Cross: Contact Sheets

 For the main image for the Joan of Arc project, I have taken macro images of a rosary using Olympus Stylus SH-2. I used the Super macro function

Here are the shots that  think may work well and the settings

ISO 800 1/20 F4.4

ISO 800 1/20 F4.4

ISO 800 1/50 F4.4

ISO 800 1/30 F4.4

ISO 800 1/60 F4.4

These shots have come out well and I have choices of angle and direction which is what I wanted as I need to add this to fire for the final image.  The small depth of field really focuses the attention here and I am hoping this will work well n the final image and not lose impact. 

Joan of Arc: Developing Ideas - Using Stock Images

 I need for my Joan of arc project some stock images of fire.  This is the less dangerous and easy way to get an image like this.  As this is a short project and I am likely to find a good selection.  This is also useful to IYZ students who are doing their advertising projects. 

I will begin by look at Unsplash

Here are some potential images 

Nathan Lindahl (Unsplash)

Be careful on Unsplash as the top images on the page you would need to pay for - scroll down to free images

Cullen Smith (Unsplash)

This image has more potential as there is a black background and no distracting details 

From Pixabay I found these: 

Hans (Pixabay)

Skitterphoto (Pixabay)

I liked this one as it was almost stylized and abstract and I think this could work well with the cross 

Lastly Pexels: 

Anon Pexels

Could be good that it is simple but maybe too simple 

Icon O (Pexels)

This last one is perhaps a little too violent - I am sure that Joan of Arc's death by fire was much more horrible and violent than looking at this however, I want to get across not the violence but the spiritual transcendence.

This is a good start to the background to the work.  I will now begin taking the photographs for the final piece.

Joan of Arc: Developing Ideas

 In my last post, I had some initial ideas that I was exploring.  I am now exploring these further using different processes.  I began with a few sketches and a prayer invoking the spirit of Joan of Arc for spiritual strength.

I used just a 2b pencil and some coloured pencils for the drawings and I put these together with my quick test shot from the last session on Pixlr.  I created a small canvas and just resized to place the images so that they could be viewed together with the prayer. 

I will now do a photoshoot with the cross and look for stock images for the fire to create the final piece.  I might add a prayer as I liked the text element in this development and this could give more impact on the presentation. 

Joan of Arc: Initial Ideas for Warrior Project

 Joan of Arc: Initial Ideas

In this post I will outline my initial ideas for the Warrior Project which I am creating for the IIM 

Above, this 1903 engraving of St. Joan of Arc by Albert Lynch was featured in Figaro Illustre magazine. (photo: Public domain/Wikimedia Commons)

Brief Biography

Joan of Arc was 'born c. 1412, Domrémy, Bar, France—died May 30, 1431, Rouen; She was a national heroine of France, a peasant girl who, believing that she was acting under divine guidance, led the French army in a momentous victory at Orléans that repulsed an English attempt to conquer France during the Hundred Years’ War. Captured a year afterward, Joan was burned to death by the English and their French collaborators as a heretic. She became the greatest national heroine of her compatriots, and her achievement was a decisive factor in the later awakening of French national consciousness.' (Encyclopedia Britannica 2021)

Considering Joan of arc I want to consider the elements that made up her life of martyrdom.  Joan of arc had visions where she believed that God was speaking to her, theories today think that she may have been suffering from mental illness such as;  'one of numerous neurological and psychiatric conditions that trigger hallucinations or delusions, including migraines, bipolar disorder and brain lesions or  that she contracted bovine tuberculosis, which can cause seizures and dementia, from drinking unpasteurized milk and tending cattle as a young girl.' (Cohen, 2021)  This idea of messages from God or a kind of madness could be portrayed through the photographic image also these images come to mind...

Prayers 

Crosses 

Burned at the stake - fire 

Armour, metal, grey

Martyr 

So thinking about the visual imagery I could create photos  - creating a photo using symbolic imagery such as crosses and fire

Using perhaps Rosary beads - here is a test shot I took whilst thinking about this work

Settings F1.9,  Shutter Speed 1/50, ISO 80, WB Auto - no flash 

This was a quick test shot on my phone I will look at other options and will use my camera to take final images.  

These are just some initial thoughts!

References

Encyclopedia Britannica. 2021. Joan of Arc | Biography, Death, Accomplishments, & Facts. [online] Available at: <https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Joan-of-Arc> [Accessed 5 October 2021].

 Cohen, J., 2021. 7 Surprising Facts About Joan of Arc. [online] HISTORY. Available at: https://www.history.com/news/7-surprising-facts-about-joan-of-arc [Accessed 5 October 2021].

Welcome to a New Term!

 Welcome to a new term!  Here we are again mostly in real life!  An element of freedom returned..

I have been reading Colin Wilson as I found a fairly new book on his works by Colin Stanley.  Colin Wilson died in 2013 at the age of 82, his first book The Outsider, Ezard writes in his obituary 'The Outsider (1956), led him to be seen as a potential saviour of the human spirit, a thinker who might find a way through the spiritual nullity of the postwar years' (Ezard, 2013) Wilson wrote while camping out on Hampstead Heath and writing in the British Library in London each day.  Wilson went on to write books about mysticism, the occult, consciousness, existentialism.  I was lucky enough to see Colin Wilson in the flesh at the Occultique festival in Brighton in the early 2000s.  I was surrounded by all the witches in Sussex and Wilson was one of the most charismatic people I have ever had the privilege to watch.  

Colin Wilson in 1957

At present, I am reading about Peak Experiences which began when Wilson was looking at Maslow, who wanted to treat healthy people as in healthy people Maslow stated; 'I picked out the healthiest people, the best specimens of mankind I could find, and studied them to see what they were like. They were very different, in some ways startlingly different from the average..'(Ed.Stanley, 2019:54) he realised that they had more joy and had what he called 'peak experiences'  These experiences were' something like a mystical experience, moments of great awe, moments of the most intense happiness, or even rapture, ecstasy or bliss...' (Ed. Stanley, 2019:55)

Maslow discovered once they had these experiences they would have more and afforded the person experiencing this, a moment of clarity where they could see everything clearly.  This is one of the things Wilson writes about in great depth and I chose this to talk about as I spend much of my time with people now who are not healthy and I have found this has the effect of experiencing more negative emotions.  This book reminds me of better times past, present and future are possible that a healthy mind really can bring that sense of awe and wonder back into life....

References 

Ezard, J., 2013. Colin Wilson obituary. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/dec/09/colin-wilson [Accessed 5 October 2021].

Ed. Stanley C. (2019) The Ultimate Colin Wilson: Writings on Mysticism,, Consciousness and Existentialism. Watkins Media ltd, London.

Venngage: Customer Profile: Example

 Venngage Customer Profile

Please click on the link to see the full version

Biteable Video: Promotional Resume

 Here I have created a promotional resume that looks professional and highlights my skills. Please see below: 

Students will upload the process however I will just add my biteable instructions as this was my own process here: Biteable Instructions

I am pleased with the way this video has turned out and I think it is a good introduction to an employer of my skills for this job - this of course would be backed up by my CV! Please enjoy the film.