above, a piece based on Stephanie Jung I did last year.
Artist - Stephanie Jung - Examples of Work
Image analysis...
I am using Stephanie Jung as inspiration because I feel that her technique of layering multiple images is more effective as creating busyness than by using long exposure, therefore having work inspired by her shows a progression of busyness from the last photoshoot. The image on the right portrays an almost surreal scene of people and buildings in a city. I would suggest her work is experimental still life as it is an experimental method of creating a still life piece of work, it may also be described as surreal and abstract because when viewed as a whole, it doesn't look real, but the individual aspects i.e. the people, are real.
There is a lot of repetition in Jung's work as she layers multiple images on top of each other, all of her work is done in colour which I think looks really good when layered as the repetition of shapes can be seen more clearly through colour. I like how her work has no blur, but still shows busyness. I also think the colour makes the work more attractive to a viewer, bringing in their attention, in a lot of her work, there isn't much variation in colours in the frame i.e. in the bottom middle image above, yellow is a large feature, however I believe this is still effective because it gives more focus to the whole image. On the image on the right, the colours that stand out are orange, pink and some green and the repetition of the beige building in the background makes these more vibrant colours stand out. The layering of photos gives texture to her work, this can be seen in the image on the right where there has become an accumulation of people, as there are a lot of levels in her work. The majority of her images suggest she takes her photos during the day (apart from the middle row of images above) and I think the natural lighting of her work makes it appear less staged (unlikely to be staged at all) which may make it better to a viewer as it shows she can do such good work without having to stage it, it makes the work feel more natural. The images done at night just have a different range of colours which also still looks good and brings more variety into her work as a whole. Jung has managed to keep an element of contrast (between light and dark) in her work, even with the layering of images. In the image on the right darker shades are created by shadows of poles/buildings/people where as light is brought by the clothes on some of the people. There is less space between the camera and people (in the image on the right) compared to the previous couple of artists which may make my work appear busier compared to those shoots, showing a progression of busyness overall in my project. Also, because of the layering there isn't any obvious negative space which increases how busy it feels.
The clarity of her images suggest she has used a digital camera and most likely layered the images digitally (i.e. on Photoshop). When you look carefully at the layers, you can see each are a tiny bit different which may suggest she used a continuous shutter release/sports mode when taking the photographs. She may not have used a tripod so that the movement of her hands will mean the buildings are at slightly different angles on each photo so they don't fall directly on each other when she layers the photographs. However images such as the bottom left and right may suggest she did use a tripod as each layer looks like it is from the same angle. When taking my own photos I plan to not use a tripod so the slightly different angles of the buildings create more busyness, I will also be imitating the work were people are the subjects (like the image in the right) rather than having buildings as the subject because my project is based more around people, than buildings, in the city.
I personally believe her work can be interpreted in two ways. A 'normal' person who doesn't have much experience of mental illness/has a lot of clarity in their life may find the work confusing as there is so much to take in at once however this may also make them feel thoughtful of others who they know who may experience the world in this way. On the other hand, someone who has a mental disorder/illness (such as schizophrenia or PTSD) may find this work more calming as it may visualise how they experience life (confusing) which may make them feel like they are not alone in what they are going through as someone else (Jung) has visualised it, this may make them feel more understood. Also, the colour of the work makes it feel more positive (than depressing).
There is a lot of repetition in Jung's work as she layers multiple images on top of each other, all of her work is done in colour which I think looks really good when layered as the repetition of shapes can be seen more clearly through colour. I like how her work has no blur, but still shows busyness. I also think the colour makes the work more attractive to a viewer, bringing in their attention, in a lot of her work, there isn't much variation in colours in the frame i.e. in the bottom middle image above, yellow is a large feature, however I believe this is still effective because it gives more focus to the whole image. On the image on the right, the colours that stand out are orange, pink and some green and the repetition of the beige building in the background makes these more vibrant colours stand out. The layering of photos gives texture to her work, this can be seen in the image on the right where there has become an accumulation of people, as there are a lot of levels in her work. The majority of her images suggest she takes her photos during the day (apart from the middle row of images above) and I think the natural lighting of her work makes it appear less staged (unlikely to be staged at all) which may make it better to a viewer as it shows she can do such good work without having to stage it, it makes the work feel more natural. The images done at night just have a different range of colours which also still looks good and brings more variety into her work as a whole. Jung has managed to keep an element of contrast (between light and dark) in her work, even with the layering of images. In the image on the right darker shades are created by shadows of poles/buildings/people where as light is brought by the clothes on some of the people. There is less space between the camera and people (in the image on the right) compared to the previous couple of artists which may make my work appear busier compared to those shoots, showing a progression of busyness overall in my project. Also, because of the layering there isn't any obvious negative space which increases how busy it feels.
The clarity of her images suggest she has used a digital camera and most likely layered the images digitally (i.e. on Photoshop). When you look carefully at the layers, you can see each are a tiny bit different which may suggest she used a continuous shutter release/sports mode when taking the photographs. She may not have used a tripod so that the movement of her hands will mean the buildings are at slightly different angles on each photo so they don't fall directly on each other when she layers the photographs. However images such as the bottom left and right may suggest she did use a tripod as each layer looks like it is from the same angle. When taking my own photos I plan to not use a tripod so the slightly different angles of the buildings create more busyness, I will also be imitating the work were people are the subjects (like the image in the right) rather than having buildings as the subject because my project is based more around people, than buildings, in the city.
I personally believe her work can be interpreted in two ways. A 'normal' person who doesn't have much experience of mental illness/has a lot of clarity in their life may find the work confusing as there is so much to take in at once however this may also make them feel thoughtful of others who they know who may experience the world in this way. On the other hand, someone who has a mental disorder/illness (such as schizophrenia or PTSD) may find this work more calming as it may visualise how they experience life (confusing) which may make them feel like they are not alone in what they are going through as someone else (Jung) has visualised it, this may make them feel more understood. Also, the colour of the work makes it feel more positive (than depressing).
Test Shoot...
On a trip to Liverpool, I carried out a test shoot of Jung's work so that I could identify any problems I may come across and prepare myself for this for when I carry out the 'actual' photoshoot.
I found I want to emphasise the fact that the photos are in the city (like the first edit) as this is not always clear e.g. in the images on the right, therefore when I carry out the 'actual' photoshoot I will aim to frame them in a more open space, similar to the first edit. Additionally I found that when I layered a lot of images I got black areas (which can especially be seen in the bottom right edit), I don't want my edits to look this way so when I edit the 'actual' photoshoot, I won't use the overlay mask on every level and I will simply decrease the opacity on other levels, this should hopefully give balance and reduce the black areas in my work.
Actual shoot - contact sheets
The brackets distinguish which photographs would be layered together to create one image. Red show the ones I already know I don't like, green the ones I do and blue are those I am unsure about (mainly cars). Those with a lot of images with little difference between consecutive images I would probably not use every single photograph, just the ones that have the best affect.
Edits...
In my edits, the distance between the camera and the people is much less compared to Stephanie Jung because the aim of my work is to photograph people whereas the aim of her work is more to photograph the city. I used her technique of layering multiple photographs (between 5-10) to create a single, busy image. In some edits I involved some unique elements, for example the TARDIS in the first edit and the Spongebob balloon in the 5th and the flying bird in the last edit, this was to give my work some quirk and make it more interesting to catch a viewers attention. I found that changing the opacity levels helped keep my work from getting too overpowering (rather than using the overlay option on every layer) so it didn't result in large black patches (which can be seen in last years edits), I also made some layers masks and took away parts that were too dark so that the layered people could be seen easier and keep the lightness in the overall image.
I feel these edits are much more successful compared to my test shoot as there are no black areas and A LOT more faces/bodies can be seen which increases the busyness in the atmosphere created. I also like the quirky aspects I have included in the 'actual' shoot such as the TARDIS in the first edit and the pigeon in the last edit.
I feel these edits are much more successful compared to my test shoot as there are no black areas and A LOT more faces/bodies can be seen which increases the busyness in the atmosphere created. I also like the quirky aspects I have included in the 'actual' shoot such as the TARDIS in the first edit and the pigeon in the last edit.