- Profile Shot of skateboarder sat down on concrete block; additional lighting to scene
- Image of hand with blood running down (Using fake blood)
- Image of worn shoes
- Image of snapped deck
Using flash on location
Monday, 29 April 2013
Ideas for my series of photographs
Influential Ideas
Gokhan Bartu Yuksel
In this shot he selects the studio lighting to hit the model straight
on which doesn't create a smaller or larger side of the face... but if the light
was at head height this would create a very flat image as no shape to the
face would be seen. Therefore to still allow small definitions of shadow to be cast the
light source is at a high angle and looking down onto the subject
so that shape under the models brow, cheek bone and chin can be cast
into shadow creating a more 3 dimensional image.
The way the lighting has been positioned here is very good
as it creates many levels of depth to the image and by
complementing the female body shape. The model has been
positioned to stand at a right angle to the camera and only her head
is turned slightly towards us, this allows for a much more interesting
composition of body shape across the back, shoulders, breasts and
neck; the lights have been positioned so that different tones are
cast across the upper body giving us the depth in the the picture.
Here again Yuksel has used a straight on but high angle main
light to light the model, as in the first image, creating definition
of shadow and that is very effective here in bringing forward the
models face away from the neck as the lights cast the neck in a dark shadow.
Nicolle Clemetson
This photograph has been taken on location (not in a studio)
and as you can tell it looks very surreal in that it uses studio
lighting to light a scene; And i use the word scene because
Clemetson has used studio lighting to highlight areas in the
garden also such as the grass and the fence to add quite a
deep feel to the image. I think that she may have also used a lens
longer than 50mm as I am pretty sure that foreshortening has begun
to occur in the image bringing the background larger. A small
aperture was also used here so that a large depth of field was
created keeping the length of the garden in focus and so that the
sunset in the background was not to bright giving interesting
silhouettes to the trees beyond the fence.
These portrait shots look almost doll figurines because the lights have
been used to make the skin of the models look for smooth and full.
Pauline Darley
Here, Darley has used black and white photography to give
a more contrasting effect on the images and so the lighting
setup has been decided on how to best create the contrasts.
The light hits the side of the models face to create a pretty
flat surface especially on the nose which makes a much more
contrasting tone to that of the dark hair and clothing.
The black clothing is very effective at keeping a lack of definition
when not in the spotlight of the studio lighting, creating
almost a monotone shape for the head to then appear at the top of the coat.
The grey backdrop is used wisely as it does not clash with the
subjects skin tone or that of the dark clothing other wise the
harmony of the models contrasted tones would become lost in
the background is it matched to closely.
This photograph is a good example of how the model and the camera have worked together to create the effect that was looked for. The idea of a spinning head or drunk is created by the models 'sloppy' expression and the picture blur, perhaps created by shaking the camera or by selecting a slow shutter speed.
This image shows the removal of contrast as the model is
pictured after taking off her jet black wig.
Sam Baker
Sam Baker uses studio photography on location to profile
portrait African tribesmen and the images look amazing. The studio
lighting and the natural lighting work very well with one another.
The second image I would say has used two flashes to light the
subject; one to the front of the subject and to the right of the
camera to light the subjects left and create a shadow on
the neck and one behind the subject to the left to
create a brighter definition on the subjects right arm bringing
them forward from the background.
Glen Fletcher
Glen Fletcher uses studio photography to capture
'still life' subjects such as sports equipment but he has
a very unique way of creating shape and form by thinking
outside of the box. Fletcher thinks further than lighting the subject
but to what the subject can create on the background in this
case the shadow becoming abstracted by a ledge.
Anil Akkus
In these shots Akkus has used the lighting very softly to
create only just enough defining shadow to show the
shape of the white objects. These photographs hold a sense of
purity about them. In the fluffy cocktail glass image Akkus
uses rim lighting to bring the subject forward in the picture.
Jonathan Dueck
Dueck has created a miniature still life scene by creating a mini
studio and placing within it the small scale equipment of a
forest camping site.
Ken Herman
Ken Herman is going to be one of the biggest influences on
my photographs as I will be using a skateboarder as my subject.
I find Hermans images really inspiring to what can be done and I
love the use of lighting to not only light the subject but to creatively
light the surrounding area which starts to tell a story about
what a skateboarders environment is.
I like the use of lighting to show the curves of the pools and the
environment that is geometrically interesting.
Ken Herman: Hasselblad Master 2012
Roberto Alegria
Here Alegria uses a flash to freeze the motion of the skateboarder.
He uses the flash from a low angle to make the skateboarder to look higher as
there is more element of the picture appearing below the subject.
Composition
How to: Composition
This video is more relevant to photographing a moving skateboarder but the
tips on the lighting of the scenery around the subject is very helpful.
Friday, 26 April 2013
History, Methology and Genres of Studio Photography
History, Methology and Genres of Studio Photography
Capturing images in a studio can be traced back before the invention of the camera, to the portrait painters many hundreds of years ago. They used techniques of lighting up the subject, to allow them to see them in the way they want to paint it. The painters would build studios with north facing windows (if they lived in the northern hemisphere) so that the least direct sunlight entered the room. This gave the room natural lighting but it would appear diffused as it did not come straight from the sun (as the sun would not appear north of the studio location). This diffused lighting was the perfect environment for the subject to be seated in as no harsh shadows caused by direct sunlight would be cast across them. The Painters would position the subject accordingly to the window, normally above and to one side of the subjects face.
This is an image of Monet's studio, and as you can see the large skylight allows lots of light to enter the room but as the window faces north the light that is entering is light that has been diffused by the world outside.
This portrait of Galileo Galilei was painted by Justus Susterman in 1636, and from this you can figure out the layout of the studio the painting took place. The light is strongest on the left side of the subjects face and so Galilei was probably sat with the north facing window at his 2 o'clock. This is a very fundamental setup in portraiture as the light casting a darkened area to the opposite side of the face creates depth, which is giving the painting more dimension and reality.
These lighting techniques were adopted by portrait photographers pretty much as soon as the early camera was invented around the middle of the 19th century.
This portrait of Abraham Lincoln was taken in 1863 using a process in photography called daguerrotype, which is basically a way of instead capturing an image onto a CCD chip or film, as we know today, capturing it as a direct positive on a silvered copper plate that reacts to light and is processed in the dark room. you can see in this photograph that Lincoln is positioned with a window that is letting in diffused sunlight and so is casting a soft light over his face creating a 'big side' and 'small side' of the face being as the light source is to the side of the subject and not straight on adding depth, just as painters practiced in their work.
This photograph of Charles Baudelaire was taken by Étienne Carjat and there is quite a story behind it. Baudelaire was a French poet who declared that "Photography is a refuge for failed painters" Yet as photography slowly became a more accepted art form, Baudelaire so-come to the realisation that photography was a new era of art and had several times posed for portraits including in the image above.
At the time of these early stages of photography there was a major disadvantage compared to painted portraits as colour photography was not yet invented. However, hand colouring the photographic images did become popular, but did not look that convincing. Still, this technique was in high practice well into the mid 20th century as colour film printing was very expensive.
This photograph is a portrait photograph of a man named Friedrich Wencil, and as you can see the the photographer, Nancy C. Much Ross, has used a hand painted technique to fill the colour onto the areas to most closely resemble the 'real life' tones, but as you can probably tell it does not look that real to life.
Artificial lighting came into the use of photographers as cameras became more advanced and it was realised that more advanced lighting effects could be created over a subject by using more than one light source. Flash Powder was the first method to which artificial lighting was used to illuminate a subject for a photograph. Flash powder was found not to be very safe at all as the debris created was known to set fire to anything within a close radius most often the photographer's clothing and there had been many cases of photographers receiving burn scars to their skin after an accident with this highly flammable substance.
Flash Powder Photography Video
This video shows the flash technique in use and as you can see the powder does burn very bright and does the job well but there are other difficulties to this technique aside from its dangerous reputation. You can see in the text photograph that is taken that the flash produces burning embers as debris and these can shoot in front of the lens creating a glowing streak, potentially ruining a photograph. The other disadvantage that was also mentioned in the video is that the powder can burn quite unstable and will produce different intensities of light and so it can sometimes be hard to set the right camera exposure (the photograph taken in this video was a little over exposed).
These are the apparatus' used for creating the powder flash; the 'T' shaped object is used to hold the powder along it's length in the tray and a small trigger on the handle is used to ignite the chemical.
Here, a man uses the powder flash technique for a photograph.
In the 1930's advances in the development of camera lenses, and studio lighting techniques meant that a new era of photography in a controlled environment was upon us. The biggest and probable most considerable change was the introduction of film photography which would come on a reel so that multiple images could be captured before needing to reload the camera. This new technology of film also introduced better choice of shutter speeds as the ISO of film was faster.
Hot lights became a popular studio lighting technique around the 1940's and are almost acting as an available light source as the light was turned on and positioned before the photographer even stood to the camera to capture the image. Tho photograph above shows a studio set up from the 40's using hot lights to light the subject and scene. You can also see that the photographer is holding a shutter release in his hand as he has already framed the subject but he wants to take the photograph immediately after positioning the model correctly, as the time it takes to for him to get back behind the camera the movement of even breathing could move the subject out of sync from the light; hence why the photographer is up close watching the way the light is hitting the subject.
During the 40's studio photographers moved towards studio flash technology but they were pretty dangerous just as powder flash was in that they could explode and plus with the expense of replacements most people stuck with tungsten hot lights until the 70's when flash's became affordable and safe.
It is in the last 10 years that studio photography as become of age with our massive advancements in camera technology, lighting technology and post production rendering to perfect an image. With this advance in studio photography many different genres have opened up.
- Portraiture
- Fashion
- Advertisement
- Still Life
The list goes on...
What all these have in common is that they are all communicating a message, for example a fashion photographer has to convey the idea of glamourising the ordinary, just as a portrait photographer has to communicate a personality.
The methodology of Studio photography is that the photographer is in total control of everything that is being created in the picture, meaning that a good starting point would be an empty studio.
The background may be complex or it would be a simplistic white backdrop, but whatever environment the subject appears in has everything to do with the idea of the photograph and should be as equally important to convey the ideas behind it.
Capturing images in a studio can be traced back before the invention of the camera, to the portrait painters many hundreds of years ago. They used techniques of lighting up the subject, to allow them to see them in the way they want to paint it. The painters would build studios with north facing windows (if they lived in the northern hemisphere) so that the least direct sunlight entered the room. This gave the room natural lighting but it would appear diffused as it did not come straight from the sun (as the sun would not appear north of the studio location). This diffused lighting was the perfect environment for the subject to be seated in as no harsh shadows caused by direct sunlight would be cast across them. The Painters would position the subject accordingly to the window, normally above and to one side of the subjects face.
This is an image of Monet's studio, and as you can see the large skylight allows lots of light to enter the room but as the window faces north the light that is entering is light that has been diffused by the world outside.
This portrait of Galileo Galilei was painted by Justus Susterman in 1636, and from this you can figure out the layout of the studio the painting took place. The light is strongest on the left side of the subjects face and so Galilei was probably sat with the north facing window at his 2 o'clock. This is a very fundamental setup in portraiture as the light casting a darkened area to the opposite side of the face creates depth, which is giving the painting more dimension and reality.
This portrait of Abraham Lincoln was taken in 1863 using a process in photography called daguerrotype, which is basically a way of instead capturing an image onto a CCD chip or film, as we know today, capturing it as a direct positive on a silvered copper plate that reacts to light and is processed in the dark room. you can see in this photograph that Lincoln is positioned with a window that is letting in diffused sunlight and so is casting a soft light over his face creating a 'big side' and 'small side' of the face being as the light source is to the side of the subject and not straight on adding depth, just as painters practiced in their work.
This photograph of Charles Baudelaire was taken by Étienne Carjat and there is quite a story behind it. Baudelaire was a French poet who declared that "Photography is a refuge for failed painters" Yet as photography slowly became a more accepted art form, Baudelaire so-come to the realisation that photography was a new era of art and had several times posed for portraits including in the image above.
At the time of these early stages of photography there was a major disadvantage compared to painted portraits as colour photography was not yet invented. However, hand colouring the photographic images did become popular, but did not look that convincing. Still, this technique was in high practice well into the mid 20th century as colour film printing was very expensive.
This photograph is a portrait photograph of a man named Friedrich Wencil, and as you can see the the photographer, Nancy C. Much Ross, has used a hand painted technique to fill the colour onto the areas to most closely resemble the 'real life' tones, but as you can probably tell it does not look that real to life.
Artificial lighting came into the use of photographers as cameras became more advanced and it was realised that more advanced lighting effects could be created over a subject by using more than one light source. Flash Powder was the first method to which artificial lighting was used to illuminate a subject for a photograph. Flash powder was found not to be very safe at all as the debris created was known to set fire to anything within a close radius most often the photographer's clothing and there had been many cases of photographers receiving burn scars to their skin after an accident with this highly flammable substance.
Flash Powder Photography Video
This video shows the flash technique in use and as you can see the powder does burn very bright and does the job well but there are other difficulties to this technique aside from its dangerous reputation. You can see in the text photograph that is taken that the flash produces burning embers as debris and these can shoot in front of the lens creating a glowing streak, potentially ruining a photograph. The other disadvantage that was also mentioned in the video is that the powder can burn quite unstable and will produce different intensities of light and so it can sometimes be hard to set the right camera exposure (the photograph taken in this video was a little over exposed).
These are the apparatus' used for creating the powder flash; the 'T' shaped object is used to hold the powder along it's length in the tray and a small trigger on the handle is used to ignite the chemical.
Here, a man uses the powder flash technique for a photograph.
In the 1930's advances in the development of camera lenses, and studio lighting techniques meant that a new era of photography in a controlled environment was upon us. The biggest and probable most considerable change was the introduction of film photography which would come on a reel so that multiple images could be captured before needing to reload the camera. This new technology of film also introduced better choice of shutter speeds as the ISO of film was faster.
Hot lights became a popular studio lighting technique around the 1940's and are almost acting as an available light source as the light was turned on and positioned before the photographer even stood to the camera to capture the image. Tho photograph above shows a studio set up from the 40's using hot lights to light the subject and scene. You can also see that the photographer is holding a shutter release in his hand as he has already framed the subject but he wants to take the photograph immediately after positioning the model correctly, as the time it takes to for him to get back behind the camera the movement of even breathing could move the subject out of sync from the light; hence why the photographer is up close watching the way the light is hitting the subject.
During the 40's studio photographers moved towards studio flash technology but they were pretty dangerous just as powder flash was in that they could explode and plus with the expense of replacements most people stuck with tungsten hot lights until the 70's when flash's became affordable and safe.
It is in the last 10 years that studio photography as become of age with our massive advancements in camera technology, lighting technology and post production rendering to perfect an image. With this advance in studio photography many different genres have opened up.
- Portraiture
- Fashion
- Advertisement
- Still Life
The list goes on...
What all these have in common is that they are all communicating a message, for example a fashion photographer has to convey the idea of glamourising the ordinary, just as a portrait photographer has to communicate a personality.
The methodology of Studio photography is that the photographer is in total control of everything that is being created in the picture, meaning that a good starting point would be an empty studio.
The background may be complex or it would be a simplistic white backdrop, but whatever environment the subject appears in has everything to do with the idea of the photograph and should be as equally important to convey the ideas behind it.
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