P & P - Assignment 1 - A Portrait - With Tutor Feedback

Assignment Brief

Having completed my first Wedding as the official photographer in February 2014 I received another commission for October 24^th. What interested me was that the wedding ceremony was to take place at a Castle.

The venue is Castle Coch, Cardiff, here is a link to further details about the castle: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castell_Coch

Whilst in full time employment I could use this as a learning activity to both increase my knowledge and skills, increase my portfolio of wedding images, further my recognition within my local community in terms of skill set with a view to additional potential work. The key to this commission was discussing my current skill set and experience with the bride and groom and setting a fee that would be acceptable to both parties allowing for this position. From a commercial perspective this balance always needs to be set, some photographers will have set fees for set options. As I’m not currently looking to make a living from this I can pick and choose and set a fee accordingly.

Whilst this Assignment stipulates I should:

1) Take one subject

2) Create between five and seven portraits

3) Images should differ in type and style and be from separate sessions

I will detail my tutors feedback in red and my responses in green

I will present a set of images for this assignment on the basis:

a) I am treating the couple as a subject, both individually and together

b) I have created 7 images as part of this assignment

c) The type and style of the images will differ, arguable from separate sessions in terms of exact location spot.

This opportunity was too good to miss; wedding images are portraits with the subject aware and additionally and perhaps selfishly I can get some professional feedback on my work.

I think I am creatively bending the assignment brief to meet my personal opportunity and this is also part of the development of my own personal practice.

Overall Comments

The brief for this assignment was to take 5-7 portraits from different sessions. This was important in order to engage with the subject in a variety of surroundings and deal with different light sources.

For the wedding you could have shot the subject in several more set-ups. For example: While preparing for the wedding, during the ceremony, a separate portrait in doors, another out doors, during the party etc. Also a variety of headshots, whole body images etc. would have made the images more interesting and you would have been confronted with various composition and lighting issues, which would have been a valuable experience.

This good suggestion unfortunately being an end of October wedding the weather was very poor and cold and so some shots had to be adjusted / taken in alternate locations. It got dark very quick. However it being my second wedding shoot I obviously still have very much to learn. 

Assignment Research

This has included reference to:

-        the book Wedding Photography by Mark Cleghorn. This consists of a large range of advice starting from equipment right through to post production. I have read this book twice and the third I focused on a few key aspects that I wanted to apply i) formal images ii) candid images iii) reportage images iv) ensuring I relaxed people and obtained relaxed happy images v) my equipment

-       The book Why it does not have to be in focus by Jackie Higgins. I focused specifically on Chapter 1 ‘Portraits / Smile’. In this Higgins specifically notes “we expect a portrait to be an act of introspection, to somehow reveal the artist’s psyche. Likewise, we expect a portrait to expose the character of its subject.” Whether the face always reflects the inner workings of the mind is up for debate and perhaps the portrait will at least reveal what the subject wishes to reveal and/or an expression of their feelings at that time

-       Work of local wedding photographers:

http://www.anthonyballphotography.co.uk/

http://www.annlewisphotography.co.uk/wedding-photographer-forest-of-dean.html

http://www.paulsmithsphotography.co.uk/weddings.html

http://www.philipprice.co.uk/

This allowed me to review the work and style of wedding photographers, including the portraits, both in terms of the image style taken and the commercial approach to packages they offer and the type of package. In the digital world of photography it was interesting to see one photographer offer the approach of giving the bride and groom a cd/dvd with 300-400 images with full copyright for themselves to size and print

Assignment Workflow

I use from a basic position the following workflows. For this event I needed to carefully review my basic workflows to ensure I was prepared. No running back home for the extra filter or memory card at this type of event. This has always been at a simple style in my mind and way of working but has been developed more formally as part of my DPP course:

Pre-Shoot Workflow:

My pre-shoot workflow has now evolved to the following:

Mid -Shoot Workflow:

My mid-shoot workflow has now evolved to the following:

Post-Shoot Workflow:

For the wedding ceremony I’ve used a full frame large bodied camera and a fast zoom lens, 24-70mm. This enabled a good zoom range and is the perfect choice for weddings. In research a longer fast zoom say 70-200 / 80-200 is also handy from what I’ve researched. Perhaps in the future an investment with a suitable harness to hold them would be a good move. I had a back-up camera, also a full frame body and lens just in case. This is a must else everyone’s day is ruined. This has enabled a variety of images a different focal lengths and also allowed the blurring of backgrounds where required, such as Image 6

In the evening I used the small full frame camera and a fast 50mm lens. This made me very mobile and more discreet though for framing with no zoom I had to use my legs much more. For this set of images I have just included one image, image 7

Image 1

The bride is walking up the steps, with father behind me, to the ceremony room. The bride’s nerves are beginning to show as she bites her bottom lip.

This image is cropped from the original to remove clutter from the image which is distracting and also I’ve cloned out the hand rail and its shadow at the top of the stairs. Original image is below:

The first image is exposed well and the light is diffused, which is good. The composition and the crop you chose are also good although generally photographing people from a lower angle can be problematic as it often distorts them. In this case it works well as it emphasizes the large dress but usually portrait photographers would tend to photograph from a higher angle and point the camera slightly downward.

Yes, I wanted to include the fullness of the dress. I did also after taking this shot climb up past the bride, avoiding treading on her dress and did a reverse shot looking down the stairs

Image 2

The emotion is clear to see in the groom’s face as his bride to be enters the room; his expression reveals his struggle to contain his tears. Unfortunately I also have part of the Page boy in the image. These types of images are instantaneous. A crop will leave a stump of an arm for the groom so I feel it’s better like this. I did clone stamp out the Page boy’s ear which appeared to be coming out of the groom’s jacket.

The composition of image no.2 is good. The flash could be subtler though since the contrast is very high. The subject is far enough from the wall so the flash did not leave a strong shadow behind him but there is a strong shadow under his chin.

A soft box on the flashgun or any other type of diffuser like a reflector that you can bounce the light off would have created much softer light. It is an important addition to your kit if you plan to work as a wedding or portrait photographer.

This is good advice with a soft-box or diffuser over the flash. I also need to get a bracket to allow the flash to be further away from the lens and not sitting on the camera hot shoe. A hand held reflector is a good idea but in practise for this image it was the moment the bride walked in and was an instantaneous  image, it could not be set-up. Also whilst the advice of a hand held reflector is good, this suggests the use of a helper. I will however experiment with the flash bracket, when purchased, and diffuser over the flash

Image 3

The signatures completed after the wedding ceremony. In addition to the happy smiles I notice how the bride and groom lean in toward each other and the groom displays his wedding ring by placing his hand on the table. I’ve cropped in tighter on this image and performed some minor clone stamping bottom right to remove a distracting element.

Image no.3 is good although the same issue with the harsh light from the flashgun applies to this image. Apart from that, the composition and the face expressions of the bride and groom are good.

The flash does need a diffuser. In the image I'm assuming this is due to some flash bounce on the grooms head and perhaps some shadowing on the suit

Image 4

In some images there is a decision to be made as in this one a) to crop the bride to get a close-up of her face, or b) shoot from a distance to capture the bride and dress but lose some of the facial expression. In this image I’ve taken the former to obtain a thoughtful look of the bride. In post production I’ve used Imaginomic’s Portraiture software to create a glamour style look.

The composition of image no.4 is awkward.  A headshot or a composition of her upper half would have been more suitable. Apart from that the subject is ‘touching’ the window in the background, which is a distraction. It would have been better if the subject were placed more to the right.

Yes, I can see the reference to the face / nose appearing to touch the window. My composition was to obtain a side view shot of the bride looking out of the window, this is an image style I had seen on some wedding photographer's web sites. I clearly have some more work / thought to put into recreating this style of shot

Image 5

The surprise and the delight is evident in both bride and grooms faces as newly weds. As a learning point I’ve chopped off the groom’s hand. From a technical perspective I should have taken this image in portrait format, and need a bracket for my flashgun that allows easy pivoting between the two formats. This why all my images with this flash gun are in landscape.

As you stated in your notes, you chopped off the hand of the groom, which is problematic.

This image does work well in Landscape format but including the hand would have improved the image. Also in this image the light of the flash seems too harsh.

Yes the flash comments are correct and a common them in some of my images. Composition I have failed with the hand cut-off. I do not to identify a flash bracket that allows easy switch from landscape to portrait image styles. I've substituted this with another where the hand remains in the frame

Image 6

This image has the bride and groom outside looking into each other’s eyes. Again the issue is not having this image in portrait for the reasons above. However this would still work had I not chopped the bride’s bouquet. Again I feel it’s better like this than for me to crop higher and leave the pair with arm stumps.

Image no.6 is better. The bride and groom interact with each other and that is captured well.  The lighting is much softer than the ones that where shot inside.

For portraits that are shot outside a reflector is a very useful kit because you can reflect the light on the subjects and make them stand out of the background. Also when the conditions are not good for instance when the sun is behind the subjects you can light up the faces by reflecting the natural light on to them. 

Yes, I can see the importance of using a reflector, of course a helper would be of great benefit also

Image 7

Following a common theme for this assignment, a cropped image to capture the facial expressions and love between the bride and groom as they take their first dance being a married couple. I’ve used the same software as per image 4 to create a glamour and stylised look.

On image no.7 the issue with the flash that is directly pointed at the subjects is most apparent. The strong shadows on the wall behind them are very problematic. Also the picture and wall are distracting. This image would have worked much better if it were taken outside with much softer light.

This was the bride and groom first dance and this being a wedding in October meant it would have been to dark. However the point is well made and the actual portrait could have been taken earlier making use of the fading light

Learning Logs or Blogs/Critical essays

You described your research and workflow well in your learning log/blog although you need to start reading the books from the reading list and start researching the photographers that are mentioned in it.

It is also very important that you do the exercises and port them on your learning log/blog. 

Suggested reading/viewing

Research the books:

Charlotte Cotton, The Photograph as Contemporary Art

Liz Well, Photography A Critical Introduction

Marta Short, Basics Creative Photography 

Thanks for the feedback this will help as I progress with this module and also for future wedding photography

Lessons Learnt

1.   Taking images at a wedding is difficult for a number of reasons these include i) capturing spontaneous moments where emotion is revealed ii) speed of thought in preparation of a shot iii) what is going on around you iv) capturing the image you want fully within the frame iv) working with flash. Its important to know your camera well so that element is outside the things you need to worry about and that camera changes and made quickly and intuitively.

2.  Relax your subjects with kind words of how they look, how good the images are looking. Tell some jokes, get them smiling.

3.  In contrast to above observe and be discreet but capture these images. I find that people can quickly get used to the flash and you walking around that they almost ignore you – at times like these you can capture key moments.

4. Not shown as part of these images but in the formal images I had a helper (bride’s Father) whom I gave a copy of the formal shot list and he organised the people in the positions I wanted so I could fully focus on the camera and capturing the people. These were probably my best images.

1   5. Try to get a mixture between being observational and organisational for capturing images. Formal images look just that, the informal however can also capture some amazing and for most unseen moments.

1   6. I need to concentrate more on framing, in a few images I have chopped bouquets, bottom of wedding dress, parts of shoes.

     7.  I need a flash bracket that easily allows me to shoot between landscape and portrait, I have missed many opportunities and also resulted in people cropped within frame that I would rather have avoided.

1     8. Experience – I have learnt tremendously for each wedding shoot and would like to think I have improved. However there is much for me to review and critique and look to improve on. Improvement is an on going activity.

     9. Confidence in your abilities can propagate out to your subjects. When they feel confident better images can be achieved.

1   10. Look at wedding images, whilst the top ones may be beyond the realms of ability they are great for getting ideas.

1    11. Always maintain that rapport between you and your subjects

      12. Always check your histogram and captured image. Once you more from a single subject you increase the chances of one having their eyes closed when the shutter fires. From experience I’ve learnt to take say 4-6 shots of the same pose then scan through quickly to ensure at least one is good.

1   13.  For this wedding including early evening I took over 800 images. Reviewing and performing light processing I’m down to 200 to review with bride and groom for final selection and potential additional processing. Take too many – its digital after all!

1   14. If you can, check out the wedding and reception locations first to understand layout and potential for images, even which way the light will come at the time of the wedding.

Below for interest is an image detailing the amazing location with the wedded couple though it had been pouring with rain up until just before the ceremony started: