Portrait

Out of all of the nine photos on my contact sheet, I like this one the most:

I like portrait #9 because it looks like a candid, even though I directed my grandpa to make this pose.  I wanted grandpa to look at phone and pretend that I wasn't here. I think this looks nice and natural after I edited it in Photoshop.

Hands

In photography class, our final project was to take pictures of hands and to change the colors to black and white in Photoshop. 

When I converted these images into black and white, I felt tender because the images provoke a feeling of softness and sentimentality. I feel like the filter improved these images because in the three images, it makes it have a heart warming tone to it and have a sense of intimacy. 

In the Style of Ben Thomas

As an attempt of inspiration, I want to emulate his work. I don't have the right materials that can simulate his photos but that didn't stop me.

"SCV-70" is one of my favorite photos that Ben had created. It's colorful and feels futuristic. I try to create something similar but I don't have a toy robot to use as a subject. However, I used a Star-Lord figurine to substitute the robot. 

This is the inspiration for "SCV-70". I don't want to make it too vibrant and bright or else it would look unnatural. However, I made an attempt to make it look bright and bold as possible. I used a Star-Lord figurine as my subject because the helmet he has on makes him look kind of like a robot. I used Photoshop to increase the brightness, vibrancy, and contrast to match with the colors and editing of Ben's photo. 

When taking a photo in Ben's style, it's important to imitate the vibrancy and brightness, just like in the inspiration photo. I focused mostly on the colors, composition, and editing in my remake. I had trouble in not making it too bright and bold or else it would hurt people's eyes. I want to make it bright enough to be like "SCV-70" is. But, I think I tried my best. 

About Ben Thomas

Ben Thomas is an Australian photographer who excels in visual arts. Born in Adelaide, Australia, he worked with moving images at a younger age. In his mid-twenties, he moved to Melbourne to pursue photography as a tool to familiarize himself and compose his surroundings His new interest in his new home has sparked passion in him. Photography has always been his personal obsession but never studied the art itself.  However, he improved his skills overtime through experimentation, revision, and collaborations with other photographers. His photography style is described as hyper realistic, he composes art that opposes to the limits on how photography should be seen and created. He also challenges on the impressions of not only photography, but the subject, with his photos heavily centered around city environments. 

Ben Thomas received awards, accomplishments, and work during his career in photography. He worked with The New Yorker Magazine, Sony, Cake, Singapore Airlines, Penguin Books and Chronicle Books. He gained gallery representation from Duran Mashaal Gallery in Montreal and Huxley Palour in London. He had commercial representation ifrom WANDA PRINT in Paris. He earned his title as a Hasselblad Master in 2018. He was a winner in LensCulture Emerging Talents Jurors' Pick in 2016, finalist in the 2016 William and Winifred Bowness Photography Prize, winner in the 2015 125LIVE Olympus Vision, a honorable mention in the 2015 International Photographer of the year, and a winner in the 2015 Desktop Create Awards.

The meaning behind their work is to challenge the basics of photography. Not every piece of artwork has to be limited to the same rules of photography. Photographers can break a few rules and their work can still be considered be incredible. It's good to experiment with different backgrounds and subjects when taking photography as a passion. Ben Thomas is the prime example of how photography can be daring, not just following the rules and basics.

                 

This photo is taken from Coney Island in 2016. Ben was traveling around the world from new inspiration for his art. He traveled to New York for new artwork and ways to experiment with his environment. In this photo, the subject is a concession stand at the carnival. The photo is shown as bright and colorful, like Ben Thomas had increase vibrancy and brightness in the photo. This and the following photos will have a distinct theme of being vibrant.

                                            

This photo is also taken from Coney Island in 2016, named "Nathan's". The subject of the photo is the hot dog stand, Nathan's Famous. The photo also shows that it is celebrating its 100th anniversary. 

This photo is taken from Dubai in around 2017-18. Thomas was in a fairground at the time and found a diner as his inspiration. The diner's colors makes it look fun and summer-like. 

This photo is taken from Tokyo in around 2015-16, named "SCV-70".  He traveled to Tokyo for new experiments to challenge the basics of photography. He found this robot as his subject of the photo. 

This photo is taken from Melbourne in around 2017-18. When he started living in Melbourne, he looked for the right environment to take photos of. This plaza seemed perfect for him and his passion. 

I chose this photographer because his photos are very appealing to my eyes. I like that his photos are full of life and it has a summery vibe to his work. His work is more brilliant and bold rather than gloomy and gray. The style of photography has a fun personality to it. I prefer this kind of style rather than just looking at dull and monochrome style of photography.