P4-photomontage

For this photomontage project, I chose a familiar spot on campus—a building and the tree that stands right in front of it. I pass this place almost every day, but taking the photos made me look at it much more carefully. I shot the images in the afternoon when the sunlight was warm and hitting the yellow leaves, which gave the location a calmer, almost welcoming mood. I wanted the viewer to notice how the tree and the building interact, almost as if they frame each other.

In terms of composition, I paid attention to the strong vertical lines of the building and the more organic shapes of the tree. The center of interest is mainly the bright yellow foliage, which naturally draws the eye before it travels across the different parts of the montage. I used angles that created movement, especially the diagonal overlap of images, so the viewer’s gaze doesn’t stay in just one place.

For camera work, I made sure the details of the tree bark, the windows, and the leaves stayed sharp. I tried not to overexpose the bright sky while still keeping the shadows under control. Because it was a sunny day, I had to adjust my exposure several times so the highlights didn’t wash out.

Craftsmanship was important to me. I didn’t want the montage to feel randomly slapped together, so I arranged each section intentionally. Even though the edges don’t line up perfectly, I think that slight mismatch adds to the collage feeling rather than taking away from it.

Overall, I like how the montage shows the space from multiple angles at once. It feels more dynamic than a single photo, and it captures how I actually experience this location—never from just one fixed viewpoint. If I could change anything, I might experiment with even more layers to push the sense of movement further.

 

P4-location

For this location assignment, I chose a small area of my campus that I usually rush past without noticing. Slowing down and photographing it allowed me to understand the space not just as scenery, but as a layered environment shaped by people, materials, and shifting light.

The first photograph captures a low tree decorated with small ribbons and beads tied by unknown hands. These details reveal how a location quietly gathers human traces. The tree becomes more than part of the landscape, it becomes a site touched and altered by personal gestures. Observing these objects made me aware of how people leave subtle marks on a shared space.

The second image focuses on a simple metal bench scattered with fallen leaves. Though an ordinary campus fixture, the bench represents another dimension of location: surfaces, textures, and the suggestion of human presence through absence. It is a place designed for pause, holding the potential for rest or conversation even when empty.

The third and fourth photographs shift upward toward the tall trees that shape the atmosphere of the lawn. Viewed from below, their branches spread in intricate patterns, forming a natural canopy. The sunlight filtering through creates a sense of enclosure, transforming an open outdoor area into a spatial experience, almost like entering a room defined by light and height.

The final image steps back to show the full tree in its surroundings. This wider perspective reconnects the intimate details to the larger environment, reminding me that a location is always constructed from multiple scales—the close, the distant, and everything in between.

Through these five photos, I aimed to reveal how an everyday site becomes meaningful when we take the time to truly look.