Universal themes.

We started to look at Universal themes.

This is when there is a connecting theme within different themes, E.G. You could have different types of Photography like; Wedding, Sport and Fashion and they could all have the Universal Theme of 'The Human Form'.

There are 6 main Universal Themes:

-The Human Figure
-Environment (Natural and Man Made)
-Flora and Fauna
-Events (Personal, Communal and Historical)
-The Fantastic and Strange (Myth, Metamorphosis and Dream)
-The Abstract (Form and Meaning)

There are also Formal Elements to be considered. These are as followed:

-Line: 'A record of a path of motion.'-Moholy Nagy
-Shape: 2D, 3D, Perspective and Forms
-Texture: The tactile quality of the medium and surfaces displayed
-Space: The layout of elements, Perspective and Composition
-Tone: Light and Dark, Shadow and Gradation
-Colour: Emotions, Senses, Moods and Psychology


I had a go at taking photos that fit these themes, here is what I came up with:

Flora and Fauna

I really like this picture. I like how there is the one flower in the center in focus while the others around it aren't. This is also a great display of one of the Formal Elements, colour.

A beautiful blossom bush.

 I like how it focused on the dog and the lead is not in focus. You can still see how it is twisted.

This is our puppy, Millie. 

This is a photo of a mouse we caught in my brothers room. It was a cute little thing and I decided to get a shot before we let it go. I think it captures how scared it was.

Looked out of my window one morning and there was a cat sat on a roof. Thought it would make a cool photo.

Environment

This is a photo o one of the buildings at college. I took it at an angle because I thought it captured the shape beautifully and really exaggerated it.

Again man made. But I just loved the shape of this fence and decided to get a picture as I walked past.

 This is a picture of a birdhouse taken by looking through a hole in a fence. I wasn't sure whether or not it would work but I think it looked quite cool in the end. It looks like your looking through a telescope.

The Fantastic and Strange (Myth, Metamorphosis and Dream)

I was looking out my window and saw that the moon was very visable so I took some photographs because I thought it was fitting for Fantasic and Myth.

There is lots of myth surrounding the moon, like the way it has total control over the tide of the sea.

I have always thought of clouds as being mythical and strange. They are all so beautiful and different and just hang there.

Dream catches are very mysterious and surrounded in myth. I have on hanging above my bed for the same reason everyone else does, because I have ben told and believe that they capture bad dreams and protect your mind.

I was sat on the sofa at home and my dad turned the small lamp on, in the corner of the room, and I just saw this shape appear from the shadow of these merit cards. I think it looks like the head of a dragon or some kind of lizard. I thought it was amazing that my mind had created a dragon shape out of a shadow.

The Human Figure

The lence flare in this shot is really pretty. 

I love this photo. There was a woman and her dog in the background and I told my friend to pretend to eat her, like a giant.

Events

Being diabetic, I have to inject myself with insulin every morning and every evening. It is a daily event in my life.

This is a photo I took and edited on Photoshop to make it look really old and vintage. I wanted it to look like an old war time photo, like someone saying goodbye to a lover and they have lay out all the things that gave them great memories. I think it works really well for the theme 'Events' because it is war related.

Abstract

Beads are always a great thing to photograph close up for an abstract picture.

These beads are part of a necklace of mine and I thought it would look really great if I just had a few of them in the shot.

I love the pattern of wool I just think it looks so cool close up. Almost like tiny mountains. These are very abstract photos that I have taken of my scarf I am knitting.

Kim Weston.

Kim has been a fine art nude photographer for over 30 years. He is a third-generation member of one of the most important and creative families in photography.

Education

He learned his craft assisting his father Cole in the darkroom making gallery prints from his grandfather Edward’s original negatives. Kim also worked for many years as an assistant to his uncle Brett, whose bold, abstract photographs rank as some of the finest example.

I love how he portrays the female form.

Taken from: http://www.kimweston.com/