Final Portfolio

Final portfolio will consist of two formats to turn in

Digital

Due: 12/3. This is the last day of class.

16-20 jpegs, 1200 pixels longest side, high quality.

What to include:

1. Images can be pulled from any assignment or project from the course. Images must have been shot for the course. Choose carefully to present your strongest work. Consult with instructor and classmates.
2. All major projects must be represented in the portfolio. This means still life (high and low key), human figure and final project.
3. Images should be the very strongest produced in the course. Revisions to project images are welcome. If so, please indicate that they are revisions in their title. For example: Jordan_proj2_rev.jpg

Naming protocol:

lastname_project_number.jpg

Examples:

jordan_fieldtripone_1.jpg
jordan_fieldtripone_2.jpg
jordan_project2.jpg

Printed

Due: 12/10 (earlier is okay) This is Wednesday of exam week.

Of the above images, create 6 high quality prints. Print quality is important. Please include strongest images from your 16-20 images selected for the digital portfolio.

Prints should be professionally presented, either window matted or sleeved in a portfolio book.

Final Project

Prelim: 11/24
Final: 12/3

Points earned: 300 (versus 200)

As discussed last Monday, the final project should demonstrate strong conceptual and visual ideas with appropriate lighting design. Use this opportunity to accomplish something ambitious, using the very best of your skills and ideas, as covered in the course and beyond. Consider all aspects of your production including subject, background, overall color palette, styling, etc.

The project will be evaluated on:

Concept/theme/idea
Lighting design
Photographic design and aesthetics
Technical skills, exposure, camera, photoshop
Development of project over the course of the assignment (from prelim to final)

© 2012 Heather Orlando

Dates:

Proposal: Wednesday, 10/29
Prelim: Wednesday, 11/5

Final: Wednesday, 11/12

Create a body of work that explores the human form in some way. These can be portraits, abstractions of the body, nudes, theatrical, conceptual, or other. Work toward a cohesive group of images that are aesthetically and conceptually related. Plan to submit between 5-7 final images, in print form as well as digital (jpegs 1200).

Create most appropriate studio lighting design to support your images, high key, low key, or otherwise. 

Proposal should consists of 1 paragraph describing your concept, subject(s) and approach, and 1 paragraph that mentions and describes the lighting approaches of at least two well-established artists who work with the human form in a compelling way...how will they inspire your project?

Work will be evaluated on the following criteria:

• Original, inspiring, and creative idea/concept/approach
• Quality of lighting design
• Quality of photographic design
• Technical (camera, lighting, file management, etc.)
• Deliverables (prints, files, etc.)
• Growth of the project over the course of the assignment

Proposal, prelim and final critiques will be graded.

Further examples of student work:

High Key Portrait

In class shooting assignment, week of 10/27

Portrait, assignment 2

This assignment will explore the use of lighting ratios with a fill light, hair light and kickers. Take your time and fully explore each aspect. Scrutinize and form opinions about how these lighting variables affect the overall results.

Schedule a model. Suggest clothing and styling. Be adventurous. Creativity rewarded!

1. Set up Rembrandt lighting, or close variation
2. Add fill light. Explore a range of ratios of key light to fill light. 1:1, 1:2, 1:4, 1:16, reflector as fill, no fill. 
3. Decide on optimum combination, based on your visual experience and opinions. 
4. Add a background light. Consider gobos/cookies/ or even gels for color
5. To this optimum combination, add a hair light, properly placed and exposed
6. To this, add one or two kickers (left and right) properly placed and exposed

Provide images for each of these. It will be best to keep the camera on a tripod and maintain the same pose, so that only the lighting varies. 

Due: Wed 10/29

Portrait Assignment 1

Due: 10/22

The first portrait project explores how size, quality and placement of the key light can affect the rendering of the face. This is one of the most important concepts of portrait lighting design. Please read pages 193-206 for further discussion and visual examples.

Take your time with it. Correct exposure, appropriate f-stop, focus are all important.

Create portfolio worthy portraits that explore the following:

• Fairly tight framing that features head and shoulders, without cutting them off.
• Black background. Hint: create adequate distance between subject and background material
• Thoughtful styling...put in some planning with outfits, hair, accessories and go for it. Move beyond silly mug shots. 
• Use of single light source, no fill light. Reflector encouraged.

For each of the following, create both high and low contrast examples, positioning the key light as necessary.

1. Explore 45/45 lighting, sometimes known as Rembrandt, achieving what is referred to in the book as the "key triangle."
2. Short Lighting
3. Broad Lighting
4. Front lighting
5. Side lighting

High Key Still Life

Due Monday 10/20

Create 2-3 portfolio worthy images of a high key still life. Typically, this means a light subject on a light background. You might consider working with reflective metal or glass objects, using the techniques covered recently in class.

The chapters on metal and glass in the book may be helpful, for additional ideas.