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The 5x4 Scan

Scan of the edited negative.

In the scan session, I turned on the Hasselblad X1 scanner and opened Flexicolor software on the desktop of the computer. When the latch was down on the scanner, I found the 5x4 negative holder and inserted it negative side up, clarifying that all the corners of the positive where aligned equally together on the platform supported by the magnets. To check if the positive was positioned correctly, I used the gloves to avoid applying fingerprints and gently moved until no light was seen around the edge of the positive - preview scan also allowed me to check if the position was correct. Before scanning, I used the Fotospeed Negative Cleaner and the Kenair (Air Duster) to remove particles of dust and finger marks that had appeared on the positive, if I hadn’t had removed them at this staged it would have increased the amount of post-production work. On Flexcolor, I selected RBG for the colour positive and the 5x4 frame box and the highest possible resolution of 2040ppi to maintain the maximum detail in the scan. Once I had setup Flexcolor I was able to preview the scan to make any final amendments, if all was ok I could then scan and save the file to the desktop. The scan took around 8-10 minutes and then appeared on screen. I have displayed the original scan (below) and the edit (above), you can see the clear contrast between the two images, in the edited image I decreased the intensity of the blue and reds from the original. After I had corrected the colours, I used the Healing Tool to remove highlights in the background, seen in the top right of the original, to help maintain the subject as the main focus in the frame removing anything that distracts the viewer.

I will soon print out the edited image at A3 in the repo room.

Original Scan.

Photograph of the scanner and the setup.

Photograph displays Hasselblad Scanner during scanning the positive.

#workshop outcome #scan

Final Shoot with 5x4:

The 5x4 shoot happened in the same setup as the digital test shoot, I just simply replaced the DSLR and the tripod for the large format tripod and the 5x4. I made slight adjustments to the 5x4 optics to position the lamp central in the frame with surrounding space to employ the emotions and atmospheres into the image. Before taking the photograph, I did the calculations for the Inverse Square Law, displayed below.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Light 2.7, light meter: f.22, 1/125th

Object = 26cm

Image = 6cm

26 ÷ 6 = 0.23 + 1 = 1.51 (half a stop)

so, aperture between f.16 and 22

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was pleased with the result of the 5x4, it appeared the same as the digital test shoot results. I believe the photograph communicates the events of the miners strike and also the mining industry through the inanimate object assisted through the atmospheres transferred from the events portrayed in the image. I am extremely proud of the final outcome of the image and can’t wait to scan the photograph on the Hasselblad on the 22nd.

Photograph of the setup with the 5x4.

Photographs of the 5x4 produced on the lightbox, before scanning.

#workshop outcome #final outcome #shoot review

Test Shoot with DSLR: Review

I wanted to begin by taking test shots on the DSLR before setting the 5x4 up, so I set up a set in the studio with a black backdrop to help emphasise the dark memories from the miners strike symbolising the poverty and the fascist attack of the government on the workers As the 5x4 has a fixed focal length of 150mm, I would need to use an 80mm focal length on the DSLR due to the equal aspect ratio, to replicate the vision making the test shoot specific to the recording that will be perceived in on the 5x4. Obviously, between the 5x4 and the DSLR, the photographer will never be able to perceive exactly the same optics but this is the reason for the test shoot.

Firstly, I began by using the Miners Strike related items that I’d brought from home to create a set, or a collage of materials to photograph, experimenting with the composition as I was unsure of the visible aspect at this point. I synced Capture One to the DSLR so I would be able to analyse my photographs instantly on-screen to adjust the visualities. Once the items were placed, I began studying their foundational aesthetics through shapes to avoid the frame being over cluttered, the use of symmetry allowed the images balance their self in the frame, avoiding a side being heavier than the other. I noticed that this would only be achievable by using minimal items in the frame, I began to cut down on the objects in the set; using eventually only the my grandad’s pit lamp and the ‘Enemy Within’ t-shirt with a softbox at 3.5 with flash at 6.2, photographing at ISO 100, 1/125th and f.18 allowing minimal light but just enough to keep the objects in focus. I then focused specifically on the t-shirt alone, slightly crumbled to symbolise the rough hard labour and the rough violent events that took place at the collieries and picket lines. I liked the simplicity of the images depicting single objects, it worked in applying an absence through the ambience in the images, once an everyday object, now a historical artefact. I explored further with the idea of using single subjects to represent the series of events that occurred - I believed the best object that would reflect my opinions and beliefs across to the audience to interpret would be the pit lamp sat alone in a low-key lit environment, without the use of the light to create a metaphor about the mining industry and the communities of millions.

After making several adjustments to the aperture and shutter speed assisted with Capture One, I slowly began to create a mental vision of the pit lamp image based upon the concept of the shoot. I wanted to light the lamp from above to help build the highlights around the brass to create a three-dimensional shape with the shadows, so I rented out a snoot with a honeycomb filter to position above the lamp with the boom stand. The original softbox light was still positioned to the left of the subject creating highlights down the lamp, allowing the snoot to assist one another. The highlights became slightly too contrasted down the centre of the lamp, removing detail from the subject, so to amend this, I used a reflector and asked Alec to help and positioned it to the right of the subject to remove the dense highlights down the centre of the lamp. I didn’t want to reduce the lighting as the set was as already extremely dark and I feared that removing any more light would remove detail from around the lamp, so to maintain a good exposure and detail would be essential for this subject. At the moment, I was using 1/40th, ISO 100 and f.22 from light metre reading on the subject - at this point, I felt I was ready to take the photograph.

I was extremely happy with the result of the test shoot on the DSLR, I felt that I have transferred my mental vision of the image onscreen, it was exactly how I wanted to represent the pit lamp. I believe the test shoot was effective to analyse a pre-perspective of the object before capturing it on 5x4, the set is all ready for the 5x4 camera now, I just need to move the DSLR tripod and replace with a large format. I also noticed how much the images relate to the Clare Strand ‘Skirts’ series with the same central composition, applying the same absence and mystery into the images.

Photograph of the setup for the test shots.

Photographs below in correct order from the beginning of the shoot to the end.

#workshop outcome #test shoot review

Test Shoot: Review

In this shoot, I took the concept of the first idea into practice and began taking test shots at the Brudenell Social Club. I know the original idea was to photograph inanimate objects in working men's’ clubs, in Barnsley, that would represent my background and life before Leeds, however, in the test shot I wanted to take photographs at a nearby club to help me gather an understanding of what I may need to change or arrange when shooting the final images; so I used the Brudenell as an example to assist.

I arrived at the club on a Sunday morning and asked one of the cleaners if it was ok to take photographs, in which she agreed just as the locals began to pile in. Although I wasn’t happy with the results gained from the shoot, I believe they lacked a visual characteristic and significance, that actually generated another idea. I am really interested in using post-production in my photographic practice, so I wondered why I couldn’t edit the images with bright contemporary colours to create a vibrancy in the working men's’ clubs, symbolising an ultimate contrast from the old outdated to appeal to younger generations. It’d convey a different context in the images from a standard documentation to a photographic/graphic collaboration. Once scanned the final 5x4 colour transparency, I can easily open the document in Photoshop to begin transforming the image by applying the graphical influence. I edited the photographs by simply adjusting the colour balance on Photoshop, applying coloured filters colour dropping the highlights and shadows in each of the images. These images are only a rough example to display the idea, the edits give me a reference point to help show what I will need to do for the final shoot, which is definitely to take more photographs as I don’t believe the filtered images do the shoot justice.

The original images from the first shoot:

Edited Images:

I am not happy with the results of the edited images, I felt there was a restriction with the post-production that I wasn’t able to achieve much from the imagery. I may need to re-think the approach to this concept.

#test shoot review #review #workshop outcome

5x4 Refresher Session & Mini-Brief

In this workshop session, we were assigned to create an image that advertised an item given to us. We had to think about the commercial values in photography and transfer them to our object to develop a visual language to the audience that this image is an advertisement - considering the composition, the aesthetic value, lighting, perspective, and magnification. In advertising photography, the main subject is always the main focus in the image as it is the context, so the product had to fill half or more of the frame whilst considering any additional items we could have included. Our subject was a tin of beans, we created a small set on the table featuring the sauce and small blu-tack balls in the sauce along the set, in pure experimentation but obeying the boundaries of commercial photography. We originally wanted to pour beans across a manakins head with the camera positioned from above to capture a close-up portrait of the manakin with the beans, however, it didn’t communicate the brief at all and took a more artistic creative route which didn’t advertise the item commercially. So instead, we all agreed to keep the subject on the table with the sauce around it. Only one single light was used to mid-key light the set positioned towards the subjects and parallel with the camera, to create a visual significance on the subject by highlighting the main focal elements. We used the Inverse Square Law; beans 11cm & beans onscreen 5cm, 11 ÷ 5 = 0.45 > 0.45 + 1.45 = 2.10 (increase the stop by 1) so from f.32 to f.22 with 1/125th of a second. I found this task extremely hard and frustrating due to the group I had been assigned with. I felt it was only myself attempting to do the work, which made it difficult for me to control everything, however, we got there in the end and took the photograph. In a result to this, the final image didn’t expose when developed and I was slightly disappointed.

#workshop outcome

Workshop Outcome

In this workshop session, we learnt the Schiempflug principle and how it affects the optical perspective to create a maximum depth of field. It can be applied to any camera where the film planes can be adjusted, it’s a geometric rule that describes the orientation of the plane of focus of an optical system. In an example, the photographer is about to take a photograph but wants maximum focus in the image, focus on the background at f/5.6 but the foreground is out of focus, the photographer changes the focus to the foreground but the background now appears out of focus. It’s at this point that the Schiempflug principle becomes relevant to achieve the maximum depth of field. So, the photographer will make sure that everything is set to zero with spirit level checks on the 5x4 camera, and to open the aperture to minimise depth of field. Once the scene is focused with the loupe, and to a point in the image, probably better to start with the background focused and work the focus into the foreground. The depth of field dial on the camera will attract the foreground into the focus, then the Schiempflug dial will calculate the movement you need to do to get maximum depth of field and focus. There is also an anti-Schiempflug principle which creates a very minimum depth of field whilst using smaller apertures (eg, f.22). I personally find it easier to do in practise, than to write about what I am doing, although I’ve added diagrams below of the principle.

After we’d be taught the principle, we were assigned to experiment with it in a location outside the studio to perceive the optical changes in the tilt-shift effect. We were set a short task to work in groups and photograph the giant block outside of college, where we could focus on applying the Schiempflug principle to alter the image effectively, which differentiates the interpretations gained by the viewers of the subject matter.

Photographs of diagrams of the Scheimpflug Rule.

Photograph of my group working to achieve maximum focus on the leading path of the stairs in college.

The photographs below show our results from this shoot.

In the photographs below, I have displayed a group photograph of us each individually analysing our colour transparency advertising image we’d taken of the Moams in previous sessions.

Image of Moam’s from the previous shoot, when experimenting with the Inverse Square Law.

#workshop outcome

‘Transience’ Mini-Brief

“the state or fact of lasting only for a short time; transitoriness.”

In the 5x4 workshop, we were assigned in groups of three a mini-brief to submit five images, by 4:30 pm the same day, that symbolise ‘transcience’. The images had to be interior and exterior, on-location and in the studio - there were no limitations to the approach or style of the image, but to maintain relevance towards ‘transience’. I wasn't familiar with this word before this session, however, I learnt it defines time and something that may only last for a short period of its existence. I wanted to focus on a subject that I am relatively familiar with or that I see in everyday life. In my group was myself, Alec and Michael, we all specialise in different styles of photography but agreed to work together in friendship. Although the project featured specialising with the 5x4 camera, the brief stated we should use a DSLR, so we rented out a Canon 5D, 16-24mm lens and tripod. Initially, my first reaction to the brief was to capture images of shadows, which later I realised could only be possible with human shadows as rigid structures will get the same shadow each day, but only once a day. Soon after this, we noticed a torn Peter Andre concert poster hanging from a billboard outside of the university - it then registered, that entertainment advertisements are only archives after the event, but mainly just rubbish. Once a work of art, after a date, becomes nothingness. I really liked this concept, so we decided to develop upon it by composing landscape and portrait image’s of the billboard aligning the subject central with everyday traffic passing by. It symbolises the countdown to the posters day of unworthiness, how time will still continue, but the posters relevance will not. The other posters will remain significant but this posters relevance will not, whilst people are persistent.

Shortly after, I began exploring the complexity of the billboards, studying aesthetics and the layering of existing posters, in a similar style to the concepts of Strand and Irving Penn. I began to approach the billboard up close, taking photographs of the textures and materials seen. After analysing them, I noticed a strong correlation between the practice of the Dada photographic montage artists, Raoul Hausmann and Hannah Hoch due to the collaborative mix of unknown and known advertisements in the frame, in the removal of their identity - removing main or central focuses. It allows the viewer to analyse the composition in full rather than from significance in a subject, whereas, in my photograph each element in the frame is equal. I noticed the comparison between my work and Hausman/Roach’s visually, due to the cluttered atmospheres assisted by the removal of main focuses - the composition of the photographic frame combines the different advertisements together in unison, mixing and collaborating the materials, rebelling against their conventions and allowing the viewer to study their textures rather than their purpose. In our group, we continued to collaborate together in capturing photographs around Leeds of the same advertisement billboards.

After about 2 hours on location, I decided to tear down a part of the advertisement we had been photographing to later use in the studio. Once we got in the studio, we all agreed that we should photograph the torn poster in a commercial style to expose the authorship of the abstract textures, as to anyone who doesn’t know they are posters they would struggle to guess - it would work as a description for the other images. If this wasn’t photographed commercially the viewer may perceive fine art photography influences, which isn’t bad it’s just not what we strived to achieve. Although, originally, it was suggested to continue capturing the textures in the studio, but we decided that the abstract textures needed a reference. Once we had set up our workspace, we accumulated the relevant camera settings; 1/125th, 100 ISO, F.4 with 2.0 on a single light using an umbrella positioned above and to the left of the subject to capture dense shadows beneath the creases. I pinned the torn poster onto a foam reflector in the studio with drawing pins with the back exposed, I debated using the drawing pins but I liked the characteristics it portrayed, which again symbolised the revolt against conventions and arts expectations, why can’t you exhibit the back of a torn poster? I thought the way we approached the photographs, with studying and the exposing aspects, linked closely with the Taryn Simon series ‘An American Index of the Hidden And Unfamiliar’ 2007, as Taryn’s positioned the photographs on one page and the text on the other, forcing the viewer to interpret the image from their own perspective. Once read the description, your perspective of the images shifts to understanding the photographer's intentions for the shoot. It’s almost like a game.

Photograph by Taryn Simon ‘An American Index of the Hidden And Unfamiliar’ 2007.

In my opinion, I am really happy with the results of this brief and believe they creatively communicate the brief effectively. I wish to expand upon the idea. I have made arrangements with Mike and Alec to continue collaborating together to capture a larger series of images for maybe a publication. If I was to do this again next time, I would plan in advance the studio space, although we had them booked out as a group we were limited to the spaces we could use when and where. It left us hanging around for a while waiting until a studio space was free, apart from this, I felt the brief was fun working under the pressure of a tight deadline and believe we have resulted in a successful short series of images.

#mini-brief #workshop outcome

Workshop Session: Inverse Square Law

In this workshop session, we learnt how to load film into the 5x4 camera and also, about the Inverse Square Law. We began by setting up the camera, tripod and our studio space, I wanted to take a photograph but the width of the bellow was greater than the focal length of the lens, so this is where the Inverse Square Law formula is applied. Once the camera had been set up we planted an iPhone in front of our subject (again the box) that we focus. Next, we started to measure the distance of the bellow (275mm) and also the lens which we knew was 150mm (as stated). Indicating that the bellow extension is longer than the focal length. The next step was to measure the size of the iPhone (122mm) and the size of the onscreen projection (75mm), from the results it allows us to understand that the onscreen recording is magnified. If you measure an aperture with a light metre on the object you’re about to photograph, by the time the light reaches the screen it will diminish - this introduces the Inverse Square Law. The Inverse Square Law states that ‘a specified physical quantity or intensity is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the source of that physical quantity’ the concept that if you double the distance between the light and the subject, you need four times as much light to get the same exposure. If you reduce the distance between the light and the subject by half, you only need one-quarter as much light to have the same exposure. As seen from the diagrams below, the light spreads out and loses strength, the inverse-square law teaches us how light works over distance and why the distance between your light source and your subject is so important.

The formulae to the Inverse Square Law. The formula is only used if the width of the bellow is greater than the focal length of the lens.

(Onscreen Image ÷ Object Size + 1) x2

So, for example:

15÷22 = 0.6+1 = 2√1.6 (x2)

1.6 x 1.6 = 2.5

* When using the formula for the Inverse Square Law, you must consider the aperture adjustments to the depth of field in the images.

Diagram displaying the Inverse Square Law.

Loading the Film:

Understanding how to load film on a 5x4 camera is a very important aspect, not only to take the photograph correctly but to make sure the film doesn’t get ruined as the paper is highly expensive. I found it pretty easy to load the film on the 5x4, but there are steps you must remember to make it easier for yourself. The first step, if only using one film strip only take out the required sleeve to avoid confusion. The second step, whilst in a light-tight environment, slide out the sleeve and insert the paper emulsion side up notified by the notches to the top right and make sure the film slides underneath the runners and close it tight. The third step, once it is locked into the light-tight sleeve, it can be inserted into the film plane (back of the camera). The fourth step, when ready to take the photograph slide out the sleeve whilst the film remains in the plane and take the photograph, then insert the sleeve back into the film holder (white side out) and remove from the camera. It is usually a good idea to mark the holder with something to warm others that you have film inside.