Photos(not in order)
Documentation
Process
I experimented with numerous different ways to portray water and ordered them in the video based on the emphasis of each portrayal: Water(water in the environment), collect(water in a container), refracted(light refracted by water), multiply(water in multiple containers), freeze(frozen water), and melt(melting frozen water). Another category implicit in the video involves photos that convey a sentiment or abstract emotional element of water. They are dispersed throughout photos of the other categories and signalled by a fade-in/fade-out transition instead of a swipe-left animation. This order reflects water undergoing a series of actions and finally returning to itself at the end.
Some of these categories are chronological. For instance, I started by observing and recording water in its most natural scenario(group 1).
Most of these photos are taken in a less artificial and more uncontrolled environment. My main focus when taking this group of photos is to capture a certain texture unique to water. For example, I was interested in the glistening texture and the bokeh effect unique to individual water droplets in the first photo.
Next, I took the more "sentimental" and abstract photos I was interested in and experimented with the distortion of objects shot through water. I used this distortion effect to capture and convey the tender, vague, smooth, and almost spiritual side of water.
I then moved on to photos of water in containers and took most photos of groups 2,3 and 4 together.
For these photos, I focused more on composition and lighting in a controlled environment with multiple light sources. I even built a tiny studio on my desk and stabilized the camera on a tripod for some of them. For example, for the image above on the right, I set the camera at a certain angle on a tripod and placed the cups in a way that creates natural frames around them. I also used two artificial light sources on the wall on the left and beneath the cups to avoid them being pitch black.
The last two groups of photos were taken by freezing cups of water to experiment with how frozen water reacts to light.
The results were interesting as ice creates an extremely “slippery” texture when exposed to the intense light from my flashlight. I played with the lighting to emphasize this “slipperiness,” especially in the first and third photos above.
Then came my favorite photo among the 36 in this collection. It was selected from 33 photos of the exact same object and composition, with only the lighting being different.
A fun fact about the last image in this collection of 36 images is that it was made by flooding my desk to create a pool of water.
Reflection
Overall, the process was enjoyable as I could distort water to generate interesting images in whatever way I liked. Based on the depiction of my process, it is clear that lighting is most central to my photos. Lighting is essential because water is a transparent and refractive substance, which produces fascinating results when reacting to light. I had the most difficulties with positioning my light sources. I have two flashlights (my phone and a toy flashlight), and sometimes I have to hold them both while taking a shot. After pressing my laptop’s trackpad with one hand to take a shot, I was forced to set a timer in these scenarios and only had a few seconds to adjust the lighting. Additionally, I only had an umbrella to block the ambient light and some drawing papers for the background. In the future, I should set up more professional studios to make my life a lot easier.
Conclusion
This project’s primary goal is to explore the different aspects and possibilities of water fully. It seeks to unravel what remains essential to water despite its infinite mutability. This project thus showcases a process of water undergoing numerous phases to finally return to itself. In the future, I wish to expand the scope of this project to also include the mutation of water in its relation with humans, animals, climate, ocean, etc.