I had a really hard time with the lighting for this assignment because there was...barely any light. I had my 50mm f1.4 lens, wide open the whole time and I was shooting at ISO 3200 for every shot. When I did get the focus to lock, my lens didn't want to focus on my subject, but on the small bits of lighting instead. Also, I was very limited as to the shots I could get because the DJ booth was not out in the open and it was up against a wall...luckily it was a mirrored wall so I could get some different shots that way. The booth he was standing in was also pretty tall so I had to stand on a wobbly barstool to get some shots of him and his equipment. His area was basically in the dark (the only lighting being from his equipment and some of the crazy lights to the side that were lighting the dancefloor. There were only a few areas I could stand to get good shots and I feel that I did the best I could do under the circumstances. Most of my photos were extremely dark, but here are a few that worked out and I need some help choosing...
(captions are still in progress)
Overall
I like this one because it shows the environment he's working in, and shows some of the people dancing in the reflection of the mirror 
What I like about this shot is that it more of an artistic appeal than the first one. It shows a perspective of his work area that nobody else sees. I'm thinking about using this one for my overall shot...Close-up
This was one of the few shots that I used a flash with. I like it because it's sharper than the others I have with his face in it, and I like the blue-ness of it. (He ripped off a piece of a blue plastic light filter for me to tape over the flash)The next two are very similar, but I still don't know if I'll choose the previous shot or one of the next for my close-up...
Detail 
This was the only photo that turned out of a close-up, hand on equipment type shot. It's a bit dark, but the again, the lighting was really difficult to work with, and my exposure compensation is still locked :/. I'd appreciate some opinions on these photos. Thanks! :)
This was the only photo that turned out of a close-up, hand on equipment type shot. It's a bit dark, but the again, the lighting was really difficult to work with, and my exposure compensation is still locked :/. I'd appreciate some opinions on these photos. Thanks! :)
Brittney, Your photos look fairly good to me but I have a hard time commenting in any great detail because I cannot click on the images and enlarge them. For my old, tired eyes this is almost like looking at the display on the back of my camera where everything looks great until I get home and see them on my computer. Then I find out that most of them suck.
ReplyDeleteSo... assuming everything is sharp, I would have liked to see a little more of the scene for both of your overall shots but they are really pretty good as they are.
I really like the blue medium shot but using a blue filter over the flash may not be allowed because you are altering the look and feel of the situation. It is, however a cool looking photo. Otherwise, I like the other setting where his head is not chopped off as my second choice for a medium setting. I think it would have been nice to see this shot in portrait mode so you could fill the frame with him and the control panel lights.
Your detail shot looks really good with all the glowing lights of the control panel on his hand. But without the ability to enlarge the photo I really cannot say much more.
Sorry, I feel like I have let you down without adding more detail but I really have trouble with small displays as I already described. Overall, I wish there were slightly more variety on the setting (see Jerome's comments on my Attempt #1 set, way, way, way down below your post). For instance a shot from the back of the crowd with the DJ on the far end of the scene would have been interesting. Never the less, I think you have a fairly solid set here given the circumstances.
For the future, if you want to do me a favor, import your photos at somewhere between 800-1000 pixels on their long side so I can enlarge and study them for a little while. Thanks!
Brittney, I like the subject you chose. Clearly, with low light situations, you and your camera will be challenged to produce tack sharp pictures. My eyes aren't necessarily geriatric, but like Andreas I can't discern a lot because I cannot enlarge your pics. On the overall picture, my preference would be to select your 1st picture over your second one. While the second one has graphic elements, it also has what looks to be a bag and papers coming out of it on the left bottom corner, and the seams of the mirror create a vertical line the cuts through the DJ's arm. I love mirror shots, but in my limited opinion they are most effective when you can capture the profile of the person and their reflection. In your case due to the type of lighting you were working in and w, it probably would have not been possible.
ReplyDeleteOn, your medium shot, I like the blue lighting or filtering effect of the blue plastic filter diffuser on your flash. In fact, I think is super cool! When I saw your posting, I skipped all other images and went directly to it. Sadly, I have to add a qualified however. However, for the purpose of the assignment I am wondering on 2 things: How this picture would flow in a sequence where the light is completely different, maybe that's were captions come in. Secondly, and in Jerome's favorite mantra: Does this picture aim at capturing nouns and verbs, or does it aim to capture adjectives and adverbs?
On your detail shot all I can say is: I like the lighting in your detail shot a lot. I wish I could enlarge it.
Brittney, I think you did a great job figuring out the ISO, and what lens would let you work in this very challenging environment. I think you were very creative in selecting a really cool and unique profession.
Thanks for the comments guys...
ReplyDeleteAs far as the blue photo...I'm not sure if the look of it would be considered altering the look of the situation because there were blue lights moving around that could've landed on him at any moment if my lens focused fast enough to catch it... although I did directly put the plastic on my flash...
And Marily, I really struggled with capturing adverbs & adjectives since the the environment I was shooting in was limited on the perspectives I could shoot with.
(I tried getting underneath and shooting at an upward angle, but because the only lights I could use to really get the focus to lock on were on his soundboard which ended up creating a pretty ordinary perspective, and also the bright lights underneath his booth which is why I was very glad when he crouched down in front of it (I was waiting for that) and I got the silhouette. About the line in the mirror being a distraction- I agree, however because the space was so small, the only way I was able to get the whole booth in the shot was to shoot it in the mirror.) I found this assignment very difficult as far as capturing interesting photos. Also, I think the brightness of the screen on my camera may be set too high because my photos always look fine until I look at them on the computer. All in all, I think this assignment was a great learning experience.
Is the first photo too boring? because I think it is and I'm pretty hesitant to use it...
ReplyDeleteAnother thing I was thinking about for the blue photo: if I did use the flash alone without the blue filter, it would've washed out all the colored lighting that did exist in there, therefore altering the true look of the scene. I don't know though...I'm debating it with myself
ReplyDeleteYou picked a dark setting that can be very difficult Brittney. But you did a pretty solid job. The detail shot I like. I just wish there was a bit more light in it to show what that hand is working with..
ReplyDeleteThe "blue" shot makes me wonder, "Why is it blue?" If you were trying to correct a really bad color cast from lighting that doesn't take away from the environment, gels on flashes are okay. But if it is for effect, it should only be used in portrait environments. But good job on trying something different.
I'd say the bottom medium shot, or "detail" as you label it, is the better of the two. I wish we could see some turntables or something to give us a better look at his booth and his tools.
The weakest shot in the take is the overall and this is where you could have rocked the adjectives and adverbs. If you think of the role of a DJ, his main job is to get a crowd moving, dancing and having fun. So incorporating the crowd in the foreground with the focus of the DJ in the background would have give us that look into how the crowd reacts to his skills.
We'll look at the whole take for grading purposes. You may have an overall gem hidden in there somewhere.
We'll go over flash usage in class this week.
Good job working in the darkness Brittney.