Hello, my name is Jonathan E. Clark, but my friends call me House. I am a father of five, a mental health tech at Temple University Hospital, football coach and former member of the N.F.L. This my first time back in school in over ten years and I have a lot to learn. Hell it took me a few tries trying to figure out how to post my pictures on this blog. But I am a fast learner and hard worker. I love mediums of artistic expression. I myself paint, draw, and take pictures, so I figured what better way to get back into the college flow than take a photography course. I hope to impress you with my vision!
Hey Jonathan, nice to meet you. I'm surprised you find any time at all for class with a job and five kids, wow. Good for you though. I think that you made a very good photo that fulfilled the assignment and has really interesting composition. From looking at your screenshot and your final submission I think you made a good choice. I like what is included into your frame and the decision you made to cut off a portion of your face. The choice to look off camera instead of directly into it makes me wonder what your thinking and what your looking at. The choice to be smoking and wearing glasses is equal parts relaxed, distinguished, and bad-ass. I think a lot of your screenshots were typical selfies this one gives you much more depth while still going for that hard ass facade I think you were looking for. I would like to see what that one shot in the surveillance mirror was going to look like. I think that was a good idea as well. However, the only thing I think that would have made this image more powerful would have been to either cut out the negative space over your shoulder, or to include something in it that might explain something more about you. Other than that it is a very good self portrait.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteHey Jonathan. Welcome to Temple! It too, took me a few tries to figure out how to post pictures on this blog, so you’re definitely not alone. Your self-portrait really stood out to me. I think it speaks volumes about your character, and without reading your introduction, it had this mysterious yet striking undertones. The choice to photograph only half of your face, really makes for an interesting composition, and I think its very powerful with the contrast of the gray wall. The smoke gives off an effortless cool, and I think the glasses only add this essence of “mystery” that create a sort of “barrier” between the viewer and your eyes. Your choice to not look directly into the camera also gives off an interesting hint at your personality. When looking more closely, I noticed small elements with body modification, the earring piercing, and the facial hair. A beard, but very neatly trimmed in specific areas, which tells me you put in an effort into your appearance. Looking at your screenshots, I noticed you played around with your reflection in a few different ways in the stair locations and elevator?, and I really appreciated taking a different approach to this project. I also really liked the profile shot against an outside landscape setting. I think your different poses speak to your open-mindedness to try new things, and approach them in different creative ways than most people.
ReplyDeleteHi jonathan, and im right there with you it took me a while to figure this thing out also! But i thought your image really stood out and i felt like you were in deep thought and really thinking deep into something. I love how focused the shot is on your face with the contrast of the smoke that sets a cool blur effect to part of your face. I also really enjoy how you chose to focus on part of your face and still include a good amount of negative space that actually wasn't white. I really enjoy the image and cant wait to see more!
ReplyDeleteHey Jonathan,
ReplyDeleteWelcome to Temple! Good for you with all you have going on to take some time for yourself and artistic expression. Your background subtly comes through in your photo. The gritty detail in your face is very honest, and commands the viewers attention. you also have a very powerful presence. I think this comes from your aloofness smoking, something society has really put it's foot down on being unhealthy, but your attitude and willingness to display that absolutely shows a certain power. I really enjoyed the muted palette and I think it adds to the grittiness of this photo. Smoke always adds an interesting element to a composition, especially with its unpredictableness and how it moves and curves on its own. Formally I think I would have liked to have seen a little more space above your glasses maybe equal to the space above your right lens, (your left). I really enjoyed the reflection in your glasses but I'm not sure if I would have kept that red dot. overall– excellent work!
Hi Jonathan! First of all congratulations on going back to school along with balancing family life and a career. I imagine that cannot be easy! Your picture immediately caught my eye when scrolling through the blog. The first would that comes to mind is 'raw'. There is so much honesty in your expression and it appears you know exactly who you are and excuse my language, but don't give a shit what anyone else thinks. And that's awesome. There is a real grittiness to your photo and the smoke adds a really interesting effect. Unlike some of your other pictures, I like that the one you chose was a close-up and really exposed your face. Keep up the great work and I look forward to checking out the rest of your photos this semester!
ReplyDelete