In Class Project: Vanitas Still Life

Wednesday, 9/24

Please be ready, with your groups, to create a contemporary vanitas still life in class.

Group duties:

Group A (Mary, Alex Chi) Still Life object & prop resourcing and setup
Group B (Brian, Holly, Amy) Camera work, file processing and printing
Group C (Dana, Shonna, Raven) Lighting design and effects

The still life should be arranged and lit in a traditional vanitas style, but with a contemporary twist. A suggestion: carefully select a blend of traditional and contemporary symbolic objects to build the still life. How can it ring as both "old" and "new" at the same time? Use examples of traditional vanitas to inform design, composition, lighting, camera placement. Further, how can you invoke the idea of a painting with a camera image?

Project 1: Low-Key Still Life

Proposal Due: 9/29, in class. Be prepared to discuss.
Preliminary critique: Monday, October 6th
Final Critique: Monday, October 13th

Write a 1-page proposal for a low key still life project. In a low key still life, the image is generally darker, tonally.  The background is generally on the darker end of the scale and the lighting design supports deeper shadows. The class vanitas still life could be considered low key

For this project, please steer away from overly shiny, metallic or glass subjects, for now. These present particular challenges that might be best to avoid for now.

Design a background that supports the subject.

Your proposal should consist of:

• An overall idea or concept for your image...reflect on some themes or ideas you hope to communicate.
• A description of the subjects that will express these ideas
• A description of the background
• Any particulars regarding the set-up of the still life that you are considering that come to mind (e.g. need to build a stand to prop up objects, or create a GOBO for a certain effect)
• A brief description of at least two still life examples, by well-known, established photographers (choose two different artists) that serve to inspire the set-up and/or lighting design of your project. These examples should be properly referenced. Start with examples from the class blog.
• 1 page

Project:

Plan for several shooting sessions outside of class. Reserve studio time well in advance.

Over the course of the project you will be shooting many variations. Keep all of these, planning to turn them in. The final image (best variation) will be printed full size to at least 16" x 20". Shoot RAW and focus critically to ensure that the image will hold up through enlargement. 

Assignment 5: Still Life Design, Qualities of Light, Strobes, Isolated Background

Shooting:

Due: Wednesday, 9/24

This assignment will explore some of the important qualities of light. Generally, there are four: Color, Angle, Intensity and Character/Contrast. We will be concentrating on Angle and Character/Contrast for now.

Find an interesting subject that can be photographed on a table-top. Should be solid (relatively) non-glossy/shiny object. 

The second part of this assignment will explore how to create an interesting background to compliment your subject. Background design is very important for creating a convincing image that "goes beyond the studio." Bring objects or paper cutouts for use in creating background effects—we will be using them to create GOBOs.

Reserve time in the lighting studio to build and light your shot(s). Shoot with strobes. Plan for at least 2 hours for the assignment. Working with your partner will make things much more productive.

In both exercises, strive to make the most artistically pleasing images as possible. General concerns for both setups:

• Use a low ISO, such as 200
• Shoot RAW, white balance set to strobe
• Shoot manual exposure mode
• Focus critically on the subject using manual focus
• Set shutter speed for 1/60 and forget it...all further exposure adjustments will be made with f-stop
• Design the intensity of the light so that you will be using a moderately wide aperture (say f8.0 or f11). This means the strobes will be turned to the middle range, most likely. Adjust the strobes down (or up) so that your meter delivers your desired f-stop. 
• Especially for #2, position your camera further back from the subject and use a longer lens setting to produce desired framing. This helps reduce distortion of shapes, reduces flare, and helps separate the background. 

I. — Flat still life (singular plane, table as background)

Shoot your subject on a piece of seamless or an interesting flat material on the tabletop. Use paper (distressed, painted on, etc.), wood, sheet metal, or anything that will compliment your subject. Most likely, you will be shooting down on your subject. Use and trust your handheld light meter

Light source: Strobe with reflector, barn doors can be useful.  Create a series of still life images that show a variation of:

1. Angle of Light
2. Style: Active versus Passive approaches. Achieve this variation through use of hard versus soft light, and/or use of barn doors, or GOBOs (blinds effect).
3. With and without reflecting fill card

II. — Still life with distant background (lit separately as isolated, second plane)

Subject with designed low-key background. Place object on tabletop and shoot from the front at a low angle, so that the background becomes important in the image. The background should be at least 3 feet behind your subject—move the table toward the middle of the room. This exercise will use two light sources, one for the subject, one for the background.

Main Light:

As in the first exercise, explore and shoot variations of light direction and intensity

• Varied side or 45º light, shooting variations of angle and height
• Vary active/passive, in other words, alter contrast (direct versus diffuse), shoot variations
• With and without fill, shoot variations
• Use meter to adjust strobes to yield f8
• Similar to last week, direct the main light with barn doors, flags (foam core) or grid so that it doesn't contaminate the background. Background isolation is important for this exercise

Background Light:

• Use barn doors and/or grid spot (10º or 20º) 
• Set the light to be at least two stops underexposed. So, if your main light is firing at f8, lower the intensity of the background light so that it meters at f4 (or so). Important: when metering the background light, turn off the main light so that you get an uncontaminated reading
• Angle the light so that it rakes across the background at a low angle

Background Design:

The background will be a simple chiaroscuro effect that should complement the subject without being too distracting. We will have it be out of focus, due to the wider aperture, longer lens, and greater distance behind the subject. This will make it more impressionistic. 

• Use a piece of seamless, dark cloth, or other kind of dark material against the wall. Attach it so that it doesn't fall down. It will need to be fairly big (like seamless) to function as a backdrop
• Use GOBOs (objects, cutouts, etc.) in front of the light to create interesting shadow play on the background
• Be sure GOBOs themselves do not appear in the shot—we only want to see their shadows on the background
• For sharper shadows, bring object closer to the wall and/or the light further away

Shoot a wide variety of images, exploring the many factors above. Please bring files to next class.

Assignment 4: Active/Passive, Use of Strobes, Light Quality, Fill Light, Gradient Background, Light Control.

Top light, no diffusion, no fill, gradient sweep backdrop

Top light, no diffusion, with fill, gradient sweep backdrop

Top light, with diffusion, no fill, gradient sweep backdrop

Top light, with diffusion, with fill, gradient sweep backdrop

Active side light, background controlled/blocked

In-class group work:

Based on the class demo, using an object of your choice, understand and accomplish the above lighting approaches. Work in your group, assisting each other, and obtaining help from instructors as required. Everyone should shoot their own images. The goal is to fully understand the concept so that you can use these lighting strategies successfully on your own.

Individually:

Choose meaningful and visually appealing objects to photograph. They should be at least 8 inches tall and have some volume. The doll above was used out of convenience for a demo...you can do better, I think. Avoid glass and metal for now. Based on the in-class demo and exercise, create an aesthetically strong set of images that explores all five of the above lighting approaches.

• Choose an inspiring table-top subject.  (Your decision about what to shoot should inspire you. Do go beyond convenience). For now, avoid overly shiny or glass objects, as these present special lighting concerns we will cover later
• Shoot RAW, low ISO (200-400), with a tripod. When using a tripod, be sure the lens stabilization is off.
• Use a gradient sweep backdrop (for images with top-light)
• Use a middle range f-stop (f5.6, f8, etc.)
• Focus critically on the subject. Manual focus may help. Check focus for each image
• Use hand-held incident light meter reading, set to the "strobe" setting. Set camera to manual mode so that f-stop and shutter speed can be manually set. Use 1/60th second for the shutter speed and use the f-stop indicated by the hand-held light meter.
• Use the following lighting designs to create an aesthetically pleasing image. While some factors, like lighting design, are pre-determined for this study, other considerations like camera angle, composition, zoom/in-camera crop, proper exposure, are all in play for you to optimize

Lighting designs:

1. Top light, no diffusion, no fill, gradient sweep backdrop
2. Top light, no diffusion, with fill (using reflector), gradient sweep backdrop
3. Top light, with diffusion, no fill, gradient sweep backdrop
4. Top light, with diffusion, with fill (using reflector), gradient sweep backdrop
5. Active side light, background controlled/blocked

Assignment 3: Active/Passive, Part 3, Natural Light

Read: Chapters 1, 2 and 5 (only pages 85-104 (thru "stopping flare"). Be ready to discuss main points.

Shooting: Create a still life arrangement on your own, using natural sun light. Shoot active light and passive light variations. This can be done on a porch, balcony, or windowsill....choose a place that receives active and passive light, based on the time of day. Remember, active light should generally have distinctive shadow play, calling attention to the light itself. Even with natural light, shadows can be added and the light controlled. Passive light tends to be soft and diffuse with no distinctive shadows.

Are these examples active or passive? Why?