Postcard Project
Setting:Trials on the Elk Mountains
Issue/Problem:It is common for humans to fall into a daily pattern or rhythm causing us to become zombies by our own choosing. Not taking the necessary time to pause and enjoy our thoughts and imaginations, free of any outside pressures or influences that supposedly tell us what we can and cannot see.
Relevance: It seems at times truly free thought and imagination are push aside as childish or a nuisance, when in reality that is our minds time to relax and unwind.
Goal:I hope to encourage or even remind you that genuine thought and time to yourself is vital for a healthy mind.
Growing up and maturing as an individual is no small feat. In regards to myself as well as many others that I have spoken with, we have been sculpted to believe that out of anything, our one goal in life should be to attain a well paying job. And anything getting in the way of achieving that goal is secondary or inferior and should be pushed aside. Though I do whole heartedly believe that working to achieving a secure, in some cases, “family supporting” job may be very important, it becomes an issue when that task involves sacrificing our own conscious mind.
The frightening thing is that many people, including myself, at times get lost in this trance like state where we become numb to everything around us. We go through the days “in a grind” not batting an eye. When we catch ourselves daydreaming or letting our mind free, a self conscious thought may arise telling us to get back on track or we don’t have time for that. In some cases the act of daydreaming or let our mind wander has even been given a negative connotation and characterized as a disorder. I believe it is our minds natural process to wander and explore all that it has experienced.
The following postcards are a few examples of ways in which I attempted to re create a scene that I let play out in my head. Tailored using tools learned through photoshop are times when I did not judge myself for letting my mind wander or letting any other preconceived notions control my imagination.
Postcard #1
The first image was originally a photo I had taken of a small stream that we had hiked across. There was a large bolder embedded right in the middle of the stream causing the glass like water to split around it. As I took a moment to listen and gaze at the flowing water I began to wonder what this particular moment would look like if this natural feature in the mountain stream was to envelope my entire view. In response to that I replicated that specific feature in the stream many times over allowing the water to continue to flow but at the same time expand back into space.
Postcard #2
The second image is depicting a moment in which my friends and I took a break from hiking and found a clearing on the trail where we were able to have lunch. As I was sitting there, I was in awe of the unbelievable detail and serene feeling that was in real life and right in front of me. I had a thought that is now ironic to think about but a thought that what I was looking at was somehow compositionally photoshopped. My perception of the view was enhanced by noticing how much was actually in my field of vision but at the same time how everything within my field of vision fit perfectly together. Everything was just seemingly “too” perfect as if to be a scene from a movie. Because of that I thought to try and toy with the perception of reality. By taking such a vast and detailed image and adding imaginary components to either scale the image down or completely blow the imaginary images way out of realistic proportion while still keeping the detail of the original landscape. Both viewpoints can be decided by the viewer.
Postcard #3
The third image is another perspective of the same stream that I used for the first postcard. Because I was so intrigued by this natural occurrence in the water, I decided to take many photos from different angles. Another way in which I was able to let my mind wander free of judgement was to imagine ways in which everything that I was looking at would talk to me in an attempt to relate. At the time of the photo, my friends and I had been hiking for hours and were starting to get very hot. So stumbling across this cool temperature mountain stream was a perfect break. If it were not for the fact that I would have had to continue hiking for miles soaking wet after the stop by the stream, I would have put myself right in place with the bolder and let the cold water run around my body. Which is exactly what I imagined the rock was doing.
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Class exercises
The quote was a bit weird for the message coming across, but the simplicity of each card was nice. It leaves it so you can fully focus on each image without getting lost on any extra objects or colors.
ReplyDeleteFirst off, these photos are beautiful! There is no doubt that you are skilled in photoshop and have a lot of creativity! Your photos provoke dialogue and thought so they are very successful!
ReplyDeleteI like the second post card the best, it is nice that there are different focus points that the eye travels to and from.
ReplyDeleteI really like your second image. I think that the use of the eye inside the clouds is very interesting and I didn't notice it when I first looked at it. I also really enjoy the colors in this image and the almost foggy effect on it. I also really enjoy the huge goldfish that is jumping in the pond.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed postcard #2. Beautiful photograph, with added elements that create mystery and fantasy like the face in the sky and fish out of water. The face/eye in the sky to me conveys a person sneaking a peek at the beautiful movie-like, perfect place, as if the place is so perfect and beautiful that we are lucky to even get a glance at it.
ReplyDeleteI like the second postcard, it really makes you look twice at the scene. The guy peaking out behind the clouds was very creative and the photograph transports me to this spot.
ReplyDeleteI like your second postcard. I like the way the fish is coming out of the water. I also like how the orange of the fish stands out against the background.
ReplyDeleteThe first postcard is a really great use of repetition! the rocks start to look like alien heads coming out of the rock. its really kind of ominous and geometric! its great!
ReplyDeleteI liked the second postcard because of the elements added to it. The face in the sky seemingly looking down at the observer makes me think of introspection. The jumping fish makes me think about forcing yourself to leave your comfort zone and experience new things and break out of routines and ruts.
ReplyDeleteThe second image is very effective. There is a subtle yet fantastic transformation and it is done seamlessly. I would like to see the text blend into the rock more in the third postcard. Very nicely done overall.
ReplyDeletethe first picture is bar far my favorite- it looks like a massive snake head staring at me! the glistening water is a good, light contrast, and the green looks very geometric which contrasts with the nature aspect.
ReplyDelete