The DoMeBo Photography Class - Lesson #2 (History)

[garygnu]

The DoMeBo Photography Class

Lesson #2 – “A Photographic History”

The delay in getting to this lesson was much longer than I expected, and I apologize for my absence in the many weeks since the previous lesson was pretty much finished. This will be a short session as far as the initial lecture goes. If you want a full and complete history of photography, it shouldn’t be too hard to find good timelines on Wikipedia and elsewhere.

Photography came as a culmination of a variety of technologies and techniques in the first half of the 19th Century. Specifically:

Camera Obscura

A camera obscura (or pin-hole camera) causes light coming through a tiny hole to project an upside-down image inside a dark chamber, be it a small box or an entire room. This is the same thing as in a modern camera, only without a lens and without film.

Lenses

Mathematical and practical work on the magnification and focusing properties of lenses got better and better over time. Some were attached to camera obsucra holes. This combination is essentially what your camera is.

Chemicals

Certain chemicals were discovered to change color and/or darken when exposed to light, silver compounds such as Silver Nitrate and Silver Chloride are prominent examples. The next step to a photograph is to get such materials to stay around.

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Photography
. . . .
Frenchman Nicéphore Niépce used “Bitumen of Judea,” made from petroleum, which became hard and insoluble upon exposure to light, smeared on a smooth metal plate. When exposed, areas of an image that were darker could be washed away while the light areas would remain. (The picture on the right was taken without a lens, and the exposure time was eight hours.)
Niépce switched to silver compounds, which darkened with light, and along with Louis Daguerre kept working on it. After Niépce’s death, Daguerre finalized the process using silver on top of copper plates. Thus the widely-used 19th century “daguerreotype” process. Nice ego there, Louis.

Film

Flash forward to the 1880s, when George Eastman invented photographic film on a roll. This allowed extreme portability compared to the metal plates used in daguerreotypes and other early photographic processes. First used with the original "Kodak Camera," this technology went mainstream with the inexpensive Brownie camera in 1900. The 35mm Leica camera came out in 1925 and not too much has changed.
Well, except for...


Digital

The CCD was invented at the venerable Bell Labs in 1969 by Willard Boyle and George E. Smith. A CCD takes on a charge from the exposure of light and is able to record it as digital information via a processor. Although very low resolution at first, they eventually got to the point that, with large enough megapixel counts, large prints could be made from the images.

[garygnu]

Photography as Art
In the beginning of the 20th Century, some photographers started shifting from portraitists and documentarians to fine artists. An exact definition is hard to nail down. What I like to use is a photograph is fine art when the photograph itself, and not just its subject, is intended as art. (Of course that morphs into the question of what art is, but that a whole different thread.) One definition referenced on Wikipedia includes “[the photographer] has aimed at something more than a merely realistic rendering of the subject, and has attempted to convey a personal impression.”

In future lessons I intend to mention photographers and photography movements as they apply to the subject of the day. Today I will focus on early art photography and its child, abstract photography. There are many possible photographers, but I will focus on three. You can look up others.

Alfred Stieglitz
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Too important, influential, and famous to leave out, his efforts in making photography an accepted fine art form were monumental. His early work was not abstract photography, but the pictures are remarkable to look at. Some have a dreamlike eeriness to them, despite the subjects being relatively ordinary scenes. Later, after moving through different movements and philosophies, he created a series called “Equivalents,” a group of cloudscapes that are certainly abstract. (SFMOMA Gallery, artphotogallery.org Gallery. Some pictures are nsfw)

Paul Strand

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We’ll probably meet Mr. Strand again when we get to portraits, as he has some pretty good ones. Here I will focus on his work emphasizing forms and scale. The photograph of porch shadows falling on a table transform the image into an abstract play between light and dark. “Wire Wheel” does the same with a more recognizable subject. The same kind of light/dark play is evident in the photograph of pedestrians in New York, but with the added element of human scale and architectural intimidation.(SFMOMA Gallery, artphotogallery.org Gallery. Some pictures are nsfw)

Edward Westson

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Weston is one of my favorite photographers. Famous for his still life work with shells and vegetables, he also did nudes and landscapes. However, no matter what the object in the photograph was, the subject was the flowing lines of the form, and the interplay of light and shadow. (SFMOMA Gallery, artphotogallery.org Gallery, many pictures nsfw.)

[garygnu]

Class Discussion
If there are any particulars of the lengthy sections of history I have left out or skimmed over, just ask and we can go into more detail. If there is a particular photograph or photographer you want to know more about, just shoot.

Assignment
Choose an object that is large enough that you can take a photo of a small portion of it. It can be a chair, a building, a musical instrument.
Take two photographs, both in black-and-white. One is a documentation shot of an object/subject from a wide angle so we can see what it is. You will not be graded on this first picture.
The second is the assignment shot. Take a close-up shot of part of the object so that it is difficult to see what the object is. The photograph itself is the work of art, not the subject. Use the lines and form and shadows to create an abstract photograph similar to the example above from Weston and Strand. Strong interplay between light and dark is important, so get as much light to fall on your object as you can: go outside or work next to a window. (Banded light falling on your subject through blinds is a bit clichéd, so try to be more creative than that.)
Don’t forget to incorporate ideas from previous lessons. In particular, I want you to FILL THE FRAME.

[lobotomyboy63]

Welcome back, Gary! Hope you're not too much the worse for wear.

Had to drop in and post my favorite Weston image.

[Dragon]

We had sun today..... maybe tomorrow.... just need an idea.....


........ Buhler?

[Zabigail]

Wooden or limestone fencepost -> knothole on the fencepost, or stone detail?

[Cyberhwk]

OK. Just got a DSLR and I've been out taking pictures like a MOFO. I'll see if I can get this assignment done and up by tomorrow. If not, by Tuesday.

[sistercoyote]

Hm. An assignment I will have to think about, though I've taken some pictures in the past (at Disneyland, specifically, because it is so photographed) that would probably fit the bill.

[featherlou]

My neighbour's crabapple tree, pre-blooming this spring -



A close-up of some of the branches with last year's crabs still on them, shooting up at the sky -

[Dragon]

Thumbnails are links. Fillin up the frame.... ( I did not crop the pictures )



And



I was on the way to town, saw the original and pulled off and jumped out and acted like a real photographer..... It was surreal....

Over view of the whole thing.

[Cyberhwk]

OK here I go. I notice some of our kitchen cups refracted light really cool when I was screwing around with a laser pointer one day. Not sure if this is close enough to count as "abstract" as I guess there's still a subject though the subject is unidentifiable. But the high contrast light refraction was what I tried to pick up here:



Here is the master shot. I have a little Fenix flashlight on the end of my keyring that you can see sticking out of the end of the glass...

[SmartAleq]

Trippy, Cyberhwk, I like! It's supposed to be nice tomorrow, perhaps I can find some inspiration... Today is gloomy and moist, not much contrast in my world!

[featherlou]

Cool, Cyberhwk.

[lobotomyboy63]

(I think this is designed to slow down the water flow or something. They have steps so you can walk across when the water isn't high.)

Rotated may be more interesting.

[garygnu]

Nice work so far. Any other entries?
If you’re having trouble thinking up an object, try going out to a park that has some statues or fences or even a playground and get some close-ups. Remember that you’re finding the photo, but in this case, you’re making the photo as much as finding it.
If you have some vegetables available, getting some hard light on them (to cast strong shadows illustrating the form) can work, too.

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When I was assigned this project in my own photography class mumble years ago, this is what I turned in:

I don’t have the wide-angle shot, but it’s the edge of a brick wall, the shadows come from an iron fence next to the wall.

I cropped this out of a previous picture, and I think it is a little better at the goal of finding abstract form:

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I mentioned the “Equivilents” series that Alfred Stieglitz did. Here are two cloudscapes of my own I took a few weeks ago when the clouds were nice and varied. A cloudscape can illustrate the same general idea as the assignment, although it’s pretty clear what you’re looking at.

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[McNutty]

I'll throw one in, if you don't mind an interloper:


The subject:

[featherlou]

That's awesome - now I want to go find something highly textured.

[McNutty]

I can't decide if I like the way the nose is out of focus or not. I should have taken another one up a couple f-stops.

[featherlou]

Okay, I have some more submissions -



And the larger picture - the curtains in my former office:

[featherlou]

And last but not least, my little friend from my front step -



And most of his little metal self -



I don't know if it's art, but I like it.

[chacoguy]

Not B/W and not too abstract, but it's all the time I had for non-work shooting.


and

[Papaw]

8 inch diameter coils of flexhose, 25' long.

[Cyberhwk]

WHOA!!! Now THAT'S trippy Papaw. How did you light it? Flash or something else?

[Papaw]

Yep. I just stuck the camera inside the coil and used the flash.
Now if I could make it swirl, it would be psychedelic as hell.
If you scroll slowly up and down next to the image, it will make you dizzy.

[SmartAleq]

Okay, I finally got some time, some inspiration and some batteries for my darned camera so here goes:

Original shot--telescope draped in wind chimes:



Two different shots of it, no cropping, just desaturization, click for fullsize:





This one I got by cropping, since a fire shot can't ever be the same twice:

Original:



Submission:

[Giles]

My reference picture:


My abstract exercise:


(The object is part of the Steamship William G. Mather Maritime Museum, Cleveland, Ohio, which is a former bulk freighter)

[Giles]

I was away for the Memorial Day weekend in Cleveland, taking pictures, which is why it wasn't until now that I could post a submission.

While in Cleveland, I went to the Cleveland Institute of Art, and saw an exhibition of photos by Lee Friedlander. I found them wonderful, especially his pictures of cityscapes in American towns and cities, such as the picture of New York City on this page, juxtaposing very discordant elements into a very amusing whole.

[troubleagain]

I've been on vacation for a week, but I'll try to get this assignment done shortly.

[sistercoyote]

Sorry I've been away - life really sucks right now. I should have a couple of pix to post shortly.

Or not, since not one single photo I took this weekend came out. Dammit.

[garygnu]

Sorry I've been away - life really sucks right now. I should have a couple of pix to post shortly.

Or not, since not one single photo I took this weekend came out. Dammit.

I had issues of my own that delayed this very thread for weeks, so I feel you.

[troubleagain]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/troubleagain/3573376158/sizes/m/


http://www.flickr.com/photos/troubleagain/3571985650/sizes/m/

[featherlou]

Ooh, awesome.

I have to include my sig just for you, Gary.

[Dangerously Unqualified]

My art pic...


The subject...

[troubleagain]

Oh, I like that, D.U.

[garygnu]

Nice positioning of elements, and the branches are cool, but this lacks the play of light across a form that I'm looking for. The good news is your other two pictures:

Are both better, I especially like the curtains. It has a floral quality that makes the actual object ambiguous. The second one there is kinda creepy, not that being creepy is bad.
While there aren’t any dark areas in the curtain picture, adjustments to bring out darks fail (thye end up highlighting the moiré patterns). I would venture that being translucent curtains in a bright window prevented any dark spots from being available.

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Dragon, the thumbnails posted in the thread don’t do justice to the subtle form in the larger pictures you submitted. I’ve taken the linked picture and reduced them to a postable size for discussion, and I also made secondary versions with the contrast boosted a bit:

Dragon’s original . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . garygnu’s adjusted levels
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. . . .

Before getting to the contrast, the pictures are there (meaning you understood the assignment) and they are good. You’ve captured the form of the rough-hewn statue’s surface very well. These could be close-ups of canyon walls in the southwest. I like them, but I do wonder what zooming out or stepping back might have done.
The first one there lacked really dark areas, so little bit of tweaking brings out some depth. The second probably didn’t need tweaking, really

[garygnu]

This I would certainly describe as abstract. I mean it’s not too hard to figure out it’s a vase or glass of some sort, but the photograph is a picture of light, not of a glass. In that sense, you’ve aced this assignment. The stark contrast and the deep black field forces the eye to trace the bright lines circling and criss-crossing the frame.
Because the assignment was to create a photograph, “staging” was expected. Your use of a flashlight inside your object was clever and effective.

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Very interesting thing there that you’ve photographed. The composition is really nice, very compelling. It has the balance of texture we talked about earlier, and the viewer is left to wonder about the purpose of the blocks. I’ve noticed a lot of your previous submissions not filling the frame, so it’s good to see it here. I like it better right-side up.
The picture is dark overall. Because the steps lack much in the way of curves, it’s hard to get a high contrast and be left with any mid-tones. My attempts at levels adjustment got a tonal range similar to Paul Strand’s stuff, but the concrete ended up looking bizarrely metallic :dub: . (I have it saved if you want to see it.)
If sunlight hits those steps at sunset, try getting another shot at that time. The shallow light angle might produce a good contrast and cast some shadows.

[garygnu]

I'll throw one in, if you don't mind an interloper:

Ooooooh, a new victim .
I like the heavy texture and the way the light falls across the face. Well done.

[C-3PO]You are now a part of the tribe.[/C-3PO]

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Hmmm, there’s some lizard getting in the way of your form. :wink:

I’m not worried about the color aspect, it’s not very saturated anyway. You can’t go wrong using old, dry logs. The crevices flow organically and beautifully along the length. What’s really cool here is that right next to those types of lines, there is the butt end of a square-cut piece of lumber. The contrast, combined with the knot in the more natural log and the lizard makes a real nice photo.
Again I am envious of your target-rich home.

[Dragon]

Thanks for the review Gary....

[garygnu]

I'll get the rest soon...

[garygnu]

This is very cool. It’s quite a striking picture without being complicated. The rings shimmer like an optical illusion.
In case you or anyone else is wondering, the moire patterns seen in this picture towards the middle of the frame is from reducing the image size.


Your other entries didn’t do anything for me. There wasn’t any play of light in those, but this is really nice. The slow shutter speed keeps the flames soft and the elimination of color turns it ethereal. The rule of thirds, balance of tone and texture are all there.


I like the positioning here in the composition. It’s fun. However there’s this big rounded object with very little definition of form. I’d like to see a greater variation of tones across the curve there. Was it overcast that day?


I really like this one. The striations on the ray flower petals in black and white are striking and interesting. Contrasted with this (with great framing) is the darker area of the disk flowers. Nice overall contrast, too.


I like how the texture of the metal is used to show the subtle curves at the very edges of the flat spaces. I think this effect would work better around more curved areas of the tool. Still, I like the photo.
The full-size picture linked there looks horribly compressed and artifact-y. Was the final composition cropped from the original pic of the wrench?

[troubleagain]

Thanks, Gary!

[sistercoyote]

As everyone has probably figured out, I'm not going to make this assignment. Things around here just suck.

But I'll live, so that's a good thing.

[lobotomyboy63]

@sister: IIRC during an interview, a woman who had lived with Jimi Hendrix said he had his guitar on all the time. He'd wake up in the morning, get out of bed, strap on the Strat, and go to the bathroom---wearing the Strat. Then he'd go out to the kitchen, maybe scramble a couple eggs---standing at the stove, wearing the Strat. If a riff came into his head at any point, he had his guitar and could work it out before he forgot it.

I'm not that extreme, but I have started carrying a camera more. The other day I was at the laundromat. They have a little flower planter outside and, with my smallest, cheapest (i.e. most portable) camera I got this:



And then there are the times I've gone out specifically looking for pictures, having packed 20 lbs of equipment and tried to gauge the perfect time of day etc. etc. etc. and came home empty...ah well, just a thought ;-). Hope your situation improves.

Very interesting thing there that you’ve photographed. The composition is really nice, very compelling. It has the balance of texture we talked about earlier, and the viewer is left to wonder about the purpose of the blocks. I’ve noticed a lot of your previous submissions not filling the frame, so it’s good to see it here. I like it better right-side up.
The picture is dark overall. Because the steps lack much in the way of curves, it’s hard to get a high contrast and be left with any mid-tones. My attempts at levels adjustment got a tonal range similar to Paul Strand’s stuff, but the concrete ended up looking bizarrely metallic :dub: . (I have it saved if you want to see it.)
If sunlight hits those steps at sunset, try getting another shot at that time. The shallow light angle might produce a good contrast and cast some shadows.

Thanks for the review, Gary...and thanks again for teaching the class.

I wasn't entirely happy with it but wanted to make sure I posted something. Today I shot this, which I like more. Probably should have cropped it a little differently but I just picked what my eye liked.





FWIW: ISO 400, 1/4 sec, 66mm equivalent focal length with +4 diopter, -1.0EV, light from small flashlight, tripod.

And, finishing up with one of today's disappointments: dark figure + white sand = ugh. Light source is of course a laser pointer, which I picked up the other day for 99 cents.

[sistercoyote]

@lobotomyboy - my camera lives in my purse, except on Sundays when I rarely leave the house and therefore charge the battery.

I just really haven't been inspired, and the last set of pictures I took for this assignment didn't come out at all.

[lobotomyboy63]

@lobotomyboy - my camera lives in my purse, except on Sundays when I rarely leave the house and therefore charge the battery.

I just really haven't been inspired, and the last set of pictures I took for this assignment didn't come out at all.

I know what you mean about being uninspired. I've taken a lot of landscapes and flowers. After awhile, it gets old. I should probably try some portraiture, some architecture, sports, something else. Or maybe I could concentrate on a particular element, like texture or lines when I'm out. I'm operating under the theory that sooner or later, something new catches the eye and you go in a different direction.

The other aspect would be post. Dragon posted one of a town after sunset, from a high vantage point. I thought it was good but lacked a focal point. OTOH if you photoshopped a small Christmas tree in there, maybe....

My initial experience with photography was: you take a picture, hand the film over to the developer, wait a week, then see what you got. And that's that. Now all these programs that allow you to make adjustments could help turn a picture into something better. I need to go back and revisit shots that didn't turn out as I'd hoped. If I can't make them what I wanted, maybe I can make them into something else.

Boring:



Kinda kewl:

[featherlou]

Is it too late to get one last submission in? I was fooling around with evening light yesterday, and I think I caught something more appropriate for this assignment -

The submission -


The original subject -