Effects of Rain Photoshoot

Effects of rain photoshoot

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Research for rain shoot.

I've came to a halt in my research consering movement. After analysing the shoots I've already done I noticed one of the strongest points in all of them are the patterns and shapes water droplets cam make so I became much more interested in the idea of water droplets in they're natural form rather than being made through throwing rocks into ponds or items and people underwater. I decided to look at rain. This is a form of water naturally produced and causes natural effects and patterns within images.
Researching I never found a photographer who works solidly with rain however these four images are strong representations of what I had in mind. Each are from separate armature photographers blogs and each are extremely strong in they're own natural way and style.



http://www.fotoartglamour.com/picture-rain-on-pebble.html
Here we can see the effect of the rain within the droplets, not only able to change the colour of the pebble as it's wet and creating a smother and slippery texture over the top we can see how the droplets on the centre pebble have been focused on to create a shiny glisten.


http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-16816579/stock-photo-rain-drops-rippling-background.html

The image above was the best example I found which still involved movement. The droplets on the puddle surface create rings which separate and overlap one another. These create interesting patterns for the image and also remind me of the water reflection work I created during the sink shoot and also the underwater shots of light through the swimming pool however this is on the other side of the water the reflection as we know is underneath but you can see how the light hits the water and can be distorted by the patterns created by the rain droplets.


http://www.betterphoto.com/gallery/dynogalldetail.asp?photoid=6031281&catid=24571&contestcatid=8&rownumber=7&camid=

This is the image I want to attempt to recreate most. This is a true representative of the natural effects water and rain has on things. Also using a plant as a natural living thing almost symbolised life within this image which I find really interesting. I'm impressed with the use of depth of field used to make the image much more interesting. The entire background is blurred which looks absolutely beautiful and still only the very centre droplets are in extreme focus. Looking at these slightly I can see they're 3D effect and light within them which in turn creates an Independence for the droplets and a movement within them, small particles of slight shimmers.


http://digitalphotographycamerablogger.blogspot.co.uk/2010/05/rain-photography_28.html

Lastly, this one caught my eye. The way it creates a natural depth of field, the water it's self is used against the window pain to blur and obscure the image taken. This symbolises a mystery within the image and also a dark nature to is as the colours included are pure and white the figure is constructed of solid blacks and greys.

I hope to recreate this type of photography as a way to capture natural waters effects. and also attempt to capture the natural movement of rain. This is going to be a task as it's such a dainty and subtle water substance it may be hard to capture it in full motion.

Pond Sculptures

These here are my two favourite images from the shoot I did by the pond. The originals are the images above. I created the images by aiming stones into the smooth calm water of the pond and zooming the camera into a fixed position where the stone would land. They were created using a large exposure and a fast shutter speed to capture the rapid motion in such detail.

As you can tell by my Photoshop edits I have increased the brightness slightly and the contrast dramatically. This allows the still water to form a thick shade of black and the contrast of the light hitting the water to a brighter white. This helps form the movement of the water by capturing the light reflection on the water as a strong physical feature of the water.

I'm really proud of my shutter speed work on these as I feel I've managed to capture the detail of movement and the precision of each droplet on screen in an obvious and focused manner. None of the movement is blurred it's extremely clear to see the sculpting shape the water makes captured as a still frame.

These images here especially remind me of the work of Martin Waugh most as they truly do create sculptures of water with true strength. The colouring and central focus he creates surrounds his images for example:

 
His are much more obvious however the effect and movement I'm creating mimics his work on what I feel to be quite a professional level considering the equipment available to me.

The most interesting thing about these images is it's freedom. Each time in attempting to create images such as these the result would never be the same as water moves with such Independence and creates shapes, sculptures and patterns with complete originality each time. This can also be effected by the texture and density of the liquid used.

Ernst Haas

The images I have taken from the pond shoot including the flowers placed lightly on the water within the pond have a slight resemblance to Ernst Haas's photography. I've looked through her work and the only water image which has really caught my eye is the one of the waterlily.


Haas was an influential photographer noted for his innovations in colour photography, experiments in abstract light and form. I have attempted to recreate his colour style where he's clearly edited the image to hide the water and only allow the vibrancy from the subject laying within the water visible.

The second of these two images is my edit which I have based around the image above created by Ernst Haas. To create this darkness effect within the water I boosted the contrast and exposure levels. This allowed the water to darken and create a smooth texture while the flowers and twigs placed within the water become much more exposed. Details within the image become more visible like the image originally taken by Hass it's even possible to see the individual veins within the plants, these create interesting lines within the image which are a good focus point for the image. I consider one of the strongest aspects of my image above to be the positioning of everything in the upper right third. The image falls down towards the centre which in turn draws the eye into the middle of the image.


I'm impressed with this creation however I want to focus more on the movement of water as seen in this style of the rest of the shoot. This has helped widen my skills of colour vibrancy and how to edit it in a  controlled and realistic style.

Pond & Movement Shoot

These images below are some of my most successful close up high speed photography images I've taken. These were constructed using a tripod to prevent any camera shake and throwing rocks and pebbles into my garden pond creating splashes and ripples I wanted to capture. A lot of this work was timing when pressing the shutter and throwing the rock so i positioned the camera up on a fixed spot for me to aim to and left the shutter continuously pressed to capture as many shots as possible. Some of these images have captured the shape of the water movement perfectly creating strong sculptures jumping out of the water.

-There is a selection of three images within the first set of slides where I have been able to capture the precise moment the water jumps up from the pond due to the rocks weight. These look incredible against the sunlight, glistening round sections of the water creating strong sculptures of unique shapes water can't sustain.

Others create many extravagant ripples which overlap and smash together constructing interesting shapes and patterns.

-I captured one image full of ripples I created pouring water from a watering can onto the pond which makes lines of artificially made ripples, these lines draw the eye-line into the image making it much more interesting.

They were all taken under natural lighting with a small shade held over the leans to prevents sun rays obscuring the images. The strong sunlight was a positive aspect creating a glimmer and shine to any water molecule which moved. To achieve different shapes, detail and patterns I used two different lenses which gave me a wider selection when capturing my images.



These images were inspired by the work of Martin Waugh; I attempted to recreate the strength of water movement capturing it as a solid sculpture in movement. I'm pleased with the turnout of these even though they aren’t' don't under that same circumstances of Martin Waugh's work however the technology and equipment needed to create his works of Art is out of my reach. These stills I have capture however despite the natural colouring which Martin Waugh doesn't work with the shapes and foundation of the water sculptures work as a real success.

Pond & movement shoot 2

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Pond & movement shoot

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Martin Waugh Photography

Martin w

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Here is a section of Martin Waugh's photography which really interests me. I looked into the construction of them, he used a high-tech camera zoomed into extreme lengths which he then had a timer set out to drop either one or two drops of water or coloured liquid into the substance below. One drop would create a strong droplet sculpture and the two consists of the second drop being timed and release electronically at the precise moment to land on the movement of water already created from the first droplet. There is also one other way of creating them using a vast amount of vibration on one droplet of water on a flat surface.

Martin Waugh

Developing on my theme of water movement I found Martin Waugh a liquid sculpture. His images really intrigued me as they show individual water droplets and their movements.

His images capture type of high-speed photography, a frozen motion using flash and light at a high resolution. Most of his images are manipulated within Photoshop to create stronger colour and movement this also creates a smoother curved effect around the liquid.

He manipulates the subject physically as well changing the colour using dye, glycerine and soap also adapting the size, position and speed of the droplet in consideration. He considers his photography "a childlike sense of fun and whimsy." (Martin Waugh. (2011). Liquid Sculpture. Available: http://www.liquidsculpture.com/the_artist.htm. Last accessed 13 March )

Bill Viola recreateion

This is my attempt at recreating the effect Bill viola has done with water movement.

(as shown in the image below) As you can see the patterns of water movement reflected from the light which I spoke about during the swimming pool shoot are much more recognisable due to the edit used to enhance this image.

To create the same effect as Bill Viola I created a copycat image of my subject jumping into the water, this creates the movement of oxygen bubbles around them. The only difference being that my subject jumped in facing forwards and now I see that Bill Viola's subject looks like they more likely fell into the pool with their back facing the camera. I did however ask my subject to allow they're limbs to become limp to create the right effect.

The editing done in Photoshop is the decrease of brightness and the enhancing of contrast. I have also tampered with the colouring slightly to enhance the blue water effect. This makes the bubbles and lighting within the image show up more vividly making it a much stronger image. As my image wasn't taken on a camera of such high quality as Bill Viola's the image is slightly more blurred and is harder to see through the darkness of the pool even with the similar edit.

I'm really pleased with my recreation and using the materials available to me I feel it worked really successfully.

Swimming Pool Images

Swimming pool shoot

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Swimming pool shoot 2

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Swimming pool shoot 3

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Swimming pool shoot 4

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These images are many stills I took using the underwater camera. I looked closely upon the effect water has on clothing and hair, how the textures and patterns change under the drenching circumstances. I notice they have a lot of buoyancy and float around the subject when she's in the water.

I notice that the natural blue colouring from the water also reflects onto the subject in matter of skin, clothing and hair, this symbolises the underwater creation.

Lastly the patterns within the images are created due to the movement of the subject. Some of the images looking up out of the water from underneath there are many patterns created in the surface; this is seen through the light above the water and the movement in the surface caused by my subject.

These patterns create interesting lines which draw the eye in many directions throughout the image, this is a really interesting concept of looking at water, the ecstatic lines give the water it's self some kind of living movement. This creates an interest of how the patterns reflect within the water.

In some of these images you can see where these light reflections spread themselves out across the bottom of the pool and some obscured by the subject swimming in the water. I'm really pleased with this effect as it creates subtle movement and life under the water where it can be seen but not felt.

Swimming pool filming.

Here's several recording I took within the swimming pool to capture swift movement of the body swimming and also the effect the water created on other materials such as clothing and hair. Allowing my model to swim freely under the water in different interesting strokes and wearing different items of clothing enables me to look through the stills and extracts successful stills of movement without the image blurring.

Also at the end of the video you see a shot of my model jumping into the water creating an extreme amount of oxygen bubbles around her which I was able to capture in a still, this was my attempt of recreating Bill Viola's Strong underwater image.

Darkroom aspirations

I really like my edits in Photoshop with the 'Glowing Edges' effect, these have inspired me to look further into the patterns you can create with water movement. Having already used an underwater camera I want to look at other creative ways I can capture the movement. One of the ways I thought would be interesting would be to place the photographic paper instead of the camera into the water. My aim with this is to work successfully in the dark room, placing the photographic paper in the water I am then able to throw, place or move things around in the water on to which in turn creates movement. Then using light from the enlarger or even just a few seconds or less of natural room lighting will allow the photograph to capture whatever moment is going on in the water above. In turn this should if done correctly create strange shapes and patterns, hopefully in turn enhancing the texture of the water creating some really interesting images. I am hoping the outcome will create the same look of those edited with 'Glowing edge' but without any digital manipulation.

Photoshop Edits

Sink edits

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Ocean ripple

Size
Magnitude


Glowing edges 

Edge Width
Edge Brightness
Smoothness

Original still frames

Sink shoot 1

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This is my recreation of water movement inspired by Bill Viola. All of the images above are still frames taken from the videos in the post below. As you can see the motion within the images makes them slightly blurry which does represent the movement of the object, however it's the water movement I've set out to capture.

In each of these excluding the last slide I have placed the enhanced photo shop edit to the right. The final slide contains two unedited still frames.



1- This image is probably the best representation of reflection in the above edge of the water, because the camera is placed at the bottom of the sink when we look up to the surface of the water we see a mirror image of the ripples within the water reflection through this, this also reflects colour as you can see from the vibrant orange and yellow bracelet, my favourite convention in here is the use of patterns and the obvious difference in textures. I'm pleased that in the reflection you can see the colours rippling through the movement of the water reflection the bracelet but not to an identical state.



2- This image creates the same reflection style but is also a great example of my own photo shop manipulation. Here it is clearly obvious how I have enhanced the contrast and brightness increasing them to quite an extent which now makes the movement and the patterns within that more visible. This does however make the movement of the strawberry its self-more obvious and the blur around the object becomes enhanced, this doesn’t create the strength of a professional standard image.



3/5- These images are amazing examples of water movement around the object; these ones have captured stills of oxygen bubbles ecstatically moving around. This is such a strong image to create in water photography. I'm really pleased with the outcome of these and would consider them as the strongest images I have collected in this shoot.



4- This image in particular is really fascinating to look at as the change here is the texture of the sauce within water. See as this isn't a solid object it was interesting to see it's reaction against the water. Water is a much thinner fluid compared to the sauce there four when it's added the sauce sticks together creating a strong line which is placed on the right third but as you can see as it reacts with the water further down (the middle of the line) it slowly becomes thinner and starts to evaporate within the water. The stronger parts of the sauce is at the bottom where it's all collected and at the beginning where it's still and independent feature without any watery influences on the substance. This image unlike the others doesn’t create movement within the water but shows the movement of it through the sauce substance. This makes it really fascinating to view.



6/7- These images have not encountered any Photoshop manipulation. I'm really pleased with the strength of the water movement I've managed to capture within these of ripples (6) and light reflection through the surface (7).




From this shoot I want to look at different editing styles which will enhance the capture of water movement and also up my standards by looking at larger areas of water and also larger objects (furniture, people) which will be able to create stronger movement and also test out the reaction of different materials within the water (clothing, hair). I also want to develop my findings and see what other ways I can capture water movement without using an underwater camera.

Sink Films

Recreations of Bill Viola's movement whithin water (Object test shoot)

For these images I have taken the falling sensation created in Bill Violas images. I wanted to start of small attempting the patterns created by the water using different objects rather than people, this also gives me a chance to work with angles and lighting to find out what's best for when I develop it further using human subjects, this creates a real strength in my test shoot.

In this shoot I chose a variety of objects with different qualities so I can see the different effect created on the objects in water:
-Floating
-Sinking
-Solid objects
-Textures
-Colour

The objects chosen:

-Pegs -Sink/ Solid/ Colourful.
-Fruit -Float/ Solid/ Colourful.
-Shells -Sink/ Solid/ Naturally found underwater.
-Bracelets - Sink/ Float/ Colourful.
-Sauce- Colourful/ Liquid like form with a solidness to it/ Sink.
-Food colouring- Colourful/ Liquid/ Sink/ Float.