MACRO WORK

Peas, Helen Neylan, The Very Ordinary Organic Cookbook, Copyright  2011

Macro photography is a great tool in this field of work, as it adds emphasis to the product that you are illustrating. Here the image was taken using a macro lens Nikon 105mm, which is also an image stabilising lens which is useful for this type of work, as event he very slightest camera shake will result in a fuzzy image. A bit like the oranges images, here, a pea is a very 'obvious' subject, so using the whole pea pod and focusing on a very small part works well. This was taken on f4, 1 second.

TEXTURE & DETAIL

Oranges, Helen Neylan, The Very Ordinary Organic Cookbook, Copyright 2011

Image by Helen Neylan 2011 Copyright

Sometimes when you are looking at a subject, it may be prudent to consider its natural shape or form and utilise it to your advantage. In the image , above, of oranges, I chose not to use the whole fruit or even the whole section of the fruit for my composition. With something as universal as an orange, ever single person who will see this image will know instantly what it is. So I chose to show a small section against a steel background indented with small circles. The edge of the fruit is in sharp focus. Taken with a digital camera on f11 at 1/8th second in natural daylight.
The second image, left, was taken using a Large format Cambo with film. Whilst the quality of the image is pleasing, I personally prefer the image above in terms of composition, as it leaves more to the imagination.

COLOUR & USE OF PROPS

Figs, Helen Neylan, The Very Ordinary Organic Cookbook, 2011

Figs, Nikon DSLR, f6.3, 1/8th sec. Image Copyright Helen Neylan 2011

Consideration of colours which work well together when arranging your subject for this type of work is essential, as is the use of appropriate props, such as here where I have used a cast iron trivet to compliment the colour and skin tone of the fruit. It is essential if you are to be both stylist and photographer that you build up a large collection of everyday and more unusual objects with a mind on texture, and colour for various contextual uses.

THE IMPORTANCE OF FOCUS

FOCUS is critical to the end result of your images. By way of an exaggerated example, compare the following two images of an arranged group. The first, here, below left, was taken using a Nikon digital SLR (D80), using f16 / 125th second with natural daylight and a tripod. The lens is focused across the back 2 thirds of the image with the front plane blurring. This emphasises that this is a group and to be considered as such by the viewer.

Greens, Helen Neylan, The Very Ordinary Organic Cookbook, Copyright 2011

 The second image, below right, was taken using a Large format Cambo with film, using the same settings and allowing extra exposure time for reciprocity failure. However, when using this type of camera, not only is the image upside down, but it is back to front as well (right to left). This makes focusing quite a difficult task as it can be hard to get just right. With  the key part of the image out of focus, the whole meaning is lost.

Image Copyright Helen Neylan 2011

COMPOSITION & LIGHTING

In considering the purpose for which you take your images, it is important to place emphasis on the correct part of the subject. This may be in the form of key lighting, shadows, contrast etc. For my purposes, my images are to form part of a recipe book. Therefore, taking inspiration from the CHIC Simple cook book I chose to use depth of field as my key capture technique. I discussed the techniques used in the book with Barbara Reiser, who is the Studio Manager for Gentl and Hyers Photography in New York, who took the images for the book. Emphasis is a key element in food photography and there are several ways to get your  message across to the viewer. It may transport your target into your image and empower their imagination whereas a straightforward "shot" may not have the same impact.

Garlic, Gentl & Hyers, Chic Simple, 1995

Garlic, Helen Neylan, The Very Ordinary Organic Cookbook, Copyright 2011

Take, for example, this image (left) from the Chic Simple cookbook, of garlic bulbs. Gentl & Hyers have employed a shallow depth of field alongside high key lighting, which in this case emphasises the uniqueness of the product, showing off its delicate and subtle colouring.

For my own work, right, I have used a similar high key lighting technique, employing a shallow depth of field to focus on the small loose clove to the centre of the image, thus leading the eye into the scene.
I shot this using the Cambo, with Colour Negative film, ISO 160 with natural daylight. As I particularly wanted to use F6.3 to get my effect right, the only variable which I could change was my shutter speed. The light meter reading gave me 1/8th of a second, but allowing for reciprocity failure the total shutter speed time was 2 seconds.

LARGE FORMAT FILM WORKSHOP

During the course of this semester, I took part in a Large Format Film Camera workshop, which took  us through the whole process from set up to capture to development in the darkroom. Whilst I am familiar with darkroom techniques and practises, using the large format involved very specific development timings and new equipment for drying etc.

Large Format Film Capture 4 x 5 inch  

To take the images we set up a MONORAIL Large format camera. The advantages of using this camera in a studio are obvious. Firstly because the capture size of the film is in this case 4 x 5 inches - so a size able amount of data may be captured giving great detail to your finished work. Secondly, because of the bellow, you can twist the planes to alter your image across the focal plane of the image- so left to right as well as front to back in terms of focus and depth of field. The resulting image (of my colleague Nikita) was then developed in the darkroom. Here is the resulting image printed, which suffered damage during the development at the negative stage due to chemicals not reaching the central part of it. This shows the importance of careful development of your negatives, and the need to ensure they are dipped in to the development fluid evenly and for the correct time.

LARGE FORMAT CAMERAS

There are various types of Large Format cameras available. Here I am using a Cambo brand. When you use a large format camera, you need to remember to allow for what is known as RECIPROCITY FAILURE

Reciprocity failure becomes an issue when using large format cameras with bellows, since the light must travel further - or for longer to give the correct exposure to your image. Reciprocity failure can also be an issue in dim lighting or when shooting at night. It is better to widen you aperture if possible to allow for this, however, I wanted to take my images using a very shallow depth of field - hence the large distance of the bellows, and a very shallow depth of field using f5.6 to get the right effect. In order to establish the number of extra stops - (which in my case translated to extra seconds rather than altering my aperture) it was necessary to use a device known as an EXPOSURE CALCULATOR - SEE STRIP BELOW CAMERA IMAGE
The Exposure calculator is used alongside a target, which is placed on the subject. Once focused, the strip is placed on the viewfinder (back plate) and the distance measured which then tells you how many stops need to be added or removed.