Final - Student Directed Experimental Project Prompt:
The student-directed conceptual final project combined all the darkroom photographic techniques and approaches we learned and used throughout the fall semester (including, but not limited to, camera-less photography in the darkroom, dodging and burning, exposure bracketing, double exposures with negatives). Here, students had the time to explore, experiment & build a cohesive series of 8x10' images around a central concept of their own choosing.
Students’ photographs could be experimental in nature, metaphorical, performative, or part of a system of images.
In this project they developed their concepts over a period many weeks, starting with a proposal and ending with a series of images that are united by a central theme or idea.
Scroll Down Below to see the students’ final projects from the CSUF darkroom.
Food Typology by Bryce C.
“For my project, I would like to do a series of photos featuring food. With every photo being a different meal and the photos will have a different subject matter attached to them. For example, dinner one day will be pork chops. While another will be steak. Take photos of snacks and the like.”
History of Old Towns by Ruth C.
“My self-designed final projects show the history of buildings compared to the strike of old and new buildings. I decided to take pictures off campus instead of on campus to help explore the buildings more. Most buildings will be part of the towns like Old Towns like Orange and Tustin. The printing technique that I would like to explore is glossy paper for the final prints to see the contrasts and similarities within the shadow. The concept that will unite my series of images that help create a body of work is to show how structure can have different perspectives and how different cities can used and show the history of each building. I planned on using the adjustable easel instead of the speak easel to help us focus more on the view of the building instead of looking at the backgrounds.”
Geometric Shapes by Julio C.
“For my final project I will photograph geometric shapes. These include but aren't limited to squares, circles, triangles and rectangles. I want to find these shapes out in the real world and create a set of photographs that feel geometric and sharp. To print my photographs I will use an adjustable easel to create a 1 inch border all around.”
Cat Prints by Devon E.
“For the final project, I would like to do an animal theme, either animals or things related to animals. While the photos will be done using a wide variety of angles (close-ups and different levels of lighting), my printing technique will probably have some elements of burning and dodging.”
Urban Nature by Joshua F.
“For my final project I want to go around and take photos of nature and play around with the contrast of the greenery and with there being some wind now, capture nature in motion. I can also experiment with lights and shadows of some trees and leaves but that is what I want to do for my final project. Nature.”
Identity by Kayla G.
“For this project, I want to capture the essence of who I am as a person as well as the environment in which I live and the values that I hold dear to me. For my printing techniques, I would create a border for each print in order to create a classy yet simple print which will only focus attention on the image as without the border, it will only give you a big demonstration. It would be great to demonstrate the images in a contact sheet as well to see how they all work together to tell a story. As part of this topic, there will be a section about my hobbies and how I spend my time when I am not at school that discusses what I like to do in my spare time. I believe that the key to creating an integrated perspective of my personality and my interests, as well as having fun while doing so can be summed up as the process of creating my perspective. As for aesthetics, I want to create it based on my personality, how I see myself and how that relates to the subject matter.”
Noir by Simon G.
Unaltered Nature by Daniela G.
“ I want to explore nature with plants and wildlife, exploring different types of plants and animals. I want to explore the different shapes of leaves and flowers and how beautiful nature is when unaltered by humans. I want to experiment with dodging and burning in my final prints and contact sheet.”
Family in Miniature by Tanner H.
“For my final project I would like to photograph portraits of my family. Although the concept is simple it stems from a more important point of view for myself and my family to be able to preserve what we have now physically versus digitally. We have tons of old family photos and records from the 70s, 80s, 90s, and early 2000s, but I rarely ever see any physical photos of my family from the 10s to the 20s. I would like to be able to compile a record of my family now since I will be having extended family over during the thanksgiving break and will have a perfect opportunity to do so. For the portraits I would like to keep the theme of vertical composition along with emotionless facial expressions for consistency.”
Architectural Typology by Jo H.
“In the final project, I'm thinking about two ideas. The first, I thought I would photograph street art, which means I would probably take an artist is working with an artworks, live music, or maybe community moments on the streets. The second idea, I'm thinking about a series of images of a certain place, a building with unique architecture. I'll use light, shadows, reflections, hunting and leading lines technique for both of projects.”
At the Pet Store by Clarissa J.
“I’m undecided between two subjects. I was thinking of photographing animals, not just cats and dogs, but other random animals too. Or I was thinking of photographing things in motion, motion blur. The blurry photos can be about anything, but the commonality would be that they’re all blurry. I want to explore burning and dodging photos, and different size borders. I would also like to explore bleed designs.”
Typography: Stores & Signs by Priscila P.
“For my self-designed final project, my overall concept is signs and store names. I’d like to capture good use of graphic design in signs and letterings of all kinds, such as names on the front of stores and buildings, or signs that were printed and placed. The printing technique I’d like to explore more is using an adjustable easel. The use of an adjustable easel to create even borders and the common theme of typography will unite my series into a cohesive body of work. I will also use a separate lens for the first time that allows me to zoom in more to better capture distant letterings.”
Identity: Mexican American by Natalie R.
“For this project I will photograph things that represent what growing up in a Mexican American household is like, and the common things that unite Mexican American families. The subjects will be both literal, such as photographs of Mexican foods, but also metaphorical representations of the Mexican experience in America. ”
Motion in Stillness by Nicolene S.
“In my film photography project, "Motion in Stillness," I plan to delve into the captivating world of cars frozen in time. Utilizing experimental darkroom techniques, I'll highlight the intersection of vintage and modern cars , creating a cohesive series that captures the enduring beauty of the evolution of vehicles.”
Hands of the Family by Jacqueline V.
“For my final project, I plan to photograph the hands of my family in terms of what they do. For example, my younger sister plays the cello, so I would only photograph her hands playing the cello. I would use an adjustable easel, but I’m not sure on what else I would use.”
