New Assignment: Remake a Classic Work of Art with Photography

Hello Students,

Your next assignment is an exercise in planning, preparation, creativity with location and costume and direction of your model. The idea with this project is to remake a classic work of art using photography and you must demonstrate mastery of light and exposure to create your image in-camera... no post processing is allowed!

 In this photographic recreation of Egon Schiele's "self portrait with physalis" the student created a hand painted backdrop and applied make up to match the original artwork. Photography by Jared Wilson

Remake A Classic Work of Art With Photography:

• Look through the examples and links below for clarification and inspiration
• Research and find a classic work of art that inspires you. Your final choice of artwork to remake must be approved by your instructor before proceeding
• Keep it classic, think old masters. Im not looking for contemporary artwork, album covers, fashion photography or cinematic references. We want artwork from between 1450 to 1830's and you must be able to identify the artist.
• Final result is a photo only, no color correction, cropping or special effects allowed. If you do it correctly the majority of work happens before you take the picture. For this project post processing is banned. You will need to pay attention to the light in your image and recreate it as best you can. Take many images and adjust exposure, white balance and use in-camera filters or effects to achieve your desired results.
• Put all of your creative energy into the arrangement and recreation of elements. Pay attention to costume, color, light, position, framing, facial expression, body and limp position etc... the key is in the details. Take shots and look at them closely, if something isn't right than re-shoot.
• Elements in your artwork can be re-imagined of course. Strive for recreation of details with whatever you have available and at hand
• Choose and get approval on your artwork of choice before proceeding!

Grading:

This project will be evaluated on your ability to meet the requirements as well as the intention of the assignment. Your work should show careful planning and execution. You are the artist with a vision and it is your responsibility to direct your costume, scene, model and props to achieve your desired results. Having total control over all elements is key to a successful photo shoot.

An example of high performing student work: This is a lovely recreation of Daniel Hernandez Morillo's "woman carrying firewood". The student photographer, Gracie Thomas, took great care with costume, pose, light, props, setting and composition for spectacular results.

This is an example of low performing student work. The student grabbed a bike, a blanket and a model at the last minute and took a snapshot. Little care is put into setting, light, costume, pose, composition.

Links:

Example - Old Master paintings recreated by photographer Josef Fischnaller

Example - Famous painting recreated
Example - Portraits of photographers daughter in style of old masters

Student Work Samples:

Good Luck!

- Mr.W

Principles of Exposure: ISO and Noise

Assignment: Understanding ISO

Students, your new assignment is a challenge for you to demonstrate an understanding of ISO and how to adjust both Aperture and Shutter Speed to maintain proper Exposure across multiple ISO settings. In this assignment you will find a still life subject, and shoot 4 images that have similar exposures but increase in ISO. Little change should be seen in light/dark values, only additional grain/noise should be noticed as increasing. Overlay your images as shown below and document your exposure settings.

Notice the increase in shutter speed and decrease in aperture size that was required to maintain exposure levels across the 4 iso ranges

Assignment Deliverables:

Part A:

1. Produce a series of images (4) that demonstrate the impact that ISO has on the noise in an image while maintaining consistent exposure. Choose a creative still life subject and produce 4 images showing the range of ISO settings from low to high. Mimic the ISO Comparison images above. You will need to adjust either shutter speed or aperture to keep even exposure, don't let the different examples get darker or lighter.
2. Compile the images in slices to show the even exposure levels, as illustrated above

Part B: 

1. Written Synopsis of the Exposure Principals. Write a short 3 paragraph description of the three principals of exposure, shutter speed, aperture and iso, what they mean and how you utilize them in photography. 
2. Email your essay to the instructor for credit

- Due following thursday

- Mr.W