Amal Assaf was born in Kuwait, but is from Palestinian origin and is currently living in Dubai.
She started photography in 2010 when she started finding her passion for still life photography, then she found herself going to specialise in product photography because it gave her a big opportunity to learn how to reflect the lights on the subjects and present it in a beautiful way. The reason she enjoys it so much is because it makes her learn new things and techniques every single day.
This photograph was taken by Amal Assaf and is of some red sunglasses, propped up against a white structure. The contrast in colours from the bright red to the bleak white, makes the image much more dynamic and powerful. I also really like the use of the shadowing, which I think was attained through the use of studio lighting to enhance them. Assaf has used a shallow depth of field in this shot, which allowed her to capture many more tonal values from the glasses.
This shot inspires me because of the aesthetic values it holds, due to the way she has used the rule of thirds, be centring the glasses in the middle and leaving the other two thirds as negative space.
This photo is of some equipment that looks a bit like jump leads. The primary reason I was attracted to this image was because of its intense aesthetic value.
I think Assaf accomplished this through a well-structured studio, with professional lighting, which enhances the textures and tonal values, paired with the use of shallow depth of field. Assaf has positioned the item in such a way that it fills the frame, yet actually takes up quite a small percentage of the frame because part of it is negative space.
The way Assaf has manipulated the subject matter makes the image much more dynamic, as if it was untouched it would just lay in a straight line.
[SHOOT PLAN]
[1/50, F4.5]
This photo is of a bike chain, I changed the colouring to black and white, so that the viewer focuses on the textures and tonal values more.
This relates to the theme of events not only because it’s used in triathlons, but because bikes are needed for transport in some peoples lives every day to get people from point a to point b.
I am pleased with the leading line of the bike chain, which leads the viewer’s eye to the main subject matter, which unconsciously engages the viewer more.
In post-production, I increased the clarity, which enhanced the textures of the bike chain.
[1/100, F5.6]
This photo is of a pair of goggles, that I took a photo of in my house, from an angle from the side.
I am pleased with how I made a simple object like goggles look more dynamic, through the use of black and light colouring and an unorthodox angle.
To make this shot look more aesthetic I could have used a new pair of goggles with no scuffs which would make it look more professional and pleasing on the eye.
In this shot I used a fast shutter speed because if I were to use a slow shutter speed I would have overexposed the image, resulting in it having little to no tonal values.
[1/100, F5.6]
This image is a macro shot of a bike chain, of the mechanical gears. To take this shot I had to use a technique where you invert the camera lens to achieve a greater zoom.
I really struggled when taking this shot because with the method I used, it easily loses focus and is prone to inaccuracy because stability of your hands is crucial.
I used a shallow depth of field in this shot to capture more tonal values from the metal chain.
To improve this image I could have left some negative space to balance out the image, which would make it more pleasing on the eye.
[1/50, F4.5]
This photograph is of a shoelace on a pair of running trainers, which I took a macro shot of to show the complexity of the structure needed to tie a shoe lace.
The tie in the shoe lace could represent knots and that everyone faces issues in their life and that they have to be persistent to overcome them, just like in a triathlon how you have to work very hard.
Although I haven’t used the rule of theirs appropriately, I have filled the frame well, which makes it more pleasing on the eye.
To improve this shot I could have used artificial lighting to enhance some tonal values and further develop the shadowing.
[1/50, F4.5]
This shot is of an Ironman water bottle, discarded by the roadside by the cyclists, surrounded by sand and miniature water droplets, which create different tonal values leading to it becoming more dynamic.
I think that the angle I took this shot could be improved to make the shot more dynamic and interesting for the viewer, because it would make it mire aesthetically pleasing,
I also think I have used a more dynamic composition as having the bottle right in the centre doesn’t link with the rule of thirds, making it less aesthetic.
I am pleased with how I scattered the water evenly, which creates an aesthetic pattern on the sand, therefore making it nicer to look at.
[1/100, F5.6]
This photo is of a bike chain but from a more distanced angle, in which you can see the wheel of the bike and more of the frame than the other shot of the chain.
To improve this shot I could have taken it at night, meaning I would have been able to use the flash on my phone or camera to cast a shadow of the bike, resulting in it becoming more dynamic.
I used the natural lighting from the sunlight to further enhance the tonal values and textures on the chain of the bike and the frame.
I am pleased with how I captured the complexity of the bike from the angle at the back, which exposes the mechanics of how it works.
[1/100, F5.6]
This photograph is of a major shot of the bike chain, but I managed to capture the wording on the chain, as I used the inverted lens method.
I really struggled with keeping my hands still when taking this shot, but with time I managed to get the right photo.
One of the reasons this shot is pleasing on the eye is because of how I used the rule of thirds, by making the main subject matter be on the left third in the middle, which is on one of the crosses in the rule of thirds theory.
[EXPERIMENTAL]
In the image, I increased the saturation to give the image a more joyful tone. I also think the more varied colour palette compared to the black and white version makes it much more dynamic as there are multiple colours such as purple and yellow.
In these images, I split the original image up and then copied that to create symmetrical photos. I also changed the hue and saturation. I think the symmetry on these images make them pleasing on the eye and they almost look like DNA strands.