Unit 2 Final Pieces