October 2014
Preparation
Assignment 5 asks the student to produce 8-12 images for a notional client, much as a professional photographer would do. Having completed the exercises for Assignment 4 and being in a position to work on the assignment, I was approached by one colleague to shoot her wedding in February next year and another colleague to photograph Winter Olympic athletes for a piece he is writing for a Winter Sports magazine in January / February next year. I needed to find a subject to cover before then, which would also be good preparation for both events. At the time of compiling this assignment, one of the Winter Olympian shoots has now been brought forward to December with the article proposed to a local newspaper (with about 3 images), so this assignment has been good preparation for me.
During a conversation over dinner, I learnt that a national magazine, WI Life was covering an article on the WI’s involvement in the Bramley Apple Festival in Southwell, Nottinghamshire. I had been asked by a WI committee member to encourage Josh, a thirteen year old lad to submit an entry into the children’s class. Thinking through the subject, there was a story which fitted into people and lifestyle. I thought it would be interesting to tell this story as I have watched local papers and magazines include photographs on both the children and adult winners over the years. I could also compare articles once the WI Life magazine was published.
Researching through magazines on sale, I liked the photo stories in Landscape, Country Life or our local glossy high end Nottinghamshire Today type of magazine. These published photo stories with an article (the number of photos varied from 6 onwards depending on the type of story covered). They work with a person or people showing their work, activity, end products, and use an “explaining” style of photos to educate the reader or allow them insight into their venture. Having decided on a story to illustrate, I looked at photographers who worked in food and lifestyle to refine my ideas.
What I learnt about food photography was that it can be all manner of things and each photographer has a different style. Words such as “conveying emotion and mood”, “close-up” “strong composition”, “careful lighting”, “sell the dream”, and “people enjoying life” could be used to describe the images.
For this assignment, the two photographer’s works I found most useful to study were David Loftus (who photographs Jamie Oliver amongst his clients) and Clare Borboza who shows the work of people from the farmers through to the chefs and consumers. I later discovered the work of Georgia Glynn Smith who photographs TV chefs and bakers such as Mary Berry, Gordon Ramsey and Nigel Slater.
The Client Briefing
For this assignment, my notional client is a lifestyle magazine who is running an article on a teenage boy who is inspired by the Great British Bake Off to enter a cookery competition at the Bramley Apple Festival in Southwell (home of the Bramley Apple). He has school cookery lessons for 6 weeks per year. There are no extracurricular cooking sessions, so Josh has to gain knowledge from other sources. I have assumed that a telephone conversation had taken place to book the photographer and a follow up information schedule had arrived by email.
First I defined the story I wanted to tell. This was a positive experience as it concentrated my mind. By giving myself a narrower brief, I could target the photos I really wanted. I had talked to an events photographer at the Great Notts Bike Ride who explained at the time that his brief asked him to target specifics such as different outfits including kids, fancy dress and different bikes such as Raleigh Choppers. I bore this in mind when organising my shots.
……………Media Publishing Group
Story
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Josh making cake
Entering in show to receiving judges’ comments
Independent skills
Local culture / environment Seasonal themed event celebrating Bramley Apple
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No. of photographers
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1
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No. of images
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8-12
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Deadline
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Mon 27th October 2014
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Details of event
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Bramley Apple Festival, Southwell, Notts
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Date, Start/Finish times
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Saturday 25th October 2014 9:30-3:30pm (Southwell) , Notts , and photos before at Josh’s house making the cake
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Location
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Josh’s home, Bramley Centre (Library) and Minster Southwell (maps attached)
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Contact details
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Xxxx
Xxxx
Xxxx
xxxx
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Style of photographs
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Daylight
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Target market
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30+, local residents, national readership mainly females,
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Image format
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RAW and JPEG portrait and landscape images, choice of 2 covers
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Props required
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Bramley Apples
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Equipment required
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Flash, Tripod
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Angles
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Wide, above, close up, sense of place, festival, motion
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Colour
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Autumnal, daylight
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Suggested poses
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Think Jamie Oliver, relaxed poses, entice viewers to event, Josh holding apples, cooking skills, filler shots in minster
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Post production
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Bright, lift off the page
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Notes
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Flash Photography not permitted in Minster
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How I set about planning the photography
Listing all the photo opportunities, I narrowed them down by deciding what could be done on the festival day and what should be done in advance.
Photo opportunities:
· Reading schedule – before event
· Planning recipe – before event
· Cooking – close up, slicing apple, hand on chopping board, full length action shot – before event
· Cake and recipe at home with Josh – before event (would need another cake – concerns around it being the same)
· Arriving at venue – on day
· Children’s entries – on day
· Children’s class being judged – on day
· Festival fillers – apples, Junior Masterchef demonstration, Bramley King and Queen, Stalls, Morris Dancers, demonstrations, Window displays – on day
· Josh buying Bramley apples from market –on day (Southwell Market held on Saturdays)
· Bramley seedling tree? – on day
· Judges’ comments of cake on day – on day
· Prize giving – on day
· Tasting cake or cake on table with server underneath a slice (concerns – judging removes a slice – two cakes may not look the same)
· Cover – cake on location (concerns re incomplete cake), portrait style shot at home – before event
So actually the day in Southwell would be very busy if I achieved everything adding stress and time constraints. I needed to get the balance right between the at home shots and location shots.
I knew for the home shots I would have to use flash, (with which I am not totally confident) so extra time was needed to review the images.
I think sometimes one also acts on creativity, and although a list has been drawn up, deviating from it slightly can produce better images. For instance, I had my cover image firmly in my head. Josh and I were talking about the type of image he would submit if he entered the photo competition, although he didn’t want to enter it. I reworked my cover image idea to incorporate Josh’s idea which probably created a better working environment because he knew I listened to him.
I visited Southwell a couple of days before the festival to look at the library as a reminder of how it would look on the day, how much room I had to manoeuvre – (tripod or not?), look in the shop windows at the displays and suss out the natural lighting for my idea of the library shot . It was important to remember the distance between the Minster and the Library to sort out parking for the day. I thought being as mentally prepared as possible would give me more time to focus on the event.
How well you succeeded, including the difficulties and opportunities you encountered at the outset
I kept a check list of the images I wanted on paper to refer to so I could tick them off when I had achieved something or cross through them when processing and something hadn’t worked.
What worked well?
· I spent time researching the type of cover shot I wanted. I had the experience behind me of completing Digital Photographic Practice 1 and an awareness of what would work as a cover image.
· Experimentation and creativity – I had an idea of something I have been looking at through people and place. I wanted a shot showing the main street of the town reflected in the shop window with Josh looking in. The shop I chose was advertising for trainees which I thought it was quite fitting to the theme.
· Flash- My images using flash were better than I expected once I altered the last used settings. There was not much light getting into the dining room which I wanted to use for the cover. Two days later, trees in the neighbour’s garden were cut down and light came flooding in!
· Editing – use of Photoshop to remove most of the radiator from the cover image.
· Dress theme – I insisted on Josh keeping outfits subtle but distinct – i.e. apron for cooking shots, no apron for cover shots, hat on when about to go outside, and hat and fleece for the market shot. I feel it adds a sense of place and another reference point for the image, although some people who I have shared my images with did not understand the relevance of it. To me it is like using an image for clipart for work of a nurse with a watch on.
Difficulties encountered and how I overcame them
· Josh is left handed – I had never considered that to photograph a left handed person, I would have to reverse my planned images before shooting. E.g. the oil shot – this was set up on a different worktop in the kitchen to give a wider angle and say “kitchen” to the viewer. He cannot work well with his right hand (oil went everywhere) so we had to change it around so that the camera (and viewer) could see better. Once I had worked this out, it wasn’t a problem.
· Lighting– I use flash when I have to although I still don’t feel comfortable with it. I regard it as a dark art. I understand that for commercial images, the lighting should be as even as possible with no shadows across the face and flash helps to “lift” the subject off the page. For the home shots, I used flash, and set up a flash gun either remotely on a tripod or the camera, where I thought it would help. However, flash photography is not permitted in the Minster, meaning I had to use a high ISO and reduce the aperture to get a better exposure. Some of my images were grainier than I would have liked, despite using a wide lens and a wide aperture. Highlights became burnt out (unable to rescue in raw) or there was too much movement in the images. I had to work fast and take several images to get a few without arms in the wrong places or people looking the wrong way.
· Space was limited at home, in the show room and the Minster. I was able to use a tripod at home for some of the images, but there was no room in Southwell. This meant finding different viewpoints, being patient and taking several shots.
· Time – We arrived at the show to find a disappointing number of entries. One of the main roads was closed due to repairs and the diversion had seen a big accident meaning people were delayed. As entries were pre-booked, the organisers knew how many entries they were waiting for. Hence judging started late and the opening of the baking show (and results) clashed with the Junior Masterchef demonstration in the Minster. This was one of the images which may have fitted in well to my story.
· On the scheduled day for the photo shoot, Josh decided he was going out with his friends and would not be back until just before dark. I had planned to use the same type of lighting throughout so that it did not matter in which order I placed the images. I re-scheduled the shoot in for the following morning. By then Josh was bored of the idea as he had pulled in making the cake the evening before the show. For a commercial venture this would have wasted the photographer’s time.
· Expression –The images of an active and engaged Josh were much more inviting that a bored teenager, so I varied the type of shots I did with him to take account of this.
· Mood – Josh refused to buy an apple from the market because he is unfamiliar with talking to retailers. He would have been happier in a supermarket. Once I explained to him that I would need permission to do this he was more understanding and reluctantly agreed to purchase an apple for me. It reinforced to me the need to include the child in the plans (firmly without giving them room to change the plans).
· Discernment with choice of images-I narrowed my selection down to 21 images from 500, printed 20 as a contact sheet, cut them out and grouped them to see what worked well together. I had an idea of the story I wanted to tell and how I thought it should look. I was keen to see that it worked and the images looked OK (in my opinion). I played around substituting one or another in Publisher and linking it with the story to ensure that the words and images lined up. I also wanted to check orientation, colours and the mix of active and passive shots. From here I categorised the images, sorting them into landscape and portrait, compared similar and contrasting colours.
I had given myself six A4 pages to fill in Publisher with the idea of grouping shots down either side. I toyed with the idea of a circular shot, as some magazines featured these. Image 9808 would have made a circular image and cropped out the unwanted background by doing so. I also deliberated over whether to include the prize giving as an ending. I chose a shot with the cake and third prize as more creative than the prize giving. I was interested to note the similarities in the photo story of “High Wheel Bicycle enthusiasts gather for Prague Race” (Matej Divizna / Getty Images, 4th November 2014) via MSN news who included the start of the race and not the finish. I also abandoned another possibility (cake on the table at the beginning) as there were very few entries and I wanted all the images to represent busyness.
Reasons behind my chosen images
All images submitted were taken with 5D Mark 2 full frame camera 24-105mm lens). I had carried my 40D with 18-200mm (29-320mm) to save keep swapping lenses but did not use any of these images.
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Image 1
Cover
1/8 f8
ISO400 35mm +11/3 exposure compensation flash
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Josh had an idea that plunging a knife into an apple would make a good image. I developed this idea by looking at the size of the knife to give impact (too small and it had no impact, and too large and the knife dominated the scene. One of the recognised skills in cookery is “knife skills”, so it was important to get it right. I was inspired by the work of David Loftus (who took photographs of Jamie Oliver). In comparison, Loftus’s image has more contrasting colours than mine and he has a framed it differently (less in the foreground than my image.) I had to leave room for a title in mine and my image could be adapted for use in other people’s houses as most people have a plain wall somewhere.
Brook (2014) states about the importance of separating arms away from the body to make a statement. By posing Josh in this position and shooting down rather than across at him, I think he dominates the image. Diagonals of arms add impact and movement to the scene. Round board and round apple on round table balance out the head. I felt this was a balanced image. The colours are complementary; reds, greens and browns. Josh never smiles for the camera unless caught unaware. This look was more of an enquiring look.
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| Image 2 1/100 f8 ISO400 24mm |
Josh looking at the apple displays in the windows. This one caught his eye with Halloween only a few days away. The candle was burning in the apple giving it a golden glow inside. This appealed to me because of the trainee sign. Josh’s face shows up well against the dark blue door which adds contrast to the image. His face is free from harsh shadows. The reflection in the window shows the profile of the main street with people which adds depth to the image. The colours work well together to create an autumnal feel to the image – crunchy leaves and a hat encourage people to associate with the season of the year.
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Image
3 1/60 f8 ISO400 58mm
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Welcome to Southwell Market – a small and friendly market with about 16 stalls on a Saturday, one of which sells fruit and vegetables. Josh was very reluctant to do this set of shots for me as he is not confident with traders engaging in conversation with him. I had to crop in fairly tightly to capture the action as there was such a lot happening. I planned a wide shot to show the atmosphere as a contrast to Josh being on his own. (My lens is a zoom lens, so I was pleased that I had planned about 50mm and I achieved 58mm without looking at the camera.) There is lots going on in the background of this shot – and two people are holding cauliflowers which I think gives it a rural feel. The line of bananas hanging up creates a frame for the image. This image introduces a wide variety of colour to otherwise fairly neutral colours which people expect to see and I think it works with the collection of images. It is a shame that it wasn’t Bramley apples on the top of the stall (the apples came from New Zealand). My only criticism is that people’s faces are obscured by the market frames. The action of this image is a change from the first 2 passive shots and hopefully entices the viewer to turn the page.
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Image 4 1/15 f8 ISO800 50mm +11/3 exposure compensation flash
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When researching images of chefs cooking, it was the action shots that appealed to me. I did want them to be natural though, even if a little flamboyant. I had observed that the cover of Mary Berry’s latest cookery book had her sifting flour high in the air for added impact (Photographer Georgia Glynn Smith). On further research, I found that the style of her images in Mary Berry’s book showed that home cooking was achievable by all and was fun as well as demonstrating step by step techniques. I had planned to use a different work top and include a long shot of the kitchen. This was the point at which I discovered that my planned shot on paper would not work because Josh is left handed. I did not have enough space to set up and get the camera in. This image worked better in portrait rather than landscape so I cropped it into a square to fit the magazine to remove the wasted space. I took several images of Josh pouring the oil with him looking at me and concentrating on the task in hand. Josh engaged with the fun behind this shot. The light from the kitchen window helped brighten the image and the flash filled in where necessary. This resulted in more even lighting.
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Image
5 1/80 f4 ISO800 55mm +11/3 exposure compensation flash
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This image shows Josh cutting an apple using a safe technique and the correct size knife. I thought it worked quite well as an action shot. I liked the subtle colours and shapes such as an implied triangle. Using a soft window light and a little flash to brighten the image gave a soft image with some shadow detail. Reading through Mary Berry’s latest book, it occurred to me that the close up action shots of peeling and slicing an apple were not too dissimilar from mine. I had not seen this book before I took my set of photos, and further research showed that Glynn Smith has worked with several of the TV chefs whose books I have or have read. She also works for magazines such as Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, The Daily Mail, Country Life, and I think I have quite possibly been influenced by these images without realising it.
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Image
6 1/30 f4 ISO800 35mm +11/3 exposure compensation flash
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Josh was able to do this shot with his right hand for me so I could show a long shot of the kitchen. This sets the place of where he is. By positioning him here, the natural light was behind him so the lighting across his face was even. The sugar crystals are in focus and Josh is slightly out of focus which I thought was acceptable because my focus was on the action of the shot. Partial inclusion is enough to show he is there and he adds contrasting colour to the image.
The last 3 images were designed to fill one side of a page. All are action, landscape shots with the colours and tones working well together.
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Image
7 1/125 f4 ISO800 105mm +1/13 exposure compensation flash
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I shot this image looking down on Josh’s hands to give a different view point. Again this is an action shot and we had to change worktops from what I had planned to get the shot to work. I felt the colours contrast with the background. I considered cropping out the corner of the worktop but this made the length of Josh’s arms too short. Diagonals and implied triangles add dynamics to the shots. Use of a wooden chopping board add a natural, rustic feel to the image.
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Image
8 1/8 f8 ISO400 60mm flash
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This image shows Josh putting his cake into a tin to transport it to the show. Again it is an action image because although I tried to take Josh and his cake after the show, he felt embarrassed about it. By asking him to do something, it took his mind off being photographed. As we decided to use the same cake for the images to maintain consistency, I had to capture the whole cake before it was judged. Rather than set up a still life, I thought this showed care and attention from Josh. In a different article (such as how to make the cake, a shot of the finished product on its own would work.) My only criticism is that the fluctuation in light levels meant my flash was too bright and it produced a big shadow on the cupboard which I toned down in Photoshop.
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Image
9 1/125 f6.3 ISO800 35mm No flash permitted
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This image shows the hustle and bustle inside the Minster. The food stall was cooking and combined with the light pouring in through the Minster windows made quite an interesting scene. This is an image that I didn’t expect to find and thought the lighting and activity added to the image making it stand out from my other images. The background of the image (windows and walls) sets the place. All the spectators are interested in what was going on. There is eye contact between the sellers concentrating on their tasks and the purchasers watching the cooks. The image has some colour; pinks, blues and yellows which add to the image without dominating with it and fits in with the tone of the collection of images.
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Image
10 1/13 f6.3 ISO1250 40mm no flash permitted
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This is another image which shows the place and people interacting with it. Starkeys are a local family who have been growing Bramley Apples in Southwell for over 100 years. They sell apple juices and compotes with no added sugar. Local interaction with their customers through informing and sampling helps promote their products, sold in farm shops and at shows. The light was coming in through the clerestory windows above, falling on the apple juices giving them a lovely colour. People were interested in the products and there was interaction with the stall holder. The pillars of the minster helped to set the place. Flash was prohibited which would have ensured that the people were in focus, although I don’t think that matters too much. I decided to focus on the bottles rather than the people.
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Image
11 1/15 f8 ISO200 58mm flash
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Josh received third prize for his entry. Space was limited in the show room, especially as people were keen to come and see how well they did. I had planned a wider shot of Josh looking at his entry surrounded by the other winners. Due to the space in the room, I worked on this idea as it was less cluttered. The children’s entries were cramped onto a little round table joined on to the adult entries on the rectangular table which creates a division between the two. Without rearranging the table and entry cards, this was the best I could manage. I preferred this over the presentation images as it was less staged. The pink and green worked well together but the brown cakes covered in cling film were not very photogenic.
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Image 12 f8 0.6 secsISO400 105mm Flash
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I wanted to include an image of Josh holding apples. I had planned a casual relaxed image of Josh leaning against a wall partially obscured which may have been a cover shot. I favoured Josh with a singular apple at the table. Offering the apples on the table worked well, and on reflection I could have used a tablecloth on the table to break up the similarity with the cover image. So under my props section, I could include that. I liked the triangle of apples and the diagonal arms. Showing Josh’s fingers put the size of the apples into perspective. Following my tutor feedback, I took one of the other images I had taken of Josh holding the apples and cropped it into a square. This works well and is different from the first image. It could be used as a cover image – I could have left more of the table in the image to add the title.
How well did I stick to the brief I gave myself?
Having developed a story before I started taking the images definitely helped me to focus on what images I needed to take. I still took 500 images so that I could select the best from each group and could substitute another shot if necessary. It is time consuming to sift through them all and I am sure that as photographers become more experienced they can take less photos. I don’t think I have reached that point yet. I think including a tablecloth in the props section would help. I had drawn images roughly on paper, and given thought to the apples and hands but not the background. It was a valuable learning point for me.
References
Anon, High-wheel bicycle enthusiasts gather for Prague race. Available at: http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/offbeat/high-wheel-bicycle-enthusiasts-gather-for-prague-race/ss-BBcwMSS [Accessed November 4, 2014a].
Anon, Available at: http://petapixel.com/2014/10/29/dear-bride-tips-model-looking-best-camera/ [Accessed November 4, 2014b].
Bibliography
Angier, R., 2007. Train your gaze: (a practical and theoretical introduction to portrait photography), United Kingdom: AVA Academia, Lausanne, Switzerland
Freeman, M., 2013. Capturing Light The heart of photography, UK: Ilex Press.
ABC1 Demograpahic. Available at: http://www.abc1demographic.co.uk/ [Accessed October 21, 2014a].
David Munns. Available at: http://foodphotography.co.uk/ [Accessed October 21, 2014b]. Latest News. Available at: http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/press/news/article/bauer_launches_landscape_magazine [Accessed October 21, 2014c].
http://www.timhill.co.uk/ [Accessed October 21, 2014d].
http://www.deliciousdays.com/ [Accessed October 21, 2014e].
http://www.marcusnilsson.com [Accessed October 21, 2014f].
http://www.mittongtarestudio.com [Accessed October 21, 2014g].
http://www.davidloftus.com/ [Accessed October 21, 2014h].
http://www.beatricepeltre.com/ [Accessed October 21, 2014i].
http://www.glynnsmith.co.uk [Accessed November 5, 2014j].
http://clarebarboza.com/ [Accessed October 21, 2014k].
http://www.davidloftus.com/jamie-oliver#5 [Accessed October 21, 2014l].
http://www.thewi.org.uk/wie-and-wi-life [Accessed October 21, 2014m]
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