Concepts Of Digital Imaging // Assignment 2 // Naga

For the second assignment brief, I’ve decided to create a continuation of the first project.

I delved in a little bit more deeper into the Javanese culture and got very intrigued by their folklore and myths. From here I did some readings and looked through articles about the myths. From their ritualistic baths to the warriors that fought for maidens.

One particular myth was the serpent creature Anantaboga. In tales, the creature is said to be a symbolism of the infinite, of creation and destruction.

For reference of my images, i looked through images online to have a look at how the javanese women portrayed themselves in front of the camera. Instantly I found images taken way back from the late 1800s to about the 1950s. What caught my eye was what they were wearing. The Sarong batik.

 

From these images, I got to thinking about how I can create a narrative. Who is this person? When is it taken? How can I put all the pieces together? (hmmm hmm) How can I pay homage to the culture?

Concept:

I wanted to bring forth the image of Javanese woman in her batik but at the same time to juxtapose a modern day context in it. 

I decided to use a studio set up to imitate the old portraits i found. And still use the same sarong batik 🙂

Initially I thought of masking myself and the props around and juxtapose it onto a modern day singapore image. However after a couple of attempts, it does not fit well into creating a strong narrative. So i decided to keep the messy background.

After a long time thinking, I thought of recreating the story of Sang Hyang Sri, daughter of the serpent king.

[Here’s a link to the story!]

Another huge reference for my image comes from fashion photography poses. Since I would like to add in a modern element, I decided to subtly put them in so as to not throw away the narrative illusion.

Artist Reference:

Annie Leibovitz // Vogue US 2005

I got inspired by this particular work of hers because of the incorporation of the animals and her model. Another element that I referenced was her use of a dark background to create a sense of mystery.

Final Image:

Nikon D7000

18-105 @ 30mm

F/5

ISO 640

Before & After

Process:

I started my process firstly by cleaning the image up. 

I then masked out the background away from the main focus. This mask is then used as a template mask for the rest of the time I’m editing the background of the image.

 

 

From here on I’ve decided on the mood of the image, and i wanted a sense of mystery. I adjusted the colour balance to set a warmer tone and the levels and brightness.

 

 

I then created a new adjustment specifically for the drapery shown. I wanted to tone down the intensity of the drapery as its not the main focus of the image.

 

I then adjusted the hue / saturation on the base platform.

For this, I went onto google images and looked for a high res, [bigger than 2mp] The reason for the skin texture was to create semiotics with my audience.

 

I added in another naga to create a balance with the other naga. I applied a little gaussian blur on the effect.

 

 

 

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