I wanted to experiment further with double exposures in photoshop. For this I took two or more images from the shoot and lowered the opacity, then erased parts that overlapped till I was happy with the outcome.

Mirror affect

CONTACTC SHEET

I flagged the images I wanted to edit:

EDITS – Rembrandt lighting

Butterfly lighting

Camera Obscura & Pinhole photography

Camera obscura Has been used for many years. Suggested by anthropologists, the idea occurred in the Palaeolithic era and was used by hominins. It is thought that they used “keyholes” carved into caves to project images and create cave paintings. The technique of tracing from a camera obscura is shown through these paintings from the time. It was also used to study eclipses without the risk of damaging the eyes by looking directly into the sun. The camera obscura is known as the earliest form of art technology, professionally known as archaeo-optics. Around 300 BCE, the Greek mathematician Euclid proposed a theory called “geometry of vision” which is thought to clarify the technology and mechanics behind light perception. His writings were not directly linked to the camera obscura, but his writings did explain how and why vision works.

The diagram below shows how light projects at different angles, similarly to al-Haytham’s. 

The basic idea of a camera obscura is to project a reversed image onto the wall by blacking out a room from light and creating a small hole lens in the wall. The name ‘Camera Obscura’ translates from Latin as ‘dark chamber/room’. The camera obscura uses two ways of manipulating light: refraction and projection. A glass lens can also be used to refract and manipulate the light to project the image onto a surface, as well as projecting the outside world using a pinole and letting the light in. In both cases the image will be projected upside down because light travels in a straight line. 

Nicéphore Niépce & Heliography

Nicéphore Niépce is supposedly the first person to create a permanent photographic image. He was a French inventor, born 1765 and died in 1833. Later inventing an international combustion engine in 1807 with his brother, and beginning to experiment with lithography. After being unsuccessful in obtaining proper lithographic stone locally, he found a way to provide images automatically. Niépce coated pewter with a variety of light-sensitive substances in an attempt to duplicate superimposed engravings in sunlight. In April 1916, he progressed this idea into photography, which at the time he named heliography (sun drawing) with a camera. He created his first successful photograph on paper sensitised by silver chloride, capturing a partially fixed image of a view from his workroom. In his next attempt he used multiple supports for the light-sensitive material. He used a type of asphalt, Bitumen of Judea, which hardens in exposure to light. Finally, in 1826/ 1827 he used a camera to create the first permanently fixed image. Not only did Niépce resolve the issue of reproducing nature by light, but he invented the very first photomechanical reproduction process. In 1829, he finally conceded to Daguerre’s repeated overtures to perfect heliography because the exposure time was drastically shorter.

Louis Daguerre & Daguerreotype

Louis-Jacques-Mandé Daguerre invented the daguerreotype process in France. The daguerreotype is a direct-positive process (no negative is made) that creates detailed images on a sheet of copper plated with a thin coat of silver without the use of a negative. The process needed a lot of care due to the detailed and thorough preparation. The silver-plated copper plate needed cleaning and polishing to make the surface look like a mirror. The next step was to sensitize the plate in a closed box of iodine till it resembled a yellow-rose appearance. Then, whilst held in a light proof holder, the plate was transferred to the camera. It was then exposed to light, and the plate would be developed over hot mercury to create an image. Fixing the image meant immersing it in a solution of sodium thiosulfate or salt and toning it with gold chloride. Unlike Niépce’s exposure times of around 8 hours, the Daguerre’s exposure varied from three to fifteen minutes. Daguerreotypes could be copied and produced by lithography or engraving but don’t produce a negative. 

The cameras used for daguerreotypes were made by either the photographer themselves, opticians or instrument makers. A sliding-box design was the most popular, where the lens was placed in the front box and a second smaller box would slide into the back of the bigger box. You could control the focus by sliding the rear box front and back as a reversed image was projected. This reversed image could be corrected by inserting a mirror or prism into the camera. After the sensitized plate had been put in the camera, you would remove the lens cap to begin the exposure.

Daguerreotype Plate Sizes:

Henry Fox Talbot & Calotype

William Henry Fox Talbot, an English chemist, linguist, archaeologist, and pioneer photographer, was born in 1800 and died in 1877. He is well known for his development of the calotype, This was an early photographic process – an advancement of the daguerreotype. The calotype can also be called a talbotype. This process involved coating a sheet of paper with silver chloride and exposing it to light in a camera obscura. The parts that were hit by light turned dark in tone, producing what Talbot called a “negative” image. This was new and different to the daguerreotype, which could only produce positives. Talbot’s revolutionary part of the process was due to his discovery of the chemical gallic acid that was perfect for developing the image on paper. This acid speeds up the reaction of silver chloride and the exposed light. The exposure times overtook Daguerre’s technique, and shortened it to around one minute. He would then fix the photo on the paper with sodium hyposulfite. Being able to create an unlimited number of negatives (by simple contact printing upon another piece of sensitized paper) meant this technique was the quickest and best technique for taking photos. 

Robert Cornelius & self-portraiture

‘The first selfie‘ – Cornelius was 30 years old when he used the daguerreotype process, just after it was introduced, to capture the world’s first self portrait image in 1839. He stood solitary in his family’s yard in Philadelphia, late October, with his own makeshift camera. Its lens was fashioned from an opera glass. Making sure the daylight was perfect to expose his pre-prepared metal plate in the camera, he took the image. The exposure time was around 10-15 minutes, causing him to stand still for the whole exposure. Rachel Wetzel of the Library’s Conservation Division stated “Taking a portrait is astounding in 1839,”. This was the start of something new at the time, influencing the future generations and its photography. This Library obtained his self portrait in 1996. Over time they collected a variety of Cornelius’ work, including his great-great-grand-daughter’s donation of an important collection of his photographic materials and ephemera. 

“The collection gives a much broader picture of Robert Cornelius at the Library, beyond the photographs we currently hold,” – Micah Messenheimer of the Library’s Prints and Photographs Division.

Julia Margaret Cameron & Pictorialism

Margaret’s work began at the age of 48, as a mother of six children, when she received a camera as a gift from her daughter. This caused her to pursue her dream of photography and make it a lifestyle. Before receiving her first camera, Cameron had compiled albums and had experimented with printing images from negatives. At the start of the photography journey the process involved a lot of physical work using possible hazardous materials. She used a wooden camera that was large and inconvenient and placed it on a tripod. Using the common process of producing albumen prints from wet collodion glass negatives, she needed a glass plate (around 12 x 10 inch) to be coated with photosensitive chemicals in a darkroom and exposed in the camera when still damp. She would then return the glass plate to the darkroom to be developed, washed and varnished. Through this process she could duplicate prints by placing the negative directly into sensitised photographic paper and exposing it to sunlight. 

After experimenting with her new camera, she created her “first success” which was a portrait of a little girl, Annie Philpot. Her early portraits show how she experimented with a soft focus and dramatic lighting. These features later became her signature style. A soft focus lens deliberately introduces spherical aberration in order to give the appearance of blurring the image while retaining sharp edges. It is created from lens flaws, where the lens forms images that are blurred due to spherical aberration. 

“I was in a transport of delight. I ran all over the house to search for gifts for the child. I felt as if she entirely had made the picture.”

Cameron took a unique approach to her photographs as she included her imperfect images, such as ones with fingerprints, streaks and swirls in. This differed from other photographers that would reject images with technical flaws. She even manipulated her negatives by scratching into them. This photo of Julia Jackson shows her manipulation in the background where she scratched a picture into the background.

Henry Mullins & Carte-de-Visit

Moving to Jersey in 1848, Henry Mullins set up a studio known as the Royal Saloon at 7 Royal Square after previously working in London. He is well known for his cartes de visite and the photographic archive of La Société contains a large collection of these. Containing 9600 images, the online archive holds photos mainly in sets of 16 photographs taken at a single sitting. As photographs were expensive at the time, Henry mainly photographed Jersey’s affluent and influential people. These include Dean Le Breton (he was ordained Deacon in 1839 and priest in 1840).

Mullins was in demand with officers of the Royal Militia Island of Jersey. It was very popular for them to have their portraits taken, including their families of the more important officers. Long hair, whiskers and beards were shown to be in fashion in the mid-1800s from Mullins’ photos. Due to this and the styling for the portraits, it is difficult to tell the difference between some of the officers in the portraits.

BIBLIOGRAPHY REFERENCING WESITES:

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Nicephore-Niepce

https://www.britannica.com/technology/camera-obscura-photography

https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/dagu/hd_dagu.htm

https://www.britannica.com/technology/calotype

https://blogs.loc.gov/loc/2022/07/robert-cornelius-and-the-first-selfie/

https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/julia-margaret-camerons-working-methods

https://www.theislandwiki.org/index.php/Henry_Mullins

Named after Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, the great Dutch painter, Rembrandt lighting is a common technique for portrait photography. This lighting creates an upside-down triangle on the subjects cheek.

Spotlights were used in Hollywood in the early 20th century to create more realistic effects of light and shadows in the boring typical lighting set up. Rembrant lighting was introduced as an effect and started being used widely in promotional photographs of film stars.

Rembrandt lighting creates dramatic shadows and definition in the models face, enhancing facial feature (like butterfly lighting gut with different shadows). Its effective as it acts as a photographic device to draw the eye.

Rembrandt lighting adds an element of drama and psychological depth to the character of your sitter.

With the eyes being one of the most important and interesting details of a portrait, the triangle of light on the cheek manages to enhance this and intensify the eyes shape and detail, drawing the viewer to the image.

How is Rembrandt lighting created?

Place the main light source 40 to 45-degree angle and higher than the subject. Use cans use both flashlights and continuous lights. (I used flash lighting to create a stronger shadow). Use a 35mm or 50mm if space is at a premium. You can add a reflector to light enhance the light.

My final photos – overall these images turned out alright however I didn’t get many with the triangle of light fully clear so I would like to redo this shoot. My camera was also slightly out of focus so in my next shoot I will fix this.

Flash lighting –  when the shutter goes off, the lights flash on and off to capture the light when the camera takes the photo.

Continuous lighting – the lights are constantly on before and after taking the photo. This can create an overall lighting that is not harsh but soft.

Butterfly Lighting is typically used in the studio to create a butterfly shaped shadow under the nose. This technique defines areas in the face such as the cheekbones. The key light source is placed above the subjects face to create this shadow. These under shadows make the model to come across as thinner and more defined, causing this to be one of the most common portrait lighting setups. The key light source can be flash or continuous lighting. If continuous this can be natural or studio lighting.

My final butterfly lighting images:

• I like these photos and I think it clearly shows butterfly lighting, however the images are slightly out of focus so if I do another shoot I will make sure the focus is sharp.

Contact Sheet

I flagged the images I wanted to edit, these are my selection:

REMBRANDT LIGHTING

BUTTERFLY LIGHTING

I chose to shoot my step sister at the beach because she surfs, and enjoys spending time there. I used my DSLR camera on aperture priority as well as auto to experiment. The lighting was natural (sunset).

Contact Sheet

I narrowed the photos down to images that complied with environmental portraiture e.g. looking at the camera and non-action shots.

My final edits:

Overall I like how the photos turned out because I think they represent who she is and the environment she likes to surround herself with. Even though she is smiling in some of the photos, I think it links well overall with the more serious photos. To improve I think in my next shoot I will try photographing from lower angles to make my subject more of a focal point. I am still learning how to create a shallow depth of field to focus on the subject, so I will attempt to do this as well next time.

My favourite image from the shoot:

This is my favourite photo because I like the way she is in the centre third, splitting the carpark from the beach. I think it shows how the two sides are joined together and create the specific environment that the subject is placed in. The only thing I would possibly change is removing the dog from the photo. On one hand I think it completes the photo by giving a deeper insight into the subject, but on the other I feel like it takes the focus away from her.

My work compared with Mary-Ellen Mark:

Mark’s photos hold a more dramatic and strong emotion, whereas my photos have a positive feeling around them. In my next shoot I might make my subject hold more power in their facial expression and emotion.

I did an environmental portraiture shoot for my summer task. These photos are one of my favourite shoot that I have done due to the lighting, composition and contrasts in black and whites.

At the time I based these images off David Goldblatt’s work, and his environmental portraiture photos. I really like the way he frames his subjects and uses light to frame and define their faces.

CONTACT SHEETS

Image Selection

My critique: Altogether I am pleased with how the shoot went, however the only thing I would have changed is the focus and depth of field. I feel like I could have pushed myself to use manual focus and blur out the background.

Editing: I think I Managed to contrast the whites and blacks well, and focus the light on my subject to create a strong focal point. Goldblatt’s photos mainly have the person’s environment /lifestyle captured in the image. I tried to recreate this as much as I could, whilst also getting the right lighting, focus and depth that I wanted in the image. One thing I changed was taking my photos from different angles e.g. lower level looking up, unlike David;s work with is mainly straight on. 

Mary (born March 20, 1940, Pennsylvania U.S.—died May 25, 2015) had been travelling for over five decades to create photographs that reflect a high degree of humanism. Being recognised as one of the most influential and respected photographers, her cultural photos have become landmarks in the field of documentary photography. She has spent many years in India including portrayals of Mother Teresa, Indian circuses, and brothels in Bombay. Since graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 1962, she has earned a masters degree in photojournalism. She also published her first book named ‘Passport’ containing a selection of her images from 1963 through to 1973.

Context behind the image:

The subject is a girl names Tiny, who was 13 years old at the time when Mary Ellen Mark first met her. Mark was impressed with her confidence in front of a camera , and over time developed a friendship with her. Over the years she continued to photograph her. In this shoot, Tiny wears her Halloween costume that she put together to re-create the look of a French prostitute. Tiny dreamed about horses, yachts, diamonds, and jewels as a child. Twenty years later, she was the mother of nine children.

Before Mark passed away in 2015, She finished her decades long project ‘Streetwise‘ with Tiny. Now Mark’s rich retrospective, Tiny: Streetwise Revisited, is making its debut appearance in Palm Beach, Florida’s Norton Museum through March 20, 2016.

Emotional Response

Straight away this image portrays power and makes the viewer feel inferior and intimidated. The lighting, composition and subject creates an overall evil feel to the image and creates an uncomfortable situation for the audience.

Technical – how was the photo taken?

This photo has been carefully created and composed to present the subject as superior. The lighting is a mixture of natural and artificial. The backlighting is projected from the roof and back wall, which without artificial lighting would make the subject a silhouette. The photographer has strategically lit up the sides of his face to leave the main facial features dark, adding to the evil and intimidating theme. The photographer would have probably used a large aperture to create the short depth of field, focusing on the subject. I would suspect he also used a tripod to make sure the image was sharp, but have used a shorter shutter speed as the large aperture would be letting in more light. I think he would have used an ISO of 100-200 as it is quite a dark image. The temperature of the image its quite cold, although there are warm hues mixed in. The overall image has a green tone.

Visual – what can I see in the image

The photographer has used rule of thirds to create a strong mise-en-scene. He has placed the subject in the centre to be the main focal point. The two pillars on either side create a frame within a frame which gives the image more structure and depth which produces more intensity. The background then follows on, with lines that lead directly behind him to the end. The light is focused in the centre of the image, with a dark vignette to create more focus. All this makes the image more intense. There is a lot of different high detailed texture in the photo, from the wrinkles in the subjects skin to the columns behind him. The texture slowly fades as the depth of field is short.

Conceptual – why was the photo taken / presented and its story/ background?

The photo was taken by Arnold Newman in 1963, when Newsweek magazine wanted to commission him to photograph the German industrialist Alfred Krupp (the subject of the portrait). Newman declined this offer at first because he saw Krupp as the devil due to the fact he was a convicted war criminal (although later pardoned). Newman decided to go ahead with the job and photographed Krupp seated in his factory. Newman stated “My hair stood on end”. This photo was later considered one of the most important photos, and Arnold Newman became known as the father of the environmental portrait.