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Photojournalism & Assignment 4: Reflective Journal

How did this learning experience contribute to my academic development? 

In terms of academia, I think the main thing that I learned is that you cannot just hand up work and expect to get a good mark. In order to get a good mark in an assignment you must prepare, develop and critically analyse a project, ‘phoning it in’ just doesn’t work. You must think out a concept and work on it in order to get the results. 

What obstacles did I encounter? What was the source of these obstacles?

I definitely encountered limitations in my own understanding of what good work was. This was mainly down to a lack of effort on my part. At the beginning of the module I didn’t put enough effort in to my work, I didn’t consider it or develop it and until I changed my mindset and began to work harder I knew I wouldn’t receive a good mark. I also encountered limitations in my equipment; namely for sports photography. You need a much better camera for that than the one I have but when it was suggested I focus on the subjects private life rather than his basketball ability the project became a lot easier. 

What does this learning experience tell me about my academic path and goals? Are they suitable goals? Am I on the right track?

It showed me that no matter what the project is, whether it be photography or the written word, I must apply myself and put the work in developing a concept for it to be successful. My goal, in academia, is to get a good degree - hopefully a first. I will apply what I have learned here to my thesis preparation and development of concepts within that, which will make it more likely that I will receive a good mark. I think that I am on the right track to do this. I am capable of doing so and I know that if I apply these ideas of development I will do achieve my goals. 

What does this learning experience mean to me? What does it matter if I fail or succeed?

This learning experience has made me work a little harder in each aspect of my life. It has somewhat made me realise the seriousness of the situation that I am in. I have paid for each year of my college tuition fees. That is over €10,000 in fees. I cannot afford to fail or get a bad mark next year when it counts towards my final mark in my degree. I must continue to do extensive work in order to be successful in my degree and achieve my goal in academia. 

What does this learning experience tell me about myself?

I think it has taught me that I have the ability and drive to work hard but also a tendency to relax at times throughout the academic year and I need to address that. I need to take responsibility for and stand over my work and keep improving it in order to reach my goal, whatever that may be. I think I am capable of it but it does and will require total focus in order to achieve it. 

What do I know about myself? Am I living the most as myself? 

I know that I am a person of strong will and character and that I can light a fire within myself to achieve whatever I set out to do. I think working a minimum wage job in order to pay for my tuition fees says a little bit about this. In regards to the second question, I think that I am doing the most that I can do. I am considerate of others and of my own goals and am quite aware of what I am doing on a moment-to-moment basis. All I can do is further develop my skills, take and create opportunities for myself and continue to apply each learning situation to my psyche in order to improve in what I am doing. 

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Repetition revs Murphy towards starting role

Murphy flaunts his Molten Player of the Month ‘Golden Balls’

“Every day is pretty much the same for me” the Templeogue star explains as he tightens up his motorbikes midsection, his every move shadowed by his dog, Theo “I get up at eight, eat, go to the gym, go into college or work, eat, draw or touch up my bike eat again, then go to the gym again at night to get some shots up and come back and eat some more.”

His house echoes that sentiment. Full of art, trophies and motorbikes, there is much more to Murphy than just basketball. But basketball is a good place to start. A simple search of his name on YouTube shows you all you need to know; an amalgamation of arm-in-the-hoop style highlights that, at just 22 years of age, have cemented him as one of the most prolific athletes in Irish basketball history.

The early highlight tapes tell a different story, however - one of a frail, lanky kid that hadn’t yet grown into his frame. “I weighed about 70 kilos in 6th year, which was pretty light considering I was 6’2, so that’s something that I have definitely had to work on, I had to put the hours in at the gym to get my body right to play at this level. I couldn’t do what I do at that weight.”

The Irish star always watches what he eats

So what does he do? This season, Murphy, now with a man’s physique and weighing in just below 90 kilograms, became the first indigenous player in Irish Basketball History to be awarded the ‘ Molten Player of the Month’ accolade twice in a row in the Superleague - Ireland’s top division. He tore up the Superleague, to the tune of 22 points and 7 rebounds a game, and was a monster in the team’s league deciding game against Kieran Donaghy’s Tralee Warriors, inspiring his team to come back from a 22-6 first quarter deficit to win by a basket, scoring 36 of his team’s 90 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. His rare year caught the eye of new Irish men’s coach Peter Strickland, who has awarded him a starting role as the team prepare for games against Luxembourg, Wales and Scotland this summer.

Behind the basketball star is a man with an equal passion for art - he is in the final year of a Fine Art degree at IADT - and motorbikes. “I’ve always painted and drawn and been into tattoos; I used to be a street artist in my wilder days, but it’s a bit strange for a 22 year old to be going out to town and spray-painting walls, so I just do some pieces around my garden now...the snake is an idea of a Japanese-style sleeve tattoo that I’ll probably get in the next few years. I want to be covered in them.”

Murphy finishes his snake; his dog Theo seems to have spotted an intruder

The motorbike stuff came from his dad, Mark, who runs a bike shop with his brother Mervin along Bray beach. “I’ve always wanted a bike, but my dad has seen it all and wouldn’t let me get one until I was 21 and responsible. Even at that he made me go through so many lessons with him until he saw that I was capable of driving one safely. Legally I can only have a beginners bike at the moment but in two years I’ll be fully qualified and I’ll be able to get something a bit quicker. I look forward to that.”

Changing the oil on his prized Honda CB400

Will art and motorbikes take a back seat with his most important summer in an Irish jersey on the horizon? “Nah, nothing changes. My routine has gotten me this far and I’ll keep riding it out until I can’t any longer.”

Dark side of the goon: One of his college submissions

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Assignment Three: Book Cover Project

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And some more...

Project is due on Friday giving me just a few more days to shoot. Heres some more great covers.

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Some more book covers

Spent a good deal of time shooting over the past three days. Still a few more days of shooting to go. Here are some more book covers that I have been looking at to take some inspiration from.

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More interesting book covers

I plan to upload my first iteration Wednesday evening and these are some covers that have given me inspiration. Most of them are vivid fluorescent and I think that the more I delve into photography and think about it the more I am drawn to bright and busy images.

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Interesting book covers

I start shooting for this project tomorrow. Here is a short list of book covers that are inspiring.

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Five point guide to taking portraits

1. Take care of the background and the subject will take care of itself. If the background is busy, ensure that it’s busy for a reason. Make sure there is nothing that distracts unnecessarily from the subject.

2. Pay attention to how the portrait is framed. Ensure there isn’t too much negative space on either side of the subject or above and below them.

3. Use a shallow depth of field when necessary. It will put the focus on your subject and not the background.

4. Consider your subjects personality. If your subject is chic or edgy, don’t shoot him like a business man. Their personality should reflect in the image. Find their quirks and use them to your advantage.

5. If your subject is doing something in the portrait - like reading or writing for example - actually get them to read or write. If they are pretending to read or write, the image will most likely look stale or fake as most people can’t act very well.

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Reflective Journal: Assignment 2

Assignment two was interesting. For the first time I got thinking about photographs and how they work. I got thinking about a camera and how it is used. I am beginning to understand the importance of the background. The background can’t take away from the subject. If it is busy it must add to the photograph. This took some trial an error but eventually I got backgrounds that worked. When they were busy, like in the social interaction photo, I thought they added to the image. I think I should of used a shallower depth of field more often to draw attention to the subject. I’ve only realized in the last week that our eyes work like depth of field does. When our eyes focus on a particular thing the surroundings are more blurred. I had never considered that before. That must be what makes a shallow depth of field so widely used and so visually appealing. The biggest difference between my first and second shoots was probably the use of depth of field and implementation of framing. The feedback I got was that my shots were too wide and so I made a particular focus in both the second shoot and the editing stages to ensure there was not too much negative space surrounding the subject. This was particularly true with the portrait photos as they were far too wide and I didn’t realise at first. I had seen plenty of great images before undergoing the assignment but had never thought about what it takes to create one. Not that I created anything great but I now understand some of the factors to consider when trying to make an image great. I think this is fundamental in my gravitation towards film - something that I want to make when I finish this course. An understanding of not just noticing what works but what it takes to create something that works is important. Assignment two was a good stepping stone towards my greater ambitions.

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Profile of student journalist Lee Shields

My subject, Lee Shields, is a creative, edgy and vibrant kind of guy. The first image, for use as a profile shot on his Twitter or Facebook page, encapsulates these aspects of his personality. A lover of art and the vitality that comes with it, Lee’s intense eyes brim with flare and passion exudes from his chest as he stares down the camera. He is engulfed by colour – bright purples an blues surround him and scream to us his effervescent personality. Photo number two is a nod to Lee’s alter-ego. Still bright and eccentric, Lee pairs his funky style with a gritty work ethic as this time the camera observes him writing an article for a deadline that he just has to meet. Image three, to borrow from the book of clichés, is Lee in his natural habitat – his back garden. When at home he loves to spend time in his slice own slice of nature – sitting at peace between trees and bushes. The heavy black and green imagery surrounds his head as the silence and serenity of his surroundings engulf his mind and peacefulness is achieved. The final photograph shows Lee’s ability to make everyone in the room smile. His non-intrusive sense of humour sneaks in to conversations and lightens moods even as he points out something of interest in a newspaper that he helped to create.

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Reflective Journal: Time Capsule

This week we had to submit our time capsule project. It was an interesting process. I used the information learned in class - such as how to light a photograph and ensured that the backgrounds of the photographs weren’t too busy or placed in a way so that they would take away from the image. I find learning about how to shoot quite beneficial as my goal is to get into film production and learning about how a camera works is a major part of it. I think that the focus on the importance of lighting and background in this module will surely be beneficial to me in the future. This is the first time I have even thought about the photos I am taking, what they mean and how I can use them to express an idea or a theme. This project has been a good first step for me. While I think that my collection of photographs is reasonably well done, I made several mistakes in the processing stage - mostly involving a failure to follow instructions on how to save the photographs and the catalogue. I also deleted the images that I am not using. For future projects I will process the images the way I have been asked in order to make it easier to process and upload them. 

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My Time Capsule

Jar of Heinz ‘Seriously Good’ Mayonnaise: I have chosen this as I am passionate about mayonnaise. I eat it with almost every meal. They say you are what you eat and I can truly say that mayonnaise is apart of me.

Painting of Powerscourt Waterfall:  I am including this painting of Powerscourt Waterfall as I was given it by a dear friend for my birthday and it encapsulates a great day we spent together there.

’94 Spray paint can: I have chosen to include a spray paint can in the time capsule to give a nod to my love of street art –  in both a creative and appreciative sense of it.

 Timberland boots: I have chosen this pair of Timberland Boots as I am rarely without them. Mountains, countries and clubs have all been explored as I’ve worn them. They have a perfect balance of both brash and beauty.

My wall decorations: Various posters, concert tickets and drawings decorate my bedroom wall; each of them holding some sort of sentimental value or some kind of message. I am including this as it acts as a reminder of the events and symbols that have helped to shaped my personality.

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Class One

It was an interesting start to advanced photojournalism. I liked that there was not so much an emphasis on photojournalism itself, but how we learn in general and the different stages of learning ranging from understanding to actually creating something. It’s always better when a subject isn’t bound by borders and flows into other aspects of the course. I’m curious to see what else photojournalism has to offer in the coming weeks.

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My name is Andrew Barnes and I am a writer. Although I am a journalism student, my passion lies in screenwriting. I wrote and directed a mini web-series, ‘Everyday’. last year, and I am currently developing a screenplay. My coming blog posts will let you know a little bit more about me.