Iconic Photo I have re-created.

This photo was taken by Czech photographer Josef Koudelka. It was taken in Prague in 1968.

    

                                            

Experimental Imagery in Photography HDR.

Experimental Imagery in Photography HDR

Today I went out to do some experimental HDR photography. I went local per usual and went straight to the Custard Factory. Just before you enter the Custard Factory I took this photo.

This photo used a technique call bracketing. I love how it captured the grey sky it looks like the sky is boiling across the whole city but you can see the sun peering through the arch of the brick bridge. The photo to me looks very apocalyptic. 







































As soon as I saw the opportunity to take this photo I jumped straight away. I like this photo just because the way the girl is under the sign and is pointing to something.  I also like how the the pole and the shape of the sign leads the photo. This photo leads to many questions..... 
The image has been HDR using three images. Under the bridge was dark and the building in the background. Using HDR allowed me to see under the bridge and allow the photo to reach it's full potential. 

This photo was taken at Ward End Park. Whilst walking through the park I noticed this tree. It stood out to me because the view it has behind it also the greenery it is surrounding it. This photo defiantly needed to use HDR. Simply because if I took the photo the sky would be too bright and you couldn't see all the branches. I also love how the grass is glowing off of the sun. 


What went wrong??

Although I like the photo their are some things wrong. The first thing is the van in the background. I took three images and combined them together and it looks like the van is moving. 
Secondly I was moving too much hence why the sign was blurry.
I now learned you need to wait for the right time to the photo and to get the best result use a tripod. 

HDR Experimental Research

This technique is useful for this photo because the photographer wanted to capture the colours of the sunset while still feeling the coldness blue by the barn. 
It's beautiful how the photographer has captured the deep dark blue of the barn and then the sun rays pop out to seek attention. The halo around the barn also is seeking attention also above the to colours of light, the middle shows a purple. 

The only useful technique to use for this photo would be bracketing because if you were to take the photo the light of the sky would be blocking the top of the Eiffel Tower. 
With the dark grey skies above the Eiffel Tower.
The dark skies gives the Eiffel Tower a sinister look. 

Once again inside the Notre Dame you defiantly would need bracketing because the highest point inside would be dark. By using this technique you can see the amazing colours inside Notre Dame. From the gorgeous bright blue to the oak wood benches. 

3 Iconic Photos that I've re-created (Updating)

The first photo I wanted to re-create was this one of Michael Caine. I have saw this photo many times in magazines. When my tutor asked to re-create iconic photos I instantly thought of this photo.

First I tried to get the lighting correct. I used only one
light at a forty five degree angle. In the lightbulb there is five light bulbs and I only used three to get the soft shadow on his right hand side.

In David Bailey's photo Michaels's jacket is completely blacked out. In Photoshop I applied a black paint on the jacket and then overlaid it so you can see the zips on the coat. For the shirt I done the exact same thing like the jacket I applied a white coat over the shirt but instead I done it twice. After I completed these two things I found a tie on the internet cut it down to size and make it fit. 

The next photo I used is of Robert (Bobby) Fischer. Many consider that bobby was the greatest chess player of all time. When I re-created this photo I was not sure what I was going to do. Then I came up with and great idea.

The chess piece above in front of Bobby is a king. I had a Lego minifigures and on of those 

 to be a king. Using the same setup as the Michael Caine photo for lighting I placed the king in front of my friend. When looking at the photo on Photoshop I realised that the king was too small and wasn't lining up with the right eye like it its in the original photo. So I masked the king made it bigger and too match the original photo. 

Studio Photography for Richard Hamilton.

The lighting set up was a snoot directly above the subject. Somebody help lift the snoot over the subject while it was laying on a table with a white background all around. I used spot meter on the bottle. In Photoshop I removed the shadow underneath the bottle to give it a lonely feel. I sharpened the image. I find this image a success because I wanted to give the bottle a lonely spotlight feel and this is what I achieved. 

I used two main lights in this photo  at 45 degree angle. In Photoshop I only changed the sharpness of the photo because it wasn't shining enough. I put the lights in this position because I wanted shadow on the right hand side. I found this photo successful because I got the angle and shadow I desired. 

This photo I used two light bulbs to light the background and facing down at angle to fully light the background and five as a main light. Main light used a diffuser which was set at 45 degree to the bottles . Behind the subject I used white paper and sat the subject upon a table. In Photoshop I removed major lighting shines on the left bottle.

On this photo I used a 105mm lens to capture the full detail of the perfume bottle top.

It was lit by using two 500w lights. I the background I used white wallpaper and I also used the shine reflector which was made with a piece of wood with tin foil taped to it.

In Photoshop I used the colour balance to remove a tungsten red colour cast from the photo. I cloned stamped some of the reflections out of the glass bottle itself. 

In this photo I used a 55mm lens to capture the whole bottle and the some of the background. I wanted to also get the background in to show you how really bright and golden the perfume bottle really is. Also one again we used the home made shine reflector. We held the reflector at an angle so the bottle was fully illuminated. We first tried the reflector vertical but cast a black shadow on the bottom of the bottle and I found as I increased the angle with the reflector the shadow diminished. In Photoshop I used the spot healing brush too remove the scratches and dents in the bottle. As always I sharpen the image to give it a crisp feeling. 

In this image I used a 55mm lens to capture the wide spread of the bottles. I used two constant lights on 45 degree angle and a flash gun bounced off an umbrella. Originally the bottle were behind a green coloured paper background, also the bottles were separated too. In Photoshop I firstly made a vibrate green gradient background. Then I lasso tooled the bottles copied and pasted them and moved them together. 

In this photo I done the same exact same thing as the one above I had the two constant lights at a 45 degree angle. I had a white background but that did not matter because I was going to edit it in Photoshop. In Photoshop I replaced the background with a blue gradient and removed the major shine on the bottle. I also use colour balance because it had a tungsten glow on the original photo. 

Locational Photography for Alex Drozd (Subject: Architecture )

Locational Photography (Architecture) 



For Alex's assignment I have chosen Architecture

Here are my nine photos.

 This photo was taken in St Martin's Church, Bullring. This is a stain glass window in a dark area and it gives the window a lonely feel but the colours are vibrant. In Photoshop I outlined the stain glass window with the magnetic pen tool and paint the background black to make it stand out even more. I took the photo direct on to get a central position. 




























This photo was taken in St.Martins church in the city centre.  I wanted to capture the whole church so I took the photo with a wide angle lens. I took the photo in HDR (Using brackets) because I wanted to capture the light differences. I took twenty five photos ranging from 1" to 15" seconds long. In Photoshop I put the photos together in the HDR app. Once the picture came out like this I adjusted the contrast and brightness and also the sharpness. I think this photo is a success because I captured the photo the way I wanted to, where all the light is captured 
and just shows how big the church is . I have done the same process on the photo below.

 After taking the photo the other end of the church I thought that I needed to take one this side to show the churches full view and see how amazing it really is. 

This photo is of the Last Supper and this was taken in St.Martins Church. I took the photo to capture the golden cross and Jesus in the background but I really wanted the cross to be the eye catcher. The original photo was extended to the whole table of The Last Supper but I cropped the image to focus on the cross with Jesus in the background. After I done that I sharpened the image to give it a crisp feeling. This photo is successful because I have good tonal range and it shows a lot of detail.  






































    This image was taken in the Custard Factory in Digbeth. I was about to take the photo of the lion and the trees on their own but the little boy walked in shot a put his hands behind his back. I found this amazing and I was in the right place right time. The reason I took the photo like that was because I wanted to capture the symmetry in the trees and the lions face.  In Photoshop I cropped the image and I also sharpened the image. I find the photo a success because the little boy with his hands behind his back while studying the piece of work.

I took this photo just outside the Custard Factory at the time we was looking for symmetry. I took the photo looking up and try to capture the patterns and the structure. When I took the photo it seem too dark so on Photoshop I changed the brightness and contrast and also sharpened the image like I do to all my photos. I really think this photo is very successful because I captured the sky in its prime during the day and I love that it has reflected off the windows.

























 This photo was taken outside St.Martins Church. I captured the spire looking through some interesting architecture in the ceiling. I took the photo through the ceiling because I thought the spire will stand out but also the architecture to catch your eye too. I didn't  
Photoshop this photo much just a simple sharpen of the image. I think this image is successful because the this looks like a picture inside a picture and that's what I was going for.  Also I think the photo resembles the new and the old. The new being the structure in the ceiling and old being the church spire.


























This is one of my favourite photos I have ever taken. This was taken inside the Custard Factory.  You can see this photo two ways, are they going up or down? I took the photo looking up to make it as if the people are flying/falling. In another photo the same I used the flash but I prefer the one without because the statues resemble shadows. In photo shop I change around with the colour balance because it had a blue tint over the image. I think this image is successful because its personally one of my favourties. 






































This photo was taken in a secret area on the outside of  St.Martins Church. Before this photo I went to the church a week before to plan out. I found this creepy door way. I took the picture at this angle because I wanted to capture the moss around the door and the patterns of the stone. In photo shop I lowered the pixels in the picture to give it a better look also I sharpened it. This photo is successful because I captured the moss and the patterns the way I wanted too. I wanted to make the door way creepy and secluded and this is what I achieved. It feels the doorway has been neglected. 

Locational Photography Plan

Types of indoor and outdoor locational photography.

                    Indoor:                                         Outdoor:

                  Churches                                       Architecture

                  Fashion                                         Urban Fashion

             Basketball Games                              Football Games



















Locational Photography can be a wide range of things, from fashion to sports. This photo is outdoors and is took in a place where everyone knows. The photographer had took the photo during the night to capture light streaks off the bus.
In the Birmingham area I would take this photo at the market near the church.

This photo is taken in an area where it's not very known to the public.
This photo was taken with HDR effect to capture the dark grey sky.
In Birmingham I would take a photo similar to this in the Tyseley Railway Museum.

This photo was taken most likely in a field full of colourful flowers. It has been taken with a wide aperture to decrease its depth of field. So the flower stands out from the background. If I had to take this photo I would take in the Botanical Gardens near me.







Churches (My Locational Photography)

For my locational photography assignment I'm going to take take photos of churches.
This I really like. I love the archway into the church and how the greenery has taken over but has still kept the shape of the doorway. In Birmingham I would go to St. Edburgha's where I live because the church had green moss on the walls too.

 Once again I love the area where the church is. Surrounded by greenery makes this place a haven. The water down below makes you feel relaxed and calm. Unfortunately there is nothing like this in Birmingham so I will have to make do with what I have.

Compared to the other churches this one is not that spectacular. Although it's not set in an area where there is plenty of nature, this church is more common. Set in a village and people see these types of churches everyday, but also is a challenge to capture a picture similar to this people who have to travel far too find a village in such a niche area.