Production Diary
Unseen Teesside
I have been given the brief for my assignment. For the brief I am required to take photographs based on the title "Unseen teesside." After some time thinking of what I could do to fit with this title I have finally decided how I have interpreted the title and what I will shoot. Despite living in Teesside for the majority of my life I do not know the area too well, I still too this day don't know where certain areas are like Ingleby and other such places. I also can't say I've had much of an experience living here. To me personally the area itself isn't much of a subject of interest. I think the true interesting aspect of Teesside is the people that inhabit it.
Brainstorming
I drew a quick crude mind map as I developed my ideas.
Concept
I have chosen to follow the 'People of Teesside' idea. I will devlop this idea and pick who I will take photographs of.
Research Notes
It wasn't very hard to find other portrait images of people outdoors as they're pretty common ont he internet, however after looking at all of these I have decided that I am going to go for a more simplistic look and have the background blurred and out of focus to keep the attention on the subject. Illustrating the person and how they are a part of Teesside and make it what it is. It isn't the environment that makes Teesside. It's the inhabitants.
Locations
I have decided due to personal opinion that I will use whatever location the person is in at the time the photo is taken. I want to capture the person in that moment of their life. Not stage a photograph but show how they are Teesside and their relationship with the area.
Final Idea
I have to developed my idea to the point that it has reached its final iteration. After much though I've decided that it would be best to use myself as the subject of the photograph. Not because of ease but because I know myself better than I know anyone else. I know my story and how I live here. To me personally it feels more honest to have a photograph of myself in a moment of my life than to take someone else out of their day to pose for one. I think that this project relies on honesty and I have decided that is the best course of action to take. I will shoot the photograph in a location personal to me. I will use my own back garden, a place where I have been many times and see my sister play frequently. I will show a bit of this part of my life by leaving my sisters bike at the fence.
Shoot Schedule
- 10/05/16 - 2pm - Test Shoot - Middlesbrough
- 11/05/16 - 3pm - Test Shoot - Middlesbrough
- 01/06/16 - 12pm - Final shoot - Stockton
RISK ASSESSMENT FORM
Unseen Teesside
Shane Holcroft
Complete the following table rating
·
each risks severity on scale from
Negligable (N), Low risk (L), Moderate risk (M), Severe (S), Very severe (V)
·
each risks likelihood
on scale from Very unlikely (VU), Unlikely (U), Possible (P), Likely (L), Very
likely (VL)
·
Determine the risk factor
from the table overleaf.
Hazard
|
Present?
|
Severity
|
Likelihood
|
Risk
Factor
|
|
|
1
|
Alcohol/drugs
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
2
|
Animals/insects
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
3
|
Audiences
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
4
|
Camera cable/grip equipment
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
5
|
Confined spaces
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
6
|
Derelict buildings/dangerous
structures
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
7
|
Electricity/gas (other than normal
supplies)
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
8
|
Fatigue/long hours
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
9
|
Fire/flammable materials
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
10
|
Hazardous substances
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
11
|
Heat/Cold/extreme weather
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
12
|
Laser/strobe effects
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
13
|
Machinery/industrial/ crane/hoist
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
14
|
Materials - glass, non-fire retardant
set materials
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
15
|
Night operation
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
16
|
Noise – high sound levels
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
17
|
Non standard manual handling
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
18
|
Public/crowds
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
19
|
Radiation
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
20
|
Scaffold/Rostra
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
21
|
Smoking on set
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
22
|
Special effects/explosives
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
23
|
Special needs (elderly, disabled,
inexperienced)
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
24
|
Specialised rescue/first aid
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
25
|
Stunts, dangerous activities
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
26
|
Tall scenery/suspended ceilings
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
27
|
Vehicles/speed
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
28
|
Water/proximity to water
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
29
|
Weapons
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
30
|
Working at heights
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
31
|
Working overseas
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
|
32
|
Other risks
|
N
|
N
|
Vu
|
1
|
Calculate the Risk Factor:
|
|
Very Unlikely
|
Unlikely
|
Possible
|
Likely
|
Very Likely
|
|
Very severe
|
3
|
4
|
4
|
5
|
5
|
|
Severe
|
2
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
5
|
|
Moderate
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
3
|
3
|
|
Slight
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
3
|
|
Negligible
|
1
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
3
|
Decide the action to take:
|
5
|
Very severe
|
Take immediate action
|
|
4
|
Severe
|
High priority
|
|
3
|
Moderate Risk
|
Programme for action
|
|
2
|
Low Risk
|
Action may be required
|
|
1
|
Negligible
|
Probably acceptable
|
Trial Shots
In my trial shots I used people other than myself to determine whether I really wanted to use myself for the project, from doing this I decided that I did want to use myself for the project, that way there is more depth to the image and as I mentioned it feels more honest.
Shoot
The shoot went fairly well. I completed the shoot in my own spare time and kept to my shoot date. I used a Canon EOS 750 DSLR camera and tripod, both of which belong to me, natural lighting was the best option as the day when I was shooting turned out to be quite sunny thankfully. It would have been difficult for me to acquire lighting equipment otherwise. I took a selection of shots on the shoot, picked the best one and edited it in Adobe photoshop. I applied some corrections and grading to the colour as it seemed slightly overexposed and fixed this to make the image look more acceptable. I did this by editing the birghtness and cintrast, hue and saturation and also changed the curvature on the lighting of the image to darken the shadows slightly.
Final Image
Evaluation
I feel as if after finishing this project I became somewhat more aware of the people of Teesside. I chose to explore the people who live here for my piece and came to the realization that everyone has something going on and its not the area itself that is Teesside but instead the people of Teesside. Whether good or bad the opinions, attitudes and lives of these people are Teesside. I thought about doing a piece showing some nice hidden spots in the area but decided I was against it. I decided this because I assumed this was the go to answer in response to the title "Unseen Teesside" and I wanted to produce something unique to me. I think that choosing to use myself as the subject was something new as I don't consider myself particularly photogenic but decided it would be wrong for me to explore the people of Teesside and not include myself, whom I happen to know the best of all. I know my relationship with the area and people that make up Teesside. I do however think that if I were to redo this project there were aspects I would change. For instance I would choose to take the photograph in a different location, in hindsight my choice of location for the photograph seems rather bland an uninspired despite my intentions and I would experiment more with the idea of photographing the people of Teesside before deciding on my final concept. I would also manage my time better. Time management was a significant issue during this assignment and there was a large gap between when I took the photo and when I edited it. I think next time I may make the background more out of focus too and perhaps choose a less distracting location as it takes away from the focus of the photo.
