Reflective Research

Individual Project, Reflection on Previous Units, Reflective Research, Research Tasks and Case Studies

Research Tasks and Case Studies (Styling Identity)

For the Styling Identity, choosing i-D as my publication made the process of researching for this project quite easy since it is a magazine I am familiar with and would hopefully work with in the future. Their ethos and layout is what grabbed my attention. Compared to other publications i-D is one my generation can relate to the most.

Since sustainability in fashion was my topic researching for artists, brands, photographers and organisations was appealing to my knowledge. It helped me gain a wider understanding of the topic. My most favoured was looking at fashion brands who actually take the subject seriously. Brands such as Mother of Pearl and Kaan Amjad are amongst the brands I would like to collaborate in the future and recently I actually bought one of Kaan’s sample clothing via their depop and needless to say even as a sample fabric its finish is a perfect staple piece.

Because of my passion for the subject creating this photoshoot was much better than expected. I pushed myself to portray my work as educating to those new to the topic since it is one that should be tackled more in high end and fast fashion brand. My drive to stop these brands from polluting the already overworked planet fuels my passion for this project.

In terms of research since I had access to all of i-D’s issue at my university’s library it was easier for me to know what I wanted to have on my spreads. i-D also has an online website where I can access their previous issue, therefore, research for this unit was more relaxed.

With the beauty of internet, it is much easier to access information, however, the internet is only a place where anyone can dump information so every now and again it is better to use physical resources at the library.

Reflective Research

Individual Project, Reflection on Previous Units, Reflective Research, Research Tasks and Case Studies

Research Tasks & Case Studies (Image Making)

For the Image Making unit, as I further continue my understanding of my Filipino heritage, I particularly enjoyed learning the ‘Baybayin‘ and looking at the colourised images from the Philippine history because it opened my view on my self and what was the root of my culture.

With ‘Baybayin’ I thought it would’ve been difficult to learn it since they were written in characters instead of letters and the modern Filipino alphabet consists of letters. However, with perseverance and more research, learning Baybayin was as easy as learning the modern Filipino language. It dawned on me that we could be writing in this writing system if we weren’t colonised. Therefore, it was important for me to include this somewhere in my work to show and educate not only other races but most importantly Filipinos to appreciate their roots.

The page “Kinulayang Nakaraan” gave life to the B&W images found from history and a sense of nostalgia to these images. It opened a whole new perspective of what Philippines was like if I lived during those times. It allowed me to understand what my great grandparents’ lives were and understand our the root of our culture.

Moreover, looking at today’s Filipino artists’ works inspired my input on this project. My personal favourites BJ Pascual and James J. Robinson influenced the colours, lighting and composition in my work.

James’ and BJ’s use of colours truly inspired my input how I compose the lightings on my images, I tried to incorporate the same hues on some images then mix others hues together such as blue and yellow. However, I should have experimented with the light’s intensities. I did wanted to move the lights forwards and backwards but due to the limited space it was challenging.

Although I have researched enough to gain an understanding on how to achieve my desired lighting, I should have written or drew the lighting setups I found to give me a visual guide for future projects. Moreover, more test shoots could help myself to understand my surroundings in order to identify where to position each light or perhaps use a reflector where appropriate.

Reflective Research

Individual Project, Reflection on Previous Units, Reflective Research, Test shoots and Final submission

Test Shoots and Final Submissions (Image Making)

For the Image Making unit, I had mixed feelings for my submission. My main subject is about my Filipino heritage, focusing on the traditional clothing, colours of the Philippine flag and traditional writing system. Initially I contacted modelling agencies regarding using their models of Filipino heritage. However, since it was the beginning of the COVID panic, most agencies by then were more precautious in allowing their models out.

And so I had to think of a contingency plan which was to use my family instead. This was made my project more personal and closer to heart. But as mentioned, my mum who is a nurse was quite busy due to work and my sister had still has school and went to bed earlier and since I wanted to do this shoot with the two together, it was quite tricky.

Because I wanted did the shoot during nighttime as I was using ambient lighting, I only had at least an hour and a half for the shoot in total and so I didn’t have much time to experiment with loads of film shot (which is what I wanted my project to be shot in). However, I made it work and the test shoot made me think of what to improve with next.

I also mentioned that I only had an f 1.8 50mm lens and because there wasn’t enough space, full body shots were limited.

My final shoot went a little bit better than the test shoot in terms that I had more time with my models. However, I would’ve hired out a Canon 5d and any zoom lenses so I can have varied shots but because of the early stages of lockdown I preferred to stay indoors and be safer.

I did enjoy using the Filipino snacks as props and I think my little sister did as well. These snacks are a way of her appreciation to her Filipino heritage since she is half Filipino and half English.

The above images are the spreads from my final photobook. Editing the photobook was quite challenging since I had quite a few images I wanted to add, however, I have narrowed it down to the final images seen. If I had more time, I would’ve created my own background by crumpling and wetting a piece of paper and painting it brown to replicate the antique look I had with the background I ended up using.

What I like most about this photobook is the front and back cover because they are the only film images I took and I liked the colours that came out on these compared to the digital ones. These were taken on my Mamiya 645 camera with a 35mm adapter. Since it was my first time doing this, I have exposed the films and overlapped the films but this is one of the mistakes I liked the most. This is also an experiment I’d love to do for future projects or shoots in the future as it show my perseverance to experiment with ideas outside of my comfort zone.

If I were to change anything, I would’ve hired out a Canon 5d camera with a zoom lenses so I had varied body shots similar to my Styling Identity magazine spread. As well as incorporating more “Baybayin” throughout the spreads by adding texts written in Baybayin, Filipino and English on each page

Reflective Research

Individual Project, Reflection on Previous Units, Reflective Research, Test shoots and Final submission

Test Shoots and Final Submissions (Styling Identity)

For the Styling Identity, I initially didn’t have to do a test shoot, however, because I disliked the result of my first shoot due to the lighting and colour I ended up using this as a test shoot to learn from.

The model was quite confident in posing so it was a shame that the lighting setup did not coordinate. I felt flustered due to this but since he is a friend of mine he was quite understanding and recommended doing another shoot at a studio with better lighting.

My final shoot couldn’t have been better! The lighting was everything I needed for my intended setup and compared to the previous studio, there was more space to move around and so I experimented with full body and close up shot to give me a variety. Although this studio was further it was worth the drive and since my model was familiar with the space he is even more confident.

The above images are my magazine page spreads for my final submission and needless to say that I am happy with the result. As mentioned I was going for the single image layout evident in iD’s magazine pages. The simplicity of the layout gave space for the intended message og my project which is about sustainability in fashion.

If I had something to add, I would’ve done another shoot with different sets of clothing for another spread inside the magazine. The theme would’ve been colourism which is the prejudice or discrimination against individuals with a dark skin tone, typically among people of the same ethnic or racial group. I would’ve focused this on colourism amongst Asians as it is still prevalent in countries in this continent and since it is topic that is ignored or not recognised.

Otherwise I am contented with the submission on this unit.