OCA Photography Blog: DPP-Assignment Three

Wednesday, 27 March 2013

DPP-Assignment Three

Assignment Three; Monochrome

Object of assignment three

This assignment is about the different creative effects of a monochrome image, I should have already had the opportunity to discover what makes a good subject and picture conditions to create a good black and white image. I have to choose my own subject that I conceive, shoot and process solely in black and white, attempting to bring out the monochrome images of form, tonal contrast and texture. I need to produce between 5-10 images and write an account of why I chose my theme/subject.

For this assignment, I chose to do a cityscape, rather than a landscape, which was my original thought; however I have not really done one before, so I wanted a bit of a challenge. I chose Dublin at dusk, I chose this theme as the ha’penny bridge was beautifully lit up at night, the sky was amazing when I was there and Dublin has some detailed structures, which I believe makers for great black and white photography. I shot at dusk as I wanted to capture the darkness of black and white with shadows from the artificial light, I do have a daytime shot in my set of images as the sun was low and reflecting off of the subject extremely well.

I used my 18-200mm lens for this assignment and my tripod due to the low light, when taking the images I used the exposure bracketing function on my camera as I wanted to see how the black and white image looked on my LCD screen to see which exposure enhanced the beautiful menacing look I wanted to achieve.

Monochrome
My Friend recently bought me a book called “Through the lens, National Geographic greatest photographs” it’s an amazing book and with this assignment in mind, I mainly concentrated on the black and white images. Although some of the images were taken at a time when colour was not available, or limited, I found a few images that were purposefully taken in black and white, in studying them closely I realised they are better in monochrome and would not suite colour. I think this is due to the contrasting shadows in the images and the feeling of monochrome, by this I mean, it suites a more dramatic and melancholy mood, for example, one of the images taken was at a campsite in Minkouala, Gabon. It had various people standing and sitting around, from different ethnicities, with smoke rising from the fire in the middle of the jungle and not a single smile in sight, they looked like they had a long day from their research expedition. Now that particular image would not have worked in colour, as you can feel they are exhausted and the monochrome enhances that feeling. (There was no reference of who the photographer was)

“A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed”

(Ansel Adams)

I chose a quote from Ansel Adams as, I’m sure anyone who reads my assignments, is aware he is my hero but also he relates strongly to monochrome imagery. I can honestly say that looking at his black and white images take me away and also influenced me in my decision making to go to the USA. With that in mind, I think his monochrome images are a powerful tool.

Books used for this assignment;

· Ansel Adams at 100 by John Szarkowski

· Black + White Photography: all about modern monochrome by Elizabeth (ed) Roberts

· The Art of Black and White Photography: Techniques for Creating for Creating Superb Images in a Digital Workflow by Torsten Andreas Hoffmann

· Edward Weston (Photo Book Series) Terence Pitts

Websites used for this assignment;

http://www.photographyicon.com/anseladams/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Weston
http://www.techterms.com/definition/monochrome

So on to my monochrome images, I have put the earlier evening one in first to create a sequence, so they are in order.

1; 1/4000 seconds at f/5.6

This image really stands out for me, I really like it, I feel like the lamppost is sparkling and the detail in it is mesmerising. I did not use a tripod for this photograph as the light was bright enough, for what I wanted to achieve.

2; 1/40 seconds at f/3.5

I saw this lamppost on my way to the ha’penny bridge, I thought it was really interesting, especially with the picture that someone had attached to the light. I tried to get as low as I could without losing the top of the lamppost, I also tried to take the image without the car in, but it was a busy road and it was difficult to do. I would have liked to have gained more detail in the bottom of the image with still obtaining the darkness surrounding it.

3; 1/80 seconds at f/3.5

I wanted to really get the detail of the tree with the light background of the sky. I feel this is an effective image, especially with the river in the frame as well, it makes me feel peaceful.

4; 1/15 seconds at f/3.5

This is the ha’penny bridge, I tried a few different compositions for this, I tried to have only the reflections on the water, which was ok but I feel this image works better, with a lot of the sky being one of the main focuses in the photograph. I used my tripod for this image, although I would have liked it to have been a bit sharper, it was quite windy and my tripod is not as sturdy as I would like it to be.

5; 1/20 seconds at f/3.5

I had a tough choice with this image. I have a few similar ones which focuses more on the ground if front, than the sky. I ended up choosing this photograph due to being able to see the row of the 3 lights, which made the image brighter at the top but you can still see the long shadows from the passersby. I like the long dark shadows in this photograph, it makes the image seem cold and morose.

6; 1/40 seconds at f/3.5

This is a close up image of the bridge itself with all of the ‘padlocks of love’, the bridge is famous for it. Similarly with my previous image, I had to choose between a close up image and this one. I chose this photograph in the end as I like the slightly ostentatious detail of the metal and the sky in the background.

No comments:

Books Used

Faking it: Manipulated Photography Before Photoshop
Portrait of a Young Girl by Mark Niemann-Ross
Photo truth or Photo fiction?: Ethics and Media Imagery in the Digital Age by Thomas H. Wheeler
The Art of Black and White Photography: Techniques for Creating for Creating Superb Images in a Digital Workflow by Torsten Andreas Hoffmann
Black + White Photography: all about modern monochrome by Elizabeth (ed) Roberts
Edward Weston (Photo Book Series) Terence Pitts
Ansel Adams at 100 by John Szarkowski
Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson
The Photographer’s Eye; Composition and Design for better Digital Photos by Michael Freeman
Mastering Digital Photography by Michael Freeman
The Digital Photography Workflow Handbook by; Juergen Gulbins and Uwe Steinmuller
The Elements Of Photography: Angela Faris Belt
Mastering Canon EOS Flash Photography: NK Guy
Light, Science & Magic: Fil Hunter, Steve Biver, Paul Fungua
The Photograph As Contemporary Art: Charlotte Cotton

Copyright

All images are owned by me, Miriam Perritt, any person/s who use my work without my authorization will face legal action.

Copyright Law
Issued: April 2000Last amended: 27th November 2009The UK copyright law fact sheet outlines the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, the principal legislation covering intellectual property rights in the United Kingdom and the work to which it applies.Introduction Copyright law originated in the United Kingdom from a concept of common law; the Statute of Anne 1709. It became statutory with the passing of the Copyright Act 1911. The current act is the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.Rights coveredThe law gives the creators of literary, dramatic, musical, artistic works, sound recordings, broadcasts, films and typographical arrangement of published editions, rights to control the ways in which their material may be used.The rights cover; broadcast and public performance, copying, adapting, issuing, renting and lending copies to the public.In many cases, the creator will also have the right to be identified as the author and to object to distortions of his work.International conventions give protection in most countries, subject to national laws.Types of work protectedLiterary song lyrics, manuscripts, manuals, computer programs, commercial documents, leaflets, newsletters & articles etc.Dramatic plays, dance, etc.Musical recordings and score.Artistic photography, painting, sculptures, architecture, technical drawings/diagrams, maps, logos.Typographical arrangement of published editionsmagazines, periodicals, etc.Sound recordingmay be recordings of other copyright works, e.g. musical and literary.Film video footage, films, broadcasts and cable programmes.The Copyright (Computer Programs) Regulations 1992 extended the rules covering literary works to include computer programs.When rights occurCopyright is an automatic right and arises whenever an individual or company creates a work. To qualify, a work should be regarded as original, and exhibit a degree of labour, skill or judgement.Interpretation is related to the independent creation rather than the idea behind the creation. For example, your idea for a book would not itself be protected, but the actual content of a book you write would be. In other words, someone else is still entitled to write their own book around the same idea, provided they do not directly copy or adapt yours to do so.Names, titles, short phrases and colours are not generally considered unique or substantial enough to be covered, but a creation, such as a logo, that combines these elements may be.In short, work that expresses an idea may be protected, but not the idea behind it.Who owns a piece of workNormally the individual or collective who authored the work will exclusively own the work and is referred to as the ‘first owner of copyright’ under the 1988 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act. However, if a work is produced as part of employment then the first owner will normally be the company that is the employer of the individual who created the work.Freelance or commissioned work will usually belong to the author of the work, unless there is an agreement to the contrary, (i.e. in a contract for service).Just like any other asset, copyright may be transferred or sold by the copyright owner to another party.Rights cannot be claimed for any part of a work which is a copy taken from a previous work. For example, in a piece of music featuring samples from a previous work, the copyright of the samples would still remain with the original author.Only the owner, or his exclusive licensee can bring proceedings in the courts.Duration of copyrightThe 1988 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act states the duration of copyright as;For literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works70 years from the end of the calendar year in which the last remaining author of the work dies.If the author is unknown, copyright will last for 70 years from end of the calendar year in which the work was created, although if it is made available to the public during that time, (by publication, authorised performance, broadcast, exhibition, etc.), then the duration will be 70 years from the end of the year that the work was first made available.Sound Recordings and broadcasts50 years from the end of the calendar year in which the work was created, or,if the work is released within that time: 50 years from the end of the calendar year in which the work was first released.Films 70 years from the end of the calendar year in which the last principal director, author or composer dies.If the work is of unknown authorship: 70 years from end of the calendar year of creation, or if made available to the public in that time, 70 years from the end of the year the film was first made available.Typographical arrangement of published editions25 years from the end of the calendar year in which the work was first published.Broadcasts and cable programmes50 years from the end of the calendar year in which the broadcast was made.Crown CopyrightCrown copyright will exist in works made by an officer of the Crown, this includes items such as legislation and documents and reports produced by government bodies.Crown Copyright will last for a period of 125 years from the end of the calendar year in which the work was made.If the work was commercially published within 75 years of the end of the calendar year in which it was made, Crown copyright will last for 50 years from the end of the calendar year in which it was published.Parliamentary CopyrightParliamentary Copyright will apply to work that is made by or under the direction or control of the House of Commons or the House of Lords and will last until 50 years from the end of the calendar year in which the work was made.Restricted actsIt is an offence to perform any of the following acts without the consent of the owner:Copy the work.Rent, lend or issue copies of the work to the public.Perform, broadcast or show the work in public.Adapt the work.The author of a work, or a director of a film may also have certain moral rights:The right to be identified as the author.Right to object to derogatory treatment.Acts that are allowedFair dealing is a term used to describe acts which are permitted to a certain degree without infringing the work, these acts are:Private and research study purposes.Performance, copies or lending for educational purposes.Criticism and news reporting.Incidental inclusion.Copies and lending by librarians.Acts for the purposes of royal commissions, statutory enquiries, judicial proceedings and parliamentary purposes.Recording of broadcasts for the purposes of listening to or viewing at a more convenient time, this is known as time shifting.Producing a back up copy for personal use of a computer program.Playing sound recording for a non profit making organisation, club or society.(Profit making organisations and individuals should obtain a license from PRS for Music.)Useful addressesIntellectual Property OfficeConcept HouseCardiff RoadNewportSouth WalesNP10 8QQTel: 0300 300 2000 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 0300 300 2000 FREE end_of_the_skype_highlightingwww.ipo.gov.ukPRS for Music29-33 Berners StreetLondonW1P 4AATel. (0207) 580 5544 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (0207) 580 5544 FREE end_of_the_skype_highlightingwww.prsformusic.comCopyright Licensing AgencySaffron House6-10 Kirby StreetLondonEC1N 8TSTel. 020 7400 3100 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 020 7400 3100 FREE end_of_the_skype_highlightingwww.cla.co.ukFurther readingThe original text for the 1988 Copyright Designs and Patent Act can be found at the OSPI (HMSO) website, but should be read in conjunction with all the relevant updates and statutory instruments.To avoid confusion, we recommend a copy that includes the amendments since 1988, such as can can be found at the Office of Public Sector Information, http://www.jenkins.eu/statutes/copyright.asp or download as a PDF file directly from the Intellectual Property Office.This fact sheet is Copyright © The UK Copyright Service and protected under UK and international law. The use of this fact sheet is covered by the conditions of a Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-No Derivative Works License.This fact sheet is intended only as an introduction to ideas and concepts only. It should not be treated as a definitive guide, nor should it be considered to cover every area of concern, or be regarded as legal advice.

Wednesday, 27 March 2013

DPP-Assignment Three

No comments:

Post a Comment