Photography of people:
Portrait photography and Photographing the human condition.
The distinction between portraits and human conditions crosses over
as we try to make informal portraits
or in the case where the human condition subject reacts to the photographer.
Portrait photography can be described as the
collaborative process between the photographer and the subject.
Portraits can be formal or informal, controlled within a studio or "on
location."
Lighting may be artificially controlled and enhanced or you can take advantage
of the "available light".
It is important to use light as a compositional element of your photographs.
Build on what you learned in the directional light assignment
to make images with strong lighting that fill the frame.
Portraits can have one subject or involve a whole group of people. The
more subjects, the greater difficulty.
Photographing the human condition
(human condition photography) is a way to document lives and create a
record of the world as you see it. Documentary photography usually
involves a message or story related to the photographs. Photo-journalism
is another example of documenting the human condition that is usually
shared in some type of published document such as a newspaper or magazine.
In most cases, this type of photograph does not involve the collaboration
that exists in a portrait session.
The subject may not even be aware that you are including them in the
photograph. "Street photography" involves capturing people
in the environment, in their interactions with each other and their involvement
with the world around them.
For this assignment you should shoot lots of film and carry your camera
around so that you will be ready to capture images at any time.
1) Shoot multiple photographs of at least four different human condition
situations.
2) Shoot multiple exposures of at least four posed situations.
3) From these exposures, you will print at least
two fine images, printed on full sheets of paper.
One image will be a portrait
of at least one person. The other image will in some way document
the human condition by including
at least one person in any environment or setting. Your proper proofs
will be record of your efforts.
Remember all the skills you have learned so far. Fill the frame. Be careful
with exposures. Use depth of field and selective focus to best advantage
and remember... Lighting is important.
Refer to the Masters-of-photography
web-site for other examples of work.
|