The appropriation of beauty...

The Appropriation Task
April 2012

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder they say.  I couldn't agree more. Think about the beautiful faces that we see all over the media but the thing is, they all look very different and so are we, the normal average people. People are unique.

I love incorporating my interests in my photography. Why shouldn't I? I mean isn't that what it is all about, and what makes my photography personal to me? As part of my Experimental Approaches to Photography module at University I have looked at Blind Photography and Pinhole Cameras. I have recently been looking at Appropriation.

Now, what is that you say? Well for those who are unsure of the term, it is something that the majority of people do all the time: Steal images. We may be tagged in a picture on Facebook and save it to our own computers and even more so, we may want to edit that picture in black and white to make it more artsy or even recording a cover of a favourite singer and placing it on YouTube. That is Appropriation on a larger scale beyond the Arts but you get the idea.

Appropriation plays a part when researching images for educational purposes for sketchbooks and things like I have to do. At University Level we now have to reference the artists name to show that the work we put in isn't ours. If we don't say, then the examiners will discard any belief that someone else created it, even if it is a famous artwork. It was funny to be told that we had to Appropriate an image and strangely enough it is something that should be so effortless and easy but I found it quite hard to think of something to Appropriate.

So here we are full circle, or where I began this post - Beauty.
My inspiration of this came from  Jochim Scmid and John Stezaker, two famous Appropriationists.

From this, I thought of people and looks and people that I admire. Identity and insecurity are things that crop up in the mind of a young woman leaving behind her teenage years to blossom into the real world. Males and  females feel insecure during their teenage lives but I know from women, particularly they look at other woman and wish they had their eyes or chin or body because they hate a feature of their own. I have only felt a mild case of this so I haven't felt too affected. I have picked four of my favourite beauties for my Appropriation task I have put together a face that includes some of their best features to show that if a woman was to have a feature of another woman, it wouldn't suit them and it wouldn't be right. What I am saying is, that we should be happy in own skin and I'm not excluded the men out there either. In addition, I would like to point out that the beauty I have picked out may contrast with your own views and that is perfectly fine.

The image at the top is my result. I have highlighted beauty in hair colour, beauty in the eyes, nose, lips and even though thats how far I have gone here, but beauty continues to go down further, right through to your fingertips and to your toes.

Now, would you say that picture is beautiful?
I would say somewhat yes but somewhat no. When I think of the definition of ultimate beauty the is symmetry and proportion of face but the little things that are out of proportion can still make a face beautiful. The same sized eyes, nose and mouth would look a bit odd wouldn't it? I don't think we should worry about the beauty that is photographed these days because in fact what you see is probably not what they look like underneath. Forget airbrushed perfect photos, we are all imperfect in someway but confidence is accepting our flaws but learning to feel happy with it.

And these are the images I used:

(hair)
Alison Sudol
A Fine Frenzy

(eyes)
Hilarie Burton
One Tree Hill

(nose)
Anne Hathaway
Devil Wears Prada

(lips)
Taylor Swift

Want to visit my Flickr photostream with the featured photos in my blog and more then click the following link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brown_eyed_dreamer/

C for Confidence, S for Success...

Confidence? What is it?

"belief in oneself and one's powers or abilities; self-confidence; self-reliance; assurance"
                                                                                             - Dictionary.com


You could say that a success is achieved with confidence. Sometimes you have those lucky breaks when things work out but that is really just do with luck. Having the confidence to do something makes you feel better. This could be to do with anything; Music, Writing, Performing, Socializing and so much more. When you have the belief you can do something that is when things turn out great. There are many tasks in life that are worth considering confidence.
I started University, six weeks ago. I am planning to spend tomorrow in the dark room with one of new friends, processing and developing film. If I hadn't had the confidence to strike up a conversation or hold it then I may not have made a friend. Though I'm a person who doesn't mind her own company I could have lost with what I was doing. If I didn't have the confidence, I wouldn't be asking for help when I needed it, because honestly developing film is no easy task.


So why am I talking about Confidence and where are the pictures to go with this post? To be honest, I don't have any to show to today but I want you to bare with me and let the words create images in your mind. I was learning about Typography earlier this week and how the communication of words can do such a thing..but that, is an entirely different story.

Confidence. That is the focus of today.

Going to University is often that stepping stone in to the real world. The industries, where your aspirations are able to take shape and really be brought to life. Like many things, Photography needs such confidence. As much as it is an Art and debatably a Science, it is also a lot to do with Social Communications.

I had to do a classic Powerpoint Presentation today that was a proposal for an assignment as part of my Digital Photography. Without going into much detail; my idea revolves around commuting. I am a commuter and any regular readers would probably know that about now from my recent posts. So this is an important subject to me but I have never really done Documentary Photography before. I have been hiding in the shadows. I have been lacking confidence. If you have seen my Flickr page  then you know about 90% of my photos are Still Life, Architecture or Landscape and Nature. I haven't really captured many people, only beginning just recently. It's not that I don't want to capture people, I just haven't got the words and the stratergy to get me there successfully yet. It's what I want to do. I want to be a Lifestyle Photographer; Family Portraits, Weddings, Couples, Children. What do I need? The Social Skills. Are they easy? No. Can I get there? Yes. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow but every experience I have communicating with people I am gaining confidence, maybe even subconsciously. Everyone at some stage of their lives lack confidence, even the people most Extravert of people. Confidence is lacked and that is a sad truth. However. It is not lost. It is gained. It can be maintained.

What I found was today in my presentation session was everyone found it hard to approach the public just to have their photos taken. I don't know if this is just a British characteristic, but we are so reserved and stiff.   One guy in my class had no trouble, hats off to him but realistically as aspiring Photographers the majority of the class are finding this "Approach" the hardest. We are interested in the Primary elements; seeing interesting views, objects, people etc but putting that in to practice is hard. I was saying a few posts ago that the Photography that I am learning about is more than just Point-and-Shoot. There is so much more than I would have thought, and that is great because I'm passionate about Photography and I love it but you still have to strive for something. You have to have a clear head and be focused. Much about Photographing people is the control that you have over them. The problem is that once you point a camera on a person their expression will change. It will be forced, posed, unnatural. For some occasions that is down right perfect and it works but my Communting project I need to get these commuters to pose naturally, candidly but fake candidly because the tired, distressed look is what I need. It communicates with the viewer. That is the challenge. The fence I have to climb and not fall down on either side.

What I have been trying to say is that without having the confidence to ask for access, whether that is for location or a person then how am I going to expect to be a successful Photographer? It's not just about taking pretty pictures. It is about control and confidence. I won't be able to complete my project without it. I may have confidence in myself. But to apply it...well --


Try not and let the fear, prevent you from becoming successful, for I believe.




Want to visit my Flickr photostream with the featured photos in my blog and more then click the following link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/brown_eyed_dreamer/