The next body of work that caught my attention was Freya Najade's project based around old people. what drew me to this was the interesting way Najade can draw out different characteristics from this seeming boring old man/men and portray them in such a way that you almost don't think about the age of the man. I like this idea and is something id be interested in adapting to fit with my own work.
The project is sectioned into different subjects and there was one in particular that I thought was great, the mans name is Dennis and he is 76. The image shows a man(Dennis) in a bright orange t-shirt sat in an arm chair. Firstly the portrait of him is beautifully lit, the light is soft and appears to be coming in through a window. It is shot on a wide lens in order to capture the whole scene inside a smaller space like a living room. I would guess this was shot with a mid aperture around F/5.6 as both the mans shoes and the lamp in the background are in focus. Najade has shot at eye level with the man however the mans head is tilted slightly upwards and is positioned to the right of the frame with a slight angle towards the camera. This allows you to see the lamp in the background whilst maintaining balance in the image. What I like about this image is the tones. I like how the image is all a very similar, brown tone with the pop of the mans bright orange t-shirt.I think this really shows the mans character which you later see more of in the project. Overall the image is a very soft photo yet has punchy blacks and deep shadows adding depth to the image.
The next photo is the next portrait you see of the man in the series and what I like about it is that he is wearing the same bright orange t-shirt, as well as that he's wearing a helmet and climbing gear which reveals a bit more of his personality to the viewer. The image is a 3/4 body shot of Dennis stood in what looks like a bedroom, he is facing 45degrees away from the camera with his head turned looking into the lens. It is lit from natural light coming in from the cameras left. The camera is again eye level with the man however this time he isn't looking into the lens but just to the right of it which adds to the feeling of curiosity in the image. The photo was taken with a large aperture and a wide lens to get the most out of the limited light source in the room, it also gives the image softer feel which could reflect the old mans vulnerability. The tones in this photo are very similar to the previous one which keeps the story continuous making it clear to the viewer these are most likely taken in the mans house. Although the tones are soft and light there are still nice dark elements in the image like the harness, the mans trousers, and around his helmet. the dark part around his helmet frames his face nicely and really captures the feeling in his eyes.
The next photo shows a close up of the mans legs lifting his short denim skirt up revealing his underwear. This again shows more of the mans personality, the image is lot closer up than the previous images but id say it was still shot using a wide lens. The lens was shot wide open as there is only a very small part of the photo in focus. Najade has shot at waist level with the man and he is stood side on with his body slightly rotated towards the camera, his right arm creates a leading line form the op led corner and takes your eye to his legs. What I like about this image is that its unexpected, from the images before you wouldn't have guessed that this would be a part of it and I like that you really get to see all different sides of this mans life. The tones are a lot darker with more reds, blues, and purples and that has made the image slightly less contrast and a lot darker. Although justice the previous two it has been lit using natural through a window which puts that signature highlight which is present in all the portraits.
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