Aperture is the amount of light let into the lens which is measured in F/Stops. The F/Stops allow to control how much is going in – 1.4mm F/Stops lets a lot of light in while 50mm F/Stops will make it a pinhole shape.

Depth of Field is what’s in focus, in front and behind the subject. Deep depth of focus means everything is in focus however there is a small aperture. A shallow depth of field is only one thing in focus with a large aperture. If you want more focus you need a higher F number, but if you want a less focused image use a lower F number.

Aperture photography

Editing

The aperture is how much light is let into the camera.

It is in the iris of the lens.

Its measured in F/stops.

Depth of field is what’s in focus in front or behind the subject.

A high F/stop is f/16 – f/22

This is a photo I took on the website with a high aperture f/16, this has made it so everything is in focus.

Here is a photo of me with a low shutter speed, this makes it so me the main subject is the primary focus of the image and the background is blurred to make it so I pop/stand out.

Here is a photo i took where the shutter speed is super low and is not able to capture the image correctly due to loads of light being taken in, the photo is out of focus causing it to come out blurry to a point where its hard to distinguish what it is, its came out similar to a photo by Ralph Eugene Meatyard.

Meatyard made his living as an optician, born in 1925 and died in 1976. He was a member of the “Lexington camera club” and pursued his passion for photography outside the mainstream. He experimented with various strategies including multiple exposures, motion blur, and other methods of photographic abstraction. Two of his series are particularly concerned with focus and depth of field, both stretching the expressive potential of photography, film and cameras when looking with the ordinary world. Here are some of his photos from his no focus collection.

– No focus- Reducing groups of human figures to indistinct abstractions, the artist proposes an alternate notion to the traditional photographic portrait.

The Complexities of Identity Politics: Navigating the Culture Wars

Identity politics refers to the political approach that emphasizes the importance of individual or group identities, typically based on shared characteristics such as race, gender, religion, sexuality, or ethnicity. It centres on the idea that people who share similar identities often face common social, political, or economic challenges. As such, identity politics advocates for these groups to organize, mobilize, and push for policies and representation that address their unique experiences and needs. The rise of identity politics has become a defining feature of contemporary political discourse, especially within the framework of the broader culture wars.

The culture wars, which often manifest as polarizing debates about social values, moral issues, and national identity, are a direct consequence of the heightened visibility of identity politics. These wars have pitted various groups against each other, from debates over LGBTQ+ rights and racial justice to the controversies surrounding immigration and religious freedoms. On one hand, the empowerment of marginalized groups—whether it be racial minorities, women, or LGBTQ+ individuals—has led to significant victories in civil rights, representation, and societal acceptance. On the other hand, the growing emphasis on identity can create deep societal divides, fostering a sense of “us vs. them” and heightening tensions between different cultural, racial, and ideological factions.

One of the positive aspects of identity politics is its potential to amplify the voices of marginalized groups. By coming together around shared experiences of discrimination or inequality, these groups can advocate for policies that address their specific needs, whether it’s in the form of affirmative action, anti-discrimination laws, or gender equality initiatives. For example, movements like Black Lives Matter and #MeToo have brought attention to issues of police brutality and sexual harassment, respectively, creating a global conversation that has led to important reforms and a shift in societal attitudes. The solidarity within these movements can foster a sense of community, strength, and collective agency, empowering people to stand up for their rights and challenge systemic oppression.

However, the flip side of identity politics is its potential to lead to tribalism, where communities become more focused on their differences than on shared values or common humanity. This can deepen social fractures, perpetuating a cycle of division. As groups prioritize their own interests, the broader concept of universal human rights may become obscured, and dialogue between opposing groups becomes more difficult. Tribalism can also foster resentment and alienation, as individuals may feel excluded or demonized based on their identity or political stance. In some extreme cases, identity politics can lead to the rise of echo chambers where only like-minded individuals engage with each other, shutting out diverse perspectives and eroding social cohesion.

The debate over identity politics is ongoing, and examples of both positive and negative outcomes can be found at both local and global levels. On the local front, identity politics has been crucial in advocating for minority rights and local cultural preservation. For instance, Indigenous rights movements across the world—from North America to Australia—have successfully drawn attention to the historical and ongoing marginalization of native peoples. These movements are not just about securing land rights, but about preserving cultural heritage and identity. On the global stage, however, the proliferation of identity politics has sometimes led to increased polarization, as seen in the growing nationalism and populist movements across Europe, the U.S., and beyond. These movements often exploit identity politics to create a sense of fear and “otherness,” painting marginalized groups as threats to national cohesion.

In conclusion, identity politics is a powerful force that has both positive and negative aspects. It has given voice to marginalized groups and driven important social change, but it can also contribute to the fragmentation of society when it prioritizes difference over unity. The challenge lies in finding a balance—acknowledging the importance of group identities while fostering dialogue, empathy, and a sense of shared responsibility across all communities. To move forward, it is crucial to focus on the commonalities that unite us, even as we celebrate the diversity of our individual identities.

My Photos

Harry Callahan

Harry Callahan inspired my work due to the focus on natural forms within his photography. He is able to capture patterns, texture and repetition in his photos which are all features I have tried to achieve in my own work.

A camera obscura consists of a dark box, tent or room with a small hole in one side or the top. with light from an external scene through the hole and strikes a surface inside, the scene is reproduced but inverted and reversed with colour and perspective preserved. Although camera obscura is old and we have developed more high-tech cameras the concept of camera obscura is still used by photographers world wide

These images are an example of how camera obscura works

Nicephore Niepce

Joseph Nicephore Niepce was a French inventor and one of the earliest pioneers of photography. Niepce used his heliography process which was an early photographic process producing a photoengraving image on a metal plate coated with an asphalt preparation to capture the first photograph, but his pioneering work was soon overshowed by the invention of daguerreotype.

Daguerreotype is a direct-positive process, creating a highly detailed image on a sheet of copper plated with a thin coat of silver without the use of a negative. the process required great care. The process required great care. The silver plated copper plate had first to be cleaned and polished until the surface looked like a mirror

Louis Daguerre

Louis was a painter and a stage director. He was a student of Degotis, who was a creator of stage setting at the Paris opera, where he started at the age of 16.

while Daguerre works exhibited in the art shows that he never really had huge success, from 1817-1822 his work was shown at the opera brought him unanimous praise from critics and from the public, he displayed original creativity with his light effects, creating moon rises or moving suns that remained in peoples memories.

Daguerre was developing hislighting talents, acquired during his years as a set designer at the Opera and the Ambigu, to change the mood of a same scene. This created such an illusion of reality that the Diorama became a huge success. Later on, the two partners adapted to these huge sets the principle of showing the optical views either with front or back lighting. In this case the scene watched with a dim lighting, whence a night effect that could be accentuated by painting to the back of the view a decor with the purpose of masking some parts of the image creating new shadows corresponding to night. Going from one to the other lighting, the same scene would progressively change from day to night.

Daguerreotype

The daguerreotype is a direct-positive process, creating a highly detailed image on a sheet of copper plated with a thin coat of silver without the use of a negative. The process required great care. The silver-plated copper plate had to be cleaned and polished until the surface looked like a mirror

Henry Fox Talbot

Whilst on honeymoon in Italy with his wife Constance, Talbot tried to draw a picture of Lake Como using a camera Lucida. A camera Lucida is a drawing aid which uses a prism to allow the artist to simultaneously see the landscape before him or her and the drawing paper. Talbot was frustrated with the outcome of his drawing, especially in comparison to Constance’s accomplished artwork, and wished that the image made by the camera Lucida could be fixed in a more mechanical and accurate way.

Richard Maddox

Richard Maddox was an English photographer and physician who invented lightweight gelatin negative plates for photography in 1871. Dry plate is a glass plate coated with a gelatin emulsion of silver bromide. It can be stored until exposure, and after exposure it can be brought back to a darkroom for development at leisure.

The advantages of the dry plate were obvious: photographers could use commercial dry plates off the shelf instead of having to prepare their own emulsions in a mobile darkroom. Negatives did not have to be developed immediately. Also, for the first time, cameras could be made small enough to be hand-held, or even concealed: further research created fast exposure times, which led to ‘snapshot’ photography (and the ‘Kodak’ camera with roll film), ultimately paving the way for cinematography.

George Eastman

When Eastman was 23, a colleague suggested that he take a camera on an upcoming vacation. Eastman bought a photographic outfit, and although he never made the journey, he became fully engrossed in photography. However, the weight, awkwardness, and cost of the equipment required to take and develop photographs soon led Eastman to seek improvements. He spent three years in his mother’s kitchen experimenting with gelatine emulsions, and by 1880, he had invented and patented a dry-plate coating machine.

In 1881, with the financial backing of Rochester businessman Henry Strong, Eastman formed the Eastman Dry Plate Company (reincorporated as the Eastman Dry Plate and Film Company in 1884 and as Eastman Kodak Company in 1892). With a series of innovations, the company created easy-to-use cameras that made photography widely accessible, established the practice of professional photofinishing, and developed a flexible film that was a critical contribution to the launch of the motion picture industry.

Kodak Brownie

The Kodak “Brownie” camera made its debut at the turn of the twentieth century and sold for one dollar. One hundred thousand of them were purchased during the first year alone. The Brownie helped to put photography into the hands of amateurs and allowed the middle class to take their own “snapshots” as well.

Eastman Kodak introduced the new Brownie dollar box camera in 1900; the release was supported by a major advertising campaign. The name “Brownie” was chosen primarily because of the popularity of a children’s book of cartoons of the same name, and partly because the camera was initially manufactured for Eastman by Frank Brownell of Rochester, New York.

Digital Photography

Digital photography is the process of capturing images electronically rather than by analog methods such as film or instant Polaroid’s. A digital image is captured to a solid state sensor containing an array of photodetectors or pixels. The digital images are then stored as a type of computer file* that can be processed, edited and corrected using software such as Adobe Photoshop.

Digital imaging, whether stills or video, encompasses capturing, storing, and manipulating images through electronic devices like cameras and smartphones. Unlike traditional film photography or video, digital for both mediums relies on sensors to convert light into digital data. 

Harry Callahan was a pioneering American photographer who worked in both color and black-and-white. Among his best-known works are the numerous portraits of his wife Eleanor, who served as a constant model throughout his career. His prolific practice included taking took dozens of photographs a day

He tried several technical experiments double and triple exposure, blurs large and small format film. Callahan was one of the few innovators of modern American photography noted as much for his work in color as for his work in black and white.

Harry Callahan was born in Detroit, studied engineering at Michigan State University, and worked for Chrysler before taking up photography as a hobby in 1938. Callahan cited a visit by Ansel Adams to his local camera club in 1941 as the time he began to view photography seriously. Self-taught as a photographer, he found work in the General Motors Photographic Laboratories. In 1946, shortly after meeting László Moholy-Nagy, he was asked to join the faculty of the New Bauhaus (later known as the Institute of Design) in Chicago, where he became chairman of the photography department in 1949. He left Chicago in 1961 to head the photography department at the Rhode Island School of Design, where he remained until 1973. He has won many awards for his photography, including a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1972 and the Photographer and Educator Award from the Society for Photographic Education in 1976, and he was designated Honored Photographer of the Rencontres Internationals de la Photography in Arles, France in 1977, and received ICP’s Master of Photography Infinity Award in 1991. Among the major exhibitions of his work

Harry Callahan has won many awards for his photography, including a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1972 and the Photographer and Educator Award from the Society for Photographic Education in 1976, and he was designated Honored Photographer of the Rencontres Internationals da la photography in Arles, France in 1977, and received ICP Master of Photography Infinity Award in 1991