Lee Jeffries and emotion experiment

Lee Jeffries is a photographer I discovered who has taken photos of homeless people in a way that conveys very deep emption. He has taken portraits of them in high quality and you can see the raw emotion. It is not models or actors, it is real people and real emotion. I am inspired by his work. Most of it is black and white, all his work is in a similar style yet never boring. He captures something unique and beautiful every time. The following is from his website:

http://leejeffries.500px.com/

Lee Jeffries' Homeless series is very powerful. It is interesting to look at work that is so real after having created my own fan art and capturing emotion from actors.  The knowledge that the emotion in those photographs is real (people) in real situations where they are suffering, instantly makes his work very powerful. Yet, even without this knowledge the raw emotion and style of his work is still captivating.

Untitiled. Lee Jeffries. #LostAngels.

This image is from Lee Jeffries' Homeless series. Not very much of his work is in colour. The contrast between the pitch black background and his skin reflects the harshness and darkness of the situation. The way the subjects eyes are looking straight into the camera makes it feel as though he is looking into your eyes, which automaticially makes you feel a connection and literally face someone you might other wise walk past in the street. There is a lot of emotion in this piece and the eye contact makes it feel very human and real.

Andy. Lee Jeffries. #LostAngels.

The composition in this piece is very powerful. With his hands covering his face he looks exhausted and upset. It is taken from an angle that isn't looking down on him as you would be if you were walking past.  You are on his level as if you are sitting with him.

#Lost Angels. Lee Jeffries.

The amount of detail in this mans face plays an important role in in the feel of this piece. Nothing blurred. The dark background maybe symbolises the darkness that surrounds this man. It makes you feel close to him. Somehow every pore, every wrinkle and every bit of dirt makes you really see the person and the potential that has been lost due to bad circumstances or desicions. It forces you to see the harshness, the reality, right up close.  If we simply walk past and never face it, distance ourselves physically, we can forget and distance ourselves emotionally. Lee Jeffries' work brings us up close and face to face with other people's pain.



Brittany #LostAngels Lee Jeffries

Page from sketchbook. This photgraph has an interesting composition. It instantly stands out as being different on Lee Jeffries' website.  The facial expression is extreme and it makes you wander what was happening (or what just happened) at the time the photo was being taken. This uncertainty makes the piece intriguing and causes you to think more about it. The contrast of her blonde hair in the wind against the black background is very intense. The composition makes it look as though she is scared of something in the darkness, or the darkness itself.

I started to experiment with this technique of conveying emotion 'up close and detailed. Stark contrast, highlighting certain features.

I chose a theme. Anger. And I started to create faces and gestures to try to portray anger. I considered style, composition and layout. I used a similar, detailed style to Lee Jeffries but built up lots of different elements like I have explored previously.  I considered the shape an eye would typically make when angry and the lines in the face.

I used elements from Lee Jeffries work.  I tried to make the lines look scratchy and frustrated and let ink drip onto the page in a messy way to try to symbolise frustration and confusion.

This is what I ended up with. It is not a finished piece it was an experiment. I used red as is typically the colour associated with anger but tried not t use too much of it. I might add surreal and or real objects also associated with anger.

This is a piece I did using a detailed style of Lee Jeffries. I created it from a photograph of his called They Walked A Long Way Together. I tried to capture their personalities and emotion. In the photograph they look sad and relieved. I tried to change the theme and make them look happy, almost like a cheeky old couple who were content and still messing around. It was fun using lots of lines and detail to paint the scene and express that emotion. I'm not really sure why I chose purple as an extra colour. It seemed warmer and like a colour that could be associated with trust and fun. I didn't want to use anything too bright and youthful. I wanted to capture the dignity and commitment within the relationship of these two people. Somehow purple seemed like the right colour for that.

This is a drawing I did of another  one of Lee Jeffires Photographs. The Photograph is Untitled and from his homeless series. I tried to use a less detailed style and create it in a caricature style. Which I didn't really achieve.  I think this style is quite nice for this particular drawing though. The smooth edges give a sense of a classy man. The photograph is quite different. I wouldn't use this style to convey an erratic emotion.

Untitled. #LostAngels Lee Jeffries. This is the photo I used as visual reference. I used a simpler style to completely change the feel of the piece.