Exercise: Editing.

"For this exercise you need to start with a set of recently shot images. Try to work with a reasonably large set of images, at least 50, all covering the same theme or location."

 

I chose to use images I had recently taken for the National Trust. I had just started volunteering as a photographer for their Melford Hall property and they had asked that I try to provide them with images of the hall all in portrait to fit on their leaflets. I managed to shoot 95 photos which I then needed to edit down to provide them with a handful of images.

 

Step one - the technical edit.

 

I removed any images that had obvious faults to them. Four were over exposed, mainly as the day was very bright......not ideal for what I was trying to do, two were out of focus which left me with 89. I currently have Photoshop elements 9. I view each image as a thumbnail, removing any images with faults from my main screen. For the technical edit I deleted any image that was not up to scratch, particularly as I shoot in RAW so I do not want vital memory space taken up. Also having just had to buy a new laptop I am trying to keep it much more organised than my old one.

 

 

Step two - the selects.

 

Here I have gone through all of the images and have tried to be quite ruthless. I wanted to halve the number of suitable images and managed to select 42 in the end that I felt more strongly about. I did this by removing any image that may appear similar to others I had taken. I had several of the same angle of the hall, the only difference was the exposure as I was unsure at the time how the image would turn out due to the exceptionally bright day.

 

 

Step three - the first selects.

 

 

 

I then edited down to seven images which was easier than I thought it would be as I think that you immediately get a feel for whether an image is right or not.

Notes to explain why I preferred these images (from left).

1. Shows the majority of the hall including its distinctive roof, without showing the scaffolding they currently have up.

2. Nice symmetrical image of the hall through the hedge so your eye is drawn up the frame to the doorway.

3. View through the trees, focusing on the roof meeting the skyline.

4. View through the trees showing part of the hall and gardens.

5. Shows a building in the grounds and the gardens.

6. The hall from a distance, through the flowers.

7.  View of the hall also reflected in the pond.

 

 

Step four - group and review.

 

As instructed I took a break of several days and then when back to review the images. I put the first selects  together which was easy as I had saved them all in one folder and then reviewed my choices. I then reviewed the images I had left out to make sure that I had made the right decisions and I still felt the same about the shots I had rejected.

 

 

Step five - a final choice.

 

Here I was to imagine that I could only select two images for publication.

 

 

 

I chose these two images, not only because I particularly like them and they were my favourites at the time of shooting, but also because they fill the criteria that I was originally shooting for. This was to produce images that show the hall with its distinctive roof, in portrait as opposed to the usual landscape images. Ideally I would of shot the images on a slightly more overcast day, as there was very little cloud in the sky the bricks have lost some of their deep red colour.

 

 

 

 

 



Exercise: Histogram

The aim of this exercise is to increase familiarity with histograms by relating each one to the images we have just shot. Histograms appear twice in workflow, once on the cameras LCD screen and again when the image is being processed. When shooting in RAW the histogram is not taken from the RAW file but instead from a JPEG so a slight difference may be present from the camera histogram to the histogram then shown on the computer.

We are to choose three subjects, one with low contrast, one with average contrast and one with high contrast. for each picture situation we are to take an average exposed version, one that is one f-stop darker and one that is one f-stop brighter. We should finish with nine images.

 

Low contrast.

 

 

1/50 f5.6 ISO 200 90mm -1.0

 

 

 

 

1/25 f5.6 ISO 250 92mm Average exposure

 

 

 

 

1/13 f5.6 ISO 250 92mm +1.0

 

 

 

The histograms appear much as I expected but I did think that they would be flatter than they are, maybe the shot was not as low contrast as I thought it was. The values are quite squeezed together however. Altering the exposure has affected the histogram exactly as I expected it to with under exposure appearing on the left and over exposure values on the right.

 

 

Average contrast.

 

 

1/125 f5 ISO 250 38mm -1.0

 

 

 

 

1/60 f5 ISO 250 38mm Average exposure

 

 

 

 

1/30 f5 ISO 250 38mm +1.0

 

 

 

The average contrast  images appear similar to how I expected although I thought that the average exposure shot would be a little flatter.

 

High contrast.

 

 

 

1/50 f5.6 ISO 250 105mm -1.0

 

 

 

 



 

1/25 f5.6 ISO 250 105mm Average exposure.

 

 

 

1/13 f5.6 ISO 250 105mm +1.0

 

 

The histogram here is not quite how I expected it to look. I thought that the shifts from left to right would be more obvious than they are although the values are spread right across the histogram.

 

I found this exercise more difficult than I expected but it has been useful as I have never paid as much attention to the histogram as I should. Tending to instead rely on the image shown on the LCD screen and then how my shot appears on the computer. I now intend to analyse my shots more thoroughly.

 

 

 

 

 

Tim Walker - StoryTeller

 

 

 

When I heard that this book was coming out I just had to order it. I love Tim Walker and his unique approach. When you see one of his images you immediately recognise the style. I was not disappointed at all.

The book “reveals just how much one man’s singular vision has influenced contemporary tastes in fashion, beauty, glamour and portraiture”.

 

Stella Tennant and pink powder cloud. Fashion: Peter Jensen. Eglingham Hall, Northumberland, 2007

 

The foreword has been written by Kate Bush which I feel fits really well with the book. She quite rightly states that “Tim’s extraordinary work takes us on a journey in to his exotic imagination, where giants, dreams and broken fairy tales are all welcome”. When I look at his work I draw similar comparisons to paintings by the surrealist Salvador Dali. Walker’s photographs very much appear like a child’s imagination such as Humpty Dumpty being broken in half, or the plane made out of baguettes and yet there is a luxurious quality to them. This is particularly seen in the drape of cloth or in the flowers and decorations. Many of the images were shot in Glemham Hall or Eglingham Hall, both of which are large stately homes emphasising luxury.

Giant doll kicks Lindsey Wixson. Fashion: Louis Vuitton. Eglingham Hall, Northumberland, 2011

One think I did notice and had not previously realised was that Walker avoids using digital photography in favour of film. Does digital photography make things too easy and allow anyone to become a 'photographer'. I have not used a film camera since I was a child and you were given a plastic point and press. I rely on my SLR because you see immediate results and can tell where you have gone wrong. I would love to give proper film photography a go and think this is something I should learn more about.

Karlie Kloss in gold feathers. Fashion: Alexander McQueen. Shoreditch, London, 2010

“Photography is a magic thing! A magic thing with all sorts of mysterious smells, a bit strange and frightening but something you learn to love very quickly”. Jacques Henri Lartigue.

The book also shows sketches drawn by Walker as he explores various ideas and concepts for shoots. I found it, in some ways, more interesting to view these. I was intrigued how he arrives at the final image and the process he goes through to come up with an image.

Vivienne Westwood in coral tiara with roses. Fashion: Vivienne Westwood. Shoreditch, London, 2009

I felt so inspired looking through this book. I love so many genres of photography and fashion is one of them. Walker has shot for many of the fashion houses such as Mulberry, Louis Vuitton, Valentino; as well as famous fashion magazines including British, American and Italian Vogue, Harpers Bazaar and Vanity Fair. Reading this book made me question what I hope to achieve in my photography and the style I am working to develop. Maybe in some way I feel intimidated and wonder whether I could ever produce anything half as good as I believe these images to be. I must remember that everyone has their own strengths and style of shooting, I just need to develop my confidence and not be afraid to explore new ideas and techniques. I am so glad that I bought this book, not only because Tim Walker is someone I admire, but because it leads the reader to contemplate their own direction.

(Tim Walker, Story Teller, Thames & Hudson 2012)

 



Exercise: Your own workflow 2

We are to again devise a workflow for a specific shooting assignment but this time the assignment should unstructured and open ended. The number of images will be unpredictable and the shoot should last a length of time that the photos may need reviewing and editing as we go along rather then waiting until the end of the shoot.

Planning.

Visit Cambridge city centre photographing people as they go about daily life, architecture, market square, bikes. If I was commissioned for this shoot then obviously I would be meeting my clients criteria.

Preparation.

Charge batteries, check memory card, check file space on laptop, reset camera settings from previous shoot.

Shoot.

I set off early morning so that I would catch people on their way to work or college. Luckily Cambridge is always busy regardless of what time you go so I was likely to see crowds of people either way. I had chosen Cambridge because it is my nearest city, about 14 miles from home, and there is always a lot to see. My approach consisted of taking a walk around the city centre constantly think of different compositions and trying out different shots. Some of which may then be edited if I felt they were not what I was looking for. Any that I was not sure about could wait until I put them on the laptop and could assess them properly. In the end I only had a spare hour which I thought would be plenty of time but it turned out to not really be that long. I would of liked to of had time to go down to the river and photograph people punting. Because I had my camera out the whole time I was subjected to many people approaching me as they thought that I was a tourist! Many of which where trying to get my to pay to go punting. By the time I had finished, after editing as I was going along I had taken about 35 shots. I estimate that I had probably shot 15-20 more.

Post shoot.

 

Once home I loaded all the images onto the laptop and started to remove any images with signs of blur of that were not technically suitable. After this I looked at the images the day after and selected the ones I felt were accurate to what was happening at the time of shooting. Some that I felt strongly about at the time didn't come across as well as I had hoped. I edited the images down three times so that I was left with two images that mean something to me.

 

 

 

 



 

 

Final Images.
 

 

1/60 f13 ISO 200 45mm WB AUTO

I chose this image as one of my final selects because I feel that it represents Cambridge quite well. There are quite a lot of people that sell the big issue or busk. This shot shows the woman with the long hair having completely ignored the seller's presence as she walks straight past. I see this happen all the time, even if I do not buy from them it is always nice to acknowledge them, even when you are in a rush.

1/60 f13 ISO 200 62mm WB AUTO

I chose this image because it contained many factors that represent Cambridge. It has a church in the background, shows the market square and people cycling. You can never get away from bikes in Cambridge. I particularly like the feeling of depth in this image with the many layers. I also like how your eye is drawn to the tree in the centre and then the four red phone boxes. I like how the line follows down from the church tower, emphasising height.

1/50 13 ISO 200 105mm WB AUTO

I decided to leave this picture until last as it is my favourite, mainly as I have a personal link to it. When I was little and used to visit Cambridge there was always an elderly man who used to walk around the city centre wearing an old suit, top hat and pushing a cart. In the cart there used to be a variety of animals. He would also usually have mice running around the brim of his hat. All the children loved him. Sadly he died some years ago now and this sculpture was created in his memory. I particularly like the fact that I have managed to capture it with a child having been drawn to its bright colours and smooth touch.


Conclusion.

From carrying out this project it has made me think further about the process I go through before shooting a series of images. I also think that it has reinforced the fact that your images should relate to you in some way. Having a personal connection makes for a stronger image in my opinion.


 



DPP - Exercise: Your own workflow 1

For the first exercise in this course we are to devise and put into practice a work flow that suits us for a specific short assignment. We must then make notes of the experience in our learning log.

 

Thinking about work flow and the process I go through before a shoot, I think that I to a certain extent plan my images but not in as much detail as required here. I tend to go out and see what I come across a lot of the time. I have a horrible habit of not resetting the settings on the camera after a shoot and then going out the next time and wondering why the images are not coming out as I expect. I then tend to overcompensate with other settings to make up for it. I am hoping that this exercise and the next one will focus me.

 

We are asked to shoot a portrait session which is limited in time. My client had half an hour for the shoot so I was on a tight schedule.

 

Pre shoot planning.

 

Before I started shooting I thought about what was necessary to ensure everything went efficiently and smoothly.

 

Preparation.

• Chose to shoot outdoors for lots of natural light and prepared my chosen area.
• Check all equipment needed - batteries charged, plenty of space on memory card and on laptop for transferred images, check camera settings such as ISO and WB.

Ideas.

 

I then thought about potential poses for the shoot.

• Close up of face, front on.
• Close up of face, side on.
• Head and shoulders.
• Full body.
• Portrait/ Landscape.
• With/ without flash depending on lighting conditions.
• Various focal lengths.
• 3/4 length shot of body.

The Shoot.

 

I wanted my client to look relaxed and natural, I don't particularly like images where the subject has been forced to smile or looks uncomfortable.

I began the shoot photographing from a distance, this was so that my client would have time to relax and could feel at ease before I starting shooting close ups. Several of the images seem a little tense but she quickly warmed up and started to look more relaxed.

I shot 22 images in total and stuck to my half hour deadline. I only have the one lens at the moment so I have tried to vary the focal length to suit the images I was hoping to achieve. I probably could of done with taking my tripod with me as some of the images were a little blurred. I had avoided doing this as the area I had chosen was actually where racehorses are exercised and a lot of people take their dogs there. I wanted to be able to move quickly if I needed to. I had chosen the area as it is nice and natural and I like how the light falls between the trees.

 

Uploading images.

 

I imported all of the images into Photoshop Elements 9 and without digitally altering any of them I viewed them all on one screen. I put them all into a file with the exercise name as a title, within my DPP file. I find this much easier when it comes to navigating where certain images are.

 

 



 First Edit.

 

I then edited down the images from 22 to 11. I wanted to edit out the images that had a fault such as being out of focus. I also chose to remove images that looked similar to others, keeping the better photo.

 

 

 

Second Edit.

 

I then reduced the number down to 5 images looking at the composition I find works best, how the client looks and then decided which images to work on.

 

 

Final Edit.

 

 

1/640 f5.6 ISO 2000 105mm

 

I chose this image as I like how the light falls across the face and where the wind has blown her hair. I needed a high ISO as under the trees had become quite dark and I didn't want to use the flash to ruin the shadows that had been cast.

 

 

1/640 f5.6 ISO 2000 66mm

 

I chose this image because my client is what you immediately see but when you look to the left of the image you notice someone has carved into the tree. I like the added interest in the image. I had no input into what my client was wearing for the shoot but I think that the colours actually go rather well.

 

 

1/640 f5.6 ISO 2000 34mm

 

This image made the final edit because I particularly like the composition. Who says a portrait must be a close up of someones face?

 

Conclusion.

 

I really got into this assignment. In some ways I felt it would be much easier because I thought that I had some kind of a work flow before shooting anyway. I think there is a lot more to think about than I originally realised and I don't think that I review my images as thoroughly as this exercise has led me to review. I am overall happy with the images I produced and the work flow that led up to it. I think paying more attention to the set of my shoot is important particularly regarding lighting and the time of day. I also only worked on the images that I had selected in my final edit. Maybe I should had tweaked all of the images and then made my decisions but I wanted to pick out the images I felt more strongly about without having digitally altered them. I have really enjoyed the first exercise of this course.

 

 

Long time no post.

I haven't posted anything in a while and felt I should share what I have been up to. My employer sent me on a week long course for work, up in Warwickshire (2 hours from my home) which then left me with 6 assignments to complete once I got back. Unfortunately these have the same deadline, 4 weeks from the course start date. If I don't complete them on time then I fail. I just have half of one assignment left (due on the 25th October) and then I am all done!

The day after I got back from the course I went to start work on my laptop only for it to be making an awful noise and it would not start up. I took it down to my local computer company who basically told me that the hard drive had gone. Unfortunately I am one of these people that mean to back up their work and never seem to get round to it. This has meant that I have lost all of my work for photography, all of my photos course related and personal, as well as documents for work. The computer company were unable to retrieve anything off the laptop. I contacted the college and explained the situation as I was obviously going for formal assessment and was unsure what would happen as I no longer had any work to submit. Luckily they were great and said that I could submit my blog as all of my assignments are on it and it is used as my learning log. Right at the start of the course I did do all of my work in a sketchbook so this has also been submitted. I am just grateful I can carry on.

Whilst all of this has been happening I had started shooting the projects for Digital Photographic Practice. I am yet to have written any of them up as I have only just purchased a new laptop. I will now be making sure that I back up all of my work, and recommend that everyone does the same. It is surprising the amount of people I have spoken to that have never done this either.

I am really looking forward to beginning the new course, I need to be much more strict with myself, in particular with setting aside time to work on it. I feel that my work course has really set me back and would of like to have been furher alone with the projects and be thinking about the first assignment.

 

 

Assignment 5 feedback.

 

My feedback for Assignment 5 arrived a couple of days ago and I am so pleased with how it was received.

I had been unsure whether to 'use' my mum's illness as the topic of my assignment but I am so glad that I did. I always go into assignment mode as soon as I start planning for one, but this time it has been completely different. I think that has been because of the personal link I have to the subject. I have a habit of shooting to fill the assignment criteria but this time I have tried to work the assignment around what I want to show. I had posted on the OCA student forum to gauge peoples response to the idea, I'm so glad that every comment had been positive. My tutor mentioned in my feedback that "it does take a bit of bravery to make such a post out there not knowing what the results would be" and I am so pleased that fellow students are so supportive and willing to encourage each other.

I think that if I was shooting the assignment again of course I would choose the same subject but maybe it would of been nice to of been able to include myself in the images somehow as this did prove pretty impossible. It is difficult to decide what to include and what to leave out. I am happy with the overall decisions I made as the series is accurate to 'real life'.

The image I produced of mum walking down the garden (number 6) with the slow shutter speed to illustrate how fast she moves, nearly made my tutor laugh out loud. This is exactly the response I was hoping for. I had set out to show the living with someone who has Dementia is not all doom and gloom. I wanted people to be able to view my photos and smile, maybe because they realise things are not so bad after all, or because they bring back memories.

My tutor did suggest that with photo number 7 showing my mum and sister holding hands, that I try bumping up the contrast and converting the image to black and white, so here it is.

 

 

 

 I really like the effect this has created and wish that I had thought to try it before.

Overall I am so pleased with how the assignment turned out and the feedback I have received. I feel like I have really progressed since completing the first assignment. I now look forward to working on the next course.