Friday 30 January 2015

Final Image

Photography has not ceased with sending in my work for assessment.  We have had some exciting weather this week, despite not having the snow experienced by the rest of the country.  Earlier on in the week I went out into the Lincolnshire Wolds looking for some dramatic light and stormy skies.  I was not disappointed.


Final Reflections

It is amazing that I am already at the end of another module and now wait for my assessment result and look forward to starting Level 3.  In my second reflection, after I had received the results for my previous module, I noted that I was disappointed with my result having hoped for 60% and only gaining 56%.  I concluded that, as I had only had positive comments for my assignments, my actual photography was at least OK and I suggested that my weakness, perhaps lay in the contextual side of my work.  During this module I have worked very hard to redress that imbalance, whilst at the same time maintaining a high level of photography.  My tutor has been very supportive in this and I hope that there is a distinct improvement in my work.

I have enjoyed all aspects of this module, despite finding the assignments at first reading daunting. They did prove to be challenging.  Assignment 1 gave me the opportunity to improve on the similar assignment from my Landscape module and I enjoyed doing this.  My tutor felt that the standard of photography was high and agreed with me that the contextual side of the work as weaker.  To this end I spent time and effort improving my self appraisal for the assignment.  I found assignment 2 quite daunting but in the end achieved a great deal of satisfaction from my completed book cover for Far From the Madding Crowd.  I particularly found Assignment 3 satisfying and enjoyed working with my tutor to arrive at a suitable brief and then fulfilling that brief to my tutor's exacting standards.  Assignment 4 proved to be the greatest challenge for me and, in retrospect, perhaps I did not select the best of subjects for my review.  In my reworked essay I worked hard to incorporate my tutors suggestions to improve the work.  This is an area of my practice that will need concerted effort at Level 3.  Perhaps Assignment 5 gave me the greatest satisfaction and I thoroughly enjoyed photographing the Tour de France as my event.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this module, gained much experience and, hopefully, improved the standard of my practice.  I now look forward to Level 3.

Tuesday 6 January 2015

Assignment 5: Covering an Event; The Tour de France. Response to Tutor's Comments.

Yet again I was delighted with my tutor's comments for this assignment.  It began:-

A great assignment Mike, your passion for both the event and the photography comes through clearly. You've meticulously delivered to the assignment brief and the interest in your shots by a potential client gives a nice finishing touch to the assignment.

You've got great coverage, key moments and a lot of human interest. You've set a high standard for yourself in your selects and it’s abundantly clear that this is the outcome of a lot of dedicated effort. 

It was felt, however, that some images had been over-processed although it was commented that this was purely a matter of opinion.  To this end I revisited the images and decided on some to reprocess.  In Lightroom I made virtual copies of some of my shots in order to save the original processing and then began from scratch with the originals, apart from the cropping.  This time I only set the white and black points, adjusted the exposure, reduced the highlights and opened up the shadows slightly if necessary.  I didn't adjust the clarity, vibrance or saturation at all this time.  I think that, personally, I prefer my original processing, but, as my tutor says it is a matter of personal taste.  I actually think that it might have been the quality of the light on the second day: it was the middle of a very bright day and I did have problems with highlights and shadows.  For this type of photography I prefer the soft light of a bright but overcast day.

I include my reprocessed images below.  The originals can be found in my previous blog and I shall submit both for final assessment.






Sunday 16 November 2014

Reading and Research: Eliot Porter.

I first came across Eliot Porter when I was studying the Level 2: Landscape course and we had to produce a set of images in the style of his Intimate Landscapes.  Ever since then I have enjoyed producing detailed intimate landscapes myself and have found Porter's Images in his book of the same name inspirational. He was not the only landscape photographer to work at this scale, however, Paul Strand and Ansel Adams also produced intimate landscapes.

Born in 1901, Eliot Porter began photographing his own surroundings from an early age.  He went on to study chemistry at Harvard but he always continued to take photographs, initially in black and white.  At the age of 33 he met both Ansel Adams and Alfred Steiglitz and this increased his interest.  Following his meetings he invested in a Linhof medium format camera and in 1936 Steiglitz put on a solo exhibition of Porter's work in his gallery An American Place.  This was a real honour as Steiglitz had only ever produced solo exhibitions for Ansel Adams and Paul Strand. (Parkin, 2010)  As a result of this exhibition he gave up his career and a bacteriologist and teacher at Harvard to become a full-time photographer, but breaking away from the traditional genre by working in colour.  A year after his exhibition he began using the new colour transparency film from Kodak: Kodachrome and printing from his transparencies. (Getty Centre, 2006)

Not only did Eliot Porter work as a landscape photographer, he was passionate about bird photography and, as an added challenge, he worked in medium format.  The An American Place Exhibition enabled him to make a living out of photography.  Working in colour at that time was not popular as only black and white was considered to be art  and colour was only considered useful of advertising as Ansel Adams believed. (Parkin, 2010) Porter, though, was among the first photographers to successfully bridge the gap between photography as fine art and its roots in science and technology.  He worked hard to get the colour film to produce the range of tones that he required and he worked in large format to reduce the effect of the graininess of the early emulsions.  He also made extensive use of the dye transfer process in printing, which allowed more scope for adjustment. (Parkin, 2010)  He made use of the colour process to make highly expressive prints by slightly increasing the brilliance, contrast or saturation in the transparencies, much as Galen Rowell did 20 years later. (Getty Centre, 2006)

In the 1960s began to publish his books and of great importance was 'In Wilderness is the Preservation of the World'.  His work with the Sierra Club played an important role in the conservation movement of the 1960s and he served on the board of directors from 1965 - 1971. (Getty Centre, 2006)  In 1970 he wrote, "It has been said that wilderness is a luxury, a commodity that man will be forced to dispense with as his occupancy of the Earth approaches saturation.  If this happens he is finished.  Wilderness must be preserved; it is a spiritual necessity" (Getty Centre, 2006) Here Porter is probably referring to a quote made by Henry David Thoreau when he said "In Wilderness is the preservation of the World" in his seminal essay "Walking" written in the 1850s (Wikipedia, 2014).  This quote formed the title for Porter's ground-breaking book in which he uses quotes by Thoreau.  In much the same way today 'Green Therapy' is of great importance and has been written about at great length by Richard Mabey in his excellent book 'Nature Cure' published in 2005.

Eliot Porter, like myself, also had a passion for bird photography and experimented with shutter speeds fast enough to stop a bird's movement by the use of strobes. In 1941 he received a Guggenheim fellowship that enabled him to pursue this passion and in 1943 his bird photographs featured in a solo exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art in New York.  At the time of his death in 1990 his archive contained over 8000 bird images. (Getty Centre, 2006)

I am particularly attracted to his detailed close-up landscape images published in his 1979 book 'Intimate Landscapes'.  Phillipe de Montbellow, Director of the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art, tells us in the forward to the book that the exhibition of these photographs was the first ever one man exhibition of colour photographs at MOMA.(Montbellow, 1979)  Porter says in the preface to Intimate Landscapes that he doesn't photograph for ulterior purposes, only for the thing itself.  He says that, although he has been criticised for taking photographs to promote conservation, it is far from the truth, but his images tend to be used for that purpose. (Porter, 1979).  He says that he has always been attracted to natural subjects, especially grasses and sedges.  Of his geological subjects he says it is the colours that are their most engaging characteristics. (Porter 1979)

I include some of Eliot Porter's images that I particularly like and, which, display his range of styles.

Image 1
I am attracted to this particular shot as the colours are richly saturated and I like the way the orange reflection in the top left is balance by the darker blues on the lower right.  The leaves at the bottom grab the eye and then the smaller leaves lead the eye into the image.
Image 2
The colours in this shot are amazing.  Many photographs of slot canyons in the US always make me think they are lit from within.
Image 3
I like the subtle colours of these lichen covered rocks and the precise, intricate detail in the picture.
Image 3
Lovely subtle colours here, which remind me of a picture I took in Braemar this September.
Image 4
A perfectly caught shot this, especially when one remembers that it was taken with a large format camera.  Today wildlife photographers would not go for the black background which is caused by using the strobes to achieve a fast shutter speed.  Today fast shutter speeds can stop bird movement without the need for strobes.

I also include some of my own images which are inspired by the work of Eliot Porter:-

 This image was inspired by ones such as Porter's lichen covered rocks., although these were on the beach at Achmelvic in the far north west of Scotland this September.
 A footpath through the woods at Braemar in the Cairngorms this September, inspired by images such as Eliot Porter's Path in the Woods.
 A chaffinch hovers in front of some fat wedged in the bark of a tree.  Today birds can be captured in flight without the use of powerful strobes.
 Another example of a bird captured in flight, this time a short-eared owl.
 A more static image, but a classic pose of a goldfinch on a teasel head.
A greater spotted woodpecker, related to the Flicker in Eliot Porter's image above.

References

Getty Centre (2006) Eliot Porter: In the Realm of Nature [online]. The J. Paul Getty Museum. Available from:  http://www.getty.edu/art/exhibitions/porter/ [Accessed 16.11.14]

Parkin, T. (2010) Eliot Porter, Master Photographer [online]. On Landscape.  Available from:
https://www.onlandscape.co.uk/2010/11/the-masters-eliot-porter/ [Accessed 16.11.14]

Porter, E. (1979) Intimate Landscapes. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art

Wikipedia (2014) Walking:Thoreau [online] Available from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walking_(Thoreau)


Images

Image 1. Porter, E. (1953) Pool in a Brook Dye Transfer Print [online image]
Available from:  https://www.onlandscape.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/1867.jpg [Accessed 16.11.14]

Image 2. Porter, E. (1961) Pool in Hidden Passage, Glen Canyon,Utah Dye Transfer Print. [online image] Available from:
  http://www.photographydealers.com/wp-content/uploads/Exhibit/eliot-porter-in-the-realm-of-nature/Large/reflections-Glen-Canyon.jpg  [Accessed 16.11.14]

Image 3. Porter, E. (1972)  Lichens on River Stones, Iceland  Dye Transfer Print [online image]
Available from: http://www.getty.edu/art/gettyguide/artObjectDetails?artobj=258168&handle=li
[Accessed 16.11.14]

Image 4. Porter, E. (1981) Path in Woods, Great Spruce Head Island, Maine Dye Transfer Print [online image] Available from: Prinhttp://www.getty.edu/art/exhibitions/porter/13807201_zm.htmlt  [Accessed 16.11.14]

Image 5. Porter, E. (1968) Eastern Flicker, Flying, Great Spruce Head Island,Maine Dye Transfer Print [online image] Available from:
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/feb/03/eliot-porter-realm-nature-review#  [Accessed 16.11.14]

Friday 14 November 2014

Assignment 5: Covering an Image, The Tour de France. Final Submission.

For Assignment 5 we have to send to our tutor:-

  • the portfolio of captioned images
  • a synopsis of the event and the images in about 250 words, emphasising the special and distinctive nature of the coverage
  • evidence of marketing efforts
Image Portfolio

For this assignment we were required to aim for between 12-20 images with a second-select batch of about 20.  I  Include my images below in these two categories.  All images have titles, captions and keywords embedded within them.

To view large please click on an image.

First-select images:-
Spectators waiting for the race while a group BBQs in the field behind, Masham, North Yorkshire.
 Arriving before of the publicity caravan, merchandise salesmen sell race souvenirs, Masham, North Yorkshire.
 The Tour Girls cheer the crowd as the publicity caravan passes through, Masham, North Yorkshire.
 The Tour de France is a mass of colour as it leaves Masham, North Yorkshire.  World Champion Andre Greipel is on the extreme right.
 As the race approaches the stage finish in Harrogate, the sprinters teams begin to get organised.  Mark Cavendish sits at the back of his Quickstep team on the left.
 Sky rider Bernie Eisel sits at the front of the peloton in support of team leader and race favourite, Chris Froome.
Preparing to spend the night in the car between Midhopestones and Bradfield, South Yorkshire.
A cycling fan paints on the road to encourage race favourite Chris Froome on the climb to Bradfield, South Yorkshire.
Local cyclists challenge themselves on the climb out of Midhopestones on the morning of day 2 of the Tour in Yorkshire, Bradfield, South Yorkshire.
Even the local youngsters are keen to test themselves on the route of the Tour de France while waiting for the race to pass through on Day Two, Bradfield, South Yorkshire.
With her polka dot glasses, green scarf and nails and yellow watch this fan has adorned herself in all the colours of the Tour de France, Bradfield, South Yorkshire.
Ashbourne cycling club members had bagged this prime spot to watch the Tour de France in South Yorkshire by leaving a car parked here for several days beforehand.
The publicity caravan entertains the crowd on Day Two of the Tour de France in South Yorkshire.
Chris Froome of Team Sky and second right rides at the front of the peloton on day two of the Tour de France in South Yorkshire.
Richie Porte, right, and Mikel Nieve, left, of Team Sky ride in support of Chris Froome on day two of the Tour de France in South Yorkshire.
Geraint Thomas protects race favourite Chris Froome of Team Sky from the wind on day two of the Tour de France in South Yorkshire.
Tail enders struggle towards the end of stage 2 of the Tour de France in South Yorkshire.  Their work will have been done in support of their leaders earlier in the day.
The autobus consists of those riders who have done their work in the early part of a stage and are concentrating on reaching the finish within the cut off time.  In the mountains they are often the sprinters and they give mutual support to each other.
 The team car follows the peloton to provide support to any of their riders who are in trouble.
Massed crowds try to get away after the race has passed.

Second-select images:-
 Spectators arrive to watch the race on bikes outside Masham.
 Two fans wearing the readily available souvenir Tshirts, Masham, North Yorkshire.
Three fans ready to cheer the race outside Masham, North Yorkshire.
Fans are prepared to go to any lengths to support their favourites in the Tour de France, Masham, North Yorkshire.
Many cycling fans brought their mascots along to support 'Le Tour in Yorkshire', Masham, North Yorkshire.

A young fan amuses himself while waiting for the race, Masham, North Yorkshire.
The police and security officers all entered into the spirit of the day.  Here a police motorcyclist waves to cheering fans, Masham, North Yorkshire.
Just before the riders arrive the popular publicity caravan passes through, Masham, North Yorkshire.
The all important team cars with spare bikes on the roof follow in support close behind the main peloton with race stragglers amongst them.
Overnight, fans have written the names of their favourites on the road, South Yorkshire.
A proud owner displays his beautifully refurbished vintage road bike, Tour de France, Bradfield, South Yorkshire.
Detail of a vintage road bike in celebration of cycling hero Eddy Merx, five times winner of the Tour de France, Bradfield, South Yorkshire.
Even the pet dog is dressed in Tour de France colours, here the polka dot or climber's jersey, South Yorkshire.
The local police in charge of crowd control at the Tour were enjoying the party atmosphere, Bradfield, South Yorkshire.
A local cycling club bags the prime spot at the top of the climb as the clouds gather overhead on Day 2 of the Tour de France in Soth Yorkshire.
French gendarmes form part of the security operation for the Tour de France in South Yorkshire.
The publicity caravan entertains the crowd on Day Two of the Tour de France in South Yorkshire.
 The motorcycle advertising the Tour's main sponsor passes as part of the publicity caravan.
Mavic provide the neutral support for the Tour de France and are on hand to replace a bike or a wheel of a rider who becomes separated from their team car.
The autobus consists of those riders who have done their work in the early part of a stage and are concentrating on reaching the finish within the cut off time.  In the mountains they are often the sprinters and they give mutual support to each other.

Synopsis of the event and images.
The Tour de France is an annual, international cycle race organised by ASO (Amaury Sport Organisation.  It was created in 1903 and is now the world's third biggest sporting event.  It is held in July over three weeks, attracting the top professional teams and riders from all over the world.  The race is mainly run over French Roads but occasionally crosses over into neighbouring countries, including, this year, England.  During it's 21 stages, the riders cover approximately 3,500 km with the rider covering the distance in the shortest time wearing the yellow jersey of the winner.  The polka dot jersey goes to the best climber and the green jersey to the most consistent rider overall. 12 million spectators line the route to cheer on the riders and join in the fun with the famous publicity caravan.  It is watched on television by 3.5 billion viewers world wide.

The Tour de France enthused me for this event as I am a cyclist myself and an avid Tour follower of many years standing; the race visiting England and being on my doorstep was too good an opportunity to miss.  I have for many years been inspired by the work of photographers on the Tour and having looked at the work of Graham Watson, Tim de Waele and Phil Crow I had an idea of the sort of images I was after, whilst at the same time wanting to put my own spin on it.

The key images would be of the riders as the race passed by but these would be different on both days:
  • wide angle shots as the riders passed in front of me and from a very low viewpoint
  • distance shots with a telephoto lens to compress the perspective and from an elevated view point having identified a suitable grass bank
As well as images of the race itself, I also planned the following shots:
  • having decided to spend the night in the car, I hoped for images of the build up of cars and campervans and people spending the night out
  • spectators arriving to take their places by the roadside
  • spectators celebrating in true Tour de France tradition i.e roadside parties, fancy dress etc
  • the media publicity caravan that always precedes the race
  • helicopters filming for TV
  • local police, hopefully in party mood
  • local cyclists trying out the route for themselves in the days/hours before the race
  • the traditional grafitti on the road encouraging favourite riders and perhaps spectators producing it
Evidence of marketing.
This can be found on the relevant blog page from 11th November 2014.  Apart from the correspondence on this blog, I have a meeting with the owners of Cycle Mode on 24th November for them to select the images they would like for the shop.  When these have been printed mounted and framed (I do my own mounting and framing) they will be displayed in the shop and as part of my evidence for final assessment I shall photograph them in situ.