Aperture Photographs

Aperture is a hole within the lens which lets light travel through into the camera body – the size of this hole controls the amount of light let through and the depth of field.  Depth of field is what controls what is in focus and what is blurred. A small aperture (f22 – f11) -  means that the depth of field will be large and a large (f2.8 – f5.6) aperture means the depth of field will be small. A larger aperture also lets more light in, while a smaller aperture lets less light in. A small aperture is useful in high light situations in which you want only the image in the foreground to be in focus. Using a large aperture in high key lighting situations means the image can be under exposed, but the entire image will be in focus. I you want to use a larger aperture in high key lighting situations you should lower the ISO, or lower the shutter speed if you have a tripod.

Shutter Speed: 1/40   F5.6   ISO: 200

Shutter Speed: 1/40   F4.5   ISO: 200

Shutter Speed Photographs

High ISO can cause noise and a grainer image quality, so in some cases it would be better to use a lower shutter speed given that you have a tripod or something to support the camera, since lower shutter speed can cause more blur if moved even slightly. For handheld you should never use a shutter speed lower than 1 / 60th Lower shutter speed also has no effect on image quality, only lighting, so there well be no noise or graininess on the photograph. Also, a higher shutter speed lets less light in, while a lower one lets more light in. A very high shutter speed like 1 / 1000th is also used to freeze action.

ISO Photographs

ISO is the level of sensitivity of your camera to light. The lower that the ISO is the less sensitive your camera is to light, whereas the higher the ISO the more sensitive it will be to light. A lower ISO (100 – 400) works best in high key lighting situations while higher ISO settings (3200 – 6400) work better in situations where there is low key lighting.  The ISO also has no effect on the amount of blur that will be caused when moving it, so it is good to use a higher ISO instead of a lower shutter speed when in dark areas if you don’t have a tripod or anything to put the camera on to keep it steady.

 Shutter Speed: 1/15   F-stop: 4.0

 Shutter Speed: 1/15   F-stop: 4.0

Shutter Speed: 1/15   F-stop: 4.0

ISO, Shutter Speed & Aperture Definitions

ISO

ISO is the level of sensitivity of your camera to light. The lower that the ISO is the less sensitive your camera is to light, whereas the higher the ISO the more sensitive it will be to light. A lower ISO (100 – 400) works best in high key lighting situations while higher ISO settings (3200 – 6400) work better in situations where there is low key lighting.  The ISO also has no effect on the amount of blur that will be caused when moving it, so it is good to use a higher ISO instead of a lower shutter speed when in dark areas if you don’t have a tripod or anything to put the camera on to keep it steady.

Shutter Speed

High ISO can cause noise and a grainer image quality, so in some cases it would be better to use a lower shutter speed given that you have a tripod or something to support the camera, since lower shutter speed can cause more blur if moved even slightly. For handheld you should never use a shutter speed lower than 1 / 60th. Lower shutter speed also has no effect on image quality, only lighting, so there well be no noise or graininess on the photograph. Also, a higher shutter speed lets less light in, while a lower one lets more light in. A very high shutter speed like 1 / 1000th is also used to freeze action.

Aperture

Aperture is a hole within the lens which lets light travel through into the camera body – the size of this hole controls the amount of light let through and the depth of field.  Depth of field is what controls what is in focus and what is blurred. A small aperture (f22 – f11) means that the depth of field will be large and a large (f2.8 – f5.6) aperture means the depth of field will be small. A larger aperture also lets more light in, while a smaller aperture lets less light in. A small aperture is useful in high light situations in which you want only the image in the foreground to be in focus. Using a large aperture in high key lighting situations means the image can be under exposed, but the entire image will be in focus. If you want to use a larger aperture in high key lighting situations you should lower the ISO, or lower the shutter speed if you have a tripod.

A Powerful Photograph

I don't know if i would necessarily call this photograph powerful, but its photo's like this that get an extremely strong nostalgic response from me. I would often see these sets on shelves in toy stores when i was 4 or 5, and i had most of the sets in this picture. My mother would always build these with me, and it was one of the most fun things i could do at that age, and my earliest memory is getting my first BIONICLE (specific set not in this image). This LEGO line has been with me for as long as i can remember, and these specific sets were my obsession as a very young child, and so when i look back at images like this i feel an extremely strong sense of nostalgia to the point it often makes me sad, knowing that that time is now over.

I also associate this line with my father, because after not seeing him for what seemed like an eternity at that age, the first time i saw him again he got a BIONICLE set (my first ever BIONICLE set) out of his car and gave it to me. This because something of a tradition every time i'd see my father for the next 4 years. When i lived in Wales for a while, me an my mum would always build the sets seen on the far left, and to this day are still my favorite LEGO sets ever released. 

The photo isn't shot in an inventive way, nor does it speak any sort of message or lesson, it simply reminds me of an absolutely huge part of my childhood - and photo's like this never fail to trigger an extremely strong emotional response from me. I was obsessed with these as a child, and the older i get the happier i get when i look back on photos like these.

Alot of people would say "but they're just toys, they just meant to make money off you", but to me they're a lot more than that. All of my earliest memories revolve around something involving these, and so when i see these classic sets again a can't help but see them as a huge part of my childhood.

[SUMMER TASK] Photographs

This photograph is of my little sister Bo Pixie. It was the 2nd of two photographs that i took, but i decided to use this one simply because i liked how everything in the image is blurred with the exception of my sister. The other photograph i took had everything in focus.

The fact that everything is blurred and out of focus reflects what my sister is doing, which is watching youtube videos. Its almost as if she cuts herself out from reality and is only focused on the computer screen. The fact that everything is blurred almost makes it seem like time is moving faster around her while she sits still on the computer for hours on end.

These are drawings that have been done for me by various comic book artists who have worked on 2000AD strips. The nearest one was done by Carlos Ezquerra just over 3 years ago, and the further one was done by Glen Fabry, just over one year ago.

I chose these to photograph mainly because they are by artists who i still hold a lot of respect for, and who's work i still enjoy and appreciate, even if i'm not as much into the comic books they provide their artwork for anymore. The drawing in the foreground is Judge Dredd, and i chose to photograph the drawing with half his face lit, and half in shadow because it reflects the nature of the character, who has a dark past that he covers up with constant devotion to the law.

I chose this form of lighting and a low angle shot so that i could give it a sense of dominance and power. Its also a similar sort of lighting that you may see at a concert at night, also, the fact that its higher than the camera almost gives the impression that its on a stage.

This is a photograph of some games that i really enjoy which i still own on disk. I chose to display them like this as its a much more eye catching and interesting look at the covers than if i'd just displayed them stacked up. I also used a relatively low angle to give them a sense of power - like with my photograph of the guitar.

My father rescued this stray cat about 2 weeks ago, and after undergoing a large operation she made our house her new home. While she is a relatively new addition to my life, she still means alot to me. 

I chose to conceal part of her face to reflect the fact that she would often hide from my sisters, and this image almost makes her seem like she's peering over a cushion to look around.

This is a photo of a small part of my BIONICLE collection. I chose to photograph this because my earliest memory is receiving my first BIONICLE set, and is still a big part of my life.

I chose to photograph it fairly close up in order to exaggerate the amount, by making the amount seem too overwhelming for the camera to photograph it once. While this was a very small pile of pieces, the photograph made it seem like there were a lot more.

While its not exactly a very striking or interesting picture, its still something that means a lot to me.

I chose not to photograph too many family members or friends because i was afraid a lot of other people would do this, and also it seems like an obvious choice when photographing things that mean a lot to you. Instead i chose to mainly go for things that are linked to my likes, hobbies or my childhood. The exceptions to this are the cat and my sister.

[SUMMER TASK] Artist Analysis - Bill Brandt

Bill Brandt is a British photographer who was born in Germany on May 2nd 1904 and died 10th of December 1983. He is assumed to have begun Photography in 1920. In 1931 he was a staff photographer for the home office where he documented the suffering of Londoners during the bombing raids. Night photography became one of Brandt's specialties, and used his families contacts in order to gain access to a variety of subjects. He would often distort his photos such as by adding contrasts to make the image seem darker, and would often take very surreal and abstract photographs. He would use perspective to distort what's in the foreground to create an image that's more visually unique. He is Britain's most successful and most inventive black and white photographer, and is most well known for his portraits and reportage work, but also has a passion for landscape photography. He is also known for social documentaries and distorted nudes.

Brandt considered  taking the photos to be a small part of the process, and would adjust his photos in a dark room. He could crop, dodge and burn and collage his photographs. He would also sometimes use a 'day for night' technique to change the time of day presented in the photograph. He would say that "he is not interested in rules and conventions" and that "its the result that counts."

In 1944 he used a 1931 Kodak with a wide angle lens to photograph crime scenes and was inspired by the cinematography of films such as Citizen Kane. He would sometimes spend years returning to places he knew he wanted to photograph just to get the right atmosphere.

I like how the lack of colour in this photo makes the setting seem unpleasant or gloomy which is uncommon for photos of beaches and other settings like this. The ear in the foreground gives the impression that the photographer is telling you to listen to the sounds and ambience of the beach. There are also no other people in the photograph which gives a sense of isolation and is telling you that the only sound that you would be able to hear is the ocean and the birds. 

Bill Brandt would often manipulate his photographs in ways such s adding contrast and lowering sauration. This photo seems to bean example of a photograph where the contrast have been raised. The photo makes it difficult to make out whether the line is a path or river, and so it creates a mystery, as whether its a path or river would change the entire feeling of the photo. Due to this the entire photo feels a bit strange and out of the ordinary.

Photography Basics - Resolution & RAW vs JPEG

Resolution:

Resolution shows how many megapixels there are in an image. The higher the resolution the higher quality. 1080p is considered HD, and 2k / 4k are considered 'ultra' HD. If there are less pixels the image will be less smooth and be blocky or blurred. The best PPI to print at is 300. The higher PPI the higher quality the image will be.

While higher resolution does look a lot better on larger screens, if you look at higher quality images on a smaller screen or player (e.g. turning a youtube video onto 1080p but not putting it in full screen) it can cause jagged edges and an image which looks very rough.

RAW vs JPEG:

RAW photographs have less contrast, look more washed out and are less saturated than JPEGs. They are also not suitable for printing straight from the camera. JPEGs are sharper than RAW images. Having shot with a camera that takes RAW images, i often have to increase the contrast and levels in post in order to get a better looking image. RAW file sizes are also much larger than JPEGs, meaning more photos can be taken when using JPEG. Shooting in RAW also means that you can correct mistakes once they have been imported into a computer easier than when using a JPEG, meaning you have much more control over how your image looks.