STUDY OPTIONS MINI BRIEFS
SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY
WEEK 1
WEDNESDAY 12th JANUARY 2021
HOW MANY OPTIONS AND APPROACHES ARE THERE WHEN YOU CONSIDER THIS GENRE OF PHOTOGRAPHY?
When thinking of options and approaches, I think of fine art, contemporary, advertising, portrait, editorial. I'd like to capture specific moments and/or action that creates impactful thoughts. A story would be nice to capture. With approaches, I could consider photographing the environment and what's going on around the models as that can also tell the story of the sports person/people. When photographing the sports people/person I would like to be a little dramatic in the sense of position.
When thinking of sports and ones that are accessible to me, one that comes to mind is swimming as I use to be a competitive swimmer in a club. I still have contact with them so they would be an option.
IDEA 1:
My first idea is to capture members from my old swimming club whilst swimming. I would like to take action shots of them in the pool whilst diving, approaching the end of the pool when they're about to turn back, when they are about to break the surface of the water with their head/body etc. I'd like to use a fast shutter as well as wide angles, close up shots and motion blur. I would use different lenses which would include a portrait lens to photograph close up shots, specifically of the face to capture expressions as I know that you get quite tired and get red faces when swimming for a long time. Experimenting with different compositions such as double exposure will create some possible double page . I'd try and perform this shoot whilst they're the only ones in the pool so I can focus just on the club members and not the public. I would perform this shoot when I know that there will be swimmers going to a specific pool where they would have the pool to themselves so I can perform the shoot to its best potential. I will contact the club and see if I get permission to perform this shoot and also have some swimmers who are willing to be in the shots so that I can draw up some plans and fill out the model release forms correctly leaving the section for them to sign. If I am unable to get permission them I will choose one of the other shoot ideas.
IDEA 2:
My other idea would be to photograph a sportsperson playing tennis as I use to enjoy playing it and I know some tennis courts local to me in parks where there is always someone playing. I would photograph mid shots so I don't get too close to obstruct them from playing. I'd like to photograph the aftermath of a match to create a sense of emotion. As the two shoots will be outside, I would most likely not need any lighting, especially if not close to the model. When editing, I would like to experiment and change the images to black and white but keep certain subjects in colour such as tennis balls, the model/s or equipment that are a statement piece. I like the concept of the court being the main focus and photographing its life throughout the day and the type of people that use the court. I like the abstract idea of bringing the court to life. Having different angles to show the perspective of the tennis court would help to personify the court itself.
IDEA 3:
My third idea is to photograph either one or a collection of people skateboarding. This would be accessible to me as there are frequently people around the uni doing so. I like the idea of the skateboarder not really knowing if the trick will work or not and the risks taken. It’s a bit like going outside your comfort zone by which I can relate to, especially doing sports photography. I would like to catch some images whilst the person is in the air as well as some motion blurs and trick shots.
IAN MACNICOL
Ian MacNicol is a full time professional photographer based in Glasgow who is also a Multi Award Winning photographer. His specialism is in sports photography which consists mainly of Olympics events such as Summer & Winter Olympics, Wimbledon, Paralympics, Commonwealth Games and Football World Cups to list a few.
https://www.instagram.com/ian_macnicol/?hl=en
Images listed below are from https://www.ianmacnicol.com
Swiss Bob Sleigh (2010), Ian MacNicol
I chose this image due to the motion blur as it shows the direction of movement and how fast they are moving. I also like the proof of teamwork within this sport too. The blur also acts as their vision and we are seeing what they are seeing. I like the way that the photographer has had just enough time to capture what they are doing and the way that they have just got the sleigh in the image shows that the sleighers move very quickly.
2012 London Mo Farah (2012), Ian MacNicol
This image catches the aftermath of a race and the expressions of some of the runners which tells a story of defeat and surprise. I like the way that the image crops just these runners as if these are the more important ones. The fact that behind Mo Farah it gets increasingly more blurry makes it more obvious as to what has happened and who has won the race as you instantly look straight at Mo and his expression. Even though the runner's faces behind Mo are blurry, their expressions are still readable and the way it does get blurry further back in the image, creates depth and dimension to the image as if you are there and experiencing what's going on.
Ahmed Kelly (2012), Ian MacNicol
This image's focal point is of the Paralympian and one thing about Ian macNicol is that he captures emotion and expressions of the people in his images and in this image, happiness is shown which infers that him being there is a positive thing. I like the way that even though the writing is blurred, you can still read the 'Paralympic games' behind the swimmer's head which creates an atmosphere as to where the people are at and it creates an image in your head as to what the image would look like if it wasn't cropped. Personally, the image appears a bit underexposed but from looking at other images by MacNicol, he doesn't seem to worry too much about the exposure of grain of his images and the capturing of the moment is more important. It seems that the expression, emotion and moments are most important.
Sarah Sjostrom (2013), Ian MacNicol
This image is really eye catching as it seizes the moment that a swimmer has won a race. MacNicol has managed to capture the splashes made by Sarah's actions which help to create movement and shows how happy she is. The use of leading lines made from the lane ropes and their colour lead you to her face and what she is feeling. I know from experience that once you finish a race, you are very tired and the fact that she is able to express her emotions like this means that her reaction is excitement and relief.
Aquatic 01/George Harley (2018), Ian MacNicol
I chose to include this image as I like the way the splashes almost disguise who the person is. I think the crop helps to show the relevant message as what's happening in real life isn't as interesting.
Honey Osrin (2018) Ian MacNicol
I am really captivated by these images of when the head is just about to break the surface of the water as it looks so unrealistic and when swimming you don't realise that this is happening. This image in particular doesn't look real due to the white lines which define the ripples of the water. The fact that MacNicol has not only caught the moment where the water hasn't broken over the face, he has included the swimmer breathing and breaking that 'bubble.' I think this image wouldn't have been so impactful if the image wasn't cropped to just the head so by doing so, MacNicol has
Gemma Lowe (2009), Ian MacNicol
If I am to perform the swimming idea and take inspiration from this image, it would be the angle the image is taken so I capture the full impact of the swimmer. I also like how the water surrounds her and it isn't cropped too much. I also like the use of symmetry within the image as it contrasts to the splashes due to it being more pleasing to the eye than the rough appearance of the water.
Aquatics 04 (2018), Ian MacNicol
I really like these kind of shots as the water encasing the head creates a surreal look and you don't realise that that happens without these kind of images, I think I wouldn't have cropped it so close as it looks like more is going on below the chin and above the head. The swimmer looks quite peaceful in this image and the use of blue around the head adds to this feeling.
I decided to contact my old swim club to see if I could get permission from them as well as some of the swimmers so I could perform my first shoot idea. When I hear back from them and I get permission, I would them tell them the details of when and where I would like to do the 2 shoots along with needing model release forms signed etc
WEEK 2:
MOODBOARDS:
WEDNESDAY 19th January 2022
WHAT ARE COMMERCIAL AND INDEPENDENT MAGAZINES AND WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE?
A commercial magazine includes advertising, magazine and newspaper publishing, book publishing, etc whereas an independent magazine is published without the financial support of a large corporation or institution in which the makers control publication and distribution. Examples of commercial magazines are Time, Entrepreneur, Radio Times, Vogue, Bazaar, Porter and Insider. Some examples of independent magazines are Gather, Cereal, Alphabet, Reader and Monocle. Commercial magazines tend to include brands which advertise products but independent magazines tend to have more images of models and less text.
INDEPENDENT MAGAZINES:
What draws me to this magazine is the use of a big image and the subject within the image. I think the chosen image suits what the text is saying due to the mountains in the back and the dog which is known for being in that environment (Switzerland). I also like how bright the image is which contrasts to the black border.
The use of the same tones drew me to this cover and the simplicity of the jelly leaning to one side. The composition of the main object in the image being in the middle creates enough of a background to give more detail as to what the object is. If the image was more cropped and didn't include the base of the stand or the raspberries I think the image would be less intriguing and eye catching.
COMMERCIAL MAGAZINES:
I chose this example of a commercial magazine due to it being in black and white as I find that the details of the image are more exaggerated. I like the way that the model's head is centred and the darkest part of the image so eyes are instantly drawn to her face. The text which is about hair stands out due to the model's hair being dark and standing out.
I chose this magazine cover as Lady Gaga is known partly for her fashion sense and having her on the cover, sells the magazine as a fashion one. I like the way that even though the top of the head merges with the name of the magazine, you still recognise what magazine it is.
MAGNA:
My friends and I took the opportunity to go into London for looking for magazines. We knew that Magna was a well known shop so decided to go there. I found a few magazines that I thought were commercial and independent.
I liked this magazine due to the subjects used and the composition. The dog in front of the woman's face is a funny idea but works well from how they both line up. The two skin tones make the merge more suiting and invisible. I think this is more of an independent magazine as there is no advertising on the front cover or telling you what is featured inside the magazine.
I chose to include this magazine as I liked the composition of having the face split like a broken mirror. I also like the grainy effect as it creates a vintage feel. At first I thought this was an independent magazine as there's little to no text on the front cover but at the bottom says 'also featured' so this could be a commercial magazine.
I saw this out the corner of my eye and immediately thought it was a commercial magazine from the text al, over the front cover. The text that reads 'Sazan Hendrix on using your influence for good' is a type of advertising and it means that it's included in the magazine.
As we are doing sports photography at the moment, I included this magazine as it features a footballer on the front in sports clothing. I would say that it is a commercial magazine as she is clearly showing Nike which is a famous and well-known brand related to sports. I also like the way she is positioned on the page and the neutral background which brings her clothing out.
This was another sports related magazine I saw and I like the B&W as it brings out details of the skin that colour probably wouldn't have done. The composition is also suiting to the landscape magazine as it leaves room for the text which doesn't all overlap onto the image of the models.
WEEK 3:
I haven't heard back from my old swimming club in terms of permission to photograph some of the swimmers so for the first recce shoot, I went to a local park where I know there are multiple types of sports happening such as tennis, football and running. I managed to get permission to photograph some people playing tennis and although I had my model release form ready for them to sign, they just wanted to carry on playing and were more than happy for me to photograph them. I was just trying to see what sort of positions they were making so that if it came to photographing tennis players for my final sports shoot, I would be able to plan what things to shoot and what angles etc. I captured different positions successfully and what I witnessed helped to spark ideas as to what I could shoot.
I contacted someone I knew many years ago who has connections with sports related clubs and I asked him what clubs he is still in contact with and he mentioned he knows a coach of a triathlon club which I liked the idea of as it included swimming which is held as the same pool as I was planning to shoot with my old swimming club and they are the only ones swimming at the time they are there so that helps me with the concept of capturing specific shots I had originally planned to do. I am waiting to hear back from him to see if the coach will allow me to take photos but if it is a no then I have back up shoots which I will continue to try and complete recce shoots for.
This is my contact with the Triathlon coach:
My plan now is to plan the shoots in detail, find some more photographers, draw some examples of shots, go to the inside pool on Sunday, then the outside pool on the Tuesday to shoot after and then decide which one I prefer and then possibly going back to either the inside or outside pool if I needed more shots.
WEDNESDAY 26th JANUARY 2022
Today we had a sports and portrait photographer called Ben Peters in today to talk to us. He was a student at Ravensbourne. He is a London based photographer and Picture Editor. He is a member of the British Press Photographers Association. He explained what he looks out for when shooting so for example, in football, does he shoot one team or the opposite team. He has been a Picture Editor for Soccer Aid and for Wimbledon. Sports photographers are given 'the best seats in the house' when it comes to photographing sport events. It's good to look back at old photos as you can learn from them. Sports photography doesn't have to be about the action but it can document. Prep is key in sports photography and everything is thought about and planned in advance of the shoot. Self motivation can help to produce some good images. Don't limit yourself to one spot, go to many. Learn about your cameras and how the system and sensitivity works and this will show in your work. The best way to learn is to play around with editing software, your camera etc. He has worked for and with Bob Martin. Vicente Javier Torres Ramis is a Paralympian who was captured diving in to the pool with his prosthetic legs left on poolside. This was one image he showed us which I found very interesting.
Untitled/Vicente Javier Torres Ramis (2021) Bob Martin
PHOTOSHOOT PLAN:
For this practice photoshoot I plan to go to the Eric Liddell Sports Centre to photograph the Greenwich Triton Juniors in their pool during their session. I would like to capture the environment as well as them in the pool and on poolside. The shots I would like to focus on are where the camera are on level with the swimmer so for example, the swimmers are about to reach the end of the lane and I capture directly in front of their goggles and hands. Another shot I would like to focus on is when they are diving into the pool and capturing them in mid air and also entering the water. I'd like to experiment with the types of shots like photographing from the side of the pool, above the swimmer, close ups, equipment, the environment etc. I will be using a range of lenses which are a portrait 50mm, 18-55mm and a zoom 75-300mm lens.
MOODBOARD:
The shots I'd like to capture are all above but with some, it seems like some of the shots were taken where the photographer was in the water and I won't be able to do that. Shots like capturing the reflections in goggles and getting on level with the eyes are ones I'd also try and do.
TIM CLAYTON
Tim Clayton is a freelance sports photojournalist and his images are represented by Getty Images. His multiple sports assignments have included eight Olympic Games, five Rugby World Cups the FIFA World Cup and World Series Baseball. He doesn't seem to have one specific style of photography and seems to explore different angles and styles.
'Boy in the bubble' The water tension is stretched to the limit as Australia swimmer Matt Dunn rises to the surface a split second before breaking the water tension. This image won the World Press Photo of the Year, Sports Singles Category in 1994.'
- https://timclayton.photoshelter.com/image/I0000.AoFN3l36XA
I chose to include this image of Matt Dunn as I am intrigued in the way that Clayton has managed to capture the water over the head before it had broke the surface. I also like the black and white which highlights the goggles which in turn makes the eyes stand out and to me, the more I look at the eyes, the more it creeps me out. I get horror film vibes from this image as it looks like the person has melted down into a blob.
Boy in the Bubble (1994) Tim Clayton
JEFF CABLE
Jeff Cable is a professional photographer who started his career in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2004 by photographing personal events. Further along his career he is best known for capturing images for the US Olympic Committee. He has photographed the last 6 Olympic games which are the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang. Cable teaches photography to photo enthusiasts and professionals around the world, including Africa, Australia, Europe and across the United States. He is one of the most watched and respected instructors of photography. He has millions of viewers of his free online photography classes. He also writes weekly in his photography blog, which is read by more than 60,000 people a month. I like the way he captures moments that will never happen again and if not photographed, then no one would know it would happen or has happened. These include winners punching the air after realising they've won the race. I also like the expressions his close up images capture, especially the ones that have the swimmers breathing as the faces they make, from a distance watching or watching on a tv, you don't see.
Michael Phelps (2008), Jeff Cable.
PHOTOSHOOT: FINAL PLAN
SUNDAY 30th JANUARY 2022
I plan to go to Eric Liddell where the Greenwich Tritons will be swimming. I still would like to capture all the shots planned above as well as experiment. They swim from 7-8pm so it will be dark, however, as I use to train in that pool I know that there is bright lighting. I would plan to bring portable lighting but being that the location has lots of water involved, I would prefer to not use it incase it gets wet and damaged. This will be a recce shoot but if I manage to capture some good shots then I will keep them to use as some of the final 7 images. I will also be able to edit these images if some are under or over exposed so even if I don’t get the best results straight away, post production will allow me to correct them and possibly use some.
I know that there are also diving boards/blocks and space around the pool to walk and achieve different angles and compositions to capture not only the swimmers on the blocks but in air and entering the water.
I have printed off model release forms so that those who allow me to photograph them can sign to prove that I had their permission.
COLOUR PALLET:
I looked at images from the internet and the social media of the triathlon team and put together a pallet of colours I saw. The blues represent the pool water and markings on the pool, the red is for the lane ropes, the black, yellow and white signify the swimming costumes and hats.
MODEL RELEASE FORM:
The coach of the triathlon team told me that he sent an email out to the team to say that there was a photography student coming to take some photos. He said that no one had replied and said they didn't want their child in images. When I got to the swimming pool, I got one of the coaches to sign the form out to say that he gives me permission to photograph the whole team who was attending that day. There were some young swimmers so I tried to avoid photographing them and focused on the older ones partly because they had more experience swimming and they are able to give permission on their own. The swimmers weren't recognisable in the images due to having their head underwater and having their goggles and hat on but I did a model release form just in case they could be identified by having their goggles off.
PHOTOSHOOT:
This photoshoot worked quite well as the lighting was brighter than I thought and by using different lenses, I was able to find use which had a large aperture so that a lot of light was able to balance out the fast shutter. I needed to use a fast shutter as I wanted to capture the splashes and the swimmer in focus and create clear images rather than blurred or pixelated ones. I was able to get low and close to the pool which helped me to get quite close up shots. Some of the shots had the simmer/s slightly out of shot as by the time I had them in focus, they did a tumble turn or the camera didn't take the image when I pressed the shutter. Some images were a little under exposed but the composition was good so I can still use them by taking them into photoshop and increasing the brightness. I plan to change these images into black and white as I feel the contrast will be stronger and more detail will stand out than in colour as I can change each colour within black and white. If I don't end up changing my images to B&W, I would increase the contrast to bring the blues put of the water. My favourite shots would have to be the head shots as they were more in focus and I like the close up feel and seeing the splashes and bubbles clearly. I couldn't have used portable lighting as the pool area was wet and I wouldn't have been able to move the lighting quick enough to avoid the splashes, especially not knowing the amount of splashes that would be created.
WEEK 4:
PHOTOSHOOT PLAN:
For this photoshoot I will be outside at around 5pm at Charlton Lido and the weather should be dark and the pool I will be going to has lights around it. The steam from the pool should create some nice effects when photographing. I will still try and aim to take the same poses and images as planned but as it is outside, I will experiment with more angles etc. I will be using a range of lenses which are a portrait 50mm, 18-55mm and a zoom 75-300mm lens. I will get different outcomes from the indoor pool shoot as the lighting will be different and the indoor pool at Charlton Lido is a 50m pool.
COLOUR PALLET:
From looking at images taken of this lido pool, I added the different colours I saw and also from the team's kit colours to a pallet. The oranges and reds signify the teams kit and the lane ropes where the blue and blacks represent the sky and the pool water. The greys and whites show the sky as well as the lane ropes and the pool surroundings.
MODEL RELEASE FORM:
I got one of the helpers to sign another model form even though I already had their permission to photograph the team.
PHOTOSHOOT:
I was really looking forward to this shoot as it was an outdoor pool and the time they were swimming was after the sun set. I was hoping that I would capture the steam from the pool but there wasn't any during this photoshoot. Out of the two shoots so far, I think the indoor shoot worked better in terms of being able to get close to the swimmers and lighting being better but the outdoor pool was good for getting group shots as the pool and pool area was bigger. I was also able to capture diving in the indoor pool as there were diving blocks but not at the lido. I also wasn't able to photograph them coming in to finish the length as at one end was pool covers and the other end was where they kept their kit. The swimmers I wanted to photograph weren't swimming by the edge of the pool so I wasn't able to get close up shots of their faces but I tried to get as close as possible without falling in the pool. I do have a large variety of images that can be used from this shoot so all in all, it was a successful shoot. If I am to come back to this pool, I now know the lens I need to use which is the 50mm lens as the aperture was larger so more light could enter the camera. I would also move their kit so that I am able to capture more close ups as they reach the end of the length. I switched between manual mode and sports more to see if it made any difference but I feel as I needed a larger aperture setting, the manual mode worked better but in the indoor shoot, the sports mode worked better. I would like to change these to black and white as the contrasts will be better and I can make the underexposed images stronger.
WEDNESDAY 2nd FEBRUARY 2022
Today's lesson was mainly tutorials but we began with watching clips on how moving image shows sport in a more interesting way.
alt-J - Hard Drive Gold (Official Video) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7-r0KON9GI
I liked this video as it didn't matter when you paused it, you still knew what was happening and the sports person always stood out so you knew what it was leading up to. I also like the range of compositions used.
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Public Service Broadcasting - People, Let's Dance [ft. EERA] -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0MTqhf9xPoI really enjoyed this video from the music used as it went well with the dance moves. I like the way the dancers contrast to the sky and surroundings which make them stand out and the background irrelevant. The continuous filming works well as it moves in sync with the roller skates. The combination of close up shots with the mid shots and the use of a drone to capture high shots work well together as the full motion of the skater is seen.
PHOTOSHOOT PLAN: FINAL INDOOR SHOOT
After performing the test shoot, I got a better idea as to what to photograph, what lenses to use, angles, camera settings and poses. In terms of composition, I preferred the indoor shoot than the outside due to the fact that I was able to get closer to the swimmers that were a little older. I was also able to get lower and the lighting was brighter meaning that the camera settings allowed me to take clearer settings by having a faster shutter. After looking through the photos I took last time and choosing the better ones out of the 200+ shots, I decided that for my 7 final images for this brief, I was going to base my story on the idea of art. Some of the photos had the swimmers distorted as they were underwater or the splashed of water changed the appearance of them. I plan to research into some photographers who uses are as an inspiration or creates/d images that look artistic like a painting for example. I didn’t manage to get another model release form signed but O had previously got permission from the head coach from past shoots and by messaging him before the shoot.
CONTACT SHEETS:
THE STORY:
With my 7 final images, I wanted to explore the concept of abstract art within swimming. I like how fluid and elegant some swimmers are which contrasts to the harsh splashes they create. Rather than documentary photography and documenting what the swimmers did during the photoshoots, I wanted to go for a more abstract approach which showed another side of photography. In my 7 images I don't want to show a story in order of things happening but to show different ways that art can be shown within photography. I want to exaggerate their moves in the water and the aftermath of doing so.
ARTIST RESEARCH:
MAUDE OVIZE:
Maude Ovize was born in 1980 and is a French artist who lives and works in Lyon. Her work is described as being sensitive, almost sensual and comes to find in us what would be akin to a bodily memory. In her water series, she explores different aspects such as sensation, matter colour and light. I like how she paints the details of the ripples of water as they act almost as an illusion. I also like how she manages to make the people appear distorted by the water which is what I found interesting in my photos. The parts that stand out to me in most of her paintings are not the people but the colour of the water which draws your attention to what it is doing to the appearance of the people in the water.
https://www.saatchiart.com/account/artworks/1215723
I like this painting as it is reminiscent of my my idea and my images in terms of distorting the swimmer. The different shades of blue create depth and a more abstract representation of what water actually looks like.
The water looks like stained glass in this painting and makes it appear abstract.
I liked this one due to the splashes around the person. I also like the way that the person is coming from the corner of the painting which gives depth.
The fact that this painting is so simple yet effective by the way you cant tell that the painting is of water but if you look at the top, the lines are bent.
I like the space around the person to show the impact of her jumping into the water.
With this painting, I also liked the room around the person's feet which shows what is happening when they move their feet. I think the colours are very pretty and depict water as being a happy and relaxing thing.
EDIT 1: EXPERIMENT
I tried editing some of my images so that they were black and white and so the contrasts were stronger but when taken into photoshop, I realised that the images were grainy which would be because I had to use the highest ISO my camera had to compensate for the fast shutter which caught the swimmers in focus and clear as well as the lighting not being the best. I also had to use large apertures to gain more light especially during the outside pool shoot. After asking my tutor what she thought and if she had any advice, I came up with another idea to keep the images in colour.
WEEK 5:
I’ve been looking at the different types of art and one that stood out to me was pop art and when researching I came across pieces by Andy Warhol. I knew that he screen printed his work but as I hadn't seen up close his work, I didn't realise that small dots were created. I liked this look and thought as I used a high ISO with my photoshoots, my images were a little grainy and adding dots would disguise that.
https://www.wallartprints.com.au/blog/9-popular-styles-of-art/
In the black and white image below you can see the process of screen printing and some dots.
Marilyn Diptych (1962) Andy Warhol
ROY LICHTENSTEIN
Roy Lichtenstein was born on October 27th 1923 and died on September 29th 1997. He was an American pop artist. During the 1960s, along with Andy Warhol and others, he became a leading figure in the new art movement. His work was influenced by popular advertising and the comic book style. His most famous work is 'Whaam!' and I have seen it in The Tate Modern in London and has been there since 2006 as a permanent display.
Whaam! (1963) Roy Lichtenstein
Crying Girl (1963) Roy Lichtenstein
I like this image in terms of the way the dots fade to give a less harsh feel.
EXPERIMENT 2: DOTS
I chose to experiment further as the black and white trial edits revealed more of the grain than I had hoped for. I thought that making the images B&W and stronger contrast would cancel out the grain but it made it worse so then I thought of how I could disguise it. The dots helped to remove the grain but also removed the detail at the same time which I didn't want therefore I don't think I will consider this but just the idea of colour. I used two sizes of dots to create definition. I would use this effect of Halftone on other images if they had less detail as I do like this effect.
WEEK 6:
FINAL 7:
After receiving feedback from a tutor, I decided to go with the colour idea without the dots as I feel like too much detail is lost. He also mentioned about the grain 'I really like the first image in terms of colour and a high grain structure from a DSLR - they feel very real - almost hyper real and the blue works so well in terms of an overall colour effect.' I was thinking about the concept of a vintage feel and I like this idea.
RAW IMAGES: CHOSEN 7
EDITED 7:
EDITING PROCESS:
With this image, I didn't crop it as I thought it was cropped enough in the way that if I removes her head or her lower back, the image wouldn't be saying what it is now. I wanted my images to look like artworks and what is doing that are the splashes and bubbles so without them, they wouldn't be art. I thought that the image needed to be a bit darker but when I made it darker, you could see the grain a bit more so instead, I focused on making sure that the bubbles were obvious and then used contrast to deepen the darker parts ever so slightly just so that a but more depth was created and also to bring out the blue tones a bit more. I also played around with curves which darkened the image further without enhancing the grain. I like this image as the bubbles have distorted the swimmer which makes it look like abstract art and by editing it, I have brought out the colours and made the image stronger so that it is more impactful.
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I did crop this image as I thought that the lane rope, although flat against the edge of the image, was a bit distracting so I removed that. I also thought that there was a bit too much space to the left of the image so cropped that too. The original image was a bit dark so I used brightness to expose the image to a bit more light and then used contrast to bring out the hidden tones of the blue water and the wetsuit, goggles and skin tone. I chose this image as there was a lot of blue to enhance and the way the splashes were around the swimmer's head but he doesn't look like he is moving so creates a sense of confusion. After using brightness and contrast, I wasn't quite happy with the image in terms of definition and depth so I used the curves tool to further bring out the colours and deepen the tones.
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This is one of my favourite images due to the amount of splashes and the way the swimmer is heavily distorted. I noticed that his trunk's pattern was a little lost so I used brightness to brighten the image as it was a little dark and contrast to bring out the colours of the trunks. I didn't want to change any colours so didn't use hue and saturation or colour balance. I used curves to create a bit more depth and further bring out the pinks of the trunks and the blues of the water. What helped make the water very blue was that the bottom of the pool was also blue so that helped with contrast.
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With the way that I took this image, I didn't quite get the swimmer in the middle of the image as there were multiple swimmers reaching the end of the length and I wanted to get as many shots as possible so some of them I had to quickly photograph before moving onto the next swimmer. I cropped it as best as I could so that it still could fit into an A sized frame. I liked the way that there were splashes all around the swimmer but his head was clear and that showed art to me.
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With this image, I started off by brightening it up and adding a little contrast to being out the deeper tones.I then brightened it a bit more with exposure which allowed the blues to be more tonal. Finally, I decided to play with the curves tool and made the image a little darker to further add detail. I also had to content aware crop to add more space at the top of the image and the right side. When I added more space to the right, where his fingers were, they were a little distorted so I used the clone tool to clone the water near them and remove the excess finger.
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I had to content aware crop this image on the left as the swimmer wasn't quite in the middle of the image. I used contrast to bring out some deeper tones and to create definition. I also used curves to help with this.The image was a little underexposed to I used brightness to brighten the image and show features that were a bit lost in the dark.
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For this final image, I did the same to it in terms of brighting it and adding more contrast to it. I added more space to it using the content aware crop to the top and then cropping it at the bottom as there was a little too much space there.
CONCLUSION:
Overall, I think this unit went far better than expected as at first I didn't know what to do really as I hadn't done sports photography before and when I didn't hear back from my old swimming club I got a bit worried that I wouldn't have another option that was as good however, everything came together and worked in my favour. I managed to contact another club which did some swimming and was able to get the shots I wanted to create. I have enjoyed this as I was photographing something I use to really enjoy doing and still do and think this enabled me to work better in terms of figuring out the types of shots I wanted for example the composition along with knowing what to look out for such as types of stokes which worked well with the angles etc. My story for the 7 images would be about art and the different ways art can be shown in swimming.
