Justine Israel - Dawson College Photography

Snow Angels

2007-12-13T02:00:00.000-05:00

Winter Fun Time

2007-11-30T15:13:00.001-05:00

I get very bored on my days off.

Then I remember that I have a hobby.

Ignore Me

2007-11-12T23:40:00.000-05:00

http://photo.dawsoncollege.qc.ca/don/lab3.html

I just needed to remember the link. That is all. And now, for your enjoyment,

You're welcome.

Vintage Portraits

2007-11-12T17:23:00.001-05:00

Black and white fun. With added vignetting.

Two attempts at cross-processing via different methods. (Curves - each channel is modified differently)

Soft focus, noise, desaturation, vignetting and all that fun stuff.

Some more cross-processing. With vignetting and noise.

Diane is old. And black and white. And with noise and vignetting and contrast.

Panoramic Shots

2007-11-12T17:20:00.001-05:00

A panoramic of the studio downstairs.

The last two were done handheld, which is why the second one doesn't quite align properly. I will try some with a tripod though.

My Composite Images

2007-09-22T23:57:00.000-04:00

Number One.
Number Two.

Composite Images

2007-09-11T22:30:00.000-04:00

AKIF HAKAN CELEBI is a photographer I've known about for some time now. He specialises in fashion photography and portraiture, and I absolutely love all of his work. Many of his images have a composite feel even though they are always shot on location, rather than photoshopped. It gives the images a bizarre look that works for them, and I really enjoy it.

Black And White

2007-09-05T10:39:00.001-04:00

CS3 black and white feature - played around with each colour setting.

Channel Mixer - R40 G75 B10 + added contrast.

Channel Mixer - R57 G33 B14.

Exercise ll

2007-08-29T15:45:00.000-04:00

Scarecrow.
Girl.

Stick Man

2007-08-22T16:47:00.001-04:00

Time for a good old water picnic.

Put On Your Red Shoes

2007-05-11T20:43:00.000-04:00

put on your red shoes 'cause we're free.

Singing On The Sidewalk

2007-05-07T21:12:00.000-04:00

I am self-obsessed.

Armor For Sleep

2007-05-03T18:59:00.000-04:00

The school barbecue was epic in various ways.

This is not at all what the initial shot looked like. I recropped this and made it look all pretty. I think.

Critique - Diane's Face

2007-04-25T08:11:00.001-04:00

This is a self-portrait Diane took, obviously of herself. It depicts the face and neck, although one eye, part of the face, and hair is omitted.

I think the intention was to capture a nice photograph of herself, as she often does, but this one turned out extremely nicely.

The high-contrast that came about during the BW conversion and the cropping is very similar in style to Ralph Gibson with his similar photograph of a woman's face, focusing in on the eye. I like that half the eye is cut out but it remains the focal point. I think I might have cropped of a tiny bit on the left side to close the composition better, but I see no other negatives with this.

Over all, this is a very effective self-portrait and I consider it successful.

Trash and Vaudeville

2007-04-19T19:38:00.000-04:00

Some 800 ISO film and my Rice Krispies camera, and a garbage can in the middle of my street. It's symmetrical, so Juan would probably be angry.

Critique - Mary Ellen Mark

2007-04-17T12:29:00.000-04:00

A portrait by Mary Ellen Mark of a woman seemingly attending or coming from a funeral. She is standing near a barn, arms crossed and an austere look in her eye.

I think the intention might have been to portray a more real view of America, not the glamorized side of it. It's darker than a typical portrait, and the wardrobe really makes the mood for this. Without it, this could have been a typical fashion shot.

I love the blue tint on the shot, although perhaps not intentional, rather than a true black and white. It could signify the "blue" mood of the shot, or it could mean nothing at all and just look nice. Even the slight symmetry adds to this, like it's almost perfect, but not quite there. There's not much I'm not fond of, but it's mostly just the awkward cut-off at the bottom, which even then adds to the mood of the shot.

Over all, I think it's a successful shot and I quite like it.

Rocky

2007-04-17T00:18:00.000-04:00

This is my friend Karlo. This is pretty much his life.

An experiment in flash photography. A film entry because I just got some developped. Black's 400 ISO film on sale and a crappy camera. Colours have been altered.

We Walk Indoors

2007-04-10T13:29:00.000-04:00

Flash scares squirrels.

Froot Loops and a Screwdriver

2007-04-09T20:24:00.000-04:00

I spent my long weekend off from school in a school. I'm a huge geek.

So I was in Laval for a music festival, at CEGEP Montmorency, and the cafeteria food sucked. Big surprise. The only things we deemed suitable to eat were the things that the cafeteria people didn't actually make, a.k.a. froot loops, apples, yogurt, and Nestea. Maybe a few other things.

And this is my friend Steph enjoying breakfast. It's pretty much a perfect depiction of her personnality, which is such a cliche thing to say, but at least four people can vouch for me.

Nikon and window light. PS conversion. Simple stuff.

Critique - Tokyo Police Club

2007-04-09T19:07:00.000-04:00

Somewhat uninspired by this week's blogs, I have decided to critique a photo that a friend of mine took at the Tokyo Police Club show at Sala Rossa that I missed because a) tickets were sold out b) I'm poor and c) I was out of town.

So, critique. Content is rather straightforward. A basic shot of the show, with the guitarist and yelling guy framed, and the Sala Rossa emblem at the top.

Maxyme's intention behind the shot seems to have been to capture a moment of the show to preserve a memory, as many people tend to do with camera-phones. One advantage of the Sala Rossa is the possibility to use an actual camera without it breaking/ being confiscated.

I like the snapshot-ish feel of the shot, because it works with the content and adds to the mood of the shot. The cropping is great, and the 'Rossa' at the top really closes the composition nicely. The symmetry of the shot doesn't bother me here, and the overall shot reminds me of Nan Goldin's style in various ways. Conversely, I'm not sure about the slant of the photograph, as it seems kind of superfluous.

Overall, I truly like this shot and it makes me even more sad that I missed the show, but I'm deeming it a success nonetheless.

Blonde Redhead

2007-04-01T12:47:00.000-04:00

A shot from our adventure to Old Montreal. This was near the traintracks.

D70s and playing around with colours in Photoshop, because I'm silly.

Springtime

2007-03-26T17:18:00.000-04:00

So I have to stop making diptychs. But it rained, and my macro lens was collecting dust from one of my laziest weeks ever, so I figured I would find some waterdrops.

And it was rather productive.

D70s with my macro-zoom (35-135).

Critique - Ralph Gibson

2007-03-13T18:54:00.000-04:00

A guitarist, a crib and a child are depicted in this photograph. Grain and strong contrast, seemingly typical of Gibson's better-known shots, is very present, and cropping out of certain elements (face of the man playing guitar), similar to many of his shots, is happening here. Simplistic as it may seem, this image carries alot of weight (at the very least, it does with me).

The intention behind this shot may simply have been to capture a peculiar moment, where the baby raised his hand up into the air as the man played. But I've decided to overanalyse this. The single hand, which appears in many of Gibson's shots, could mean that the child is reaching out to the sound he hears to try and connect with it. I could go into some crazy psychological analysis of how this could connect back to his mother during his sojourn in the womb, how perhaps the song seems familiar to him and he feels the need to express this, but this critique is getting long and I'm only halfway through.

I enjoy the composition of the shot, both for its elimination of elements that would seem key in other shots (face of man) and its aesthetic appeal (high noise content, strong contrast). I'm not sure how I feel about the very small portion of background included, but perhaps including more would ruin the shot.

As for my final evaluation, I don't consider myself good enough to deem one of the most esteemed photographers in the world's shot good or bad, but it seems very successful to me.

Silly Little Hairdo

2007-03-12T21:38:00.000-04:00

My sister cut her hair. I had a camera. And the rest is history.

No, but really. It was nice out on sunday and I grabbed my nikon (as well as a cheapy film camera that I haven't developped yet) and went crazy. It was very sunny and Blanche's eyes are apparently ridiculously sensitive to sunlight. I considered myself lucky to have even five shots where her eyes were open and she didn't look like a maniac.

Critique - Ridiculous GT's

2007-03-09T12:20:00.000-05:00

Various shots of ridiculous people having a ridiculous fun time. Smiplistic content helps to zero in on the fun people in the shot are having. A photo by Max of Britt and Sam.

The intention behind this shot seems to have been a portrayal of a simple atmosphere with Sam and Britt having fun and being silly. The shots create a sort of small story which could be a string of events, but could equally create a completely different story had the images changed order and positions within the frame.

I have nothing bad to say about this shot. The raw edges from scanning film, the sepia hue, and the relaxed mood of the photographs are all loveable aspects of this, and the framing of the shots is nice, with the variance of orientation of the photos, as well as the fact that they aren't all necessarily aligned.

I deem this quadriptych (this is definitely a word.) a success based on aforementionned qualities, and also because Britt and Sam are great. I'm a little biased though.

cold hands, warm heart

2007-03-06T21:25:00.000-05:00

I found a glove in the subway station. I brought it home and put it on my bed. It looked kind of cool.

That is probably rather unhygienic.

Snowsplosions

2007-03-05T00:37:00.000-05:00

Winter isn't always ugly.

The first one is in colour and black/white because I'm silly and can't make up my mind. The second one the first image of the set taken apart because I liked it the best. I purposely didn't put it in black and white because there's a tint on it that I like.

I Spy

2007-03-01T10:30:00.000-05:00

My fairly recent purchase of a macro-zoom lens makes me kind of happy. This is two of my sisters and me.

Critique - Peanut Butter and Jill

2007-02-27T12:38:00.000-05:00

Five photos taken by Jill at the Montreal Lights festival. Glorious, really.

I think the intention was to capture the essence of such a fun event, and to kind of look into the fun atmosphere of the whole thing. But I might be wrong.

I like that each picture kind of has it's own colour, mostly purples and blues, from the various lights out on the street. I'm not sure how I feel about the bluriness, but it does add something kind of fun to each of the shots, so I'll allow it, okay Jill?

All in all, I think Jill did a good job of capturing the feeling of the festival and I award her a medal for being awesome.

Mugshots II

2007-02-27T12:27:00.000-05:00

This kind of freaks me out.

Soda Poppery

2007-02-26T21:16:00.000-05:00

Today's english class taught me the art of soda poppery. The resulting beverage tasted like a tree, but it was silly and fun and I liked it. We went old school and did the whole mixing flavoured syrup with carbonated water deal (tonic water, actually, which is why it didn't taste as good as it might have with plain club soda.). So I took some photos and this was one of my favourites.

Critique - Welcome To The Third Dimension

2007-02-20T13:32:00.000-05:00

A simplistic photo of an old VW Beetle in front of a run-down, decrepit building. IN 3D!

I figured the intention was to create a fun three dimensional image, without too much consideration for a perfect photograph, although it still works well as a stand-alone photo, with simple composition and nice subject matter.

I like the 3D effect that is given with the glasses, it's hours of fun. I also like the old stairway in the background.

I approve of this picture. I think it's successful as an anaglyph.

Warrior

2007-02-19T09:55:00.000-05:00

You wouldn't know it, but this beast has battled a snake.

Rotten Artwork

2007-02-13T14:05:00.000-05:00

I am glorious.

Critique - Sarah's "Legs"

2007-02-13T12:04:00.000-05:00

I am a closet thespian.

I love this picture, that Sarah posted on her blog this week. As she pointed out, the whole old, retro feel that the colours and the subject matter itself give to the image are things that I've found out are common to almost every one of my "favourite photos". But I'm okay with that.

So, the critique.

I'm assuming this photo was taken with a dSLR in Sarah's kitchen. But that's just a guess. It's a shot of her legs, as a reflection in an oven door, including the actual edges of the oven.

Perhaps her intention was to capture a moment she felt looked vintage, even dingy (in the best possible way), because it looked rather awesome.

I love the colours in the shot, the composition (with her legs off-center) and the actual subject matter, and I can't say I don't like anything about it.

Success! This picture is legit. I has much street cred.

Shooting On Impulse

2007-02-10T19:49:00.000-05:00

A picture of Sam and an electrical socket, shot with my wonderful Polaroid Impulse and ridiculously expensive 600 film. My scanner cropped part of the sides off, so I threw it on the floor and kicked it.

1988 was a wonderful year for mankind, when this beast of a camera made its' appearance.

Critique - Ferris Wheel

2007-02-06T13:16:00.000-05:00

This is a shot of a ferris wheel, taken with a Holga camera, most likely a night shot. It is a multiple exposure shot, as demonstrated by the various imprints of the ferris wheel alongside one another.

The intention behind this shot might be to show a more whimsical depiction of a ferris wheel, differing from regular day shots in theme parks. It creates a sense of mystery to go along with something we all feel so familiar with.

I think the touches of pinkish-reddesque-magenta-y in the center of the wheel add more depth to an otherwise very blue-tinged photo, but I can't see anything inherently bad about this shot.

I think that, all in all, this is a very good shot, with good framing and a well-chosen subject. I'd consider it a success.

Ballet

2007-02-05T14:21:00.000-05:00

My friend's hands and a program for a recital made for a goot shot.

T is for Trance Music

2007-02-03T20:35:00.000-05:00

Studio class on wednesday went quickly, so I had a half hour, T, a pair of sunglasses, a camera and a light source. Oh, and some seamless. Hilarity ensued.

This is one of my favourite shots of some twenty in total.

Critique - The Tombstone

2007-01-30T12:28:00.000-05:00

This is a photo by Bruce Davidson, taken in Whales in 1965. Quite simply, it depicts a young girl standing in front of a tombstone in a field surrounded by buildings.

Davidson's intention in taking the photograph was perhaps to make a stark contrast between young life versus death. The girl's facial expression can lead to believe she is sad or angry, and the idea of solitude and sadness are omnipresent.

The girl's expression and pose, the lighting centered on the tombstone and the darkness surrounding it in comparison are all good aspects of the photograph, whereas the cropping on the lower half could have been done better, and a bit more detail in the grass might have looked good.

All in all, I think the photo succeeds in being much more than a cutesy picture, evoking sadder feelings and thoughts. I personally consider a very well-achieved photograph.

BW Portrait - Dawson

2007-01-23T13:41:00.000-05:00

This is a portrait I shot of Diane Rheaume outside Dawson, at the de Maisonneuve entrance, back in december.

I converted it to black and white with channel mixer in photoshop, cropped it, and did some minor dodging and burning.