1. Take dramatic photos of figures with a black backdrop and one artificial light source 2. Edit in photoshop to make the photo have a "movie poster" aesthetic
Research
The action figures I'm using for my photos are Predators from the sci fi movie franchise. Because they're are a handful of movies surrounding them, there's a lot of inspiration to look from. The general feel given off the Predators are scary, daunting, etc.
Since I was going for a "movie poster" aesthetic, I used the image on the left as inspiration. Its a movie poster for the film "Predators" and it uses minimal lighting to create a dramatic image and it gives just enough lighting to show what the alien look like. The image on the right is a simple diagram of lighting in movies and that was just an image to show an example that many movies use certain lighting to convey story or drama within a scene. With all that in mind, I attempted to take photos using minimal lighting to create a similar dramatic, "movie poster."
New Photos
Before taking any photos, I posed the action figures in in a box with black construction paper to create the black backdrop and I used a pose-able lamp to create different lighting scenarios. Although only 20 new pictures were needed, I ended up with 54 and it was because a lot of them were of the same thing. I set up the action figures in different poses and I took multiple photos of them from different angles and different lighting placements so I could find the best looking pose to edit in photoshop.
Final Edits
On each of the photos, I increased the brightness on the armor reflections to create the contrast and add emphasis on those points of light. More most of the photos, I tried to add a cold feel to it to create a creepy feel to it. Usually, photos have warm colors to associate with positivity and cold colors to associates with negativity. Alongside the cold feel to the photos, I also lightly desaturated some elements to the photos. On my previous assignments, I was mostly editing the photo as a whole. For this assignment, I edited different individual elements such as armor, shadows, lighting, color, temperature, etc. It's not that I haven't worked on those before, it's just that this assignment really drove me to edit the smaller details.
Printed/Matted Photo
5 Step Critique
Observe: The photo is a dramatic portrait of the Predator. Describe: In the center of the photo is the Predator holding a skull and with the Predator being the only thing in the photo, it's the main subject of the photo. The Predator covers the middle third of the photo and there seems to be only one light source above it to create a heavy contrast between light and shadow. The mask seems to be the first thing that grabs your attention because of it's creepy nature and because it's one of the brighter things in the overall photo. Because of the heavy shadows, the upper body of the figure is the only major thing that shows. The highlights of the armor seemed to be edited to appear brighter to make them stand out. The overall photo has a cold feeling because of the barely visible blue tint. The saturation is also very low because the picture almost seems to reach a black and white look. The main color palette of the photo is shades of grey and blue. Analyze: Because of the heavy contrast between light and shadow, it creates distinctive lines in the photo. By lines, the outline of the figure is obvious and creates a strong silhouette to create the dramatic effect. Another thing to note is that the overall color palette of the photo creates a balance or a sense of unity. The actual action figure has multiple colors between the Predator's skin, armor, and accessories. With how the photo is edited, those different colors unite to a grey/blue appearance and those colors allows the photo to seem balanced and unified. Interpret: The purpose of the photo was to make the action figure seem real and natural and with the photo taken from a low angle, it also makes the figure seem tall and powerful rather than seen as just a seven inch figure. Because of the mostly dark image, there's almost no evidence to give away that the Predator is actually an action figure. The photo creates the idea that this alien creature is real and that then creates the mood of the photo. It gives off a scary mood because of the figure's scary nature. The fact that it's an alien and with the daunting mask, the viewer knows that the subject of the photo isn't friendly. Evaluate: The photo accomplishes the goal of appearing dramatic and creating "movie poster" aesthetic. The single artificial light source accompanied with the black backdrop creates dark shadows and an emphasis on the armor highlights. And despite the Predator is only a 7 inch figure, the photo still achieves to create the illusion that it's lifelike. Based off the objectives, there seems to be no need for improvement but only suggestions. The skull isn't very noticeable to maybe next time hint that the Predator is holding a skull to create more drama for the photo.