Walter Iooss- SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY

"I've always felt the moment. People call me lucky, and luck is a wonderful attribute. But it's more - it's a sense somehow. It's inexplicable, it happens. It's a feeling and you just move into that direction. Someone once said that wherever I am is the perfect picture. I didn't like the way it sounded but I believe that. It's not that I'm positive of it deep down inside, it's that I have to believe it. When you make that decision - 'This is the place to go' - you've got to live with it. There's no alternative." - Walter Iooss

Sports photographer for Sports Illustrated: http://www.walteriooss.com/
He shoots action and portraits of athletes. I think he does really strong portrait work because there is emotion in the athletes. For the portraits that are shot in the studio I feel like the lighting is dramatic, one directional, and high key because it is not flat. When I used the soft box, I didn't get the results I was looking for because the box made everything even in tonality, and I wanted contrast. Some of his shots are close up, others are action from further away. I like the shot of Kevin Garrett where he is leaning on the basketball because of the round back lighting that exaggerates his form. It looks like there was a light coming from behind and above the camera. For his portraits that were shot on the court, he tends to shoot literally from the ground looking up at the athlete. I think he did this to really show the basketball players' height and impressiveness. For the football portraits shot on the field he emphasizes the environment. The stadium and field are just as important as the athlete who is in the image. I like some of his images of the athlete's hands. They are sort of like portraits, and still lives at the same time. Their hands are describing themselves and their pain for their sport. I think these shots hold just as much emotion as a portrait with their face in them. For golf shots with Tiger Woods, I like his point of view; as if he is the golf ball. I think that the sky is used to make the shots more dramatic and interesting. For the soccer shots, the one of Pelle I find very intimate and dramatic at the same time. It's like there is a spotlight on his face and the ball, and not everything has to be in the spotlight, shadows are important. He divided his portfolio into sections: swimsuit 2010, new 60s finds, recent work, baseball, basketball, Cuba sports, diaries, football, golf, icons, Jordon, musicians, Olympic sports, soccer, swimsuit and glamor, surfing, children sports, and travel. I like his travel section at the end because all of the other shots are of people and I find the images in this section very good as well and it shows he can shoot different subjects.

Martin Waugh's Liquid Drops (A4 proposal)

http://www.liquidsculpture.com/index.htm

Liquid Sculpture images are fluids in motion, frozen in time by a flash of light. They are droplets witnessed in mid-splash.

"I orchestrate these sculptures by accurately aiming the drops and releasing them with precise timing. As nature takes its course, I photograph the unfolding forms using a digital camera and electronic flash. I instigate the myriad of shapes by varying the drops' trajectories and manipulating their physical properties. Color, viscosity, and surface tension are controlled with dye, glycerin, and soap. Fluids in motion fascinate my senses. I feel their smooth and effortless curves: structures reflecting a perfect balance of dynamic forces. They tickle some faint physical memory, like a scent evoking a forgotten mix of feelings."

When I think about photographing water, I always think about the outdoors. I read this article in Rangefinder magazine a while ago and learned about Martin Waugh's water droplet photography. What he does is he sets up his studio and high speed flashes and stops the droplets in motion. On his website, I looked at all of the different types of droplets. He manipulated the colors a lot to get interesting and more beautiful results. Maybe even more than the droplets, I like the ripple effect they give off.
For my A4 in lighting techniques I want to try a process where I photograph water in the studio. I plan on setting up a table, bringing in some bowls, and different color backdrops. Then I think it will take me a really long time to get it right. I will fire the flash after a drop is released, and maybe I'll get one good one out of 100. I think it would be cool to put colored filters on the strobes and/or my lens. Then after I get the hang of it, I can use food dye in the water and see how that affects the droplets. I know that mine won't be as good as Martin's, but I like his concepts and ideas. I'd like to experiment on my own and see what path this assignment takes me on.

Lighting Techniques Propsal Assignment 3

Assignment 3- Instillation utilizing projection of imagery or light.
I really like the whole sports idea for photography so I am going to roll with it. The location I have decided on is the field hockey locker room. During our season, we have a different poster for each game up on white brick wall. They include pictures, opponents, quotes, and different blurbs from years past games. After each competition, we write the final score on the poster. After the season was over, our whole wall was totally crammed with these posters and it was a way to look back and reflect on our games. It brings back memories because I remember seeing the posters before each game, and writing on them after each one. We took all the posters down now, because we are in a new season now, spring; but I still think about them when I look at the blank wall, and remember our triumphs and struggles and can visualize the posters that used to be there.
I am going to project images onto this wall. They aren’t really there because they are being projected, but they would make me think of the memory of having them there. I need help deciding what exactly to project. I have a couple different ideas. First, I could use the portraits of the athletes from assignment 2. What I would do is shoot several different players from my team and project their portrait on the wall; because each and every one of us is responsible for the outcome on the wall. I could also incorporate the titles of the opponents we versed, and the final score somehow. On the other hand, I could use the opponents from our upcoming season to show that the wall is blank now, but in August of this year, it will be filled up again with brand new posters and a brand new season, with all new outcomes. I really like the concept I have come up with, and how it relates to me personally, but I don’t have any real solid ideas of imagery to project. The location would be perfect because it’s in the MAC on campus, and I will get permission from my coach to have the class come in the locker room.

Lighting Techniques Proposal

Assignment 2:
must use lights on location, use strobe settings, photograph a person, and direct shoot.
I have two ideas for this assignment. I would like to do both anyway, but for the proposal, maybe you can tell me which one makes the most sense with the assignment. At first, I thought I would do an athlete portrait sitting on location of their respective sport field. My two ideas that I would be able to do without too much trouble are field hockey and baseball players. I will take a travel light out to the field and shoot an on location portrait of the athlete. I will take in to account their location on the field (circle, end line, goal cage, pitcher’s mound, dugout, bench, etc), and their outfits (practice clothes, uniform, winter or summer outfit workout clothes, hat, gloves, shin guards, etc). I would bring out the lights for dramatic lighting, and shoot probably earlier in the morning or at dusk for extra side lighting. For field hockey, I could do a series with a group of players on the baseline, ready to sprint before the whistle blows. This would make sense to shoot in the early morning as the sun comes up because that is when we usually have running tests. I could also shoot more still portraits that show the ‘inner athlete’. I would try to capture emotion in the athlete’s stance, and facial expression. Ideas for the baseball player would include dugout single athlete shot and a bat over the player’s shoulders to show defeat. I would like to change up the camera angle. I think shooting closer to the ground would be good if I am trying to make the player look intimidating and tough.
I still would like to try this, but I think a more experimental and interesting project idea would be to try a time exposure and freeze action with the strobe. I am pulling inspiration from Harold Edgerton where he photographed tennis, baseball, football, golf, and lacrosse players. What I see happening is taking 2 travel lights to the field hockey field at night, and capturing fast action by firing the strobe. I will have a team mate come out and take shots and lifts and I will set up the lights and have my camera on a tripod. At first I will have to have the model light on so I can make sure that the action will be inside the frame. Then, I’ll turn the model light off, put the shutter speed on 10 seconds, press the shutter, say go, fire the first strobe, then the second, and if they power up quickly, I will fire them again.
This is just the general idea that I have; I think that it will turn into something different once I am out there experimenting. Of course I won’t be able to take as many repetitions of the strobe as Edgerton, but if I can get the athlete to slow their action while maintaining form, I will do that and then fire the strobes more than once. I will have to wait to start this assignment because I can’t plug in the strobes at the field.

Portfolio Option 1 for Black and White Photography

For my portfolio long term project for this class I am going to continue along with the same theme as Sequence as a Story. However, I am going to go much more in-depth with my shooting, and focus on water to the fullest. I am pulling inspiration and ideas from these three artists: Clark Little, Harold Edgerton, and William Neill. I would like to use my camera as a way to capture images that we don’t normally see with our naked eye.
First, time exposures offer endless opportunities to get interesting and cool results. I am interested in shooting time exposures of moving water as it glides over rocks and sand. Ocean, lakes, rivers, bays, puddles, rain, clouds, fog and ice are all variations of water I would like to explore. Because this is a semester long project, I am able to show all of these different stages of water, from ice to warmer water. I like William Neill’s images of moving water. They give off a ghostly feel which I would like to imitate.
Clark Little shoots most of his images from in the ocean. That concept interreges me, and I would like to try something similar. This isn’t going to happen in February because the ocean temperature is around 36. In April, temperatures should reach a high of 50, so I will attempt this later on in the semester. I understand that he shoots in Hawaii where the water is beautiful and clear and colorful; this is why I won’t be doing underwater shooting, but shooting above the surface. I will try to go out with my wide angle lens. I will use like five of the best plastic bags I can find, and cut out around the lens opening and duct tape.
Finally, I will use Harold Edgerton as inspiration because I want to try to ‘stop the action’ of water. I understand that he used fast strobes in his work the pause action. First, I will try to just take images using a faster speed film and as fast of a shutter speed as the light will allow. After that, maybe I will try to bring some flashes into the images to freeze the frame.
All of my concepts are involving the interaction of light and water. How does the lighting situation change the look of water? How does the shutter speed change the look of the image of water? How does the result change with shooting position change from in water to out of water? These are questions I would like to look further into and answer using photographs. After I have taken film shots, I think it would be fun and beneficial to scan them and manipulate them digitally. I am using these three photographers as inspiration to develop images similar to their; however, I want these starting points to branch off and grow into my own ideas and impressions of light.

Clark Little

I first came in contact with Clark Little's work in Sierra Magazine. He says:
"I enjoy the power and beauty of the thick bombs that roll through. Now I can capture some of those heavy moments without getting slammed. Well, most of the time." His url is: http://www.clarklittlephotography.com/

I absolutely love his work. I think its stunning in every way. I think it would be great if I could do similar work, but NJ water is a lot different looking than Hawaii. He had to 'suffer' sometimes for his shots. I don't know if that makes them any more valuable to him or others, but I think it makes them more unique because a lot less people would be willing to gets shots like these, which is probably why they are so special and unique.

Lighting Techniques: Harold Edgerton

http://edgerton-digital-collections.org/galleries/iconic-----
this is where all the images I talk about are coming from.
"While electric lights were used with some success as early as the mid 1900's it was with the Harold Edgerton's 1930's invention of "Stroboscopic" photography that controlling light and time became a photographers greatest tool." I am totally intrigued by his work with strobes and motion in the studio. His athletic portfolio of work is stunning especially considering the time period. The strobe fired rapidly to capture the people's movement. He captures things that we can't see normally at all. He invented to strobhttp://edgerton-digital-collections.org/galleries/iconic/athleticse light and combined science and photography. I like the tennis players because it shows the motion of the racket and the ball. Another kind of actin photography he did was Stop-action. In the photo of a man hitting a softball, he shows how when a batter hits a softball, the bat bends and the ball caves in around the bat. This athlete had an additional challenge. The photo was taken in a darkened room, with the sound of the ball hitting the bat triggering the flash.The golf swing is amazing also because it shows the entire swing of the club and the rotation of the athlete.

Every image I go to I am constantly saying wow! Because these are stop motions that we can't see with the naked eye. I like the diver because it shows each change in direction he makes and shows his athletic ability. His most famous images include the bullet going through the apple. I like the one where the apple is being split, and then in the next image, the apple is exploding. He freezes the motion to show us something we have never seen. I keep saying this, but I think it's main reason for his work. I am also interested in his water droplet series. It isn't just 1 photo, it is a series of images that create motion; each one has been frozen in time. The playing cards!!!! wow, this is amazing! the cards appear to be flying through the air from one hand to the other! I def. want to try to recreate some of his works. It can be called copying, but I want to see how he does it!

Matt Sartain

http://www.mattsartain.com/
Matt is a digital photographer who also does a lot of photo manipulation to create surreal images. He is only 25 years old. I really like his images because he makes them look real, even when they seem impossible. For example, "The Librarian" shows a man walking around with a huge stack of books, way taller than could ever really be held up by a person; however, the way he positions them looks as if they are being balanced by this guy, and as if they could topple over at any point in time. "The Paper Airplane" reminds me of Maggie Taylor's work, but it looks real. It looks like this scene could actually be happening, and yet looking at it, I know it is many photographs stitched together. The majority of his images are backlit, which makes me wonder if he uses similar sky photos for a lot of different images. "The Balloon Ride" looks very surreal as if it should be an illustration for a movie or kid story book. A man dressed in costume with a mask on is talking to two boys who seem interested about going for a ride on the hot air balloon. I think the shadows are very well done. They are long on the ground, showing the lateness in the day, soon to be nightfall, and they are crisp, meaning it is not a cloudy night. "The Shipwreck" is kind of funny, but sad at the same time. The man looks exhausted as he paddles away from the sinking ship, but he is paddling in a little gun powder barrel that barely fits him. I like to see a successful photographer who is young and not a wedding photographer. He is using his imagination and photoshop skills to develop and piece together scenes that I've never seen before. I look forward to seeing more work by him, and trying some of his techniques on my own.

Start of Lighting Techniques and Black ad White Photography Blog

I am excited about taking these two very different courses. I haven't worked with film since freshman year here, so it's been a while, and I have never used the darkroom at Monmouth. I have a couple lenses for my film camera that I want to experiment with for some projects. For the 2 projects I can develop on my own I want to do some new techniques that have to do with time exposures. Everyday I walk past the flag pole on the great lawn and see the flag waving. I wonder if I took a time exposure at night for 10 seconds what it would look like. I think they are fun experiments that I could maybe get cool looking results with. Also night photography could look really good with grainy black and white film. I am nervous but excited about shooting film again.
For the Lighting class, I want to learn about different ways to light people for portraits. I did 1 photo shoot over the summer with 3 people, but I was just playing around and trying new things. I learned a lot from just shooting for that one session. I did some things well, and other things I should have changed. I want to learn where to position people to make them look the best and show their personality. I want to know how to go about positioning a larger group of people who want their portraits taken. Just having different heights can create an obstacle to fix. Then placing one person in front of another means you have to think about focusing differently. I want to learn about shooting food, and making it look good, and what type of lighting is best. I will probably try some products shooting. I have done 1 shoot on peanuts and wine. It would be good to try some more for my portfolio. I want to experiment with the strobes and model lights. If the room is all black, and the shutter is open, when the strobe is fired, a solid image of a figure can be made. Then, the figure can move and another strobe can be fired, making the same person appear twice in the same image. On the other hand, just using the model or hot lights, in a low lighting situation, the person can move and jump around and the camera will capture this motion that we can't even see with our naked eye.