Animal Shelter Portraits by Mark Ross

Animal Shelter Portraits by Mark Ross

I came across a body of work by photographer Mark Ross. He has produced a book titled "Animal Shelter Portraits."

I was instantly captivated by the images as they (some more successfully than others) did to me, exactly what I aspire to induce in viewers of my final series of images.

BOOK COVER

These examples in particular I found were the ones more successful in generating a sympathetic mood in the viewer.



I have noted, as with the portraits of the homeless there is a lot of focus on the eyes, in some cases eye contact too.

This is obviously, as suspected and essential factor in 'tugging' on the emotions of the viewer as originally suspected.

Some of the images seem really over processed for my liking, although I like the tonal qualities of the images I feel in some it is a little too much. (example later in this post)

I am thinking the photographer has used flash on the images as there is a lot of reflection in the metal surfaces on the enclosures.

One thing I note it the absence of bars in many of the images. (see below)

For me the geometric bars in this image instantly place the photographs in context and help up locate them. This image also shows the medial apparatus applied to the dog which instantly aids our reading and controls our emotional response to the picture.

The bars will be an essential element in my images, however unlike these examples I would like to produce a sense of flow, if possible I intend to use the bars and metal constructions to frame the key features I wish to be the main focus (eyes and nose mainly)

I think this image presents the desired feeling in a very different manner to my proposed composition.

The image feels almost claustrophobic. The cat, water bowl. food tray, bed and rug all seems squashed at the back on what looks like a relatively small enclosure.  

 In both this image and the one above it, it was the physical interaction which got me.
The paws against the enclosure suggests an attempt to escape which is completely in keeping with the mood of the series I aspire to produce. I will be looking to capture images like the two examples here

Again, similar to the one discussed earlier this image feels claustrophobic, as a viewer we sympathise as they appear uncomfortably cramped. In addition to this there is the element of interaction as mentioned in relation to pervious examples.

I have chose to include the example below to illustrate the extreme of the processing in this body of work. I personally feel whatever effect/process has been applied to the images, in this one particularly it is too much.

The next image I feel seems out of place in this series as it feels almost comical in a peculiar way. There is a feeling of a studio environment here which doesn't sit well in conjunction with the other images in my opinion. It also feels very formal, central composition and generally looks 'too perfect' which makes me disengage with the issue the images are ideally supposed to highlight.

 

The smaller images on the left are two examples of few which show human interaction. Instantly the mood is lightened as the idea of the animal being alone and craving love and attention is diminished.

The final three examples I wish to discuss (below) I feel are less successful in relation to my assignment as the present the animals in familiar poses, doing the ordinary, everyday things we would expect a pet to do in it's own domestic environment.