Triptych Project Reflection

For my project I chose to focus on dominance as my principle of design. My first roadblock was actually the process of selecting this focus, though. I spent too long waffling, and that limited my photo and research time. Other than that, some things were out of my hands, such as the lens and camera I wanted to use were unavailable to me. While I can't do much about that, in the future I'll be sure to better prepared and do more research.

The main problem I had was the lighting. My lighting really constrained the types and quality of the pictures I could take. Next time, I'll be sure to take more picutres from varied angles and settings and during different times of day.

In this project, I focused on dominance through flowers. The pictures were taken in my own backyard using a school camera. In the long range photo, I used the lines of the fence to add some repetition while the focus/dominant characteristic was the pink flower. Also, the light helps to move the viewers eyes along to the left (to the orange flower, btu more on that later). The fence was blurred and the focus was crisp and on the flower in order to add a dominant effect. In the straight on picture, I paid great attention to the detail of the flower while using the lines of the fence in order to create a natural, enhancing border. In the final, orange flower pciture, I went in really close to capture the minute details of the flower. While it is slightly blurred, the flower is the focus due to the blurring of the background and the light converging onto it. Also, in each of the photo's there is a primary focus on color to add dominance, with bright colors from the flowers and muted green, gray, or black background. The arrangement of the triptych is meant to focus on each pictures strengths while looping around, creating unity. If the viewer looks at the orange, left flower for example, they might follow the upward curving stem. Then, their eyes, following the curve, may look back down, or to the right, at the top image. There they may come down to the bottom image. The bottom image , with the focus on right, has an open left space. If the viewers eye goes to the left, he or she would return to the orange flower.

The flowers are a type of nature, macro photography. They use a very low aperture and high ISO in order to creat the blurred effect.

Instinctively, I might observe the triptych with a guffaw and hat the meaning is that flfowers are pretty. However, my intent was to portray multiple perspectives on beauty. I really do believe these flowers are beautiful. However, each are different in their own way. The flowers are also the dominant focus since beauty is so easy to focus on- it draws the eye. Also, it makes everything else look better. The top is very similar to the bottom in color, but inperspective, the top is framed for a possibly more cultured beauty while the bottom is seen from afar and is a focus against a background against a bland fence. Interestingly, the fence 's bland character makes the flower more beautiful, but the flower also casts a positive glow onto the fence. Finally, the viewer sees the larger, orange flower. This one is a clear departure from the others. It, however, shows a beauty on the inside or when on looks closer than face value. In other words, beauty is found in multiple perspectives.

I would argue that this triptych is a quality piece of art because it portrays something the author believed was beautiful, meaningful, and worth capturing. Each flower seems to tell a different story, and is malleable in that the viewer can crate any kind of story for the flower. Or maybe I'm just weird in doing that. It is a quality piece of art because it is a representation of an idea and symbol of the author's topic. Compared to other art, this may not have been as polished or focused, but it is beautiful and concise and accurate in its meaning nonetheless, I feel. For these reasons too, the artust was sucessful.

To a new student, I would give the following advice: Start with very clear goals about the elements and principles you want to focus on, but stay flexible. Design is supposed to aid your art, not restrict it. Be sure to take a large quantity of pictures, as with in any project. You will mess up a lot, and having a variety of focus points and perspectives really helps to offset that. Finally, make sure to take photos at multiple times of day.