'13' photos. inital ideas and images.

One of the other superstitions i wanted to look at was the idea that the number 13 is unlucky.  It is one of the most well known and still currently viewed superstitions. My inital photos for this idea was a documentry style of photographing everything i could find with the number 13 on, books, doors, letters, times. Some of the images came out alright i guess, there not overly interesting and very obvious. I do like the use of the depth of feild on the number, which was easy to achieve as most of the numbers are pretty small print. While looking at the images i was thinking that images like this would make a good grid, and would maybe work better cropped squared, so below ive tried some of the better images cropped to a square. 

 

While i liked the cropping of the images, they are all very similar and i need to get out and find more interesting things with the number 13 on them, however i am thinking maybe it is being to obvious with the superstition, one of the things that ive always been sure of is that i didnt wanna be obvious with the imagery that i use and maybe this is? Maybe i could look into creating dyptics from the number '12 and 14' and make it look like the number 13 has been removed, which in some places they still do, refusing to have 13th floors, or number 13 on a road? It gives me something else to think about . 

 

Break Mirror starting point?

So from looking at the responces from my questions about vanity (what words/objects best suggest vanity) most of the responces are mirrors (which is good because it backs up my idea to look at vanity in this) as well as references to plastic sergury and makeup, as well as specific products. so initially i wanted to see how or if i could create creative images around the idea of the products that we use to change our images and make us different. I really need to take a step back again

 
While some of these images came out pretty well, they really are not up to the creative standard of the rest of the images in the different superstitions. The images just dont have the connection or feeling that the others do.  They almost feel like an advertising shots rather then images making a statment. 

Breaking mirrors- more inital photos

Here, i just wanted to experiement using a ditigal SLR rather then my phone, as the phone had a fixed focal length i wanted to see how easy it would be to capture the images in the glass/mirror while trying to focus the camera manually. its not as easy as it looks!  So i really need to start thinking about what i want to do with these images and where to go from here with the whole idea of vanity,

Also to help ideas flowing, Ive asked people i know two questions:
name 3 objects that remind u for vanity, and what 3 words would best describe vanity. The responces of which i will put in my note book.

breaking mirrors- Initial photos

My inital photographs didnt exactly come out to be ... inspired? They are pretty basic shot of the borken mirrors, taken even more badly on my ipod. i originally thought that using my phone worked so well with the step/crack images that it would be ideal to use it for other superstitions, but i have to admit, it didnt work out very well. I think the reason using my phone works so well with my stepcrack images is that it has a purpose, by allowing me to take images without influencing the people walking past. Here it really is just lazyness. which i really dont like, but it does give u a look at what the mirrors look like i guess? The one thing i did notice is that its pretty difficult to get an image how u want it reflecting off the mirror. This is gonna be more complicated because i actually like the looks of the broken reflection, its symbolic as well as adding a great distortion to the images, which i think is going to be a great look. 

Break Mirror inital ideas.

So far ive been pretty focused within my two initial ideas and i thought i better breaking into more superstitions before it gets to late and i dont have enough time to develop them to the stages of my other superstitions.

The next one i have decided to look into is the superstition of breaking a mirror causes 7 years bad luck. The interesting thing about this one is that when i said to my mate that i was going to do this superstition her reply was 'you cant do that!' which was an interesting responce. This is still one of the most common superstions believed.

My initial ideas were to get my hand on a mass of old, cheap mirrors and break them placing them into different locations, however as my other superstitions have abit of a deeper meaning then just a pretty picture, i thought that maybe i should look abit deeper into the subject. 

Thinking of what would go well with mirrors the first thing that came to me was vanity.  mirrors is often associated with people who are vain. It lead me to the association between the two, as well as the first mirrors i brought were actually heart shaped, suggesting that the person who is looking at themselves are looking at themselves in a heart with is pretty ego-tastic.

the only problem how was i to capture vanity? time for a few photographic exeperiements. 

Text experimentations- Step on a crack break your mothers back

Obviously the first place to start would be the application of the actual supersition either under the grid images or on the page next to the image, such as the image on the right hand page and the text on the left. However i dont want to be obvious with the text, i dont want to state the exact superstition i want the words to play with the images to create the superstition. I could play with the idea of repetition with a single word repeated over and over underneith each photograph. But the idea would be what word would be repeated? Or maybe i could make use of the idea of a book and have the corrispoding text on the opposite side, like stated before, but being more playful with the use of text. Below are a few mock ups that i have created to give the impression of the look i could achieve with different techniques and maybe even different ideas of what to play with with the text and how it corrisponds with the images. 

Firstly i did mock up what it would look like in the book with the basic 3x3 grid and the incorperation of the superstition itself. While i am unsure of what size grids im going to do for my final piece, i do like the look of the 3x3 grid and as they do say things are more astetically pleasing in groups of odd numbers, so it would be between 3x3 or 5x5. The text looks great with the choice of a simple black font but i am sure now that the obvious writing of the superstition of itself is not what i want to include in this book. As my main influence is Sophie Calle's book exsquite pain, looking back, none of the words are that obvious what they are in relation too, except for the peice of text at the start of the book to which explains the project, or the project statement in the book. What i need to think about next is what i could put in place of the basic text that ive used here?

Here, i used the basicly same format as the image above, a simple contrasting text, the only difference is the quotation n text used. Here i just made up a saying about everything being in walking distance, while i am normally rather good at coming up with random little sayings that would be perfect for encorperating maybe with other superstitions, here i just drew a blank without being obvious to the images or the superstition itself. Maybe this is a look i could encorperate into a later or alternative superstion. Alternatively i could look at using famous quotations that may fit, which would relate to my very original idea of using the writings of Edgar Allen poe in my work?

This layout, of using text in the imagery grid itself, is another way of encorperating text with the images, both with its good points and its bad. What i do like about the image as the use of text itself. the idea of using the 'step' repetitavly, and the way it allows me to point out the ideal that someone is stepping on a crack on the ground which adds a link back to the original superstition which i love. The downside to this is that i feel it makes the image look messy. It distracts the audience eye away from the images themselves and takes them to the text and the gaps inbetween the images.  It also doesnt look right with the breaks and the images without anyone in them.

 

This layout almost seems like a hybrid of the two layout/text ideas ive had so far, and actually it is my fave BY FAR. it allows for the text to be kept separate from the images while still allowing the connection to be made between the two. The mass repetition of the word 'Step' reinforces the use of the grid and maximises the feel of the size and imact that i was trying to portray to not only suggest at what a big influence superstitions used to be but also to show the easiness of stepping on cracks in modern society when the ground is pretty deshevelled. I like the change in the last word which brings a new dimention and would draw the audiences eye to the flooring and the exchange between the images where people are stepping on the cracks and those at which arnt (the empty images.) Also it is very structured and well constructed to the size of the corisponding grid to allow the square boundries of the images to be mirrored in the text formatting. The only query i would have would be that if i wanted to encorperate more then one grid, i would not want to use this on every double page. However i could use one 'square' of text at the start, and one at the ending of the selection of grids, but im sure the logistics could be worked out once the structure of my book is taking strenghth.  

while i know most of these images focus on people stepping on the crack between two bricks, or slabs. however i think the structure of these images fit better with the more highend market idea then that which has a more grimey feel such as those with the broken and disheveled pavement.

Book design and creation

While explording different places and websites that create books and thinking of the best design (see notebook) Ive chosen to use www.blurb.com/Uk to produce my book because it allows me the most free range with my creation of my books, with more sizing and binding then offered by any of the other websites/companys ive looked at. I also watched reviews by customers already brought from the company and im very impressed. I also have chosen to create a square book, in fitting with the use of grids, and both portrait and landscape images. Overall i think i could be able to create a book up to the standard that i want to create.
Using Blurb i have the option of two sizes, the regular 7 x7 square book or the large at 12 x12 inches. Looking at the relative sizes i think i will opt for the 12 x 12 book to get the most of my images. Ive also desided that the pages are to be plain white, with no page numbers except for the 13th page to encorperate the superstition that the number 13 is unlucky. 

What i need to think about next would be a name, as well as any information that i would like inside, an introduction to the project?