VIS15/VART2960 Photography: An Introduction Creating Impact In Images VIS15 / VART2960 photography: an introduction Module Two: Creating Impact In Images Copyright 2008 RMIT Page 1 VIS15/VART2960 Photography: An Introduction Creating Impact In Images Contents CREATING IMPACT IN IMAGES .................................................................................................................3 OBJECTIVES ................................................................................................................................................................................... 3 2.1 THE EFFECT OF ORGANISATION OF THE VISUAL FIELD ON THE WAY WE SEE .......................................4 OBJECTIVE ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 4 FIGURE-GROUND RELATIONSHIP FOR DIFFERENT DISCIPLINES............................................................................................... 6 PRINCIPLES OF ORGANISATION OF THE VISUAL FIELD ............................................................................................................. 9 THE PRINCIPLE OF PROXIMITY ................................................................................................................................................. 10 THE PRINCIPLE OF SIMILARITY ................................................................................................................................................. 12 SIMILARITY AND SYMMETRY ...................................................................................................................................................... 12 THE PRINCIPLE OF CONTINUITY ............................................................................................................................................... 13 CONTINUITY OF SEQUENCES...................................................................................................................................................... 15 THE PRINCIPLE OF CLOSURE .................................................................................................................................................... 15 SUMMARY OF GESTALT PRINCIPLES OF VISUAL ORGANISATION ............................................................................................ 16 THE SHAPE OF THINGS........................................................................................................................ 18 ACTIVITY 4. MAGAZINE CUTOUTS ............................................................................................................................................. 18 INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMISSION .......................................................................................................... 18 2.2 COLOUR: A FUNCTION OF LIGHT ................................................................................................. 19 OBJECTIVE ................................................................................................................................................................................... 19 2.3 DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN THE THREE BASIC QUALITIES OF COLOUR .............................................. 21 OBJECTIVE ................................................................................................................................................................................... 21 HUE .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 21 SATURATION ................................................................................................................................................................................ 22 BRIGHTNESS................................................................................................................................................................................ 23 2.4 DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN THE WAYS IN WHICH LIGHT AFFECTS COLOUR ......................................... 24 OBJECTIVE ................................................................................................................................................................................... 24 1. INTENSITY .............................................................................................................................................................................. 24 2. QUALITY ................................................................................................................................................................................. 25 3. COLOUR .................................................................................................................................................................................. 26 2.5 THE EMOTIONAL EFFECT OF COLOUR ........................................................................................... 27 OBJECTIVE ................................................................................................................................................................................... 27 STRONG COLOURS ...................................................................................................................................................................... 27 MUTED COLOURS ........................................................................................................................................................................ 27 COLOUR CONTRAST .................................................................................................................................................................... 30 WARM COLOURS AND COOL COLOURS ...................................................................................................................................... 30 ACTIVITY 5. I SEE THE LIGHT .............................................................................................................. 32 INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMISSION .......................................................................................................... 32 Copyright 2008 RMIT Page 2 VIS15/VART2960 Photography: An Introduction Creating Impact In Images Creating impact in images In Module 1, you studied the ways in which photography is and has been used to communicate in different contexts. In this module we shall start to examine how to achieve the most with image making opportunities. Photography is concerned with perception. Making powerful images relies firstly on being alert to image making opportunities — on perceiving people, places, objects and events, not just as they occur, but also in terms of what they offer. However, making powerful images also depends on how you use your knowledge of perception to enhance what you see. Objectives By the time you have completed this module, it is expected that you will be able to: • distinguish between figure and ground; • recognise situations in which the principles of Gestalt laws apply; • distinguish between the three qualities of light that affect colour; • relate hues of colour through the colour wheel. Copyright 2008 RMIT Page 3 VIS15/VART2960 Photography: An Introduction Creating Impact In Images 2.1 The effect of organisation of the visual field on the way we see Objective By the time you complete this section, you should be able to understand in a practical way, how we distinguish between ‘figure and ground’. You should also be able to apply Gestalt psychology to the visual field to distinguish between the main elements in a scene. From a very young age, we able see. However, at first we do not comprehend what we see. We have to learn to make sense of the world. By and large this is a natural development, but for some special purposes, we have to learn to see and we have to learn to think about what we are seeing. This unit does not pretend to provide a theoretical treatment of the psychology of visual perception. Instead, it treats visual perception in a rather practical way. However, I suggest that you may find it worthwhile, to follow up through your own reading some of the topics the area of visual perception. If you decide to do this, Rudolf Arnheim's Art & Visual Perception is a good place to start. Every image we look at, whether in nature or made by the human hand is composed of forms & structures. We have to learn to identify and comprehend those structures. It may seem odd to talk psychology in a course in photography. One associates photography most with chemistry, physics, optics, maths etc., and less with the arts and psychology. However, an image-maker can learn much about making pictures by studying art, design and such branches of psychology as perception, motivation and learning theory. Copyright 2008 RMIT Page 4 VIS15/VART2960 Photography: An Introduction Creating Impact In Images Figure and Ground The whole of our perceptual field can be divided into figure and ground. When we look at something, the main object/form we are able to distinguish is known as figure. The remainder is referred to as ground. There are times when this phenomenon is not as pronounced. What governs our perception of figure? The fence phenomena When we initially look at the illustration, we see black lines against a white background. However, as we continue to observe the figure, we may begin to see four narrow fence slats or white stripes. They are seen as figure.