Hands

This picture is from a photographer named 'John Coplans' and it shows a hand that is making an eccentric shape. The way that the photographer took this photo highlights the coarse textures of his hand and the lighting is coming from the top which accentuates the form of the shape. The photo makes use of most of the space in the photo but leaves space in the edges to show the curves of his hand.

This photo was taken by a photographer named 'John Dominis' and it shows two African-American athletes raising their fists with a black glove in the Olympics. These athletes are 'Tommie Smith' and 'John Carlos'  and they are saluting for "human rights" and it highlights the mistreatment black people experienced during that time. 

This is a photograph of the famous boxer 'Muhammad ALI' and this photo was taken by 'Thomas Hoepker.' This photo is quite unique and it stands out to me because it is focusing on his hands rather than the person.

This photo is a stock image I found on Google and it shows a shadow of a dog because the light is pointing at the person's hands. We can see that this photograph emphasizes the abstract forms that our hands morph into and it influences us to try it for ourselves because of its surreal appearance. This photo is shot in monochrome to accentuate the dark shadow and it makes the light less distracting, and this photograph is great at showing the specific form of the hands and it highlights the shape of the dog that was created by the shadow of the hands. Also, this photo makes me wonder if there are more shapes that our hands can make to create intricate shadows.

Moodboard

My Hand Sketch V.1

Shoot #1

This photo is underexposed.

This photo can be improved by removing the hair bobble on the wrist because it is distracting

This photo can be improved by taking the picture from the right instead of parallel to the subject, because we only take focus on the shadow instead of the hands being the main focus. 

This photo can be improved by getting closer to the subject.

This image stands out to me compared to the rest of the photos in the shoot because it emphasizes more on the shadow being conjured by the hands and the directional light drags our eyes to the shadow.

Shoot #2

These photo can bring more impact if the surface has no scratches or blemishes that 

What I like about this photo is how the shadow is subtle, the hand and the shadow both fit in the frame, and the hand points upward where the shadow resides.

This photo can be improved by removing the blue streak across the hand.

This photo can be improved by cropping the picture until the white sleeve is not in the frame.

This photo can be improved if the other fingers are facing into the frame instead of below the frame.

This photo can be improved if I give the subject more room to prevent the subject from touching the edge.

This photo can be improved if I remove the blue streak on my arm, removing the white blemishes on the bottom right of the frame, and by giving the subject more room because the subject is touching the edge of the frame.

Shoot #3

This photo is underexposed. 

Both of these photos can be improved if I took the picture at an angle instead of taking it parallel to the subject

Both of these photos can be improves if the hand is the focus of the frame instead of the shadow. Next time, I will try to get down lower to take the photos to show the hands or take the pictures at a right angle to show the hand and make use of the directional light.

These three photos can be improved by changing the positioning of the hands and how it faces away from the frame. Next time, I will make sure to position the hands towards the middle of the frame.

Contact Sheet

I edited my favourite picture in Photoshop. I made the background darker and made the hand brighter. For my next shoot, I will position the hands a bit higher to prevent the shadow and the hand to touch.

For my next plan, I will try to experiment with my idea of casting a shadow on the hands and try to include props that the hand is holding.  

Shoot #4

Before edited in Photoshop

After edited in Photoshop #2

After edited in Photoshop # 1

WWW:  The shadow of the hand and the bottle are the main focus of the photo shoot because it is in the middle of the frame. The hand is on the top third of the photo while the shadow of the hand is on the bottom third of the photo. Our eyes start looking at the hand and then we look at the shadow because the shadow takes up more space in the frame than the hand. I used a cone attachment on the light to concentrate the light onto the background to create a spotlight which casts a harsher shadow.

EBI: Since there are multiple subjects in the frame, our eyes don''t know where to look and the colorful rocks in the glass are distracting.

EBI: 

What have you done to ensure that your most recent image is better than your last?

I made sure that the subject and the shadow weren't overlapping each other by positioning the hand much higher so that the shadow is much lower than the hand.

Plan V2:

Shoot #5

Ideas for next shoot:


Shoot #6

This image is the best one in this shoot. The shadow of  the hand and the bottle leads our eyes to the glass on the center. I use the rule of thirds by positioning the hand on the top right and the bottle is pointing into the frame and into the glass on the middle. Since the shadow is the subject of the frame, it takes up the positive space in the image while leaving negative space which highlights the size of the glass. The line in the background leads our eyes from the hand to the glass. The lighting is from the right, it highlights the form of the glass and highlights the shape of the hand and bottle. I can improve on this image by getting rid of the blemishes on the photo.