In this project our aim was to successfully create a photo book on our own ideas and images.
This was a fun and challenging task but it really helped me to understand and experiment with new techniques. I used a Holga lens turret to take my images which created a very different, funky style of photos (a layered style).
The Holga lens has such a wide variety of filters and lens styles. In my book I used a lot of the photos which were taken with the lens that splits the image into five pieces almost like a kaleidoscope does.
The lens opened up a whole new way of taking photos and also helped me decide on the title of 'The Obscure', the book has been set out in a way to make it seem strange and not quite clear to what everything is and Holga lens works very well for that effect.
My idea for this project developed when I bought the Holga lens and had a go at using it, the idea soon developed when I understood what the lens was capable of taking and all the amazing filters to choose from and use.
Although the lens was great it also came with many problems such as lighting and the sensitivity, it took me a while to get used to the conditions before shooting for my final images was even an option.
My first few shoots using this lens were not great, they were over exposed and very blurred, the photos and there quality were not up to good standards.
The ISO on the camera had to be set to 3200 and the shutter speed had to be quite fast as the lens is open and letting in light all the time. The Holga lens was a very challenging piece of equipment to use and it was something that I had not used before. When using the lens the lighting wasn't the only issue, the lens filters were also hard to get to grips with because it changed the image completely.
Artists that helped me choose the Holga lens and inspired me to make the book were artists such as Gilles et Dada who creates image that repeat certain features of the models body parts, Gilles doesn't use a Holga lens but he digitally manipulates his images to an extent that it relates to what the Holga lens turret can do.
