Weds 19th Night Out

Henry J Beans on Rutland St - 7.30pm

Monday afternoon

The will be no Theory class on Monday afternoon.

Matthew will be around to look at your work if you need advice before the holidays.

The studio will be open on Wednesday morning as usual.

Theory Test

Exposure
Aperture: relative dimensions of f-stops (see below)
Shutter: different types and flash sync speed
ISO: grain and digital noise

Zone:
Grey card, zone scale, development, practical use

Light 1:
Visible spectrum + IR and UV
Colour temperature measurement
Correction filters

Light 2:
Incident, reflection, refraction
Image formation

Lenses:
Focal length
Primes and zooms
Faults, quality and price
Standard lenses for different formats

Format:
35mm
120
5x4
Digital sub-35mm frame magnification

All this information was covered in the Theory classes. You will find links to all these areas on the blog – use the ‘search’ facility at the top left corner.

It’s also covered comprehensively in Langford’s ‘Basic Photography’

Aperture dimensions

f = ‘focae’ and indicates a ratio 1:2, 1:5.6, 1:16 etc, which we shorten to f2, f5.6 and f16, etc.

1:2 means that the diameter of the aperture opening of a given lens is half of the focal length. For a 50mm lens to open up to f2, the diameter of the opening will need to be 25mm.

f4 on a 50mm lens requires the aperture to open as wide as 12.5mm
f4 on an 80mm lens requires the aperture to open as wide as 20mm
f4 on a 28mm lens requires the aperture to open as wide as 7mm

Because the actual diameter opening of f4 varies (12.5mm, 20mm and 7mm) depending on the focal length (50mm, 80mm and 28mm) in the examples above – f4 lets the same ‘brightness’ through, whatever the lens or format.

The same goes for all the other aperture settings – they’re universal.

New Media New Directions

Gillian Wearing - Masks (appearing as her entire family)

Jo Spence - personal photo-therapy

Cindy Sherman - untitled film stills

Nan Goldin - gritty, lo-fi images of the sub-culture

Alison Jackson - look-a-likes

If you like Jerry Uelsmann's work you can find it yourself. I'm not touching it.

Digital Closed Book Exam

The exam for Digital will take place at 10:30am on Monday the 17^th December in the Lecture Theatre. This will consist of a 2 page paper with a variety of true/ false, multiple choice and simple answers.

The content will be based on what you have learned in class and what you should already be putting into practice using digital imaging.

Attendance is compulsory, and non attendance will result in a FAIL.

Stock Tuesday 11th

Adam will NOT be in the college on Tuesday 11th

He WILL be available to talk to you about Stock issues on Wednesday 12th between 1.15 and 3.00pm.

Come in to see him if you need to.

Deadlines

Constructed Image deadline Wednesday 9th January at 9.00am in Studio 22

You will need:
Timelapse image
Infra-red images (film and digital with control shots)
Soup transparency (your best frame)
Hotel food and drink transparencies x2
Weston print
City image (A3 size)
Autumn image

Evidence of research and evaluation of these 'constructed images' in your workbook

Theory Test paper - will take place on Monday 14th January at 1.15pm

In January there will be a short 'microscopy' project. Details when we return.

Christmas Night-out Weds 12th

Henry J Beans, Rutland Street (West End)
7.00 for 7.30pm

All welcome!

CTS Homework Images

Citroen video on youtube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5kD4O2ATJU










Six Feet Under video on youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVonI5jp5dM

CTS - Homework for next week

Deconstruct your designated image in your workbook
Make notes
Paste in pictures
Do additional research
Try and identify which types of signs are in the ads
Bring your workbook in for group discussion next week

Image Allocation

Connelly Amanda - yellow pages
Currie Theo - six feet under
Footit Claire - car/ robot
Galloway Stuart - Marlborough
Irvine Andrew - tesco
King Howard – silence of the lambs
Jamieson Jennifer – Marlborough
Macaulay Tertia - six feet under
Mason Nicholas - car/ robot
McMaster Jennifer - coke
Melrose Ben - tesco
Miller Ryan – silence of the lambs
Milligan Barry – yellow pages
Mooney Samantha – six feet under
Mroczkowska Ania – car/ robot
Munro Louise - coke
Osborne David - tesco
Sangster Natalie – silence of the lambs
Stelzer Kyle – yellow pages

o

Location Stock Hand-In

Please hand in all your location work by Tuesday 18th December.

If you are shooting digital your work should be handed in on CD as high res JPEGs.

All photographs should be captioned in the IPTC envelope.

Please also hand in a printed out sheet of thumbnails.

If you are shooting film your pictures should be numbered and corresponding captions printed out and handed in too.

Remember that it is a minimum of 20 pictures.

Remember to record all your research in your workbook.

Nachtwey

Here's some info about James Nachtwey

And here's the link to his 9/11 pictures

Calibration

Follow this link to Photobox.co.uk

This screen image should match the print I've given everyone - adjust your own monitor if it doesn't

Colour (not color)

Wikipedia on colour photography
That Russian bloke who invented colour photography in 1905
(The Scots invented everything)

William Eggleston's innovative colour work was promoted at MOMA in 1976 by John Szarkowski, keen to repeat his late sixties successes with Winogrand and Freidlander

William Eggleston - Masters of Photography link
William Eggleston.com

Influenced heavily by the 'epic' photography in The Family of Man exhibition in 1955, Irish businessman John Hinde (an ex Circus performer - a showman at heart) achieved great commercial success with extraordinary, saturated colour postcards - intended to match peoples' memory of their holiday - not the stark, austere post-war reality

John Hinde's Butlins postcards

Tony Ray Jones died from Leukaemia in 1972 at the age of 31 - which is why so few people have heard of him

Martin Parr blog (please read this)
Martin Parr audio interview
More Parr

New Brighton - the seaside town featured in Parr's 'The last resort'

Umberto Eco published a very important book of collected writings in 1985, called 'Travels in Hyper-reality'. Eco discusses the media and the messages they send - and we receive. He's particularly interested in the idea of 'simulated reality' - theme parks, Disneyland and the madness of Las Vegas. Please follow this link and read a synopsis of his thoughts.

Digital Imaging – Stationary Assignment Hand in.

A very big thank you to everyone who worked really hard to get their work in on time! There is some great stuff being produced… and I am very pleased to say that at the moment, this group seems to understand the importance of dealines.

For the people who did not hand in on time, you are looking at a fail unless this work is on my desk before this Friday. You work will be peer assessed by Group B next week

There will be a late hand in box on my desk, please sign your work it in and put it in the box. Please make sure everything is packaged up neatly and that all parts are attached to one another. Anything not packaged or not sign in, that goes missing is your responsibility.

Currently in the hall of shame, and running the risk of failing this unit we have:

Amanda Connolly
Ryan Miller

If you have had genuine extenuating circumstances that may prevented you completing the assignment, please inform me (on a Monday or Tuesday) or Matthew ASAP.

Please remember that attendance to the peer assessment exercise next Tuesday the 20th of November is compulsory for all students to attend.

Work in Progress Meeting - Monday 26th Nov

Please bring two finished pieces of work from the Constructed Image workshop assignments:

Hotel menu
Weston
Autumn
City
Infra-Red

Room 187, Monday 26th 1.15pm

Zone assignment deadline Monday 19th, Room 187 1.15pm
Ruler + practical application prints

Tutorials: Monday 19th November

2.30pm Stuart

2.45pm Jamie

3.00pm Ania

3.15pm Tertia

Robert Frank & The Americans

Wikipedia

Robert Frank's Americans
Tate Modern
In-depth analysis
Robert Frank and Walker Evans - an essay on influence

The Robert Frank colouring book

A short history of America


Too dangerous for 1956...

Tutorials: Monday 12th Nov - Room 187

Please bring your workbook:

2.30pm Louise Munro

2.45pm Amanda Connelly

3.00pm Natalie Sangster

3.15pm Anja Mroczkowska

CTS - Monday lecture programme

12th Nov: History 4 - Robert Frank
19th Nov: History 5 - Colour
26th Nov: Medium is the message
3rd Dec: History 6 - New directions
10th Dec: Presentation skills
17th Dec: No lecture

Stock - Parliament visit: Tues 6th Nov

Can we all meet outside the public entrance of the Scottish Parliament on Horse Wynd at 12 noon, on Tuesday 6th November

Tutorials Monday 5th November

2.30pm Ryan

2.45pm Stuart

3.00pm Theo

3.15pm Amanda

Stieglitz or Steichen?

In a history of the twentieth century - who had the greater influence on the direction of modern photography?


Alfred Stieglitz or Edward Steichen ?

Make your case with approx 1,000 words

Submission: Monday 12th November - 12 noon: lecture theatre 1

History part 3: Modernism & Propaganda

We covered a lot of ground in this lecture:

Documentary projects used the veracity of photography to publicise and inform:
Mass Observation - UK documentary project 1937 - 1953
Farm Security Admistration - massive US project
Florence Thomson - the "Migrant Mother"
Walker Evans - the Robbie Williams of the FSA
August Sander - Faces of the Twentieth Century (before the Nazis put him in prison)

Wikipedia on Propaganda
Nazi propaganda

Some images have become iconic:

Joe Rosenthal's picture at Iwo Jima
Associated Press counter accusations of fakery

Flags of our Fathers - Hollywood movie with a twist
Team America World Police

William Eugene Smith perhaps the World's greatest photographer

Minamata - Smith never fully recovered from being beaten up while trying to photograph the plight of a Japanese fishing vilage being poisoned by an untouchable and unaccountable chemical industry in the 1970s

The Family of Man exhibition in 1955 (curated by Edward Steichen)

Tutorials - Monday 29th October

Today, in my office:

2.45pm Kyle

3.00pm Ryan

3.15pm Ben

3.30pm Howard

Wednesday - Studio

I have some lighting techniques to demonstrate tomorrow morning - the afternoon will be free for anyone who wants to shoot in Studio 22 - or ask questions.

Zone

This is a Zone ruler of 'reflected light luminosity':


John Blakemore describes each Zone like this:

Zone 0 Featureless black
Zone I Very dark black - no detail
Zone II First sense of separation in dark areas but no detail
Zone III Clear detail in darkest areas
Zone IV Dark hair, shadow in landscape
Zone V Mid-tone (18%) grey, tanned skin, grass or stone
Zone VI Caucasian skin
Zone VII Whites retaining full detail, skin in sunshine
Zone VIII Bright surfaces, whites with little texture left
Zone IX Glaring surfaces, highlights without detail


John doesn't bother with Zone 0 and neither will we

John's Zone book

The Zone system on Wikipedia
The Zone system explained by American nerds

You can take a reflected light reading off anything - if you can visualise what "Zone" it is, and adjust your exposure setting accordingly. I'll explain more soon.

For next Monday, please try to shoot the negatives for a Zone ruler: four stops over and four stops under a Zone V (grey card exposure) of an evenly illuminated, textured surface. You should have 9 frames of increasing density.

(Remember... it won't go wrong if you follow the instructions...)

Naked vs Nude

Manet's Olympia

This is an enormous subject - worthy of a whole semester to itself. It's impossible to give a complete and balanced overview, but here are a few ideas and links. Please make some notes in your workbook.

Joel-Peter Witkin

Wikipedia on JPW
JPW gallery
8mm

Lois Greenfield

John Berger Notes on 'The Gaze' from "Ways of seeing"

Sally Mann

Laura Mulvey biography

BW information

This is Kodak Tri-X

Not to be confused with the much newer (and turbo-charged) T-MAX films 100, 400 and 3200 ISO

Here are some of the links to the areas I skirted over:
Silverprint - the best materials retailer (and genuine advice)
Ilford photo click on 'products'
Fuji pro - links to film info pdf + data guide
Kodak pro
Kodak B/W films
Kentmere - excellent papers
Fotospeed - excellent too + lith material specialist

Modern films are brilliant. T-Max 100 & 400 are amazing - but it gets expensive if you use T-Max developer everytime (which you should, or else there's not much point). So, age-old Tri-X in cheap D76 actually works really well if your follow this recipe...

Kodak Tri-X 400 - rated @ 200ISO
Dev 8 mins in D76 1dev+1water @ 20deg C
(Rating Tri-X at 200 ISO deliberately lets more light in, which saturates the silver halide crystals, reducing their size. Cutting the development to 8 mins - a little less than Kodak recommend - compensates for what would otherwise be overexposure)

Also:
Kodak T-Max 3200 - rated @ 1600ISO
Dev 9 mins in T-Max dev 1dev+4water @ 20deg C
(The same grain-calming technique works here too)

Soup in their eyes

Perhaps you might want to vote for your favourite...

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(See you all on Monday 22nd)

Andy

Anja

Barry

Ben

Claire

David

Howard

Jaime

Jenni

Kyle

Louise

Natalie

Nick

Ryan

Stuart