flossie
hills
Trapped
photography
Yell-O
These photographs express how the world is changing due to our understanding of the threat of climate change, and how we are damaging the natural environment.
I believe that young people are more at one with nature, and realise that what we do in our everyday lives has a dramatic impact on it.
The yellow in this image symbolises spring and new awakenings, with happiness and hope for the future. The subject is becoming submerged in nature, allowing himself to be subsumed by the colour, vibrancy and creative possibilities that the natural world presents to us, if only we are able to open up and allow it into our lives.
Awakenings
David
To me, photographs are about creating a narrative. So I wanted to tell the subject's story to the viewer by capturing their personality.
The lighting is a very important part of these images, as it helps the viewer stand out and makes them more eye-catching.
I found that the bright, natural light in these images created strong contrasting areas of light and dark. This created a dramatic atmosphere in the photographs.
I wanted most of the attention on the subject in these photographs. So I decided to keep the backgrounds very simple and empty. This really exaggerates the story that I am trying to tell about the subject.
New Beginnings
This photograph symbolises new beginnings and an awakening to a new view on life.
Using rich natural colours, such as green, which have connotations of nature, and feeling refreshing and tranquil.
The bright blue eye in the centre grabs the viewers attention and stands out as it is very brightly lit compared to other parts of the image. The unusual angle in the photograph makes it so you see the eye from an upside-down view, and helps to convey the feeling of waking up and experiencing new things.
Do You Wanna Funk?
In these images I explored 1980s artwork, with the trend of airbrushing during that era and the Athena posters by Syd Brak.
Using original photography overlaid with modern-day techniques, such as iPad drawing and photoshop manipulation, and the addition of a QR code that takes the viewer to an accompanying soundtrack by Sylvester.
Reflection
These images, shot on 35mm film, tell the story of a reflection in time, with a person looking back at their life.
In one image the person in the photograph is looking down at the water, as if they are thinking about their past and wondering what will happen in the future.
Minimalism
A lot of images can be too busy and appear chaotic, bringing the attention away from the focus of the image, which is the subject. Therefore, I decided to take these very simple images focusing all of the attention on the person.
I wanted this shoot to appear very natural, so I photographed the subject in relaxed poses. Unlike a lot of my other images, I took these images in casual situations, having a conversation with the subject at the same time as photographing them, capturing her energy and personality.
Structures
Edelia
Looking at shapes and forms that are surround us, I changed the colours to make them more abstract and bring the viewer's attention closer to the shapes and structures they see. The surreal colours also help to encourage the viewer to interpret the shapes in their own way.
Photo Narrative Album Covers
These images took a simple portrait of someone and hidden parts of their face with the album cover for their favourite song, so the viewer finds out more about the subject though their music taste and not just purely on what they look like.
The photographs also bring attention to how album cover art has changed over the years and how it isn’t as important as it used to be. With the development of technology it has effected how we listen to music, with streaming services such as Spotify only allowing the viewer to see a very small image, rather than the original 12" record cover.
publication
Showreel
A video of my sketchbooks can be found here >>
On Repeat
This film tells the story of someone experiencing lockdown, and how each day feels very similar and like everything is repeating in a loop.
It exaggerates the feeling of repetitiveness, with the use of different videos layered over the top of each other to give a surreal and dream-like atmosphere. With contrast colours that evoke the unsettling and chilling way that the character, a young boy, is feeling.
film
Stills from 'On Repeat'
Trypophobia
This short moving image explores the feeling of neurodivergent sensory overload and trypophobia, when one or more of the body's senses is overstimulated to a point where a person is unable to cope.
This video is personal to me as I am autistic, and wanted to spread the understanding of what sensory overload is and how it is nothing to be ashamed of.
Stills from short film: 'Trypophobia'
Urban Hush
This film was created in a team with two other people, where I was the videographer and the editor. The brief was to create a short video promoting the reconnection of people with nature.
It explores the concept of the urban environment being chaotic and miserable, contrasting with the soothing and tranquil environment of the natural world.
Stills from short film: 'Urban Hush'
The Bubble of Cheam
This video was inspired by my suburban home town of Cheam, and my growing dissatisfaction with it.
The film explores the concept of the residents of Cheam living in a bubble, and largely fixated on wealth and materialistic things.
Through bright and vivid colours, it takes the viewer on a dreamlike and surreal journey through the neighbourhood with houses of exaggerated proportions ,to the tune of Katy Perry’s ‘Chained to the Rhythm’.
Stills from short film: 'The Bubble Of Cheam'
Individual Identity
This atmospheric short film is a personal project that explores the topic of individual identity through my love of horror films.
Using lighting techniques often used in horror, with strong colours to evoke an eerie atmosphere and mood, it overlays stills from some of my favourite horror films with a backing track by Leftfield.
Stills from short film: 'Individual Identity'
publication
The UK’s Nightlife is Dying
This publication was for a campaign I created called ‘People Need Music’ which highlights the current state of UK nightlife and the decline in music venues.
Including quotes and statistics from industry stakeholders, along with photographs I took at clubs and illegal raves, the project aims to shed light on the impact of dwindling venues for young people to enjoy music, highlighting its toll on their mental health.
Layouts from the publication 'The UK’s Nightlife is Dying
AWARDS
publication
Quintessential
- Martin Parr Only Human, National Portrait Gallery Competition: Under 18s (First Prize) - 'Quintessential'
- SFCA Art Exhibition 2022: Planet Future (Shortlisted) - 'Yello-O'
- Untitled by Talent House #myphotomyfeeling (Runner-up) - 'Trapped'
Sketchbook
publication
Sketchbooks for the development work of 'Individual Identity', Inspired by Matt Wisniewski's work, where he layers different images together, which I used to create a surreal and frightening atmosphere.
I then looked more into the different techniques that make images look frightening. One of the things that I found that was important when making the images scary, was the colours used.
I researched the film 'Suspiria', by Dario Argento, and the way that it uses intense, bright colours to create a sense of fear in the viewer.
Inspired by the cinematography in the film 'Suspiria' by Dario Argento, I focused on the effect that colour has on the viewer's emotions and how it helps them to understand how the character is feeling. The dominant colour is red, which adds to the frightening atmosphere, as it has connotations of violence, blood and anger.
Playing with shadows, most notably in the eyes, makes it hard to tell how the person is feeling, so the viewer must interpret the colours they see to try and figure out what is happening.
As I liked the use of bright colours in my previous shoot, I took more inspiration from the lighting used in the cinematography of horror films.
I found that most horror films only light part of the face, keeping a lot of the image in darkness, adding to the mystery and fear. I also found that colour is used in a less intense way, with it only being used for backlighting for example.
To develop my images further, I went back to my first shoot where I layered different images together, and continued with this idea, but using a projector instead of editing it on photoshop.
I projected different stripes and patterns onto the person, which created areas of light and dark, relating back to the lighting used in horror films.
For my final shoot I decided to combine the different ideas from each of my different shoots, with the coloured lighting from 'Suspiria' and layering images using a projector. I decided to cut these images up as I wanted to tell the viewer more about how there may be different sides to a character within a horror film, and that they are never completely 'good' or 'evil'.
About
I am captivated by colourful images and how they make you feel, this has drawn me to the world of cinema and photography.
Using lens-based media to make people feel a certain way, interests me. I always consider the viewer's emotions when developing the ideas for my shoots. I think the lighting and framing are critical in helping to evoke a feeling. Colour has an incredible power to change how we interpret the mood and atmosphere of an image. A lot of my photography is inspired by cinematography and how each shot helps to tell a story.
Currently a student at Central Saint Martins studying for a Foundation Diploma in Communication Design. I have A-Levels in Photography, Maths and Business and EPQ entitled 'How and Why the Use of Colour in British Horror Cinema has Changed Over Time.' (Grades A*AAB)
In my spare time I’ve been assisting shoots for the music photographer Tom Oxley, and enjoy listening to music, watching films, going to music venues and festivals, and travelling.
