Walker Art Gallery

I have decided it's time i got out and started to look at other peoples work, so this Saturday, i'm going to head off to Liverpool and visit the Walker Art Gallery.
At the moment, they are showing 9 pieces of work by the Turner prize winning artist Wolfgang Tillman.


Paper Drop (London) 2008
http://tillmans.co.uk/

I am looking forward to seeing his work, not only as i find his style simple but powerful but because it encourages the viewer to look at his work and how it is displayed, not just at the subject in the image. This i hope will give me a little more insight in how to balance a image within a frame, and to allow me to possibly put more thought into the overall effect my photographs will have.
This is going to be my first ever visit to an art gallery, so i am not too sure what to expect, but i am positive i will take something away from viewing someone Else's work close up.

Also, it will give me a chance to go out and try and take some decent photographs of Liverpool.
While I'm there, i shall try and get some more work done for my assignment and course work, This time i will be a little more prepared and take a note book with a list of things to try and achieve, plus i will try and remember my tripod this time.
I hope this day out will result in at least one or two decent images or at least a few things i can take away with me to think about.
What ever the outcome of this trip, at least i will have had the opportunity to view not only a great city but some great photographs and been to my first gallery.

Assignment 1: Contrasts

Possible images for this assignment


I will post some of my images on here,  not sure which images i will use yet.
Am still thinking about 8 pairs that i need to choose, at the moment i have decided to go for:

Straight/Curved,
Many/Few
Black/White
Liquid/Solid
Light/Dark
Hard/soft
Smooth/Rough
Transparent/Opaque

Many                                              

Curved

Transparent

Hard or Solid

Diagonal

        

Soft

Pointed

Few

Straight

Straight 2

Liquid

Opaque

Hard ?

Blunt

Black & White

High

Still

Rounded

Few

Low

Moving

Project 6

Fitting the frame to the subject


For this exercise, i decided to use a steel sculpture that i ride past every night on the way to work. i have been meaning to take some photographs of this for ages, so this exercise seemed like the perfect opportunity.
These images were taken at 2am in the morning, just as it was starting to snow. I tried to just use the available lighting from the street lamps, as this was giving the sculpture a warm copper glow to it.
After taking several test shots, it became clear that some addition lighting was going to be needed as i did not have a tripod with me, and i was not able to hold the camera steady long enough for the exposure time needed.
Unfortunately i did not have a decent flash unit with me so i had to make do with the inbuilt flash.
Even though the flash from my camera was a little harsh, i found that this worked rather well with the steel sculpture, it lit up the bulk of the steel but left the edges with the copper glow from the street lights.

The first image i took was of the sculpture as i first saw it, so there was no real thought behind this one, apart from that i may need to use a flash as the street lighting might not be enough to give the image sufficient light for me to hand hold the camera.

In the second image, i moved closer to the sculpture so i could fill the frame and isolate it from it's surroundings, this i found gave the photograph a more focused and detailed view, and it also allowed me use the flash to light up the main part of the sculpture, but also to retain the copper glow from the street lamps on the edge of the sculpture.

The third image i chose to use was of a close up of the curve, in this image i isolated just a small part of the sculpture, for me this produced a more interesting image, as it leaves you wondering what the object is.
I also like how the light from the cameras flash reflects on the steel, yet you still get a hint of warm copper in the top right from the street lamps, and i think the fine layer of snow adds a touch of coldness to the steel.

On the last image though, i decided to compose the sculpture so it only occupied a small area of the photograph, and i decided to just use the street lights as the position i was standing in allowed just enough light for me to take the photograph at 1/30 sec with an ISO of 1600.
This gave the final image a more natural feel to it, and i felt it showed the sculpture off well in its natural environment.

Notes


I found this exercise has taught me how, just by simply moving around an object, your view can change dramatically, plus by filling the frame to different degrees allows you to show the same subject in ways that it is not normally viewed.
Again, i regret the lack of a tripod as this would have given me different results, but i was unable to carry one with me on this occasion.
I am overall very pleased with these images, as this was the first time i have taken photographs outside at night, and was surprised by how different things look at this time of night.

Project 4

 Shutter speeds


In this exercise, i tried to find the slowest shutter speed available to capture the moment when the moving pendulum remained frozen.
I started the series of images with a shutter speed of 1/200th of a second, then took several images, each with a slower shutter speed than previous image.
The pendulum remained frozen until the shutter speed was down to 1/60th of a second. After that point, motion blur started to become more noticeable.
This blurring became more apparent with every further reduction in the shutter speed.

1/200 Sec                                                                      1/125Sec

1/100 Sec                                                                    1/80 Sec

1/60 Sec                                                                      1/50 Sec

1/40 Sec                                                                      1/30 Sec

1/25 Sec                                                                      1/5 Sec

1/2 Sec                                                                        1 Sec

      

Project 3

Focus at different apertures


For this exercise, i needed to take 3 photographs of the same subject using 3 different apertures.
The object of this exercise, was for me to be able to see the effect of using a different aperture has on a image.
The three images were taken with 1 image using the lens at the largest aperture, 1 image with the lens set at a mid point and the final image with the lens at the smallest aperture.


Image 1
F1.8   1/800sec  ISO 1600

This image was taken with the lens set at F1.8 (largest aperture)
As you  can see, only the center of the image is in focus, Whilst
the rest of the image is thrown out of focus.
From this i notice that the use of a large aperture in a photograph will result in a very shallow depth of field.
This also results in your eye being drawn to a certain area of a image.









Image 2
F8  1/40sec   ISO 160

In this image, i used an aperture of F8. This resulted in the depth of field to appear wider in the center of the image.
With the aperture set at a mid point, far more of the image appears clearer, but still leaving the background and foreground slightly out of focus.
There is not a huge difference in the depth of field between F1.8 and F8 in these images but that is due to the closeness of the objects.









Image 3
F22   1/5sec   ISO 1600

In this image, i set the lens aperture to F22, this resulted in most of the image to appear in focus, rather than just certain areas.
Again there is not a huge difference between image 2 and image 3 (F8 and F22) but the the depth of field is clearly visible between image 1 and 3 (F1.8 and F22)  from this, i can now have a better understanding of the principles of depth of field and how it alters the image.











Notes


This exercise has shown me how i can use various lens apertures, to create a different feel to a image. i found this exercise quite useful as it helped me get a better understanding of aperture and depth of field, and the effects that they have upon a image.
I have also learnt to check my camera settings before i take any more photographs, as i noticed after taking the last series of images that i had left the ISO at 1600.

Project 2

Focus with a set aperture


The object of this project is for me to get a better understanding of the effect focusing with a set aperture has on photographs. By focusing on different areas of the same image i should be able produce three different images of the same scene, but each with a different effect. As to which will be more pleasing may vary on the subject that is being photographed.

Image 1
F1.8  1/400sec   ISO 1600

When i took this image, i focused my lens on the object at the rear of the picture. This resulted in the first two objects appearing  slightly out of focus and i found that my eye was automatically drawn to the sharper image in the background.
I like the way the first two objects, even though not in focus, guide you towards the sharper object in the background, but i do find it distracting as my eye tends to wander to the blurred foreground object.











Image 2
F1.8  1/400sec   ISO1600

In the second image, i focused the lens on the object in the middle, this resulted in the objects in foreground and background to now appear slightly out of focus, again i found my eye automatically being drawn to the sharper of the three objects.
This image i find to be a little distracting as my eye constantly jumps from the sharp mid ground image to the out of focus foreground image, this makes it uncomfortable to view, but i think if the subject was different for example a tree in a field of wheat then the effect maybe different.







Image 3
F1.8   1/400sec   ISO 1600

In the third image, i moved the focus onto the foreground object, and again this resulted in the mid and background objects to be thrown out of focus.
Out of the three images taken, i find this one to be the easiest  to view. Even with two objects in the background out of focus i find the effect adds to the overall image and balances the photograph nicely.











Notes 
I think careful consideration should be given as to where in the photograph i focus, but also to experiment by focusing on different areas in the same image, this way i will get a better understanding on how depth works in photographs, and this should enable me to take photographs that are more appealing and easier to view.

I have also noted how your eye is automatically  drawn to the sharper areas of a image and this could be used to alter how you want the image to be viewed by others.

Project 1

Focal length and angle of view


The point of this exercise was for me to take 3 photographs of the same subject from the same place using 3 different focal lengths.


Image 1
F/11   1/60sec   ISO 320

 The first photograph was taken when i held the camera and focused it so that the view in the camera was the same size as it appeared when i looked at it without the camera.
I recorded that the focal length was 60mm, which surprised me as i was expecting it to be around the 35-40mm area.
When i held the printed image up, i only had to hold it at arms length for it to appear a similar size to the building.

Image 2
F/11    1/60sec    ISO320

The second photograph was taken with a focal length  of 135mm.
This made the image appear a lot closer, so when i held the printed image up i had to hold it at quite a distance away from me for it to appear similar in size to the actual building.
This image in my mind is too close for it to be comfortable viewing as it only shows a small section of the building, maybe if the image was taken verticaly and included more of lower and upper section of the building it may be more appealing, but i still prefer the first image.





Image 3
F/11   1/40sec   ISO200

The third photograph was taken with a focal setting of 28mm.
This gave the impression that the building was a lot further away than it actually was.
When i held up the printed image, i had to hold it very close to my face for it to be of a similar size to the building  and this made for uncomfortable viewing.
Although i like this photograph, it lacks the impact of image 1, the building appears too small and is uncomfortable on the eye, but i like the way the pathway draws your eye into the center.

NOTES
Out of the 3 images, the first is one taken with a focal length of 60mm is the most pleasing to me as it fills the frame and is comfortable to view.
All 3 images were hand held but i think i need to use a tripod next time as i'm not too happy with the sharpness of the images.
I will put more thought into what i need to take with me next time, for this type of photograph a tripod would have been a great advantage, plus bringing a note book to jot down the details too would have been handy.
I will like to try these images again but experiment with different settings just to see how they turn out and the effects altering the F number or shutter speed and ISO settings alter the final image.

looking at OCA photography

Well this is the first time i have ever done a blog so bear with me on this one, I have been thinking about doing the OCA Photography course for several months now, i just wanted to find a course that was challenging and interesting something that would take me out of my comfort zone and get me out there with my camera taking photographs and making me really think about what i was doing, plus a course that would lead to a decent qualification at the end.
After spending several months trawling online i found the OCA course, read all the reviews, looked at the work being produced by other students and decided that this is the one for me.
I am hoping to start the course at the start of November 2010, i'm a little nervous but also looking forward to it as well, not quite sure what to expect but i hope i find it a challenge but at the same time not to technical that i get put off, i do like the idea of working at my own pace and the OCA course seems perfect for this, so roll on November and lets see what happens :)