At first I thought I might be able to do this project and the next one - photographing movement - in one weekend. Well I could if I had been playing at it. But as I am beginning to understand there are no short cuts in this game.
There were two exercises to this project - Focus with a set aperture and Focus at different apertures. I will blog each separately.
Focus with a set aperture
The brief for the first exercise was to find a scene which has depth and from an acute angle take two or three pictures each focused on something at a different distance. The point was to focus on three different points in the same scene with the same aperture for each one, this being at the widest aperture ( f4 on my lens). All three images were taken using a tripod and with the same settings: 1/15sec, Normal, f4, ISO 200 focal length 28mm.
The focal point in the first image was set on the second tree in on the left hand side.
The focal point in the second image was set half way down the row of trees.
The focal point in the third image was set at the end of the row of trees.
This was possibly not an ideal subject for this exercise. The day was overcast and of course the woods blocked out whatever sunlight tried to peep through. I decided that I had no choice but to make the most of what free time I had. It would be a good opportunity to learn to work with whatever available light there was.
I was tempted to brighten up the images in photoshop but resisted the temptation. These are therefore true representations of the exercise. The only major error I did make with these, which I realised after I had got home and was looking at the information on each file was that I had the camera set on "Normal" instead of manual. I hope this doesn't make a huge difference. I won't be able to revisit the site until next weekend.
I prefer the second image of the three. The focal point draws me into the image and allows my eyes time to stop and look around. The first image stops me in my tracks and I feel hesitant to go forward into it. The third image races away a little, taking the viewer out of the scene too quickly.
This confirms the theory that it is best to focus 2/3rds of the way into an image. (I know, my focus was only half way into the image, but the fact still remains that 2/3rds is best). This way the viewers eye is taken into a scene and is able to rest before moving through it. The aim of my composition was similar to this. I wanted the viewer to take a look along the tree line and be curious about what is on the other side of the pathway to the right hand side.
As an image I am aware that it is not a particularly pleasing one because of the lack of light to "lift it". I can work more on these areas over time once I have mastered the technicalities of camera settings.
Well done and excellent exercise and its great when we have those “light bulb” moments. You are progressing really well and the level of control and understanding is good. The scene is a good choice and the method is well applied. You have understood the link between aperture and depth of field. Also the link between aperture –shutter speed and exposure. Keep practicing but incorporate it in work one the next exercise . Its the building block for all your future work so it,s really worth getting to grips with . Your final exposure is incorrect and is over exposed. This is I think due to these modern digtal ways !
ReplyDeleteIn days of old we had 1 –half – quarter – eighth speeds on the camera dial that’s all ,but they were exact double ups (apart from a 15 th) to make everything correct. You have 1/6 at f11 and therefore 1/3 at f16 but ? at f22. You chose 1 second and that’s where I think the over exposure came from. As for where to focus – the old myth of 2/3rds in is correct –providing you work with infinity ! If it’s not an image with a distant background the correct focal point is half way in !
An excellent write up -Keep up the good work , Mike