Altered Portraits

Artist Statement:

The subject of my image is Kasey. This image was made by asking her to stand behind a lilac bush so that a few branches were acting like a frame around her. We experimented with different locations and ideas outside, but unfortunatly, most of them did not develop when processing this roll of film. I, then, processed the chosen print in the dark room by manipulating the developer chemistry to create this altered image (far right). When developing this image, I used a spray bottle and a nozzle to spread around the developer. Around the edges, I wanted it to be less developed and for it to show the developer like raindroplets (bottom left corner & top right corner). I also left some spots in the actual portrait that aren't developed which are by her face. When creating this image, some elements of design used were space; I used the branches to create a frame, as well as fill space. Some compositional techniques used are framing (branches) and rule of thirds (nothing in 1/3, subject in 2/3, branch in 3/3). My project never evolved because I had stuck with the same idea the whole time. The meaning behind this image is be nice to your siblings or else they won't stand in the rain and let you take pictures of them... This relates to my life because Kasey helps me a lot, especially with this project because I had struggled with my camera. One thing I don't like is how a lot of it is developed and overexposed. Although, it looks interesting as its a darker image, it would be a stronger image if there was less developer used/more grey scale.