Feedback on assignment 2

I am quite happy with the feedback from my tutor, and I think it will move me in the right direction

Tutors feedback

Overall Comments

Thank you for your submission, which includes a series of 14 uploaded images to your blog and 14 associated prints. The images that you have submitted are very well observed and illustrate some experience and a keen eye for composition.

This is a very good submission - you have taken great care to produce work that is considered, stimulating to look at and that meets the criteria that is laid out in the assignment.

One point I would make is that you need to start expanding the vocabulary of the photography that you are looking at. Although your work is effective, if you want it to be taken seriously, it would benefit from a more contemporary conceptual approach. At the moment the ideas are a bit staid. I have recommended a few artists below for you to look at.

Feedback on assignment

One point

An effective composition that gives the viewer an idea of depth and scale. The image evokes a sense of calm and tranquility reflected in the still water. The rock is positioned well, slightly to the right of the frame so that it is not too obviously central, and this aids the ideas encapsulated in the image.

At the moment there is too much space in the foreground. Would it be worth moving the camera up slightly so that there is less water in the foreground? By shielding the lower ¼ of the image you will see that the composition becomes much stronger with the rock standing out more within the landscape.

Two points

This is a very similar composition to the above image. The sense of calm and tranquility are also in evidence here. The rocks are positioned well within the fame, using the space well with the foreground rock slightly to left of centre and the background rock slightly right of centre.

However in this case there may be not enough space in the foreground. Would it be worth either stepping back slightly or pointing the camera down slightly?

Several points in a deliberate shape

Again an effective composition with your use of space achieved by placing the foreground object well to the left of centre.

Although you have deliberately used a small aperture here it would be worth experimenting with a wider aperture so that you could try a different depth of field. Allowing the background to become softer can be a good way to try to experiment with shapes. Also would be worth placing object on the left slightly further in the frame.

A combination of vertical and horizontal lines

Wonderful photo with a great use of foreground detail. You have placed the sun in a good position and the exposure is finely balanced to capture some detail in the foreground. Well done.

Diagonals 1

Good use of lines in this image. The walkway acts as a good line to draw in the viewer to the image. The use of black and white is effective here and aids the highly geometrical nature of the image. Would recommend perhaps raising the camera slightly to see a bit more of the faces as the crop is a bit too pronounced.

Diagonals 2

An effective use of angles that gives the viewer a dynamic view of the spices. You have used depth of field to  good effect here too – as well as the diagonal lines leading the viewer into the frame, the plane of focus does the same.

Curves 1 and 2

Good use of colour and depth of field. The blue armbands and shorts are an effective echo of the blue water, contrasting well with the red. Again, we have an effective use of depth of field here too that allows the figure to stand out from the background, accentuating the curves.

The detail on the dragonfly is excellent – the head and legs are all in focus but the depth of field is soft enough to allow the leaf to fall gently out of focus to accentuate the curve. Excellent imaging well done.

Distinct, even if irregular, shapes

An obvious choice but it works well within the criteria on the brief.

Implied triangle 1

Great use of lighting and composition.

Implied triangle 2

The close focus works well to form a triangle

Rhythm

Interesting to see the sunflowers in black and white instead of colour – a brave choice that works well. It is worth experimenting more like this to challenge expectations.

Rhythm 2

Like you acknowledge in your blog, its not as strong as the previous sunflower image, but there is a theme that works.

Pattern

Effective use of space, and a well made photo but not sure it really is about pattern?

Learning logs/critical essays

Generally your comments are interesting to read and help inform the work. I would suggest that you try to evaluate your images more in depth – be more self critical and describe how you would improve them.

Assignment 2

About the assignment
I have tried to have the assignment in mind wherever I go with my camera, but it has taken some time to finish it. I spent some time trying to find out which of the themes to use, and finaly decided to mix them all. I found it a little limiting to just use city life or food as subjects. A couple of the photographs are  from my archive. The images are not snapshots, and I had a specific plan before I captured them. I found them relevant to this assignment. On this assignment I used photographs that have some kind of personal meaning to me, not just the elements described in the text. That is a little risky. The viewer may not have the same feeling. But just that is the challenge with photography. The most challenging  about the assignment is the writing. I am not used to describe my feelings about my photography. And certainly not in english:-) But that is the way to learn, I guess!

Assignment 2:

Elements of design

One point

I decided to use landscape.
I wanted something simple. The rock is standing out from the rest of elements. It is captured with a Nikon D800 on a tripod. The lens is a 24-70mm f/2,8. I used cable release  and mirror lock-up to prevent camera shake. A polarizer and a graduated  ND-filter is also used. The last to prevent the sky from burning out. I personal like the simplicity and the quiet mood in the picture. It was one of two usable picture from that day, and I spent much time walking around the lake to find the composition I preferred.















Two points

From the same day, and same place as the first image, but slightly different viewpoint. The nearest rock is actually the fundament for the tripod in the previous image. This image does not have the same quiet mood as the first. The rocks in the lower left corner is somehow disturbing the calmness of the scene. I  still think the image work. The rocks fills the foreground and leads the eyes to the rest of the elements in the frame. I also found the colors a little distracting and chose to convert it to mono. The texture on the rocks stands more out when converted to black and white.
The image is not as successful as image one.

















Multible points in a deliberate shape

This mage is captured this summer i Provence, southern France. It is one of my favorite places to photograph.
About 20 frames was captured and I tried several compositions. I had a hard time trying to place the elements in some kind of pleasant order. Ideally a higher viewpoint would possible work better to make the foreground elements stand out. But the sky would probably suffer, and I wanted the sky to balance the image. I used aperture 13 to get some depth of field. D800 on tripod








Horizontal and vertical lines

The horizon and the row of flowers indicates the horizontal lines while the stems on the flowers makes the vertical lines. It may not be the clearest example of vertical and horizontal lines, but I like the soft, subtle lines in the picture. I used a 70-200 mm lens wide open to get the soft effect I wanted. I am impressed with the way the camera  handles the difficult lightning conditions. I don't think my older D300 could capture the subtle tones in this scene.








Diagonals #1

I shot a number of images with diagonals. Train tracks, buildings and gravestones have all been captured during the last month. But I settled with an image that also have some life in it. The boys where looking for frogs and couldn't care less about the photographer. I find my eyes following the diagonal lines to the boys, then to the faces and back to the reflections in the water.  It is quite obvious that the boys are looking for something, and not posing. I could have used a more typical image with clear diagonal lines present, but this picture has a better feel to it. I also find it more dynamic then my other pictures. It is a more interesting  image because of just that. As with a lot of my images, I find colors distracting when I want to point out a specific shape in the composition.

Diagonals #2

The separating walls in the box is making the diagonals and brings some depth to the image. I really like the strong colors in the spicy powder.
I also have a composition with vertical and horizontal lines of the same subject, but that did not have the same dynamic feel. I could possibly have created more depth by choosing a lower point of view.
I think the image works ok.
I couldn't justify converting this to black and white:-)











Curves #1

One of my most personal photographs. It is my seven year old son checking if his diving mask is firmly positioned before a jump. He did this procedure every time before the jump. I found this very amusing, and wanted to capture the beautiful curves. Maybe a bit to personal, but I couldn't resist.

I used D800 with 70-200mm f/2,8 wide open to isolate Sebastian from the surroundings.

Curves #2

I tried to frame the image with the leafs as curving objects in the bottom. The dragonfly kept using the same landing spot again and again. I used D800, 70-200mm and a converter to get close enough. The bokeh is good enough to isolate the curving leafs and the dragonfly from the background.

Distinct, even if irregular, shapes

Archive image from Dubai 2010. I tried to frame the building inside the circular roof construction. 

The image is full of different shapes and lines. That is the reason why I wanted to use it in this assignment.

The warm light on the right side of the image adds a warm tone to the otherwise cool mood. I used Nikon D300 on tripod,  aperture of 16 and a shutter speed of 20 seconds to capture the scene.

Implied triangel #1

One of my absolute favorite photographs. The light is let through the transparent fabric in the ball and makes it look like some kind of planet. The triangle is made up of the two girls and the ball in the middle of the frame. Silhouettes is widely used in photography, and should be used careful. I like the dreamy feeling in the image, and decided to use it as the first implied triangle shot. I used D300 handheld and a 70-200 mm tele zoom to capture it. I underexposed deliberately to ensure the silhouettes. I  had a low viewpoint to separate the girls from the horizon.

Implied triangle #2

Another personal image. My daughter was willingly posing for me on this shot. The idea was that the eyes, nose and mouth should make a triangle. The eyes and the top left corner also has he shape of a triangle.

I used D800 with a 50mm f/1,4 lens to blur everything beside the eyes. The 50 mm lens is one of my absolute favorite lenses, and can be used very creatively. Again, a very personal image, but with a clear thought about the composition.  

Rhythm

A field of sunflower is my choice for the first rhythm picture. The flowers almost have a human look.
Its like thousands of faces is staring at the sun. I tried many different compositions, both vertical and horizontal. I think this picture had the best rhythm. It was a very colorful image, and as often, I converted it to black and white to keep focus on the composition.



















Rhythm #2

Again the French food is in focus.
I think the olives in the jars is making a rhythm in the picture. And the large spoons is almost like notes dancing from the bottom of the frame to the top.
Maybe not as strong rhythm as in the prevous image, but I still think that it gives an almost musical, rhythmic feel.


























Pattern

I spotted this beautiful artwork in the entrance of a local art shop in a small mountain village in the provence area. The work immediately got my attention. I think it makes a great pattern. The face is the main point of interest. I tried several compositions with straight and diagonal lines. I settled with the straight lines. The image was then converted  to mono in photoshop.

Summary
My wedding photography business has kept me busy with both photography and retouching this summer. That is, of course, a positive thing. But the study has suffered. I have tried to bring my camera with me at all times, and I finally have enough photographs to finish the assignment. Since the purchase  of Nikon D800 in april, I have shot over 10 000 images.
I personally like the photographs in this assignment better then those used in assignment 1.
I have used far more energy and time on this assignment. The most rewarding part of the assignments is the thinking. It forces me to look for the elements of design. Composition is the one thing a photographer must  master. A poor composed image is still a poor composed image even if the technique is great. The techniques in photography is possible for most people to learn.
I find it very inspirational to see how experienced photographers like David Noton, Ansel Adams, Morten Krogvoll, and Richard Avedon compose  their images. I find the photographs that I have visualized in my thoughts more successful than the ones I make spontaneously. It certainly is  rewarding to capture a good picture you have planned ahead.
I have learned a great deal of the assignment. And I have discovered that I used many of the elements of design before I started this course. I just wasn't aware of it.
I will use it more

Nikon D800

NIKON D800 HAS ARRIVED
I was quick to order when I  first read about the coming Nikon D800. My first plan was to save money for a while , and order a Nikon D4. I am glad I got the time to change my mind.
Sure, D4 is monster of a camera, but I don't need the extreme speed, and I don't need the unbelievable ISO capability. And I certainly don't need the price tag. These days I shoot weddings (five this summer), portraits and landscapes. The D800 is fantastic for just that. At least that is what the experts say......
I finally got my D800 in april, and have been using most of my spare time to get used to it. I have used a D300 for five years and need some time to get the old camera controls out of my system. It is not very much that differs, but it takes some time anyway. I have used it on two full wedding shoots, and it has delivered great pictures. But I had more "bullseye" shots with the D300. I have to admit that.
It is a little harder to get the focus right, I think. Especially if I use wide apertures. And on wedding shoots I exclusively use wide apertures......
It looks great on the LCD if I take a quick look. But if I zoom in or looks at it in photoshop,
I often have misplaced focus a bit. Often the focus is on the tip of the nose, or on the farthest eye.
And that can ruin a great picture:-)
I am aware of it now, and fewer pictures hits the thrash can ....
The files are huge. I have bought new CF and SD cards, and I think I have to invest in more external hard drives. It ads to the final cost of upgrading the camera. I needed a new lens as well. My all over zoom for DX was the 17-55 f/2.8. I needed a replacement for FX. It ended on the Nikon 24-70mm f/2,8.
I was able to get one used, but it sat me back a lot of money anyway.
My old Nikon 70-200mm f/2,8 VR is perfectly usable on FX. I am covered with these two lenses
The D800 has been tested mostly on portraits up to now, but I am planning to pack my outdoor gear and do some landscape photography. I am really looking forward to that.
My studying is suffering these days, I have to take grip...............

Some example shots:

Feedback on assignment 1 TAOP

My thoughts on the feedback
Overall quite happy with the feedback from tutor. Not all images holds high quality, and Roy points them out. That makes me feel certain that my tutor will use time to analyze my assignments properly. That will hopefully make me struggle to progress


Tutors feedback

Overall Comments

This is a good start to the course with a comprehensive set of images that clearly meet the criteria in the assignment.

You have submitted 12 prints and a blog which is straightforward, well presented and straightforward to navigate.

Your prints are very well made. There is detail in the shadow areas as well as the highlights and you have successfully avoided clipping the exposures in the highlight areas. Both the colour and black and white prints show an awareness of contrast control and levels with a very well balanced tonal range running through all of them. Whilst I do appreciate that we are not assessing you on your printing for this assignment, you appear to have a good grip of the technical considerations of printing techniques and printing profiles. Well done.

Some concepts work better than others – generally I have looked at the images first without seeing the titles so that I have to guess the concept. Have you shown this work to other people to get them to do the same? It is always worth showing your work to someone who will give you honest feedback so you can get some insight into how well you are communicating your ideas.

Feedback on assignment

Transparent and opaque:

Excellent use of lighting to illustrate a straightforward concept.

Sweet and sour:

Not as successful as the above image in that it does not convey the idea of sweet and sour. Would it have been better to use a more obvious example of the sweet perhaps? Sugar is the most obvious example but you could have experimented with peoples faces or situations to communicate this more effectively. Also you do not explain why you have lowered the colour tone in these images – would it have been more successful to have used the colours more effectively?

Rough and smooth

Works well as an idea and fairly straightforward to read. Would it have been better to not have shadows on the ‘smooth’ image?

Straight and curved

Less successful as a concept as the ‘curved’ image is more about graffiti – it would have been worth exploring curvature in architecture.

Many and few

A good use of colour but as a concept the ‘many’ probably needs more pencils to carry the message.

Heavy and light

Excellent control of lighting with a clear message. Possibly needs a very small increase in contrast to strengthen the images.

Light and dark

Work well as a pair. To improve them you could use extra lighting for the ‘high key’ image behind the boy. This would light the backdrop separately to uplift the image. (I can explain the lighting set up if would like me to).

Still and moving

Works fairly well as a pair – perhaps it could be improved by seeing car as a blur in the moving image. Good use of lighting on the car but you would need to see how you can control the highlight on the front side.

Firefighter

Good use of depth of field and contrast control. Well done. I like the way the focus is controlled on the man’s hand. As an photograph that demonstrates contrast in one image this works very well.

Learning logs/critical essays

Generally a good start. Your description and comments need to be slightly more comprehensive. Try to include exactly how you would improve each image. I will email you a document that lists the details that you need to include in an evaluation.

Assignment 1- Contrasts

This is my first assignment.
It took a lot more time then I thought it would..........:-)
I have spent much time thinking about the contrasts around us, and they are everywhere.
Most of the images are created after I started the course, but the last image is captured earlier.
It was created to show contrast between a firefighter and his small pet, and I hope it is as relevant as making a new one......

Transparant and opaque:

I tried several lightning options and the shot took me half a day. I ended up with a soft box 50 cm behind the glass, and one small flash turned up towards the ceiling

The liquid in the transparent image is cranberry juice mixed with water. The opaque one is cranberry juice straight from the bootle. It is almost black in color.

Sweet and sour:
How could I not turn this into a cliche?
I found out that I couldn't.........

Rough and smooth:
I was thinking about using people in stead of objects, but didn't find the models I had in mind.
The surface of the objects are very different and I think the images describes the contrasts between rough and smooth.

Straight and curved
A big concrete statue was used for the straight lines. I composed the statue with diagonal lines to make it a little more interesting. The curved lines are part of a painted wall. I think concrete looks better in black and white. I was looking for a statue with curved lines when I discovered the artwork. I tried to get some symmetry in the images by flipping the image of the statue

I have always been drawing and sketching . A couple of pencils where used to produce the many/few motive.
Lightning is both from above and below to prevent shadows. Again: I find that diagonals makes more interesting images then images with horizontal or vertical lines.

A stone and a feather on a diffusion layer. They where both lit from below with a remote flash.
The stone is not very heavy, but compared to the feather it is......

The look on the boys face is not very light maybe, but I chose it because of the light gray background. He was in fact in a very light mood during the shoot. It was shot with a studio flash for main light and a small flash to brighten the background.
The dark image is shot during a poker evening.  The player was not happy about his luck (or skills)
I guess you can tell from the look in his eyes.......

Both the still image and the moving image are cars. I could possible have done this more interesting, but I hope the point is made.....

This photograph is suppose to illustrate contrast in a single photograph. Either by the difference in physical size or in the fact that  humans are superior to dogs. The image is well planned and this is the firefighters own beloved pet. This image was captured in September 2010, but I couldn't help using it. It is one of my favorites. And contrast was the most important element in the image

Magic hat

This is my son, Sebastian. He is lit with a SB 900 and a SB 800 off camera. Both camera left

The black and white conversion was done in Ps 5, and I was trying to get the TRI-X 400 feeling....

Beauty dish is actually.......a beauty:-)

I used a beauty dish for the first time, and I must say it was a positive experience....
My youngest daughter is always ready to pose........
Some results: