Transcript
Page 1: Landscape photography research

Unit 57: Photography and Photographic Practice

Research of other photographers work (P1, M1, D1)

Photographer: Adam Burton

Washed Away

The Fforest Fawr

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The Inbetweeners

Old Soldiers

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Valley of The Ten Peaks

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Winds of Smoking Mountains

Theme or focus of images

Adam Burton is a professional landscape photographer who has photographed 5 of the 7 continents and now specializes in landscapes of the UK and favours in the rich colours of dawn and dusk when the natural light is more special.

Image One - Washed Away:

This image was taken at a beach at hope cove in Devon. Adam chose specifically to stand at an angle in order to capture the water, along with the sand, rocks, cliffs and the sky. It is clear from the colours within the photo such as the red and blue tones in the sky along with the small amount of vibrant yellow that the time of day in which this photo was taken was during sunset. The main focus of this particular photo is the land itself and the sea rather than the sky, taking into consideration the fact that three quarters of the frame consists of the land and sea whereas only a quarter of the frame consists of the sky. The rocks within the image are sharp and detailed in contrast to the water which is blurred therefore creating a sense of motion and therefore giving the impression that the waves are crashing onto the shore and hitting the rocks therefore when viewing this photo I get the impression that Adams intentions was to capture the motion of the sea crashing onto the shore and pulling the sand back into the tide, this is also anchored by the fact that Adam chose to name this particular image "Washed

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Away".

Image Two - The Fforest Farw:

This image is of the river Tawe in Brecon Beacons in South Wales. Although I am not entirely sure what time this photo was taken, taking into consideration the blue sky and lighting it is clear that it was taken during the day and in terms of seasons it suggests that this image was taken during either spring or summer. Like the previous photograph "Washed Away" the main focus of this image is the water and the land due to the majority of the frame consisting of this and only a small amount consisting of the sky, however I feel the main focus is the river itself due to the fact that the composition of the photograph suggests that Adam was stood in the river with the water rushing towards him. Also like the previous photograph the grass and rocks within the image are clear and detailed in contrast to the water which is blurred therefore giving a sense of fast motion, giving the impression that Adams intentions was to capture the motions of the water within the river.

Image Three - The Inbetweeners:

This photograph was taken at Bossington Beach, Exmoor. It is clear from the Pink, yellow and dark blue tones in the sky that this photograph was taken during Sunset. Unlike Adams previous images that I have looked at, although this photograph was taken on a beach, there is very little focus on the sea, it focuses predominately on the pebbled beach and specifically the groynes which have pebbles wedged in between them. Although there is very little focus on the sea I feel that this image has an underlining meaning relating to the strength and force of the sea, due to the fact that Adam chose to focus specifically on the groynes which have pebbles wedged tightly between them, which would of been caused by the force of the water hitting the groynes, this is also anchored due to the fact that Adam chose to name this image "The Inbetweeners". The colours within this image automatically create a soft and warm toned look and therefore evokes a feeling of optimism and passion.

Image Four - Old Soldiers:

Like the last image I looked at "The Inbetweeners" this photograph was also taken on a beach in Exmoor, It is very similar to the last image, in the sense that it focuses specifically on the groynes with pebbles wedged in between them, however in this image there is a lot more focus on the sea itself. However the main difference is that this image consists of cool colours in contrast to the previous image which consisted of warm colours, therefore although its very similar to the previous photo, therefore this image evokes different emotions such as calmness and relaxation.

Image Five - Valley of The Ten Peaks

This image is of Moraine Lake in Canada, focusing on the lake itself along with trees in the foreground and mountains in the background. This is one of my favourite photographs taken by Adam due to the fact I feel that the emphasized cold colours not only anchor the cold, chilling location where this photograph was taken but also evokes a relaxing and calming feeling. By using a water reflection technique within this photograph by having the mountains reflected in the lake, I feel it makes the photo more interesting and anchors the stunning location. The

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small amount of light hitting the top right of the mountains gives me the impression that this image was taken during early morning, when the sun was rising.

Image Six - Winds of Smoking Mountains:

This image is of El Chalten, Patagonia, Argentina. Unlike the previous images I looked at this particular image features a lot of green, focusing specifically on the greenery, creating a well balanced and natural image. Although i am not entirely sure what time this photo was taken, it is clear from the vibrant colours that it was taken during the day, however due to the dark skies i get the impression that this photograph would have been taken during spring and that on this particular day the weather was overcast. CompositionDue to the fact that Adam Burton is a landscape photographer he does not have the benefit of being able to move and manipulate his subject. However I feel that he effectively takes his photograph at angles and frames the images in ways that are pleasing to the eye and to anchor the intentions of taking the photograph and the messages conveyed within the images. For example when taking the image "The Fforest Fawr" Adam Burton decided to stand in the river with the river directly facing him to anchor the motion of the water rushing towards him, along with choosing to include other elements such as grass running along either side of the river. Techniques used

A number of Adam Burtons images including "Washed Away" and "The Fforest Farw" feature moving water which is blurred in order to anchor the motion of the water, therefore when taking these particular images Adam would have used a slow shutter speed setting of approximately 1/2 a second or lower.

From looking at the image "Winds of Smoking Mountains" it is clear from the dark sky that the weather was very overcast, meaning that there wouldn't of been as much light available as there would of been on a sunny day, however the vibrant colour of the greenery and the lighting within the image suggests that is was a sunny day, therefore I get the impression that when taking this image Adam would of used a larger aperture opening meaning that the camera was more sensitive to the light. Strengths & WeaknessesI really like the composition of Adam Burtons Photographs as I feel they are pleasing to the eye and interesting. I also really like the fact that Adam uses a slow shutter speed to blur motion, which will influence my own work. I also like the fact that the colours throughout his images tend to be vibrant and engaging.


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