Photographer Copyright
Photography Copyright protects the photographers work from being used by others and presented as their own.
The infringement of Copyright can happen when someone takes a photograph that wasn't created by themselves but claim it is their own and present it to the public as their own work.
You can legally copy photographic images by gaining permission from the photographer. If the photographer is unable to be found or is unknown, then legal judgment can be made to class the photograph as an 'orphan photo'. To do this you need to gain a sufficient amount of evidence to prove that you have tried everything to find the photographer but have each time been unsuccessful.
Copyright of photograph lasts for 70 years beginning at the end of the year of the photographer's death.
The best way for photographers to protect their images is to watermark the images with their name and the year the photo was taken. They can also include an email address on the watermark so that the photograph is traceable back to themselves. If the the photographs are going to be used in the public domain, it is very important that the photographs are traceable back to the photographer.
Watermarking my own image
To watermark my own photograph I started by opening the photo in photoshop. I then chose the text option and typed my name, the copyright logo (done by pressing alt+G) and my blog address.
Once I had done that I chose the layer and opened the FX options. The effects I chose to add to my watermark were drop shadow, bevel and emboss and stroke. I then turned then turned the opacity of the text to 60% so that it wouldn't distract too much from the photograph.
Famous Copyright infringement case
Rogers VS. Koons
 |
| Art Rogers, Puppies (1985) and Jeff Koons, String of Puppies (1988) |
Famous photographer Art Rogers shot a photograph of a couple holding a line of puppies and then sold the photo so that it could be used on greeting cards and similar products. Jeff Kroons, an internationally renowned artist, was in the process of creating exhibit about everyday items when he came across Rogers's "puppies" photograph. Kroons then proceeded to create a set of statues based on the original image. Koons sold several of these statues, making a significant profit in the process. When Rogers discovered the statues he decided to sue Koons for copyright, in which Koons responded by claiming fair use by parody.
The outcome of the court case was the similarities between the image and the statue were too close and that a "typical person" would easily be able to recognise the copy. Due to this, Koon's defence was rejected. The court argued that Koon's could have easily used a more generic source to make the intended statement without copying Rogers' work. Koon's was forced by the court to pay a monetary settlement to Rodgers.
Gallery Report
Taylor Wessing Exhibition
The Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize 2013 exhibits sixty photographic portraits by photographers from all over the world, giving insight into the lives of people from around the globe through contemporary photography.The photographs exhibited explore a vast range of themes, styles and approaches through editorial, advertisement and fine art prints. The photographs range from commissioned images of famous faces to the private and spontaneous moments capturing friends and family. All the photographs exhibited were portraits of people's life's from around the world which showed everyone to be the same regardless of where they come from.
Every photograph in the exhibition tells a different story and connects with many different emotions. These emotions include happiness, sadness, loneliness, pain, depression and pride. I especially like how they put different races all together because it plays on the idea that everyone is the same and have the same feelings no matter where they come from. The layout of the exhibition was very plain with the walls being white and the photographs were in black frames which made the photographs the main focus and also attention grabbing. For me the dim spotlight focused on the photograph helped to emphasize the fact that each photograph tells an individual story, especially on the smaller photographs. The short descriptions next to the photographs had just the right information to give you an understanding of the photo but at the same time left a lot to the imagination.
Overall I really enjoyed this exhibition because of how emotive all of the photographs were because it gave me an insight to the lives of others from all around the world.
Jeans Advertisement
Dr Martens
Levi Strauss & Co.
Levi Strauss & Co. also known as LS&CO or simply Levi's, is a privately held American clothing company known worldwide for its Levi's brand of denim jeans. It was founded in 1853 when Levi Strauss came from Buttenheim, Bavaria, to San Fransisco, California to open a west coast branch of his brothers' New York dry goods business. In 1873, Levi Strauss and tailor Jacob Davis received a U.S. patent to make the first riveted men's work pants out of denim: the first blue jeans.Inspiration for photographs
My favorite style of jeans are the ones from the 90's, so for my own jeans images I wanted to play with the 90's theme. I researched some Levi's adverts from the 90's to find inspiration.
Loose jeans were the main focus in this advertisement and so I took inspiration from that and used loose fitting jeans and dungarees.
5 Minute Photographer Presentation
We had to do a 5 minute presentation on a photographer of our choice. I chose to research Cristina Ortero who is a young Spanish photographer who mainly focuses on self-portraits. Previous to this presentation I didn't have a keen interest in self-portrait photography but from seeing Cristina Otero's photography I would definitely like to try it out or do something similar.
Cristina Otero is one of the most talented up and coming photographer in her age group. She is also the youngest artist in Spain who has ever exhibited individually in an art gallery, at just 15.
-"Limon" - I really like the vibrancy of the colors in the image, the contrast between the black lips and the yellow slice of lemon and I like how the eyes show you the flavor of the lemon.
-"Uva" - I like her expression and the composition of the photograph because it shows how succulent the grapes are and the eyes almost make it seem as if she's addicted to the grapes.
-"Mandorina" - This image quickly became Otero's most popular and widely shared piece.
-"Chirimoya" - Image description from Otero said "I love custard apples...makes my mouth water". The composition of the photograph is really good because the piece of apple looks almost as if it is a drop of water coming from her mouth which links with the quote.
- "Trauma" - This is my favorite image because of how deep the eyes are and because of the paint on her face. The image really emphasizes the expression "The eyes are the window to the soul".
-"Faint" - I like this image because it looks like a drawing but it's actually a photograph. The make-up is really simple but makes the model really beautiful and really pure.
- "Don't tell mom" - I like this image because it's really mischievous. The placement of the blood on the lips and the finger leaves your imagination wondering what happened. The eyes also make the image quite exciting and gives it an electric feeling.
Overall I much preferred the 5 minute presentation because it gave me enough time to share all the information I wanted to share without having to rush, which took away a lot of pressure. I also preferred choosing my own photographer because it made it easier to talk in front of an audience because I had an interest in what I was talking about. I feel I definitely improved from my 2 minute presentation to my 5 minute presentation because I had a better understanding of what I had to do, mainly thanks to having a peer coach giving me advice. I feel my main improvement was speaking louder in front of everyone and also being able to speak about what I like about some of my photographer's images because I took more time to analyse them.
I feel researching Cristina Otero has inspired me to explore self-portrait and portrait photography because I like how she tells the story mainly through the eyes and then uses the rest of the face as a setting for the story.
Cristina Otero is one of the most talented up and coming photographer in her age group. She is also the youngest artist in Spain who has ever exhibited individually in an art gallery, at just 15.
My Presentation
-"Uva" - I like her expression and the composition of the photograph because it shows how succulent the grapes are and the eyes almost make it seem as if she's addicted to the grapes.
Overall I much preferred the 5 minute presentation because it gave me enough time to share all the information I wanted to share without having to rush, which took away a lot of pressure. I also preferred choosing my own photographer because it made it easier to talk in front of an audience because I had an interest in what I was talking about. I feel I definitely improved from my 2 minute presentation to my 5 minute presentation because I had a better understanding of what I had to do, mainly thanks to having a peer coach giving me advice. I feel my main improvement was speaking louder in front of everyone and also being able to speak about what I like about some of my photographer's images because I took more time to analyse them.
I feel researching Cristina Otero has inspired me to explore self-portrait and portrait photography because I like how she tells the story mainly through the eyes and then uses the rest of the face as a setting for the story.
Book Review – Jeff WallFirst published in 1996 by Phaidon Press Limited
The Jeff Wall photography book is a collection of his work
featuring photographs from the late 60’s so about 2001. Also included in the
book is interviews with Jeff Wall which talk about his style of photography and
also his response to critiques and opinions of his work.
The book has a very simplistic layout much like a gallery
with white pages with photographs occupying most of the pages. Some photographs
are a single page spread whilst others are a double page spread. The book is
very text heavy with some pages being completely text with no images at all.
 |
| "The Vampires Picnic" |
I read an interview between Arielle Pelenc and Jeff Wall,
which is found at the beginning of the book. I chose to read this interview
because I wanted to understand the Wall’s style of photography.
“One of the
problems I have with my pictures is that, since they are constructed…you can
get the feekung that the constructed contains everything, that there is no
‘outside’ to it the way there is with photography in general…But there is an
‘outside’ to the picture, demanding significance from it. The rest of the world
remains unseen, but present, with its demand to be expressed or signified in,
or as, a fragment of itself.”
This part of the interview really stood out to me because it
helped me to understand Wall’s style of photography. When I first looked at his
work I really didn’t like it but I feel that that’s because the photographs
contain everything and so there is nothing left to the imagination. Then
there’s the questions of what lead to that event and what’s going to happen
afterwards. I feel that these questions came from what Wall calls the ‘outside’
and so those questions are the ‘outside’ trying to weigh in on the photograph
and gain significance over the constructed reality that is seen in the
photographs.
The book itself is quite interesting and from reading the
interview with Jeff Wall, it gave me a new perspective on the photographs
compared to what I originally had. The book is very text heavy which I feel, at
some points, takes away the interest from the photographs. It seems as if the
book has a specific target audience because the text is very intellectual and
so without understanding exactly what is being expressed in the text, it loses
the information. At times I had to use a dictionary to understand some of the
words used in the interview so that I could fully understand but I feel the
book is definitely aimed at an art savvy person. The mood of the book seems to
be more of an artistic book rather than a photography book because in the
interviews Jeff Wall refers a lot to famous art pieces and talks about the
relation between his photography and these famous art pieces. I personally
didn’t enjoy this book because all of the photographs didn’t have that sense of
reality that I like in photography. All of the models in the photographs seemed
to lack emotion and they just seemed very rigid which emphasized the fact that
the photographs were set up.
Overall I feel that the style of photography shown in this
book would definitely work in an art gallery but without the emotion and
reality that most photography has, it won’t connect with certain viewers. I
personally didn’t find inspiration in Wall’s work because there wasn’t anything
left to the imagination and with some of his photographs the messages he tries
to express often aren’t clear.
WORD COUNT: 775
WORD COUNT: 775
Brassaï
Lovers in a small cafe near the place d'italie
Brassai:
Lovers in a small café features a man and a woman who are sat in the corner of
a coffee shop and seem to be embracing. The photograph looks as if it was taken
during either the 1930s, 1940s or the 1950s. It’s difficult to tell the era of
the photograph because it doesn’t contain a lot of detail that can give clues
to the era. Also it is not clear as to what time of day it is. The man and
woman look as if they are on a date but it is not clear whether they are
husband and wife or just lovers. Although considering how hidden the corner
seems, it could be interpreted that the couple may be having some sort of
affair.
The
photograph only shows the couple and some teacups. There are no other people in
the photograph including the reflections in the mirror which only include the
couple. Due to this it is hard to tell how intimate the moment is between the
couple and how private that moment is. Brassai may have chosen to photograph
that moment because it shows a reverse in roles between the man and the woman.
This is because it is the man that is looking quite needy and the woman looks
quite defiant which would be fairly different to the stereotypical patriarchal
norms of that era. The angle of the photograph looks as if it was taken from
the view of either an onlooker or a waiter because it is slightly looking down
on the couple. Brassai was very clever with the way that he shot this
photograph because of the angle he took it there is the man and woman’s
reflection seen in both mirror’s and so if had taken the photograph at any
other angle it would not have the same intimate effect.
The
composition of the photograph is very symmetrical because the table is in line
with the walls and mirrors which creates a very clean cut effect. What I like
most about the composition of the photograph is the reflections of the man and
woman in the mirrors. There are two mirrors and so in one mirror it reflects
the man’s face and the back of the woman’s head and in the other mirror it
reflects the woman’s face and the side of the man’s face. This is a nice effect
because in each mirror you can only see either the man or the woman’s face and
it gives a slight insight into their emotions. For example, the woman looks as
if she is really smiling but in the reflection her smile isn’t as big and she
doesn’t look like she’s enjoying herself as much.
After
doing some research on the photograph I found that it was photographed in
Paris, France in 1932. The photograph shows a couple embracing in the corner of
a coffee shop. Although it is not obvious, the photograph has been staged to
capture the reflection of the lover’s gaze in either mirror. The photograph
shows a formal elegance rather than the harsh realities of photographic realism
which is said to have been important to Brassai. The compositional skill of
Brassai is evident in the way that he has framed his subjects through the
mirrors and the symmetry of their surroundings.
WORD COUNT: 562
Graffiti has been causing a stir within the law
enforcement and art world for many years, people are divided on whether it can
be classed as art or if it is just simply vandalism. A question to ask is to
what extent can graffiti be termed as art because it can be a simple and
unattractive tag to an elaborate and well thought out picture. There are two sides to the argument of
whether graffiti is art or vandalism and so throughout this essay I will
research both sides whilst also including the history of graffiti.
Taki 183 was a great
influence in the birth of tagging, as he was the main figure that many people
tried to emulate. Taki 183 began tagging
during his times as a messenger boy in New York. Whilst on his travels he would
tag subway stations and the inside and outside of sub cars which he eventually
became notoriously known for. In 1971, the New York Times interviewed Taki 183
about his graffiti and tagging. This lead to an increase in graffiti and
tagging as many people wanted the notorious fame that Taki 183 had achieved and
so many graffitists began competing with each other to have their name tagged
in as many places as possible. This is when sub cars began to be completely
covered in tags and graffiti. Graffiti has also been used as a way to express
political beliefs in public places to spread a message, often of discontent,
whilst being able to stay anonymous. This method has been used for many
decades, dating back to the WW2.
Graffiti is an art form because it’s by people who want to express their creativity create it and includes just as much thought as a painting featured in gallery. The only difference between the two is that the graffiti was most likely done without permission by the building owner and so is therefore illegal where as the painting was created perfectly legally. The negative connotations that hang over graffiti often make people reject it as an art form and condemn it to being a criminal act of vandalism. Tagging is what gives graffiti the negative connotations as it is seen as a nuisance and makes buildings or areas seem unattractive. The negative connotations associated with tagging go as far to saythere is the concern that tagging may be a "gateway crime," and may lead young offenders to more serious or dangerous crimes such as truancy and drug and alcohol use.” Tagging seems to be largely associated with anti-social gang crimes, which has been the norm since the 1980’s and 90’s when the hip-hop sub culture adopted the style of tagging for many uses, most of which were for gangs to mark their territory within cities.
Street art graffiti is becoming increasingly popular in inner cities with more respect being given to the graffiti artists and the art works they create. Although a lot of the work is still un-commissioned and so technically created illegally, although the attention it’s receiving is a lot more positive than it has ever been. Compared to tagging, street art is a lot more selfless and is created for the pleasure of an audience and to pass on a message often about social or political views. A prime example of street art would be the work of Banksy. All of his work is done in public places with each piece being about a specific political issue or social issue that he either has a problem with or feel people should be thinking about.Currently Banksy is one of the most famous street artists but this is mainly due to the anonymity he has kept. His work is famous all over the globe, with many of his pieces being sold at auctions for an incredibly high amount. In 2009, Banksy’s collection of work was showcased at the Bristol Museum, which saw thousands of people queuing for hours to see his work.
A triptych is a piece of art work that has been divided in to three separate sections. These three sections are usually displayed on carved panels which can be hinged together and then displayed open and standing up or can be closed. Triptych pieces have traditionally been used for religious paintings, dating back to the times of early christian art, which are then displayed on altars in cathedral's and churches. Triptych's have modernly been used by photographers to present photographs that linked by a theme.
For our own triptych we had to photograph 3 items that well represented ourselves as this was the theme for which our photographs would be connected by. I chose to photograph my headphones, my cat and my passports. I chose my headphones because music is something that very much influences me and so I spend a lot of time listening to music. I chose my cat because she's one of my favourite things at home and she also represents the fact that I am a cat person. I chose my passports because they represent my dual nationality.
To make the triptych I loaded the three images on to photoshop. I then opened a new blank page and set it to international paper A3. Once this was done I dragged each individual image on to the A3 page and resized them so they were all the same size. I then added shadow effects around the edges of the images to make them stand out more and I made the background red to make it look more interesting.
WORD COUNT: 562
Graffiti
Art or Vandalism?
Graffiti has been causing a stir within the law
enforcement and art world for many years, people are divided on whether it can
be classed as art or if it is just simply vandalism. A question to ask is to
what extent can graffiti be termed as art because it can be a simple and
unattractive tag to an elaborate and well thought out picture. There are two sides to the argument of
whether graffiti is art or vandalism and so throughout this essay I will
research both sides whilst also including the history of graffiti.
The urban graffiti, that is
popular today, originated in the subways of New York City, with many different
sub-cultures using it as a way to express their identities and interests. This
began in the 1960s with the original canvas being subway trains, mainly because
many people would see the graffiti that would give the artists a lot of public
exposure.
Taki 183 was a great
influence in the birth of tagging, as he was the main figure that many people
tried to emulate. Taki 183 began tagging
during his times as a messenger boy in New York. Whilst on his travels he would
tag subway stations and the inside and outside of sub cars which he eventually
became notoriously known for. In 1971, the New York Times interviewed Taki 183
about his graffiti and tagging. This lead to an increase in graffiti and
tagging as many people wanted the notorious fame that Taki 183 had achieved and
so many graffitists began competing with each other to have their name tagged
in as many places as possible. This is when sub cars began to be completely
covered in tags and graffiti. Graffiti has also been used as a way to express
political beliefs in public places to spread a message, often of discontent,
whilst being able to stay anonymous. This method has been used for many
decades, dating back to the WW2.Graffiti is an art form because it’s by people who want to express their creativity create it and includes just as much thought as a painting featured in gallery. The only difference between the two is that the graffiti was most likely done without permission by the building owner and so is therefore illegal where as the painting was created perfectly legally. The negative connotations that hang over graffiti often make people reject it as an art form and condemn it to being a criminal act of vandalism. Tagging is what gives graffiti the negative connotations as it is seen as a nuisance and makes buildings or areas seem unattractive. The negative connotations associated with tagging go as far to saythere is the concern that tagging may be a "gateway crime," and may lead young offenders to more serious or dangerous crimes such as truancy and drug and alcohol use.” Tagging seems to be largely associated with anti-social gang crimes, which has been the norm since the 1980’s and 90’s when the hip-hop sub culture adopted the style of tagging for many uses, most of which were for gangs to mark their territory within cities. Street art graffiti is becoming increasingly popular in inner cities with more respect being given to the graffiti artists and the art works they create. Although a lot of the work is still un-commissioned and so technically created illegally, although the attention it’s receiving is a lot more positive than it has ever been. Compared to tagging, street art is a lot more selfless and is created for the pleasure of an audience and to pass on a message often about social or political views. A prime example of street art would be the work of Banksy. All of his work is done in public places with each piece being about a specific political issue or social issue that he either has a problem with or feel people should be thinking about.Currently Banksy is one of the most famous street artists but this is mainly due to the anonymity he has kept. His work is famous all over the globe, with many of his pieces being sold at auctions for an incredibly high amount. In 2009, Banksy’s collection of work was showcased at the Bristol Museum, which saw thousands of people queuing for hours to see his work.
Banksy’s success is one of the many examples of the success of street artists who have helped to shine positive light on graffiti. Although it is still classed by many as vandalism, it is also beginning to be classed as art due to the depth and meaning of a lot of the art works. This new wave of graffiti has helped to better communities by making otherwise dull buildings into masterpieces that have attracted many tourists from around the world. Personally I feel graffiti should be thought of as art because the thought process and composition that comes with graffiti pieces often requires a high amount of skill that only few people possess. Although graffiti is a broad term, which refers to every style from tagging to street art, the more complex pieces are more than worthy to receive the same recognition that high profile paintings and photographs receive. I like the way in which street art confronts the current social and political issues that no one else is brave enough to approach because in a way it acts as a voice for those who often remain unspoken about many issues. Graffiti should remain as a criminal offence because if it were made legal then the streets would be completely covered in graffiti, which would ruin the excitement and novelty that it currently holds. Also the legal acts that are currently in place act as a deterrent for tagging, but if they were taken away then tagging would become an increasingly large eye sore.
WORD COUNT: 980
Triptych
A triptych is a piece of art work that has been divided in to three separate sections. These three sections are usually displayed on carved panels which can be hinged together and then displayed open and standing up or can be closed. Triptych pieces have traditionally been used for religious paintings, dating back to the times of early christian art, which are then displayed on altars in cathedral's and churches. Triptych's have modernly been used by photographers to present photographs that linked by a theme.
My Triptych
For our own triptych we had to photograph 3 items that well represented ourselves as this was the theme for which our photographs would be connected by. I chose to photograph my headphones, my cat and my passports. I chose my headphones because music is something that very much influences me and so I spend a lot of time listening to music. I chose my cat because she's one of my favourite things at home and she also represents the fact that I am a cat person. I chose my passports because they represent my dual nationality. To make the triptych I loaded the three images on to photoshop. I then opened a new blank page and set it to international paper A3. Once this was done I dragged each individual image on to the A3 page and resized them so they were all the same size. I then added shadow effects around the edges of the images to make them stand out more and I made the background red to make it look more interesting.
