Period 6 -- Critical Analysis #2

9/11/2017

Today you will be writing about this image by artist Cig Harvey. Your analysis must be 4 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.

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

Payton Down

9/11/2017 12:15:24 pm

This is an image of a woman hanging, or leaning off a buoy. There is the ocean which is blue and the buoy is red and she's wearing a purple dress. The lighting is very bright and not a studio set-up. The buoy and the woman are the two main object in the photo. She is pulling the buoy over to the side bit. It is very pleasing to look at. I like the brightness the photo gives off. There are 3’s on the buoy which is a cool touch to the photo. The angle is normal eye view and the artist herself is on the buoy and she probably had someone to push the button to take the exposure. The whole photo is in focus which is deep depth of field. The focal point is the buoy and the women and its framed by the ocean water. The waves can lead you to the buoy but it is pretty apparent to see the buoy. Yes the image is pretty well balance, it doesn't seem unbalanced when you look at it but the buoy is a little over the left. The photo fills the frame. There isn't much negative space, it is mostly very light and bright. You could interpret a lot from the photo like she might be going swimming but since she is wearing a dress it's hard to think that. The photo was staged because she isn't even wet. No there is no story being told. It was her intention to do this, im not really sure why but it looks super cool. This image is very beautiful and interesting to me. I do like the photo is really interesting because you never really see someone in the middle of the ocean on a buoy. It was a very creative idea. I think it is very successful.

Payton d

9/11/2017 12:18:06 pm

This is an image of a woman hanging, or leaning off a buoy. There is the ocean which is blue and the buoy is red and she's wearing a purple dress. The lighting is very bright and not a studio set-up. The buoy and the woman are the two main object in the photo. She is pulling the buoy over to the side bit.

It is very pleasing to look at. I like the brightness the photo gives off. There are 3’s on the buoy which is a cool touch to the photo. The angle is normal eye view and the artist herself is on the buoy and she probably had someone to push the button to take the exposure. The whole photo is in focus which is deep depth of field. The focal point is the buoy and the women and its framed by the ocean water. The waves can lead you to the buoy but it is pretty apparent to see the buoy. Yes the image is pretty well balance, it doesn't seem unbalanced when you look at it but the buoy is a little over the left. The photo fills the frame. There isn't much negative space, it is mostly very light and bright.

You could interpret a lot from the photo like she might be going swimming but since she is wearing a dress it's hard to think that. The photo was staged because she isn't even wet. No there is no story being told. It was her intention to do this, im not really sure why but it looks super cool.

This image is very beautiful and interesting to me. I do like the photo is really interesting because you never really see someone in the middle of the ocean on a buoy. It was a very creative idea. I think it is very successful.

elizabeth wray

9/11/2017 12:25:46 pm

This is an image of a woman on a buoy in the middle of an ocean. She is leaning off of the buoy, yet still holding on. The weather looks clear, not rainy, nor too sunny for the abandoned woman. The sky has few to no clouds, only the little ones. The photo looks as if it was taken on a boat close to the woman. She looks as if she has been there for a while. Starved, wet, and tired.
The photo only has a few colors in it. Red, the buoy, blues, the sky and sea, and some white in the lettering on the buoy and the few clouds in the sky. The woman is wearing a purple dress, or something of the sort. I think this image is a beautiful image. I really like photos with high depth of fields, because they are more focused. The water looks dangerous, as if there are many creatures luring in the water.
I think there is a story being told in this image. The woman is scared, lonely, and lost. But in reality, there is a boat right there with a photographer capturing images. The depth of field in the photo is large, as the whole image is focused. This image reminds me of a movie called “The Shallows.” The movie is about a girl maybe a little younger than the one pictures, and she, like the girl in the image, is abandoned on a buoy. I think this image really captures how scary and unpredictable the ocean can be.
This image is realistic in a way that people can get left on a buoy, just as this picture is showing. Some photos are impossible to reinact in reality but this one is not like that. The horizon of the image is almost perfectly straight, making the image look more suttle in a way. I do like this image a lot like i stated before. I like the blues and reds that make up the image. I think that the photographer really succeeded with the image because I think that many people like this image just like I do.

Jordan Bell

9/11/2017 12:27:05 pm

This picture is an image of a woman, Cig Harvey, leaning over the side of a buoy looking down into the ocean. The image is using blues, reds, purples and whites. Because the background is blue, the center of the image stands out more. The lighting is bright indicating that the image was taken during mid-day. The image is bare of objects except for a woman standing on a buoy.

The image is pleasing to look at because of the bright contrast between warm and cool colors. The point of view is third person and the photo is taken at eye level. Deep depth of field is being used in the photograph. The focal point of the image is the girl standing on the buoy and the picture is not framed. There are no prominent lines in the photograph and the image is balanced. The subject does not fill the frame. The edge of the image is the sky and the water.

A theme of the image is the girl’s feelings as she looks into the water. A story is being told of the girls love for the ocean or that she wants to escape. The artist made this image intending to get a personal yet relatable message across to her audience. This image reminds me of the movie The Shallows. This image does not challenge any beliefs of mine. This image is interesting because it makes you ask what the girl is doing on the buoy and why she is not soaked.

The image is satisfying to me but I do not hate it nor love it. The picture captures the beauty and calmness of the ocean and the sky. One question I have when looking at the image is does the number three on the buoy mean anything to the photographer or did she just get on a random buoy? Another question is why is Cig Harvey not looking at the camera? What is she trying to convey? To me this image is unsuccessful because I know the artist is trying to get a message across but I am unsure of what it is supposed to be.

Annie Mosis

9/11/2017 12:27:44 pm

This picture captures the image of a a lady on a buoy in the middle of the ocean. The lady is wearing a purple dress and is standing on a red rusted buoy. The ladies hair is messed up and is looking longfully into the ocean. The ocean is dark grey and blue. The sky is a light sky blue with hints of clouds. The buoy really stands out in the blue background. The lighting looks as if it is towards the end of day maybe like 5 pm.

This picture to me is very pleasing to look at. I find the color scheme very uplifting. The point of view is as if someone from a boat or dock is looking at this lady.The focal point of this picture is definitely the lady on the bright red buoy.I also like how there is nothing else in the picture except for the lady on the buoy and the ocean horizon. The horizon of the ocean also causes the lady to stand out.

I find this picture very beautiful to look at. This picture kind of reminds me of the movie The Shallows. The red buoy reminds me of her swimming away from the shark and finding refuge from the shark on the buoy. The artist may also have tried to make a point in this picture. I however do not see a picture and do not think there is a message in this picture. But that does not mean I don't like the picture.

I enjoy this picture alot. I like how this picture captures the differences in colors in this picture. I think this picture is successful in seeing this picture. I find this picture quite relaxing. It reminds me as if it was summer again and I was on a boat ride. These colors are also calming which als adds to the mood.

boyd meltzer link

9/11/2017 12:30:42 pm

This image contains a single buoy in what seems to be the middle of the deep - watered ocean. A woman in a dress is standing on the edge of the buoy, leaning far forward with the buoy being the only thing preventing her from falling into the ocean. The purpose of the colors used is clearly to emphasize the focal point of the image, the buoy and the woman. There is a contrast between the blue in the background and the bright red and purple of the foreground. The lighting is bright, with a clear sky during midday. The setup being used is incredibly unclear, with the photo appearing to have been taken in the middle of the ocean. The only objects being used in this image are the buoy and the woman in the center of the image. The number 3 is clearly written on the buoy.
The composition is very pleasing to the eye. The colors used are vivid and stand out. The singular clear guide line of this image is the horizon. The horizon strikes near the middle of the buoy, through the woman’s midsection. It could be argued that the rule of thirds was used during the production of this image, but it is difficult to make a statement of whether it was intentional or not. The depth of field in this image incorporates the whole of the image. Again, there are not many lines to direct one’s eye about the image. However, the colors and objects in the image more than suffice to captivate the viewer’s attention. This image is perfectly balanced with the horizon but the subject is not balanced, tilted heavily to the right. The subject does not fully fill the frame. There is a lot of water in the image surrounding the subject.
There could be an allusion to a deeper meaning in this image. While this is not verified, this image could symbolize that one is on the edge of their life or at a crossroads, looking into multiple different decisions. Or it could even symbolize the crossover from childhood into adulthood, with the child looking down from their support into the vast world in front of them. This image intrigues me greatly because it causes me to contemplate a deeper meaning.
This image could be seen as successful because it was obviously fabricated and planned extremely carefully. Great heights had to be reached to accomplish this image, with the photographer and subject. I do not know about the success of the image in reality, but I would infer that it would do well.

Claire Williams

9/11/2017 12:34:00 pm

This image is of a lady in the middle of a body water standing on a buoy. The buoy is tilted toward the side that she is standing on and says the number three on all of its sides. The woman is leaning off of the side facing the water, but holding onto the buoy’s structure for support. The colors being used in this image are blue, red, white, and purple. The lighting is like a mild day, it is not dark but not bright and sunny. The sky just looks very serene and calm.

The point of view is from a boat or dock near the buoy. The photographer, Cig Harvey, is the woman pictured in the image. She had everything set up, most likely on a tripod, and then probably had someone take the photo for her on the film camera. You can also tell that her dress is not wet at all, so that means that she was probably driven right up next to the buoy where she climbed on and then the person went back to take the photo. There is a deep depth of field being used, because the whole image is in focus and clear. The very back of the image is a little hard to see, but that’s because this is in the ocean where you can not see the end. The main lines that direct me are the lines of the waves which to me, go in the direction where the woman is leaning towards. At the bottom edges of the image, there is just more water, but on the top corners, you see the sky continuing.

I think that this woman might be depressed because of the way that she is positioned all alone on the buoy in the middle of the ocean, looking down into the water. I think that the artist made this image because she wanted to show her viewers what solitude looks like in the extreme. This photograph reminds me of when I go wakeboarding in the ocean and see the buoys just floating out in the ocean. I used to always wonder how they stood up there in the middle of the ocean, and what they were even there for. I think that this image is interesting because I feel compelled to continue looking to see what is going on in this complex exposure.

I enjoy this photo because of how it tells a story and makes the viewer want to know more about the situation going on. It’s so amazing that photographers can put across such an interesting story in just one image. I think that this woman might be struggling with something in her life, and she is reaching out to her audience for something. Overall, this image definitely comes out to me as successful. The artist got me interested in what was going on and I wanted to see and know more.

Brandon Collins

9/11/2017 12:36:00 pm

The image show’s a woman on a buoy Looking down at the ocean.The lighting is bright around mid day with clear sky’s, so minimal clouds for shadows.It show’s a woman in the middle of the ocean holding onto a buoy and staring down at the ocean.
The photo is not that pleasing to look at cause it’s mostly showing what being alone or abandoned feels like, that or it’s focusing on how large and scary the ocean can be. The photographer took the photo in a third person perspective.Even though the picture is just a woman on a buoy in the middle of the ocean it focuses on everything in the photo.The image is asymmetrical cause if you were to split down the middle you would have one side mostly buoy and the other mostly ocean, with that being said there is a lot of unused space.
The purpose for this photo for me is i think the photographer made this to have people think outside the box, like why is there a lady there, how did she get there, what is she looking at ,or looking for. The image reminds me of the movie The Shallows cause its almost the same concept for it.The image is something that you can’t really just walk by you have to look at it for a while and have your brain think of different conclusions of what is happening.
I kinda do like the photo it’s different not something you would usually would see.You don’t really see many photos of someone on a buoy in the middle of the ocean.

Gilly Thompson

9/11/2017 12:36:40 pm

Cig Harvey Critical Analyze
In this photograph , the main focus is obviously the woman. The perspective of the image is from a side view of the woman. The woman is hanging from a buoy , in a purple dress , looking into the water. The water is a very dark blue and gets lighter the further the ocean goes. The sky is a very light blue almost white with only a few clouds. The red buoy color looks very bold and pretty with the dark blue water. I enjoy the reflection of the buoy on the water.
Its very clear, I believe this photo has deep depth of field . This photo is very pleasing for me to look at. I enjoy the color contrasts. Especially the bold red buoy. The focal point is the woman and the buoy. The buoy is very bold which draws you to it and then to the woman hanging off it.
The story i think being told from this message is something sad. She is out in the middle of the ocean hanging from the buoy looking head down into the water. She almost looks emotionless. This image reminds me of someone emotionally hurt or empty. This girl looks very depressed .
I think this image is very beautiful. The colors work well together. I would definitely like to know the full story of what she meant behind taking this and why she seems to be gloomy. The scenery is very beautiful to me and choosing this location and set up for this image was a very good idea. I believe this image is a success because different people will interpret it in different ways and over all the colors work very well. So not only does the image have a story, but it also is appealing.

Kylie Bruehler

9/11/2017 12:39:24 pm

Pictured is a lady hanging off of a buoy in the middle of the ocean. She is looking down into the water and only hanging on to the bars of the buoy, while facing the water. The water looks pretty peaceful, there isn’t much wave or motion in the water besides a few ripples caused by the wind. The sky is clear and the time of day appears to be around sunset.

The ocean and the sky show different colors of blue. The buoy is a pop of red throughout the image. The woman standing off the buoy is wearing a purple dress. On the buoy, is the number 3. Most of the colors throughout the image are calm and peaceful, most are cool colors. The red buoy is the only thing standing out in the image. Though the buoy is the thing that really stands out in the image, the woman appears to be the true subject and focus.

The lady hanging off of the buoy, looking down into the water, might mean something. Because she is standing alone with nothing surrounding her but the water, the image might be telling us that she feels alone. She could also feel lost or stranded. She might be looking into the water as a way of reflection. The weather being calm instead of stormy might mean that she is feeling calm.

I do like this image and I think that it is pleasing to the eye. It is very calming and the beautiful sky and smooth water gives a certain feeling. This image makes me wonder what she is feeling and why she is looking down into the water. How did she even get there in the first place? I enjoy the colors used as well. The overall theme or idea of the image might be to make us think about how the woman feels. The image shows how alone one might feel, as if they are stranded in the middle of the ocean.

Matthew Weiss

9/11/2017 12:39:54 pm

The image is of a buoy that sat in an empty sea, with a woman, looking down into the ocean. In the ocean and the sky, there is blue, all over, a lighter blue in the sky, as well as a deeper ocean blue in the sea. The buoy however, is painted with bright red’s that pop off of the page and give a focal point that the eye snaps to in an instant. The woman on the buoy is leaning off of it, but holding onto the edges of the buoy. The girl in the photo seems to be staring off into the water.
In the image, the only lines are those of the buoy, as well as the flat, distant horizon. The buoy doesn’t fill up most of the image. It only takes up the left side of the foreground. The girl in the photo is looking down into the water, towards the center of the photo. The water is clear and reflective, and this shows somewhat of a symmetry where the bottom of the buoy is reflected and distorted. This shows some symmetry at the base of the buoy.
While simply just an all around pleasing photo to look at, with the popping red, and the reflective, and clean sea, the image does something else as well. While many photos seem to tell a story, I feel like this photo seems to convey more raw feelings. It allows us to think about possibly feeling isolated; being alone without others surrounding us. The buoy also casts a shadow over the girl. This could play a role in the symbolism of the photo. It could be a hint to the feeling of being simply overshadowed, and feeling underwhelmingly important.
I think that the photo really makes you think about how the girl is feeling in the photo. Sad. That’s the underlying emotion that is represented here. It could represent being alone, with no one around you, or maybe lonely, in the same way. At the same time, the photo shows somewhat of a suicidal state for the girl.

Natalia orquin

9/11/2017 12:39:54 pm

Specifics:
The picture consists of the buoy, the girl, and the sea. The colors shown in the picture are the blue of the sky and water in contrast with the bright red of the buoy. The girl is wearing a purple lilac colored dress. The picture is pretty right and the lighting is great. The shadow of the buoy on the water gives the photo more dimension. The young women appears to be staring off into the water as if she is holding on and leaning on the buoy for support.

Form:

The image is very pleasing to look at. The main object is visible enough where your eyes can focus on one thing but you can also look at the small waves of water and clouds in the sky. The picture was clearly taken straight on meaning it was taken from an outside view of the image. The subject does not take up all the visible space on the picture but is clear as the main object in the photo. The image is not symmetrical yet it look more pleasing this way. The picture looks more candid than posed this way.

Content:
The theme of the image is pretty deep. It’s a feeling of being isolated surrounded by water. The feeling of being alone and suicidal with her looking down into the ocean as she holds onto the buoy as if grabbing the courage to jump off into the unknown. This image is so simple yet so meaningful to teenagers especially nowadays.

Evaluate:
I love this image because it can be something so relatable to how teenagers feel sometimes. The girls seems young and she looks as if she is going to jump because she believes she has nowhere to go. The photograph was successful in bringing a message across.

Parker Brown

9/11/2017 05:40:58 pm

The image is a picture of a lady that is leaning over a big buoy in a dress. It doesn’t look like she has jumped in at all because she looks completely dry. It is using a dark blue ocean, a baby blue sky, and a bright red buoy to make it stand out from everything else. Most of the picture has bright colors, except for the ocean, which makes it seem like the girl is about to plunge into darkness. The image kind of makes me think the girl is depressed and she is about to end it all.
I think the image is pleasing to look at. I think the color of the sky is pretty, but the ocean is what really makes me like me enjoy looking at it. I’m pretty sure the picture was taken from on a boat or dock. The picture has the buoy on more of the left side, and the lady more in the center to make the center of attention on her. The entire buoy and lady is in the frame, but then there is leftover space where there is just water.
I think the theme of the picture is either depression or loneliness. I think there might be a story that is saying the girl is done with being sad or lonely, and is about to jump in and not come up. The image reminds me of suicide scenes that I see in movies. I think the image could be beautiful, and it could not be beautiful. If the picture is of a girl committing suicide then it is not beautiful, but if it is of something else than it is.
I think I like it more than I don’t like it. If I am correct, and it is a picture of suicide then I wouldn’t like it in a happy way. The picture is still beautiful either way because of the setting in the picture. The image makes me think about whether or not the picture is displaying something happy or not, and also lets me look at beautiful scenery at the same time. For these reasons I think the picture is successful

Will Mauldin

9/13/2017 09:48:48 am

I think this photo is very cool. The position of the camera shows no evidence of there being land anywhere in sight, giving the impression that the subject is completely alone in open water. She’s totally dry, making me wonder how she got out to that buoy. I think the horizon behind her adds to the depth of this photo, and adds to the loneliness of the subject. I notice the way the girl is staring down at the ocean and it makes me wonder what’s going on inside her head. Is she depressed? Fearless? I only say fearless at the way she’s leaning and pulling the buoy towards the water.
I notice the rule of thirds being used horizontally in this photo. What I mean by that is I see the ocean up to the horizon, as well as the bottom half of the buoy in the bottom third. I see the girl and the top half of the buoy in the middle third, and the blue sky in the top third. I am very intrigued as to how this photo was taken, because like I said, there’s no evidence of land in sight. I believe that she is with someone who took her to the buoy by boat, and took the photo from the boat. The subject doesn’t fill the frame, but I honestly like that because It leaves more room in the photo to show how out in the open she is. I don’t really see much depth of field because the subject and the buoy are in focus as well as the water, horizon, and sky. However, I do see some perspective because of the way the horizon is placed in the photo compared to the subject.
I think this image is very cool because of the vast openness of the photo. The way the subject is so nonchalant about hanging over the water portrays her as being carefree, and for that makes this photo very relaxing to look at.
I like this photo a lot but I can’t really think of a specific message that the photographer is trying convey through this photo so I can’t really say this photo is necessarily successful.

Lucas Prado

10/16/2017 10:39:02 am

This image contains only the sea, the sky, and a woman holding on to a red buoy. The main color here is blue, as the sky is clear and the sea is a darker blue. The buoy stands out prominently, as it is colored red on a blue background, with a couple of white 3s on it and a lantern on top. There is a woman holding onto the buoy wearing a purple gown. The lighting from the sun is fairly bright, yet fading, as if this image is taking place in the evening.
The point of view is third person, with the onlooker on perhaps a boat or a dock. The photo is taken level to the woman in the photo. Given the scenery, this photo is fairly pleasing to look at due to the expanse of the ocean and the clear weather. The image is fairly symmetrical, with the buoy and the woman towards the middle left of the frame and the ocean surrounding it. There is a deep depth of field: the whole expanse of the ocean is visible. The subject only takes up part of the image; the majority of the image is the ocean and the sky.
The story behind this image could be the idea that we often feel overwhelmed by many things. Sometimes it feels like we are holding on to a buoy in an ocean: a bit of hope we cling to in a sea of troubles. Or that sometimes, when confronted with a void, we have a natural tendency to want to jump. The artist perhaps made this image to illustrate that feeling that we sometimes get. This reminds me of the current situation that I live in, with there always being something surrounding me.
I like this image, as it conveys its message relatively clearly. True, on a literal level, there isn’t much. Yet while on the surface there’s only the sea and the woman holding a buoy, figuratively there is still a lot to be conveyed about how we sometimes feel. It lets us, especially as students and teachers, have a visual for how we sometimes feel with our lives. If that is the message behind the image, then I would say that it succeeds in what it stands for.

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