Top in New Zealand for A Level Photography

Last Updated on January 5, 2022

This article features an A Level Photography project past Melissa Kelsey, completed while studying while studying at ACG Strathallan in 2012, Auckland, New Zealand. Melissa achieved Elevation in New Zealand and was graded 100% (A*). She writes nigh her project beneath.

Some of Melissa'south sketchbook pages are included in our new book: Outstanding High School Sketchbooks . This book has loftier-resolution images and so that fine details and annotation are articulate, making it an excellent resources for students and schools. Learn more than!

Themes and ideas

My theme was Social Networking. I explored the effects this has on people and the concept of beingness 'together but yet alone'. I set out to visually brandish how people place themselves in bondage through an addiction to an online presence, along with making strong visual statements of people becoming disconnected from reality, creating an insight into a globe not physically seen inspired past imagination.

I felt passionate about this theme, every bit I was shocked at the rapid progression of social media changing the mode people relate to each other. In add-on, I experienced the pressures to be involved and alienation when non involved. I institute myself living in a society where people are all around me, yet then afar. My project explores the journey as one immerses and explores the cyber realm of social networking.

Social media has revolutionized how we communicate between individuals, groups and entire societies. It has been a rapid development spreading like a disease. The social networking realm offers the states a multitude of information at our fingertips. Nosotros are bombarded constantly with information that is meant to help us, yet at times complicates our lives. I expressed this by creating busy, chaotic photomontages to show how people are overloaded with data.

People are at present turning to virtual worlds to socialize; it's as though face-to-face relationships are a thing of the by. Applied science is condign a vital organ of our beingness. I presented this through the girl being entangled, possessed, and mesmerized by social media.

Drawn in by the human want to be connected.

Sucked from reality into a virtual world.

Drowning out what'due south all around.

Overloaded with multitudes of instant cyber connections.

Addicted to an online presence.

Relationally absent whilst physically present.

Alive in a virtual world.

Stamped and marked with a digital identification.

The journey – equally one engulfs herself in a virtual world.

Artist influences

I based my personal artist report on Ben Cauchi. Cauchi is a New Zealand photographer who is well known for his retrieval of mid 19th century photographic processes. His skillful manipulation of objects, lite sources and darkroom effects brand his photos illusory and mysterious. I drew from his lighting techniques, limerick and illusory experience to create peepholes into the virtual world of social media.

Nosotros were encouraged not simply to base of operations our inquiry on photographers, but too painters, sculptures or experts in the field of our controversial issue called. I found an expert on social interactions called Sherry Turkle. Turkle is a professor, writer, researcher and licensed psychologist who spent the last 30 years researching the psychology of people'southward relationships with technology. She has spoken on TED Talks and written books about this. One quote that she shared strongly stood out to me that visually stimulated many ideas in my heed:

We are consumed past that with which we are nourish'd by – Shakespeare

This quote inspired the image below of the girl having over indulged from her consumption of social media connections and data.

Use of media

I am fascinated with how you are able to manipulate an prototype once printed out onto paper. When turning through my sketchbook many textures jump out: scratching, painting, taping, tearing, stitching, pasting and gesso press onto dissimilar kinds of materials. I emphasized the tactile aspect to my projection to further the contrast of a virtual world being displayed in the physical.

Gesso printing is a prominent part of my experimentation printing processes. This is a easily-on printing process that allows you to print light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation printed images onto nearly any surface. This is a fascinating process, which I have carried on and still use in my portrait and nuptials photography business today.

Experimentation was a huge part of my project; this helped me create well-developed visual concepts. My teacher encouraged me to call up outside of the box and be daring to try new digital and tactile image processes. This helped me to process, develop, generate and re-generate ideas until I achieved a final product of an extremely loftier standard.

Tips for other A Level Photography students

Melissa is highly defended and adamant to reach with a willingness to acquire new skills. Her hands on and practical arroyo and her power to think laterally have benefitted her significantly, and she works scrupulously to ensure she meets all deadlines. Melissa is an independent worker who uses her initiative to set her goals high. She has striven to create her ain individual style. While existence prepared to seek feedback from various sources when necessary. – R.Kirkham Executive Principal

The quote to a higher place gives an indication of what helped me to reach high results. I feel that having a topic that many people can relate to and a broad range of well-developed ideas through expressive experimentation made my photography project stand out.

Have fun with your bailiwick! There are guidelines in place to help you along, merely likewise an affluence of creative liberty. Your simply constraint is your imagination. What I dearest about photography is that there is ever more than to learn. Photography is not restricted to digital display, but includes gesso prints onto any material, projections onto sculptures, extremely large scales and then manipulated in a tactile way and many other ways (for more than inventive means for Photography students to utilize unlike media, delight read 100+ Creative Photography Ideas).

Put the time in to get results. Nearly of my luncheon times were spent in the Art Section, assuasive me to go the actress mile on my project. This was definitely worth information technology. Bounciness ideas of those effectually you, including your teachers. Be artless with your inventiveness, main the photography principles and then splash out into your own style!

This prototype was awarded 1st identify in the Youth Section at the Huntly Artz Festival in 2012.

This project was also submitted into the New Zealand Young Designers Award and was awarded second place in the Senior Photography Department.

Images from my A Level Photography sketchbook

I started my project past expressing the vision I had for it and why I felt strongly about social media. I also researched artists I wanted to learn from and incorporate their techniques in my work.

I first expressed the concept of being 'physically nowadays nevertheless socially absent'. I did this through tactile techniques of stitching, taping, tearing, painting, cutting out, stapling, layering and scratching up parts of the body. Experimenting with many techniques led me to learn what which one worked about effectively.

This page acts as a timeline showing the rapid evolution of technology revolutionizing human interactions. Towards the finish of the timeline nosotros see how busy and cluttered the compositions go from social media advancing. To create this series of images I printed my photographs out onto OHP paper then photographed the OHP projection on a wall.

To further progress my project I researched the Dada art move along with photomontage artists. I was drawn to the expressionist style and tactile photo manipulation techniques that they used.

Drawing inspiration from the photomontage artist studied I set out to applying the photomontage techniques to my projection. The creative freedom that the expressive style of manipulating the images has outside of the computer fascinates me. I photographed the girl holding a frame to evidence her being boxed into the cyber realm. The business organization of the photomontages helped me express the magnitudes of online data and connections.

At the top I evidence the progression of painting out the background effectually the box, illustrating how people become less aware of what'south physically around you when online. Through using the concept of placing people in boxes I am able to present my visual estimation of what social networking sites expect like. I see information technology as everyone being confined in dissever compartment, yet through messaging on the Internet we overcome the physical barrier of not being with i another.

This would be my favourite paradigm from the whole project. I show the model being closed upward and vulnerable. This was done to relate to the closure they value, as in that location can be allot of social pressure level to have online presence.

Here I experimented with applying gesso onto different mediums, and then placing images printed on plain paper face downward on the gesso. I left the gesso to dry overnight then used a wet sponge to rub off the newspaper and reveal the transferred ink on the gesso. I experimented with different thicknesses of gesso being applied and mediums of card, black newspaper, newsprint, cardboard and magazine newspaper. Although some prints didn't turn out as expected I still recorded my trial and errors to show the progression of the thought and technique.

I take taken photos of the model with her caput wrapped in bandages. This was done to prove the bondage people identify themselves in past spending too much time on social media and becoming addicted. I have also layered the images on Adobe Photoshop with textures to add depth to existence jump and trapped. I continued to explore the effects of printing onto dissimilar mediums of textured paper, sail, hessian and newspaper. Prints onto OHP paper were also gesso printed onto textures to create a burnished digital expect.

In these photos the girl is beingness physically engulfed and trapped by wires to farther express cyber chains. I introduce shellac and tea staining to create a contrasting vintage expect to the new historic period technology. Multiple tactile manipulations are further investigated, including using gel medium, shellac, tearing and scratching in words such as 'connexion' and 'self restraint'.

In the acme images the girl holds speakers up to her eyes to evidence how social networking is making a robot out of her. I furthered the use of gesso press onto canvass as I institute printing on that medium to be near constructive. In the bottom ready of images I photographed ii people communicating with very emotive, energized expressions. I used the imagery of apple devices to bear witness the chaos of connections in the cyber realm. Blackness boxes accept been stitched inside the devices that overlap, resembling the physical separation and digital unity people have together.

Hither I limited the positive side to social media, opening us up to a whole new earth of connections. To limited how digital media is condign office of u.s. I have manipulated the figures into possessing robotic features. I accept also showed iPads acting as doorways into social realms. I have collaged them together with different people inside. The stitching relates to the digital connections. To conclude this department of work, I created a photomontage board out of sometime jail cell phones with portrait photographs pasted in each screen and real cords to connect them all.

This sequence of work looked at the life lived within the digital world of communications. I researched the artist Gilbert Garcin and practical his technique of using miniature people cut-outs in my work. The small people were used in replacement of a digital device to show cyber relationships.

On these pages I show the girl relating to her miniature cyber friend. The miniature cut-out has been made partially transparent to give a surreal digital look. I drew from the early traditional photographic aesthetic that creative person Ben Cauchi uses. This gave my photos more of an illusory experience, giving impact to the surreal miniature characters.

As the connections we accept over social networking aren't actually tangible, I have used cups and cord to show this unseen connection. I have applied stitching in a hell-raising manner to show the busyness of online media.

In the elevation prototype I accept shown the miniature people connected to an electronic cable tie. Irresolute a piece of clothing into digital connections relates to how we so often carry digital connections shut to u.s.. This image was printed in an A1 size for an art exhibition. The larger format gave information technology more of a dramatic impact. In the bottom image I created a large gesso print on canvas. This photograph was inspired by the Shakespeare quote: "Consumed with that which it was nourish'd past." The girls is shown at a phase of over-consumption of social media.

To brand the miniature figures look more digital and surreal I applied a digital blur to the epitome. This was accomplished through a rapid side-to‐side movement of the photograph while information technology was beingness scanned. Different speeds of motion of the photo on the scanner were experimented with to create different baloney effects. A visual connexion tin can be drawn between the distorted scanned image and the repetitive lines of a barcode. I see this relating to online identification of QR codes and URLs. In the iii sets of images, we see the transition of the miniature condign more blurred as it takes on more of a digital identity.

In the top image I have applied different Photoshop effects to an overlaid barcode image. I have created this composition to show how our physical identities are existence replaced by digital identities. I besides explore unlike ways of showing how people may be identified by barcodes.

To conclude my project I explored absenteeism, with the use of sheets and physical social self-destruction. I have stitched over the eyes to limited the void social networking has created in the outer world. For the last slice I filled a photo frame with a canvass and stitched on a photograph of the daughter being lost in the cyber realm with cords around her.

If yous enjoyed viewing this project, you may also enjoy Melissa's As Level Photography coursework project, which was likewise awarded 100%.

This high schoolhouse art project was shared with our audition so that other students may benefit from the ideas, techniques and approaches used. We gloat the endeavor and accomplishment of loftier school students and Art Departments around the world. If you would like to share your own art project (or that of your students), please read our submission guidelines.

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Source: https://www.studentartguide.com/featured/top-nz-a-level-photography

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