Degradation of Flowers - Continuous (Shoot 9)

Degradation of Flowers 

Photographers Research - Billy Kidd 

       Billy Kidd shot a series of photographs that showed decaying flowers. The images showed different flowers at stages of decay, slowly showing brown areas and shrivelling up. I liked this work as I believe it displays what I set out to investigate. It is a different and original way of showing how nature changes from full bloom in summer and autumn to dull and lifeless in times like winter, that is why I planned to make a series of images that show a bouquet of flowers slowly decaying. 

Contact Sheet 

Final Image 

       These are my final images, they are collages of the decaying flowers shown in the sequence from beginning to end. I like how this has turned out as the signs of decay are very clear from one photo to the next. I prefer the collage in the black and white edit as I think its blends much better. The reason each of them are slightly different hues in each image is because of the lighting due to it being taken on different days. 

AO1 - Develop ideas through sustained and focused investigations informed by contextual and other sources, demonstrating analytical and critical understanding. 

      During this shoot I was influenced by the work of Billy Kidd. Billy photographs the decaying of flowers but in very close detail. His images are very focused on the colours and shape of the flowers. However, I loosely based my work around his whilst recording the decaying of one bouquet of flower over an extended amount of time. I done this from a distance so my detail isn't as great as Billy's.

AO2 - Explore and select appropriate resources, media, materials, techniques and processes, reviewing and refining ideas as work develops. 

       For this shoot I had to remember where I was taking the image from to avoid huge changes between the photos. Therefore I decided to set the tripod to a certain height and keep it that way throughout. I Kept the surroundings of the flowers the same as I wanted to keep my images uniform. Lastly, I kept the camera settings the same throughout with an ISO 100, F22 and the shutter sped that would match this exposure. Despite some of the colours looking slightly different I think I got the best images I could out of this set-up. I was bound to get some variations due to change sin weather, however I will be working on this in Photoshop. 

AO3 Record ideas, observations and insights relevant to intentions, reflecting critically on work and progress. 

      My images don't match Billy Kidd's work visually as such, instead they hold the same concept as his work. I decided to take my images of a collection of flowers rather than one individual one. I decided to do this because I wanted to show the decaying of nature as a whole, therefore showing a body of flowers decaying at the same rate represents the larger body of nature that deals throughout the winter. One aspect that does relate to Billy Kidd's is the pop of colour, his work shows slight hint of colour in each image, just on the petals. My images are mainly grey, with the bright colour of the flower in the centre, brightening the photo as a whole. 

AO4 - Present a personal and meaningful response that realises intentions and, where appropriate, makes connections between visual and other elements. 

       I believe I have produced a good response to the work I set out to achieve in the beginning. I set out to record the stages of a decaying colours, its slow process from being vibrant and full of life to dull and lifeless. The way I have presented my work is in a collage that shows the sequence from beginning to end, I think this was the best way to display the progression as the viewers eyes are drawn across the photograph following the time passing.