Period 3 -- Critical Analysis #10

12/7/2018

Today you will be writing about this photograph by artist Jerry Uelsmann. This photograph is a composite, or an image made up of several combined photographs.

Your analysis must be 5 paragraphs, 5 sentences minimum per paragraph. Remember to post your analysis as a comment to the blog post that corresponds to your class. If you post your analysis to the wrong class's post, it will not be graded.

If you do not complete your analysis in class, you must finish it for homework by midnight.

Refer to your "How to See" handout for analyzing a photograph--

Describe specifics.
Describe form.
Describe the content.
Evaluate the image

Your analyses will be graded on:

meeting minimum length requirements
depth of organization
evaluation of the content
grammar/punctuation

Some things to consider:

This photograph is a composite—i.e., it is made up of more than one image.

How is Uelsmann (the photographer) using compositing to influence the overall mood and feeling of the image?
How do you think this image was created?

Hasan Ehsan

12/7/2018 08:41:05 am

This is a black and white image of a room in a house with a chair, a painting, and, unconventionally, a sandcastle-in-progress. Uelsmann uses black and white to perhaps imitate a nostalgic sense in this picture that is reminiscent of a family home, or maybe black and white was the only option to shoot in his time. Natural lighting seems to have been used seeing as there’s a giant window in the back. There are no human faces in this picture. The sandcastle is either still being built or was destroyed by a kick.

I wouldn’t say that this image is pleasing because the visualization of so much sand inside a home sounds like a pain to clean and get rid of. It does, however, have an intriguing aspect to it. There’s no rule of thirds being implemented as the focus of the subject is in the middle. The sandcastle appears to be the focus in this photograph because it’s something you would never expect inside a home. The two most prominent regions with lines are the grooves and crevices of the sandcastle and the geometric architecture of the walls in the background. The only think being cut out is the portrait, and I think that was a strategic move because it prevented any chance of linking a person to this image. Uelsmann wants the audience to appreciate the image as it is.

I don’t feel any challenges to my social, economic, or political perceptions. Given that this photographer was at the forefront of the compositing universe, I believe that the entire point of the image was to show and celebrate the power of photography. Taking photographs is not anymore just about what you’re directly seeing, but rather how to seamlessly combine that which is irrational and abstract into nonchalant reality. There’s some irony in that a castle is located inside a room, when it’s usually a room that’s sitting inside of a castle. It reminds me of a childhood dream I had where I imagined my entire house made of sand, snow, legos, or anything else that I used to play with at a young age.

I like this image, but it’s not as awe-inspiring to me as other photographs. Although the actual process of compositing multiple images into one conglomeration is fascinating, this photograph itself didn’t stir up much emotion or make me question my values. It’s kind of like a figurehead for photography in that its visually appealing but there’s not much substance behind it. I definitely don’t dislike it, but I think it lacks compared to the potential that compositing can provide. For its time, however, this photograph is definitely successful, and I’m willing to bet I would be much more astonished had I viewed this piece of art at its release.

To make this image, the photographer needed a few different settings. The first is obviously the location of the house, but he also had to capture the shore at some beach. Using negatives, he was able to combine such contrasting locations into one. I’m not an expert, but that sounds insanely difficult compared to how I’d do it in PhotoShop. It’s also different in PhotoShop because your camera’s tripod needs to be in the same orientation and exposure, which obviously can’t happen with what I’m seeing in this picture. I would love to see how this image would look in full color, without the black and white scales.

Sergio Sanchez :V

12/7/2018 08:46:28 am

The photograph of a sand castle in a living room by Jerry Oelsmann is very well edited to look so lifelike. The photograph does not use any colors as it was limited to black and white in the time it was created/taken. The photo is very well lighted and looks like the sandcastle really is in the living room. The objects in the image of a living room are a incredible sandcastle a chair and the bottom part of a framed picture on a wall of two people. There is nothing happening in the image.

The image is composed of a living room with a chair, sandcastle and a painting. The image is very pleasing to look at. The rule of thirds is being used by having the chair at the left side of the image. The point of view would be of the homeowner getting angry that some vandals came and built a sandcastle in his or her house.The photograph was taken from a 45 degree angle. There is no extra space in the image that could have a better use. The negative has negative space.

The theme of the image would be mischief or childish behavior with the which there is no problems. The story of the image is that a sandcastle was built inside a house. The artist’s intention in making this image was to make a fun to see image and be weirded out. The image reminds me of when I brought the sand from a tennis court into my house and was grounded for two weeks. The image challenges whether it is right or wrong to build a sand castle in your house.

I really liked the image. The image has a lot of creativity for the time. The image is really nice and how it has a cool sand castle inside a living room in it. I think the image was really successful because of how there is a sand castle in it.

I think it was really hard for Jerry Oelsmann to actually cut the negative of the sandcastle and join it with the photograph of the living room. I also think Jerry Oelsmann must have been very happy when he finished the photograph.

Matthew Sutherland

12/7/2018 08:47:33 am

The image is of a room with sand in the middle of it. A sand castle is constructed out of the sand. On the back wall in the photograph, there is a panting. Underneath the painting sits a chair. The is a small skinny table in the corner. In the middle of the other wall in the room, there is a door leading outside. Light is coming through that door.

The image is photographed in black and white. The lighting is dark shadows with bright sunlight coming into the room from the outside. The point of view is from the photographer. The image has a deep depth of field. It is asymmetrical.

The image is pleasing to look at. The rule of thirds is being used. The focal point is the chair. There are lines on the back wall. There are also lines on the sand. Lines can be found on the door as well. These lines direct the viewer’s eye to the chair.

To make this image, the photographer cut negatives and stuck them together. A story that the artist could be trying to tell is that the room is in a dream. The sand castle with the sand around it in the room looks unreal and like it couldn’t be in this reality. It seems like the room could only be in a dream. The image looks very interesting.

I like the photo. I like it because the dream-like setting of the room is very interesting. I also like how there’s a sand castle stuck in the middle of the room. The fact that it looks unreal makes it look cool. I think the image is successful because it does seem to reflect a dream world.

mariah podwika

12/7/2018 08:47:47 am

This is an image of a room that has a ground of sand rather than a regular floor. There is a chair sitting near a corner slightly behind the sandcastle in the middle of the room. The image has a very dark and dramatic tone. It is monochromatic and very lit. There are extremely dramatic shadows on the wall and the ground from the sandcastle and chair. The walls and the chair itself look very elegant and vintage.
The image is very pleasing to look at because of the dramatic vibe that it has. It was shot with a deep depth of field because everything in the image is in focus. The lines that are directing your eyes are sides of the wall coming together in the corner. Another line that is the present and directing your eye is the shadows casted by the light on the sandcastle and chair, those shadows lead your eyes to the wall. The image seems very balanced, there isn’t an over abundance of things on any one part of the image. The majority of the frame is filled by either the sand on the ground or the elegant wall.
Normally sandcastles and the beach are associated with childhoods and kid-spirit. The walls of room that the sand is in looks like a very formal and sophisticated. Those two things put together brings the theme of wanting to hold onto a childhood way of life, or maybe wanting to bring it back. The sand in the room could be someone’s attempt at reliving a childhood memory. The image is very beautiful because it seems that the intentions behind it are pure and just wanting to turn back time.
I think this image is very successful in telling the story of someone wanting to relive a happy memory even in a dark and foreboding place. I really like this image because of the monochromatic scheme and the dramatic shadows that the light coming from the windows. The monochromatic-ness of the image really hits me close to home because that is one of my many aesthetics. I think the image was successful because it took an activity that most everyone has done at one point in their life, building a sandcastle, and mixed it with an adult feeling room to add the childhood memory feel of it all. I like this image a lot, not just because of aesthetics but, because of that theme.
There is a dream-like effect to this image that adds to my liking of it a little bit more. The fact that there is sand inside of a house is not that big of a surprise, but enough to make a sandcastle with extra to spare sounds like a dream to me. Another point that could add to the dream-likeness of the image is the theme. The theme of someone reliving an old memory, depending on the memory, would require some sort of odd phenomena to occur for it to be the same. In addition to this, there is the fact that we remember things differently as kids. Our imaginations are at our peak as children, so would it really be that far of a stretch for a young child to imagine a room like this?

eden vogelsang

12/7/2018 08:48:13 am

This image is of a room with sand on the ground, there is a chair, the decor is elegant, the photo is in black and white, and there on top of the sand is a sandcastle. There are no colors because jerry uelsmann shot this image in black and white. It looks like it was a studio set because it's in a room and there is sand on the ground. And there are dark shadows especially when he used black and white.

I think it's pleasing to look at because of how it's set up and how the light is shining through the window. I like how the sand is laid on the ground. The rule of thirds is not being used here in this photograph. This image is in the point of view of jerry uelsmann the photographer. There is no depth of field being used either in this image.

The focal point in this image is the sandcastle. Whoever built it he composited it to be in the foreground of this image and to make it the focal point. The lines in this that direct my eyes the most are the lines in the window. Then from the window the just follow the shadows to the frame of the walls. The subject does fill the frame, there is enough space for everything and only parts of the unused sand is getting cropped out.

Jerry uelsmann the artist made this image by compositing. But this was when they could not do it digitally, so he took a negative and presicilily cut it out and stuck it onto a positive and just printed it onto a bigger copy. This image is very interesting because i think the process of how he produced it was amazing. This is a very noteworthy image.

I really like this image it is very interesting and cool. I like how h used black and white i think that mae the image even more interesting, especially with the elegant was the house looked. I do think this photo is successful and if not then it really should be, because it is a work of art. Literally because he put in so much time and effort to produce this photograph and it's beautiful.

Henry Cool link

12/7/2018 08:50:48 am

The image is of a room with a sandcastle in the middle. The sandcastle is very intricate and surrounded with a sea of sand while a chair sits just beyond it. The photo uses the sunlight on the sand castle in order to get a good amount of contrast, and the room is lit to a different side creating a bunch of crazy shadow which can go very well with the sandcastle. The lighting uses a bunch of dark shadows to make the whole picture pop out more at the viewer because it creates this very nice image in which a person can see much of the detail. There is also a painting above the chair which makes the room a little more mysterious, and the room is on the first floor because the night of the ground from the window.

The photographer had to composite two photos together in order to make this crazy picture. In order to composite the images he basically had to take the two different images, cut them with precision, and the stick them together. He made both of the picture with very good lighting and at the right time to get so many shadows. Another thing is he had to either get someone to make a sandcastle that was so intricate or find one while walking on the beach. The picture of the room was also perfect for the sandcastle because they both looked fancy and the shadows of both worked together so well.

The photo is very pleasing to look. This is because the images were taken so perfectly and fit together in order to make a picture that is nice on a person’s eyes and sparks the imagination. The rule of thirds is not being used because the sand castle is in the middle. Both photos were taken from the photographer’s point of view with the chair at a side angle while the sand castle was straight on. The focal point of the image is the sand castle because it is in the direct center of the photo and draws the most attention, and it is not really framed.

An idea of this image could be let the imagination run wild. I believe there isn’t really a story being told in the image unless it’s- a crazy man built a sandcastle in his house. The artist made this image in order blow the viewer away because, especially back then, no one composited images, so people would probably think he built the sandcastle in the house. It does not remind me of anything, but it almost looks like it would be a dream because it is just so unreal. I believe this image is beautiful because it is so nicely put together and looks very nice.

The way this guy created this image sparked a feeling of creativity in photographers and opened up a new path to evolve photography. That is why I really liked. Also he made it in a way that was very nice to look at with all of the shadows. I believe this image is successful. This is because he put two very nice pictures together and even made them better

Clara Blume

12/7/2018 08:51:38 am

In this photo, there is a sandcastle on the floor of a nice sitting room with a window on the right side of the frame and a chair just left of center frame in the middle ground. There is a portrait of a man in uniform on the wall directly above the chair. The photo is black and white. The lighting appears to be natural. The light creates harsh shadows on the sandcastle and on the walls of the room.

I think this image is pleasing to look at because of the contrast between the sand and the victorian style home. The shadows also create a nice contrast. The rule of thirds is being used for the objects in the background. The window is set to the right while the chair and the portrait are set to the left of the frame. The opposite corner of the room from where the photo is being taken is centered in the frame.

The depth of field being used is very deep. The sand of the sandcastle in the foreground as well as the portrait on the wall and the window are all in sharp focus. The focal point of the image is the sandcastle. The sandcastle is framed by the empty, sandy floor around it. The change in color on the walls act as a leading line for the sandcastle. I think the image is a little heavy on the left. While the sandcastle is centered, the bulk of it is on the left as well as the chair and the portrait. The frame cuts off the portrait so that you cant see who it’s of.

I think the theme of this image is the combination of two worlds. I think this was the photographer’s, Jerry Uelsmann, intent when he cut the negatives of two entirely different scenes to fit perfectly like they coexist. The image reminds me of the feeling when you get home from the beach. The black and white feeling because you’re no longer in the sun and the memory of the sandcastle that washed away with the tide. I think it shows that everyone can enjoy things such as the beach.

I like this photo because I think the contrast of the two places fit oddly well together. It would be very interesting to see this image in full color. I like that it is obvious that Jerry Uelsmann put a lot of time and effort into this image. The negatives fit perfectly together. I wonder how he incorporated the chair into this photo. It seems like it would be challenging to get the shadows that he did projected onto the sand. I also really like that there is a shadow of another sandcastle in the foreground on the right side of the frame. I would like to see how that sandcastle compares with the one in this photograph.

Sofia Galindo

12/7/2018 08:52:49 am

This photograph by artist Jerry Uelsmann is a composite, meaning it’s made up of many combined photographs. The image is black and white and has sunlight coming in from a big window. The sunlight is shining on the sandcastle, which is casting a long shadow. There is sand all on the ground with a large and intricate sandcastle in the middle. On the left side of the room, there is a decorative wooden chair with a floral pattern on the padding. Right above the chair, hanging on the wall, is a picture of a full body picture of a man, but it is cut off by the end of the photograph. The frame of the picture is very intricate and beautiful. Carvings of what look like vines and swirls frame the picture. Half of the man/frame is almost a black color because of the shadow from the sun, which causes us to not be able to see the chest and face of the man.

Next to the decorative chair there is a tall and skinny wooden stand. The room seems very luxurious because of all the trimmings and furniture in the room. Outside of the window you can see a tree and land, meaning the house is most likely located on a large lot of land or a farm. The man in the picture above the chair seems like he is wearing some sort of military outfit, but it is hard to be sure. The sand is cut off right at the edge of the wall, leaving about a foot of the dark wood floor.

It is hard to tell what the lighting of the image is because it’s black and white, but the sunlight is shining into the room on to the sandcastle. The chair is also a light color, meaning the sun hits there too and the most of the wall behind the chair. There are many shadows and light which add a lot of dimension to the image. The shadows form many different shapes, which makes it seem like there is a lot going on in the photo, when in reality there is only a chair, painting, and sandcastle. At first sight, my eyes go to the sandcastle, meaning that is the focal point. The image is very asymmetrical, there are nothing symmetrical about this image.

I believe the theme behind this photograph is that imagination stays with you even as you grow older. There is a luxurious house with very decorative and intricate objects, and right in the middle there is a sandcastle. Everyone, no matter how old, is still a child at heart, which is what I think this image is trying to convey. When I was younger, I used to get so excited to go to the beach and build sandcastles and see how long they could last, but now, I don’t build sandcastles when I go to the beach. However, no matter how old I get, I will always remember loving building sandcastles and will always have a place in my heart for child-like things.

Overall, I liked this image because I like images that don’t seem possible, which is why I like using photoshop for photographs. I appreciate how much work the artist of this image put into photoshopping this photograph because he didn’t do it digitally, but a more complicated and complex way. I also liked how it was in black and white, which allowed the viewer to see all the shadows and places where the light hit in the image.

Teresa Lei

12/7/2018 08:53:40 am

The image is black and white and was shot inside a room. It appears to be very surreal. Sunshine leaks from the window and creates a shadow for the chair. The wallpaper and the painting hanging on the wall make the room very vintage. The lower part of the image is the floor that is filled with sands, and in the middle of the sand three is a well-structured sand castle lying within it. The sand takes a large portion of the image and the chair is standing out from the image as well

The image is not symmetrical and the rule of third is being used. The corner of the room divided the image horizontally. The lines on the edge of the wallpapers lead the viewers to the subject of the image, which is the chair. Even though the image is black and white, the chair still stands out because of the strong contrast of the light. The whole image is in focus and filled. Uelsmann framed the image using the edge of the window and the lines of the wall, which makes it neat and comfortable to look at.

The sand castle is a representation of fun and childhood, but in this image, it was enclosed in a room that is rather dark and serious. The two portions of the image create a weird scene, but since the author purposely puts the images together, there should be some relationship in this image. The possible ideas that the author wants to propose are to remembering the childhood, the sense of nostalgia and memories. The chair appears to be alone and is the only subject that can be connected to daily life. It can also be a contrast between adulthood and childhood.

In general, I like this image, the surrealness of the image brings a feeling of a dream, and it is a very rare idea back in the age Jerry Uelsmann thinks of using the strategy of compositing. Considering the process of doing this kind of image, he is very respectable. The one flaw in the image is that the shadow of the sand castle is very different and distinguishable from others, for instance, the shadow of the chair, which makes the image unrealistic and fake. In general, it is still an interesting image
To make a compositing image back in that time era is very different from what we are doing right now, also I’m sure that the camera he has used is different from what we had today. The image a combination of two images, the image of the room and of the sand. Jerry Uelsmann cuts out the negative of the sand and combines it with the original image, which makes the edge of the combined image blurry and dark. Both images were shot under a great light scenario. The purpose of the image is obscure and opaque.

EmmaKate Spies

12/7/2018 08:56:05 am

This is an image of a sand castle in a house. The sandcastle is an extravagant one. The image was taken in black and white so the colors that are being used are more shadow like. The lighting is bright shadows peering into the window. The objects that are being used in this image are a sand castle, a picture frame, a chair and a tall and skinny table in the corner. What is happening in the image is that someone built a sand castle in the house and was made by compositing.
The image is pleasing to look at because of the idea that Jerry Uelsmann had to composite a house and a sandcastle together is very interesting and unique. The rule of thirds is being used and it looks like every part of the floor has sand. The point of view is from someone who is looking into the room. The focal point is the chair because the sandcastle draws your eyes directly to the chair behind it. In this image there is a shallow depth of field that is being used.
The lines are in the sandcastle and they direct your eyes to the corner of the room and the chair and also the photograph on the wall. The image is symmetrical because there is part of every aspect of the image in each piece. There is really no single subject because the subject could be the chair, the table, the sandcastle or the photograph so if you wanted to have one of those many subjects fill the frame you would have to focus on one particular subject. The edge of the image is the window on the back wall and it crops off the rest of that wall or other windows that could lie on that wall. The positive space is the the sandcastle and the negative space is the chair, the small table and the photograph.
The themes or ideas are dream what you want, be creative in what you think. I think that there is no particular story in this image and that the photographer wanted you to create your own story. I think that the artist created this photograph to remind us to make our dreams possible. This photograph reminds me of a show I have watched. In the show there is a group of 5 friends and they take a trip to the beach and the beach house has sand all over the floor. I think that the image does not challenge beliefs or assumptions. I think that the image is interesting because it’s unique and the ideas are very pleasing and beautiful.
I like this image because I think that it teaches you to follow your dreams. I think that the photograph is successful because it’s very unique and the idea’s to composite sand, and a house together is very different. I think that the idea of compositing is very interesting because you can combine anything you want into one simple and beautiful photograph. This image is a perfect representation of compositing because you would have never thought to make an image with sand located in a house instead of on the beach. This image is very well shot and organized and I really like it.

Farouk Ramzan

12/9/2018 07:56:32 am

The image uses black and white throughout. There is natural light coming from the window. There is a very clear and precise shadow cast by the beautiful chair. There is a grand painting in the background half shrouded in darkness. There is a very detailed sand castle on the floor of the room. The sand castle has many dips, curves, and edges. There is a dark wooden chair on the left side of the room. There is also a window on the right side of the room. The frame of the large painting is detailed greatly and looks like it might have a gold shade to it. The sand castle is moonrock grey.
The focal point is the beautiful sand castle in the middle of the room. The image does not use the rule of thirds. The depth of field is very clear and focused. The photograph was taken from the photographer’s perspective. The image is asymmetrical.
The image reminds me a lot of the film 2001: A Space Odyssey. The color of the sand castle reminds me of scenes in the movie when the spaceship was landing on the moon. The image is beautiful and very calming. I love the black and white colors used in the image. I also adore the space rock grey color of the sand castle. The extreme details of the castle make me wonder how long it had taken to build it. It also makes me think who had the dedication to build to build such a thing. Another thing that comes to mind is, I’m not sure if that’s sand either because of the lack of color shown.
Love the image a lot. The image is able to capture a mood that I wasn’t aware of. The image is able to calm me down. I love the simplicity and cleverness of the image. The image is very successful. Another aspect that makes the image successful is the attention to detail that Jerry Uelsmann puts into the castle, the molding on the side of the walls, the molding on the painting, the shadows, the chair, and the window.
Jerry uses compositing to include a mysterious castle on the floor of the room. This addition to the image creates an interesting image to explore and theorize. The castle gives me a feeling of familiarity mainly due to my connection with the film 2001: A Space Odyssey and how the image and film are alike. The fact that Jerry crafted this image using compositing before Photoshop was even made, makes me feel more respect towards the artist and his art.

Samantha Meldner

12/11/2018 01:13:24 pm

This image, created by Jerry Uelsmann, is an image that was photographed in black and white or edited with a black and white filter. The image was obviously photoshopped to look as though there is a sand castle inside of this room. In addition, the photographer used window light to portray a very good lighting scene. When you view the image, your eyes are instantly drawn to the sand in the image because it looks very out of place. You then question what the artist is trying to get across to their audience.

The artist uses a mix of qualities in the image to create a dream. Since most homes do not contain sand castles in the living room, we can assume that he wants us to have an “out of this world” mindset. With this mindset, we are able to open up our minds to the idea of change in the image. We can then see the image as different and be able to enjoy the way that the artist is connecting with the audience. This makes the image more enjoyable for viewers.

I really like this image because it possesses qualities of time I spent with my family when I was little. When I look at this image, I remember going to the lake with my family every summer in Tahoe. It reminds me of when we were on our way home and my grandma would yell to us to keep all the sand we collected in our clothes outside and not in her house. Since there is sand in the house, I can still see all of the sand my brothers would still end up getting all over the living room floor. I am reminded about how angry she was, but later that we would all laugh about it.

The black and white filter over the image makes the image even more different from the photography we usually see on a day to day basis. It portrays an older type of photography and allows us to think about photography before we shot photography in color. The house, itself, even looks like it is from a different time period. The chair and portrait look like it would be something you see in an older home. Many people can connect to this because it allows the art to go deeper than what is seen in the day to day art in our world.

I also enjoy this image because it possesses a dreamlike quality that take its viewers away from reality for a moment. It reminds us that we don’t have to be constantly consumed by our stress and our concerns about our everyday life. Rather, we can take a moment and enjoy the image, get lost in a dream. When I first saw this image I looked at it carefully and thought about all the different dreams the artist had that influenced this image. When I thought about what the inspired the artist to create this image, I feel as though I connected with the artist more and was able to appreciate their art.

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Period 3 -- Critical Analysis #10

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