Falling inwards

 The year is nearing its end and the two final reviews are lurking near the door. First review of this semester went beyond expectations and helped me figure out some of what my work represents and the how's and why's I do it.  I found myself to be an analyst in denial...

The semester so far, in regards to creating new work, has proven easier said than done. Many shoots cancelled and poor organization skills on my own behalf have put pressure on the final remaining weeks. Some images have had to be re-shot, some never made it out of the sketchbook and some simply don't work in context with the others.

              (7 Apples 2 Legs, New edit, ©Dida 2008)

 As of now there are many pieces on the table that need to be put together or put aside. I am currently doing the post on a few images and did some test prints this week, which will hopefully help 'paint the bigger picture'. In the works is still the image of the apples. I did a reshoot, but missed a bit on the angle, and ended up with a shot that said something completely different than the initial one. So, I went back and did the post again, this time adding another part of one exposure to a part of the original image and adding a new element, the barely visible key. 

A few other newbies are also in the post works.

   (Portrait w/ skull, work in progress, ©Dida 2008)

This portrait of a woman with feathers and a skull came out of an idea for another shot I didn't get to do during one shoot. I shot the image several times with different amounts of light, exposures and angles of lighting, and though this shot is a lot softer and out of focus than the others it still has something about it I like. As of now it sits in between the two skulls and brick images from last semester. As a triptych kind of thing they seem to be working together.

I have started thinking about sequencing a whole lot more now that I have about 9 images finished or still in progress. I don't know if they will all make the final cut, but it has been good to try and work out the order and the overall narrative look to some extent.

There are still many more images I would like to do, but I am feeling the pressure of there being less and less time left. I spent a fair few hours yesterday being more or less frustrated soft proofing and test printing four images, some more successful than others. To judge the outcome of what will happen when the inks hit the paper is hard. Everything is harder when paper competes with a light box (the deceiving computer screen) in terms of luminosity. But the outcome is so much more rewarding when you get it right.  My test prints aren't there yet, but with a little fine tuning and polishing here and there, I think they will be.

As usual I find the statement a nightmare to write even having written it a few times now. I am still not completely comfortable with the reading of it and can't quite decide on the level for personal angle. I've done some new research but having done this project over some time now it has come to a natural crawl. I came across Image and Imagination (2005) edited by Martha Langford thinking it would be a gem of a read, but ended up skimming most of it without finding all that much of interest. If not much else, the introduction helped fuel some thoughts and confuse others, as per usual.

I've also had a look at At the edge of the Light, Thoughts on Photography, & Photographers, on Talent and Genius (2003) by David Travis and found the chapter ' The Plot Thickens Everything, Photography and the need for narrative' (p.80-96) interesting.

 What narrative does better than any other medium of expression is to directly address the question of what we think we know – not about being particles of the matter-of-fact world or elements of a logical puzzle, but rather about being human. (p.95) 

This one still has me thinking...