WHAT ARE THE FORMAL ELEMENTS?
Focus:Which areas appear clearest or sharpest in the photograph? Which do not?
Light:Which areas of the photograph are brightest? Are there any shadows? Does the photograph allow you to guess the time of day? Is the light natural or artificial? Harsh or soft? Reflected or direct? Line:Are there objects in the photograph that act as lines? Are they straight, curvy, thin, thick? Do the lines create direction in the photograph? Do they outline? Do the lines show movement or energy? Repetition:Are there any objects, shapes or lines which repeat and create a pattern? |
Shape:Do you see geometric (straight edged) or organic (curvy) shapes? Which are they?
Space:Is there depth to the photograph or does it seem shallow? What creates this appearance? Are there important negative (empty) spaces in addition to positive (solid) spaces? Is there depth created by spatial illusions i.e. perspective? Texture:If you could touch the surface of the photograph how would it feel? How do the objects in the picture look like they would feel? Tone:Is there a range of tones from dark to light? Where is the darkest value? Where is the lightest? |
The photo on the right is a picture of my initial analysis notes after being given a photo from above for my group to analyse,we were not given the date the photo was captured or the name of the photographer. I later had time to research the photo in order to produce a more detailed analysis of the photo. |
The photo I received was is titled and Fifth Avenue,NY, 1975 was taken by the well known street photographer Bruce Gilden and is a part of a set of photos.
The photo appears to show a range of contrast, for example it is able to demonstrate a generation gap as well as an evident difference in colour and patterns. Due to the photo being taken post 1950s tensions regarding racism can also be suggested. A difference is implied not only explicitly through skin colour but also subtly by the photo composition,If a 3x3 grid was overlaid the majority of the central row would be empty which links to the idea of segregation. The darkened background in the black and white image instantly draws your attention to the men in the foreground. The difference in dress sense as well as age may indicate a generation gap. The older man on the left of the image appears proud by his raised head despite being shorter then the other male which should be imitating. From this you could assume that he is a high class businessman, also by his smart outfit and trench coat. The younger male is far taller and wears a heavily contrasting plaid suit which also differs to the striped canopy. The plaid shirt can be seen as a form of rebellion and links to the anti-establishmentarianism era, this is also implied by his foot overstepping into the next row. Something unusual about this photo is that the characters produce little to no shadow which implies they could have been superimposed, also the fact that the man on the right is holding the hand of a child that the photographer chose to crop out although this may be because he wanted the audience to focus on the two men. |
"I'm known for taking pictures very close, and the older I get, the closer I get." |