Reflection: For the still life assignment, I chose to do two “flat lay” pieces that represent disparate groups in American society. With the midterm elections landing on the day this assignment is due, it felt appropriate to share my thoughts in this manner. While I’m generally happy with the outcome, I’ll be honest and say that as much as I wanted to shoot these images, the process feels incredibly vulnerable, in the sense that I’m openly sharing a point of view that may offend others who don’t share my beliefs.
In The 1 Percent, each item represents wealth and power and a potentially violent grip on maintaining the status quo.
Gathering all these items was a huge challenge. Though I had a sense of where I might be able to get each thing, it took quite a bit of explaining why I wanted a certain item(s) for a photograph. It’s also not lost on me that I was even able to find access to, say, the gold coins, Rolex and the handgun. That, in and of itself, speaks to some level of privilege.
I spent three or four hours in my garage shooting the still with zero usable shots. The next day, I moved the entire “studio” into the kitchen and managed to get the brightly-lit, almost high-key visual that I envisioned. I did very little work, other than trying to bring out some of the shadows where the wing-tips meet, in Lightroom for this shot. That said, if we were allowed to crop, I would’ve cropped this image to get just a little less flag.
The 1 Percent
Flag, shoes, gun, money, watch and lock, NoHo, CA., Nov 4, 2018, by Josh DuBose (1/6, f4.5, ISO 200)
The 99 Percent
Boots, watch strap, Leatherman, money, torn flag, Spanish ballot, first aid kit, Nov 4, 2018, NoHo, CA. by Josh DuBose (1/10, f16, ISO 200)
In The 99 Percent, I tried to match items from my first shot (The 1%) in a way that spanned the classes of society that are not at the very top. The boots and the Leatherman are very “working class.” The sleek “watchless-band” represents, perhaps, a family heirloom, incomplete, but valuable and cherished nonetheless. The first-aid kit and small bills, crumpled by loose change on top of a Spanish language sample-ballot is a nod to the immigrant struggle this country is built on. Finally, the flag, shredded, but still in tact, might be a nation that can be repaired, though it’s health is precarious.
By the time I got to this composition, I was on a roll and the light in the kitchen was really my friend. Using natural light, I also created a tinfoil covered reflector that fit on my ladder just right to “flare” the $5 and offer nice highlights on the texture and wear of the boots. Again, outside of trying to bring the harsh light on the bills down a bit, I did very little to the photo in LR.
This project was very challenging, but enjoyable at almost every turn, from conception to production. I’d set up each still, shoot for a while, load photos into LR, look at them, go back to the still and make adjustments in frame. I did my WB in camera for every new adjustment and struggled to keep up with the changing natural light.
I’m not sure if each image is too on the nose. It might be and I felt that way through every stage of this, but ultimately, I just felt like going for it.