Pretask - Forced Perspective

So it's the start of a new year and here we have our first task to get us going. This task was aimed at capturing our own forced perspective images. Forced perspective is a technique in which an image has an optical illusion element to it. It is a creative method of making an object seem closer or further away than it actually is. You can also make it larger or smaller than it may actually be. This is achieved by maximising the depth of field with a smaller aperture so that the foreground and background are both in focus. 

Example from Google

This image caught my attention with the effect it gets from the technique. This image was taken by standing quite far from the rocks and then bringing the model closer to you and capturing the shot closer to their feet. This technique has worked really well because it makes the feet look enormous and there is this scale element with the sky as the background. I like how there is grass in the foreground which is additional scale to the leg. This image was taken at a low angle which gives it more of a scale so I think the angle and composition plays a part to these type of images. I think the main objective to these images are the use of depth of field. It is vital to get both subjects in clear focus to give it this forced perspective otherwise one subject will end up unfocused and that would give it away that there's distance in between. In other words, these images look flattened like the two subjects are actually together.

After doing some research to ensure I understood the technique, I began to think of ideas that I could try doing when I do my shoot. Here are my contact sheets from the shoot:

I think overall, the shoot was great. I got a range of different images that portrays forced perspective. I think the main challenge for me was to make sure both subjects were in focus because the sunlight was hitting my screen when I took certain shots from a low angle so I wasn't certain it was going to be all in focus. However, my images were well focused and it wasn't really a problem after all. Another challenge was when we were shooting, we had to ensure our camera was set on 18mm so it's wide but I kept zooming in to get a closer view. After some practice, I've managed to keep it on the same zoom length and moved closer to my foreground subject instead. Here are some of my best images:

1

Here is the first image. The idea of using my hands as the foreground subject and then to have my model stand at the back gave this puppet look. You can see the technique working because the model looks small and my hands look enormous. One thing I like about my hand here is the light flare. This element in the picture gives it scale and that correlates with the sky in the back. Another thing that makes the image work is the composition and the angle in the right position. I like how the model has positioned herself with her body language making it look like she's getting picked up. The focus on the image is great because there's not much depth of field to give it away that we're quite distanced.

2

This image was taken in a vertical format because I think it emphasises on that single water fountain. I like how the technique makes it look like the water is going directly into my model's mouth. The angle was taken where the surroundings are going straight across by ensuring the camera was straight as possible whilst capturing handheld. In my contacts, I've taken a couple of shots in this location where it seems like the water is coming out of my model by hiding the fountain behind her. But I've chosen this because of how direct the position has worked.

3

One of my favourite image is this one here. I love how the forced perspective is perceived here. It seems as if my model has pushed this van with ease. I think it was great finding this van that was not parked properly and capturing a shot in no time. The position that van is in makes the image effective because it's not parked straight on the road. The angle of the shot is great because you can't tell the distance between my model and the van. I think the focus is perfect for both subjects. In further details, I think the double yellow lines also emphasis the effect of the image, how the car is not in the right position. 

4

This is my selected best choice. The image was taken at a low angle to make the bottle look huge and then have my model stand far back. I think the position of my model is responding to the bottle because it looks like she's touching it. In this edit, I just adjusted the levels and I've cropped out the ground. The reason I cropped out the ground was because there was too much ground and you can see the distance between my model and the bottle. So I cropped it to the midpoint where the forced perspective really stood out. The focus on this image was the best challenge in the task. I was so close to the bottle that there was a shallow depth of field so I had to ensure they were both sharp whilst having sunlight blocking my camera screen. In my contacts, I've tested vertical shots with the water bottle so I've chosen to go horizontal with this shot because of the wider view it gives.