Filters and There uses

I have just purchased a set of three 55mm polaroid  filters for my camera as I've noticed that some of my images would of benefited from the use of a UV filter . There is a UV filter, a CPL filter and a FLD filter complete with a case .

Polaroid 3 piece filter kit.

UV protective filter.
This filter prevents loss of sharpness and contrast by filtering out UV rays and haze  and protects the lens from scratches ,scuffs and smudges .

CPL Circular polarizing Filter.
 Polaroids patented polarizing technology to give you  "on location" control of color saturation, you can make skies bluer ,grasses greener and even eliminate surface reflection from water and glass.

FLD  Fluorescent.
Eliminates the greenish tinge which fluorescent lights add to photos.


The Cokin Filters.

Another type of filter is a Cokin filter which are an original square system designed by a French photographer .The Cokin filter was invented the concept of the creative filter photography ,to allow everybody to get a chance to produce great creative images. Jean Coquin designed a system with the following  , simplicity , rapidity of use and versatility to leave plenty of room for individual inspiration and creativity .

The Cokin System.

The image above has had a green filter whilst the image was taken .

The above filters are for creative photography .

                                                                                           

Unit 208 theme 1- Nature And Landscape. Experimenting with Light and Camera.

 As I've been confined to sitting and doing nothing for a week , my good friends came visiting with flowers and good chat .When they had gone I decided to get my camera out and take photos of the flowers . The light seemed to hit the flowers through the window, skimming over the petals . The flowers where white daisies and yellow Chrysanthemums.

   I chose to shoot in black and white to deter from the color and catch light and detail .T he effect I wanted to achieve is just the light in the area of the bloom and with no background detail .I think I have achieved this , and I really like the outcome .

I have used a UV protective filter on my camera whilst taking these images .

A Glimmer.

ISO 100  s/s 1/930  f/8  

                                                                                         

A Gleam.

ISO 100  s/s 1/800  f/8

A Glint .
ISO 64    S/S 1/630   F/8

                                                                          

Unit 208 theme 1- Nature And Landscape.

Snowdrops at Hopton .

ISO 200    S/S 1/900   f 3.2

Couldn't Help myself ,these lovely snowdrops were just starting to open ,they were on the bank under a tree so light was limited ,I opened the F stop  and altered the shutter speed to let more light in .I feel there could of been more clarity in the image, more light just to brighten the image could of helped with this . A kiss of flash may have worked,  as there was no background for the flash to hit ,this would not of caused any shadows, even a 5 in 1 reflector kit would of infused light  .I like the composition ,the colors and the depth of field in this image .

Miners Lane.

 ISO 400  s/s 1/570  f/ 8

As I was walking in Carsington I walked up Miners Lane to the top of a hill to view Carsington water .On my journey back down I looked and saw the light coming through the tunnel I really liked what I saw.The image has shape ,color  ,texture , focal point and the end of the tunnel is framed .

Unit 208 ,theme 2- portrait photographer -Margret Bourke -White

Margaret Bourke -White was born in 1904 and was a leader in the new field of photojournalism and worked for Fortune and Life magazines covering most major political and social issues during the 1930's and 1940's.
In 1929 White accepted an offer to become the first staff photographer for Fortune magazine which made its debut in feb 1930.Whites subjects included swift meatpacking company,shoe making, watches ,glass paper mills,orchids and banks . Excited by the drama of the machine ,white was to visit Russia and was the first photographer to seriously document its rapid industrial development .White later published her work in a book called ,Eyes On Russia .White was then assigned to cover the drought in the Midwest states ,this opened her eyes to human suffering and her work changed from advertising  as she began to use her photography as a powerful tool to inform the public.In 1936 White worked with a man called Erskine Caldwell the author of Tobacco Road  ,the results of this produces one of Whites best books You Have Seen Their Faces (1937) .In 1936 White joined LIFE magazine ,one of her first assignments was to fligh to the Arctic Circle .White produced her most famous single photograph , a white family in a car with the caption ,The American Way of Life .
During the world war 1939-1945  White served as a war correspondent affiliated with life and the us air force, her photos revealed the horrors to the world . In 1949 White traveled to South Africa where she recored the cruelty of apartheid and in 1952 where her pictures taken in Korea focused on family sorrows arising from war.
Shortly after she returned from Korea White noticed signs of Parkinsons disease , which she battle with for the rest of her life ,White died in 1971.

The reason for choosing this photographer ,is whites ability to portray the story of real people, with real lives and jobs, with real suffering .Her shots have good composition with the picture telling the story. The black and white images show great detail and texture. 

Dorothea Lange -Migrant mother .

I think this image shows the exhaustion and worry on the womans face , the rule of thirds applies as Dorothea centered with a child on each shoulder .the composition is self explanatory.

This face looks as if it has seen hard work and hardship, the subject is central with texture of the un-shaved toothless man and his tatty work-worn clothes .

I like the fact the pedlar in this image is looking straight into the lens and I also like the position he is stood with the sign behind him.

                                                                          

Unit 208- Theme 2- Lewis Hines Portrait Photographer

Lewis.W. Hine was born in Oshkosh Wisconsin USA in 1874 . After graduating from school he worked in various jobs before going to the university of Chicago in 1900 where he met a professor of education Frank          Manny, Frank had recently been appointed superintendent of the Ethical Culture school in New York . In 1901 Hine moved to New York after being asked to accept a position as an assistant teacher at the school by Frank and at this time Hine had began to use a camera as an educational tool to photograph school events . Hine then decided to return back to school himself by attending the school of education at New York Plymouth Rock. By 1905 Hine had received a degree and continued to photograph at the EC school in New York . Hine was also helping in a photograph club at this time and met a man called Paul Strand whom deemed to be influential and in 1905 was considering a career in sociological photography leading Hine into his next line of work with The National Child Labor Committee and by 1907 he had his first freelance assignment with them . In 1908  Hine was working and receiving a monthly salary from the NCLC and photographed child labor practices ,during the next seven years Hine traveled photographing mines ,factories , canneries ,textile mills and agricultural industries .
Hines photographs started to make a point to the public that children were being deprived of childhood ,health ,education and a chance for a future. Hines work on the subject changed the publics attitude towards child labor and strict laws were enforced .
In 1912 Hine started a family and by 1913 had established himself as a successful social welfare photographer , for the next seven years Hine continued to travel ,exhibit and lecture for the NCLC . In 1917  Hine excepted a position with The National Red Cross spending the next two years photographing refugees and displaced civilians in war torn Europe . During the 1920's Hine undertook various assignments and in 1924 was to be awarded a medal by The Arts Directors Club of New York at an exhibition of Advertising Arts ,Hine found it difficult to make a living at photography even though he was famous ,then in 1930 Hine was hired to photograph the construction of the Empire State Building . In 1931 Hines work was exhibited in the Yonkers Art Museum and Hine then went on to publish a book in 1932 ,Men and Work .
In 1939 , sponsorship for Hine retrospective of specially made large prints were exhibited at the riverside museum in New York , with the works of Paul Strand and Alfred Stieglitz were to be included too.
Lewis .W,Hine died in 1940 and his son Croydon donated his fathers prints and negatives to The Photo League after finding little  interest elsewhere ,eventually they were then donated again to The George Eastman House.


                                                        
   Lewis Hine's black and white images of people and children really strikes me  , he manages to capture reality and the individuals personality in their working environment in his work . Lewis Hines is also famous for capturing images of child labor between 1908 and 1912 . Each of the images below tells a story of the working conditions , the age of the workers and some intricate machines and work needed to be done in their every day lives.                                                        
 I have Chosen photographs of people in their working environment as this is what I have been doing in my unit 208 ,theme 2 .                
                                                       

  The light and detail is fab in all of the shots on this page, Lewis has got the workers and their machinery/placement  in the frame and you can tell the line of work each individual is undertaking ,showing a story in all of his images .The shots draw you in, and you seem to be wanting to know more about the real people in the photographs.

The Butcher

And His Tools !

        

All of the pictures above have been taken for research from the website below an not used for any other publishing uses . 

       http://www.multimedialibrary.com/framesml/IM12/IM12.asp                                                            

Final Ten -Unit 208 Principles of Location Photography -People and Portraits

                                                                          

 My final ten ,The Butcher ,The Baker and The Candle Stick-Maker , the reason for this theme is that they are all previous jobs of mine, with the latter still being a present part-time employer. All of the above photographs are picked for there composition ,although there is a few things I dislike on some of them , the shadowing and the grain , having read my camera manual over and over I now know that I could of improved them slightly , used some sort of reflector and a tripod, at the time I didn't have the money for these things. I also know if I had stood back a little further a little kiss of flash may of also helped .
                                                                           

Screen grab - Image size 

                                                                                  

Unit 208 ,theme 2 - And The Candle-Stick Maker !

                                                                        

The Boss -Annie.

ISO 400   f/s  5.6  s/s 1/50.

Flash Fired.

Annie in the work shop, holding one of the jugs we use for pouring hot wax into candle molds .I like this shot, it is a shame there are shadows behind Annie, but the work shop is extremely dark. One of the photographers I have researched has shot photos here and they had to remove some of the roof sections to let some natural light in , which was a time consuming job. The camera I use, finepix S5600, it has a fixed flash unit which fires forwards only and has not got the flash mover-ability and  strength of an external flash unit.

The Hurricane.
ISO400  f/s 5.6  s/s 1/50.
Flash Fired
Annie holding one of her wears, this is a hurricane candle made of wax and dried fruit . Annie is stood in front of the original door to her work shop which used to be the black-smiths workshop in the 1800s , you can see the original iron-work and other interesting pieces hanging , this also gives the photograph character as well as texture, shape and pattern. Again I wish the shot was more crisp and lighter .

Candles and Christmas.

ISO 400  f/s 5.0  s/s 1/40. 

I really like this shot ,I think the light is right ,its central ,good composition, nice texture in the wreaths that are hanging above the door, the rule of thirds appears vertically .

Ready Made.

ISO  400  f/s3.2  s/s1/60.

Here I have tried to recreate one of Andrew  Montgomery's shots , in a similar place in the workshop ,in black and white , again there are shadows present and the shot could of been a little clearer. The subject is in the frame ,there is  texture in the wall and good composition .

I Think I'm Getting On Her Wick .

ISO 400  f/s  3.2  s/s  1/60.

There is plenty of texture in this shot 

Afternoon Delight.

ISO 200  f/s  8  s/s  1/60

No Flash

I love this shot of Annie, the afternoon sun was just at eye level as Annie leaned in for the shot. I think the light is great ,the texture of the fur on the hat and wall behind Annie is apparent ,the shape of the bottles and the lines of the perspex sheeting all add to the photograph.

The shots again in this theme have a lot of shadow due to me not using my camera correctly , I have brought a tripod and now know how to open the shutter to allow light in .

Below are links to photographs that I have taken for Annie at on a Wick and a Prayer, all the shots of the candle cabinets, reed diffusers and two shots in the scented glass candles  section have been taken by myself in the summer of 2010 ( blue flock and silver rose candles).

Link to 'On A Wick and a Prayer' web page for Candle Cabinets

Link to' On A Wick and a Prayer' web page for reed diffusers

link to 'On A Wick 'and a Prayer web page for scented glass candles

My camera - Finepix 5600 .

                                                                  

Unit 208 ,theme2 -The Baker !!

                                                                                    

The Biscuit Machine.

ISO  400  s/s 1/50  f/s  5.6

flash fired. 

This shot is taken with a member of staff standing next to one of the main biscuit machines, I like the detail in this shot and this reminds me of when I ran this machine 24 years ago. 

The Mixing Bowl .

ISO 400  s/s 1/64  f/s  5/6 

flash fired.

A shot taken next to one of the large mixing bowls used to mix and transfer mixture to the biscuit machine.

Out Of The Oven.

ISO 400  s/s 1/50  f/s 8

flash fired.

Baker girl popping a rack of biscuits into the oven for baking off. 

Off To Packing.

ISO  400  s/s 1/50  f/s 5.6

flash fired. 

A tray of biscuits off to the packing area .

More Racking.

ISO 400    s/s 1/64    f/s 8

flash fired. 

Waiting for the oven bell to go .

Biscuit Dye.

ISO 400   s/s  1/50     f/s  5.6 

flash fired.    Time to swap the dye ready for next batch of short bread .

I am not over happy with the light in these shots although the composition is good I do now realize why this happened and I have since purchased a tripod and can now work my camera correctly , opening my shutter as far as it will go 3.2 to let light in .