Week Six arrived and with it we all realised that we would have to take photos of each other. This is never a comfortable thing for a man of specific age and size to face (pun intended) but I bore it with fortitude and stoicism. Portrait photography - like any other type of photography, has its own pitfalls and challenges. In a fairly photographic-unfriendly location such as a standard classroom, the light sources were confused and clashing, setting a discordant note. Thus we would need to use soe type of flash to 'even out' the potential issues we might face. This was where my day began to unravel - the Nissin Speedlite I have worked with my old EOS400D but I had never used it with my new 700D or 60D and it just refused to work. As flash is a harsh source of light, using an off camera flash can help to soften and direct the light path in ways that the photographer wishes. Thus, to have access only to on-camera flash was a little unwelcome. I did not want to have the 'red-eye' or shadows on my classmates faces that may result, so I did the best I was able too considering the technical issues I encountered. I did learn to use the on-camera flash in ways I had never thought too before - going through the menu I discovered that I had control over how much the flash would fire and, whilst this was not the way i had wanted to go, it did mean that the on camera flash compensation control could soften the flash a little, even if I was unable to 'bounce' the light from different places as Denise did as part of the practical part of the session. Denise even was able to show us how to diffuse the light - again something I was not able to achieve to the level I wanted. As safety of classmates has to be considered, and as this is an open site, I have chosen not to post any photographs of them here as I do not believe it fair to do so. Thus sadly I have had to show an image of myself with the most productive lighting which could be achieved on the day - for this I apologise.... [The image was taken by Dean Crosdale on his Canon EOS70D Camera]
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After a week off for half-term, most of us returned to the Classroom eager to embrace the next phase of the course... Still life in photography is not something that I have ever done using a digital format. I do have some old film somewhere of images taken by candlelight (including the de rigueur photo of a candle on the floor, lit inside of a red parking cone so prevalent in the late 1970’s) and ‘arty’ ones taken on my old Cosina CT-1 when out and about. But in these digital times I have kept to landscapes, architectural and the occasional portrait images – as well as the personal photo taken a la Bresson - when the subject is unaware of the photographer (great at parties, weddings and gatherings with friends who are unlikely to mind!). These are the areas that I tend to enjoy; even taking images for album covers can be fun and I have spent some time taking images of various clocks and then removing or altering their 'hands' as a study on the process of time. I have been in a music project with a friend for over 10 years and we have produced over 150 songs; our first album (not available in shops but still available) was called 'One Day' and has a photo of a lovely clock at the main motif. But fruit? Still life? Expressing something through the lighting and control of the surroundings and hoping to capture something unique? It was not something I was familiar with - nor would I do it as a fun pursuit. But in some strange way, using the different ISO, F stop and other settings was a hugely enjoyable task. This first one was taken in class, at ISO100, f4.5, 35 mm focal length and for 1.3 seconds. The red the apples have picked up from my classmates and another light source is quite interesting - I'd have preferred a smooth base on which to put the apples onto but the creases do give it a slight sense of movement. This second one was taken just a few moments later still as ISO100, but this time using f6.3, 64 mm focal length and for one second. The difference in colour, tone and lighting is significant. The apples had not moved, I had not moved, the tripod had not moved, but the alteration to the settings created a very different image. This was another week I was looking forward to. It explored changing the shutter speed to photograph a still or moving image. We had two references to help us with this task – Atget and Man Ray. Jean-Eugéne-Auguste Atget was renowned for taking images around the streets of Paris. He wanted to record areas of Paris that he thoughThis was another week I was looking forward to. It explored changing the shutter speed to photograph a still or moving image. We had two references to help us with this task – Atget and Man Ray. Jean-Eugéne-Auguste Atget was renowned for taking images around the streets of Paris. He wanted to record areas of Paris that he thought were worthy before they disappeared and his use of composition and creating an image that was as perfect as he could make it was useful for this week’s task. Man Ray (born Emmanuel Radnitzky) [1890-1976] was a contributor to the Dada and Surrealist movements and considered himself a painter. Yet he was an excellent fashion and portrait photographer. His use of exposure techniques to photograph what he called ‘readymades’; ordinary objects that are modified to become ‘other’. Given the relatively poor technical devices available at the time, his combination of these objects and people (he photographed James Joyce, Gertrude Stein and Jean Cocteau among others) ensured that he became more than adept at photographing objects that were unlikely to move (his ‘readymades’) as well as living people, who obviously could not avoid doing so. Our exploration (in the theory part of the session) revealed the easy to understand system that a fast shutter speed mated to a fast ISO would freeze movement. I had always used the Av setting on my cameras where possible, but for this session we looked at Tv / S – the semi manual shooting mode. By manually setting the shutter speed the camera automatically sets the aperture to ensure that the correct exposure is maintained. This setting also gives you control over the ISO and flash control. Robert Mapplethorpe [1946-1989] utilised such techniques in his celebrated portraits of male and female nudes and still-life images of flowers. He was a somewhat controversial figure as his images could exceed what some might consider was ‘decent’ or reasonable to display; yet his control over composition and exposure was exceptional. He worked almost exclusively in a studio and in black and white (except for his final work “New Colours”). Whether his nudes are high art or pornography is perhaps a personal (or legal decision), but this one photographer had exquisite control and a delicate touch when taking images of his chosen subjects. This American began using a Polaroid camera before moving on to a Hasselblad in the mid 1970’s. His erotic images are perhaps too ‘edgy’ to display here, so I will outline his ability with two studies of flowers. Orchids and Calla Lilies were favourite subjects (along with more famous subjects such as Andy Warhol, Deborah Harry and Richard Gere). A long-time friend and supporter of his, the musician Patti Smith, stated (in Just Kids); “He was presenting something new, something not seen or explored as he saw it and explored it.” His nudes are perhaps an acquired taste; but his studies of flowers (which themselves can be somewhat erotic in the correct lens) are infused with depth and beauty. Images I have researched on the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation are elegant and display in pictorial form the impressive use of exposure and framing. The use of thirds is ignored, the framing is individual and the shadows on one black and white image give the flower a porcelain like quality. The shadows that curve around the petals and the strength in the stem which reaches down and to the left give a motion to the image; the control over the aperture and exposure is breath-taking. The colours and composition of the two colour flowers [ABOVE] are like an angry couple with their backs to each other after a lovers tiff. The composition is strong, the colours deep and rich and the exposure creates in this viewers mind a back story to these two simple decaying flowers (presuming they were cut flowers and thus already dying) that show the delicate tracery of the veins that arch up through the photo; from the bottom to the top. These two apparently simple studies of flowers are, in their own way, as aesthetically pleasing as any nude may be. The curves of one, the veins of another, the delicate petals and frond, they hint at life, whilst the deep venal blood colour of the crimson background is a beautiful counterpoint to the red in the veins of the flowers. Following the basic rules of exposure and setting the camera to the correct settings for the shot may not enable me to create photographs as powerful as the two above; but as Man Ray said; “An original is a creation motivated by desire.” Whether that be of a carnal nature or the aesthetic; Mapplethorpe has had a lasting impression upon me and, I hope, upon my photography. |
Alan MitchellI'm always trying to capture that fleeting 'moment' in time -whether by taking a photo or writing a poem. My attempts to capture that illusive feeling, sight, sensation or sound in some way is, to me, magical. Archives
March 2023
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