Slow Sync - Work Diary

In today's lesson we were given the task of shooting slow sync images in the studio, we had to set up the lighting in the studio ourselves. I enjoyed shooting these images as I found it interesting seeing how the movement is trailed behind in orange shadows. I am happy with the outcome of my images, and I enjoyed the lesson overall, it made a change to be in the studio again.

The equipment I used for this shoot included: a light meter to help us set the camera settings, a tripod to keep the frame of the photo still, studio lights to get an effective 'flash' and lighting, and a subject to photography. 

Best Image from today:

ISO- 200

F- 5.6

Shutter speed- 1.6s

This image is my best one of the day, I made my subject dance, and you can see his previous position clearly before his new one, this shows the technique of 'slow sync' effectively as you can clearly see movement. I was able to capture the orange shadow in this image fundamentally due to the flash, and the slow shutter speed of 1.6s, additionally the black background enhanced this, and my subjects orange top jumps out from the background. 

Worst Image from today:

ISO- 200

F- 5.6

Shutter speed- 1.6s

This is my worst image of the day, as you can see the studio surroundings, also the subject is not properly in the frame, as the top of their head is cut out. The technique is also not explored effectively as there isn't much movement shown, therefore this doesn't meet the lessons objective. Moreover, I didn't inform my subject that I was about to take their photo, which is why they also look unprepared. 

Progression:

Although I enjoyed experimenting with this technique I would not use this in my project, as I do not think it would work effectively with my 'nature' theme, and due top my shoots being documentary photography I would not like to base many of my shoots in the studio, as my theme is 'nature' I wish to be outside. 

Slow Sync - Straight Images

ISO- 200

F- 5.6

Shutter speed- 1.6s

ISO- 200

F- 5.6

Shutter speed- 1.6s

ISO- 200

F- 5.6

Shutter speed- 1.6s

ISO- 200

F- 5.6

Shutter speed- 1.6s

ISO- 200

F- 5.6

Shutter speed- 1.6s

Slow Sync - Image Bank

This image has a creepy atmosphere, as it's a dark background, with a mysterious man in this, whom is smiling creepily. The man in the image almost appears 'ghost-like' due to the motion created from the flash, and this makes the viewer question what he is doing? 

I like the different colours that are created between the two cards, as this draws your eye into the image, despite everything but this and the ace card being in colour. I also admire how the card has changed, implying a magic trick is occurring, this would have been edited online in order to achieve this. Moreover, the smooth curved motion of the card's movement is something I would like to try execute in my shoot.

The red-pink colour of the dress stands out strongly from the black background. The movement of the individual's arm is what I believe is the key focus point of this image, as it's almost spiritual. Moreover, I admire how you can see where the dancers finish their move. You cannot really see the man until the end, whereas you can see the woman the whole way through, this may imply this dance is about/for her mainly. 

This image is similar to one I created last year in AS, whereby we used our phone lights to capture movement in the air. The continuous circles show that this man may be going on a journey, as they seem to never end and they intertwine with each other. The colours all work well together, and the background appears to be sloping off into the distance, or it appears to be shaking due to how the blur is working- this creates an uneasy atmosphere. 

This image is similar to the one above as the movement of the light is shown well, the red light also implies anger, this corresponds with the movement of the light itself, as it's not smooth but it's jagged. I would like to shoot an image like this, however I do not like the background in this image as I believe it slightly takes away attention from the subject and the lights. 

This image is a New York taxi, it captures the chaos well as all the lights are moving, but the car is in focus. This implies that the taxi is on a job, and is focus; whereas the rest of New York is rushing unknowingly. I would like to shoot an image similar to this of a car, at night, in order to capture the movement of city lights. A tripod was clearly used for this image, otherwise the car would not be completely in focused, but slightly blurred too. 

Slow Sync - Definition Post

What is slow sync flash?

Slow sync flash is an advanced term for using your flash, with a slow shutter speed. It allows you to keep your subject sharp while capturing motion/a dark background. This captures the ambient light, and its motion. You can chose to have the flash come at the beginning or the end of your exposure; if the flash comes at the beginning, this is known as 'front curtain', whereas if it's at the end it's known as the 'rear curtain'. A dark background is needed in order to capture more of the motion/ambience. 

Equipment needed:

Light source

Tripod

Subject

Light meter

Dark background

Snoot

Reflector 

Modelling light 

Monoblock studio lights  

In class we were given this image to analyse, and demonstrate to use how the slo sync technique works. You can evidently see how the young boy has moved and changed positions, this is due to the flash. The dark background allows the movement to be shown more clearly. The slow shutter speed allows the movement to be shown, as without this you would get a clear image, with all in focus. You can see the change in movement also through the boy being extremely bright and in focus where he finished, compared to the blurred movement behind him which is darker, as he has moved, therefore the camera didn't have much time to capture him in this stance, in comparison to how much time it had to capture, and light up him when he finishes his movement- this is also due to a lack of light. 

Blur - Work Diary

In today's lesson we were given the task of photographing images in the style of Klein, in order to explore the technique of 'blur'. I didn't like photographing this technique as I felt it made images appear 'untidy', and you couldn't prepare for what your outcomes would have been, as it was random. I experimented with various shutter speeds in order to gage which would be the best, as some were too quick (1/30), whereas others were too slow (4"). In all of my images I used a tripod to minimise any movement within the frame of the image, allowing me to focus on the subjects, in order to reduce the chances of any distortion occurring.

Best image from today:

ISO- 400

F- 29

Shutter speed- 1/20

This is my best photograph I took today, as I have an individual in focus, and one blurred slightly (likewise to Klein's image in my definition post for blur.) This image intrigues me as the subject in focus is looking away, into the distance implying he's thinking as he is not moving, whereas the lady behind is rushing past and he isn't paying any attention to this. Its evident I used a tripod to capture this image, as there's no movement from the frame, this was also due to my shutter speed of 1/20. The blur of the lady is in the centre of the image, this therefore draws your eyes into the image and allows you to focus solely on this. 

Worst image from today:

ISO-200

F- 25

Shutter speed- 1/10

This is my worst image of the day, as although blur is evident it doesn't seem as though I knew whether to capture just the movement of the feet, or the whole individuals. I like the idea of the effect of the wheels moving, however in this image you can't se any precise motion from them, it's mainly just the man who is blurred. Moreover, I do not like the background in this image as it appears to clutter the image too much which takes your focus of the blur technique. 

Progression: 

I would not use this technique in the project, as I do not believe I could incorporate this into my theme of 'nature'. I also do not like blurred images as they appear untidy and messy, I prefer crisp images with wide depths of field. 

If I was to reshoot my images again I would not go into Harlow town, I would perhaps go to a forest and shoot leaves falling, as I believe this would work better than merely taking images of peoples feet moving. 

Blur - Straight Images

ISO- 400

F- 29

Shutter speed- 1/20

ISO- 400

F- 20

Shutter speed- 1/20

ISO- 400

F- 20

Shutter speed- 1/20

ISO- 400

F- 22

Shutter speed- 1/15

ISO- 400

F- 16

Shutter speed- 1/40

Blur - Image Bank

This image is extremely bright, and colourful. The blur is in the chairs of the swing and slightly on the ovular shape they're attached to, this leads me to believe that the photographer used a tripod to capture this image, as the cylinder support for the ride, is in focus. You can clearly see which direction the chairs are travelling in due to the direction in which the blur is dragged. I would have to travel to a fun fair to photograph an image like this, which is not possible; however I can use the idea of showing the direction of the blur. 

I like this image as everyone around the man is moving, and rushing showing the chaos of London but he remains still. This makes the viewer question what he's looking at on his phone. The fact he is still implies to me that he is in deep thought, and different to everybody else around him. You can clearly see the 'underground' sign which allows us to easily gage that this photograph is captured in London. I could, and would like to recreate an image similar to this. 

This image is clearly photographed in London, as the classic/stereotypical red telephone box is in focus, with again the stereotypical big red bus whizzing past in the background. I like this image as it's photographed at night which allows the lights, and colours to jump out more, which is again a signature look of London. You can tell which direction the bus is moving due to the drag of the blur. 

This image implies chaos as most of the image is blurred, apart from the rider which may suggest he is in control and dominant. The horses feet appear most interesting to me, as the motion of them moving back and forth enhances the image, as most of the other blur is random/ distorted. I couldn't recreate this image as I do to live near a place which does this type of sport, although it does still interest me. 

This image is in black and white which enhances the blur, as you cannot see around the cyclists, this may suggest they're on a journey and do not know where they are going as we cannot see where they are going. I could easily recreate an image like this, using a tripod in order to follow the bike with my camera, whilst blurring everything else simultaneously.

This image has humour to it, as the child doesn't appear to be having a good time, which is usually associated with a playground. The child, and the pole he is clutching on to is in focus, with the background out of focus. A slow shutter speed would have been used in order to blur the background, whilst focusing on the child to keep them in focus. I would like to recreate an image like this in my local park, and experiment with various camera settings (shutter speed.)