Documentary Photography Definition

Documentary photography usually refers to a popular form of photography used to chronicle significant and historical events. It is typically covered in professional photojournalism, or real life reportage, but it may also be an amateur, artistic, or academic pursuit.


My interpretation:
Documentary Photography is a style which is used to capture very real and honest opinions or lifestyle, this makes them very deep in connotation and meaningful, and maybe sometimes relatable.

Composite / Manipulated Images Definition Post

My view on image manipulation:

Personally speaking, I edit the majority of my images to make the features I like more emphasised and drawing more attention to these features. It can also help you create the type of image that you want as editing can change the overall feelings/emotions that the picture presents. On the other hand, editing images does change realism of the picture. For example if you capture a landscape, then edit the levels in the picture, it is changing the natural lighting and the natural scenery, which is potentially disregarding the whole point of landscape photography as you are not showing the image as it was, it did not look like that, it was artificially manipulated to the photographers preference.

Ethical / personal issues with image manipulation:

With portraiture, a common thing to do is manipulate the image to correct any imperfections that the model may have e.g. blurring out spots and making someones eyes a different colour/bigger. This is to make the image seem perfect. This could potentially be a ethical issues as editing someone is changing what they look like. 

There can also be ethical issues which support the use of image manipulation. For example a documentary photographer who may have photographed a crime scene that involves some gory features, they may edit out some parts of the picture as they might upset some people or be discomforting to look it so it would be unethical to show the public the image in its entirety.

Areas of Industry / art & design are manipulated images used in:

I think that manipulated images are often used in magazine / fashion industry as they have a specific 'image' and 'look' that they want to create in fashion magazines, so by manipulating photos, especially models / portraits, helps the editors to create the ideal or perfect look that they want or are expected to have. Manipulated images is also a big factor in all sorts of advertisement. This is because obviously the main aim of advertisement is to maximise potential of what is being advertised, this is to make it look more appealing to potential customers so they find the product or service desirable. This can be done easily by manipulating images to create this. In addition, the news and reality journalism could also use manipulated images to make sure images are suitable for their specific audience. This is related to an ethical factor that I spoke about above.

Banal:
If an object is banal, it is thought to be something that is very familiar for people to see as we often see it in everyday scenarios. 

Studio Photography Light Editing Definition Post

Snoot:
In photography, a snoot is a tube or similar object that fits over a studio light or portable flash and allows the photographer to control the direction and radius of the light beam. These may be conical, cylindrical or rectangular in shape.

Honeycomb:
The honeycomb grid is a tight structure of a similar shape to the honeycomb made by honey bees. It’s affixed to the front of a studio strobe. Or it can be fixed to an off camera flash. The light shines through the grid and creates a tight beam of light. The aim is to create a focused beam with little diffusion. It is effective in creating such a beam, but it is not as intense or focused as a snoot.

Beauty dish:
A beauty dish is a photographic lighting device that uses a parabolic reflector to distribute light towards a focal point. The light created is between that of a direct flash and a softbox, giving the image a wrapped, contrasted look, which adds a more dramatic effect.

Editing Definition Post

PPI - pixel per inch

72 PPI -the general convention used for uploading images that are viewable on screens eg. on websites

300 PPI -general convention that is suitable for printing images

White balance - The process of removing unrealistic colour casts, so that objects which appear white in person are rendered white in your photo. Proper camera white balance has to take into account the "colour temperature" of a light source, which refers to the relative warmth or coolness of white light.

Portraiture Definition Post

Official definition:
A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant.

My interpretation:
Portraiture is a form of capturing a representation of a person. This can have many different forms and styles. However they all share a common ground of the person's face being the main focus of the photograph.

Dead pan: A person having no/a neutral expression on their face.
The image below is an example of a dead pan picture.

Movement Definiton Post

Official definition:
An act of moving.

In relation to photography:
Photographs, by definition, capture and immortalize a small slice of life. There is little for the viewer to infer what happens before or after that moment. However, there are images that need to communicate motion. For example, you may want to capture a dog running, a train barreling down the tracks, or trees that are blowing in the wind. Each of these scenes can come alive within your photographs if you learn how to convey motion properly.

My interpretation:
I think that movement in photography is all about capturing a motion in one frame. I think one done correctly it can be quite an abstract and powerful idea. This is because the human eye doesn't see movement in a stand still like a picture does as it is one picture of multiple frames that capture one idea and movement.

Here are some examples of movement pictures:

Joiners Definition Post and Research

Joiners are a photography technique used through overlapping that consists of multiple images that have been placed together considerably to construct one final outcome image.

David Hockney Research

David Hockney is an artist and photographer who started this idea of joiners. He was originally a painter but then when he started being interested in photography, he thought taking straight up photos was to limiting and restricting, so therefore he started taking multiple images of objects and scenery from different angles and put them all together in a collaged form to create an overall image.

These are some examples of his joiners:

This one shows how using joiners can create a distorted effect on simple objects like this chair and it infact changes our whole perspective on the chair making it look completely different.

This one is more of a college of  a road that fits together more regularly so it does't distort the viewers vision so much.

Joiners can come in different forms. The two examples by David Hockney show how some can be more randomly placed to change the shape and view of the object being photographed. Whereas some can be perfectly placed together so the whole image still fits in the same way. This can be easier on the viewers vision.

This example shows how overlapping can be used to create this effect. The individual images fit really nicely together and all the measurements are the same however the images all overlap each other like a collage effect. 

Depth Definition Post

Depth of Field: The measurement of how much the picture is in focus. A lens can only focus on one plane at  a time. 

Switch the wheel to ‘A’ which is Aperture Priority Mode. This mode lets you choose the Aperture (the size of the hole in your lens) and tells the camera to choose all the other settings. This semi-auto mode is a great way to control depth of field as it will ensure your images are well exposed. For shallow depth of field and nice blurry backgrounds choose a large Aperture (the smaller the number the larger the aperture).  The best way for familiarising yourself with Aperture is taking shots in different apertures and seeing how this effects the focus and softness of the picture therefore the depth of field.

A shallow depth of field specifically looks at one element of the picture and one subject. This subject is commonly a portrait picture. This helps blur out any distractions in the background putting more focus on the subject. This is why the depth of the picture is shallow. 

A wide depth of field allows more of the image in to be in focus. This is suitable for landscapes as there is not just one focus point so the whole image is focused and clear. This is done with a much larger F stop e.g. F 22. 

Wide angle: the camera having a short focal length and hence a field covering a wide angle.

Camera Adjustments and Definition

ISO - international standards organisation
This involves light sensitivity. The higher the ISO, the lower the light sensitivity but the higher the quality of the picture.

Aperture - controls the levels of light that get into the camera. This helps the camera adjust to the brightness of the environment that the image is being taken in.

SLR - single lens reflex
The mirror in the camera helps the light path travel from the lens to the viewfinder.

The larger the 'F stop' number the smaller the aperture. This helps explain how the camera affects the exposure of pictures

Shutter Speed - controls the time frame that a motion picture is taken in. This is because it controls how long the shutter inside the camera stays open for.

This is all important to get the correct exposure on the pictures.

DOF - depth of field
this controls the focus of the image and how much of the picture is in focus.

Reflection definition post

Reflection:
-The throwing back by a body or surface of light, heat, or sound without absorbing it.
-Although it is not strictly a formal element, reflection is an important consideration of framing a composition and establishing balance.
-There is no literal definition of perspective on the term of reflection, we should also review reflection in a wider abstract perspective.

In my opinion, reflection is a good way of manipulating light and objects to create quite abstract and unique pictures.

Here are some examples of reflection in photography:

Shape Definition Post

A shape is an area enclosed by a line. It could be just an outline or it could be shaded in.

Shapes can be either geometric, like a circle, square or triangle, or irregular.

When drawing shapes, you must consider the size and position as well as the shape of the area around it. The shapes created in the spaces between shapes are referred to as negative space.

Bill Brandt is a photographer who's main focus is on identifying and showing different shapes in his images. He looks at the human figure and objects but he mostly focuses on the female figure. He also uses and manipulates the negative space in the image to emphasise and enhance the effect the shape has on the image.

Tone Definition Post

The actual definition: 

The overall lightness or darkness of an area of an image, similar in meaning to "luminosity".

My interpretation of tone in photography:

I think tone looks especially obvious and more contrasting in black and white pictures. This is because when one of the formal elements is taken out; in this case it's colour, the tone because more obvious.

Very contrasting tones, especially in portraits, can look quite harsh, obvious and maybe more masculine. This is because it defines and enhances all the natural contours and dents in the face. Where as a portrait with a low contrast and a lower gamete of shades, it can have the effect that the contours are smoothed and blurred creating quite a delicate and soft look.

Tone is a very important formal element in relation to form. This is because without the tones being created by natural or artificial lightness and shadows, the shape/form will appear flat and would lack detail. This may make it difficult for us to identify what the image is of.

Form definition post

Form actual definition: 

a 3D shape. Sculpture and 3D design are about creating form. In 2D images, tone and perspective can be used to create illusion to form.

My interpretation of the definition of form:

Form looks at the shape and structure of a 3D object but form can be captured by a 2D image. Different tones in the image can be used to manipulate the look of the form. I personally like the use of form in the human condition. This is because the lighting and positioning that the person is in and the way the image is taken, can make a person or part of a person look different to how we would normally see it. This can be used to make images look more abstract and unusual. Depending on personal opinion, some people may really like this way of seeing the human form however some people may prefer seeing people as we would see them.

Texture Definition Post

Texture Definitions

Oxford dictionary definition:
the feel, appearance or consistency of a surface or subject

My interpretation of the definition:
The surface of either a 2D or 3D image and the different tones, dents or patterns the surface has changes its feel/look.

Pattern Definition Post

Oxford dictionary definition:
A repeated decorative design.

My own interpretation  of pattern:
A repeated design with recurring features running through the image.

Patterns in photos can be either very regular or irregular. This is because of the measurements and shape of the patterns. Regular patterns are more likely to be found in photos containing man made substances, or very spectacular natural/organic substances. Whereas irregular patterns can be found in nature a lot, as the pattern is still based around a repeated design, however maybe the size varies and the spacing between the pattern varies.
                               

Colour Definition Post

Colour Definitions

Saturated
Refers to how vivid and intense a colour is. These are often bright colours. Colours with poor saturation often like dull or faded. Colours with a 0 saturation have not got any colour and are greyscale shades. This can give a vibrant and lively feel to a photo.


Muted
Muted colours are often quite faded appearing. Like the opposite of saturated colours. This can make a picture look more soft and timid.


Analogous
These are colours that are placed next to each other on the colour wheel. For example, green and blue. Some pictures focus on using analogous colours.


The Psychology of Colour
Certain colours have very well known/stereotypical emotions and feelings that are directly related to the colour. This is because when we see this colour in pictures, it makes the viewer feel and think a certain way. Also this is different for every colour. The most common examples are:
Red - Love and passion, and on the other hand also anger and frustration
Blue -  Sadness, but also it can be quite a tranquil and calming colour as it is quite cooling
Yellow - Happiness and cheer, also freshness and energy
Green - Balance and natural (eco-friendly), jealousy and envy
Purple - Royalties and luxury, also mysteriousness and creativity
Orange - Health, happiness and youthfulness

Lines Definition Sheet

Lines Definitions

Horizontal lines
In geometry, a horizontal line is one which runs from left to right across the page. It comes from the word 'horizon', in the sense that horizontal lines are parallel to the horizon. They can portray the idea of tranquility, stability and even rest. This can come from the idea of horizontal lines that we see in every day life, e.g. the view of the ocean, a sleeping body and fallen trees. 










Vertical lines
a line perpendicular to a surface or to another line considered as a base: such as. a : a line perpendicular to the horizon. b : a line parallel to the sides of a page or sheet as distinguished from a horizontal line. They can represent strength and power, and the idea of growth (growing trees).

Diagonal lines
Diagonal lines generally work well to draw the eye of an image’s viewer through the photograph. They create points of interest as they intersect with other lines and often give images depth by suggesting perspective.










Curved lines
A line or surface that bends in a smooth, continuous way without sharp angles.













Leading lines
A leading line paves an easy path for the eye to follow through different elements of a photo. Usually they start at the bottom of the frame and guide the eye upwards and inwards, from the foreground of the image to the background, typically leading toward the main subject.