As part of 152mc we had a small workshop based around using small flash guns on and off the camera and experiment with using a small source of light when large lighting kits are not available.
I decided to use the flash gun on top of the camera against two bright coloured walls. The photographs came out really well and I loved the bright light against the coloured walls.
As part of 152MC we had a small studio induction in which we had a list of tasks to complete to help us understand how to use the lights and give us a wider resource of information for us to draw from.
The first task was to use a Soft Box 45 degrees, 90 degrees and straight in front of the model and compare the lighting.
In the first image it’s clear that the light is hitting the right side of lee’s face leaving the other side in shadow. I personally think this lighting isn’t very natural and the shadows on the other side of his face are too harsh. If i were to use this lighting set up in the studio I would add a reflector onto the right hand side of his face.
This image is of the soft box at a 90 degree angle and this lighting is even more harsh than the previous.
This image is with the soft box placed in front of the model, and this lighting is so much more flattering and has a much more natural look.
The next task that we had was to place a black and white reflector on the other side of the model and move the soft box to the same points in task 1.
This photograph was taken with the soft box at 45 degrees to the model with a black reflector on the right hand side of the model. The right hand side of the model is almost all in shadow and the light is not flattering at all. The lighting gives a somewhat evil mood to the image and almost as most of his face is in darkness.
This photograph was taken with a snoot light 45 degrees to the side of the models face however the models face is almost completely in darkness which isn’t very flattering at all. If I were to use this lighting set up then a reflector would defiantly be necessary to light the rest of the face.
This photograph was taken with the soft box at a 95 degree angle with a white reflector on the left hand side. The light is quite flattering in comparison to all the other lighting techniques we used. This lighting is probably the most flattering and one that i would probably most likely use for a shoot in the studio.
For this lighting set we used a snoot light adaptor 95 degrees to my model. The lighting is really low key, and i think makes the model look quite sinister but its also quite a difficult light to work with. This lighting set up would be very specific if i were to use it in the studio and if i were to use this lighting set up I would use a reflector on the right side of the model.
Studio workshop 1 – questions
Make a note of how different the light looks.
The three shots with the soft box at different angles created really different lighting results.The 90 degree shot made some really harsh shadows on the right side of Lee’s face, whereas the 45 degree angle created less harsh results, as more light was hitting that side, but it still created some level of shadow. The front facing lighting made him evenly lit on both sides of his face. The background becomes differently lit as well, with the two side on shots creating more background shadow and the front facing shot making the background solely one shade.
What difference do the reflectors make?
The reflectors mean that the lighting is slightly easier to manipulate because you can direct it to the areas of the photograph that need shadowing or brightening. The black reflector absorbs the light and so made the right side of Lee’s face much darker, whereas the white reflector bounced the light back and so naturally made his face lighter.
How differently does the light fall on the face of the model in comparison to the previous test?
Including a snoot made the light pool much tighter on the Lee’s face. Because the snoot acts much like a small spotlight, it means you can direct your circle of light to only a specific section on the face/portrait. The 90 degree snoot had a greater light area than the 45 degree one as it was hitting more surfaces and therefore spreading more. I like the effect, but it depends what you’re trying to achieve with the photograph on whether you would use it on it’s own. It would maybe be appropriate in the use of a little extra spot lighting here or there, or maybe silhouette effects.
What does this test add to the image?
This lighting means that you’re able to differentiate between the subjects hair and the backdrop, especially if the backdrop and hair are of similar colours/shades. It also adds an extra dimension to the image to make it look more dynamic and 3D rather than flat. You could alter the amount of light given off by taking the snoot off and creating almost a halo around their head, but it depends on what look you want to convey with your image as to whether you do this or not. Usually a smaller amount of light works better for general portraits.
Crewsdon is well known for his extravagant photography. With his photo shoots looking more like movie sets, Crewsdon uses huge lighting sets and scenes to create his iconic photographs. Crewdson’s photographs usually take place in small-town America, but are dramatic and cinematic. They feature often disturbing, surreal events. I really like Crewsdon’s work, each image has so much detail that I almost begin to create this own story in my head about what could be happening to the subjects. His use of lighting makes the image seem so realistic, as if we are there ourselves that ( similar to a movie) we wonder whats going to happen next.
2. Tom Hunter- Persons Unknown
In the project people unknown Hunter adds a Vermeer style to his photographs with the use of the light.
His photographs depict groups of people with housing problems, including squatters, council house tenants and caravan-dwellers, in a positive light.
I really like the use of natural light in Hunter’s images and how he has made bleak and sad moments appear to be angelic.
3. Floris Neususs.
he bodies in Neusüss’s ‘whole-body photograms’ appear to leap or float, as though caught in space, implying dreams of flight or nightmares of falling. Here, an adult figure adopts a foetal position silhouetted against a white back drop. The images are created with photographic paper with a light source behind the figure. The silhouettes of the women seem to look almost dreamlike and the second image seems to show a woman asleep curled up which works really well with the foggy effect the photograms have.
4. Edward Hopper.
Edward Hopper was a prominent American painter, best know for his oil paintings. His images are said to have captured modern day America. I really like the use of lighting in his images, with the lighting he has used his made his subject appear to be in a “spot light” With the lighting directly behind the subject he immediately look to her and we begin to wonder what she could be gazing out of the window at.
5. Sally Mann.
Sally Mann’s project “family” isn’t known because of its lighting but for the controversy of her photographing her children naked. However this one particular image stuck out to me, whether by fault or on purpose her young daughter stood on the table is bathed in white soft light. Alongside the lighting and the pose of her young daughter this to me makes her appear angelic and really quite beautiful.
6. Jonathan Auch.
Jonathan Auch is a photographer that is based in New York who takes daily street photographs.
I really like the lighting used in these pictures and I think by using the light around him he’s managed to create a really interesting on going series. I particularly like the bottom image because the reflection of the bus window has managed to capture the quiet moment of the girl staring off however also managed to capture the busy street outside very easily.
7. Bill Jackson.
Bill Jackson has used a very simple natural light within his series named Dark 1 & 2. I think this image is very similar to that of Gregory Crewsdon’s in the sense that it looks like a movie still for a scary horror film or alien flick.
I really like the simplicity of his use in light and the effect that something so small as a swimming pool light can create such a great photograph.
8.Tom Hunter.
This image was taken from Tom Hunter’s series based around the story of A Midsummer’s Night Dream.
I really like the use of lighting in this image because even though it may be slightly to bright and not flattering I think that suits perfectly with the image. The woman are supposed to be stage girls and Tom Hunters use of lighting on this image is similar to that of a stage light, unflattering and incredibly bright.
9. Neil Craver.
Neil Cravers are a series of beautiful but somewhat haunting underwater images. His use of natural was not also necessary in this situation but has added a fairytale feeling to the image.
10. Hannah Starkey.
Starkey’s images are a simple recreation of everyday life with the same controlled styling of a movie set.
The lighting in this image for me is almost calming and she has managed to capture that moment in most peoples day where we all stop and stare just for a small while by simple using a silhouette. By using the silhouette we don’t get a great idea of who this girl is and that makes us relate to the photograph because at some point we have all been the girl in the photograph.
As part of 152Mc we are studying the use of light in photography.
We only have one task for the assignment and that is to create a manual on working with light. The manual has to include all that we have learnt through out the project.
Task 1
To demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcome for developing your research skills and illustrating you understand how to control different lighting techniques, for task 1, using the skills you have already learned on level 1 (video, Indesign, photoshop, lighting diagrams or your choice) you will need to design and produce an instruction manual, to include the information you will be learning on this module.
The manual should be an on going task, which charts all the technical tests and data (including how to make a pinhole camera) learnt in the workshops during this module. Consider the information you would have liked to have, known when you started this module and how this manual could support your learning.
Design the information in an accessible way. Imagine you could present this manual to yourself at the beginning of the module, what would you need to know and how easily could you communicate this?
As a research task we have to research 4 manuals and write small texts about what make them good or bad.
http://cumoodle.coventry.ac.uk/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=30598 This is the link to my post on the News Forum of Good and Bad instruction manuals.
As part of small groups we also had to create a small presentation on Adam Fuss. We decided as a group to all work on a certain section of his work, so I decided to research into Fuss’s snake project.
Adam Fuss’s Snake Project
One of Adam Fuss’s most famous series of pictures is called “Home and the World” The series consists of several photograms with one main focus, Snakes.As a child Adam Fuss spent many hours watching a snake swimming on a pond and its mesmeric patterns remained with him into adulthood where he went to replicate it as an image.
Fuss told the Daily Telegraph that he feels there is a duality of meaning with the snake. It can be viewed as a powerful and positive creature yet quite easily be seen as corrupting and repulsive.
Fuss was keen to delve into Greek Mythology and the legend of Medusa. A creature born from a curse when she broke her celibacy vows and was united in marriage with Poseidon. Using this narrative Fuss combines a wedding dress with several snakes contained inside His dark images are more akin to nightmares but he prefers to think of them as a favourable representation and wants the viewer to see his vipers in a positive light
Fuss himself keeps several snakes in a crate in his New York apartment and they have been involved in his work for several years now. The snakes are reproduced at life scale with ink-dark shadows of their real counterparts captured via the photogram process in a pitch-black studio
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