Still life photo shoot - jewellery

Settings for this photo: 
1/40 sec;   f/5.6;   ISO 200

In this photo I was capturing a beautiful silver necklace on a blue chair. I have picked a blue chair because I think it contrasts well with the silver necklace. Therefore, the necklace stands out very well from the chair as well as the background which is blurry, because of the depth of field that I have made. I have only focused on the necklace and the chair to show what the most important subjects are in this photo. I have also use a natural light, even though the photo was taken in indoor location I have placed the necklace on a chair that was standing near large windows to get the nice natural light coming through onto my jewellery. 

Settings for this photo: 
1/3200 sec;   f/4.5;   ISO 200

In this photo I was concentrating only on my jewellery, which was a small love heart necklace, but also remembering about the background. I have also tried to pick the best background for this subject as I could, therefore I have placed the necklace next to a tree and on the line of the building to make all of the lines on the photo clear. I have also used natural light because the weather was really nice and I could use the sunlight.

Settings for this photo: 
1/3200 sec;   f/4.0;   ISO 200

In this photo I have presented the blue necklace on a tree. I have tied it around the tree and then took a photo of it. I have kept the tree in focus as well as the necklace because this is the most important subject in this photo. I did it on a green background so that my blue necklace stands out from the most. I have also used a natural light in this photo.

This is the contact print of the rest of my photos from photographing still life (jewellery).

First photo shoot evaluation and contact sheets

Preparing my first photo shoot

The first thing that I did was get the main prop that I was needing ready. So, to make the doll box I got two quite large cardboard boxes stuck together. Then I drew on them so that it would be easier for me to cut it out after. After I have done that I was ready to decorate them by sticking present paper on the inside as well as the outside of the box. It took me quite  a long time but then I was ready to place it in the location that I will be photographing my model after.

The next thing I did was draw 'Disney' and coloured it in and then I could stick it on the top of the box to show that my model (doll) is a Disney character. 

When my main prop was ready I could start helping my model to get ready for my photo shoot. I was ready to dress her up in her dress and put make up on as well as do her hair. 

After all, I was ready to set my camera up and start the photo shoot.

Photo shoot

This is a contact print of all of my images from the first photo shoot, all in square format. I have decided to do them all in square format because I didn't really like the location that I took the photos in, therefore I wanted to make them look a little bit interesting, so I decided to crop them all in square and also I think they look better in a square format.

Task 2 - diptych, mannequin and model

Task 2

Photos of mannequins and models, in the same location, doing the same pose. 

This photo presents mannequin and the model doing the same pose in the same location. I was trying to pose the model exactly the same as the mannequin but I didn’t realise that mannequin’s left leg is up instead of down like the model posed. Overall I think the pose is nearly the same, the model is looking in the same way as the mannequin and the hands are also placed in the same position. Another thing that caught my eye is the angle that I have used. The mannequin photo was done from a low angle because it wasn’t standing on the floor, it was placed at the window frame, that’s why it was easier to do it from the low angle. Whereas the model’s photo is still done from low angle but because the model is a lot bigger than the mannequin it doesn’t have the same effect. I was trying to get as closer to take the photo from the same composition as I could and I didn’t have to crop any photo out. I have also them both in portrait format so that they look similar, but also because they’re standing up and it is a lot easier to do it in a portrait format because I can easily get them both in the frame of the photo without cutting any bits of their body out of the photo. I have used natural light in this photo as it was an outdoor location.

This is another photo of a mannequin and a model doing the same pose in the same location. As we can see the mannequin is smaller than the model therefore the composition of these two photos are quite different. I was trying to pose the model exactly how I have placed the mannequin which I think worked quite well to say that it was hard to make mannequin sat on these stairs. I have used the same settings on both of these photos because it was all done in natural light, therefore there was no need to be changing any of the settings. I have also used portrait format in both of these photos because I wanted to get as much stairs going up in the photo as I could and also because I wanted them to match together well. I didn't have to crop anything out, even though there is a lot of space at the top of the picture where the mannequin is but I wanted to show the same location in both of the pictures that's why i did not crop the mannequin picture out. I have used a low-angle in both of the photos. Overall I think that this diptych photo of my mannequin and model doing the same pose in the same location worked out very well. 

In this photo I was making sure that the model makes the same pose as the mannequin, doing the photo in the same location. Because the model is a lot bigger than my mannequin I had to hold up the mannequin while taking the photo of it to make sure the background is the same. I was trying to use the same compositions in both of these photos, which I think worked out well. The aperture on this diptych is clearly different, whereas the smaller subject, which is the mannequin has a different depth of field than the photo on where the model is standing who is a lot bigger.I haven't used any artificial light, it was all done in an outdoor location therefore I have been using natural light for all of my photos. I didn't have to crop anything out because I liked the composition on both of the photos and they were both clear. I have used portrait format in both of the photos, to make sure I get roughly the same amount of background in, in both of the photos. In both of the photos I have also used the same angle, which is eye level angle. Overall I think I did well in taking this photo of mannequin and the model doing the same pose in the same location.

Contact sheet

Planning first photo shoot

Planning photo shoot 1

Inspiration from Alice in Wonderland

1. Day & Time. I am going to do this photo shoot during the weekend when my little sister is off school. I am going to do it in the afternoon so that I get plenty of natural light coming through the windows.
2.  Style. In my photo shot I am going to use my little sister as a model. I am going to dress her up as a doll. The most important thing that I will have to concentrate on is her make up. I did a research of what kind of make up I am going to do. I need to remember about red cheeks, red or pink lips but not very bright, really long eyelashes that can be drawn on as well as bright coloured eye shadows that will match her dress that she is going to wear as well. She is also going to wear nice shoes that will match her dress. Another thing that I need to remember about is her hair, after the research I have found out that the most common hairstyle for dolls are curls. Therefore I have decided to curl her hair and maybe put a headband in or some big clips with nice flowers on them. My doll will be put in a box that I will make out of cardboard, it will be pink as most of the doll boxes. 
3. Location. I am going to use two locations in this photo shoot. One which is indoor location, basically just in my bedroom on the white wall and the other one which is out door location, but just in my back garden. I want to do two because I am not sure which one will look better, one or the other.
4. Time scale. The first thing that I will need to do is get the most important props ready, for example making the box and chair, I will need to do these two about two days before my photo shoot to make sure that they are ready for the photo shoot day. On the photo shoot day the first thing that I will need to do is to set up the place and all of the equipment like flash, tripod, teddy, box as well as the camera settings etc. This will take me approx. 20 minutes. Then I will be ready for getting the model ready, doing her make up and dressing her up will should take me no longer that half an hour. Then I am ready with my model for the photo shoot. Because I am working with my little sister I am not going to be able work long with her because eventually she will get bored, so I will to take some breaks every 15 minutes. 
5. Lighting. I will try and use as much as I can of the natural light therefore I am going to do my photo shot in the afternoon because that is the time of day when there is the most of the sunlight coming through my windows. Just in case the weather will not be good I will use some lamps that I have in my bedroom as well as extra flash.
6. Model release. I am working with a child so I will need their parent’s permission and their signature on the form to make sure that they give permission for their child photos to be published. I do not need any other permission because I am taking the photos at my house.
7. Health and safety and risk assessment. I have done the risk assessment, to make sure everything goes well especially that I am working with a child.
8. Equipment. Because my model (doll) will be in a box I will have to collect all of the equipment that I will need to make a quite bit box for dolls. I need some big cardboard and paint to paint it inside as well as outside. I will also try and make a big chair for her to make her look small, as she is actually a doll. I will use some old wood that I have in my back garden to try and create a big chair for her to sit on or at least stand next to it. Other equipment that I will need will be some really big teddy or any other really big toys to make her look small. I will also need some light maybe lamps and an extra flash because I am going to take these photos indoor, just in case it will be too dark I need to be ready and have flash or some extra light/lamps. I will also need a tripod even thought I will work indoor, I want to make sure that the photos are sharp. I will also use different lenses that I have to see which photos look best. I will use my standard lens, which is 18mm – 105mm f4.5 and my portrait lens, which is 50mm f1.4 to see which one will look better.
9. Back up plan. I will have few different dresses just incase something will go wrong so that I can always dress her up in a different one. It is going to be easy because I will be taking photos at home therefore I have everything that I need there. Another back up plan for the making of the chair that I want her to sit on, just in case the chair that I will make will not be very solid that there will be a risk of her sitting down on it I will place the teddy on a chair because it is a lot lighter that my model and I am going to make my model stand next to the chair so that there is no risk of her falling off the chair. Another thing is the box, if of any kind of reason I will not be able to make the box, I will still use the same location but just make her pose like a doll with the same equipments. 

RISK ASSESSMENT TEMPLATE FOR Fashion Project:

Assessment  Reference:	Mannequin	Activity Description:	Photo shoot
Date:	19.09.2014
Student	Marcelina Skrzypczynska	Review Date:	20.09.2014
Assessment Team Members:		Overall Potential Risk Factor:	5
Course Details:	ED Photography
	Level 3	Number of People Exposed:	2
	Year 2	Names of People Exposed:	Marcelina & Zuzanna
Building-Place & Exact Location	Home/Bedroom	Is This An Acceptable Risk?

Hazard	Persons At Risk and How	Existing Control Measures	Prob	Sev	Risk Level	Additional Control Measures	Prob	Sev	Risk Level
Slippery floor	Model, can slip/fall	Warn model to be careful	2	1	2	Clean the floor	2	1	2
Box	Can collapse	Make sure it’s stable	2	1	2	Warn the model about it	2	1	2

Assessment Conclusion

Overall the photo shoot went well, no injuries or any other harm to either photographer or model.

Dolls poses

Lenses

There are different kinds of lenses that can be used for different things. First very common lens is fixed focal lens, it’s a non-zoom lens. This kind of lens offer very good quality of an image, they are ideal for portrait photography when you are taking a lot of photos at the same focal length, they are 50mm lenses. Another popular lens is a short-range zoom lens is a standard, all-purpose lens, typically around 18–55mm. These are ideal for everyday photography, but do not very good for distant zoom. Wide angle lens, 16-35mm. It photographs wider angle of view than your eye can see. This lens is useful in architectural, interior and landscape photography where the photographer may not be able to move farther from the scene to photograph it. It is also a perfect lens for panoramic landscape photos. Another super wide lens, which is 10-16mm includes fish eye. Fish eye lens offer a full 180-degree viewing angle, but the image is distorted so that it looks like the centre of an image is closer to you and the edges look like they’re disappearing. It is very useful when trying to capture a wide, nearby scene. Another 70-120mm lens which is long lens make an object far away from you appears closer.

Techniques for photo shoot

The techniques that I am going to use in my photo shoots are different kinds of angles. I am going to use low and high angle to make it look interesting but I am mainly going to use eye level angle because my model will be a doll so she wouldn’t be able to look directly into the camera if I do low/high angle, but with eye level angle that would be possible to do. The format of the photo that I am going to use are going to be mainly portrait formats but I will also do some landscape format photos if I will include teddies and other subjects in a my photos. I am also going to experiment with depth of field, especially while using my portrait lens. I am also going to try and use the bokeh technique in my photos with my model. I going to use Christmas lights in the background as well as love hearts that I will cut out of black cardboard, to make some nice effect. I will also do some photos in black and white and also try and do colour popping. I am also going to use the rule of third as well as golden section technique to help me position the model and the rest of the equipment in the right place.

Lenses for photo shoot

The lenses that I am going to use in my photo shoot are 18mm – 105mm f4.5 and my portrait lens, which is 50mm f1.4 I would like to try them both out. I’m mostly going to use my 18-105mm lens because I’m used to taking photos with this lens and I’m confident with working with this lens. I think I can create some good photos with this lens and use it to take photos from different angles as well as concentrate about everything else in the photo. I want to use my portrait lens to concentrate more on the makeup of the model as well as hair and all the small details, I really think that this lens would work perfectly well.

Task 1B - location photography

Location Photography

Fashion location photography sometimes matters more than the model. It can not only bring out the natural beauty of the model because of the surrounding and natural light if its outdoor location, but a new level of creativity to the photos because we can use the sun. The sun and good weather might also inspire the model, because they have a nice and very good condition to work in and as well as enjoying the sun which helps them to work they are modelling for really good shoots. It’s preferable to use natural sunlight if it’s possible in order to make the photo look good. It usually saves you from using the flash which is very good. The colour contrast of natural light will add the beauty and elegance to the photos because it will all look very natural. We can also think more in depth of outdoor location with natural sunlight for example beach would be a really good place if we have the opportunity to take photos there with the model because the beautiful sea will add a breath taking look to our photo. We can direct model to sit on sand or go the edge of the sea in the sun set, you have a variety of options and ideas just to take photos at the sea side. Another one is urban/town, where we can take a lot of creative photos as well. We can use all of the light at the night in our city, as well as the long streets or some modern or even very old interesting buildings. The seasons of the year will also affect our photos. We think that summer and spring are the best seasons because the nature is beautiful, but they’re not only two that are beautiful. Although the models might not want to be outside for so long in winter and autumn it can give us a really nice effect, for example the leafs in autumn and the different colours of trees can be used really well within the fashion photography. Travel location can be also very interesting, as in this we can consider some festivals, big or small events, camping or just even going on a bike ride. We can get a lot of ideas from small and obviously big trips. We can also use indoor location in our shoots. For example an old, left out warehouses or any kind of buildings can look very nice in our fashion photography. We can create some beautiful dark shadows within our quality shoots. We can dress a model in clothing that will contrast colours to stand out from the dusty and dirty but very beautiful place or also wear dark clothing to match the place that we’re in. If there are any old subjects in the building they can be used as props in the background of our photo but we need to remember to mainly concentrate on the model not the subjects behind. In our fashion photography we can use a variety of different kinds of props. They can be either small ones which the model can hold or big ones in the background. We need to remember to concentrate on the model and that the crops don’t affect the fashion, clothing or the model and especially the atmosphere of the photo.The techniques of fashion location photography. First very important technique of fashion location photography are the colours and the harmonising effect. We need to remember that when we’re taking the picture the very colour technique can be either contrast colours or analogous colours. Contrast colours which are two different colours, for example the area that the model is in is very dark therefore the model will be dressed in something really bright to stand out from the background. Analogous colours are similar colours, for example a bride with beautiful white dress on a white background but we have to be careful with this so that the model don’t overlay with the background. Another important technique in fashion location photography is the content of the photo, basically everything else in the photo except the model. We have to also concentrate on the background and every single detail that’s in the photo, of course the model is our main subject but we also need to remember about every prop in the background, make sure there are no people or there are some people if we want them to be in. The composition technique is also very important. With the composition we can show the viewers the thing we see or the things that we want them to see. It’s our choice what we want others to see therefore it’s very important. Not only the composition of the photo matters but only the composition of the model, how we capture them is very important. We need to decide what we want to show from the model, or if we only want a certain part of the body to appear in the photo, during that we can’t forget about the background composition. So we need to make sure that we tell our model how to pose to make it easier for us, and that we can capture the thing we want. In our composition we should think about different kinds of angles that we can use to take photos of our models, this would also help because it can make the photo a lot more interesting and eye catching. Cropping the picture is also a part of composition which can be very useful. Another useful technique that we should think about while doing our photo shoots is the scale. So basically we should think about different kinds of lenses that we should or could if it’s possible to use in certain photo shoot. Another interesting technique that can be also used is bokeh technique. This is a name given to technique where shapes rendered in out of focus part of the image; this technique can be used in still life fashion photography. Bokeh is often most visible around small background highlights, such as specular reflections and light sources. It is really easy to do; the shape is created by the aperture in the lens itself. You can create your own bokeh by cutting out shapes in black card and placing it over your lens, it can also give some really nice effect while doing fashion shoots. We can use natural lighting to create silhouettes. We have to make sure to expose for the background and not directly to the sun because it can damage our camera lens sensor as well as our eyes. Fashion silhouettes can look very interesting, especially if we do them on a hill or grass land, with no buildings or any trees around, just in an open space. 

Task 1A - contemporary and historical photographers

Task 1A

Mannequin- mannequins are usually three dimensional life size representations of human body, mainly used in shop displays which are used for the fitting or display of clothes. Mannequin has also an alternative spelling of manikin, which has the same meaning. It can also be a person who is an employed to model. Mannequin can also be called a doll, dummy, dress form or a lay figure which is mainly used by artists but we can also call mannequins at the shop display lay figure. In fashion they also call models who present the clothes which are displayed at the fashion shows. 

Contemporary photographers

Nick Knight: Nick Knight came up through fashion beginning with a book of photographs titled Skinheads that he released in 1982 while he was still a student in the. Very soon after that he was noticed by i-D Magazine and few more and has now shot campaigns for the likes of Alexander McQueen, Calvin Klein, Christian Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, and a lot more. We can find his work internationally. We can find a really unique technique in his work. He is interested in what the whole photograph presents rather than just one aspect of the image. In order to improve his performance in photography, he is always open to any kind of inspiration. I think that Nick’s style of his photography is really unique and inspirational as he shows the emotions of people that he takes photos of. He says that by taking photos of someone you can find out a lot about people as well as what they experience and feel. This really influences my inspiration because it helps me to think about how I need to work with my model and talk to them, have really good communication skills to communicate with them so that I can show their emotions in the best possible way and he also shows how important it is for the photographer to understand people well so that later on we can show it in our pictures. 

Marcin Tyszka: Marcin Tyszka is polish photographers who specialize in fashion photography. He started his career in front of the camera as a teenage presenter of one of the most famous program on the first channel of national polish TV for almost 10 years. He started taking pictures at age 15, quickly growing from a hobby to a way of life. Now, he’s one of the most popular photographers in Poland, France, Thailand, Italy, USA and many more. He also works regularly for Vogue as well as with one of the best models in USA, Anja Rubik. He’s a photographer of high fashion. He’s photos are quite simple but very good as well. We can see that he match the colours of the background perfectly with the models outfit, he thinks about everything that’s around as well.  His photos really help me to think about the whole image and make sure that I concentrate on every single detail in the photo not only the main subject/person, as well as obviously the lightning and composition of the photo. The poses of his models are also very interesting as we uses a lot of crops which don’t affect the outfit but help the model to pose which is very helpful for both, the photographer as well as the model.

Suzanes Heintz: Photographer Suzanes Heints decided to take photos of herself with her ‘family’, husband and daughter. She’s a single women therefore we was fed up with questions about when she was going to get married. She was really tired of all these questions therefore she purchased two mannequins, one of a man which was her husband in the photos and another one which was a little girl, simply her daughter in her photos. She dresses them up and took a variety of photos, while going skiing, vacation or even stereotypical romantic moments. The way she sets the scenes are perfect. They also look realistic because of her body language and expressions of her in these photos. She poses very well in her photos even though her ‘family’ looks the same on each of the photo, her body language and face expressions make the photos look really interesting and funny as well. She was using the timing set up on her camera to take photos of herself with her new family. I think she had to put a lot of work into her photos because she had to think about the composition of the photo and everything else while being in front as well as behind the camera. I really like this idea and I am going to think about using it maybe just with a small doll because I think these pictures look really interesting and they are also very eye catching.  

Historical photographers

To research the historical fashion photographers I have used a magazine 'British Journal of photography' from September 2013, where I have found an article called 'Printed fashion', which was about few historical photographers who took photos for British, American or even French Vogues and many other fashion magazines in 70's, 60's, 50's or even late 40's. 

Peter Knapp, was born in 1932 in Switzerland. He studied graphic design but then talented in painting he continued his studies in Paris. He has started his career as an artist, but his fashion photography can be find in some famous magazines in vintage issues like French Elle, The Sunday Times or even Vogue. His work really helps me to think about working with the model and the poses which are very important, because we can see that in every he makes the model pose really nicely, interesting as well as unique. His photos are overall very unique especially the 60's style because that's when he was taking most of his photos to magazines like Vogue.

Bruce Webber, born in 1946. Bruce is an American fashion photographer and occasionally film maker. He is most known for his as campaigns for Calvin Klein or Ralph Lauren and a lot more. He's photos are very professional, as he works with very famous people all over the world. He presents his work in the best possible quality. 

Steve Hiett was born in 1940 in UK and is a fashion photographer, designer as well as art director and musician. He studied painting at art school and then continued his studies in Royal College of Art Graphic Design School in the early 60's in London.After few years he finally decided to become fashion photographer. Steve creates a 3D effect in his photographs using a particular format and combination of colours. All women in his photos appear to have endless legs and brilliant skin, often combined with luxury cars or riding bicycles. Hiett's work has appeared in magazines such as Vogue (English, French and Italian).