Project 46: Choosing the moment.

I have used some photos taken on a recent trip to Langeudoc in southern France. the previous day we had been at a vineyard, photographing the lovely diagonal lines of the vines with a very interesting hut in the frame. The following day it snowed heavily. We decided to go back again when the snow stopped and see what it would look like.

It was evening time and there were some clouds in the sky. The light change was dramatic over the space of about 20 minutes, as the following sequence shows (I hope!).

The light is hitting the hut now and giving it that nice golden light.

This shot here is the best of them all. The sun came out from behind the clouds and gave this beautiful late evening light. It was very obvious at the time that this was the moment. But a very fleeting one at that ! I think this is my personal favorite for the light but also for the vertical framing which suits better than the horizontal. Comparing this and the previous shot, I think its the proportions of the sky to foreground that looks better in the second shot, more like 1/3 foreground to 2/3's sky in the second shot. It looks better to me.

These last two shots taken a few minutes later show the change in the light, its definitly bluer -cooler.

Project 47; Twilight

Here is a series of photographs taken around sunrise. The series starts with the later shots first. While I like the earlier and therefore darker shots and the silhouette effect, at least in this series I would prefer the lighters shots that show the cloud detail in the sky better.

I found it amazing how quickly the light changes, in fact every time I am in this situation I find the same thing, it changes so fast that it is easy to miss it. I also noticed that I have a tendency to fiddle with the camera and not pay attention to the scene in front of me.

For some of the photos in this series I have used a polarising filter, for some I have used a variable ND filter to achieve longer exposures and soften the clouds and for some I have used nothing at all.

I have edited the photos in adobe light room to change the blue colour in the sky to more violet and also to bring out the contrast.

project 45; Picture count.

I have found the following photos in history that use side lighting;

The open door by William Henry Fox Talbot on Page 21.

Baskets By Doris Ulmann, the frontpiece.

Ghizch by Francis Bedford page 37.

Greene County, Georgia by Jack Delano on Page 157.

A Public meeting in Estremadura By David Seymour on page189.

Misicians platform by Kurt Benning P 233.

Back lit;

El Umbral by Manuel Alvarez on Page 220.

Académie by Robert Demachy on P. 93

Frontal

Rome 1968 by Harry Callahan.

Weigh in room entrance by Laurence cutting on P231.

Schillerslage by Heinrich Riebesehl on P235.

The Bicycle by Paul Strand on page155.

Miss Thompson by Clarence White and Alfred Stieglitz on P. 89.

Edge Lighting

Recruiting Sergeants at Westminster by John Thompson on Page 63.

Project 43; Through the day.

06.22 AM.

07.22 AM.

10.30 AM.

11.43 AM.

14.40.

The colour change is very noticeable. Blue and cool early in the morning and getting whiter as the day progresses. The shots around midday are very white. I was amazed early in the morning, at how quickly the shadows change, there was a noticeable difference over a few minutes. Also I like the how useful the shadows were at hiding details that I would consider unattractive. I can see how this would be a useful device in composition.

Project 41; Your eyes sensitivity to colour.

The photographs from projects 32 and 33 arranged in order of the eyes sensitivity to colour.

Project 49; Graduated filters

0.6 nd grad used.

0.3 nd grad used.

no grad used.

Its easier to see the fall off in light between the first and last photo. On zooming in more noise can be seen also.

The photo on the left is taken without a graduated filter and the one on the right was taken with one. Both were taken at f 14 and 1/60th of a second and ISO 100. The second photo is an improvement, there is more cloud detail in the sky.

One thing I have noticed with graduated filters is that in some situations noise is more pronounced. I am not certain whether that is because of the amount of graduation, perhaps the higher the f stop difference the increase in dynamic range causes noise?

Project 48; Cloudy and dull weather.

Here the cloudy day has given the subject more even lighting. The detail in the rocks below the turret is clear, I don't think it would be so clear on a sunny day. The shadow detail would be lost.

I have noticed that colours are clearer on a dull or overcast day.

The first photo was taken at ISO 250. F14 and 1/60 second. the second was taken at ISO 400. F14 and 1/160 second. I notice that the shadow detail in the cloudy picture is better, softer. The difference between the highlights and shadows are less distinct. There is a colour difference. The orange rust colour of the statue is different. On zooming in there is a bluer hue to it.

Here is a closer look at the modeling affect of the different lighting. I think the softer light is better in this case. More detail can be seen in the statue, the lines in the metal work can be seen better in the overcast shot. In the clear day shot the distinct shadow are more of a focus than the first shot.