OCA Learning Log

Project 57: the lighting angle

2012-01-26T16:26:00.000Z

Again, this exercise has been carried out with only a basic lighting set up - an angle poise lamp with a white paper diffuser.
I haven't completed all of the project but my results are as follows:

Lit from side

Lit from side, light raised

Lit from side

Lit from front

Lit from front, light raised

Lit from front, light lowered

Lit from behind, light raised

Lit from behind

Even with the lighting equipment used the differences created by placing the light in different positions is marked.

With the light placed at the side at the same height as the model looks fairly 2 dimensional but when the light is raised it shows more of the form, probably the best location for the light to show the form would be a 45 degree angle from the camera, with the light raised slightly.

The pictures taken with the light behind the model show the edges highlighted but did not produce a silhouette - the light would need to be further back in order to achieve this.

Project 56: softening the light

2012-01-25T17:40:00.002Z

My light source for this project was a desk lamp. The arrangement of cones are set on a stone fireplace so only a minor effort to arrange them was needed. My camera was set to Program mode and set on a tripod. I took 2 photographs as follows:

f 5.6 1/4 sec

f 5.6 0"6 sec

My 'diffuser' was an A4 sheet of white paper held very carefully in front of the lamp.

The shadows in the first picture are very harsh with sharp edges. The contrast is very high and the highlights are almost blown out. The image is very unnatural looking.

However, in the second picture the shadows are much softer and the contrast is much more pleasing. Overall the lighting is more even. The stone background has more detail too.

This project demonstrates that even with very simple kit you can improve your photographs noticeably.

Project 55: light intensity

2012-01-25T17:18:00.000Z

This project caused me a little bit of trouble but I think I got there in the end. As I do not own either a flash light or flash meter I had to 'make do' with an outdoor halogen light and my camera. I took the readings using the same grey notebook that I used in Project 38. I had intended to use the lamp for a few of the projects but as you can only direct the light horizontally it isn't going to be much use.

I used ISO 400 and 1/5 sec instead of the settings suggested as I couldn't get any readings at all with those.

Taking into account the equipment and methods used I think the graph is basically the shape that it should be. The inverse square law states that light falls off inversely with the square of the distance. The first four readings bear that out.

The lesson to take from this exercise is that at any point near the light the light level will be 4 times less at twice that distance from the light. To give the same exposure you will need to open up the aperture 2 stops. This is particular to artificial light, as the sun is so far away this rule does not apply.

Project 49: graduated filters

2012-01-20T15:18:00.000Z

This first photograph was taken without a graduated filter:

The second was taken witha graduated filter attached, lined up at the edge of the chimney breast, you can just see the line on the ceiling.

I would have never thought to use a graduated filter in this way but it gives a much more balanced exposure.

Project 48: cloudy and dull weather

2012-01-20T14:50:00.001Z

For this project I have three pairs of photographs, each subject is shown in sunlight and in shade.

Set 1 Rod

f5 1/1000

f4.5 1/100

Set 2 Car wall

f4 1/250

f3.5 1/30

Set 3 Lighthouse

f8 1/1000

f8 1/3000

For the first two pairs the difference between the photographs taken in sun and shade is 3 stops. The photogrpah of the lighthouse is less as the sun was only behind very light clouds.

Again in the first two sets there is a visible colour difference with the cloudy shots showing a blue tint.

The colours are much preferable in the pictures that are taken in the sun, but the shadows are very harsh.

The following three photographs were taken in shadowless light:

Three photographs from the textbook that make use of this type of lighting:

'Cockerels: New York City' by Helen Levitt
'On Sussex Downs' by Frederick Evans
'On the Quais, Paris. 1926' by Andre Kertesz

Project 46: choosing the moment

2011-04-13T20:53:00.013+01:00

The aim of this project is to consider what happens as the sun moves and the effect that it has on the photographs taken shortly before sunset or just after sunrise. I decided to consider the hour prior to sunset.

I chose Old John as my subject for this project. It is located at Bradgate Park and I knew from previous visits that the tower would catch the sunlight as the sun was setting. I arrived just after 6.30 pm as the sun was due to set at 7.50 pm and spent a few minutes deciding where to set my tripod up. I thought that this composition would demonstrate the movement of the sun. The sun was behind me, slightly to the right and there was nothing in between the sun and Old John. I expected that the shadows would become longer and that the light would warm up the photograph. I took the following series of images: Image 1. The shadows created by the setting sun are just starting the lengthen and I expected in the sequence of photographs that I was about to take that the shadows would lengthen.

Image 2. The light is warming up which is what I expected to happen and the shadows are more interesting.

Image 3. This is probably the most appealing of the six images as there is a nice warm tone to the image.

Image 4. This image starts to develop in a way that I wasn't expecting in that the scene just appeared to be getting darker with no development in the shadows. There is still a slight warmth to the tone but the shadows are less apparent that the previous image.

Image 5. The warmth has left most of the image with just the top of the tower showing the warmth in the light.

Image 6. This image was taken just as the sun disappeared below the horizon.

When I started this exercise I failed to appreciate just how quickly the light would deteriorate. The image that I prefer is image 3 which was taken about 20 minutes before sunset. I think that the warmth in the sunlight reflects the scene as I remember seeing it. I expected that the later images would have been more successful so one of the things that I have learned from this exercise is that the light deteriorates very quickly the nearer the sun gets to the horizon. I have read about the 'golden hour' and have seen in this and previous projects just what a difference you can achieve by selecting the best time to take a photograph.

Project 44: low sun

2011-04-06T21:03:00.006+01:00

The aim of this project is to demonstrate some of the benefits of taking photographs when the sun is low, within 2 hours of sunrise or sunset. The project required me to take photographs of any subject lit in the following ways: frontal lighting side lighting back lighting, and edge lighting. I decided that I wanted to try and use the same subject for each photograph so I needed to select something that I would be able to access from all sides. I came up with a the idea of a tree and was able to take the following photographs: By taking the same subject for all four lighting types I think it really demonstrates the effect that the direction of the light can have on a subject. As I was out I also took the following photograph which again demonstrates edge lighting.

Project 45: picture count

2011-02-19T16:25:00.005Z

The first part of this project is to identify the 4 types of lighting conditions described in Project 44 using a photography book or newspaper. I have used a book called The National Geographic: The Photographs, from which I have selected the following images:

Frontal lighting

Dacca, Bangladesh 1974, Steve Raymer
Finnmarksvida, Norway 1968, Geroge F Mobley
Guben, Germany 1992, Joanna B Pinneo

Side lighting

Puno, Peru 1982, William Albert Allard
Transkei, south Africa 1992, James Nachtwey
Mariefred, Sweden 1992, Tomasz Tomaszewski

Back Lighting

KwaNdebele, south Africa 1985, Peter Magubane
Sepik river, Papua New Guinea 1972, Malcolm S Kirk
Imperial Sand Dunes, California 1985, Crag Aurness

Rim Lighting

Madagascar 1987, Frans Lanting.
Namib Desert 1981, Jim Brandenburg

The second part of the project is to identify 10 photographs from the textbook in which lighting is of prime importance:

From Photography A Concise History by Ian Jeffrey I have selected the the following images:

1 Beach landscape by John Havinden, page 76.

This picture is lit from behind but the light falls differently on each of the three rocks. The shadows formed by the three rocks create different shapes on the rock formation.

2. Academie by Robert Demachy, page 93.

The female in this picture is sitting and the light is directed on to her back. Much of her body is in shadow but this contrasts with the white background.

3. Green County, Georgia, Nov 1942 by Jack Delano, page 157.
.
This picture shows a man plowing sweet potatoes. He is walking towards the sun,as he has his head bowed his hat has created a shadow which obscures his eyes. the light is very direct and serves to give a sense of how hot it must have been to be working in the mid-day sun.

4. Edith. Danville, Virginai, 1971, by Emmet Gowin, page 224.

This picture has been lit by the two windows in the room to the side and behind the woman. The light ensures that the woman and the bed are the main features of the image as the other parts of the room are left in shadow.

5. Wilbur Peebo - Comanche by Edward Curtis, page 82

The portrait make use of side-lighting to give strong shadows on the man's face.

6. Baskets by Doris Ulman, page 1

The baskets are lit from the side and this has the effect of showing the texture of the baskets.

7. Jules Champfleury by Gaspard-Felix Tournachon (Nadar), page 42.

The portrait has been lit using very even lighting as there are no sharp shadows on the face. Light has also been used to separate the man from the background.

8. Recruiting Sergeants at Westminister by John thomson, page 63.

The recruits are lit mostly from behind as they are almost in silhouette. There is a sharp contrast between the very light background and the dark foreground. The lack of detail in the men's faces suggests that now they are in uniform their identities are lost.

9. A Teazel Illustration No. 46 in Das nieverlorene Paradies, by Albert Rengler-Patzsch, page 117

The teazel is lit by very strong side-light. This causes the shadows to be very strong and echos the sharpness of the spikes on the teazel.

10. Down and out in Paris, by Robert Doisneau, page 179.

The couple have been front lit so we can see all the details of their faces and what they are wearing. There is some light in the background to show that they are outside but the background is mostly dark.

Project 43: through the day

2011-02-19T15:44:00.005Z

I completed most of this project on the same day, images taken of the village church from 11.00 am to 4.00 pm, last Saturday 12th February. I then took further images on Monday and Tuesday at 9.00 am and 9.30 am to complete the set.

This is a really interesting project to undertake. Individually each image represents the scene as I remember it at the time that I took it. When you then lay out each image in the order in which they were taken the difference is quite amazing. I was surprised at how 'cold' the images taken at the middle of the day appear when compared to the 'warm' images taken at the start and end of the day.

The hour before sunset and after sunrise is known as the golden hour or magic hour and as regarded as the best time to take photographs. As the notes suggest most of us will take photographs in the middle of the day as this is most convenient. Having read in many books and magazines about the 'golden hour' I think that I have chosen to ignore it but having completed this project getting out of bed earlier or staying at a location for longer is something that I will have to consider if I want to improve my photography!

Project 41: your eye's sensitivity to colour

2011-02-10T20:34:00.005Z

Laying out the images that I took for Projects 32 and 33 in order of the colour spectrum as indicated in the text results in a curve with red at the left through orange, yellow, green blue and violet to the right.

I would suggest that daylight would be coloured at the start and the end of the day. For example, at the end of the day the sun will turn from yellow to orange to red as it get nearer to the horizon. The opposite would happen at the start of the day.

As the notes explain this is caused by some of the light being scattered. Shorter wavelengths get scattered more easily leaving the longer ones visible. Blue would therefore have a shorter wavelength than red and orange.

Colour temperature chart:

From the chart you can see that daylight goes from red through white to blue and time of day, amount of sun/shade etc. will act to determine the colour of the photograph that is recorded.

Project 40: using a meter

2011-01-23T21:39:00.013Z

The metering modes that are available on my Canon 50D are as follows:

Evaluative - Uses the entire frame to give an average reading

Partial - this covers about 9% of the frame at the centre.

Spot - metering is weighted at the centre covering about 3.8% of the frame, and

Centre-weighted average - uses the entire frame but emphasizes the centre of it.

The idea of these metering modes is to produce an image that is average in tone. This works well if the image is made up of an even distribution of bright and dark areas, but obviously not all images will be like this. Images may be:

Low to medium contrast, dark subject

Low to medium contrast, bright subject

High contrast, dark subject

High contrast, bright subject

The subject might be in partial shade or may be small or large in the frame. There are many, many different types of conditions so it is important to consider these aspects when taking a reading using the cameras ttl metering system. Considerations will need to be given to the most appropriate metering mode to use and which part, or parts of the image is it important to expose for. This will also depend on the 'mood' that you are trying to create.

I have only ever used the evaluative metering mode for my photography and reading up on the subject this seems to be the mode most recommended. Partial metering would appear to be a good option to use when taking a portrait of a person who is backlit. This would ensure that the person's skin was correctly exposed.

Spot metering would be helpful when there is a small part of the frame that you wish to take a reading from, an example being when there is snow in the scene or a brightly lit area which would otherwise fool the meter.

A project that I will set for myself is to find a situation and take a series of photographs using each mode and compare the results. I will try to find situations similar to those mentioned above.

Using the textbook I have compiled the following lists of images that I consider to be either intrinsically very light or very dark subjects:

Dark subjects

Page 63 Image 35 Recruiting Sergeants at Westminster by John Thomson

Page 99 Image 53 Stirling Castle by James Craig Annan

Page 77 Image 77 Later Lake George: Weather vane on Wooden Cottage by Alfred Stieglitz

Page 179 Image 98 Down and Out in Paris by Robert Doisneau

Light subjects

Page 89 image 45 Miss Thompson by Clarence White and Alfred Stieglitz

Page 107 Image 56 Tehuantepec woman by Tina Modotti

Page 151 Image 81 White Branches, Mono Lake, California by Ansel Adams

Page 193 Image 106 The Franco-Belgian Frontier by Henri Cartier-Bresson

Page 200 Image 110 A London Chef by James Jarche

The first part of this project is to produce between 4 and 6 photographs which are deliberately lighter or darker than average, and explain why.

In the first photograph of the sunset I was able to capture an image that was a good representation of the scene. In the second photograph I increased the shutter speed by one stop which has darkened the overall image and made the sky and sunset more dramatic.

For the photograph of the tree bark I wanted the bark to be as white as I was seeing it so I took a number of different photographs using different settings. I settled on +1 1/2.

The photograph of the ipod dock required +1 1/3 to make the dock appear white in the photograph. I had to change the settings on the camera to allow me to make increments in thirds as 1 1/2 was just too much.

For the second part of the project I have taken the following series of photographs. Each subject has been taken in the same way: one stop darker, 1/2 stop darker, average, 1/2 stop lighter and 1 stop lighter.

For this series of photographs I started with an exposure of -1 stop as I expected that my camera would over expose the scene due to the amount of light coming from behind the trees as I was focusing on the tree in the foreground.

I think that the second photograph works best in this series as the statue stands out from the background more that the 'average' exposure.

This subject was tricky as to get the camera to expose correctly for the colour of the stone I started to lose detail in the shadows. Again I prefer the second photograph in the series.

This was the least successful series as my starting exposure should have been -1 not average.

This has been an interesting project to work on. I will try to think more carefully about exposure when I am out in the field. I will certainly try to make use of bracketing more often and to look closer at the histogram rather than assuming that the camera's meter will take care of the exposure for me.

Whilst I have been doing this project I have also been reading up on exposure on the Internet and in a book 'Photographic Lighting' by John Child and Mark Galer. Being able to control the exposure of the photographs that you take seems to me to be such a big part of producing better photographs that I really want to try and get the hang of this bit of the course.

Project 39: using faster film and higher sensitivity

2011-01-23T13:23:00.007Z

This series of photographs were taken on a slighty overcast day in January. As you can see by the clothes worn it was a fairly chilly day.

I decided to use the camera at the same focal length for all shots and set it at 35 mm on my Canon 50D. I set the camera to Aperture priority and selected f 5.6 for all shots. With image stabilisation this was about the limit for hand holding the shots at ISO 100.

I took a selction of shots using the following ISO settings: 100, 200, 400 and 800.

The results are as follows:

The higher the ISO setting meant that the shutter speed was quicker so the images showed less movement. By comparing one of the photographs taken using ISO 100 and one taken with ISO 800 you can see quite a bit of 'noise' in the latter photograph.

Project 38: measuring the intensity of light

2010-10-23T12:52:00.006+01:00

The 20th of October was a beautiful sunny day so I was able to complete this exercise in one day.

The readings were made with the camera set to ISO 100 and a shutter speed of 1/125th of a second. I used my notebook which has a grey cover so was ideal for this task.

I would suggest that the graph would look slightly different depending on the season. In mid-summer, when there are more daylight hours and the sun appears to be higher in the sky I would guess that the only difference would be that the graph would hit the 'peak' earlier in the day and stay for longer. Similarly, in mid-winter there would be a shorter period of time when the sun is at its highest. I would guess that the time that it takes for the sun to reach it's high point wouldn't vary too much. I will have to repeat this exercise at these times of the year to see how accurate I am!

Imogen Cunningham: Flora

2010-10-07T21:04:00.002+01:00

I came across the work of Imogen Cunningham and I have created a link to her work from this page.

Imogen Cunningham: Flora is a collection of her work and features her botanical images, most of which were taken during the 1920's and 30's, although the book contains images taken throughout her life. She was born in Portland, Oregon in 1883 and died in 1976 in San Francisco. She was a founder member of the f64 group along with Ansel Adams, Edward Weston amongst others. It was so-called because f64 was the smallest aperture on a large format camera. Her images certainly make the most of this as the detail in most of the images is amazing.

I particularly like the images of the Calla lilies and Magnolias in the book and it is these images that drew me to her work in the first place. The book talks about the sexual nature of some of her compositions and the book compares some of her work to that of Edward Weston and Man Ray. There is an element of eroticism to some of the botanical studies and it is no surprise that another aspect of photography that she excelled in was nudes.

Of all the images in the book it is those that are composed simply that appeal to me most, some of the later images and the colour images, in particular, are a bit of a disappointment.

This book is a great collection with some fantastic photographs and worth a look at.

Assignment 2:Colour

2010-10-07T19:50:00.019+01:00

I have submitted my images for Assignment 2 as follows:

colour accent using any of the categories

colour contrast through contrasting colours

colour harmony through similar colours

colour harmony through complementary colours

Project 36: warm and cool colours

2010-07-31T12:01:00.004+01:00

For this project you are asked to look back at the photographs taken for projects 32 and 33, primary and secondary colours and group them into warm and cool.

I would include the following photographs in a warm group:

Oranges, carrots, violet, peppers and tomatoes.

In the cool group I would include:

Cabbages, sprouts and sky.

The photograph of the bananas doesn't seem to fit in either group.

For the second part of this project you are asked to produce three photographs; one that is entirely cool, one that is entirely warm and one that shows a warm/cool contrast.

My three photographs are as follows:

Cool - landscape

Warm - flower

Cool / warm contrast - hotel view

Project 35: colour relationships

2010-07-28T21:25:00.009+01:00

The first part of this project is produce one photograph for each combination of primary colours in the stated proportions:

Red : Green 1:1
Orange : Blue 1:2
Yellow : Violet 1:3

I haven't been posting much recently but I have been keeping an eye on what is required for the colour projects as I have been out and about with my camera. I have managed to find the following photographs which I think will be OK.

Orange and blue

This photograph was taken on a recent trip to Lyme Regis. It was taken whilst walking along the harbour and I was drawn to the colour of the fishing nets hanging out to dry. The proportion of orange to blue is not quite 1:2 but I don't think it is such a long way off.

Violet and Yellow

This photograph was taken in my garden and I think the proportions are about right. With a natural subject as this I would expect that Mother Nature would take care of the proportion of violet to yellow to make the flower as aesthetically pleasing as possible!

Red and Green
Again I have looked to nature to provide the correct proportion of colour although in this case as it is a number of plants the proportion was controlled more by how I framed the photograph.

The second part of the project is to find photographs that demonstrate the use of multi-colour combinations. Again I have looked through a number of photographs that I have taken recently and have selected the following:

The first photograph is of a bright orange rhododendron. The photograph is balanced by the green foliage in the background.

The second photograph of a flower bed is made up of red, green and yellow.

The third photograph taken in Sorrento shows a more harmonious balance of blue, orange and green.

The final image of a blue boat demonstrates the use of an accent colour. The boat is probably a little large in the frame but I think it still works to demonstrate the use of an accent colour.

Project 34: Black and white and grey as colours

2010-07-28T20:19:00.003+01:00

The table shows the value of colour for each set of images.

For the white images the values are:

Meter - 168
+ 1/2 stop - 207
+ 1 stop - 233
+ 1 1/2 stops - 238
+ 2 stops - 253

For the black images the values are:

Meter - 41
- 1/2 stop - 29
- 1 stop - 19
- 1 1/2 stops - 14
- 2 stops - 4

This was an interesting exercise to complete and would indicate that to expose correctly for black I need to compensate by minus 2 stops and for white I need to compensate by plus 2 stops.

I will admit to not thinking too much about this when out shooting but having seen the results so clearly it is something that I will try to remember to think about!

Project 34: black and white and grey as colours

2010-06-12T17:50:00.011+01:00

The second part of this project is to take a series of images of a predominantly black subject. For this part I used an old Kodak camera. It was placed on a white card and I tried to compose the image so that a large part of the frame was taken up by the camera. The images were taken using the meter reading by the camera, minus 1/2 stop, minus 1 stop, minus 1 and a half stops and minus 2 stops. For all five images the camera was set to ISO 100 and f8.

The results are as follows:

1. 1/30

2. 1/45

3. 1/60

4. 1/90

5. 1/125

Again, this exercise shows how difficult it is to photograph black objects. The images taken with minus one and a half and minus two stops are very dark with little shadow detail. The image with the best renditon of black is the one in the middle take at minus one stop.

Project 34: black and white and grey as colours

2010-06-02T20:52:00.004+01:00

The first part of this project consists of five images taken at different settings to show the importance of correct exposure when photographing white. The series of images where taken with the ISO set to 100 and the shutter speed at 1/30th. In sequence the images are taken using the camera's meter reading, + 1/2 stop, + 1 stop, + 1 1/2 stops and + 2 stops.

1. f11

In this image taken using the camera defined exposure the white has come out as a dark-mid grey throughout the image. This isn't a very satisfactory result.

2. f9.5

In the second image the 'whites' are still very grey.

3. f8

The third image is showing signs of white but the dominant shade is still grey.

4. f6.7

5. f5.6

This exercise demonstrates just how difficult it is to take predominantly white images. Whilst I prefer the final image some of the highlights are blown out. The fourth image is still slightly too grey for my liking. I think that for this image + 1 2/3 stops would have been the ideal setting.

Image of the Year competition

2010-05-29T11:27:00.002+01:00

I do intend to get back to the course in the very near future but I wanted to share my recent success at my local camera club. Last week was the Image of the Year competition. I entered an image of a tulip and was really surprised when it won!

Here it is:

Project 33: secondary colours

2010-02-21T18:43:00.005Z

This set of photographs were taken at the same location as the photographs for the previous project, the local fruit and vegetable market.

Orange: Oranges and carrots

Green: cabbage and Brussels

Violet: Unfortunately I wasn't able to get a photograph to represent violet at the market so I had to look through my library of images. The lighter and darker exposures were created in photoshop elements.

Project 32: primary colours

2010-02-21T16:58:00.007Z

The purpose of this exercise is to take photographs of the three primary colours red, yellow and blue. Wherever possible we are encouraged to find naturally occurring colours as opposed to photographing painted objects. So, for this and the following project I decided to try the local fruit and vegetable market to take natural colours.

For each photograph I set the camera to take three photographs, one as the meter reading indicated, the second one half a stop brighter and the third half a stop darker.

Red: For red I took photographs of red peppers and tomatoes:

Unfortunately the tomatoes do not look as red as they need to.

Yellow: Bananas

Blue: For blue I had to use a slightly different approach as just taking the same sky with half a stop lighter and darker didn't produce enough variation so for this set of three photographs I took the same sky over a period of 20 minutes as the sun was setting.
I am pleased with this set of photographs and will continue to add more photographs to my colour library over time.

Project 31: analysing a colour

2010-02-20T16:47:00.005Z

In this project we are asked to consider the following question 'which of its 3 colour qualities - hue, brilliance, saturation - can you change at the time of shooting, without moving the object or changing the light falling on it?'

From the notes we are told that 'hue is very much the prime quality of a colour, and is what gives the colour its uniqueness', 'brilliance is the lightness or darkness of a colour' and 'saturation is a variation in the purity of a colour'.

From these definitions and considering the results of project 30 I would suggest that you can only change the brilliance of colour at the time of shooting.

Reading on in the notes it appears that neither brilliance or saturation can be altered at the time of shooting and the hue can be affected by the use of coloured filters, or digitally by altering the white balance. This doesn't make any sense to me as the notes for project 30 and 31 seems to contradict each other. Fortunately, I discovered that I was not the only one to be confused about this and I would like to thank Elka Nilsson for posting a question on the forum to clarify this point and to Peterh for his explanation.

I have included extracts from the posts which help to explain the matter:

Bright and light seem to convey more or less the same thing but don't really. Strictly speaking light red is pink and bright red is the colour of the Danish flag! As to saturation, over exposure of a slide film may not strictly de-saturate the colours but it sure looks like it! In camera controls (exposure controls) can only effect the lightness and darkness of the image but that appears to control the saturation of the colours! There is no way to change the hue by means of exposure alone though. I rather wish the author had said in project 30, 'making it lighter or darker', I think that would have been clearer.

So brighter and lighter is not the same thing (that's where the confusion starts)When written in project 30 "changes from bright to dark" and "...between the darkest and brightest of the images", it should have been 'darkest and lightest'.The same in project 31 "The brightness of a colour can change - and how you set the level of exposure determines this" should be lightness.

What matters is that if you want to change something other than the lightness or darkness you must do more than alter the aperture or shutter speed. That is what one is supposed to have discovered doing the projects.

Project 30: colour control

2010-02-17T20:33:00.012Z

The following fives images were taken to demonstrate the effect that changing the exposure settings can have on the appearance of colour in a photograph.

The five photographs of my shed were taken at ISO 200, 1/20th with my camera set on a tripod and the following apertures:

1 - f5.6 - 1 stop under-exposed

2 - f6.7 - 1/2 stop under-exposed

3 - f8 - average exposure

4 - f9.5 - 1/2 stop over-exposed

5 - f11 - 1 stop over-exposed

The colour of the door gets darker from the under exposed images through to the over exposed images. The colour blur appears to get stronger i.e. has more depth in the photographs that are over exposed.

The Elements of Color by Johannes Itten

2010-02-08T20:20:00.001Z

As preparation for for the section on colour I decided to read Itten's 'The Elements of Color' from the recommended reading list. All I can say is that I'm glad I didn't buy the full version 'The Art of Color'!!

I found this to be a really difficult book to read. I needed to keep a dictionary with me whilst reading the book as there were many words used that I have never come across before. There are many sections of this book that having read several times I still don't know what the author was trying to say!

However, I did persevere with the book and I am glad that I did.

I feel that the book is of more use to painters than photographers. Many of the colour exercises are designed for painters but there are many sections that contain useful information about colour that is relevant for photographers including:

Color Physics,
The Seven Color Contrasts (in particular, the Contrast of Extension),
Color Harmony, and
Color Composition

I will refer to these sections as I work my way through the section on colour and in particular I will try to make use of the harmonious proportions of area for complimentary colours described in the Contrast of Extension as follows:

Yellow : Violet = 1/4 : 3/4
Orange : Blue = 1/3 : 2/3
Red : Green = 1/2 : 1/2

and also the proportions for the secondary colours using the following light values:

Yellow = 3
Orange = 4
Red = 6
Violet = 9
Blue = 8
Green = 6

The value is converted to an harmonious area so that when you put red (6) with yellow (3) the area of red should be twice the size of the area of yellow, and so on.

Thoughts at the end of Section 3: The elements of design

2010-02-06T16:29:00.002Z

I have finally managed to complete this section and I am looking forward to moving on to the next section; Colour. I thought that it would be a good opportunity to consider my progress to date.

I submitted my first assignment on the date that was suggested by my tutor and received some good feedback. My only concern at the time was that I had rushed the work for the assignment and the final projects of Section 2. I decided that I would try and work to a more realistic time frame for the next project and my tutor was happy with this.

With a revised deadline I started the projects in Section 3: Elements of design. This chapter has been a real struggle for me and I am not sure why that should be. As I think about it it would seem to be a combination of a number of factors including:

Lack of opportunity to get out and about with my camera caused by bad weather,
Loss of enthusiasm for the course combined with being busy at work,
Struggle with some of the concepts in the notes.

Part way through the course my husband bought me Michael Freeman's book 'The Photographers Eye'. I wish that I had read this book at the start of this section as it has helped to explain some 0f the bits that I didn't get. I think there are some dubious examples for some of the points that the author tries to make in the notes e.g. in the section about eye-lines I think that the picture of the virgin and cardinals is a poor example and the arrow doesn't follow the actual line of the eye in my opinion. I also struggle to see implied circles in the picture of the soldiers either side of a tree.

I know that I am quite a literal and logical person so when I am told that there is a circle in a picture I expect to be able to 'see' it - implied or not!

Aside from this I have learnt a fair bit from this section about composition and the design of images and look forward to the improvements in my photographs. I intend to revisit this section from time to time and maybe add more photographs and notes to some of the projects. In this way I can see how my photography is improving which is, after all, why I enrolled for the course in the first place!

The Digital Photography Book by Scott Kelby

2010-02-04T21:57:00.002Z

I received this book as a present for Christmas and reading it encouraged me to read a few of the other books that I have sat on my bookshelf so I will add few more reviews as I get to them.

I found this book to be an enjoyable read. The author, Scott Kelby, has a writing style that is easy to read. The book claims to explain how to take professional quality photographs using the same trips and techniques that the professionals use. The book contains a number of chapters that contain tips on how to shoot weddings, flowers, landscapes, sports, people, and travel amongst other things. The first chapter has a number of tips to help you get sharp shots and there is also a chapter on printing.

Most of the tips are only a page long and each page contains a photograph to help demonstrate the point so it is a book that you can keep picking up and putting down without losing the thread of what is being explained. It only took me a couple of days to read and it is one that I expect I will refer back to from time to time.

I like this book as it reminded me of a lot of the stuff that I already knew but probably don't practice enough e.g. the importance of using a tripod when taking landscapes etc., and a lot of new stuff for me to think about.

New equipment

2010-02-04T21:46:00.003Z

Well I upgraded my camera at Christmas and I am now the very proud owner of a Canon 50D. My first impression is that it is a very good camera and I think that we are going to get along well together. I am just about getting to grips with how all the new buttons, dials and menus work as it is quite different to my 400D. In some ways I am sad to have replaced the 400D as it has served me well over the last couple of years but I thought that the time was right to upgrade.

I have also got myself a new tripod - Manfotto 190XPROB - to replace a rather lightweight Hama model which would not take the weight of the 50D. It has encouraged me to actually take it out with me and use it! I don't know why I so reluctant to use a tripod before as it really does make a difference to the photographs that you can take.

Project 29: applying the elements of design

2010-01-26T21:48:00.006Z

This project is the final project in part 3 of the course. It requires me to take a series of photographs using the knowledge gained in the preceding projects. The aim of the project is to produce a set of photographs using one type of subject. We were given a couple of subjects but I decided to use my own. As I wanted to complete the project in a weekend I decided to produce my set of photographs using the same location; Coombe Abbey Park.

The project was actually completed in one day. I knew that there would be sufficient scope to capture the images required for this project at Coombe Abbey. It is one of my favourite sites locally to photograph. Unfortunately, the weather was not going to allow me to produce 'winning shots' but I thought that as this chapter has taken me so long to complete that I really wasn't prepared to wait for better weather.

I am largely pleased with the set of photographs that I have taken. I haven't spent any time adjusting any of the photographs in Photoshop which I might otherwise have done to improve them. This again is from a time point of view. As the purpose of the project is about the design of the photograph I have concentrated on this rather than the technical aspect of taking photographs.

1. single point dominating the composition: I had intended to use the statue in the lake as the subject for the first photograph, a single point. I like the green background and on a better day the water may have reflected the colour from the surrounding foliage but on this day it has come out a dull brown!

2. 2 points: There are a large number of ducks, swans, geese, etc on the lake and I thought that I might be able to isolate a pair to use for this part. However, after I had been there for a while I spotted this couple making their way back to the car park. I like the composition of this photograph. The path leads this eye to the couple walking and because of the direction that they are moving in the frame this line continues throughout the photograph.

3. several points in a deliberate shape: Again this was a photograph that I came upon during my walk around the park. I was hoping to be able to take a photograph of either swans or ducks on the lake but after spending a few minutes waiting for them to arrange themselves into an interesting shape I decided to look elsewhere! I spotted this row of benches and as it was about 5 degrees I didn't have to to worry about anybody sitting down and spoiling the effect! I switched to my 55 mm - 250 mm telephoto lens as I wanted to compress the perspective of the line of benches. My deliberate shape may be a straight line but I think this idea has produced a nice photograph.

4. a combination of vertical and horizontal lines: This is probably the weakest photograph of the set but does satisfy the brief in that it includes a both vertical and horizontal lines.

5. diagonals: I had intended to use the main house to produce my photograph of diagonal lines but as I arrived I noticed the children's playground - not somewhere where I usually go! The whole playground was a sea of diagonal lines. I chose this piece of equipment as I liked the way that the frame and swing are made up of two sets of triangles. This photograph was also helped by the fact that the swing is moving and looks much better than with the swing still. So thanks to the child who pushed the swing and left it for me!

6. curves: Unfortunately, I was unable to get as high off the ground as I would have liked to for this photograph. This formal garden is in front of the house and I think you would need to go into the house and take the photograph from one of the upstairs rooms. Standing on one of the chairs on the patio didn't get me high enough! The photograph does, however, contain some of the curves that I was after.

7. distinct, even if irregular, shapes: I really like this photograph. This is taken looking back towards the house over the box hedges of the previous photograph. I had thought about using the spiral bushes for the previous task but decided to include the spherical bushes and clipped hedges together for this task. I used a low standpoint to limit the amount of the house that was in the background and I think this vantage point works well.

8. at least 2 kinds of implied triangle: This photograph could have been used for either this task or to show a curve. I decided to use it for this as there are actually a number of triangles in the photograph - the shape of the upright leaves, the lower leaves and also the shape of the pot - three for the price of one!

This photograph is an example of an implied triangle using the v-shape created by the two branches to create a triangle.

9. rhythm: Most of the photographs that I have seen to demonstrate rhythm contain buildings so I wanted to try something different. I think that this row of shaped hedges contains a nice rhythm.
10. pattern: I like this photograph and the pattern created by the branches and moss on the wall.

Project 27: real and implied circles

2010-01-26T20:24:00.007Z

For this project I have selected four photographs organised around circles. Three of the photographs contain 'real' circles and one an implied circle.

The first circle photograph is of a bauble from our Christmas tree. This circle has been produced using a round object.

The second photograph is of a stack of hay bales. This photograph of circles was created using objects with a different shape than the previous photograph. For this photograph to represent circles I positioned myself so that only the ends of the bales were included in the frame.

The third photograph is of the famous clock in the Old Town in Prague. This photograph is made up of objects that are circular and again I tried to position myself in front of the clock so as not to distort the shapes. As the clock is higher than eye-level the circles at the top of the photograph have lost their shape a little.

For the final photograph I wanted to try and take an image with an implied circle. This shot taken in the snow suggests a circle by the arrangement of the seed heads.

From the text book I have identified the following images as containing implied circular arrangements:

Page 16 Un des Cedres de Salomon sur le Mont Liban by e. Benecke

Page 77 Verde by Manuel Alvarez Bravo

Page 84 Ola-Noatak by Edward Curtis

Project 26: real and implied triangles

2010-01-19T21:09:00.007Z

For the first photograph in this project I have selected an image taken in Prague. The idea is to produce an image where the subject itself is triangular and I think that the roof of this building makes a good triangle.

The second photograph required that I form a triangle by perspective with the apex at the top of the frame. I found it quite uncomfortable taking this photograph as the building was very tall and I felt quite dizzy looking up.

The next image is of a still life arrangement of objects with the apex of the triangle at the top of the image. I chose a pile of logs as they were easy to arrange into a triangular shape.

The second still life arrangement was set up to form an inverted triangle. I decided to do this using a set of coloured pencils.

The final photograph is supposed to be a group of three people arranged in such a way so that either their faces or the line of their bodies makes a triangle. As I didn't have three people handy at the time I have taken a photograph of these three cats to demonstrate the same idea.

Project 25: rectangles

2010-01-19T20:07:00.003Z

This project requires three photographs where the subjects are rectangles. I went for a walk around a neighbouring village and took the following photographs:

The first photograph shows a post box. I knew that in order to show the basic rectangular shape that I would need to be square on to the subject so that only the outline shape was visible. I like the contrast between the red of the post box and the green of the surrounding bushes.

A little further down the road I came to the noticeboard for the village hall. I like that within the rectangular frame of the noticeboard the individual notices are rectangles too.

I had decided that I would try and find an interesting wall as brickwork seemed to me to be the most obvious subject for rectangles. I came across the following scene in the village and like that not only are there piles of bricks but they are in front of a brick wall - a sea of rectangles!

Project 24: shapes

2010-01-19T19:53:00.003Z

For this project I have chosen two simple objects and photographed them in two different ways to demonstrate the way in which the shape of an object can be shown.

The first photograph is an old camera. The camera is back lit using a desk lamp and is almost in silhouette. This effect clearly shows the outline shape of the camera and it is clear to see that it comprises of a triangle and a rectangle.

The second object is a round tin which up until a couple of days ago contained Liquorice allsorts! I chose this set up to demonstrate that although the tin is round taken at this angle the shape is rectangular. To show the tins true shape I would have needed to take it from overhead.

Project 23: implied lines

2010-01-07T20:56:00.005Z

Well it's been a long time between projects! Looking at my notes it was October when I last posted anything. I think I got a bit bogged down with these half a dozen projects and rather than completing one and moving on to the next I tried to do them all at once with the result that I didn't take sufficient photographs to complete any of the projects. I have decided to work my way through these remaining projects in Section 3 and post what I have taken and then fill any gaps in the next few weeks.

This project in particular has been putting me off getting back started so I have decided to go for it, do what I can without wasting too much more time on it and move on to the next one.

The first part is to identify the implied lines in two images provided. The first image is of a bullfighter. To me there is an implied line formed by the bullfighters cape showing directional movement in the image. There is also a line from the bullfighters eye implied.

In the second image of the man with two horses there is again an eye-line which helps the eye to move across the image from the man to the two horses. This movement is contrasted by the implied directional line created by the horses.

For the second part of the project I have found three of my own images and identified any implied lines within each photograph:

In the first photograph there is an eye-line from the man looking down to the younger boy as shown:

In the second photograph of the golfer there are a couple of lines that lead you in and then out of the photograph. The first line is the eye-line which takes you from the head of the golfer down to his feet. His arms, the club and ball are are blurred in this photograph showing the movement of his swing and combined this implies a line in the direction that the ball is moving - out of the photograph to the right.

The third photograph I have chosen is of a swan swimming on a lake. The swan was placed in the top left-hand corner of the photograph so that it had plenty of room to move into in the image. The sense of movement creates a directional line across the photograph.

The final part of this project is to plan and take 2 photographs using either an eye-line, the extension of a line or lines that point. I will post these at a later date.

Project 22: curves

2009-10-29T22:31:00.003Z

For the last set in the series of continuous lines I have taken the following images as examples of curves.

This set of images was also taken during my recent trip to Prague.

The first picture was taken inside the Municipal House and is the pattern on the floor leading to the American bar. The Municipal House is a wonderful building and I would recommend anyone going to Prague to take time to visit. It is really stunning.

This picture of a banister was taken at the Cubist Museum. Whilst not very good from a technical point of view, the light was really poor, and it's a bit out of focus I have included it as I like the way the rail curves through the image.

The dictionary definition of a curve is 'a line where no part is straight' and for this picture of tramlines I think I can just about get away with it!

In the final image I have used the pattern in the water made by the boat turning in the river as the curve.

Project 21:diagonals

2009-10-29T21:48:00.003Z

The following four images were taken on a recent trip to Prague. Whilst taking in the sights of the city I came across a number of opportunities to take images containing diagonal lines.

The first and second pictures show steps as diagonal lines in an image. In the first image I have rotated the camera deliberately to accentuate the diagonal line of the railings.

This image is a more straight-forward use of steps to create diagonal lines.

With this image I wanted to use the railings to create the diagonal line but also noticed the bridge ahead which contained strong diagonal lines.

In this image the roof-line creates a strong diagonal line through the picture. The roof tiles continue the diagonals and create a strong sense of movement in the image.

Examples of the use of diagonals from the textbook include:

Page 24 'Carpenters on the Lacock Estate' William Henry Fox Talbot.

Page 71 'Flither [limpet] pickers' Frank Meadow Sutcliffe.

Page 226 'Farmyard' Robert Adams.

Project 20: horizontal and vertical lines

2009-10-27T22:12:00.005Z

The start of this project was to produce 8 photographs showing specific examples of vertical and horizontal lines. For this project I visited Watermead Park in Leicester and took the following images. I converted all images to black and white as this highlights the lines.

Horizontal lines:

This image has two examples of horizontal lines - the horizon and the metal railings. It took me several attempts to get the railings straight something that I need to be more careful of in the future.

Probably this image could have worked in either category but I had in mind the horizontal barbed wire as the main line. As I had to angle the camera upwards it was difficult to obtain dead straight lines, however, I am pleased with the result.

This one is a bit of a cheat as I had to slant the camera to ensure that the lines were horizontal! I'm glad that I did as I think it shows clear lines.

This is one of my favourite images from the days shooting and shows horizontal lines very clearly.

Having read the list of examples in the notes I do not appear to have included many of them in my set of images but still think I have made a fair job of this project.

Vertical lines:

In the park where these images were taken there was a lack of buildings so taking the most obvious shot was not available to me, however, I did include this man-made structure.

As I was walking along the riverbank I had an idea for this image to show a clear vertical line and was pleased with the resulting image.

I am pleased to see that I have included one of the most obvious examples!

Overall, I am very pleased with this set of images. It has taken me quite a while to get into this section and feel that I have not been progressing very well. I am finding it difficult to get the right balance as I felt that I had rushed the first assignment and was determined not to do that with the next one. As well as balance in my images I need to get some balance in my studies!

Project 19: multiple points

2009-10-25T20:41:00.007Z

The aim of this project was to create a still-life image using a grouping of similar sized objects placed in such a way as to create an attractive grouping. For the project I chose to use a number of decorative pebbles set on a plain black background.

I used my standard 18-55 mm kit lens and set my camera on a tripod. The settings I sued for the series of photographs was ISO 400, F5.6, 1/20th. I was fooled by the black background however and the set of images had a dark grey rather than black background. I have attempted to fix this a little.

For the first image I placed the pebble off-centre in the bottom right of the frame. I deliberately chose not to place the pebble in the centre. I had in mind as a final image a triangular shaped pattern using the pebbles and wanted to start with a large pebble to 'anchor' the composition.

The reason that I placed the second pebble where I did was to try to balance the composition. I wasn't sure if this was where this pebble would ultimately end up but thought that this placement was correct.

For the third image I tried to create a triangle with the three pebbles although I didn't want the triangle to be obvious. I deliberately selected a smaller pebble to add balance to the composition.
I found the placement of the 'even' pebbles more of a problem than the 'odd' ones. I think this is because I am now more aware of trying to create balance in the image and this is harder to achieve with an even number of objects. At this point I was concerned that I was not following a pattern that would produce the final composition that I had in mind.

For the fifth image I included a smaller lighter coloured pebble in a attempt to balance the image again. I think the inclusion of the fifth pebble greatly improves the composition from the previous image. As there is a more obvious shape it make a more pleasing composition.

Again, I found this composition difficult to get right. As I was adding more pebbles to the image I felt that I needed to bunch the pebbles together more. I do not like the composition of this image either.

As well as adding a seventh pebble I also moved the pebbles into a tighter composition, with the pebbles touching each other. This makes a more convincing still-life.

I have added an eighth pebble to the composition and I actually feel that this is a stronger composition than the previous image.

Within the image there are lines that connect the pebbles together and shapes made by groups of pebbles.

Project 18: relationship between points

2009-10-13T21:18:00.004+01:00

For the first half of this project I went out in search of subjects with two points. My first idea came at the lake and I took the photograph of 2 swans.

In this photograph the white swan dominates the frame. The white swan is more prominent than the brown signet and as such your eye moves from the swan to the signet which contrasts with the movement in the photograph caused by the direction in which the pair are moving in the water.

This photograph showing a mother and son riding their bicycles through a local park. The mother is more dominant due to her being slightly larger than the boy but due more to the colour of her clothing. In this photograph your eye moves from right to left.

Project 17: positioning a point

2009-10-13T20:27:00.004+01:00

For this project I was required to consider the impact that the position of a single point has on the overall impact of a photograph. Whilst this project is similar to Project 7 I had to consider where I was positioning the point bearing in mind what I have learnt in earlier projects.

1. Swan

For this photograph I was aiming to isolate a swan on a lake as the point in this photograph. I chose the position of the swan to match the direction that it was moving in - I wanted to give it space to move into in the photograph.

2. Orange buoy.

Further down the lake from the swan were a row of buoys. I liked the contrast of the colour of the buoy and the water in the early evening light. I took a number of photographs with the buoy in different positions in the frame. I also changed the composition from horizontal to vertical and am pleased with the result.

Project 16: defining a point

2009-09-26T10:20:00.005+01:00

From the course notes we are told that 'The point is the most fundamental design element. In a photograph, for a subject to qualify as a point it has to be small in the frame, and contrast, in some way, with its surroundings.'

Considering that definition I would suggest the following list of types of situations would make a clear photograph of a point:

Overhead shot of an umbrella,
Balloon floating across sky,
Beach ball either in the air or lying on the sand,
Single flower bloom against green foliage,
Boat on the water,
Lone tree on the horizon,
Toadstool,
Sheep grazing in a field,
Aeroplane in the sky.

Light could also create a point in the following ways:

Spotlight on an empty stage,
Illuminated street lamp in a dark street.

Here are a selection of photographs from my collection that show a photograph of a point:

1. The setting sun creates a point in this photograph. The brightness of the sun contrasts with the deep orange of the sky and the silhouette of the landscape.

2. The bird is a point in this photograph, although it may be a little on the large side.

3. The flower acts as a contrast to the green foliage and creates point in this photograph.

4. The centre of the flower creates a point.

5. In this photograph the flower is the point although, again, it may be a little on the large side.

6. In this photograph the white cottage in the distance is the point.

Unfortunately, I didn't have much success in finding too many examples from my collection of pictures so will need to look out for more in the coming weeks.

Project 15: cropping

2009-09-25T20:33:00.006+01:00

For this project I have selected the 3 photographs with the aim of cropping them to produce an different photograph.

This project was a bit strange for me as my style of photography is to try wherever possible to take only the things that I want to include in the final image i.e. I do not tend to rely on cropping to achieve the final photograph. During the last few weeks I have tried to take photographs with the project in mind.

I will continue with my original style which has been endorsed by my tutor in her feedback to my first assignment in which she advises that 'cropping should be avoided'

For this photograph I have produced a second version focusing on the flowerpots. I like both photographs.

I think the cropped version of this photograph as it removes much of the background and focuses on the couple sitting on the bench.

The aim of cropping this photograph was to make the hut more dominant in the frame but also retaining some foreground detail.

Project 12: positioning the horizon (take 2)

2009-09-21T17:34:00.008+01:00

Following Duncan's comments on my blog about this assignment I decided to have another go taking on board what he had said.

I could see where I had gone wrong the first time. I had decided to try and undertake as many of the assignments using the manual settings on my camera and this was my downfall with this assignment. Rather than 'locking' the correct exposure and taking the series of photographs I was adjusting the settings for each photograph.

For this series of photographs I used the camera settings to find the best exposure and kept the same settings for each photograph. The following three photographs are a selection of the photographs that I took.

Thanks to Duncan for his comments.

On reflection, I will either use my camera on aperture priority or shutter priority modes depending on the photograph I am taking and use manual only when I need to as I was over-complicating things unnecessarily.

Project 14: vertical and horizontal frames

2009-09-19T11:28:00.021+01:00

For this project the aim was to take a number of photographs vertically and then retake them horizontally. I carried this project out at three different locations - Calke Abbey, Foxton Locks and Hidcote Gardens. Although I do use the vertical format quite often I found this project difficult and have only so far taken 10 images that are shown below. This is because initially I was looking for photographs that would work both vertically and horizontally. After a couple of failed trips I decided to look for vertical images only and this made the project easier.

The first photograph is of the house at Hidcote Gardens. I think the vertical image works best here as I was trying to show the depth of the flower beds in front of the house. Unfortunately I was a couple of weeks too late to see the flower borders in full bloom.

This photograph was my favourite from the day at Hidcote and I think it works well in both formats although my favourite is the vertical one.

With this type of photograph the extra background that is included with the horizontal format would be cropped out so I don't think this format works in this case.

Again this image lends itself better to a vertical composition.

I composed this photograph of the mangle so that the door was not in the frame for the vertical shot. When I took the mangle again framing it horizontally I had to include the door in the photograph. I think that again the vertical composition works best for this photograph.

For this photograph of the locks I think that both vertical and horizontal compositions work well. In the vertical photograph there is too much foreground which distracts from the subject of the photograph so a different viewpoint would work better. I prefer the horizontal photograph as it gives a better impression of the locks.

This photograph shows 'one man and his boat' setting off down the canal and has a relaxed feel about it. Changing the composition to horizontal means that another boat is included in the frame upsetting the balance.

This second photograph of the locks has a boat in the foreground that improves the composition and leads the eye in to the photograph. In this case I prefer the vertical composition.

I like the balance of the next photograph and think that it loses the balance when taken horizontally.

I think the photograph of the greenhouse works equally well in both formats.

For me the shape of the flowerhead works better in a vertical format.

Project 13: the golden section

2009-08-27T19:01:00.008+01:00

This series of photographs shows my attempts at composition using the Golden Section. Some of the photographs have a more definite division to them but I think all comply with the basic principle.

In preparation for this project I researched the Internet to try to understand the difference between the rule of thirds and the Golden Section. I came across the following site which has some interesting information about the Golden Section not only in art but in architecture, films and music.

http://www.maths.surrey.ac.uk/hosted-sites/R.Knott/Fibonacci/fibInArt.html#misc

I am comfortable with the rule of thirds and use this principle in the photographs I take where I think it necessary. The Golden Section seems to be a more complicated principle but can nevertheless be applied to many different art forms to produce pleasing results.

Looking at the test book I noted the following photographs of the use of the Golden Section that show how the frame has been sub-divided:

Provincetown 1976 by Joel Meyerowitz, pg 78

Ireland, 1979 by Harry Callaghan, pg 79 and

A Franciscan, Venice by James Craig Annan, pg 98

Project 12: positioning the horizon

2009-08-19T22:03:00.008+01:00

19th August 2009

This project is about the position that the horizon is placed in the frame and what effect the placing of the horizon will have on the image.

For this series of photographs I selected a suitable viewpoint and took a series of shots with the horizon placed at different positions from bottom to top.

Here the image is dominated by the sky and I think works well as there is sufficient detail in the sky to make the image interesting.

Here the horizon is placed a little higher up towards the centre of the image and gives a better balance to the image.

With the horizon placed in the centre of the frame the image is divided in half. Whilst the composition is quite static the inclusion of the hedge in the foreground helps to balance the image.

This image has the horizon just above centre and is the most successful of the images in this sequence. The image is given depth with the inclusion of the detail in the foreground.

Here the horizon is placed at the top of the frame. I think this image works as well, however, there is too much foreground detail which dominates.

Project 11: balance

2009-08-18T21:04:00.010+01:00

18th August 2009

For this project I have selected 6 images from my collection of photograph that I have taken over the past couple of years. The aim of the project is to consider how the balance works in each one.

I have done this by identifying the dominant parts of the image and to demonstrate this I have marked each element with a rectangle. Then using the 'weighing scale' interpretation as described in the notes I made an assessment about the balance of the image.

In this image the two pieces of driftwood act as a balance to the large area of sea, sky and beach.

I think that the larger light area balances the smaller darker petal. This one doesn't comply with the 'rule' of unequal elements balancing each other due to their placement in the frame as both elements are quite central but I still think it has balance.

This is an example of a smaller element, the castle, being placed at the edge of the frame being balanced by a larger element, the rocks in the foreground, near to the centre of the frame.

Again another example of a smaller element being balanced by a larger element by their respective positions in the frame.

There are two distinct elements to this photograph which provide balance to the image.

This image is balanced by the symmetry created by the bright centre of the flower and the darker petals.

Project 10: focal lengths and different viewpoints

2009-08-17T21:05:00.007+01:00

17th August 2009

For this project I really struggled to find a suitable location. The project required a scene, ideally a building, with enough space in front to be able to take two images using a wide angled lens and a telephoto.

The problem that I had with finding a suitable location was that with many of the buildings there was either insufficient space in front of the building to move back or that the building was either on a hill or in a dip.

Anyway, we ended up at Stowe Landscaped Gardens on Sunday and we found a couple of scenes that were ideal! The images that I am using are of a Gothic Temple, although set on a slight hill I was still able to complete the task.

Image 1. Telephoto lens set to 200mm. I wanted a fairly narrow aperture so that the depth of field would be large so used f16 and whilst the shutter speed was 1/100th I should have used a tripod as the image isn't as sharp as it should be.

This image gives a feeling of distance from the building. It gives an impression of the depth of the building as the rear turret is visible. There is also part of the roof of the adjacent side of the building visible. The sides of the building are vertical in this image.

Image 2. Standard kit lens set to 18mm. I kept the aperture set to f16 and the shutter speed this time was 1/60th. This image is nice and sharp.

This image has a feeling of being right up close to the building. There is no sense of depth to the building as only the front facade is visible. The vertical edges of the building are sloping inwards which also has the effect of making the building appear top-heavy.

Project 9: focal lengths - for cameras with variable focal lengths

2009-08-04T20:35:00.005+01:00

4th August 2009.

This project required an open view so I went along to a local disused quarry that is now a diving centre and set my camera and tripod up so that I could include all of the buildings on the bank of the water to provide detail in the middle of the view.

I took a series images using my standard kit lens, 18mm - 55mm and telephoto lens, 55mm - 250mm.

The images were taken as follows:

1. 18mm

2. 35mm

3. 55mm

4. 100mm

5. 250mm

Of all the images I prefer the second one taken at 35mm as I think it has the strongest composition, there is a good amount of foreground detail and all the buildings are in the shot.

To make the images taken with the telephoto lens work I think I would have needed to change the camera location to remove the distracting tree from the front of the image. As this was an exercise more about the effect of the focal length of the camera on a view and taking a winning image I will leave it here!

Project 8: recording a sequence

2009-08-02T21:37:00.014+01:00

2 August 2009

The aim of this project is to record a sequence of images as opposed to just taking the one shot of the best viewpoint. For this I had to try to use the view finder to find possible pictures by keeping the camera to my eye and to record the sequence of shots that lead up to the final image.

For this project I went along to a local car boot sale as I thought that the large numbers of stalls and people attending the event would enable me to take the images easily without raising too much suspicion. However, I found this exercise really difficult to get the hang of. I found that if I took a series of photographs of the same stall or group of people it wasn't long before they became aware of me. As I was trying to capture candid shots this proved to be very unhelpful.

I will post three sequences from the car boot event and will come back to this project later and try it with a landscape or similar situation without too many members of the public involved!

Sequence 1. The egg stall.

I spotted the potential for an image showing these two men passing the day away on their stall. I took the first two frames and then thought that by moving to the right I would be able to improve the composition as I was unhappy with the stall and in particular, the 'eggs' sign being at an angle. By moving to the right and taking the shot from a slightly different angle the stall would be straighter. Unfortunately by moving I caught the attention of the man wearing the hat and he stopped his conversation with the other man and looked straight at me. Part of the aim of the image was to catch these two men in conversation so whilst the composition of the image was improved by moving the image lost part of its charm in that the two men were no longer talking to each other.

Sequence 2. The Jewellery Stall.

I chose this stall as it was packed with lots of brightly coloured items and there was a steady flow of people browsing - not so many buying so an image of a transaction taking place was unlikely!

I used my telephoto lens for this project so that I could keep a good distance away but that added to the difficulties in that people wandered into the frame unexpectedly. This made it difficult to keep using the view finder to check out possible pictures. Out of this sequence I do not think that there is a 'stand-out' image but I like a couple of them.

I like the moment that I captured in the third image of the stall holder putting her items back in order after people browsing her staff moved them. Image 1 would have been improved if the stall holder had been looking at the girl.

4.

5.

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7.

Sequence 3. The toy stall.

I spotted the potential for am image when a group of people started to browse a this toy stall. There were a couple of small girls who were keen to look at the dolls. I was conscious not to be seen to be taking images of children but as they had their backs to me and I was not recording their faces I felt OK to continue.

I am pleased with the final image as I managed to take one of the girls on her own looking at the dolls - I think she persuaded her gran to buy the doll for her!

Project 7: objects in different positions in the frame

2009-08-02T20:28:00.011+01:00

2 August 2009.

This project was also completed during a recent holiday to East Sussex. We spent some time at Beachy Head and I thought that the lighthouse would be an ideal subject for this project.

The aim of the project was to place the subject in different positions in the frame and compare the results.

The first image was was composed naturally.

For the second image I placed the lighthouse in the centre of the frame:

The third and fourth images show the lighthouse off-centre to the left and off-centre to the right:

For the final image I placed the lighthouse close to the edge of the frame:

When I consider the images together my preference is the 4th image, where the lighthouse is off-centre to the right closely. This image is very similar to the first image that I took naturally and I am pleased that this composition appears to work best for this subject. I like how the shoreline acts as a lead in to the lighthouse.

My least favourite image is the 2nd image with the lighthouse placed in the centre of the frame as the foreground, sea and sky seem to divide the image. The last image where the lighthouse is close to the bottom corner seems to me to have a better balance to it.

Project 6: fitting the frame to the subject

2009-07-28T21:00:00.009+01:00

We were in Rye in Sussex for a week and I had found images of this hut on Flickr before we travelled so I was hoping to find it as I thought it would be ideal for this project. We went for a walk along Rye Harbour and came across it. It really stands out from its surroundings and is a good subject for some interesting images.

For the first image I took a picture of the hut so that the entire hut was in the viewfinder. The instruction for this image was to take the picture quickly without taking too much time to consider the composition.

For the second image I moved in closer so that the entire frame was filled with the hut.

For the next image the instruction was to close in on the subject so that none of the edges were visible. This image shows a part of the door and handle.

The final image shows the hut in its surroundings. The hut is surrounded by shingle and the image shows how isolated the hut is. At this part of the harbour the land is very open and I think the image reflects this well.

I am pleased with this collection of images, I prefer the final image as it shows how isolated the hut is. The second image where the hut fills the frame is my least favourite. There is a lack of interest in the image to me, it is clear that what the subject of the picture is but it doesn't inspire me to want to know more about the hut. I like the composition of the picture of the door handle and the interest in this image to me is to know more about the type of building that it belongs to.

The first image is also more interesting to me as it includes a small amount of background so that you can put the hut into the context of its surroundings.

Project 5: Panning with different shutter speeds

2009-07-15T19:58:00.010+01:00

I decided to undertake this exercise at the same time as project 4 so the subject again is my husband riding his bike.

This was the first time that I had tried panning and I think the results show it! I found it quite difficult to get my husband in the middle of the image although with practice I am sure it is a technique that I can improve.

1. 1/100. Beginners luck and I managed to get this one quite central!

2. 1/500.

3. 1/250. As with the previous 2 images there is little sign of movement in this image.

4. 1/125. The background is starting to blur to show movement.

5. 1/60. There is a greater sense of movement in this image.

6. 1/30. There is a real suggestion of movement in this image.

Considering both these images and those in project 4 I think there is room for improvement from a technical perspective. Some of the images are not as sharp as they could have been, particularly at the faster shutter speeds. As it was the first time that I had tried the panning technique I was quite impressed with the results and I will try it again with different subjects e.g. moving cars.

From this set of images I prefer image 6 as this one gives the greatest sense of speed and over the 2 projects this is the image that I like the best. The blurring of both the background and the spokes on the wheels works to show movement.

Project 4: Shutter speeds

2009-07-14T21:22:00.016+01:00

For this set of pictures I asked my husband to ride his bicycle past my camera at roughly the same speed whilst I took several shots of him using different shutter speeds.

Again it was a typical English summer day - it was sunny but there were clouds in the sky and the conditions kept changing. For this reason I decided to use the camera in shutter priority mode so that I did not have to keep worrying about the exposure. I decided that the most important thing was to see the effects of the different shutter speeds.

My camera was mounted on a tripod. I set the focus at a point we had agreed he would ride by and these are the results:

1. 1/500. There is almost no movement visible in this shot.

2. 1/250. you can just start to see blurring of the spokes on the bike which shows movement in the image.

3. 1/125. Because the ground was uneven there is quite a bit of movement in my husband as well as the wheels on the bike.

4. 1/60. the movement is very obvious in this shot.

5. 1/30.

6. 1/15. Starting to look almost ghostly in this image

7. 1/8. He has become almost invisible in this image.

This exercise demonstrates how to use the shutter speed to show movement in an image. Although my husband wasn't travelling very fast by using a slow shutter speed it is possible to give the impression of speed and movement. My favourite from this collection is image 6 as it has a surreal feel to it although it is clear what the image is showing.

Project 3: focus with different apertures

2009-07-14T20:28:00.009+01:00

For this project I selected some railings outside the local College. I took three images each with a different aperture to demonstrate the effect using different aperture settings has on focus. Each image was taken with ISO 200 with the focus on the third rail from the left. As recommended I used my camera on a tripod to ensure that the images were framed identically.

The first image was taken with an aperture of f 4.5 @ 1/800th ISO 200. There is a very limited area of sharpness on this image with not all of the third rail in focus.

I then changed the aperture to f 11 @ 1/125th for the second image. There is an increase in the area of sharpeness but it is quite slight - only extending part way over the second rail from the left but not reaching the fourth rail.

For the third image the settings were f 29 @ 1/25th. There is a more noticeable area in focus on this image with most of the image sharpe.

Project 2: focus with a set aperture

2009-07-14T19:47:00.008+01:00

The aim of this exercise was to take 2-3 photographs of a scene which has depth to demonstrate the effect of focusing at different distances within the image.

I chose this location as I thought that I would be able to focus on the flowers in the foreground, the plants in the mid-ground and the bull rushes in the background.

The camera settings for all three images were:

ISO 200 F 5.6 @ 1/160.

The weather conditions were typical of an English summers day - it was sunny but quite cloudy so conditions were changing. I have decided to try, wherever possible, to use my camera on manual settings. I have previously only used the program mode and AV and TV settings so I expect that there will be mixed results! I am happy with the exposure of these images.

Of the three images I prefer the second, where the focus is on the plants at the edge of the pond as I think this image is more balanced.

There is not enough detail in focus in the first image and in the third image the out of focus foreground is distracting.

Project 1: focal length and angle of view

2009-07-12T21:18:00.010+01:00

The aim of this exercise was to find the standard focal length of my camera.

For the first image I had to look at the scene with both eyes open so that I was looking at the scene through the viewfinder and with my other eye at the same time. I then adjusted the lens until the scene was the same size with both eyes. I found this to be quite difficult to do but finally settled on a setting and took the image. Taking note of the focal length marking on the lens was difficult, it was between 55 and 70 mm. Once I had downloaded the image to my computer it told me that the lens was set at 65 mm.

Image 1

I then took a second image with the lens set to its furthest telephoto setting of 250 mm.

Image 2

The third image was taken with the lens set to 18 mm.

Image 3

The next part of the exercise was to print the three images and then go back to the same point that they were taken in and view each image holding it so that the image on the print was roughly the same size as the real scene.

Holding the image taken at 65 mm at eye level I had to extend my arm to its full length and the image was the same size as my view of the real scene.

For the wide angle print I had to hold the image much nearer to my face, at about 8 inches from my eye the scene was the same as the real view.

The telephoto print was much harder to do! I attached the image to a chair and kept moving it further away until both scenes were the same size. The chair had to be placed 5-6 paces from where I had taken the image originally.

A really useful exercise and I guess the focal length of my camera is somewhere around 65 mm.

The Art of Photography

2009-07-03T20:16:00.000+01:00

This blog will be used to record my progress through the Art of Photography course.