Portfolio Pictureees Part II

Like a Child

Reflection: Within my portfolio, Like a Child", I wanted to express the childish attributes of the children that are displayed in the photographs. I was influenced by Sally Mann, at first I wanted to take scenery shots like Mann did, however the scenery that was around my environment was too boring, so I decided to do my project on children. I used a regular digital camera during this photo-shoot. The shallow depth of field that is used in the photos were all done by photoshop. I had to re-adjust the photos around by using the lasso tool and the filters such as the blur. I used the gaussian blur and the lens blur to have that depth of field. At first I tried getting the children to pose for the camera, but the shots didn't turn out so well. However, as they started to stare off and away from the camera, I was able to capture their personas and how they acted usually. During this assignment, I wanted the children to be "joyful" so I could have the spontaneous feeling that Sally Mann used to express her children. My main focus was to get the focal point on the children and what they were doing, by doing so I can show the childish attributes that are being expressed by the children. Nowadays, children grow too fast, I wanted to display that being a child is fine, it's a part of life of which you shouldn't skip, but to embrace it and enjoy life as it is. The pictures were displayed in a figurative aspect, however I believe by showing it in an abstract aspect would have a better emphasis on this subject. The contrast of the pictures had to be bright to indicate the happiness of childhood. The photos were taken outdoors because I liked the scenery that was outside, the inside seemed too dull and it wouldn't capture the moment. I believe my work was somewhat successful due the fact I was able to capture the moment of the children having fun, but I think I wasn't able to put enough emphasis on the subject I was covering.