Assignment 5: Tutor Feedback.

I have now received my feedback for assignment 5 and I am very happy with the comments that my tutor has given me. I thoroughly enjoyed this assignment and I can only assume that this is evident through my work as the feedback is some of the best that I have had.
Here is the feedback report from my tutor;

"Overall Comments
Amanda, this is a strong assignment to finish the module with and I’m so glad you got the press-pass as I think this has opened up a whole new area and experience to yourself as well as your photography. Working within this professional environment can only be a good thing and shows just what is possible when it comes to making your own opportunities in a competitive market.


Your research is informative and shows you have good knowledge of the subject, this is important as in the freelance world this knowledge helps to form your market for your images. Gig photography is high volume work that really tests the photographers’ skills due to the time constraints, lighting and general working conditions, it does need a high level of constant concentration although through experience this becomes more instinctive.


The write up of the whole experience is excellent, your overall approach and technical aspects cannot be faulted, and although I am sure you know why a high level camera is worth investing in, you have shown just what is possible with a basic camera and a couple of lenses. Your first edit of the images shows a good range of shots and I can see why you have chosen the ones to sit within the parameter of a magazine layout, but I do think some of the other shots work better within the context of this assignment brief.


Feedback on Assignment
I don’t think the prints really do your images justice, the images on your blog come across better and I would put that down to the fact that the prints are machine ones rather than hand ones, the low lighting and colour casts can cause problems with the way the machine reads them. The finished spread with your chosen final images works well, and I would tend to use this as your part of your assessment submission rather than the prints. It wouldn’t cost too much to get it printed out at A3 and would also explain why you have used certain images.


The two images of the drummers are the weakest of the shots and I would possibly think about replacing these, I know shots of drummers are difficult with limited access and I think because of the distance between the camera and the subject the quality is a bit lacking. For me, the atmospheric shot with the red background and guitarist in silhouette would work better, and with a bit of selective cropped the similar shot with the blue filtered light could also work. Rather than use the magazine brief, use what you already have and think of it as a portfolio page where only the strongest images should be used.


The shot of the keyboard player in The Defiled is an excellent shot, the angle of the image is quite dynamic and you have also managed to capture one of his band-mates in the shot as well. Also I think good images of keyboard players are pretty rare as usually it’s the singer or guitarist who gets all the attention!


The image of the singer of Ghost also works well and we can get a good sense of the theatrical nature of their show especially with the landscape shot that shows more of their stage set-up. The shot of the guitarists, Stitch D, Joe Duplantier and Christian Andreu are all excellent because here we can see how you working with the light, especially the last one here of Andreu as one of the spots has caught his face to add a nice detail.


I liked the shot of the Nameless Ghoul as it seems to fit in with the stage name, the graduated blue to green light in the background works well with the stark and monochromatic anonymous identity. The final shot of the guy from Revoker has quite a warm feeling to it, the orange/red light fits well with the overall style of shot and again shows how you have got the best out of the lighting conditions.


Learning Log/Blog
This has come together very well, it informs not just your work but also the reader too, from the photographers who’s work you have looked at through to your research for each project. I enjoyed your insight into Andrew Kendall especially and you may want to think about writing for the OCA blog from a student’s perspective, they are always after interesting blog posts about photography so it may be worth putting a pitch in!


Your learning log/blog is a substantial piece of work in it’s own right so your assessment submission should bear that in mind, if you can send some decent prints in that would be great, these need to be A4 / 8x 10s with a thick white border (for ease of handling) and should be clearly marked with all the usual information. With the assessment you have to remember that each assessor has around 30 minutes to look at your work, so for example if you are last in the queue for the day then the assessor maybe a little jaded and if your work is difficult to look through, you may be marked down.


There are one or two grey areas in the submission guidelines so if you have any questions/queries please get in touch. There has been a big improvement in your work since the third assignment and I think this is reflected by the standard of imagery which has been well informed through your research, I can only encourage you to continue to work in this way through the rest of the modules and obtain your degree as I am sure you have the ability to find your own niche within photography."

I can honestly say that I am particularly content with all remarks made by my tutor although there is one suggestion that I will respond to.

As my tutor pointed out, the weakest images are those of the drummers. I do feel that they work well under the title of the brief and as such, fit in well in the mock up magazine spread. However, the shot that my tutor suggested, with the silhouette in the red lighting of Revoker's Bassist Shane, is a much better shot and would be an easy alternative to include instead of the image of Jack Pritchard, Revoker's drummer. I have decided not to amend the images in the final submission though and this is purely down to the brief. I think although the other is a better shot, it gives anonymity to the artist and the ' magazine reader' may get confused as to who the image is of. However, if the event had been a Revoker gig as opposed to an event with multiple big name bands, I would have made no hesitation to include the shot into the final selection.