Saturday, April 3, 2010

Composition assignment - Jabez Jenkins

I suppose we all come to taking pictures with different motivations.  Mine have always been to capture family moments, and to document my garden.  Still life photography has not entered into my thinking at all.  The CandC Photography assignment on composition has changed all that.  Now I am intrigued by the possibilities.

I started out thinking of Kim Klassen's comment that she was drawn to old things.  My mother was a pack rat, so we have a lot.  I went scrounging around, and set up the first things I came to.  The doll is made of corn husks, dating back to the early 1800s probably.  The wool is homespun, probably a little later.  My mother christened the doll after a Quaker ancestor who sailed around the horn to China.

So -  meet Jabez Jenkins.







Here is Jabez as set up, from the front.
Here is the view from the top - not much to see, except the light and the weave of the homespun.






And here is Jabez full on, showing brilliant blue eyes which  I never noticed before.
I had trouble making my out-of-focus picture look like anything, so went with cropping.








His picture taken at an angle is really one of my two favorites.





My other favorite is this last one, showing Jabez in deep thought under a canopy of homespun.






































































































Thanks to this assignment, I now see Jabez in a new light.  I'm only sorry I didn't have time to borrow a piece of my daughter's  primitive blue and white Canton china, which Jabez brought back from China, to add to the setup.  Next time!

19 comments:

- said...

It is so nice to read that this assgniment made us do diffrent things than we usually do. So one big learning experience and adventure. My favorite picture is the last one. Happy Easter.

Hullabaloo Homestead said...

Very interesting. I love the prop you used. And the cropped blur picture.

:)Lisa

christina said...

i was so taken with the face. i adore these, each and every angle.

Anonymous said...

How nice to have so many old objects with family history. Jabez is unique, I like the blurred shot, too. They're all really good and interesting.

Michelle @ Give a Girl a Fig said...

So nice to meet you...and Jabez Jenkins! Your favorites are my favorites, too...and I love his hair. Isn't it interesting how a photgraph helps us to see things we might not otherwise see?

Magnolia Handspun said...

I like all the angles you used, also the different props.
The cropping gives it a unique and abstract feel. The framing of the last one is very nice.
Great work!
Wishing you a Happy Easter.

Erin Wallace said...

What an interesting subject - she has a lovely face. The blurry shot is interesting, even though you can't tell what it is - nice colors. And I love the last photo of Jabez. Nice to meet her!

Unknown said...

so fun to see a family treasure from many angles. i like that last one, too, very much.

t does wool said...

So interesting seeing how others choose their subject..well done!

Susan said...

The doll looks like a true treasure and you've done such a nice job of capturing it's expression. Your new pup looks so sweet (by the way:))

Stephanie said...

What a brilliant idea. I love this doll and that last image is perfect! Thank you so much for sharing your work and this precious heirloom.

Kim Klassen said...

i think c and c have really stirred up the creative juices in all of us... :) so exciting.

this is such a treasure... and the way you shot it.... sooo creative...

♥ xxo, kim

Linda said...

I love the story behind the photos. Beautiful colours and shades.

http://leafgreenknits.wordpress.com/

Anonymous said...

gorgeous doll. I like the last one the best. I also enjoyed the history behind the doll. Thank you for sharing.

Neuroknitter said...

Wonderful series! Her eyes are a brilliant blue! How cool!

Also, congrats on the new puppy! How nice that you got her from the SPCA! :)

Jane said...

I really like the view from above with the added light. Makes for a mystery to see what's under the hat.

gonzomama said...

i really liked the third and sixth photos. nice perspective and light in both. and it was such an interesting subject (with the background story) that i liked seeing the details.

Yvonne said...

The close-up with the bluest eyes, the colourful bit of out-of-focus and the last photo... Beautiful! I love how a photo can have you look at something you know so well and make you take note all over again! Love your doll!

Clare B said...

My favourite is also the last one. Jabez's face is really very captivating and compelling. Wow!