Here is My Shooting Diary For The Third Year of My Degree.
2017-09-09
On Location-Doug 01
This shoot aimed to capture images of paintings for an artist. However, the studio space arranged for this was not suitable. The artist is in the middle of moving and there was no proper space for the studio setup. We are going to wait for a few weeks and look again at the situation, to progress to prints of his works.
2017-09-16
On Location-Mad Pride
I was, commissioned to capture imagery of a Mad Pride parade for The Hull Fringe, and `Ol Town Arts. The images will then to go onto promote the work carried out by the organisations named. This was a parade, culminating at Pearson park, where there were stalls and activities for the crowd. Some of the bands playing were known to me, I also captured imagery for their archives. I enjoyed this brief and captured some interesting imagery of the parade costumes and mini-floats. It was interesting watching the other photographers moving around photographing their viewpoints. There were the hotspots which everyone tried to capture and then looking at how they went and tried to get unusual angles and framing. Seeing one watch another and then jump in afterwards, not to miss a shot. The distinct levels of competence could be, viewed through this behaviour and proved illuminating. I have often had other photographers jump in to positions I have used around the stage. However, I can always get on the stage, with the bands because of my official status (either with the band, promotor, or organiser of the events), When others can get on a stage it is often interesting to see how they behave and react to a mostly new or unfamiliar space. Some freeze up, while others become filled with an importance of perceived power and importance.
2017-09-22
On Location-Edgelands 01
A brief of responding to a theme has been, given to the class, which is Dystopia, a noun: An imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmentally degraded one. The opposite of utopia, https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/dystopia, through my research I found the most common term for this type of photography almost a sub-genre, but which has expanded the original conceptual theme, which was christened as a `new land’ in 2002 in a book called Remaking the Landscape: the changing face of Britain and edited by Jennifer Jenkins. News night and Radio 4 were soon discussing it when it became a cultural phenomenon. Iain Sinclair was one of the first to try to capture the essence of the idea by travelling round the M25 in London Orbital and poets Paul Farley and Michael Symmons Roberts have tried in a book called Edgelands, which was, reviewed on 19/02/2011 in The Guardian by Robert Macfarlane who says
` `The zone goes by different names, few of them complimentary. Victor Hugo called it “bastard countryside”. The landscape theorist Alan Berger called it “drosscape”. The artist Philip Guston called it “crapola”. And the environmentalist Marion Shoard called it “edgeland”, which she defined as “the interfacial interzone between urban and rural”. The edgelands are the debatable space where city and countryside fray into one another. They comprise jittery, jumbled, broken ground: brownfield sites and utilities infrastructure, crackling substations and pallet depots, transit hubs and sewage farms, scrub forests and sluggish canals, allotments and retail parks, slackened regulatory frameworks and guerrilla ecologies.’
The brief said with a mind for Health and Safety, venture into this space and capture some images of what inspires us. As a frequent visitor to these spaces I understand the potential risks and safety issues concerned and the type of people that inhabit the space between the different societies; travellers, the ostracised, the homeless (both voluntary and non-voluntary), smugglers, thieves, drug addicts, the abused, and the trafficked all congregate, one way or another in this world, on a global scale within all societies. The series `Nothing there’ also came to mind (An exhibition at the university in my first year). My initial thought was a Conan the Barbarian type figure with some slave girls in a wasteland setting (nothing’s changed) or a huddle of children (a huddle of the school girls in a giant carpark or urban wasteland, highlighting the sexualisation and abuse of underage children) or a child playing with some old machinery (India and Africa`s waste site cities, recycling the rubbish in order to eat). I then did some more research including; Karl Hyde, who had an interesting way of putting an album together, by registering your signed print and then getting it into the public album. If some do not register or it does not sell, then the only ones who will see the image will be the recipients of the book, with much of my own imagery is on similar subject matter to his. Michael Landy who dismantled all his own belongings and put them on a conveyer belt, so people could view and inspect the items, and tries to live the dystopian lifestyle saying; `you cannot escape consumerism, except in the wilderness’. Eileen Inlanding blogs the history of her dayboat, which came from a working background and tries to track its history. Mark Kimber explores the Edgeland between light and dark `the new night verses the old night’, which led to Dan Flavin whose florescent light art pieces explore light and the space it occupies in an installation space. Whilst Spencer Finch explored light and View through photographing the views of the artists and poets as they created their work (putting his tripod legs on the spot of the easel legs or sitting and looking out of the same cave mouth at the sunset/ sunrise). George Shaw in his `back to nature’ series of Tile Hill Coventry (where I lived in the mid-eighties for three years), and Laura Oldfield Ford`s: `the street is always, the most important place’. Keith Arnett`s fasciation of work in the natural landscape, which leave no trace of their presence. Jon Davis`s work exploring the interplay of spatial juxtaposition. This led to further investigation of conceptual art and its practices including David Rayson, Chris Shaw, Tim Edmour, Nick Drummer, Sewald Botha, Tina Barny, Corrine Day, Rieneke Dijstra.
This along with some other lines of thought and the time limit to the brief meant something I could shoot anytime and reshoot if possible. On a Saturday night I am photographing for a client in several venues around the town. I have been watching how the homeless and beggars position themselves strategically in various doorways, benches, or busy junctions, around my circular route. The more aggressive addicts being in the hotspots and the usually quieter genuine homeless further on the fringes of this Edgeland. The council are moving the homeless away from the doorways they are sleeping in, around the town (usually one with a deep doorframe, or well sheltered), whilst the addicts usually have somewhere to go, before the clubs kick out, the more genuine with nowhere else to go, or the professional beggar continuing to make an appearance. I then thought about how I am photographing people out having an enjoyable time, whilst those not in the society or without the means to take part are waiting around on the fringes to secure the means of survival or a brief relief from an addiction. (like me in the crowd, yet apart from it, as I am working and not having a proper time socially).
The recurring theme of the doorway, either for walking through into a venue, sleeping in, or just looking at how others are having an enjoyable time. The old town area and the riverbank are Edgelands holding Edgelands, within Edgelands. The Humber estuary meets the River Hull, which butts up against the Old Town. Then within these lands are the inhabitants in the Edgelands of society. This must be one of the meanings of a dystopian society or dystopian landscape. How do the homeless see the night out? What would their photographs capture? I thought I could have a go for the brief and would have many opportunities to capture images over the next few weeks. In researching the images for the brief I came up with the title of `closed doors from the Edgelands’, to symbolise the closed doors and opportunities facing people surviving here, as there are numerous doors shut in your face as you try to navigate a way through life in trying to get on your feet again, which could have resulted from splitting up with a partner and not having anywhere to live or losing one’s job and not being able to pay the rent while a new job found.
I then went through my captures and said selecting images that could fit the brief and show this view of the world in a similar fashion to my research, in how other artists have produced their works.
Here is the thought process behind choosing my images for the narrative of the series.
The first image has captured a scene through a back door into a public house, where the customers are waiting to be served.in my mind shows the reality of the newly disenfranchised. Through now looking at the society they have just been removed from and leaving behind those who were in their life. Contemplation in the beginning of the events that brought them willingly or unwillingly to this place. Either, running or escaping from the sometimes-brutal companionship they have known or chosen, or the life choices they have made. With the run up to Christmas coming, bringing some extra feelings of isolation, loneliness, and disparity.
The second image is to portray the feeling of looking at the beautiful society from afar and yet in the same existence. With most people either ignoring the individuals around them, tarring them all with a similar brush, no matter the circumstances. Where the price of a pint can feed a person for a day. Like the characters looking through the windows in films, longing after food, commodities, or friendship, But the belonging to the scene, is a vision, ostracised through circumstance or choice, it is at this point the bubble of being or belonging to the society can be seen from the outside, and its behaviours judged disparately through exclusion.
The third image shows a multitude of Edgelands. First the meeting of the land and the river, where mainstream society meet the seafarers and ship`s crew`s from far off lands on the edges of the map. The in-between place of the old city and the new living quarters on the site of the original first settling in the area, moving later to the walled garrison quartering of the city on the opposite bank, where our view is from. Where crossing the bridge turns the workers into commuters and finally individuals at rest, throwing off the working day or the night off and resting snugly in bed, whilst the doorways they pass through, become the bedchambers of the nocturnal societies, those living in opposition or an alternative way to the mainstream. The passing of the individuals mostly unseen from one place, yet watched hawk-like by others, waiting for enough scraps to survive, with looking upon this interplay that goes on all day every day.
The forth image is of another door, a place for entering a building, but which keeps the unwanted out. Its lights burning brightly in the dark, welcoming and yet barring those who are not deemed fit or having the means to purchase the wares within, be that goods, wares, or services the spaces are off limits, except as a bed or respite from the reality of having nowhere to go and no means of getting any help without an address to receive it with.
The fifth image shows how close these worlds are intertwined, so close and yet so far away, like ghosts moving through a crowd unaware of their presence, except when interaction takes place or the brain thinking of the unclean and unknown danger from the miscreants to the empathic helper giving another emotional response to the sight of the outsiders, whilst they party like Mary Antoinette, who`s emotional response has been recorded by history. Yet others sit and talk to the inhabitants of the Edgelands showing sympathy and caring. Giving food and money, along with an ear and the warmth of friendship for a while.
The last image is of another door, reinforcing the doors being slammed in your face, and the lack of assistance if not having the correct materials around you, excluding you from the `normal world’ and its consumerist society, where the family unit has been systematically annihilated by the dismantling of the old trades and honest labour of the working man into a transient multidiscipline drone, industrially working for firms who`s profit margins are more important than looking after those who make the profits for the firm. Where, when the order completed are sent off to another factory who needs workers to fill an order. The rise and fall of the pension scheme and the blatant theft of its profits to keep the commercial ball rolling to make money for the pensions and the workers who are in a game of musical profits being played by the brands of the new global economy. However in the end nature will take over the once populated spaces and the traces of our existence wiped from the scene and making everybody not recorded in history mute blind and dumb to this change and eventually making us all the same once more, as the same scenes are played out somewhere else as humanity breeds and grows, opening and closing more doors for its inhabitants, which will be slept in by those who live in the Edgelands.
2017-09-28
On Location-Larking Visit
This was a visit to the Phillip Larking Exhibition at Hull University. This was an interesting experience, it felt like I was grave robbing. The atmosphere felt like being in biblical shrine to some deity. The smell of the charity shop was overbearing at some points, and a hanging mobile made of coat hangers and Larkins`s ties, show a monumental lack of taste and reverence to the memory of the person, like a child waking up in a sweet shop everything is great, in childish eyes. I could not understand why laundry receipts and shirts are of any importance to his memory. The time scale is too short for what came across as a historical retrospective of his life and times, the banal mundane of the show I think will have turned Larkin`s body in his grave, at the displaying of the detritus of his physical existence. The execution of the idea was crass and poorly conceived by trying to elevate his possessions to a higher state.
2017-10-04
On Location-Airing Dirty Washing
The brief was to capture images to elicit a response from the viewer. We will have to hand in six images. Two images for an anthropological study of ourselves, two images for a public proclamation about ourselves. Two images on sustenance for the elicitation brief.
My first thoughts for the different projects was varied. I was not comfortable with the public declaration part, but the other two parts of the brief seemed interesting. As I squirmed around thinking about the public proclamation part I was thinking of the saying `don’t air your dirty laundry’ and thought that could be an image. The only other thing I could think of sharing was that I save drowning worms on pavements. For the Anthropological interrogation I thought about laying some clothes out for work, rest, and play, as clothing to me is a camouflage for the social circles I will socially be mixing in, depending on my peers and the culture they live in (I will dress differently, depending on the environment and my place within it). there was a variety of locations for places of my past; run down housing estates, the dock, Beverley by-pass, underpasses, the bridge to North Bransholme with enter at Your Own Risk on it, or anywhere along the river Hull from Beverley to Sammy`s point where the deep is situated. I spent a lot of time as a child exploring and playing around these sites. The thoughts for the elicitation brief was a play on a meme that had me earlier in the day on Facebook. It showed a `beefcake’ pouring coffee for a young lady sat in a chair with the caption `Every Women needs a Coffee Maker’ and I thought if I had put out a `Every Man needs a Tea`s Maid’ what kind of reaction that would have caused. After a bit longer thinking, I remembered about shooting a rehearsal for a band and if I could get a shot of the singer at work I could show how he works for financial sustenance and how he plays music for spiritual sustenance.
My first thoughts and ideas for the project are contained in the box in the lower half of the above image. I was thinking more like a Disney movie, rather than the snuff film realistic aesthetic. In the lower left box is a location, which I thought might be useful. I went on a scouting mission for locations and struggled to find what I was looking for, as the area had been fenced off and left to nature, in the intervening fifteen to twenty years, since the last visit. I then carried on with my research, looking at anthropological photography and noticed, a lot of the imagery, came from the travelling colonial photographers, which showed the interest in far off places and other cultures and ways of living. this could be, done anywhere, as most people only see the same culture or society as themselves and rarely venture out theoretically, let alone physically into other realms and systems of living. the removal of them mainstream society from nature has been well documented in various academic disciplines. With, most people now unable to feed themselves without a supermarket.
In addition to this, I learned some of my work fits into this categorisation. the work of Ronnie Soak being one instance in his capturing images of the local underground music scene, this came from here: https://www.gold.ac.uk/visual-anthropology/research/musicians-lives/, and the other work archiving gigs and events. Some of the imagery used for researching the brief is shown in the following pages, along with Collier`s Visual Anthropology: Photography as a research method, which has been revised with the added years teaching experiences included and is considered a classic on how to photograph the subject matter.
Using the theme of sustenance in a conceptual way to illustrate the connection between me photographing Slim Tubby at a rehearsal and at work showing how he sustains his life and his spirit. Whilst I sustain myself through the photography.
The image below, shows my clothing for Work, Rest, and Play, and is, called camouflage as this is how I view clothing in allowing me to enter and fit in different societies and social occasions, within various social cultures and employment situations.
The lower image elicitated a memory, about fishing on the pier when I was about thirteen or fourteen and sharing a fire and a tarpaulin tent made out of pallets (we gained possession of) and were slowly burning the shelter away in an old oil drum, we acquired with the pallets, during a blizzard with a group of homeless people, who we shared our flasks, food, and stories with when I was young. Then in the morning the police coming and giving us a talking to, while we blamed the homeless guys watching us fishing, whilst checking we were all right, and to learn the events leading up to them finding us next to the smouldering dustbin, knee deep snow all around, but devoid of all the evidence from the proceeding hours, as we packed up.
The following image is an emotional response to the brief, with which, I would argue that `Airing My Dirty Laundry’ is a contemporary portrait of me. Instead of showing me screaming in anguish or in an emotional state ace contorted or showing an emotional response, as many other practitioners have captured of themselves. an example of which is on the wall of the university, going from the print room to the base room. Others have shown diverse ways of capturing emotional difficulties, such as Elina Brotherus (b.1972), in Suites Francaises, 1999, or Gillian Wearing`s Signs that say what you want them to say and not signs that say what someone else wants you to say (1992-3). These have been the inspiration of my approach to this project. I have developed the theory in, I have removed myself and just left the emotion in a harsh flash light shining into my private self, within the self-titling of the work. This is contrary to the tutor`s comment of it reveals nothing, in addition semiotics would say this is a breakdown in communication, between cultures and not a failure, whilst the process school would say the work is a failure in communication and needs changing. however, if the context of the viewing environment was changed to a contemporary gallery, then this would change the viewing experience and the standing feeling within the mind of the authorship in wondering what dirty laundry I was airing, or a better author text in explanation of the piece.
Lower Image: Here I am revealing a private trait when walking along after it has been raining.
2017-10-01
On Location-Slim Tubby Rehearsal
I had been, asked to capture some images of a rehearsal session, as there are new members of the band. These would then be, used to let fans know who has come into the band and their role within it. This will also be part of the documentation process of the bands archival history.
2017-10-06
On Location-The Caviars 001
This is a new commission, the band have formed to get commissions, for functions, events, and weddings. They will be going through an agency and will be needing an Electronic Media Pack (EMP). I went to Barrow in Haven, which was going to be the location of the shoot, at one of the duo’s house. The house backs onto a rivulet from the Humber, which would hopefully give a backdrop for some images. The brief is that they want some non-threatening and friendly images of themselves, in a folk group setting, but without looking like a folk group.
I started, as they had a practice session and quickly realised that the cluttered backgrounds, whilst being documentary, would not fit the brief. We had a break and discussed ideas, with Gerry wanting the Si`s dog in the shot. I brought off camera flash to the shoot to be able to achieve our previsions of the intended images.
The Caviars had some interesting captures, however the band meeting, around the Kitchen table, first with a tea pot setting, which was for artistic reasoning changed to a guitar, as the tea scene was, considered too folky, however, having the guitar in the shot, turned it into Rock `n` Roll image, the duo is happy with. This has now become the cover for their promotional CD.
We played around with some ideas and some of the resulting images were built into their website here: https://thecaviars.co.uk.
2017-10-07 – Carl Jefferies 007
2017-10-14 – Carl Jefferies 008
2017-10-21 – Carl Jefferies 009
2017-10-28 – Carl Jefferies 010
2017-11-04 – Carl Jefferies 011
2017-11-11 – Carl Jefferies 012
2017-11-18 – Carl Jefferies 013
2017-11-25 – Carl Jefferies 014
2017-12-02 – Carl Jefferies 015
2017-12-09 – Carl Jefferies 016
Carl Jefferies is an on-going commission. The brief is to image the customers of several venues in the old town area, and then capture images of the groups nightclub. I have found this a challenging and demanding brief. It has taken me out of my comfort area as a photographer and made me hone my forgotten social interaction skills. I have and get a few people coming to me and refusing to be, photographed. However, if they do not want the owner to put them on social media, then I will note this and make sure they are not, published online. Other reasons for it being a demanding job are that I must image the venues; so, they do not look empty, not to capture people who should not be with who they are with. Having to judge whether people are supposed to be together is easier than it sounds, and can usually be, seen through body language and interaction. Show off the facilities and the décor and make the places look good.
After doing some research on how other photographers have tackled these kind of assignments, I noticed that all that can be, seen is a flashed-out view, mostly with an advertising logo of the venue in question. It seemed like any variation in this came from the large venues and stadiums, with the better lighting in a larger environment.
I started out doing this treating it like a gig, only using flash for posed shots. This has gone down with the customers and staff quite well. However, the owner wanted me to try and get more of the other shots. This has been problematic, as most people think I am going to charge for the images, or do not want any photographs taking, or do not believe that I work for the venue I am in. This has been slightly, solved with some old cards from an earlier photographer at the club but has not helped in any of the bar venues. Usually, you can tell as you walk up to people and the eye contact, or avoidance of eye-contact is the biggest clue.
The Images can be found here
Silvers – Here
Garbo`s – Here
Riddlers – Here
Lizard Lounge – Here
2017-10-09
University Studio-Product 001 – Rowntree’s
For this brief, Alison set us a task of three product shots. The first a specific product, the second a group shot, and the final image was to be a mock-up of an advert that could be, published.
After much deliberation over the product and the pros and cons of each choice, in so much as can I utilise the product afterwards? In the end I chose sweets as these would not be, discarded afterwards. The choice then came down to which range of sweets and how would I market them.
The choices were, narrowed down to Haribo’s and Rowntree’s ranges. I then looked at how the ranges had been, imaged previously, and remembered an old advertisement of fruit Pastilles, on a stage with a spotlight picking out the sweets on a dark stage. I thought this would challenge me in the studio and would mean the shoot would be more technical and involved, balancing the lights, and getting the correct exposure. After thinking about it, recounting earlier research on studio lighting, and balancing the modified lighting needed, would give me a challenge. I would also need a colour checker
Thinking how to shoot the image, would give me the equipment list I would need to book out of the studio. I would shoot tethered to my laptop using Lightroom and my cannon 5d mk3. I would need a colour checker to make sure the swatch would be correct, and any colour retouching would be easier and more controlled in editing, also in industry the images would be, sent off for retouching they would need to know the exact colouration of the items.
A light meter would be, needed to get the correct balance in the lighting setup. I then thought about what light would be, needed and how I would achieve this. If the lights are, set to the same settings, then the light will blend and merge. The spotlight would need to cut through the background light and this could be, achieved by using Paramount lighting as though on a stage. The only colour would come from the products. However, on google images there are shots with a coloured background. I thought this would be more interesting and more of a challenge in execution and would learn a lot from trying it. I would need soft light that could be, cut with the spot and decided on using a shoot through umbrella to create a soft even lighting that would be evenly, diffused throughout the frame and gently fall onto the product table. I could use coloured gels and hopefully get the colouration correct with the packaging. I set up the shoot with a key light snoot, coming from above camera left positioned between Rembrandt lighting and paramount lighting. Metered and then brought in a second light with a 24×18” soft box in from camera right, which did not come out as I wanted. Then changed to a shoot through umbrella with a green gel. This would then flood soft light through the scene and allow my snooted key light to cut through this with it`s hard light, in a better way than the soft box was giving me. After adjusting the lights for shadowing and the placement of the scattered sweets, I managed to get the shadowing, to cover some of the individual sweets, thus standing for, them coming out of the packet and coming onto the stage foreground. By using a colour checker, I should then get the individual sweets the correct colour. The resulting final image less text is here.
2017-10-17
Home Studio-Plastic Water
This shoot came about after wondering what a metal pan scrubber would look like imaged through a macro lens and experimenting with lighting positions. this resulted in having a flash gun in a bucket, with a Perspex cover, to try and light the subject from the middle. Some interesting images came out and this is the next experiment. I wanted to try and capture light in an abstract way. If I lit the plastic bottles the same way as the pan scrubber, what would I capture. would I get just the highlights in the creases of the plastic, or would it fill with light and shine like a beacon
This shoot became a shoot for part of a project called Elicitation, a response brought forth from the viewer. I had a dustbin liner full of different empty bottles and thought about using them to elicitate a reaction about the state of the oceans and the current social awareness of the harm being, caused by human waste on the planet. The inspiration came from a former shoot with a metal pan scourer and a plastic bottle. The resulting captures made me think about imaging objects in many ways and thought processes. Experimenting with stupid ideas and hopefully something interesting might come out of it. What happens if I light a shiny metal pan scrubber from its centre, how does it affect the light, what happens when I do this, what happens when I do that. This shoot is a development from that shoot, to fill another tutors brief, with the development of an idea.
I set up a home studio. The key light was underneath a Perspex sheet and lighting the scene from below. This was then, complemented with a side light. Gels were; put on, and removed, as well as being swopped around. The plastic bottles have been, squished and squashed, some were, twisted, before the caps replacement. The bottles were, then piled upon each other and arranged in a pleasing manner to be, seen through a 100mm macro lens, on a 5D mk3, tethered to a laptop. I then just messed around in a relaxed way and kept changing settings and arrangements for a few hours.
Some of the images can be found here
2017-10-19
On Location-Slim Tubby`s EP Launch-Trinity Minister
I took the image for the cover of Slims new EP, a while ago. He wanted a pill with the viewpoint and shadow a certain way. The finished set was, over a kitchen table, sketched out on a scrap of paper, and then photographed at the table. Using a piece of paper as a seamless backdrop imaged. This then went off to post production for the lettering to be, put into the image. Which was, then formatted for the sleeve dimensions and printing. When the finished CD came back, the launch date was, a confirmed booking.
I was, then commissioned to capture images for the launch of the EP, at Hull Minister. I have not been in the minister for many years and had forgotten its layout, and charm. The key up-light was, an LED lighting panel, coming from the front up-lighting, and falling off quickly. It
was not very pleasing and gave a nasty colour cast. Some of the images have been, taken with me either crouched behind speakers, or stage clutter. Some of the images are, taken with me laying down behind a two-foot guard rail at the front of the stage area. Others form inside the pulpit or the wings of the area.
Some links to the work can be found here
2017-10-20
Home Studio-Up Smoke
This shoot was to try out the ideas coming from the screenings, to experiment with the techniques, the screenings had provided. I also had not done smoke photography like this before. I have used incense sticks and burners to let smoke drift through plants for atmosphere and effect.
I did not completely block out the ambient light in the room and had light bleed in this set of captures. Putting colour into the images, proved to be successful. This was just a short quick test on the technique, in a hastily constructed studio. More shoots for better images are, needed to develop and improve this technique and capture some pleasing images.
Some of the screenings are listed here;
- Episode 7: Smoke Photography; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qPAnKKghlM
- this screening explained the Harris method of taking three photos and paste a different coloured channel in to a combination of the three.
- Creating Smoke Art; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3crUql7NSk
- Abstract Photography Tutorial – Using A Cheese Grater; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgIQOVzkpgI
- Abstract Photography Examples U7A4; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0NznsXdkiI
- Abstraction in Photography; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CODdp5UPfMA
- Minimalist Composition Techniques; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TURFdRtSb7k
Some of the images can be found here
2017-10-21
This was our second brief from Alyson. The ideas for the session, taken from other practitioners working in product photography. Having watched some screenings;
Food Photography: Lighting and Compositional Basics, by New York Times photographer Andrew Scrivani.
The Business of Food Photography with Andrew Scrivani, by New York Times photographer Andrew Scrivani.
Food Photography: Concept to Completion, by Professional photographer, Robert Jacobs
All videos are available on You Tube. These gave a lot of considerations when working in this field. In one of the screenings the photographer said his working area is the size of a chopping board and if he is lucky the size of a table top. However, the larger the surface the bigger the problems. He then carries on keeping it simple and small, in this way it is easier to dress the set, and control the light, with reflectors and flags. The main theme through the research was to try and shoot into the light or at 90o to the light. I this way the textures and shapes of the food would come out, as shooting with the light from behind would result in flat images. The main other accessory would be a reflector to lighten the shadows on the near side camera front. Having experience in food placement and design, from plates of food to marque banquettes, has made this a lot easier, in knowing how turning a mushroom around changes the whole scene and the aesthetics and feel of a dish, image as shown below in these two shots. These minute details make a great deal of difference in such a small tableau, this can be seen in the InDesign document on healthy eating going with this one. The natural setting for the images would be in a kitchen. I chose a kitchen with a wooden table as this hopefully would place subliminal connotations of grandma`s kitchen and the associated feelings of the thoughts, this would hopefully then covey handmade meals and the smells and memories of being there. This will hopefully reinforce the thrust of the article, in making meals at home and eating a balanced diet. The time of day chosen for this was after two o`clock as the light would then be fading, instead of brightening if shot in a morning, this would create more harsh shadowing as the clock moved to lunch time. I wanted to avoid the harsh shadowing and can control shadowing on the items, as this was key to the images, after watching the screenings. The shadows also give clues to the lighting used in the images. The differences between the two were; highlighted, as well as, the pros and cons of the different lighting scenarios.
The first setup consisted of a North/ South wooden table, with the light coming in from the east and then bouncing off a silver faces reflector. The silver reflector would then give specular lighting into the shadows, which could then be finely tuned in Lightroom, this would then contrast against the soft highlights, which in turn would allow me to control highlight burnout to a finer degree. This would flatten the image to a degree, as natural light has specular highlights and diffused shadowing, creating the contrast. With the flat shiny textures of the products, this would create unpleasing images and limit the parameters of Lightroom processing in balancing the tones and colouration of the images. This can be, seen in Flash and strobe lit product photography. By using afternoon sun, there would be no need for diffusion at the window. The camera set for the light levels in the room. The reflector positioned to the camera front right. After a period of adjustment, the shadows lightened to a pleasing ratio, in the scene and came out subtlety in the scene, creating contrast and detailing across the image. I started off with my 24-105mm F4 L lens on my 5d mk3 and began to find angles and positions that could be, captured and imaged for the articles. Slightly adjusting both camera position and constantly adjusting and repositioning the items till they came together and then repositioning them to create another look, I also changed to a 100mm F2 L Macro lens, also to have some choices from the shoot. I went through the categories of the article and made tableaux for each illustrating the article as I thought the BBC would consider images their articles, and to keep in with the branding of the corporation. In the first images the shadowing from the plant was a little faint and washed out, so I brought in flash unit and aimed into the corner of the window, this would then bounce around like a pool ball and come in from the window and ceiling at the same angle as the natural light and help keep the balance of the scene and help with the background shadowing. I then, played around with the camera and flash settings, experimenting with how the image was, captured and came out in camera, from the various settings. I tried various F stops from F4 to F16, this changed the exposure times from 1/200 of a second to four seconds, Adjusting the flash power, sometimes counter intuitively, proved a useful experiment. This allowed me to experiment with how the flash came through the images and showed how to blend it in with the natural light in unusual ways, depending on the camera settings and the ambient light at the time.
I learnt quite a lot from this brief and re-engaged my brain into food and the design of plated items, having looked at some portfolios of photographers in the genre, I could see few, had had chef training and the mix of items was not compatible in flavour terms, especially in the herb and garnish areas. Things that would not be, plated or eaten together were often in images together, a lot of them also used varieties of lettuce instead of herbs. Most of the skill in plating food comes from the sum of its ingredients, close control of knife skills and the sizing of the items needs consideration and reflection as to which way and how to chop or cut the items, before starting as this will give different outcomes for the same practice, resulting in curved or straight pepper or onion strips, as a case in point. Fluid cutting must be, employed so not to leave cut marks on the food, creating wedges and steps in the finished surface. This is especially true in soft fruits, which unlike bread or meat will not tolerate the marks of hand carving. Even then on sliced meat the carving marks must be symmetrical and evenly spaced, or it looks like it has been, butchered and not carved.
A couple of the images are below;
2017-10-23 – Home Studio-Smoke 002
2017-10-27 – Home Studio-Smoke 003
These two shoots were further experimentation, in trying to capture some smoke images and make some pleasing images. The gap in the two dates comes from playing in Photoshop and playing around with the first set of captured images. The same occurred after the second shoot.
Some of the imagery can be found here
2017-10-31
On Location-Hull Heard Halloween
This event was a series of acts, raising money for charity. My camera settings to start with are
White Balance is set to Kelvin, which is then set to 3200K
ISO is also set to 3200
Exposure is usually starts at about 1/13 to 1/15 sec, depending on the opening lighting setup.
I shoot from both on stage and off stage, depending on the act, the crowd, and the venue. The images are then, given to the organisers and an archival record is, held at Artlings, and copies go the band, for promotional use. I have shot at The Adelphi many times. This is a hard venue to capture images in, and a lot of people complain, about trying to capture images here. The lighting rig is staffed by different people, who have varying degrees of experience in lighting up a stage. This results in the gig having only having the front floods, to having the stage correctly lit. this can occur in the same gig. All through the night there will be a few lights on, and the last song of the group will be correctly lit, with a hint of smoke. Others just blast the smoke and stop the crowd and the band seeing each other. Sometimes it is so bad the band cannot see each other, and I can only see about five feet into the stage. Then the next band starts the cycle again. This frustrates me enormously as I look through the gig and there is 90% incorrectly lit, with just a one colour wash, and the last song has the action and drama of a big stage being lit. when reviewing, I used to question my own ability, until I realised that I can only capture what is there, unless I intervene with additional lighting, which is unadvisable in this setting.
Some of the imagery can be found here
2017-11-10
Home Studio-Leaves
This was another experimental shoot, I wanted to play with focus, and depth of field. I was also looking for more or different shots to compliment the smoke and water shots, however, I did not really get any. However, after an RPS Yorkshire meeting, there was a flood of images on the Facebook page of the group, trying out blending modes and textures. And during the meeting, the Pep Ventosa method, was shown and proved as well. We had had a go at this at university, and it reminded me of the method. Some of the images, inspired me to have a play with textures. I collected some leaves, and let them dry out, this then made them lose a lot of colour, as they had been wet when collected. I had also collected a piece of twig with leaves on, and this proved suitable to capture some images of. I then could have experiment in Photoshop.
Some of the imagery can be found here
2017-11-26
Home Studio-Callister
This turned out to be one of my worst shoots, I have ever done. The session was a hastily set up one tea time in a small cluttered space. The session was just to familiarise the models and child, to being in front of the lights, and the camera. However, the key light in a Rembrandt positioning, utilising a tripod standing on a table, as there was no floor space, with Speedlight another on the floor. Crowding the space even further. With this set up I had no real control of the lighting positioning, and getting brain freeze in the session, over how to control my lights, did not help. One of the model`s eye-lashes kept falling off and keeping the child occupied was problematic. However, it taught me a lot, about how not to go about things, in the future. Learn to control the lights, without having to think about it. My problem was I was changing the light setting on the wrong setting and could not work out why the lighting was not changing. I thought it was the ETTL, and kept changing the camera settings, to no avail. I Have since re-read the manuals and watched a couple of screenings on how the system works again, refreshing my learning. I now feel a lot more confident about using the lights and remembering how they work.
2017-11-26
On Location-Ol town Arts-Xmas Market
I got a phone call, to come and get some images to come and capture some images of a stall at an art market. The stall was in front of Zoo café on Newland Avenue. The entrance to the café lies down a narrow alley. It was in the entrance to the alley, that the pitch was found. Stalls ran down the alley to the larger turning space at the bottom. A few images for social media were taken, and delivered later that day, for social media use.
2017-12-01
University Studio-Urban Trendz 001
I set up the studio with two backgrounds lights, using two 24” Softboxes to control the light direction and to stop any light spill, these were set to F7.0. The key light was camera right I a 72×48” Softbox and set to F8.0. The fill light was camera left in a 36×36” Softbox. I used a 50mm lens for the dressmaker’s dummy shots and an 85mm lens for the hats, to get a closer crop on the subjects, and this kept the working distance at a comfortable range. I found a couple of images that would be suitable for inclusion into my general portfolio from this shoot. The images are of products, but also have a human element to them, with the eyes of biggie making contact from the t-shirt and engaging the viewer, and the hat on a polystyrene head, looks like it is walking through the frame, caught mid step.
I am getting to start to get more frequent commissions and leads of future work, from the web design business. This partnership gives us an extra foothold in the local market, as we can give individual images rather than the stock images for smaller local sites. There is the possibility of shooting book covers for two commissions currently being, negotiated for, one with a small independent publisher of self-help books, and the other for a global publisher.
2017-12-15
University Studio-Urban Trendz 002
This shoot is basically the same as the first shoot, except, I removed both the diffusion panels from each of the rear Softboxes in order to brighten the background of the images.
2017-12-15
On Location-Hull Heard Xmas 2017
This shoot is the same as the first shoot, except, I removed both the diffusion panels from each of the rear Softboxes to brighten the background of the images.
2017-12-16
On Location-Carl Jefferies 017
This is a similar shoot to the others.
2017-12-17
Home Studio 001-Macro Flowers
I thought about trying to capture some macro flower images. This was a limited time shoot. I was hoping to try and capture some images from two cameras and lenses. A 300d, with a 65mm macro lens. A 5d mk3 with a 100mm macro lens. Time was, cut short, and I only had enough time to capture some images with the 100mm lens. I used this lens first, as I had never photographed flowers with this lens before and wanted to see how the images and lenses compared to each other. I set up a still life table, usually, made from two portfolio boxes as legs and a Perspex sheet as the table top, or another portfolio box as the top, depending on the subject matter. Then a chosen, coloured, cloth background, is hung somehow to create a mini studio. If natural light is to be used then an attic window light is employed, and feels like, I am working in history, as I watch how the light behaves, like the old masters, such as Rembrandt, in the inspiration that occurs, living in the space, watching the light climb and fall up and down the walls. How the dust shimmers in the sunlight. The effect different, depending on the viewpoint. How the weather changes the light, from shafts and beams of light, coming from direct sunlight, to the highly diffused light on overcast days, and the difference in the colour and tonality that comes with it. Sometimes it is like being a little child, hidden away from the rest of the house, playing with sunlight and a camera, for hours on end. It is a very relaxing space. However, the mind can wander and climb the walls, like the beams of light, on some days, when the light is not, quite what you need. Clouds passing the sun, as its position lines up with the subject matter waiting for it, is annoying and frustrating. The same in reverse, on a cloudy day, the sun keeps on breaking through. However, I have modern technology and can change the environment, in ways not thought of, but dreamed about by the old masters.
2017-12-18
Home Studio 002-Macro Flowers and Gun
I had another go with the macro lens but, soon gave up in trying to photograph flowers, as I realised that the images would not really fit into the portfolio. They would be too different to the other shots. I also had found a gun keyring in the house. I wanted to try and capture a dark object on a dark background. The keyring is highly reflective and a dark gunmetal grey. In trying to photograph the object, the highlights on the object, would make or break the shot. I was using natural light, coming through the attic window, bouncing off the far wall and coming back in to the viewfinder of the camera. I had flagged off all the light coming from the window. Then I got a medium 5-in-1 reflector and got the black finish panel, to further flag the light on the subject. The reflector would not block all the light.
With this approach not working, I then built of a black cloth backdrop, walls around the subject, and placed the reflector on the top. In this manner, I could adjust the light to completely block it out or let the light in. I adjusted the light, until I had pleasing highlights on the keyring, and started shooting. However, my cloth was too thin and was letting some light in and spoiling the correct exposure. I doubled up the cloth and tried again. I kept adjusting the light bleed, until I thought I was getting somewhere. Having three spheres on top of one another proved difficult to capture, exactly as I originally thought. With postprocessing an image may come out from the shoot. However, it is going to be another dark image, and would prove unsuitable for inclusion.
2017-12-19
University Studios-Cameo Brooks and Sally Bennett
With the, first two shoots getting cancelled, once by sally, and once by the Urban Trendz 001 shoot. I had also had three shoots with cameo cancelled due to outside influences. Then the evening before sally shoot, cameo found himself freed up, at the same time I had a studio booked. I then arranged with both cameo and sally to shoot both on the same day. This meant choosing which garments for her to bring along.
Sally has had some experience in both underground film making and some modelling work for various people. The shoot was set up and the studio booked for the first of December, when Dave from Urban Trendz called and took over the date, this would be for me to shoot some clothing products for his online shop. This shoot completed, I got a phone call from a rapper asking if I can come to a gig that night and get some images for him. I confirmed that I would attend and to put my name on the door. I thought I might be able to get some images for inclusion. I had another five or six events to attend, as well as shooting the pubs and a nightclub in the town centre. I was slowly changing my mind about what to put into my portfolio. I knew a few of the other performers attending, and hopefully, to pick up some more acts to capture images of. During the evening I got talking to a young rapper, called Cameo Brooks, who is making his way through the gig circuit to promote his work. I had previously shot his first gig a few years ago. I managed to convince Cameo to come into the studio and get some shots for him, and my portfolio. Unfortunately, cameo was late arriving, and did not get here till about 1pm, instead of the 10.30 arrangement Which finally happened today.
Some of the imagery can be found
2017-12-22
Home Studio-BIC Pen Shoot
Knowing what it is, and how to do it, but having never done it as, this is my first Stroboscopic photography practice. I watched a few screenings on You Tube including;
How to shoot Stroboscopic Flash Photos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_dZYD1NOuI
Stroboscopic Photography: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Yl87LCFmDc
Stroboscopic Photography Workshop: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64nxzbOdc2M
Understanding Speedlite Multi-Flash Mode| Photography Tips: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DffZFI9KLA
Stroboscopic Flash (Repeating Flash) using Nikon Gear: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DffZFI9KLA
Photography Flash Technique and static with prolonged exposure: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyGa7z4GQ2U
After watching the screenings and getting some inspirational ideas for other projects, I set about capturing images for an Advert. I had thought the slogan out for a BIC advert, whilst working on another project. The slogan was; All Great Ideas Come with A Bic. BIC pens have been around for a long time, and they are one of my favourite pens. I have sat in a lot of meetings chewing on them as I think of solutions to problems, talking to a colleague, one day, I said what do think the greatest idea is that someone thought of and wrote down with a BIC. This then turned into the following advertisement idea and mock up. I used one of sally`s shots, as having portraits in the portfolio is another genre, that I think would confuse the portfolio, and unbalance my commercial slant on the process. None of the images That were coming together featured an image in the portrait genre.
2017-12-23 – Carl Jefferies 018 – cancelled on arrival
2017-12-31 – New Year’s Eve – Corner Bar – Cancelled on arrival
2018-01-12
On Location-Cameo Brooks-O`Reilies
This was a shoot in which I got a phone call on the evening of the gig. He had just been asked to perform on stage for a fundraiser for Orioles. There would be a couple of bands and a couple of rap artists performing during the evening. I have had many photographic practice sessions in the venue, and found it a far better venue, than the Adelphi, for the quality of the lighting. The bar is a background distraction in the images and certain viewpoints, show how full or empty the venue is. Trying not to show empty venues is one the tasks of commissions like this. Trying to show the atmosphere and the vibe of the evening is hard when there is none. When a venue is full and bouncing, capturing the vibe is easy. The trick is to do the same when there is none. The other difficulty is shooting rappers, is that they bounce around and are on the move all the time. This makes my normal exposure settings, incorrect and the exposure needs quickening up. The strength of the lighting does not allow this sometimes. I could go higher on ISO or use a wider aperture lens to combat this. There is a one stop higher zoom lens, but to get any further, would mean going to a fixed length lens, and with the performers using all the stage space, this would mean me moving as much as them to get the images, without excessive cropping of the images in post. However, the exposure setting also, changes how the camera captures the lighting in the air and on the performers. Creating a balance between sharp and un-sharp, as well as flooded out, correctly lit, or under exposed. This all depends on; the venues lighting on the evening, how much ambient light is in the venue, what time of year it is, summer nights are lighter and give more ambient light, but also cause distracting window backgrounds in the shot. Mostly gig photography is a balancing act of trying to create interesting images in very difficult conditions and hoping something comes out in the end. Knowing the bands, or having photographed them before is helpful, because they will play around for the camera for me a lot more than other photographers, and, I know how they move through the gig and can expect any chance for position to image. I can also get in close and hide around them, in this way I can get angles and images other photographers would not be allowed to do or have access to get, as I can just climb on stage and move around them, as they play.
2018-01-30
On Location-Cameo Brooks promotional shoot at the Warren recording studio
2018-02-06
On Location-Digital reproduction of Artists canvas Paintings for computer manipulation by artist (Jo)
2018-02-07 – On Location-Specialist Portfolio shoot 001 – This is the first shoot for my specialist portfolio. Some of the images can be found here.
2018-02-11 – On Location-Specialist Portfolio shoot 002 – This is my second shoot for my specialist portfolio.
2018-02-25 – On Location-Yellow Lines 001 – This is my third shoot for my specialist portfolio
2018-02-25 – On Location-Yellow Lines 002 – This is my fourth shoot for my specialist portfolio
2018-03-23 – On location-Yellow Lines 003 – this is the fifth shoot for my specialist portfolio
2018-03-28 – on location- Yellow Lines 004 – this is the sixth shoot for my specialist portfolio
2018-03-29 – on location- Yellow Lines 005 – this is the seventh shoot for my specialist portfolio
This is my Resulting book.
People are like drain covers, individually weathering the storms of life by following the urbanistion of the yellow lines in changing from a rural dweller to an urbanised industrial slave.
We wrestle with nature to clear a space and try to build our lives upon the earth
From Birth we are indoctorated not to cross the lines and `follow the bounderies like good yellow lines.
No matter which path we may wish to follow, we find others have gone before and the yellow lines can then guide our way.
In life, some people crumble like the pavements
Some just crack up
While others ride off into the sunset
Some just fade into the background
A select few will shine and be admired by others
But our decaying shells will be devoured by nature in the end
All the while the, Yellow Lines watching it, pass on by
Sometimes at the roundabouts of life. we may cross the lines and find we need, a guide, to get us back on the ordained path and back on the right road again.
but when life seems a little bit crazy
having a holiday from walking the line is the choice for some
But once away from the yellow lines the most basic of human needs are hard to reach sometimes
But other tracks we follow, will bring us back onto/into the proper working lines again
But while we follow our own paths, constantly watching ourselves and others following the codes needed to walk the line
All the while polluting the world with our endeavours in trying to live
and finding the love of our lives, pulling over to let in or unseen walking on by
however, we must all still follow the Yellow Lines home
The Back Cover
2018-02-12 – On Location-Capture Wall Art for turning into Prints for Hotel, Silvers
I have been asked to capture images of the wall art in one of the venues. This will then be Reproduced for prints to go into the guest rooms currently being built on the upper floors of a hotel being built on the upper floors of the venue. These mock ups are for the client to choose which paper and frame they want. The choie will then be printed out to museum standards and be placed in the rooms and hallways around the hotel.
Some of the images can be found here
2018-02-16 – Home-Out Attic Window – 01 – capturing a stock shot for a website
2018-03-07 – Home-Out Attic Window 02 – capturing a stock shot for a website
2018-03-16 – On Location- capture images of Princes Quay gallery exhibition for website update
2018-03-18 – On Location–capture images of Princes Quay gallery craft fair for website content and promotional purposes
2018-03-24 – On location- Capture images of Princes Quay Gallery for promotional purpopses
2018/03/31 – on location – Slim Tubby @Larkins, Capture images for Promotional purposes.
2018/04/04 – On location – Capture images of a rehersal for making into a promotional video release. Also capture the recording of a single for promotional purposes. Some images can be found here
2018/04/05 – On location – Victoria shoot for Final major Project, breaking out/coming out advertisement. The finished images are below
2018/04/06 – On location – capture images of artists canvases for reproduction prints for sale.
2018/ 04/ 25 -On Location – record an interview for a promotional video. The interview is to go with a slide show of imagery, going with a track showing the history of a band from the beginning to the [resent. the images will show the changing line-up in the evolution of the sound and ethos of the music. the unreleased track has been specially recorded for the project concept. I worked under instruction and supervision of the video director and have passed on the footage to the video editor, along with the potential imagery for the brief. I have not shot any video since the first year and am looking to gain experience through an informal internship, through this video, which will hopefully lead to more work as I gain experience and the trust of my co-workers. Hopefully this will add another string to my photographic practice and will allow me to gain employment and commissions in a professional ability, alongside my still photographic skillset. I am hoping this will in the end allow me to make documentaries to go alongside the other documentary work I hope to pursue in the future. The experience has been beneficial and reiterated the lessons from my first year in mirroring the earlier lessons learnt in making a basic interview or documentary.
Pre-release copies of these videos are available on the hand-in USB for confirmation purposes of work commissioned and completed.