Autumn McGee
I am currently pursuing a Bachelor in Fine Arts with the area of concentration in Fine Art Photography. I hope to become a successful freelance photographer in the very near future. I had absolutely no idea what photography was about until I took the intro class and I fell in love with the whole process. It isn't just taking pictures it's developing and allowing the image to appear like you want it to. Now I am in the fourth semester and the dark room has become my second home. I am a perfectionist and it undoubtedly shows through in much of my work. It takes some serious thought for me to be abstract. I think that is one reason I really enjoy photography; it is exactly what you see. In order to make a photo interesting however it must be taken to the next level. It has to be visually appealing to the audience. Perhaps the image may be unexpected or exquisitely beautiful or repulsive to the point of interesting. When photography found me I began to look at the world in a way I had never thought possible. I became fascinated with the notion of the truth or what was obviously there could in fact be abstracted by taking an extreme angle or close up or cropping. Now finding ways to define the form of the human body and working with a model is my objective. I am interested in the way the body curves and moves with different positions. I have been using a snake to enhance specific curves and movements, almost mimic them. I love the contrast between the silky sheen of the snake's scales against human skin. The color contrast is also very intriguing in this series. The snake is very dark and the human figure is light which I accentuate with a technique called high key, it realy brings home the vivid contrast I love in a photo. Line is also very important, I try to create a "road" for the eye to follow otherwise it gets caught up in a corner or on a line that moves the eye out of the image to quickly. Negative space is yet another thing to keep in mind when creating an interesting image, too much can leave the image lacking and unresolved but just enough and in the right area can be very intoxicating. I feel my work in its entirety is gradually gaining depth as I find my way through the forest of my brain to find what it is that makes me, well ME.
I enjoy so many photographers work it is hard to name one that is my very favorite. However, Edward Weston is at the top of my list. His nude figures are absolutly amazing. He uses the never ending lines of the human body and takes them from an extreme angle and crops them to make an almost abstract image of the body. He does what I hope I can do someday. The contrast in his images takes the viewer in and around the forms. He has black and white and gray in perfect harmony. I am truly excited about photography and hope I will be able to make a living doing it. In the two years I have been at MSU I have learned a lot and I have no doubt my work will continue to make progress as I continue to learn and expand my horizons.