Studio Equipment
Studio equipment includes the following
Soft boxA soft box is a box that fits over a flash head or tungsten lamp it has a translucent front where light passes through. A soft box is most known for it's soft, even light.
Soft boxes are used mainly in portrait photography.
Snoot
Cone shaped shield used to direct a small patch of light over the subject.
Snoots are attachments that are connected to a lighting unit head to direct the light into a small area.
Snoots come in various diameters and can narrow light to a small area.
Beauty Dish
The beauty dish is used for close in beauty and portrait work.
Slightly harder lighting than a soft box gives better definition of facial features
Reflector
is an attachment which has a wide, even coverage it allows light to be spread.
It creates harsh shadows and high contrast lighting.
Umbrella
Umbrellas diffuse the light source
It is mostly used in portrait photography to provide more natural look.
Studio Flash Head
A studio flash head is
used in photo shoots to attach various pieces of equipment on to gain the picture you want
. Can be used to give more light or a suttle glow.
Light meter
A light meter is used to measure the amount of light and to determine the proper exposure for a photograph.
A light meter will include a computer, either digital or analog, which allows you to choose which shutter speed and f-number should be selected
Radio Trigger
This is placed on the top of the camera which is called the hot shoe
Its used to trigger the flash when the shutter button is pressed
Barn Door
This is attached on to a light head, the coloured gels are placed in the hole to create a coloured background on the photo
Honeycomb Grid
This again is attached to a light head, the holes create a straight beam off light.
Light stand
This is what the modifier sits on, the pole can be moved higher and lower
Backdrop
This is used to create a background colour of your choice
Tripod
This is used to sit the camera on. To achieve a straight shake free picture
Health and safety
It is possible to get clients and staff to sign in when entering the studio in case of a fire
Also all people should be aware of fire exits, rules and regulations
Policy's on the wall
Wires not to be left all over the floor
All equipment checked as not to be unfit for use
Aware of anyone with epilepsy that could fit with the flashing lights
Bulbs can get very hot so be cautious
F stop - ISO - Shutter speed
The aperture of a lens is the diameter of the lens opening,
Aperture is expressed as F-stop. The smaller the F-stop the larger the lens opening or the aperture. The bigger the number or the Fstop the the less light is let in, and the lower the number of the fstop the lighter the picture will be
A larger aperture also allows you to use a faster shutter speed to freeze action.
To use a faster shutter speed you have to open up the aperture to allow more light in for that shorter amount of time. So the slower you have the shutter speed the more light that will be let in.
ISO is how sensitive the image sensor is to the amount of light.
The higher the ISO, the more sensitive the image sensor and then its giving you the chance to take pictures in low lighting. Although the higher the ISO the more grainy the photo will look. so use a low ISO number when possible
So when using your camera manually is it essential that you have all 3 component's working together to get the best picture possible!!
Telephoto lens
This lens is used to zoom in to a subject from a great distance, this lens is often used for sports events
Prime Lens
This lens has a fixed focal length
Macro Lens
This lens is used for close up focusing
information i found on lenses from turning pro magazine
Macro Lenses Info
Various lens babies
The lens baby was created by Craig Strong. These lenses don't focus like normal lenses, they have what is known as a sweet spot which lets you tilt the lens to where ever you want, this allows you to be adventurous with your photos. Everything else outside of the sweet spot will be gradually blurred.
Scout Len's
This is the first lens baby lens that doesn't bend. This lens features a fish eye optic, this offers a optic wide focal length. With a 60 degree angle view from infinity down to 1/2 inch from the front of the lens.
Photo taken with a fish eye optic lens.
On a review of the scout lens that I read it said
"The ability to focus one half inch in front of the lens provides an extraordinary way to explore macro photography. Get close enough to a flower to nearly touch it – while capturing the entire garden surrounding it in the frame" - I found this amazing and would be a brilliant tool.
Muse Lens
The muse lens baby is a lens you don't focus but tilt, in order to get the photo you desire.
The focal length is about 50 mm, so you can zoom right in to your subject see picture taken with muse lens.
As you can see it allows you to have your subject sharp and the rest of the area is starting to blur.
The Composer lens
This is a selective focus lens
This lens allows you to choose an area that is in focus and gradually blur the rest out out focus
You can move the sweet spot of focus by tilting the lens to the desired angle and then focus with a focusing ring. This is also a bending lens and has a focal point of 50mm as it is brilliant for macro photography
Picture taken with a composer lens
Control Freak Lens
This lens is ideal for table top and macro photography.
The lens also bends in any direction this is good for getting a new sweet spot
for a different type of picture.
picture taken with a control freak lens
October Lighting
I wanted a challenge with this photograph and to do something different.
My choice of song was Michael Jackson's - thriller
Original Album Cover
I decided to use my imagination and ask some friends to dress up as zombies in order for me to get the result I wanted. I was the makeup artist for this project and i also styled them by ripping up their clothes and putting black face paint on the clothes. I also bought them some fangs each, to give the face more of an effect when the mouth is shut.
We went to a local graveyard and night as I Wanted the gravestones in the background as i thought this would add to the effect - as in the video the zombie are coming out of the graves. I asked my friends to watch the video before we did the photo shoot so they could familiarise themselves with how the zombies walked and moved, as i wanted to capture this stiffness in the pictures i was taking.
Attempt 1 - you can see some off the stones but i did not like the overall presentation
Attempt 2 - i liked this as the man in the picture has the freaky look about him but there was not enough happening in the picture.
Attempt 3 - This is a photo of my brother while dressed up in the graveyard, he is holding a cone like he is going to knock the camera out of my hand, I liked the effect off this picture as its not in focus and it makes it look scary and gives it the effect i was looking for.
End result for my cd cover
Contact sheet of photographs
The aperture of a lens is the diameter of the lens opening,
Aperture is expressed as F-stop. The smaller the F-stop the larger the lens opening or the aperture. The bigger the number or the Fstop the the less light is let in, and the lower the number of the fstop the lighter the picture will be
A larger aperture also allows you to use a faster shutter speed to freeze action.
To use a faster shutter speed you have to open up the aperture to allow more light in for that shorter amount of time. So the slower you have the shutter speed the more light that will be let in.
ISO is how sensitive the image sensor is to the amount of light.
The higher the ISO, the more sensitive the image sensor and then its giving you the chance to take pictures in low lighting. Although the higher the ISO the more grainy the photo will look. so use a low ISO number when possible
So when using your camera manually is it essential that you have all 3 component's working together to get the best picture possible!!
Standard Lenses
There are 4 standard lenses
Wide angle lens
This lens is usually used to shoot landscapes as it
it has a wider focal lengthTelephoto lens
This lens is used to zoom in to a subject from a great distance, this lens is often used for sports events
Prime Lens
This lens has a fixed focal length
Macro Lens
This lens is used for close up focusing
information i found on lenses from turning pro magazine
Portrait Work
For this assignment we were asked to get in to pairs and experiment with lighting.
I used natural lighting, soft box lighting and lighting with a honeycomb stop light.
Example of natural light
Soft box lighting
The lighting we captured with the soft box gives a soft warm glow to the face and works well with portraits
The next images have been created on photoshop and its called manipulation
by Devorah Sperber (2006)
This is a contact sheet of some images taken from the portrait session with the different forms off lighting being presented
I have added two more pictures with effects, i have used
The sepia tone
I used natural lighting, soft box lighting and lighting with a honeycomb stop light.
Example of natural light
Soft box lighting
The lighting we captured with the soft box gives a soft warm glow to the face and works well with portraits
Honeycomb stop lighting
This lighting gives a much harder look, not as suttle as the soft box
The next images have been created on photoshop and its called manipulation
I found a similar picture to what we have re created on photoshop
This is a contact sheet of some images taken from the portrait session with the different forms off lighting being presented
lightroom to do this
High contrast - gray
Macro Lenses Info
Various lens babies
The lens baby was created by Craig Strong. These lenses don't focus like normal lenses, they have what is known as a sweet spot which lets you tilt the lens to where ever you want, this allows you to be adventurous with your photos. Everything else outside of the sweet spot will be gradually blurred.
Scout Len's
This is the first lens baby lens that doesn't bend. This lens features a fish eye optic, this offers a optic wide focal length. With a 60 degree angle view from infinity down to 1/2 inch from the front of the lens.
Photo taken with a fish eye optic lens.
On a review of the scout lens that I read it said
"The ability to focus one half inch in front of the lens provides an extraordinary way to explore macro photography. Get close enough to a flower to nearly touch it – while capturing the entire garden surrounding it in the frame" - I found this amazing and would be a brilliant tool.
Muse Lens
The muse lens baby is a lens you don't focus but tilt, in order to get the photo you desire.
The focal length is about 50 mm, so you can zoom right in to your subject see picture taken with muse lens.
As you can see it allows you to have your subject sharp and the rest of the area is starting to blur.
The Composer lens
This is a selective focus lens
This lens allows you to choose an area that is in focus and gradually blur the rest out out focus
You can move the sweet spot of focus by tilting the lens to the desired angle and then focus with a focusing ring. This is also a bending lens and has a focal point of 50mm as it is brilliant for macro photography
Picture taken with a composer lens
Control Freak Lens
This lens is ideal for table top and macro photography.
The lens also bends in any direction this is good for getting a new sweet spot
for a different type of picture.
picture taken with a control freak lens
October Lighting
This is a contact sheet of October lighting, for our weekly picture project we had to show different lighting in the outside area.
To take these pictures I went to rivington ( near Bolton )
I have then put the photos on a contact sheet using lightroom, i have also put on what shutter speed i have used, the F. stops and the ISO
Cd Cover
For Andy's brief we was asked to take a photograph for an album cover off our choice.I wanted a challenge with this photograph and to do something different.
My choice of song was Michael Jackson's - thriller
Original Album Cover
I decided to use my imagination and ask some friends to dress up as zombies in order for me to get the result I wanted. I was the makeup artist for this project and i also styled them by ripping up their clothes and putting black face paint on the clothes. I also bought them some fangs each, to give the face more of an effect when the mouth is shut.
We went to a local graveyard and night as I Wanted the gravestones in the background as i thought this would add to the effect - as in the video the zombie are coming out of the graves. I asked my friends to watch the video before we did the photo shoot so they could familiarise themselves with how the zombies walked and moved, as i wanted to capture this stiffness in the pictures i was taking.
Attempt 1 - you can see some off the stones but i did not like the overall presentation
Attempt 2 - i liked this as the man in the picture has the freaky look about him but there was not enough happening in the picture.
Attempt 3 - This is a photo of my brother while dressed up in the graveyard, he is holding a cone like he is going to knock the camera out of my hand, I liked the effect off this picture as its not in focus and it makes it look scary and gives it the effect i was looking for.
End result for my cd cover
Contact sheet of photographs
Analyzing Objects
The first object am going to analyze is the image produced by Robert Doisneau
Paris Gargouille de Notre-Dame
My research tells me that Robert Doisneau was born April 1912 and died April 1994
he was a photographer in the 1930s period his camera type was called a leica, he first began taking photos off the cobbles on the streets next moving on to children and adults, when his confidence grew he broadened out and started taking photos of buildings and scenery
In 1934 he began working as an industrial advertising photographer for the Renault car factory he took an opportunity to change career by also acting as camera assistant in the studio and then becoming a staff photographer. Doisneau career grew and later in his life he was also awarded the Légion d'honneur, the highest decorations awarded by France
The object that is mainly in focus is a large statue – of the large dog/wolf, the camera has caught the detail well of the creature as you can see clearly the paws, hair on its back and teeth – giving the creature a fierce look. But then you have the beauty of Paris
The photo is now used as a very popular postcard in France
Doisneau has used good skill and perception here as I has worked out what building would capture the life of Paris but also he’s used imagination with having the gargoyle over the tower so it looks like its about to eat it!
The purpose of this picture is to show the beauty of Paris
I think the symbolism in the photo could be although Paris
Edward Weston’s – shell
Edward Henry Weston was born in 1886 and died in 1958 he was a was a 20th century American photographer.
He has been called -one of the most innovative and influential American photographers
Over his forty-year career he photographed many varieties of photography including landscapes, still life's and nudes
Edward weston used a 8 X 10 view camera.
And some of his most famous photographs were taken of the trees and rocks at Point Lobos California near where he lived.
Many pictures that Weston had taken of objects such as this shell, several other shells and various foods were meant to be a reference to the reproductive parts of the male and female anatomy.
This particular shell is referring to the male reproductive organ.
As I mentioned previously Edward Weston had also photographed nudes- this may have been frowned upon in his day and this may be his way of expressing his passion for the human body? The photograph stands out well with the black background, and you can also see where the flash has shot as it gives a glare on to the shine on the shell.
My Objects
Here I have taken an “object photograph”
I have taken this picture in the studio hence the lighting and clear background. As you can see I have used the ideas that many product advertisers use.
An object that looks desirable something you see and you really want.
The fact that the picture isn’t “busy” with too much going on really focuses on the object in question – Chloe perfume.
Most of the photo is quite bland colour apart from the colour of the bow that matches the colour of the perfume that you can see in the bottle.
I have place the lid next to the bottle just to add more effect, I like the fact that the image reflects.
Object 2
This is a photograph of my wedding tiara I have taken this picture as a form of advertising.
I have placed the tiara on a black t-shirt this is so the cream pearls stand out.
I have not edited the picture, evaluating this object I can see it could possibly look better if it was more in the centre, and showing the back band a little more – showing the detail.
Colour Management
We worked in a group in the studio looking at different lighting settings. Each person in the group had to bring in one bright colourful object, i chose to take in a orange flower, a pink neck less and a pink and blue scarf.
Colour management is all about portraying the same colour off the object that we can see with our eyes to make it the same colour as what we see on our camera, computer screens and prints.
The class worked together in the studio to experiment with camera settings and colour management.
This was the first image as you can see it looks blue, I altered the white balance to incandescent
On the next picture I used vivid settings on my camera
On the next picture I have used monochrome setting
contact sheet with all images and exposure details
see attached sheets with info on colour management
Editing Software
When editing my photographs I use adobe lightroom 3 and also adobe photoshop
Here on this picture below you can see the pictures have just been uploaded in to the library
Next when all the boxes that you want have been checked you press develop
The pictures all show at the bottom, on the left there is a box that alters your pictures ie black and white, cream tone, sepia, cold tone etc.
On the right is the histogram and curves to alter the brightness
Also on the right is the spot healing tool and the skin softener tool which i usually use, on the image i have used skin softener
Here I have used the crop tool
I have created a contact sheet in the print section,
you can also add exposure and shutter speed on your images.
This is how you export the pictures
Photoshop
This is how you open a file in photoshop
Layers are created in photoshop when altering your file,
this makes it easier to undo any mistakes as you would just delete the layer.
Here i have used the cropping tool, on the left hand side are all the tools ie history brush, paint brush, writing tool, lasso ect...
This is how you save your work
Lightroom and Photoshop are very similar programs they both alter your image in a varied of different ways. You can also save your file as a different format other than a jpeg.
Dark Room
Today was my first time in the dark room, I have been producing a photo gram.
First I needed coloured trays with the mixing chemicals and cylinders
In the first tray is the developer we need to mix this with nine parts water and one part water, when the photo has been taken on the enlarger you leave it in this 1st tray for 1 minute.
In the second tray its just water, around 2 liters and it needs to be 20C
so we used a thermometer to make sure, the paper should be left in this tray for 30 seconds
In the third tray is the fixer around 2 liters again.
The picture should be left in this tray for 2 - 3 minuets
As you can see on this photo there is a clip.
There are 3 different clips one for each tray to get the paper out so the chemicals don't get on your hands
another way to protect your hands is to use gloves.
This is important for health and safety.
The paper I used on the enlarger to is multi grade paper
Next you leave in water for around 15 minuets and then place on the drying rack.
The objects used where a keyring, perfume bottle, tablets and a 20p and a clear plastic glove
Here on the first picture i used the enlarger exposure on number 1, you cant see the glove or bottle
Next i have halved the exposure again and as you can see the bottle is visible
Negatives using a Seagull Medium Format Camera
I have used a seagull camera for the first time today.
I used a 400 black and white film attaching it to the wheel at the top next I turned the wheel until i saw the number in the top window.
You hold the camera at waist level to focus and wind the dial each time you have taken a picture.
The aperture dial
I had taken 12 pictures on the seagull camera and i went in the darkroom to process my negatives.
I put the film on the spiral and then in to the tank.
Next we used ID 11 one part and 9 parts water we placed it in the tank and shook for 13 minuets
then we put water in the tank and shook for 3 minuets
Next we used fix one part to 4 water
Next your supposed to hang the negatives in the dryer.
Unfortunately when we unraveled our negatives after taking them out of the tank all the negatives were pink this happened as thee ID 11 had already been mixed and we wasn't told!
Contact sheet of images I have taken with exposure details
Things to remember in the darkroom
Wear gloves when mixing chemicals
When lights are off, check there are no small lights on machines etc - this could affect your negatives
There is a wet and dry side in dark room
Wash equipment after use with chemicals
Photography Time line Research
Each student was asked to research a famous photographer or something that photography had showed to create a history of photography time line.
I have created two images my first image from a well known photographer lewis hine
When i saw this image i thought it was shocking and essential that it goes on the time line.
Back in these days it was common for children to smoke.
Now in the 21st century you would not expect children at this age to be smoking, this is why i thought the image is powerful and shocking.
Lewis Hine was dedicated himself to helping children.
His photos were instrumental in changing child labour laws in the U.S
Second Image
This image just made me think how important photography is.
This was taken in 1923 at the first FA cup final at wembley
Bolton played west ham and the game was known as the white horse final.
Due to the fact that so many fans wanted to watch the first game at the new home of football, fans invaded the pitch. Billy the white horse had to be brought out to encourage fans to move behind the touch lines.
Two hundred thousand fans squeezed in the stadium when it was only made for 80 thousand.
This picture is significant to photography as this wouldn't have been believed by people who were not at the match, photographers captured the chaos but excitement at the same time.
Assessed Studio Task
The whole of the class have been told that we are going to be assessed by our two tutors in the studio.
This is to see what stage of development we are up to in our studio based learning, and to see if we need more practise in the studio.
We were each given a sheet with the objectives of the task and the 5 possible scenarios of lighting that we may have to set up.
See sheet below
The task that was chosen for me was task 2
( set up two daylight fluorescent heads at 45/45 to a static subject )
I was quite nervous about being watched and assessed.
I first set up to lighting heads on stands thinking that the soft box would attach to the head,
then i realised that the fluorescent lighting wouldn't attach on to a light head as the soft box already has the light inside, so i changed my set up.
Next when i had done this it was time to take a picture.
Contact sheet and exposure details of images
Recreating a Picture
I was reading through the photography magazine I buy every month and I came across this picture called
" Life "
The picture was taken by Rebecca Litchfield who was named photographer of the year 2009
The picture really caught my eye and i decided to recreate it.
I had a few problems along the way.....
I wasn't able to book the studio at the times when my model was available so the picture was taken at home
The gems I bought to stick on the model would not stick on they kept falling off.
So the pictures are not what i was hoping for but at least it has been a learning experience, i have worked to create a picture using props and i have also done hair and makeup for the model.
Pictures taken and exposure details
Objects
Katy has asked the class to make the room more colourful and interesting that we should take pictures off 48 objects that we use every day these are my images
Editing In Lightroom
Andy emailed the following task
"I want you to all have a go at rendering this file (three stops underexposed) as a usable final image using as many of Lightroom's controls as you see fit.
Try to make the noise as unobtrusive as possible without diminishing the detail of the image.
Work your way down the tool palette on the right of the develop module until the photo suits your taste.
This isn't a competition and we are more interested in seeing the variety and diversity of editing processes within the group.
After you have finished, please upload to your Flickr account (as jpegs) and we will have a short seminar later on to discuss each others methodologies.
Picture sent - pre edit
Edited
