Essay

'Documenting the life of natural forms' 

Introduction

My personal investigation is centred mainly around flowers however the overall theme of the project is natural forms. During my project I would like to portray the life cycle of flowers and show slightly less aesthetic parts of nature but make them interesting in their own way. The study of flowers and natural forms is an important topic due to the way in which the world is constantly changing. Global warming is said to 'disrupt the flowers' blooming cycles and some whole flower groups might perish'. This suggests the importance of photographing flowers. By showing the drastic change that the world is having on natural forms may cause people to have much more respect for the environment. Photographs can preserve the beauty of nature for the future. Throughout my project I have been influenced by a number of photographers, some of which include: Irving Penn, Nadege Marieau and Imogen Cunningham. By investigating these photographers in more depth I was able to incorporate different techniques and ideas into my work which challenged my own photographical abilities.

History and Contextual Study 

A daguerreotype was the first photographic process that became successful. These cameras, which were first created in 1839, had exposure times from 5 to 30 minutes. This made it extremely hard to photograph portrait photography as people were not able to stay completely still for this length of time, therefore still life photography was a way of capturing images with the exact composition photographers intended. This camera was accurate, detailed and sharp. After the production of the daguerreotype camera, many people were trying to replicate this and improve upon the original item. This then led to Charles Chevalier creating a double-box camera in 1841. This camera used the same principles as the earlier invented camera however it used a plate which was half the size of the original camera for imaging. In addition the camera had a faster lens which meant that the exposure time was bought down to 3 minutes.

The first photo that is known to be taken was by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce in 1826. In order to achieve this he bought a van and converted it into a mobile darkroom. The van included many types of photographic equipment but most importantly five cameras. This was a photo taken in black and white which was similar to Roger Fenton's still life photography in 1855. It was not until 1861 that the first coloured photo was created by James Clerk Maxwell. This was done with three different coloured filters that were overlaid to create one single composition. Maxwell used this technique based upon the way in which the human eye processes colour.   

Ernst Haas is known as 'the early master of colour photography'. Haas used a black and white film for a lot of his career however he did experiment more by using colour film which became an important part of his work. The techniques used by Haas were frequently used in order to capture the images he produced. Some examples of the techniques he employed are shallow depth of field, selective focus and blurred motion. Haas's photography evolved over the years as he continued to put his love for poetry and music into photographs. In the 1940's Haas decided to switch from using his 'medium format Rolleiflex to the smaller 35mm Leica rangefinder camera. In order to print his coloured work he used the dye transfer process. Although this was an expensive way of printing it resulted in almost full control over the hue and saturation of the images. 

Still life translates to nature morte which also means dead nature. This was the entire idea based around still life photography and this offered a lot of freedom in the world of photography as it was the first time photographers were able to have full control over the composition of their work. They were able to place objects in the exact place they desired. The most common subjects of still life were cute flowers, picked fruits, seashells and caught fish. Still life photography captured anything that is dead or not moving. Still life has gradually tended to include anything that does not move rather than the dead however elements of dying or rotting items add another element to the image and can bring texture and depth to the photo. 

Traditionally in still life arrangements objects were placed in specific places however it was all done for a meaningful reason. This is something that has continued throughout the history of still life photography. Still life photographers will place objects in desirable places however as photography has become more accepted photographers have began to experiment and look at the anti-aesthetic of photos rather than just the beauty. Roger Fenton was a still life photographer in the 1800's and he embarked on a series of 35 to 40 still life images containing flower arrangements and fruits on marble or fabric. Fenton would shoot relatively close to the still life composition and it would be at eye level. His images focused on textures and detail. Stereo photography was a technique that Roger Fenton used within his work. It was used within the 1950's and involved creating a 3D illusion. A stereoscopic camera was used and it took two images at the same time but with slightly different viewpoints. The photographer could also take two separate photos but move the camera in between. 

This is Roger Fenton's most famous still life image that he captured. 

Photographer Research

Imogen Cunningham 

Imogen Cunningham was an American photographer who was well known for her botanical photography. Cunningham had an interest in photography from a young age and bought her first camera from the American School of Art in Scranton, Pennsylvania. The camera has a 4x5 inch view. Cunningham opened her own portraiture studio in Seattle however when she got married her and her husband moved to San Francisco. Imogen Cunningham continued to pursue her passion for photography and became a lot more interested in botanical photography as her career progressed. Cunningham was involved with the f/64 group. This group was known for its sharp and un-retouched images. The photos created by members of the f/64 group featured much detail and greater depth of field. Other members of this group include Ansel Adams and Edward Weston.  

amaryllis flower, 1933

The image above is of amaryllis flowers which have been placed in a pot. Cunningham has used light in a very interesting way within this image. She has projected light onto the right side of the flower and has not used any light to brighten the other side of the flower. This gives the look of the plant being two different flowers. I feel as though the idea that the flowers look completely different could have connotations of people having two different personalities, one that they portray to other people and another that they tend to hide. I am particularly drawn to the centre of the flower on the left side of the image because it is completely black. I feel as though this resembles the idea of a never ending black hole. I like the questions this brings up about why the photographer chose to completely black this area out. I believe it could show the importance of nature being eternally important.    

Calla, 1925

The photo above is of a calla flower. Cunningham has focused on the shadows and shape of the flower. I feel as though the image uses the contrast of harsh and lighter shadows to create the perfect exposure. I believe the harsher shadows could suggest that the perfection of the plant is being disturbed in some way. This could have further implications of humans disturbing nature in unhealthy and dangerous ways. Cunningham has decided to lighten specific parts of this photo which has resulted in the photo being centred on the shape of the flower. For example she has darkened the areas around the flower which created a focal point of the centre of the flower. For me, the punctum of this image is the harsh shadow that the flower has created on itself. This is interesting because the calla flower has been associated with holiness, faith and purity. The dark shadow could contrast this association and may show that not everyone can be pure and faithful in every situation.   

Datura Flower, 1975

The image above uses different shadows to enhance the shape of the flower. I like the way in which the shadows have been carefully thought about the create softer and harsher details within the image. I think that the shape of the flower looks as though it is very elegant due to there not being many harsh lines or curves within the outlining of the flower. In my opinion the shape of the flower could have representations of a ballet dancer due to the elegance of certain parts of the flower. Ballet is associated with elegance and beauty and I feel this is an idea that Imogen Cunningham is trying to convey within her work. There is a harsh contrast between the black background and the light areas of the flower. I feel as though this has connotations of differences within peoples personalities. 

Irving Penn

Irving Penn is known as an important master of modern photography. He captured many different genres of photography however I am focusing on his still life of flowers. His work has been displayed in renowned public and private photography collections. Irving Penn's flower series happened due to Vogue USA who asked him to photograph flowers for the 1967 Christmas edition. This resulted in the next seven years devoted to photographing a different flower. He photographed tulips, poppies, peonies, orchids, roses, lilies and begonias. 

The image above is of a poppy that is slightly dried. Irving Penn aims to capture the fine beauty of flowers. This is done through the use of texture and colour. This photo uses orange and red tones with a green and yellow centre. The red and green tones are complimentary of each other and this is why they work so well within the image. The idea of shooting a poppy has a lot of symbolic meaning because the poppy represents the end of the war as this was the only flower still growing in the battlefields. The idea of the poppy being slightly dead could represent the long period of time that the war was continuing for and due to it not being completely dead could represent the strength of the soldiers during the war and the idea that they did not give up. I like the use of negative space within this image because it focuses your attention onto the flower itself. I am specifically drawn to the petals of the flower due to the amount of detail that Irving Penn has captured. I like the way that the petals are slightly creased which I think could have connotations of imperfections within people and not being ashamed of them.  

The image above is of a rose that is dying. The flower looks as though it has been pressed and dried. This has resulted in the flower being thin and the white background being ale to show through the flower. This implies that the flower is fragile, much like people when they have lost someone they love. A red rose conveys deep emotion, mainly love. The fact that the rose is dying could have connotations of people falling out of love or love being lost within peoples lives. Also the fact that the flower has fallen downwards could represent peoples body language after being hurt of broken by love. People may hold their head down as a sign of sadness. I like the way that this image is on a pure white background because white has connotations of purity and peace which I believe contrasts the dying rose which has connotations of being in pain and losing someone you love.  

Relevance of the photographers research to my personal project

My project is focusing on documenting the life of natural forms and I have tried to closely relate my work to the photographers I have researched. I have focused on a number of photographers throughout my work, for example Irving Penn, Imogen Cunningham and Nadege Meriau. 

Irving Penn

My photo closely relates to Irving Penn's photo due to the flower being the focal point of the photo. I also wanted to use the same camera angle as Irving Penn because I liked the idea of the camera looking directly at the flower. The compositions of these two photos are very similar due to this being  a main idea that I took from Irving Penn's photos. Irving Penn uses a very soft light to create the image above whereas I used a spotlight which gave my photo different connotations, for example slightly darker colours may imply a slightly more sinister tone. I feel as though this image Irving Penn has created focuses heavily on the colour, especially the vibrant saturated yellow in the centre of the flower. I also wanted to replicate this throughout my work because although the photo I have taken is slightly darker I wanted to enhance the orange tones within the flower. Although my photo relates to Irving Penn's photography I also wanted to incorporate my own ideas within the photos I produced. This is why I decided to use a dark background. The darker background relates to the other photos that I have produced and having a black background will result in my portfolio photos having a related theme. 

Imogen Cunningham

I feel as though the photo that I have taken of the sunflower relates to Imogen Cunningham's image above. I was very inspired by the way Imogen Cunningham takes a very simple flower and expresses so much intricate detail throughout one picture. I aimed to photograph one flower that I felt had a lot of different textures within it and I used compositional ideas from Cunningham by having the flower in the centre of the frame. I also incorporated negative space within my image which I believed to be an important part of Cunningham's photos because this is what drew your eyes towards the flower. Although Cunningham's photo is in boac and white I decided to desaturate the colours within my image. I believe this related to the other photos I have taken more than if I were to alter the image to black and white. I also like the fact that this gives my photo a slightly different element to Cunningham's photo. When photographing the image above I took in mind Imogen Cunningham's role in the f/64 group which focused on capturing the greatest possible depth within their images. Due to this when taking my photo I used an aperture of f/16 to try and capture as much depth within the photo as I possibly could.    

The Future

The future of photographing natural forms has the potential to change and alter in the future. Due to global warming increasing at such a fast place the world is constantly changing. Certain flowers, for example orchids, are at higher risk of being impacted by global warming than some other natural forms. Due to this photos of natural forms may be seen as history some time in the future and photographs could be essential to understanding the impact that global warming and deforestation is having on the environment. As technology has developed and lenses have been developed, such as macro lenses, photos have been able to be captured in such intricate detail which is something that has never been done before. Although cameras are constantly being created, mobile phone quality has improved drastically and photos like the ones seen above could be created on a mobile phone. This may result in professional photography becoming decreasingly popular due to the ease of being able to get the same results with a mobile phone.  

Conclusions 

Overall, my project has been heavily influenced by Imogen Cunningham and Irving Penn's work due to the composition of their photos and also due to the way in which each of these photographers express details within flowers in their own way. In particular Imogen Cunningham's photography has influenced me due to being a part of the most famous movement in the history of photography. In my opinion Cunningham's photography changed the way in which people looked at photos of natural forms and inspired other photographers like Irving Penn to take photos with such high levels of detail. As time has gone on there have been many technological advancements that have resulted in even more detailed photos being taking, for example macro lenses. I believe the f64 movement was the initial reason as to why this has occurred. By exploring this movement and the way in which it impacted photography I have been a lot more aware of the camera settings I am using in relation to the type of photo I am taking, for example when taking a photo of an individual flower I will increase the aperture to ensure that the entire photo is in focus and in as much depth as possible. The main idea that I will take forward into my own work is the way in which Cunningham and Penn think about their composition and use of negative space within their photos. For the remainder of my project I would like to focus on using different flowers to express the symbolism of each of them. 

References 

http://jungleworld.co.uk/global-warmings-effect-flowers/

http://www.ukcamera.com/classic_cameras/historyenglish.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera#Exposure_control

http://www.daguerreobase.org/en/knowledge-base/what-is-a-daguerreotype

http://thechromologist.com/worlds-first-colour-photograph/

https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/2005.100.15/
https://www.lensculture.com/articles/ernst-haas-ernst-haas-color-correction
https://lumieregallery.net/wp/247/imogen-cunningham/
https://www.scienceandmediamuseum.org.uk/what-was-on/art-arrangement-photography-and-still-life-tradition