Constructed Scene

Throughout photography's history, one of the great debates in photography has been "what photography should be." There are photographs which strive to be objective, to simply record "reality as it is," with as little intervention as possible. Then there are pictures that require the photographer to assemble the image, directing toward a certain desired effect or result.

For this exercise, you will try the latter, staging or constructing the scene which you are to photograph. For example, some photographers take their cues from cinema, directing their "actors" within a specific setting. These kinds of photographs often imply narrative. (Some of these photographers even act as set-builders, constructing the entire scene.) There are still other photographers who choose to create an assemblage, or a constructed object or environment which they then photograph. An assemblage may be abstract. An example might be to start with a group of materials (eg. 50 brass thumbtacks, 10 pink pearl erasers, and a used basketball from Goodwill), and then see what you can make with these materials.

Think about...
- How constructed photography normally strives toward a desired effect
- Intentional use of light and shadows to create drama or a particular mood
- Expressive depth of field (and the focal point)
- Composition
- Point of view

You will turn in a contact sheet of your best four images, printed on the inkjet.

Due Tuesday Feb 20th at the beginning of class.

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