Documentary Photography Series

These 12 photos were taken to show the spirit of the Hoban softball community. I took these photos both on and off the field to show that the community extends beyond practices and games. I also have taken photos of serious playing and silly comradeship to show that softball players are intense but still have fun. I've used Photoshop to color correct the photos. I've also used blur and monochrome to create a focal point. I've also used a low opacity to give the viewer a deeper understanding of what the softball community is truly about, and created a panorama to place the viewer on the field.

Panorama

American Suburb Photo

-Why did this photo catch your eye?
This photo caught my eye at first because of the words written. The irony is that the letters are written in nice handwriting, but the message has a haunting overtone. The house at first looks as though it is older and quaint, but when you see the broken windows it leaves you wondering what exactly is the memory that this person wants destroyed.

-Describe what the photo shows and is about. Be as detailed as possible. Imagine you are explaining it to someone that has never seen it.
This is a photo of a portion of a red brick house with a grey roof and dark green shutters. The shutters and brick are weather-worn, as though the house is several decades old. The only part the house you can see are about half of each window and the brick in between, which spans maybe 6 feet across, and only one floor of the house is visible. In the brick space between the photos, the words "Destroy this memory" are written in white spray paint, in cursive with neat handwriting. The words are fairly large and the quote is probably about 3 feet in height. The windows, then, do look destroyed, with a couple section of glass broken or missing, trash piled in the left window, and a broken set of white blinds in the other window.

-Imagine you are one of the objects in the photograph. Describe the scene from your point of view. What happened before the photo? What happened immediately after? What's the temperature? What time of day is it? What smells are present? What is the atmosphere like? Are there noises? Do you feel safe or is there a chance of violence?
In this photo I am a window. Before the photo, and several years ago, a girl lived here who had a rough childhood due to fighting with parents. In the ensuing fights that i witnessed, the inside of the house was neglected and trashed. Years later, the girl is an adult, still haunted by the memories of her bad childhood. The house has been abandoned for years now and neighborhood kids have thrown rocks to break me. The girl writes "destroy this memory" to help her mind get rid of the memories. When this picture is taken, it was a cool day in fall, around noon-time and the weather is cloudy. It smells musty and unpleasant, probably from something left behind on the inside of the house. The atmosphere is eerie and quiet, it is in a poor, old neighborhood. People are around but pay no attention. I do not feel safe, because the stillness inside the house and the knowledge that i am wide open to any intruder hints that someone or perhaps some animal may be inside.

Photoshop Tools Questions

1. What type of brush must be used when layer masking and clone stamping?
A: The brush must be soft-edged, either 0% hardness or near 0% hardness.

2. What key on the keyboard is pressed to select an area to be cloned when using the Clone Stamp tool?
A: Option

3. Explain the difference between making a selection with the Lasso tool and creating a Path with the Pen tool.
A: The Lasso tool is free hand, and once you have released the mouse-click you can no longer edit the line, meaning that errors are common. Making a Path with the Pen tool allows you to make anchor points, do small sections at a time, and edit the path after finished so that it is more accurate.

4. What is the benefit of using a Layer Mask as opposed to using an Eraser?
A: A Layer Mask will essentially erase, but then you also have the ability to unmask that section as well, in case you masked ("erased") too much. With an eraser, though, you cannot recover what you erase unless you hit the "undo" key.

5. What is "non-destructive" editing and why is it an important approach for a photographer using Photoshop? 
A: Non-destructive editing is editing a photograph in a way that the changes can be undone and reverted back to the original form. This is important for a photographer using Photoshop because if the client is not pleased with the work, the photographer can change it back.

Ethics of Retouching

1. What ethical considerations must be made by someone using Photoshop to retouch a portrait photograph? 
     Photoshop is a very useful tool to enhancing a photo portrait, but it comes with a negative drawback. By changing the photo drastically, the person using Photoshop may reinforce a negative self-esteem in the subject. This is because they are saying the only way to look beautiful in their photo is to retouch it. Furthermore, it is as if they are saying that the person in their natural appearance is not good enough. Therefore, using Photoshop to point out and correct flaws is a sure way to make the subject feel more self-concious.

2. Give an example of a positive use of photo retouching and a negative use of photo retouching.
     A positive use of photo retouching could be in yearbook pictures, especially senior pictures. For example, say a boy with very bad skin got their yearbook picture retouched. Then, it would be published for everyone in the school to see, and classmates will look at that picture years from now to remember the student. For that boy, the retouching will boost his confidence and give him a picture he is not ashamed of. 
     A negative use of photo retouching is the heavy editing done in magazines and advertisements. They look so believable that girls may try to compare themselves to them. It can lower their self-esteem and self-confidence, in some cases even causing them to take drastic measures to change themselves. Yet, they are striving for something that is unachievable.

3. Has learning retouching processes caused you to look at advertisements, magazine images and other published photos of celebrities and models differently? In what ways?
    The retouching process certainly caused me to look at this images differently. When we retouched the image of the dancer, she originally was pretty but had several flaws. However, when we were done, she looked possibly good enough to be published in a magazine. This made me realize just how much editing a photographer must do in order to get any image published. Also, when I edited the picture of myself, I originally thought it was a decent picture. However when I looked at the edited version, it seemed unnatural to me even though my teeth were whiter, my skin was smoother, my freckles were gone, and the scar on my lip was erased. It was fake and not me, and I did not like it. I feel that most celebrities are born naturally beautiful, but the images we see are quite fake, and I know I do not have to try to compare myself to those unnatural photos.

Self Portrait Retouch

Me- Before

Me- After

Dancer Retouch

Retouch 1- Before

Retouch 1- After

Old Woman Repair

Repair 2- Before

Repair 2- After

Retouch 1- After

Retouch 1- Before