Research - Eric Johansson

I have chosen to research Eric Johansson (via the internet) because he takes landscape images and with the use of manipulation transforms them into something fascinating, amusing and sometimes creepy.
Mr Lars-Eric Johansson describes himself as a professional photographer and retoucher.  He lives in Sweden and mostly does personal projects and commercial work.
I relate to his equipment as he uses a Canon EOS 5d Mark II camera with L series lenses and photoshop CS5. I aspire to use it in the same way he does:-

                                                              Taken by Eric Johansson

I like this image because it is simple and fun. Black lab dogs are happy to be out enjoying themselves (I used to have one when I lived with my parents) and Johansson takes it a stage further and gives him balloons to leap about the air with.  It looks like late afternoon sun with the long shaddows cast, and the way the light catches the dogs silky coat is lovely.  It makes me wonder what the dog is thinking? I know he is not really up there, but that is how the image makes me feel.  For me this image is all about the dog, all else seems abit non discript and not so colourful to stand out in any way.  Not that the dog has lots of colour either, its just I think he has the presence. The only colour is in the multi  balloons and these set the dog off a treat.   I am also drawn to look further to the little trees on the horizon, so they add interest.   I don't think the scene is about the woman in any way as she is dressed in darkish clothes, seemingly to blend into the scenery. I would imagine Johansson thinking the dog wants to be free to play and thats why he portrays him with the balloons to fly away. I notice from some of his other photographs on the internet he has a tendency to float things mid air from a chord. ie. a house is depicted in another one.

                                                                            Benson

This is my image of a black lab at play, and again the scene is all about the dog.  I like the way he divides the water as he swims in to bring the stick, and how I caught his nose reflection in the foreground, or is that a reflection of me taking the picture on the bank?  Actually it could be as his nose is not that big.  I took this shot whilst out walking with a friend and her dog.  Benson repeatedly leapt into the lake to retrieve the stick whenever she threw it. He is always eager to please.  Maybe Johanson is also trying to portray that about the dog in his image....he is always eager to please so gives him the balloons, meaning the dog would do anything?
  I made sure I stood well back with the camera when Benson climbed out though, as he also enjoyed a good shake off.  The dog in Johansson's picture looks very similar to Benson, when out of the water,  in size and obviously colour.  Benson was looking straight at me when I took this shot of him, which  I found endearing.

Not only is Johansson a skilful photographer and re-toucher he holds a MBA with a Major in Finance and accounting and has worked in finance for 30 years.  I have a connection here too, as I also do, but not anywhere near the status he does, for he has controlled positions in Canada and Sweden:
Since 2004 has has been an Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Kinross Gold Corporation, a Toronto stock exchange listed gold mining company.  He is also lead Director and the Chairperson of the audit committee and corporate governance committee of Aber Diamond Corporation, a precious stones mining company listed on NASDAO and the Toronto Stock Exchange. He has had his finger in many other finance pies too, so one wonders how he gets the time to do such brilliant photography.

                                                             Taken by Eric Johansson

I like this image because he has transformed a dull like image (if I can say that) into a striking one which holds more fascination and interest.  The way the wet muddy/snow road sweeps round leads the eye straight to the ball and inside it to view the cars reflection and beyond. The sweepingness inside the ball of the continuing road looks very clever  and there are snow patches inside in the distance that we are unable to see in the main frame.  The scene  reminds me of a programme I used to watch, 'The Prisoner' where a giant ball would come to a village in Wales (Port Merrion) and terrorise the main character in the series.  It wasn't a see through ball though like this one, its just that this giant size one, and the fact that its been placed in the middle of the road, reminds me. The way the tree just touches the ball and reflects is good, and I like that he has continued the clouds from along the main scene, into the ball. The snow is what stands out in contrast to the mud and grey tones of other objects, colour wise.  Then lastly I look at the driver who has got out in obvious dismay.  But I tend to look more at his tiny reflection than him in real. What is Johansson trying to say in this image?  Could it be the man is thinking well the snow hasn't managed to stop me, but there's bound to be something that does? Who knows. It may mean different things to different people, for me it spells no way out.

                                                                                   Mud Path
                                                                   shutter 1/200 aperture f4.0 iso 400

I can only compare my Mud Path image to Johansson's big ball one.  None of my images that I am comparing to manipulated research images, are manipulated, because I only did the 4 as my final ones, and those in class.  I compare this image on the grounds that the scene is abit dreary looking too, and may look better if I manipulated something big and interesting into it.  I had gone out recently on a raining half day and took the shot around mid afternoon when the rain had stopped.  The winding mud path, with tree besides, leads the eye, just as it does in Johansson's. There is only one colour standing out in my image too (like the snow in his) and that is the russet red leading from the foreground down to the distance background, just about as far as his snow does.

Final Evaluation

I love photography! I have realised this more since doing this course and loving every minute of it.  What would I do differently? Not a lot, just try to be more organised, time wise,  especially from the beginning and not leave lots till the last minute. . . to get my final prints sorted earlier. Of  course to just keep practising to try to get better at all of it.

On the whole I think my images came out quite well, as a beginner, so I feel sure my kit suited my subjects.  Canon's L series 24-105mm lens is versatile for landscapes and portraits. I would like to look at other lenses, including a macro lens in the future.  I have learned to use a manual camera (in aperture priority, shutter priority and manual settings).  I have also learned some photoshop techniques, both of which I had never done before.  I have learned to blog, another new for me.  I have met some great people in class including the tutor Marie, who without her help, I now wouldn't know all this, and I thank everyone that has helped me along the way. I hope we keep in touch.

Since the start I have loved the handling of this type of photography and its results.  At first though I found photoshop quite daunting, not knowing which bit to use where and I was sure I wanted to achieve the best I could 'in camera' and not really liking the sound of amending the images too much afterwards.  I considered it cheating.  I have to say I have changed my mind on that.  Once I had the nursery rhyme idea and started manipulating my own images, I got quite excited about it.
Now I understand how it opens up all sorts of new possibilities that just wouldn't be there without it.  In fact I hope to have CS5 myself one day... there is still lots more to learn and discover.

I'm glad I chose landscapes as my theme. I loved going out with the camera to capture the shots, this was one of the best parts for me, it really suited me as a person.... tranquil settings, taking pictures of what I liked the look of.  Because I tend to take lots of shots, I found this helped because later on inspection there may only be some good ones you can use, and even the ones you don't consider the best may come in handy later for backgrounds on manipulated ones, and they did.

 I have learned that the scenes should excite you emotionally in order for photographs to portray what you feel... In the 1920's a famous photographer (Alfred Stieglitz, who was Ansel Adams's mentor) did a series of works he called 'equivalents'.  This is how he described the process of photography: "I come across something that excites me emotionally, spiritually, aesthetically.  I see the photograph in my mind's eye and I compose and expose the negative.  I give you the print as the equivalent of what I saw and felt."
I have learned that "equipment is important, but it is not what creates really great photographs. It's the connection that the photographer has with the subject": (Colin Prior): "The key is to go out and find a subject matter you have an emotional connection with. It's this empathy with a subject that really stands out."

The research was quite difficult, I enjoyed it, but time wise there was lots to do and I felt like I was repeating myself sometimes, not knowing how to relate to their work in different ways, due to my lack of experience.  I understand I have learned much from this though and a favourite would be the live speaker photographer Joe Cornish who came to the college.  He impressed and inspired me greatly.
 I didn't start my manipulation research ones until after I have done my manipulated images, but I had already had the idea for me, and was sticking to it.

There is still much more to learn and experience to gain with the camera and manipulation, but I can't wait to go on, and out.

Final Manipulated Images

For my final 4 manipulated images I decided to have a nursery rhyme theme of "Hey Diddle Diddle",  to add an air of light heartedness and fun to my overall landscape theme of 'natural wonders".  The words of the rhyme are a slight throw on the original words enabling my 4 images to be entitled:-

Hey Diddle Diddle
The Cats On A Fiddle
The Cow Jumped Over The Moon - The Little Dog Laughed To See Such Fun
And The Dish Swam Away With The Spoon.

In making the decision to manipulate in this way I had looked at the work of other photographers in my research blogs and in class, who had also given a sense of fun to their landscape backdrop settings, by the addition of objects/people/animals.  It was obvious these additions had been added to their images showing their sense of humour and fun.  These inspired me to try to capture something similar.

I have given my tutor (Marie) copies of all the images I used in this manipulation process on a CD:

Here are the images:-

                                                                     Hey Diddle Diddle

                                                          The scene before manipulation

                                                             
Hey Diddle Diddle:

 I placed 4 sheep in the background image of an 'entrance' image I had taken in the snow.  I liked the thought of the white sheep in the white snow, matching in with the scene as though they should be there.

 The foreground main sheep, which I took from another image, had been looking straight at me when I took the shot, as though he was going to say something....which gave me the idea that the sheep can be the Diddles.  Big Diddle (this forefront main one) I took from the another image using the magnetic lasso tool (clicking on the lasso tool in the left hand tool box in photoshop, then in the sub heading, clicked magnetic), carefully going round all his edges with the mouth using this tool, then copying and pasting him onto this background (edit, copy, paste). ( I'd had to place both images in Photoshop first).  He appeared on quite big in size in the background trees so I sized him down abit (edit, free transform, scale) and bought in the edges of the dotty box that appeared round him, by holding down the shift and alt keys together (resizes all) then used the move tool to place him where I wanted him to be.  I was trying to place his hind legs in what looked like holes in the snow, because I hadn't got his full feet, and to make him blend in better. Once I was happy I flattened the image (layer, flatten image) and saved it as a jpeg file to carry on later at a later time.

 I had taken a few images with sheep on so I decided to add my second sheep from a different image and chose a sleepy one because he had his eyes closed. I made sure the layers box was open (window, layers), opened the image with the sleepy sheep on in photoshop (by dragging the image over the photoshop icon) and then I used the pen tool this time to pen round his edges with dots, swinging as I went for the curvy parts, by keeping the mouse held down. (first I had zoomed into him, with comand +, so that I could see him bigger which was better for penning). When I came to the end of him I clicked on the first dot, this ends it and tells the computer you have finished cutting him out. Then I clicked on 'paths' in the layer box and its top right arrow within that same box, make selection, 'feather by' and changed the pixel to '1'.  This makes the edges less hard in their appearance.  Then edit, copy, and next I bought up the image I wanted this second sheep placed in (by dragging the image over the photoshop icon).  This was the original image 'entrance' background with the first sheep installed on it,  and I clicked edit and paste. Now the sleepy sheep was on and I resized him as I did the first one and moved him to where I wanted him to be, next to the tree.

Following the above senario I chose my third sheep from a third image and pasted him onto my original also.  I wanted him facing the other way so I clicked edit, flip horizontal, and this turned him around, then I resized him.
 My forth sheep was a copy of the third, but I made him a different size, abit bigger to try to show perspective with the distance between him and the other one, and just to make him different. I had copied him with the clone tool and chose a brush big enough to cover him, then pressed Alt and click, moved a copy of him along abit where I wanted him to be, then released the buttons. I moved him properly with the move tool being careful about where I placed him and where the sun light was reflecting.  I knew I couldn't place him in direct sunlight,  if he did not have a part reflected coat. I figured where I put him would be where his coat, if it did catch the sunlight on his side, would be his side that wouldn't show to us.
Now I had the finished manipulated image I wanted, so again I flattened the image and saved it as a jpeg file.
Saving it as a 'jpeg' means I am not able to go back in and amend those same pieces I had been working on (each sheep), but if I thought that I may have wanted to do just that, and had set up the image using more layers,  I could have saved it as a 'psd' file which lets you back in when amending/creating different layers.

The Cats On A Fiddle:

                                                                 The Cats On A Fiddle

                                                        The scene before manipulation

I lightened the shadows of the above scene with brightness/contrast controls in photoshop prior to me carrying out the manipulations, just to give a more appealing and sunny outlook.
I had took a photograph of my cat Mertle and wanted to place her onto a background image of 2 huts entering Calke Abbey.  My idea being that she would sit in one of the huts with a money jar beside her, and I would label the other hut with a sign which had had its original words scrubbed over, and was now reading 'Pay the cat'.  I would leave some of the original writing of this sign showing slightly, on purpose, making out the cat had scrubbed it and re-written the new words, so that all entrants paid their monies to her. (ie. cat on a fiddle, being a money fiddle).

At first I was going to have the scene as just the one hut with Mertle in, cropping the other hut out (see image below) and having the sign above her, but then changed my mind to the 2 huts as the scene would have been too small and I thought it did not give enough depth.  I also decided the sign would work better labelled across the second hut.

                                                         example of the cropped idea

 I had also taken a photograph of a small archway opening at home with a jar containing money coins placed upon it.  So first I placed Mertle inside the arch, next to the money jar, by cutting round her using the pen tool and copy and pasting her into the image of the archway (using the same methods described above).  I flattened this image and saved it as a jpeg.  Next I cut out the archway (now containing Mertle an the money jar) using the pen tool and copied and pasted it into the background image of the 2 huts. I played about with it  somewhat, and resized until it looked like it was meant to be part of the inside of the left hut. I also clicked edit, flip horizontal to make it face the other way to the way I had taken the shot.

I had took a photograph of an entrance that had a red sign overhanging its roadway and this was the sign I used.  I first opened this image in photoshop and used the eraser tool to wipe over the sign slightly so that I could still make out some letters underneath. I cut the sign out using the pen tool and copied and pasted it onto the 2 huts image, moving it accross and over the right hut and re-sizing to fit, to look like it had always been there.  Then using the 'T' (type) tool I typed 'pay the cat' which appeared in the middle of the image. ( I had changed the colour of the type to red via the colour swatch).  I then moved the type over the sign and when happy flattened and saved the image.
I love the tonal colours of this scene, the way Mertle now sits happy in the sun light and I think the red sign looks part of it.


The Cow Jumped Over The Moon - The Little Dog Laughed To See Such Fun:

                                                      The Cow Jumped Over The Moon-
                                                 The Little Dog Laughed To See Such Fun

                                                       The scene before manipulation

For my third image I had been out late one night to take a shot of a full moon.  I knew at what time of night it was going to be behind a certain tree just down the road from where I live so at 11.50 at night I wrapped up and taking my camera and tripod with me drove to the spot. I set up and ran off a few shots and was pleased with this one.  I particularly liked the way the moons reflection lit up the tip of the clouds, and the way the tree branches looked a reddish colour due to a back street light helping a hand.

I had taken a photograph of some cows when out one day (Mooving, an image I had featured previously in my blog) and decided to cut out a main cow, one that had moving legs and a white face, so that it would show up better on this dark moon image.  So I cut it out using the pen tool and copied and pasted it onto the above image, resizing and moving to the above moon area. I clicked on edit, free transform, scale and distort,  to move the cow at a slightly different angle, as I wanted to raise his back end to look like he was in fall slightly, as he jumped over.  When I was happy with him I flattened and saved the image for later.

I had taken a photograph of 2 small dogs as I walked around Calke, really just because they were so small and was walking with their owner with their coats on.  I remember asking the owner if I could take their photograph and he replied "yes if they'll let you!" So I set the camera and pointed it toward them quite close but they didn't like it and started to growl and turn away.  I quickly took the shot, thanked the man and went on my way.  From this image I chose the dog that turned away, knowing that he was at the angle I wanted for the above moon image. I liked the way his white colour would match my moon scene colour wise, with his coat adding interest.  Cutting him out with the pen tool again, I inserted him by copy and paste and moved him into the forefront branches of the tree. I felt pleased that the light on him already seem to match my image, looking like the moon reflection had given him this light.  All that was left was to type on the words with the 'T' (type) tool: Ha Ha which I placed at a slopping angle coming from his mouth, via 'warp text' (like I had previously used on my 'Blue Sheep' image in a previous blog). I then flattened and saved the image.

And The Dish Swam Away With The Spoon:

                                            And The Dish Swam Away With The Spoon

                                                        The scene before manipulation

I decided to use one of my 'Reflections' images as the background, one where I had taken a photograph of a lake with rippled water (prior activity by a bird or duck).  I thought the ripples would be good to place to insert the bowl and spoon, looking like there had been some movement by it swimming away. The above scene before manipulation also had some darkness in the shadows which I lightened the contrast/brightness controls in photoshop.

I took a few photographs of a green bowl and a wooden spoon at home, and chose the best one, light wise to cut out the items to use on the above background scene.   I chose these with thought of how their colours were natural to match into this scene, and keeping in context with my overall 'natural' theme.  I thought about the light and how the light caught on them (from daylight light from the kitchen window at a certain time of day, would match in with the light of the background image above).  I cut out the bowl and spoon using the pen tool in photoshop and separately copied and pasted them onto the above background. When cutting out the bowl I cut into it, half its depth, because it was quite a deep bowl and I didn't want it to look just placed high onto of the water.  I thought if it has less depth I may be able to make it appear that some of it was underneath.   I resized them and moved them into near on centre of the water, amidst the ripples.  I played about with the bowl until I was happy, then placing the spoon handle up, (using edit, scale, distort slightly) I positioned it inside the bowl.  I zoomed into them now (command +) to see close how they sat on the water, and when happy, flattened and saved the image.

All the above manipulation was carried out by placing each image into Photoshop and using the relevant tools therein to carry out the adjustments, ie. cut outs, copy and paste, crop and resizing, brightness/contrast\lightness to backgrounds.

I really enjoyed working on these images.  Completed they are fun and make me smile. Marie (my tutor) has a copy of  these final 4 manipulated images, together with all the images I used to manipulate them, on a CD.

Equipment Used:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II camera with battery
24-105mm L lens
SanDisk Extreme CompactFlash card 8GB
Tripod
Mac Computer for manipulation in Photoshop

Folio of final images

These are my 6 final images:-

            
1.  Enter (top left)  - shutter 1/160   aperture f4.0   iso 400   Focal Length 50.0mm
                                                                  date 25 Jan 11  time 13:53

2.  China (top right) - shutter 1/85   aperture f4.0   iso 400    Focal Length 45.0mm
                                                                  date 25 Jan 11  time 15:28

3.  Ladders (middle left) - shutter 1/85   aperture f4.0   iso 200   Focal Length 65.0mm                        date 22 Dec 10  time 15:41

4. Dark Red Wood (middle right) - shutter 1/160   aperture f7.1  iso 200   Focal Length 58.0mm        date 24 Nov 10  time 14.06

5.  4 Ducks (bottom left) - shutter 1/100   aperture f4.0   iso 400  Focal Length 105.0mm date 25 Jan 11 time 15:13

6. Alive (bottom right) - shutter 1/250   aperture f11.0   iso 200   Focal Length 24.0mm date 24 Nov 10 time 13:04

I am happy with the settings above and think they matched the subjects well.  I had set the iso setting to 400 on the dull days and wanted an F stop of f4, then I would turn the main top dial adjustment control of my camera (the shutter speed) until the scale inside the viewfinder showed the correct exposure on the indicator. Then I took the picture. On the bright days the camera set the iso to 200.  Where I used a tripod I set this up first to full height, then lowered the leg adjustments accordingly until I was happy with the height, depending on what eye level I wanted to take the shot from.  The tripod can take video cameras on it too, which enables it to have a very adjustable head swing. The focal lengths shown are from my zoom lens where I was zooming in and out.

Equipment Used:
Canon EOS 5D Mark II EF 24-105 L IS USM Kit
SanDisk Extreme CompactFlash card 8GB
Tripod
Mac Computer to present the images with more vibrance (adjustment controls of Brightness/contrast/saturation) and to print out from a template set up onto photographic paper.

Choice of Images:
All images are within my theme of "Natural Wonders".  They are landscapes where I have particularly homed in on 'trees' as a main subject.  I love the colours and the scenes of all these images and in my choice I have tried to show my compositions in different weather scenes with different light effects ie. autumn and winter, with sun, snow, bright and dull days.  I entitle my images because I enjoy giving them names and it is what the professionals do.  It also makes it easier to refer to them throughout the blog.
 The names usually come from what I am seeing and thinking at the time I am shooting the scene, or later when I view them on the computer: -

'Enter' is obvious,  it is the entrance to what has quickly become one of my favourite places to visit with or without a camera.  The trees are great and stand to attention, making the path look inviting to follow. There is no-one around giving a sense of peace and solitude to the atmosphere.

'China': the scene looks abit chinese to me and alittle surreal... those intricate trees,  that shade of green water, it just had that feel.

'Ladders':  the left tree twigs are horizontal looking like you can step up them. I have seen a similar snow tree image portrayed by a professional photographer during my research on the internet.

'Dark Red Wood': again looks just that. It looks mysterious and is one of my favourite images.  I love wooded areas with the sunlight coming through. I have featured this image in an earlier blog and now I have tried to present it with more vibrance.

'4 Ducks': This image is another obvious choice of name when 4 ducks appeared, 2 in the centre and 2 approaching. It looks serene to me.

'Alive': though this tree is dead it looks more alive to me.  I have featured this tree in a previous blog taken from a different angle, on different camera settings.  I found this scene bright and pleasing with such great detail and array of colours on the tree's bark, I loved it.  I  particularly like the way dainty branches pertrude out of its mouth (to the top right of the image) and the way the sun just hits from the right behind him.

Venue:
All the images with the exception of  'Ladders'  were shot at the same venue:  the grounds of Calke Abbey, Ticknall, Derbyshire.
'Ladders' was shot at a Derbyshire village brook location in the snow.


Presentation of my images:
At first I was going to present my images in a photograph album and I placed 10 x 8 gloss prints, which I had obtained from the High street print shop and on-line Photobox, inside a decorative A4 black and white covered one.  I had secured the prints inside, on top of the plastic sleeves, instead of underneath them, to not obscure their clarity in any way, by way of photo corners, thinking these were not permanent and I could change them in the future.  However these alone were insufficient to hold them in place as I turned the pages, so I had to re-inforce them with invisible mounts; I placed 4 under each one a couple of inches in from each corner, still leaving the photo corners in place also.  This gave them the steadiness needed.
I had noticed that the prints from Photobox were far superior to those of the High Street, and I now had a mixture of qualities.  I had gone to the High street store after Photobox, requiring more prints, with insufficient time to get more from Photobox.  Plus one of my prints would not take to print on the machine at the High Street so I decided to print them all off again at college on a A3 sheet, in a matt finish, as a collage (all 6 showing together on one).  This was the best idea and proved to look nicer and more professional.  I have outlined more on the method I used to present my final images in the previous section, 'Quality Checks' because it was through these checks that I decided to change my way of presenting them.
So an alternative way of presenting them would have been the above (photo album/photo book) or any of the other methods as outlined in ' Research Presentation of images'.

The arrangement of the 6 images (the Collage):
I selected this arrangement of the images with the entrance (Enter) starting at the top left, with its trees looking like a surround from the top left corner of the collage to 'Alive' at the bottom right corner, with its tree acting as a surround of the bottom right corner of the collage.  I then placed a water scene at each of the other two corners showing their trees to act as a surround again for each of the other two corners of the collage. ( So a tree would be showing in each of the four corners of the collage, like corner borders).  The middle scenes show weather mixes from Winter snow to Autumn sunshine.

Composition:
I enjoy autumn colour landscapes with contrasts; from the russet foliage to the bright path (it had been raining that day) and the green waters to the dark wood. Then the contrast of the bark of wood to that of bright white snow.  I love the tree shapes and their details and go in search of these.  I like the reflections of the trees in the waters of China and 4 Ducks, and the suns reflections in Dark Red Wood and in Alive, showing its tree shadow in the foreground.
I think half the images show the rule of thirds; China, 4 Ducks and Alive, though this was not intentional as I just shot what I liked and felt right.
 I am happy to include animals in a scene (4 Ducks) as I consider it to be nature at its best when they are in natural surroundings, and I was pleased on zooming in that the 2 main  middle ducks were clear.  Only one scene contains any amount of sky showing, whilst this was not deliberate, I consider these 6 work well together. Three scenes were taken in overcast light (Enter, China and 4 Ducks) and three scenes taken in bright light (Ladders, Dark Red Wood and Alive).  No flash was used in any images.

Preparation:
I knew exactly where I wanted to go for each shoot and chose specific weather days; overcast, bright and snow. I had prepared myself with warm layers of clothes, gloves, hat and trainers prior to going out and with wellies in the case of Enter, China and 4 Ducks because it was raining that day and I thought it may be muddy.  I had taken them with me in the car just in case (together with an extra pair of long thick woolly socks) and  changed into them on arrival.
 I ensured I had a fully charged battery and plenty of memory space, lens cloth and small plastic bags for the tripod legs in case I wanted to use it in the mud.  I knew the route I was going to take: the entrance (Enter) then up past  the 'Alive' tree, down to 'China' and along the lake side to (4 Ducks).  I am happy wandering around this area with my camera and then you just 'see' the shots that have to be taken.  I knew I wanted to head down the the lake for some water scenes and was just lucky there were ducks around at the time.
 On a separate day I had explored a  brook on foot in the snow and found 'Ladders'.

Quality Checks

I would take images with my camera, download them onto the computer with a USB lead attached directly to my camera and switch the camera on.  This would download the images onto the stick icon showing on the desktop.  I would then open the icon to examine them  large and close in iphoto and or Photoshop for clarity and to see if they needed any minor adjustments ie. more brightness/contrast/saturation.  I would download the images onto a memory stick which I inserted into the computer.  I would do this  by having the images on my desktop, dragging them over the icon of the memory stick,  opening the memory stick file to make sure they were showing in there, then dragging the memory stick icon over the  waste bin, before pulling the stick out of the computer.

I took my memory stick into a print shop and had 2 images printed off to check their quality.  They were not as good as I had hoped, so then I had some images printed off on line via Photobox.  This is where I downloaded images onto their website, chose the relevant size (10 x 8) and the finish I wanted (gloss) and they were printed and posted to me within a few days.   I found these to be of a superior quality to those from the High street.  I finally decided on having my final 6 images printed out in college class on top quality paper, on an A3 sheet, with a matt finish.
 So this was the method I used:-
 First a template was created on the computer. A template is created in photoshop by file, new and adding the appropriate measurements in drop down boxes. As the template was already loaded on the college computer, the next thing was to copy and paste my images into the template, within a grid setting which allows you to measure the gaps between them more accurately.  My images needed to be resized to fit them all inside this template, once I had downloaded them onto the computer by way of my memory stick. All 6 went into the template one at a time, and then I juggled them about each other until I was happy with the final layout.  The grid was lifted to reveal the images clearly for final inspection, then printed out.  The A3 sheet was then trimmed down at each end, with the guillotine, approx 2" off each side, to give a more balanced look.  I liked this matt presentation better than the gloss images I had had printed at the print shop and on-line.  I thought overall it looked more professional, so I was happy with this method as my final presentation.

Throughout my shoots I would run off between 100-300 images so that I had plenty of choice in choosing what I considered to be the best ones.  As I went along I would change settings on the camera to try to achieve correct exposure for the light conditions.  I would use a 'Program' setting some of the time so that I could examine the ready made settings and their effect, which would give me an idea of the type of settings  I would need to use in 'manual' mode, in different situations.  In effect I used this setting as a guide.  Then I would shoot images in 'shutter priority, aperture priority and manual modes.  I would check the image produced immediately having taking the shot on the viewing screen of the camera to ensure it was light enough, and if not adjust the settings and take another.  I would use the zoom in buttons to take a closer look.

Later after shoots I would return home, download my images onto the computer and check their quality on a large screen, again zooming in in Photoshop to check clarity and this would determine which images I considered to be my best, along with the general 'feel' of what I liked about the shot.

I presented choice images to my tutor (Marie) for her professional opinion also.  I also presented her with my plan of what I had decided to do, theme wise, for my 4 manipulated images, then later with examples of these images for her consideration of their quality.

Research - Presentation of images

I have obtained this information from on-line reading, things that are already known to me, and by enquiry at a print shop.
There are various ways and methods to portray or present your images once taken by the camera,  these are some of them:-

Printing:
The process of producing photographs onto paper can be done at a printing shop where chemistry is used to print onto a thicker photograph type of paper (like Kodak).  These can either be produced on a gloss or matt effect finish.  You can also print off your own prints at home, via coloured inks,  if you have a printer.  Home printing may be more restrictive as most printers only enable 2 ink cartridges (black and colour), though you can buy a professional type of printer with multiple colours.  One of the hazards of home printing is that if you don't use your printer continually, the ink cartridges can dry up.
Most colour ink printing uses the CMYK method, whereby the following colours are mixed and toned to produce other colours:  Cyan, Magenta ,Yellow, Key: black.

Projecting:
You can print onto a transparency or slide to project your images on a larger scale, say by a projector machine onto a large white screen or onto a wall.

Digital:
You can download your images from your camera via a USB cable onto a computer and set up a slide show using relevant  software like that contained in Apple's iphoto, or Photoshop. You can also upload  these digital files to on-line printer sites like Photobox, who will send you quality photographs within a few days, either as prints only, or produce them in Photo books, though these may take longer like a couple of weeks.
Images can also be downloaded onto a CD for viewing, either by yourself on a computer or at a printers, by taking in a memory stick or memory card for them to run them off.   So you can download your images onto your computer, then load chosen ones back onto a memory stick, then take this memory stick to the printers for prints or a CD.

Photo books/Photo albums
These can be hard or soft backed and come in various sizes and designs to suit you and your images. The cost can range from £10-£30+ and I have heard the on-line ones can be an effective way of presenting your photographs. On checking 'Photobox' on line, I found that you would need a minimum of say 20 images.

Presentation wallets:
This is simply a wallet to pop your photographs into for protection and storage.  They can be coloured/designed or cardboard, and best when contain hard card inside the back to prevent bending.

Foam board:
This 3 layer method;  a polystyrene centre with outer card/paper on either side, is hard to keep your photographs rigid.

Canvas:
A copy of your image is processed onto a canvas material.  This is then stretched around and stapled to a thick wooden frame.  A popular choice of  imagery presentation in stores like 'Next'.

Card Mounting:
This is mounting the picture onto card.  You can do this by using adhesive like glue or double sided tape, the hazards of which may prove messy, give an uneven finish and thereby look unprofessional.  You could use a special spray, designed to do the job, which would be better for a more even coverage. You could also buy special mounting tape, again designed to do the job, to give a better effect and longer lasting as the chemicals would not run with time, as they may do with just any tape.  You could use these methods for  a permanent mount.  However if you didn't want a permanent mount you could buy small transparent picture corners which can be applied and later removed.

Window Mounting:
These are made of card usually with an inside cut out to place your photograph inside.  They are often used inside hard frames to give an in-depth effect and help focus the eye inwards.  They can be very elaborate with mounting within mounting of different sizes and colour tones, with border lines surrounding them, all giving greater impact to the inner image.

Framing:
This is the best way of presenting images in my opinion, for looks to draw the eye into the image and for protection. However, when I watched Joe Cornish's presentation of his images via projector and window mounted images standing on artist like eziles, I was very impressed.
You can choose from hundreds of different frames to suit your tastes and photographs, with varying sizes, some made to measure, some standard bought; different colours, designs and materials ie. wood, silver, gold like, beaded, shell, perspex, plastic, glass, stone, slate....the list seems endless and I fancy a framing shop must be a lucrative buisiness, seeing that they can be expensive.  I prefer the frames to hold at least one window mounting within, rather than the picture being flush to its edges, and when I buy pictures to hang on a wall,  I am always influenced by their frame as well as the art.

Unit 102 - Image Capture

This assignment provides the opportunity for me to evidence camera skills in recording images.
I need to produce a minimum of 6 images all within the same theme which show the following:

Task 1a (Produce a folio of images):-
1. To produce images which are relevant to the theme.
2. Use of equipment, techniques and media.
3. Use of lighting conditions.
4. Use of exposure control.

Task 1b (Supporting evidence/written account for theme)
Produce a written account for the folio of images which includes:
* the preparation undertaken
* how equipment was used to capture and process images
* the image quality checks that were carried out
* how the final images relate to the theme

I need to research the work of a minimum of 10 photographers and collate at least 10 photographs, evidencing them in my blog.  With this I also need to write at least 150 words about each photographer and state why their work inspires me and my work.

Introduction to Unit 108 - Digital Image Manipulation

Task 1a (Image Manipulation)

I need to select and manipulate 4 images of my choice.  These images must relate to each other by a theme and I must display them with the unmodified images:
Therefore I need to:
1) Produce 4 modified and stored images.
2) Ensure the images are related to the theme.

Task 1b (Supporting Evidence)

I must provide a written account of task 1a, which includes:
1) The image modification software.
2) The image quality checks that were carried out.
3) How the final images relate to the theme.
4) Legal and ethical considerations.

I need to research and identify useful information on my blog,  for instance chosen artists that inspire me and my work.

Health, Safety and Legal Considerations

Professional landscape photographers have to consider health and safety at all times. When out in the field  they guard their own personal safety ie. when in mountain terrain they would ensure they have relevant warm and waterproof clothing for the climate, tent equipment for staying over if necessary, enough food/drink to see them through the shoot, plus all necessary adequate camera protective equipment to also ensure the camera's safety.   They would do their homework to ensure weather conditions would not be too hazardous, or as near as they could to check mother nature. They ensure they have all the relevant camera equipment with them. ie fully charged batteries, spare memory, tripod... etc, for they would not want to have travelled for days to the top of a mountain to found they haven't got their shutter release button with them.  Therefore pre- shoot planning is very important.

Similarly I have considered where I was going to shoot my images and at what time, weather conditions (not staying out too long in the cold snowy days,  avoiding heaving rain with the camera equipment), the fact that I would be alone and not straying too far, especially in darkness.  I have thought about trying to not walk too far from my car when carrying alot of equipment ie.when taking the tripod out. When I purchased the tripod, weight was a major consideration from a health a safety point of view, I did not want to do my back any injury.   At night time when I went out at 12pm to capture moon shots I ensured I was only a couple of paces from my car door and kept a constant look out for passers by.  I have worn trainers and warm layers throughout the snowy period and did not take my tripod out for these occasions,  to ensure camera safety, in case the tripod wasn't sturdy enough on slippery terrain.  When I went out to shoot on a rainy day where I knew it may be muddy, I took wellies in the car with me, which I changed into on reaching muddy paths.   I always kept the camera strap round my neck and took my time walking carefully supporting it with my hand. When not in use, when walking further, I would put it back in the  camera bag which besides having a shoulder strap, also is hand held.  This was chosen specially so that I could carry my camera hand help in one hand , whilst my tripod case (containing tripod) over the opposite shoulder, to balance out my body weight.  I also ensured the camera bag I purchased had a protective covering attachment built inside, in case I got caught out in heavy rain, giving the camera extra protection...I would not want a soaking bag that could effect the camera inside.

Legal implications:-
I have used all my own images so I don't have to worry about copyright.  I have displayed professional photographers' images in my blog for student research purposes only and have labelled them, 'taken by... ( relevant photographers name).

Introduction to Unit 107 - Presenting Photo Images

Task 1a) - Present Images:
* I need to produce 6 images relevant to my theme (Natural Wonders) and present them in a way of my choice, stating why I have chosen this way and what other way I could have chosen if I had had an alternative.
*The techniques, materials, media I choose to present the images need to be consistent and add to their overall effectiveness.
* The images should show accuracy and detail of finish to portray an overall visual impact.

I must:-
*Plan my approach and present my plan to my tutor/assessor.
* Use research material.
*Select and use appropriate technique, materials and media.
* Evidence accuracy and detail of finish.
* Output images for viewing.

Task 1b) - Produce a written account:
* I need to describe the method used to present my final images.
* Also outline the way the images could have been presented using a different presentation method to the one used.

Research - Art Wolfe

 I  had some lovely presents from  lovely people recently, one of which is a book entitled the Life & Love of Trees by Lewis Blackwell.  It contains images by different professional photographers and as I was looking up who had taken the shots I liked best, Art Wolfe's name was coming up again and again, so I am now looking at more of his work on the internet too.

Art Wolfe was born in Seattle and is an internationally acclaimed photographer, taking photographs all over the world.  He attained his Bachelor's degree in fine arts and art education at university.  His photos are unique with their colour, composition and perspective... showing; he is a master of the subject, and the power of photography.  He travels the globe shooting images of nature, culture and wildlife and his passion is to promote conservation and inspire people.  He tries to artfully weave into his work the down sides of environmental issues, saying how he does not want to highlight the doom and gloom, but to bring attention to the beautiful things of the Earth and how we risk losing them. I like that positive throw on it.

He attributes his vocation to the fact that he grew up in the pacific Northwest amidst stunning landscapes of  trees, mountains and water which led him to become an artist, then a photographer. His parents were also photographers so I am thinking it was in the blood.

Art became a member of the ASMP in 1990,  a premier trade association for the world's most respected photographers.  His award winning television series "Travels To The Edge", filmed in 2009, included visits to  Patogonia, Madagascar, Alaska, Antartica and India.  The  locations were so diverse, every episode had a different pace and focus.  Drawing from 35 years of international travel, he says whether he is working in television, writing a book, conducting seminars or holding field trip workshops, his overall focus remains the same "to engage, inspire and reveal a new vision of the world around us".  He is passionate to help students in the field achieve their vision and one of his goals is to win support for conservation issues.

His television series was intended as a through the lens experience for people interested in travel, photography and nature. When asked his reasons for doing it, he said it was after 9/11, he simply wanted to inspire people to get out and see the world.

I found it difficult to choose just a few of his animal images, because there were lots I liked.  Here are some:-

                                                                 taken by Art Wolfe

This looks very artful to me,  a delicate moment and enchanting.  Its a lovely image that appealed as soon as I saw it.  I thought I would feature some of his animal images first.  Again I am finding less colours looks more striking.   I must learn from this for my own images.  The sharpness of the birds hits me with this one, and is something else I need to improve on.  I understand professional  landscape photographers will always use a tripod,  not sometimes like me, which makes a  difference to the sharpness and clarity of the picture.  Then I just need to learn all their other techniques.  This is my year 1 and I note how the real professionals have worked for 10, 20-30 years mastering their art, so I have a long way to go.  I don't fancy being on my stick by the time I get the good ones though, I would have more trouble with the tripod then. I like that he focussed on the birds here, leaving the water, sky and cloud less sharp and running into one.  It must be shallow water, they look just perched on the top.  The fragility of their legs, contrasting to the weight of their bodies brings about the delicateness, I feel, and they do look loving.

                                                                taken by Art Wolfe

This image was a must for me to feature.  Its just so cute. I want to fuss the bear and pick it up for a cuddle. What beautiful colours, so impressive of the  bear itself, then you see the subtle pastel background, and I even love the tree branch.  He must have felt europhic when he captured this one.  I fancy the baby kuala is smiling too with those red lips.  The clarity looks spot on to me, his eyes so clear,  his fur stands out.  I did hold one 9 years ago called Tonka (I must find those pictures) and still remember how good it felt.  Nowadays you are not allowed to hold them aparently,  due to health and safety. This picture is fantastic!  I keep looking back at it,  so it must be a favourite.

When Art Wolfe was taking photographs in Mexico, he sometimes  used a Canon 5D in a Seacam housing (whatever that is) for a shoot,  and when asked by ASMP what his most valuable piece of equipment was? he replied after his Canon EOS 1D mark III, his Gitzo 3540LS tripod.

From his skills and techniques, he said when photographing people he would spend about half of a day interacting before beginning to shoot.  As for landscapes and wildlife, its about being in the right place at the right time, and he does his homework to ensure travel time is utilised to the full.

                                                             taken by Art Wolfe

Another lovely clear image of a ' hare taking refuse in sparse ground cover'.   I love that he caught it chewing on a large leaf.  The colours and detail are stunning again and he looks to be looking directly at the camera, just like the kuala image. I wonder how he got the lighting so nicely?

                                                               taken by Art Wolfe

With more colours comes more beauty.  Being a cat lover I had to look at this, the most majestic of the big cats.  I can't get over how good the colours are in all these images and I am so impressed by them. The animals are all striking, they stand out clearly against the pastel, beautiful backgrounds.  I am thinking this must be to do with his fine art skills.  I find such pictures compelling!

                                                              taken by Art Wolfe

If I was to have a dog, the wolf type would appeal to me.  The way this wolf blends into the background colour wise, for self protection, also makes a great picture.  His catching of it between the 2 trunks of two tone greys of bark on the trees, match his two tone grey coat perfectly.   Just a touch of tan here and there to highlight his face, sets the scene.  Again looking directly at the camera,  I get the feeling that these animals are posing and enjoying it.  In reality they are probably keeping their eye on guard, which would also account for their fixed gaze.
What was Art Wolfe thinking as he photographed a wolf?  What would I be thinking if I was photographing a Grundy? If there was such an animal....so I imagine he would be smiling, and guess he would like it too.

                                                                  taken by Art Wolfe

I love the blending of the colours, composition and the penguins here.  I watched a documentary on penguins the other week and they seem such dear creatures I had to add this in my listings, and the fact that I think its a wonderful scene.  There is warmth throughout,  from the pink reflected water and background skies to that of the foreground  penguins standing together.  I like the way the whites of the penguin fronts  stand out with the white of the snowy mountains and their reflections.  Then on closer inspection you see the great mass of penguin colony beyond the water.  The angle Wolfe took this image from uses the rule of thirds. It's brilliant!

taken by Art Wolfe

This was too grand not to feature.  A dramatic photograph of animal colourings matching background colourings again and another use of the rule of thirds in his composition.  I love the way the water matches the sky, showing colour casts, the way the elephant is a similar colour and I'm liking  the water splashing up from his footwork and out from his trunk.   For the sheer scale of capturing such a large animal with such detail I find inspiring.  Here too Wolfe manages to mostly fill the frame with the elephant, ,  just as he has in the other animal images seen here.  Brilliant!

My natural love of animals is where I connect with these Art Wolfe images. I have already blogged some of my animal images  ( sheep, duck and cat), see previous.   Here are some more:

Headless swan

shutter 0.5 aperture F10 iso 800

I like the contrast of the white headless swan to the look of blackness  of water.   Beneath the darkness,  it appears that something has bitten its head off while  ducking.  Can you see an outline of the fiend with its eyes showing? Again this is just imagination, at least I feel sure the swan did raise its head eventually.  This image is blurred towards its tail.  My next shot was clearer:

I used the same camera settings (on aperture priority) for this second shot but it still came out clearer,  proving  I must have moved whilst taking the first one to cause more blur.   I was not using a tripod at this stage either, so that could also account for it.

I took Headless Swan during college class,  round the park grounds over the river Trent.  My kit was a Canon Eos 5D mark II with an L series lens 24-105mm,  with loaded battery and flashcard as before.  My lens was zoomed out to its full, as I tried to capture the swan as close as I could to fill the frame (like Wolfe does in his images)

 Moaning Mertle

shutter 1/2000 aperture f4.0 iso 800

This is a another example of where I am trying to fill the frame with Mertle, my cat,  yawning...  I had obviously taken too many of her.  I have showed this image, though not in natural surroundings, she is a natural wonder and I am  linking it in with my research of animal photography.   It reminds me of the sort of image you might see on a comical card capturing her like this.  She is pretty and very photogenic.  I may be biased of course.   I like the way the sunlight, coming from the back right,  highlights her fur strands to the right and left of her head, tips of her ears and long whiskers.  Her eyes sparkle and white shows in the base of that deep red tongue.  I would have preferred a plainer background however.  But to me she just stands out anyway.

Research - Ed Collacott

Ed Collacott has a reputation as one of Britain's finest and most popular landscape photographers.  He has produced a book, 'Landscape Britain' which has been given credit by a photographic magazine and   produces cards and calendars and well as prints of his work.  He lives in Somerset and his geological background has helped him produce beautiful images of this country's nature scenes for 25 years. I have researched his work on the web.

He uses natural dramatic lighting, lots of patience, mood and atmosphere and attention to detail to attain his lovely results which I couldn't resist taking a closer look at.  He is one of the few professional photographers that does not own a polarising filter believing that if you wait for the right light at the right time of day, you don't need one.  Inevitably this results in lots of early starts, late finishes,  and as many returns to his special places as necessary, but as I have already read and stated, he has lots of patience, a requisite for landscape photographers it would seem.  He prefers not much filter use at all, priding himself in only using natures natural light,  and particular dislikes obvious graduated ones.

Ed Collacott has always held a fascination of trees, so we have something in common there and I love the colours he captures in his images:

                                                                 taken by Ed Collacot

Interestingly,  I had had the thought of taking a same tree scene in different seasons, when Marie had suggested we think about story images.   I remember thinking that it would be an idea, but would take me some time, so when I saw that is what Ed Collacott had done, I thought I would include it in this blog.
His Four Seasons  image has proved to be one of his most successful to date;  a particular tree he loves to photograph at different times of day, and in different light, as well as different seasons....he has phogographed this particular winter tree for the past 30 years and hopes to continue to do so.
 It reminds me of a centre tree in one of my images,  'Hurdles'.
I think the way he has placed the season tree images  together with the colours works brilliantly and I can see how it would appeal to lots of people, just like me.  I notice how the in the summer section the tree is so full of plumage it looks to bow its head to the ground, and how the summer and autumn sections hold two tone colours. The overall picture is very effective and each individual season image would still be very appealing.

                                                                  taken by Ed Collacott

Again, I just love these Autumn colours and enjoy photographing similar,  so I would liken it, on that basis alone, to my images 'Autumn Gold' and 'Watercolours' (see previous blogs). I find it harmonious and tranquil.

                                                                   taken by Ed Collacott

I have featured this image because it is England's highest single fall, it looks dramatic, even though I am not that attracted to the vertical,  and I love Wensleydale cheese.  I have been there but not to this National Park and if I had, I probably would have missed it because I have read the only access to this scene is through a local pub (The Green Dragon) for a small fee.  The waterfall stands out bright among the dark colour contrasts of stone. I like the way it just about fills the whole image.  It is all hard, and then softened by the blur of white waterness.  I have yet to take shots of waterfalls and look forward to trying to achieve these blurry effects with slow shutter speeds.

 Ed Collacott always uses a sturdy tripod.  His photographs are all taken on either a medium format camera (6 x 6 cms) or on a large format panoramic camera (6 x 17cms).  I use a large format camera but it is not a panoramic one.

                                                              taken by Ed Collacott

Keeping with the dramatic, but this time with the colour ways, Somerset Lavender was taken after summer storms, when the sun appeared, producing stunning colour just before sunset.  The image is just so colourful and 'full' of colour, very striking I feel, and we know no filters will have been used, wow!

                                                                  taken by Ed Collacott

This has to be my favourite of the few I have featured because it is the colours I love with the 'full scene' to get lost in, and the light is stunning.  It has trees in it so their shape gives texture, interest, light reflections and depth of field.  The title 'Majestic...is fitting.  The whole image is bathed in beautiful golden light.   This imagery is just the sort to show off the talents of Ed Collacott, (in my opinion) portraying how he understands nature and our environment...  He believes trees reflect natures rhythms.  He also understands how light transforms landscape photography, something I am still learning.

 It makes you (or me) want to be there, just lolling or wondering peacefully, but mostly to be lucky enough to capture such warmth with such vibrance.  It is the sort of picture I would like to have on the wall at home. It feels very calm yet joyous.
 He would arrive before sunrise to take such shots, ahead of crowds and other photographers. He obviously thinks its well worth it,  and I agree.

                                                                     Dark Red Wood
                                                 shutter 1/160 sec aperture 7.1 iso 200

These are my images where I was trying to search out the right light conditions for effect in wood scenes.  I took Dark Red Wood early afternoon, and contrary to Ed Collacotts, it holds no vibrance but I do like the red colour. I think I could make it more vibrant using Photoshop by adjusting the brightness/contrast/saturation controls however.   There is no visible path and alot of my wood scenes contain pathways, so its good this one doesn't and adds to a lost type of mood,  and is in keeping with Ed Collacotts in this way.  My image has peace and sollitude feelings but more like a Harry Potter sort of darker atmosphere.
  I was pleased to capture the sun coming through from behind though, so it has to rate (again in my opinion) as one of my favourites and best to date, mood wise.  I enhanced it with the control in i-image which lightened the bark from the original to show more detail. It looked even darker before.
Equipment used:
*Canon EOS 5D Mark II camera with battery
*L series Lens 24-105 mm
*SanDisk Extreme CompactFlash card 8 GB
*Tripod

                                                      shutter 1/100 sec aperture 6.3 iso 200

                                                                       Autumn Gateway
                                                       shutter 1/100 sec aperture 7.1 iso 200

This scene is lighter with mood given from the grey sky in close up (above), but in the far scene, taken standing further back (see smaller image above) the sky is more blue and not so threatening looking.  Both were taken late afternoon as the light is lowering causing some quite heavy shadows, again which I have enhanced in i-image to reveal more trunk detail and lighten the shadows.  The same equipment was used as in Dark Red Wood, but I did not use a tripod for Autumn Gateway. These scenes contain a path which lead the eye to the distant light,  and therefore do not hold as much mystery as Dark Red Wood.  However I do like the way the trees arch over to greet each other as a walk through. The scene contains a tree I very much like, the one on the right with the hollow base, also features in my Autumn Gold image (in a previous section), with this I compare to Ed Collacott who took different shots of a same favourite tree for years.