Nicole Johnson/Artist Statement

In each of my street photographs, I first edited them basically in iPhoto, messing with the contrast, saturation, shadows, highlights, sharpness, definition, and exposure, until I got each photo to look the way I wanted it to, leaving them with a warm feeling, as if they had been taken on a sunny day instead of a rainy one. I then moved to editing each photo in Photoshop, making them even warmer.
In my first group of street photographs, I decided to focus on editing them with the “paint bucket” to give each photo a cartoon-like effect. To do this, I picked a certain area of color that I felt either really popped in the original photo, or an area of color that I wanted to make stand out. In the first photograph, the area of color I chose to highlight was the white street sign, making it bright white so your eye is drawn to that as well as the colorful car in the background. In the second photograph, I chose to highlight the red doors that were in the background of the photo. With all of the chaos of the jumble of bikes, I wanted something simpler in the background. In the third photograph, I chose to highlight the bright blue color of the phone booth simply because it was a beautiful blue and I think it looks really good with the color of the whatever is reflected in the silver part of the phone booth. In the fourth photograph, I chose to highlight the red of the truck because it is such a striking color and I wanted it to be the focal point of the photo. In the last photo I used the “paint bucket” in a more subtle way, making a white line on the street appear brighter, and also brightening the blue color of the metal stand that is in the foreground of the photo.
In my second group of street photographs, I used the gradient tool to give each image more of a variation of colors, mainly using a rainbow effect. In the first photo, I used the gradient tool, but left the white area around the number five white, making it the focal point of the photo. In the second photo, I used the gradient tool and enhanced each color, making them richer and fuller. I like how this makes the red on the original “do not enter” sign stand out among all of those brilliant colors. In the third photo, I use the gradient tool and again left the area of white on the sticker stay white, helping to make it the focal point of the photograph and stand out against an array of colors. In the fourth photo, I used the gradient tool to highlight the graffiti leaf, making it look almost like a ray of light was shining down on it when I took the photo. I also used the “paint bucket” in this photo to make the red of the leaf stand out more. In the last photo, I used the gradient tool to make the wooden power-line pole a pinkish color, and the tree in the background a green color, and left the graffiti electric box the original color so it would stand out more.
In my third and final group of street photographs, I used artistic filters, specifically the “cutout” filter, to make each photo more like an illustration. In the first photo, I used the “cutout” filter, and also played around with contrast, exposure, and saturation to produce the final piece. I especially like the green speckles of color left on the wrought iron fence. In the second photo, I again used the “cutout” filter, and also used the “paint bucket” tool to make the sign on the building whiter, and therefore make it stand out against the background. In the third photo, I also used the “cutout” filter and played around with exposure, saturation and hue. In the fourth photo, I did not use the “cutout” filter because I did not like the color it turned the leaves in the corner of the photo, so instead, I used the “poster edges” filter. In the last photo, I went back to the “cutout” filter, and also played around with the shadows and highlights of the photo.
Throughout my collection of street photographs, I have connected them to Berenice Abbott, the black and white photographer I originally paid homage to. I did this by including architecture in most of my photos, and also because she was primarily a street photographer, seeing as her photos were all of New York City, so that also connects our work.
In conclusion, my street photographs have an intended feeling of warmth, which intentionally contrasts with the usual cold feeling of cities, making my photos not only interesting to look at, but interesting to think about.