Exercise: Positioning the horizon

The frame may be divided into many areas but one of the most common situations is where the frame is divided by the horizon line.  In the exercise, we were asked to choose a viewpoint with an unbroken clear horizon and to try and arrange the horizon into different positions.  I chose to photograph Onetangi beach which is on Waiheke Island, off the coast of Auckland.

the horizon is placed low in the  frame which emphasises the sky - this produces quite a static image here and on reflection I could have placed the horizon lower.

 placed centrally, there is an equal division in the frame and the rocks in the foreground add interest.

the horizon is placed high allowing the foreground to dominate giving a greater depth to the view.

I walked a bit further up the beach and took this shot from a low angel, the foreground in this is dominant - I wanted to draw the viewer's attention to pattern on the sands as it moves the viewer's eye forward.

Conclusion:  It is interesting to see how the placement of the horizon can affect the image. I am not convinced by the effect the low horizon gives in the above image of the beach -  I prefer the sense of depth when the horizon is placed high in the frame.  The exercise has raised my awareness of "division" in the frame, and in future I think I will make a conscious effort to think more constructively about where to place the horizon. In particular, I guess I wont be too afraid to place the horizon high.. as experienced in this exercise, I quite like the effect on the image.

Two more images: the first shot is with the horizon placed high in the frame. I wanted to capture some early morning fog as the sun was coming up over an olive grove. In the second picture, I 've placed the horizon low, it is difficult to say which image I prefer as they both seem to have an element of drama with the band of fog.

Exercise: Balance

Balance is the resolution of tension the eye seeks to balance one force with another (1). This exercise focuses on balance using six existing photographs. Balance in this context refers to any of the graphic elements - for example tones, colours and lines.  However, balance is not the only the guiding factor in composition as..."an expressive picture is by no means always harmonious" (2) and an image that does not balance is often more challenging to the viewer.

A

 

 

the child is the larger element, this is offset by the placement of the smaller island on the right hand corner. This produces a balanced image, with some tension though, as the elements are not symmetrical.

B

 

this composition is similar to "A", balance is achieved here with the smaller lily in the far left hand part of the frame and the larger element near the foreground. There is a dynamic balance in the unequal size of the flowers.

C

the bamboo being the only element is centred and symmetrical - it does appear very heavy and thereby in my opinion creates slight tension in an otherwise, undynamic image.

D

again, dynamic tension is balanced with the larger element placed in the right foreground and the smaller element to the left rear.

E

here the dancers are symmetrical and both are weighted equally over the centre (I am trying to improve my photoshop skills for diagram drawing)

F

here the dynamic elements balance each other the narrower pole to the left is taller than the boat and the end of the wharf which I've grouped as one block and I find the weight of the larger element balances the effect of the taller element.

conclusion: this has been a very worthwhile exercise, if anything it has forced me to re-evaluate some of my shots, and on doing so, I realise that a lot of my images verge on the eccentric.  Going forward I will keep in mind the principles of balance and symmetry and try and experiment more with both symmetry and eccentricity. As this course progresses  I am hoping to master the elements of composition.

[1] ,[2]Freeman, Michael, (2007). The Photographer's Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos,  The Ilex Press, pp 40, 41.

Exercise: Focal lengths - and different viewpoints

As we saw in the last exercise, different focal lengths (from the same viewpoint) can alter the perspective or character of an image.  In this exercise, the objective was to experiment with changing the stance or viewpoint by moving forward in a straight line with the camera.  We were asked to photograph a building or person in a setting with enough depth to show the differences in  two photographs, one with a telephoto lens and the other with a wide angel lens. I chose an ornamental feature in a local park.

telephoto @ 105mm from 11.9m

wide angel @ 24mm from 1.7m

In the first image, I framed the fountain tightly to fit the vertical frame. I was 11.9m from the subject and you can see the telephoto lens brings the subject closer. I am not certain though, whether this image is a bit flat.

For the second shot, I used the wide angle view and walked forward to a distance of 6.5 m from the subject to try and replicate the telephoto shot.  You can see the difference here, you can see the pond at the bottom of the fountain - something which was not visible in the telephoto shot.  Seemingly there is a difference in perspective here.

I have had to think quite carefully about the last two exercises, I don't think I had appreciated how much of an effect on perspective - changing an angel of view could be - I would never have thought about comparing the images through the viewfinder by walking forward in a straight line as I did above. 

Conclusion:

1. The point to remember is that the focal length of the lens determines the angel of view. Changing to a longer lens (telephoto) makes the subject appear closer and effects the amount of view you can take in.

2. If we change our standing point and move with the camera then this also changes the perspective of the image.

The course materials suggest from now on that when we look at scenes we should think in terms of wide-angel shots or telephoto.  Again, I find myself at a point where I really have to cognitively force myself to think like this.

Photographers: Ansel Adams

Today I looked at some of the photographs taken by early photographers (see the link to the  Masters http://www.masters-of-photography.com/index.html (Accessed 2/07/2012)). I was amazed to see the detail and clarity in the images taken on some of the old cameras.  I spent quite sometime looking at the images on this website and could not believe the amazing feel that some of the old film images had. For example,  Ansel Adams' image below,  shows so much skill at producing such detail - all of which had to be done in the darkroom.  The quality of film seems to be unparallelled.

 

Ansel Adams
Minarets, Evening Clouds, California
c. 1937

©The Trustees of the Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust

Exercise: Focal lengths for cameras with variable focal lengths (zoom)

The purpose of this exercise is to demonstrate the impact different focal lengths can have on shots of the same image. We were required to take a number of photographs of the same image, but using different focal lengths on the lens.  My lens range is 24 - 105mm, so I took a photograph at the widest angel setting / focal length of 24mm, one at the mid range about 45mm and then a telephoto @ 105mm.

Photograph one 24mm wide angel.

This photograph uses the smallest focal length and gives us the widest angel of view. This angel captures the wide expansive skyline, hills on the distant horizon and the large expanse of foreground.

Photograph two 45mm standard view

I decided on 45mm as the mid range standard view point on my lens.  Here the hills in the background are more noticeable. The foreground decreases and the bee hives become closer. After viewing this on the monitor, iam more aware of the "long white cloud" - the Maori name for New Zealand is Aotearoa which means the land of the long white cloud.

Photograph three

The long white cloud has disappeared into the top of the frame, and the hills in the background are much more prominant (with the naked eye, they have a 3-D effect, on this picture though they are flat). The bee hive at the forefront is now the dominating feature and the foreground has reduced dramatically.

It has been a day or two since I took the above photographs, and I wanted to re-cap on the intention behind this exercise - basically to consolidate a few points. 

• we have a horizontal gaze which focuses sharply in the middle to vaguely across a wide angel (oval shaped) with our peripheral vision (p 46 of the course materials Photography 1 The Art of Photography). 
• when we use a standard focal length lens we get a similar view as with the unaided eye - albeit sharper across the whole image (in my opinion) not just in the middle as with the unaided eye.
• a telephoto lens, draws the image closer - however, this is not the same thing as moving the camera closer to the subject. As the focal length changes, the character of the image changes, as you can see, with Photograph one, the smallest focal length of 24mm,  gives us the widest angel of view - thereby capturing the distant hills and the wide expansive skyline. In contrast, the narrowest angel of view is captured using the telephoto focal length of 105m. This magnifies the bee hives and draws them closer - the crux is the angel of view narrows as the focal length increases.

The next exercise, focuses on "moving" towards the subject to explore the effect of focal lengths.

Exercise: A sequence of composition

The purpose behind this exercise is to make you think about the practical purposes of composing an image whilst keeping your eye to the viewfinder. I decided to shoot a scene outside one of my local cafes - I had to be quite mindful though of the actual people sitting outside, so I tried my best with about 10 shots.

Photograph 1  Wide angel view of cafe

Here I wanted to capture the people sitting outside on the pavement.  I was not thinking too much about the composition but just viewing the scene through the viewfinder to see what caught my eye. 

Photograph 2

I moved in slightly and shot the mid scene.  It was at this point, when I realised I should have probably had my settings on aperture priority or on automatic. I was still wondering what to focus in on. A group of women in the far right hand corner caught my eye.

Photograph 3

I thought I could compose a shot out of the group of women in the background -  I later cropped this shot - unfortunately I could not get closer in without attracting too much attention to myself.

Photographs 4 - 7

I then moved to the centre of the pavement and decided that I would focus on the woman in the foreground with the tan jacket.  I took about 5 shots, and after printing these, I decided that they produced the most interesting focus - the final photo of the hands and mobile being the tighest framing.

I decided to have another go at this exercise and took some shots at a busy Sunday market.  It was slightly easier this time, I was a little bit more inconsipcuous.

In the series of photographs here, the stall owner is having a dialouge with a customer. I took a wide angel view of the scene and then a few mid shots and finally zoomed in on the father and son who had been at the stall.   I quite like my final shot, eventhough it is a bit blurred.

In conculsion, this exercise highlighted the importance of actually "moving" around your potential subject to explore the best composition.  I had to force myself to keep the viewfinder up to my eye.  I may try this exercise with a landscape - just ro reinforce the principles here. 

Exhibitions

Today, I had the opportunity to visit the Auckland Musuem which was hosting the National Geographic Wildlife Photography Exhibition.  It was amazing to see some of the incredible shots, the photographers must dedicate a large part of their lives to waiting for the exact moment to capture life through the lens.

The centre photograph of the pelicans covered in oil from an oil spill was the overall winner. It was very moving and certainly highlights this sort of tradegy which happens all too often.