Matthew Mills

Culler,J (1982) “Reading a poem is a quest for unity, and unity is achieved or perceived only when the reader abandons the apparent referential or representational meaning of the discourse and grasps the unifying feature of factor that the various signs of the poem express by indirection”.

After revisiting this quote during several different discussions with other students, and then when explaining it inside of my presentation, I have discovered that this quote has changed the way that I have shot, developed, and edited all of my work. In turn, it has also developed the way that I look at the bigger picture of the work that I am involved in. This was most apparent when shooting at Oulton Park, where I was shooting each day as it came, building upon the knowledge that I had gained the day before. However, when it came to the final day and the weather had changed, I had to find a new way of shooting. This caused me to abandon the perceived opinions that I had of the location and look at a new way of shooting so that the images were still of a high standard. This ability to just look over the past and think above it shows a level of change in my abilities as a photographer. 

Another way that I have re-analysed the quote is by looking at it from an educational standpoint. Looking at the way we have learned this year through abandoning all the previous failings and working head-on into the future, this mindset has helped me produce better work under the guidance of tutors and has allowed me to develop my skills in different directions due to the approach that I have been able to take.

References

Culler, J (1982) Culler, The Persuit of Signs, Routledge, London.