User:Susanna
Self-Directed Research
TRIMESTER 1
Analog photography
I came to the PZI with the intention to learn more about photography and cinematography. So for these first few months I focused my attention on analog photography. I took several pictures with my Lubitel 2 (120mm) and my Praktica (35mm) both with colour and b&w film. As one of the tutors suggested I set myself a challenge: to take 10 photos a day for 10 days and then just look at them and see where this experiment would take me. It was not easy as at first I was stuck with the question on what to photograph. I couldn't find subjects that were interesting enough to capture. After a couple of days I shifted my focus on how to photograph things. I followed some courses on Linda.com about analog photography and I applied some of the suggestions given. Exposure is definitely something I played with, setting the ISO on the camera to a value lower than the one on the film. With the Praktica I also tested with a lens found in a flea market. The Lubitel presented more challenges as it doesn't have an internal light meter. So when I'm using it I always write down what settings I'm using and in what kind of light I am taking the photograph. With the help of the staff from the audiovisual station (and also with more courses on Linda!) I also learnt how to develop film, enlarge and make prints. As I always looked at analog as some sort of mysterious process, learning how to use the dark rooms was really interesting and revealing. The focal camera project perfectly fitted into this research. Being able to build a camera, choosing the lens and making it work was really interesting and clarified a few points. A part from following the instructions of tutors and technicians, and getting more information from the online courses, I have also been reading some books and articles. Some more evidently related to the subject of my research and some less:
- The Photography Handbook - Terence Wright
- The Photography Reader - Liz Wells
- Understanding a Photograph - John Berger
- True Stories - Sophie Calle
- Understanding Media - McLuhan
- The Medium is the Massage - McLuhan
In order to push this research further I will experiment with printing techniques, and with the colour dark rooms now that they are also available. Improving my focal camera is also part of my research.
Thematic projects
Reading and Writing Research Methods
Susanna - Methods/session 1 Three things
Methods/session 2 Self-directed methods