Assignment 5: explanation

Thanks to a lovely fellow student, I have realised that I might have been a bit rash in my previous past (thanks Eileen!!). I have not clarified why I don't like some of the images I presented, and perhaps I have a larger set of potential images than I first thought before. I guess I was being swayed heavily by the requirement to produce 12 images for the assignment, so naturally I had to only choose 12 out of my potential set of circa 46 images.

I think I had quite a clear idea in my mind of what I wanted to capture initially when I started this project, so naturally I was biased by this when deciding what was and wasn't acceptable in the final images, but perhaps I should question this assumption. I do still prefer the images where I have gone back and photographed without the really prominent bins in the front of the houses. Just because I think they are not as aesthetic. The same goes for the cars - they detract from the clean lines of the house, and unbalance the images for me, particularly when they are off-centrered. However, perhaps a couple of them could work.I revisited the image below to see how it might look with some minor processing applied (levels and slight increase in blue saturation).

house 'villa elba'

It actually works quite well despite the cars in the foreground, though I do feel the balance is somewhat off and too focused on the car in the foreground, whereas my interest is on the house in the background. I also notice the prominence of the trees in the foreground which is not necessarily a problem, though the one on the right looks a little sad!

I think in reconsideration, the set of houses with trees in the foreground is actually worth working up as a second set, as it presents well together. I also will work on some of the other 'reject' images and then make my final decision when I have a bunch of prints in front of me, rather than just files on the computer screen. I need to go through the process of working on a large number of images together to see which ones work cohesively before I make a final editing decision and lock my thoughts in. I also remember reading that it was worth sticking your images upside down on the fridge for a while and letting them mull over in your mind before finally deciding what works and what doesn't. Perhaps if I can find room on our fridge I will do that also!! I certainly want to present a good set for the assignment, but if the complete set can be larger and still be good images then surely that is preferable? I think the process is important here, and I want to make sure I go through all the elements and maybe even lay out 20 or 30 good (final) prints on the floor and consider how they fit together as a presentable set for the final assignment.I  do want to continue on to the next level for my photography studies, so I need to practice these skills of choosing and fitting the images together as I hold them in my hands.

Back to the drawing board then! And more Photoshop hours ahead straightening and tidying and getting the images in order!