Muscle series

I've been working on my PhD for most of this "vacation", but took yesterday (Sunday) off to do some photos. In addition, I spent a couple of hours the last few nights doing the same thing. The result is a series of shots that form a series. I'm writing this post primarily for my students so that I can explain the value of a series. A 'series' at least as the term is used in the arts, refers to a group of works that have a similar theme.

In this case, the photos all featured a model of the human musculature made by the Swiss company Somso Modellen. The rules of the series were: 1) the model had to be primarily or entirely visible in a mirror, 2) only three colors allowed: red of the model, green of the linoleum desk cover, and white from the background, 3) the pedestal that supports the model cannot be visible, 4) two mirrors visible in each image, 5) linoleum must be visible in each image, and 6) mirrors should be positioned to create triangular shapes in the image.

The value of a series is that they provide an opportunity to try out variations on a concept to push it farther than may have happened if only one image was made. For that to happen, each image has to be meaningfully different from the others in some way.

For the 'anatomy' series, the majority of the modifications that could be made within these parameters were: 1) position of model relative to camera, 2) support structure for model, 3) light position, 4) light intensity, 5) number of lights, 6) light modifiers (with/without diffusers, etc), 7) position of mirrors (and means of supporting them), 8) camera position and angle.

So, for the students reading this, I just want to point out how satisfying it can be to do a series like this because working within a set of limitations like this forces you to think of ways to make the image interesting, then pushes you to make it better. How do you make variations within the rules without copying yourself? Attached are the photos I made for the series.