Just a fun photo that I clicked with my wife. I’ve tried to show my love for photography and for my wife in the same frame. The camera is both a point of confluence and conflict (at times) with my wife and is a constant companion on our trips.
I chose to do the assignment Shadow of a Doubt as my topic for my first writing assignment. I chose this topic as my first assignment because the concept of a shadow is pretty simple and easy, a shadow is created by blocking light. But, shadows have a lot of meaning to them, society has built them up to mean a lot more than simply the blocking of light. Outside or even inside (if there are windows) the shadows change by the time of day. I chose to do a shadow that is inside in a room without light because the direction from where the light is coming from stays in that same place no matter what time of day.
What you see in this picture, is the shadow of a laptop. In this room, where there are no windows, I only know what time of day it is when I look at the time on my laptop. But when I play video games, I do not have a clue what time it is. I discovered earlier today that in this setting I can play a video game for hours and not notice how much time has passed. For what I thought was only an hour turned out to be more than three hours of gaming! And so I wonder, how much time would I lose if I didn’t have external factors to wake me up from my technology coma?
I took this picture using my IPhone 6.
In all honesty when I take a picture (regardless of what it is) I always try to not incorporate shadows because for me, it can sometimes ruin a picture. Because of that particular reason I thought that the Shadow of Doubt assignment would be an interesting task for me, where I could try and visualize shadows as a form of art. Based on the shadow that was created it can be assmed that the object in the image is a plant, but what kind? It’s a bamboo plant! I chose this object because it was the only object in my bedroom that stood out to me. I also chose it because of how clear the shadow was.
The creation of this photo involved an ordinary yellow lightbulb and a bamboo, but of course you all already knew that! II placed the lightsource on the opposite side of the room, so that the shadow would be less intense. However, the only problem to look out for when doing that is to make sure no other shadows interfere. For example, it took me a couple of tries to only get the shadow of the plant onto the wall because my shadow kept interferring. Once I made sure I had just the shadow of the plant and I was satisfied with my picture angle, I captured the image. And Viola!
I took this picture in low light with only a flashlight as the light source. I liked the way black and white contrast with each other on a piano keyboard and the way shadows fall on it. I didn’t want to include the identity of the person playing it, because only showing their hands while creating shadows added to the narrative aspect. I especially liked the way the black keys cast shadows over the white keys in kind of abstract shapes and how one hand is entirely lit while the other hand is entirely in shadow.
I decided to go with these two just because I couldn’t choose which one I liked better! the First on has shadows from the kitchen as well as the table which appears to be a masquerade mask. The one the left is a bit more subtle but I liked the symmetry and the contrast between the darker and lighter shadows. It was interesting how getting the right angle enhanced what I was trying to capture as well, and waiting until it was dark in order to get everything a little more clear.
Shadows are great at telling stories. I think I have always loved the way shadows look in pictures, the way they act as positive space while at the same time being the absence of light. For the “Shadow of a Doubt” assignment, I took a picture of a friend holding a toy revolver on a brick wall. The shadow itself raises a lot of a questions: Who is holding the gun? Why? Who are they aiming it at (if anyone)? I chose a brick wall to take the picture against because it provides a timeless feel (as opposed to an interior wall in my house) and adds an authentic, classic feel. I complemented that by editing it with a sepia tone like an old film. The hardest part about this photo was probably making sure not to include the actual gun or arm in the picture and holding the flashlight in the perfect place so I could get a shadow with a clear outline. Overall, I had fun with this one, and it challenged me to think outside the box with my photography.
I am not very vigilant around my surroundings especially when I focus on something with great intensity. However, shadows shown here that the light casts on the computer screen have always caught my eye whenever I am working because it is always there, kind of like waiting for me to notice. It is unique in a way that it does not adhere to a strict form of a certain figure, since depth is created from the overlaps of multiple shadows; you cannot really tell what it is that you are seeing just by looking at the shadows themselves. I am not sure if there is much I can narrative from this, but the story here is that both triangle and square managed to cooperate and agree living under the roof of a rectangle (the computer screen).
VisualAssignments, VisualAssignments2072
As this person looks at his shadow he feels empty inside. He is tired and sad. He drops to his knees and asks God to help him through this terrible time. He asks God for forgiveness for his past sins he has committed.
When I look at this picture I see a person on their knees asking God for forgiveness. They sad and depressed with themselves. I think the person feels empty inside because he is not in the picture and only his shoes are.
Something that follows me
Something that covers the bad behind me, but helps me learn
Something I try and be the best model for, inner and outer
Something that reminds me the shape of myself, the shape of my character
Something that comes out in the days brightest, challenging, exciting moments
Something that knows the one hundred percent real, vulnerable me
Something that loves me, saves me
For this assignment, I decided to look around the house for shadows that resembled familiar objects and relate the shadow objects to the original objects. I found some more visually complex combinations throughout the house including a curtain whose shadow looked like a giant cactus plant and a Santa figurine whose shadow looked like a an ice cream cone. Although less visually appealing, the one that got me thinking the most was a simple shadow of a dresser drawer. The shadow clearly looks like the roof of a house in the suburbs.
So after contextualizing the dresser drawer as a house, I realized that many different tenants had lived in this “house” over several periods of time. It housed my favorite sweatshirt, with a yin-yang symbol and the words micro and macro on each side of the symbol. It housed my favorite socks, themed with my favorite sports team’s logo (the Detroit Redwings). It housed all of my boxers, from Sponge-bob themed delights to the more plain, solid black ones.
Perhaps these tenants all found ways to get along in these tightly packed drawers. The socks and boxers chose a less compartmentalized approach, preferring to be mixed in together. The shorts and pants, however, preferred their own corners and clearly defined barriers. Then there was the miscellaneous drawer. You never knew what was in those drawers until the other drawers were close to being empty – but the tenants in that drawer knew their day would come, soon before laundry day.
Each drawer was the setting of numerous stories and memories ranging from black tie events to birthday parties to lazy days at home. All of those moments started in these drawers, and what a wonderful home they’ve been to the tenants and the landlord.
