Black on Black. White on White.

   

The outcome of this project was probably my least favorite out of anything I did all year. Being on the broke end of things until after the holiday, I didn't want to go out and buy objects for this project so I was left to use what's available to me. For me, all of these shots are very plain. Yes, the concept of the title is captured, but there's no real use for them. Something I learned about this year is screen calibration to make sure your colors are right, and since these were all edited on a school computer, on my home computer I'm seeing that either their screen, or my screen isn't calibrated. On the school screen, the colors looked richer and denser - not as much as I'm looking at them from home. Thus far, I've essentially been critiquing myself, but I feel like in every batch, even if you hate the whole shoot, there's one image that stands out. For me, it is definitely the second and third pictures of the cotton ball and the light bulb. Now that it's cold out, I set up my mock up studio in my dining room, and found both of those objects in there. This makes it apparent to me, there is a photograph everywhere - you just need to look for it. I shot all of these in shutter priority mode, my objects are placed on black poster board backed by black foam board. I used a lamp but tried to avoid direct lighting, boning my lamp off a piece of white poster board to reflect it. The amount of "rigged" studio shots I've done this year, I think everyone will be happy to hear I found a cheap studio set up to invest in for the time being. Still, by no means a professional kit but once I start taking pictures with it, I'm sure you'll never be able to tell. Everything is what you make it!

Portraits.

Worked on portrait photography for my Digital One class this week. Some of this is meant to just show different lighting, such as the final picture where the model is lit from underneath. I was able to work with three different friends at three different locations so I definitely got a little more in depth to my project this week. In the photo's of my friend artificially lit against a plain background, they are simply lit with a lamp with him standing in front of poster board hung on the wall. I tend to use poster board for a quick, cheap, seamless background that I can usually just throw away when I'm done with. My favorite shot out of the group is the one where my friend is laughing hysterically. I love candid photo's so much more than posed because I feel they are more truthful. I know I have some photo's on repeat - but that's because I'm still trying to pick a finish. I really enjoy portrait photography. I'm obviously still learning and perfecting but it's great whenever someone wants to jump in front of my camera. Always thankful for the opportunity, and knowing those who aren't camera shy. 

Reaction Paper: Photo Expo

       

       This past weekend I had the opportunity to attend the photo expo at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City. The event was running a short time, from October 30th to November 1st, so I was lucky to catch the last day of the expo. The event showcased companies from all different realms of the photo world, from the large companies like Nikon and Canon, to brands for gear such as Lowepro. They had companies that specialized in camera, lenses, gear, camera accessories, prints, software, and portfolios. Companies that advertised, networked, and created websites even had displays to draw photographers in. At certain booths, you even had the option to buy and sell gear. Essentially, every little corner and necessity of the photo world was in attendance, and there was plenty to do and see - all for free.
        Immediately after entering the Photo Expo, I started to make my way through the aisles and aisles of booths displaying all different things. At many booths there was an opportunity to win contests. One booth was giving away free website design, sigma’s booth giving away a lens, and various other companies offering up prizes to lucky winners. Although I expected the opportunity to be able to get special show pricing on some gear, not many of the booths were actually selling, but rather simply advertising. A positive and great experience of the expo was that many of the booths allowed you to try their products on your camera and personally see what their product can do to improve you and your photos. You could spend hours at the nikon, sigma, canon, or any of the counters trying on different lenses - and that is not an experience you can often get, especially all under the same roof.
       A certain aspect of the photo expo I really enjoyed and appreciated was the free seminar’s offered by many of the different companies. I sat for a few minutes of many seminar’s here and there, but the two seminars I sat entirely through were by Jennifer Rozenbaum at the Sigma stage. Jennifer Rozenbaum is a boudoir photographer who gave seminars on utilizing small spaces as well as her key boudoir poses. I thought her speeches were interesting because I never noticed boudoir photography as something people make their career into, and it’s actually quite beautiful, especially when done by someone with a talent and eye for it. In utilizing small spaces, she made a point that all your furniture should be movable so you can utilize it easily wherever you may need it. Also, when working with a small space you should explore outside the space such as hallways, outdoors, and anywhere else available because sometimes these spaces can be utilized as well. In posing, she actually spoke of how a woman can arch her body the right way in the right light and it makes cellulite almost invisible, without editing. A good technique she uses to get her models comfortable is to do casual photos before they’re posing half naked in front of her, which if done immediately, could make them uncomfortable and stiffen up. I always find it interesting to listen to a photographer speak, especially if they work in a field I find interest in, and Rozenbaum did not disappoint.
      An interesting aspect of Photo Expo was the booths that were interactive. Many studios were set up with models so you could hook up your camera and test out a company’s lighting or equipment. In my pictures above with the model against the white background, I was testing a huge circular light that you stick your head, and camera in the middle of. Although I think the pictures came out nice, mostly thanks to the gorgeous model, I thought the lights were overpowering. It’s nice to have the opportunity to have first hand experiences with equipment though, good or bad, so I know if I’d want to add it to my collection or not. Also, there was a stage where a contestant from the TV show, “Face Off” was applying makeup to nude artists as a piece of art, where photographers could approach and photograph. The models with graffiti pictured above are photos from this stage. Many people surrounded this stage and it was very crowded throughout the day, but when you have live art and a huge expo full of photographers, you can’t expect much else.
      All in all, I thought the Photo Expo was an interesting experience and something every photographers should attend at least once. I was able to gain first hand experience with a lot of equipment as well as learn about it in a way I wouldn’t have been able to otherwise. It’s also always a wonderful experience to hear professional photographers speak as well as be able to personally correspond and ask questions with them. Although I would have enjoyed the opportunity to be able to make some purchases, I wasn’t disappointed that I attended. It definitely made me think more about the gear I have and how I plan on expanding my collection as well as making me further ponder what career path I will be taking with photography. It is a lot to think about, but I’m hopeful with my growing experiences that answer will become clear to me with time.

Night Photography.

For my digital one class this week we had to only shoot pictures at night. As someone who tries to specifically stick to natural light, this was a challenge for me. Essential for night shooting is a tripod and a slow shutter speed. Because of this, it is also hard to capture any motion without a blur. These are just a few of my favorites, as this shoot was not particularly one of my favorites. The last two images are my favorite of the batch. In the picture of my friend smoking, you can tell that the focus is a little off but I found it suiting for the scenario. The high contrast and soft focus definitely give the photo a certain mood of calm. The last photo is of a church most of us have seen in Port Jeff village. In photo shop I edited the image to make the entirety of it black and white, but that cross is actually lit up blue and that color is straight out of camera. Alas, excuse my friends vulgarity. Sometimes, it's hard to get friends to be serious models and you have to take what you can get. I get my friends, who are goofballs. 

Pumpkin Carving.

Photo's from my pumpkin picking process. I'm starting to think the key to getting pumpkin pictures that aren't just visually overbearing is keeping them OUT of sunlight and in the shade. No matter what you do, what lens filter you use, I've always just really never liked the way pumpkins look in pictures. I normally photograph most of my subjects in natural sunlight and feel that is the best way to capture them, but this is the one subject I can say definitely differs. One thing I would have changed about this specific shoot is I needed simpler backgrounds, but this was just something I did quick and mostly for fun, and also while covered in pumpkin guts.