Still Life - Food

For this task we were looking at still life with food being our subject. We researched different photographers and specific images before hand so we could think about different styles, how images are composed and how things like colour are used throughout these type of photos. 
The majority of still life images I saw when researching for this task were actually commercial images and you can tell that they are done for a specific purpose. Photos used for commercial purposes are very well composed and a lot have a narrow depth of field so that the focus is completely on the food and the eye is immediately drawn to that and not the background or surroundings. 

For example photos like this make sure that the viewers eye is completely focused on the food and not the background or anything else.
Although the colour of the background does have an impact on the photo because the red jam contrasts with the green a lot, again though, this just brings more attention to the food.














This image is another example of how photographers use depth of field to keep the viewers attention completely on the food, even part of the fork in the foreground is out of focus so the eye goes towards the pudding. The colours are in this are really strong too, the red and the white are really striking and the contrast makes a real impact. 

This is an example of a less commercial image all of it's in focus and the composition is very simple. The image is very symmetrical when you look at it's composition. The image also has a very soft, warm feeling of it, although the composition isn't what we'd 

















This is one of my images, I like the mixture of bright colours and how they contrast with the simple white background. The food is just on a paper plate with a napkin on top of it, I got this idea from the photo above. Although I like the colours and how bright it is in the top left corner I don't like how dark the muffin is, it loses detail and makes that part of it too dark when you compare it to other areas. 

Previous Winners

2008s Winner.

In 2008 the brief was to take a photograph that fitted the 'spirit of the novel', Invisible Man - Ralph Ellision. The image had to fit with the theme/feel of the novel itself as well as be appropriate to be the front cover, fitting in with Penguin Books new Modern Classics layout. 

Students would have read the book before creating the image and tried to make it both modern and fitting in with the story as as well as Penguin's new layout. 

This is the image that was chosen. Taken by David Wala from Newcastle College. 

2009s Winner.

In 2009 there was a similar brief. Penguin were looking for another book cover to fit in with their Modern Classics range. This time the cover was for Rachel Carson's 'Silent Spring'. Again students were looking for a cover that would fit the feel/story.

This years winner was Andrew Partner from Leicester College.

2010

2010's was another book cover for Penguins Modern Classics and like the previous year had more of a structor/template to follow with the layout as you can see with the texts position, font, colour etc and this would have given something for the students to work with, a basic layout in some ways.

This years book was At Swim-Two-Birds by Flann O'Brien and the overall winner was Anne Marie Atkinson from Leeds College of Art.

2011

This year the competition was a completely different theme. This year, the theme was senses and the brief suggested that students looked at different senses, what senses meant to us and how different ones could be represented in photographs. We also looked at how different things would be if we were without certain senses. In this respect the competition was a lot more open for us in general and we didn't have a pattern structure to follow as long as we had a clear link to the theme.

This years winner was Clélia Maumene from Newcastle College. 

Fujifilm Student Awards 2012 - Rules and Prizes

About The Competition


Metroprint are sponsoring this years competition, 'The Fujifilm Student Photographer of the year 2012' and will be the ones providing the overall winner with a portfolio as well as a year's course of mentoring.


Terms and Conditions


1. The promoter is Fujifilm UK Limited, Unit 10A, St Martins Business Centre, St Martins Way, Bedfordshire, MK42 0LF (“Promoter”).

2. Entry is open to all students aged 16 or over undertaking full or part-time professional photographic training, or full or part-time graphic design training of which photography is a major part at a UK based college or university. The competition is not open to employees of Fujifilm UK Limited their families and relatives, and anyone else connected with this competition.

3. Entries are accepted from 5 October 2011. The closing date for the competition is 29 February 2012 and all entries must have been received by the Promoter in accordance with the entry process set out below. The Promoter accepts no responsibility for any entries that are incomplete, illegible, corrupted or fail to reach the Promoter by the closing date specified above for any reason. Proof of posting or sending is not proof of receipt. Entries via agents or third parties are not valid.

4. Entry into this competition is free of charge and the number of entries is unlimited.

5. To enter, entrants must submit an image of their photograph online at www.fujifilmstudentawards.co.uk (“Website”) on the basis of the brief and information set out on the Website (“Entry”). All photographs must be taken on Fujifilm Professional film. Images taken on digital cameras will not be accepted for judging. Images must be taken between 5 October 2011 and 29 February 2012.

6. Up to 30 Merit winners from all correctly completed entries will be selected by an independent judging panel to be chosen by the Promoter. Within 14 days of the Promoter notifying each Merit winner that their Entry is a winning Merit Entry, each Merit winner must submit a final print for judging on Fujifilm photographic paper, i.e. Fujicolor Crystal Archive paper, Fujifilm Multijet inkjet paper or Fujifilm Pictrography/Pictrostat paper without a mount or folder. Entries printed on any Black & White paper will be accepted. The maximum size for prints is A4. Please note that entries not presented as stated in the rules will be rejected.

7. Merit judging takes place in March 2012 and the final judging will be completed by April 2012. The decision of the judges is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

8. The person submitting the best individual Entry will be deemed the winner and will be awarded the title of Fujifilm Student Photographer of the Year 2012. The winner will receive a prize fund as stated on the Website and may be updated at any time.

9. Each Merit winner will receive 10 rolls of Fujifilm film.

10. The winner and the Merit winners will be notified via email or post within 28 days after the Merit judging or final judging takes place, as the case may be. The winner and each Merit winner must claim their prize within 14 working days of the Promoter sending notification. If the prize is unclaimed after this time, it will lapse and the Promoter reserves the right to offer the unclaimed prize to a substitute winner selected in accordance with the promotion rules.

11. The college or university that submits the most entries will receive £200 worth of Fujifilm film. The relevant college/university tutor will be allowed to choose their preferred type of film.

12. By entering this competition each entrant confirms that his/her Entry is their wholly-owned creation and to the extent that such Entry makes use of any third party materials that these have been fully cleared unless they are no longer protected by copyright or other intellectual property rights. Entrants will keep the Promoter harmless from any claims that the Entry infringes the personal or proprietary right of any other person.

13. Copyright remains the property of the photographer at all times but each entrant grants to the Promoter a non-exclusive, sub-licensable perpetual, royalty-free, world-wide licence to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, translate, publish, distribute and display any Entry submitted as part of this competition in any media now known or hereafter invented. If you do not want to grant these rights, please do not enter this competition.

14. Prizes are not transferable.

15. If the quality of entries fall below the required standard, Fujifilm UK Limited reserves the right not to award a first prize or any merit winning prizes.

16. The winner and the Merit winners agree to take part in reasonable post event publicity and to the use of their names and photographs in such publicity.

17. By entering this competition each entrant agrees to be bound by these terms and conditions.

18. These terms are governed by the Laws of England and Wales.

Prizes


The overall winner will win:
- £200 worth of Fujifilm
- A professionally produced portfolio (Metroprint)
- A Trophy and title, 'Fujifilm Student Photographer of the Year 2012'


Up to 30 Merit runner-up winners will recieve 10 rolls of Fujifilm Film


College Prize:
- Certificate and £200 worth of Fujifilm Film.

The Brief - Fujifilm Student Awards 2012

Brainstorm

Extreme Style -
Look at different types of style/fashion or different areas of style that people take to extremes. Things like piercings, hair, tattoos and make up could be looked at as things that can be done in excess.

Taking things to the Extreme -
Obsession over one thing. Taking things 'too far' or 'too the extreme', focusing one thing/person/area of their life and taking things to the extreme.

Word Association - Extreme

- Extreme style:

• Extreme hair
• Piercings
• Tattoos
• Make Up
• Clothing/Footwear

- Two Extremes/Opposites:

• Extreme dieting/Comfort eating
• Minimalist/Extremist 

- Extreme sports
- Extreme beliefs
- Extreme differences - look at people with very different styles/looks.

Definition of 'EXTREME'

"Either of two abstract things that are as different from each other as possible."


In different contexts - 


"Of a character or kind farthest removed from the ordinary or average" extreme measures.
"Utmost or exceedingly great in degree" extreme joy.
"Farthest from the center or middle; outermost; endmost" the extreme limits of a town.
"Exceeding the bounds of moderation" extreme fashions.


Different examples of how it can be used - 

1. The plant is sensitive to extreme heat and cold.
2. They are living in extreme poverty.
3. She went on an extreme diet.
4. Many thought that the punishment was too extreme for the crime.
5. The plan was rejected as too extreme.
6. This is an extreme example of what can happen when a company grows too quickly.
7. He has extreme opinions when it comes to politics.
8. Members of the extreme right opposed the legislation.
9. She took part in an extreme sport.

Fujifilm Introduction

This is our second year taking part in the Fujifilm competition. This years theme for it and the assignment is 'extreme'. We can enter as many images as we like as long as we have a minimum of five final images that we're going to submit. We're able to submit a series of images but only one image would be selected as a winning/final image.

To start this assignment we're going to research the competition, previous winners and different types of Fujifilm. We can shoot on any type of film as long as it's Fuji and can use things like medium format if we want to. I'll also look at the other rules/boundaries of the competition, things like not submitting 'copy cat' images. 

Before we begin we need to look at what 'extreme' means to us and what element of it we're going to try and capture on film. This assignment will allow us to practice different things and allow us to experiment and do different/new things in the dark room because we can edit the photos after as long as we can prove the original was taken on Fujifilm.