Robert Mapplethorpe - Work Records

Location
In this lesson we watched a video on Robert Mapplethorpe and Paul then told us to go out on location and shoot pictures you wouldn't normally shoot, shoot pictures of things that don't seem accurate. I went out on location and mainly took pictures of peoples body parts but just of a certain body part rather than their entire body. I enjoyed this because I think I focused more on composition. After shooting lots of pictures I went back to the classroom and put the pictures into contact sheets, after this I then picked my 4 that I wanted for straight prints, Paul then chose his and I edited these ones and they were my real straight prints which are in my folder.

 Paul chose this picture but I did not because there was a picture of hair blowing in the wind which I preferred, however I edited this picture and put it into black and white so it was of Mapplethorpe's style. I really like this image now that I look at it edited because I like the style of her hair and how the black and white shade alters the the color of her hair from light to dark. I also like the amount of wall left between her hair and the rest of the image as it follows the brief which was picture you wouldn't normally shoot, however like i previously said, I did focus on the composition.

 Paul chose this picture but I did not but I can see why he chose it, it is because of the context of a girl facing a wall, it is not something you would usually photograph because there is nothing to it when looking at it. However the use of black and white and the composition makes it so its actually dark colors contrasting against plain white, and that the girl is not fully in the picture and the top of her is cut off and the side, which makes it seem as if she is not important and perhaps the wall is, which produces a further meaning.



To improve my knowledge on Mapplethorpe I would research him on the internet and get more information on his work rather than about him.

Studio
In this lesson we went into the studio and created pictures based on the style of Robert Mapplethorpe. I enjoyed this lesson, 1 reason being I prefer working in the studio and the 2nd reason being I like having a brief like this to work with. I went to the studio and shot pictures of Amelia. The only props I used was a table and rope tied like a noose, however the table was my main prop as I got Amelia to sit on it through all of the shoot. After shooting I went back into the classroom and put my pictures into contact sheets and then chose my top 4. Paul the chose his and these were the 4 that I edited and put in my folder as straight prints.

 Both Paul and I chose this picture, I chose it because I like the shape of her legs in the position that they were in. I also like the slight shadow formed by her legs on the table. It seems like half of her is consumed by shadow whereas the other half is more in the light. I really like this photo. I put the photo in black and white as it is a typical thing that Mapplethorpe did, so by doing this I felt like a followed the brief more to create a Mapplethorpe inspired shoot.

 Paul chose this picture but I did not, purely for the fact that I thought I had better photos than this one from the shoot, however once I edited this into black and white I did like it. I like the way she looks quite vulnerable however serious at the same time. I also like the way her skin is light against the dark background. On top of this, I also like the composition this picture was took at, I like that it sort of follows the location shoot brief for Mapplethorpe it the way its not something I would usually shoot as a part of her head is chopped off, I think this highlights her facial features and makes them the focal point of the picture, for example, her eyes.


To improve my knowledge on Mapplethorpe I would look at more of his pictures, perhaps on his portraits.