W. Eugene Smith

       
        In Eugene Smith's photos he uses under and over exposure to bring out his subjects and give more of a dramatic feel to his images. In the photo of the explosion, the extreme contrast brought on by the over exposure makes it very dramatic. The bright fog and clothes on the two people in the second image creates a strong contrast with their hair and hands bringing out the people that are likely a focus point in the image. 

About Light Project

       For the about light project, we were sent out to capture images that characterize light. Hence, "About Light". These are my two favorite images from the project. Naturally they are both long exposures. The first is the milky way as seen from the top of a mountain. Its stunning especially since this picture is very close to what it actually looked like. The second one is a picture of my backyard. I like it because of the way it almost looks daylight and how the light from the small lamps flood across the scene in a way that is not actually visible.

Dynamic Range

        Dynamic Range in photography refers to, in a single image, the maximum and minimum of measurable light intensities. Such as the highlights of an image and the shadows of the image. A camera with a particularly low dynamic range may easily blow out the highlights and have shadows with little detail. But a camera with a higher comparable dynamic range will keep more detail in the highlights as well as the shadows. Exposure is measured in f-stops. Zero is a neutral exposure of the scene, and will typically have the most natural look. 2 stops or -2 stops are over and underexposed images. In these the highlights or shadows are exaggerated. The human eye in a general sense can see a range of 24 f-stops. But more accurately since we only look at a small amount of our world at a time, this dynamic range estimate is around only 16 f-stops. DSLR's can usually see around 9-14 f-stops (its worth noting that the camera used for the below pictures have the capability of 14 f-stops of range), and film, depending on the type of film, can usually see up to 14 f-stops. 
        Since this is an introduction to HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography, and HDR image is multiple images of varying exposures to reveal detail in highlights or shadows that would, under a single normal exposure, would be difficult or even impossible to see. 

Below is an under-exposed image of my headphones. This exposure brings out the detail in the brighter parts of the image. However the rest of the image is too dark. 

Now this is an over-exposed image of the same scene. Now the details in the darker parts of the image are more visible but the highlights are overblown.

In both of the images look at the texture of the headband and ear cups. This is where it is most easily shown what I mean about viewing detail that is either washed out or too dark. Now the next image is both of these images and the zero exposure combined in an HDR. For the sake of visuals, the final HDR has been tone corrected to look more like it did in real life. Since this isn't a particularly high contrast scene and for example, I have left out the zero exposure image because the dynamic range of the scene is really close to being within the dynamic range of my camera. But in this image most of the detail in both the shadows and highlights are now visible. 

Alexander Harding

      Alexander Harding has a body of work on "Visible Light" that shows some of the mechanics of light through a series of images. This specific image shows a bright light shining through four glasses of water. Since the glass and water is not perfectly see through, the light does not shine straight through it. It is bent and refracted by the water forming the interesting effect seen on the sheet behind the glass.

Benjamin Von Wong

     
     Benjamin Von Wong the self made, self taught professional photographer. Extremely proficient in the use of Adobe applications and has even had a series sponsored by Adobe. The images above are actually some of his less spectacular images to say the least. He has a very unique style. He uses extreme amounts of photoshop to create other worldly images. He is, to put it lightly, a technical master of imagery. Even though these "lighter", "softer" (content wise) images are not his everyday thing. They are my favorites. His usual style of imagery to me is a little 'out there' for me to thoroughly enjoy. However I can appreciate the technicality and required skill both with the camera and on the computer, but the angelic feeling of the chosen images are where I feel most attracted to his works. 

Benjamin Von Wong

Taken by Benjamin Von Wong, this majestic underwater image is a step away from his usual works. Quite opposite actually. This self taught photographer has a way with fire. So water, i guess, would be the natural next step to achieve contrast with his entire works. Using the Nikon AW-1, the worlds first waterproof DSLR, Wong stuck with his usual majestic and surreal qualities he puts into his product. The color makes it look like the picture was taken in shallow ocean water, with the light shining on the top and side of the face. With reflecting refractions of light on the other side of the face. The focus of the image is primarily on the forehead and hair. The lines of light and strands of hair lead the viewer to this area. The background is very obscured with a soothing shade of greyish green. Two qualities of this image are in the lighting and the composition. The sharpness of the hair and the tiny bubbles give this image detail and depth. 

"Ulysses" By Alfred Lord Tennyson

        The poem is about taking advantage of life itself. The little things and big things and all thats inbetween. The time you have to be able to spend time with your friends and family. Maybe a significant other, the journey that is life and included the search for love. From your old and new friends and the one you call your better half.
Little remains: but every hour is saved 
From that eternal silence, something more, 
A bringer of new things; 
         Even if you were to have only a little bit left of your life, you still have every hour to make it count. Even in death is something new. It stands out because it makes you want to live your life not in fear or as if it were your last day on earth. But to live your life without fear of death, to an extreme sense would be the popular term among teens this last year "YOLO" meaning "you only live once".

PInhole Experimental Images

           Using a pinhole camera is close to the most basic form of photography. Simply a box with a hole containing light sensitive paper. The primitive nature of the pinhole camera means exposure times are extremely long compared to today's cameras. But a long shutter speed is not all bad. Long exposure photogaphy is very popular and looks cool. It allows for some neat experimentation with light and your environment. Below are some examples of experimental images that would be interesting to make someting similar.

 This appears to be a bridge with people walking across it. The pinhole camera was set on the ground and the paper exposed for long enough that the people are blurred as they walk through the frame. A recreation would be to take my pinhole camera somewhere with an interesting subject and lots of foot traffic.

 This next image was taken in a car. Not a very clear image but the idea is wonderful. Open the shutter in a car moving in a staight line possibly on the highway to get an interesting effect.

Since i do not own a record player or know someone who does, i cannot exactly recreate this image, but it does provide inspiration. A playground roundabout would be a good place to start. Taking a portait or even self portait mid spin could be a dizzying result.

Alfred Eisensteadt

       Alfred Eisenstaedt was a German photojournalist that contributed to history with over 90 Life Magazine cover images. He photographed a meeting between Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini, he took portraits of Ernest Hemingway, Sophia Loren, and Albert Einstein. Alfred believed in documenting the "lighter side of life".

                                        

This is a 35mm image of a rose I found while walking in my neighborhood. Intended for a project titled Up Close and Wide Open, I loved it regardless that it was required for school. The analog look of the film grain after I removed the scratches gives the image what I feel is a very professional look.

With the formal image project, I wanted a simple result. The simplicity of this image is unbelievable to me because of how amazing it turned out. A lamp, brown paper, and a lime. The right shot and a small boost of contrast and saturation made this simple image one of my favorites in photo one.

Black and White portraits are something everyone loves to a degree, and this one will definitely stay a favorite of mine. With minimal post production I found this to be a wonderful picture that I enjoyed shooting. As a first year student, I was honored to have this image featured in my schools advanced photography show.  

This series of nine images makes up a Typology. At first a seemingly tedious form of photography, with this image i found the beauty in it. The bright colors of the flowers and the effort of manipulating the images give me a sense of pride in my creation.

 This image is of a sculpture in the Living Arts museum in downtown Tulsa made entirely of CD's and DVD's. I found this to be an interesting and colorfully vivid subject. The cone like shape seemed flowing full of colors and the rainbow reflections familiar to the discs.