Portfolio: Photographic Studio Practice Two

Showing posts with label Photographic Studio Practice Two. Show all posts

Wednesday, 5 March 2008

Lighting Evaluation

Evaluation
Whether it’s knowing how to use lighting equipment, how to use it creatively or knowing how or when to introduce different lighting techniques, lighting can still be a daunting experience. By the time I finished the brief I wanted to ensure I came away with a clearer understanding of certain lighting techniques and feel confidant with my abilities, knowing I can take out the lighting equipment at anytime and photograph.

After grouping up with Phil Auty and Chris Harvey we began straight and booked the studio space. On the day of the shoot Chris brought in a fragrance bottle to photograph, however as a group we had no vision in how we were going light it. As a group we were not put off by this as it allowed us to problem solve, experiment and discuss with one another creative ways of lighting. Reunited with the studio and the lighting equipment we managed to achieve some great images of the bottle, however for me I was beginning to feel that lighting products was becoming a cliché. As a photographer who enjoys lighting, I understand the importance of having these skills; however working in a studio is an area of photography I’m not drawn to. I find working in a studio restricts my creativity and therefore I was looking further a field. After much soul searching I reached the decision of going out on location and document the interior of my grandparents house in Manchester. Both myself Chris and Phil had our own little projects we wanted to pursue and therefore we found each other working separately and getting on with producing images.

Prior to going out on location I began searching the Internet and looking in various books for examples of interiors and how professionals approached their subject. Research suggests that complicated lighting set ups are unnecessary. If areas of a subject require additional light then either additional lighting can be implemented or reflectors can be used to bounce the light. Before I began speaking to people I always considered the more lights to light up the subject, the better, however this was not to be. On location I was using no more than two flash heads and one tungsten light to add warmth to my subject. After analysing my images I found the tungsten light made no real difference to the aesthetics of my image and a better solution would have been to use an amber filter.

Planning what equipment I was going to need on the day of the shoot and organising the insurance and liaising with my grandparents was well managed and went well. For future photo shoots I will adopt the same approach and this will help me avoid any problems in terms of wasting time and incurring or increasing costs.

On my grandparent’s house the shoot took two days and after day one of the shoot I then realised how much time was required for travelling, time spent photographing and setting up/ putting away the equipment. In my opinion I felt my naivety got the better of me on day one, however by day two I managed to turn it around and gave myself an additional two hours in the working day which enabled me to work at a much smoother pace and I was able to finish my work on time.
I feel the landscape image I took of the armchair in my grandparent’s house with the carpet and side table was probably one of my more creative shoots. I have been told in the past that my competency of being able to use the lighting equipment is sufficient; my creativity however needs stretching, as I tend to play it safe. The way of working I adopted when out on location was to analyse each image I took on my lap top screen and ask myself what could I do differently to improve the image. I found this approach successful and it was at this point when I began to feel like a real photographer. Making images, analysing them and making alterations to my lighting boosted my confidence and were a rewarding feeling.

I believe working in a team has its benefits, however on this occasion I was happy working on my own and getting on with producing images. Communication within the group was kept to a minimum and again this was due to the fact that we were left to putting our ideas into practice. The only breakdown in communication was when we all arranged to get together and plan out the design of our leaflet idea. Over the two days of the shoot, as well as being photographer, I was also responsible for finding the location, research, planning, organising and assisting, props, and styling. Although to some degree I managed to work well on my own there were times in the day when I felt it would be helpful to have some help.

The cost of the photo shoot at my grandparents was minimal. Costs such as travel, time and insurance were accounted for and although my shoot was unpaid I am aware how valuable time is when working as a photographer.

Reflecting on my experiences I believe my recent experience compared to the one back in 2007 has been a more rewarding time for me. Although I already had the knowledge of being able to meter light, set up and use the lighting equipment I feel my confidence and development has improved significantly. I believe working alone has been one of many factors responsible for this as I was left on my own and empowered to analyse and be critical about my images and solve any lighting problems that were going to either help or hinder my shoot. All in all it has been a great learning curve for me. One key point I will take away with me when I go back out and use the lighting equipment is to remember that there is no need for complicated lighting set ups. This has been already demonstrated in past lighting inductions where creative images have been created using only one light and several reflectors.

Wednesday, 20 February 2008

20th February 2008

Today Commercial Photographer, Simon Manchipp from www.sorted.tv who has worked as a freelance photographer Mixmag, Saturday Telegraph, Superdrug came along to college and gave our group a lighting induction. One of the first activities I took part in was titled drawing with light. Using a combination of a slow exposure, a torch, a model, photographer and a couple of assistants we as a small team were able to create intersting images. The idea of using the slow exposure would create streams of light and then using the flash units we were able to fill in specific areas with light.

Simon demonstarted that you don't need to have complicated lighting set ups to get great results. On the day I was asked to bring an image I liked so that we could attempt to recreate the image in the studio. Once we established where in the image the light source was coming from. Understading that great images can be created from just one light, reflectors were introduced on set to reach areas where the light was not hitting. After the group were happy, we decided to capture the subject and then look at the image to see what we could do to improve it. Working as part of a production team each person in the team was allocated a specific role and responsibility whether it was being the photographer, managing the lights or lookingafter props.

Friday, 1 February 2008

Photo Shoot Request

The company director of 'A Fitting Company' (Kitchen Installation Company) has contacted me and asked me if I would be able to photograph his company van which has recently been decorarted in graphics. The vehicle itself is seen as an advertisement of the company and informnation such as the name of the company, contact number and description of the business will be seen. The idea of photographing the van will be used for the purpose of the website that is currently being designed. I have decieded that the shooot should be taken in the middle of a city wehich hustle and bustle, an industrisl enviroenmtn and coismopolitan. Using a city scape as a backdrop is ideal and I have decided that the shoot will take place at dusk so that a mix of daylight and evening light would create an ambient, atmospheric light. The diagram is a quick illustration to show how I intend to set up the lights . The idea is to capture the image as raw and then take it through Photoshop and manipulate. Above is also an example of a photograpoh I took which demonstrates an exactr composition I intend to create in the image. The only difference is that the image will be in colour.

Thursday, 24 January 2008

Photo Shoot 23/01/2008

The image of the floor below was taken using only one light and soft box. The idea of using the soft box was to soften the output of light, preventing harsh shadows forming. The patterned kitchen floor seen here in the image has been here since I was a young child. If you look closely you can see that the floor has seen better days. The wear and tear in a specific area of the floor carries history. What interests me is wondering how many footsteps it must take to wear down the floor.

Thursday, 17 January 2008

Photo Shoot - 16/01/2008

The image pictured in the frame is a family portrait and very much a historical record of when we as a family were much younger. Although I could quite easily use flash unit linked to my camera, I decided to use a flash head with a diffuser. I positioned the light above the subject to avoid any flash reflecting off the glass in the frame.

I do like the composition of this image. The first thing I see is that the flash has not reached the corner of the chair and has created shadow. One other idea I was comsidering as not to use any flash heads at all...only the tungsten lighting found in the side table lights etc. This would have created a more homely feel. To help dress the scene I should have also had one of the many family portraits in sho on the side table.

One of the main reasons why I decided to photograph my grandparents house was because the interior of the property has taken on very little change. The furniture, fixtures and fittings are all original and visiting my grandparents almost feels as though you are stepping back in time.

Compared to the previous image and after adjusting the lights, a vast improvement has been made. Comparing both images the shadows on the left hand side of the armschair have now dissapeared and the shadows on the back wall have been softened. As a photographer I was able to analyse my image, look at how I could improve the the image and implement any changes. Should I capture the same image again I would like to make further changes. For example, I would have the side table light and electric fire switched on, the curtain on the left hand side drawn and reduce the the amount of light from the flash heads. Another possibility would be to capture the same image at a later time of day.

Above is an example of what my image was going to look like. As you can see there are still shadows that I would like to get rid of. Rearranging the lights and filling in the areas where light is not reaching will resolve this.

As mentioned here is the image showing how I had my lights positioned. As well as using flash heads as my source of light, natural light from the windows was also used to my advantage and to add warmth to the room I introduced one tungsten light. With regards to the use of the tungsten light I do question whether this has made much differnece to the image or whether I could have improved it by using an amber gel?

Before setting up the lights I decided to photograph the room to show how dull, boring and flat it really was before I introduced artificaal light. Following on from there I then photographed how I had my lights positioned so the viewer can understand how I achieved the result and finally is the final product after making minor adjustments.

Monday, 14 January 2008

Guide Numbers

Portable flash units designed to be used with small-format and medium format cameras are given a 'guide number' (GN) by the manufacturers. This denotes its potential power output. The guide number is an indication of the maximum distance at which the unit can be used from the subject to obtain an appropriate exposure. The guide number is rated in metres at 100 ISO and an aperture of F1. Because very few photographers possess an F1 lens the actual maximum working distance is usually somewhat lower than the guide number would suggest.

A unit given a guide number of 32 could correctly expose a subject at 16 metres using an aperture of F2 (32 divided by 2 = 16). If the lens was changed to one with a maximum aperture of F4, the maximum working distance would be reduced by eight metres.

It therefore follows that if the guide number of the unit is known the correct exposure can be determined by dividing the guide number by the working distance. The resulting figure is the aperture required when the flash is turned to manual full power (photocell effectively switched off). For example, a flash with a guide number of 32 used to expose a subject four metres away will require an aperture of F8.

Calculating guide number, distance and apeture.
Distance from subject x indicated aperture (MIE) = Guide number

Guide number / Aperture = Effective working distance

Guide number / Distance from subject = Correct aperture

Photographic Lighting

Fill-flash off ceiling balanced to F8 - John Hay

Taken from Child & Galer (2005) the following example shown aboveis a great example of studio lighting used on location. In the book by Child & Galer, The client has requested the lighting enhances the space and balances ambient interior and exterior daylight. The photographer decides upon one exposure, balancing the exterior, interior and introduced lighting. The camera/ film is balanced to daylight. Exterior daylight will be overexposed to reduce the orange/ red colour cast of domestic tungsten lighting.

Umbrella flash in hallway balanced to F8.5

Ambient light - daylight and tungsten - incident - 1 second @ F8.5

I decided to use the following image to demonstarte how lighting can transform a room which is of low lighting and dull to something fresher, brighter and much more natural. One idea I would like to explore is to photograph newly installed kitchens using simple lighting set ups, highlighting key areas. Gaining access to photograph new installed kitchens is only a phone call away. My brother who works for himself and is a kitchen fitter has approached me and asked if I would take a series of images for his website. The use of lights literally injects life into the final product.

Thursday, 10 January 2008

Leaflet Idea

On my way to college today I was handed a business card/ leaflet. I found the leaflet informative, fun and a great of communicating to a target audience. With this in mind the idea of a producing a leaflet similar to this would be a great way of promoting a photography service or even my my own work to prospective employees.

The design and presentation of the leaflet will be similar size to that of a standard business card, however unlike any other business card, our business card will fold out and become an A4 promotional leaflet. The benefits from this kind of design, is that it can be handed out at networking events, it fits easily in to a wallet and when the business card is unfolded it then becomes a leaflet and will hold great well sized images accompanied with text. Positioned on the front of the business card will be the name of the studio (e.g. PAC Photography (Phil, Adam, Chris) and business logo and on the back of the business card will be contact names, contact number, website and email address. The dimensions of the leaflet will be 300mm x 230.4mm and will be divided into six vertical columns and three horizontal columns. The dimensions of the business card (Front and back) will be 85mm x 55mm.

Here is an exmaple of what the leaflet may look like. I'm no graphic designer so I would probaly have this professionally designed.

Wednesday, 9 January 2008

Costings (£)

Petrol - £30
Insurance - £7.93
Time - (hours) 11.5

Tuesday, 8 January 2008

My Proposal

What I intend to do is document my Grandma and Grandad home in Manchester. The reason for the choosing this particular location is due to the contents of the property. For many years my Grandparents have not changed their way of living, nor adapted their style of living to fit in with others. Furniture dating back as far as the nineteen forties and fifties is still quite evidenn.therefore I feel it would be intersting to document the type of furniture that can be found as well as the ornaments and anything else I may learn to discover. I shall be treating the location shoot the same as I would if I was in the studio. Therefore I will be taking various types of lighting kits with me including tungsten lighting and a couple of range kits.