Category: Lab Exercises (Page 3 of 7)

Recreate the same story, this time using a flat lay or an overhead shot.

It may be best to set your shot up on the floor. Given the difficulties of shooting overhead without a tripod arm to secure the camera, you may have to boost your ISO to get the shutter speed to be fast enough to hand hold.

Follow the same steps to build your shot. there may be things that do not translate and you may need to change individual props and so on but the story should be the same.

Put your final photo into a gallery with your three-quarter shot. Add a paragraph below the first paragraph on the first shot with a short description of what works about the overhead format and what was your greatest challenge.

Category: Lab: Week 9-Telling a story

Decide on the story that you want to tell. It can be very simple even a word: Flavor, fresh, natural, healthy, comforting, elegant and so on.

This will help you decide how to put the shot together.

Build the shot slowly.

• Start with the background. Choose it carefully.
• Set up the camera so that the background fills the shot.
• Decide if you are going to use back or side light.
• Place one or two items in the shot and set up the main light, its diffusion, and a reflector to fill the shadows.
• Then work on the composition. Be clear what is the hero of shot. Everything else should compliment it.

Put your final photo in a post with the a short text describing your process. Include: what is the story that you were trying to tell? What did you do to tell that story? What was the biggest challenge?

Working with 3 to 5 vegetables of fruits, make a photo that brings out their shapes and textures and looks visually engaging and appetizing.

Choose your subjects carefully- 3 yellow onions and two red onions. A head of garlic and a piece of ginger. Keep it simple but build in some visual interest.

Think carefully about the background. Maybe try a different background than the first lab. Select it to compliment your subject but not distract from it. Carrots may look better against a dark background to bring out the color while beets may look better against a lighter background.

Decide if you prefer side or back light.

Arrange your subjects using the basic rules of composition:

• off center placement
• rule of thirds
• consider the negative space
• use shallow depth of field
• create a sense of space by having one subject close to the camera and another father away.

Post your final photo with a description of your decision making process. why you chose your subjects, the background the lighting direction and your compositional choices.

Category: Lab: Week 8 – Beautiful

Work with two or three vegetables or fruits.

Place them on a complimentary background- a cutting board, a baking sheet, a plain cloth, a wood table.

Use a tripod or other way to secure the camera and use the timer to take the photos.

Start by placing the main light at 90 degrees to the subject.

Take your first photo.

Then add diffusion to soften the light. You can put a diffuser in front of the light or turn the light around and bounce it off the wall.

Next, add the fill. Place a white board as close to the subject as possible without being in the frame.

Create an appetizing photo of your subject with side light and a good balance between the main light and the fill light.

Reposition your main light to be a back light. Note it may be easier to change the orientation of the food and camera depending on your workspace. Take your first photo. then add diffusion and reflection to make an pretty photo of your subject where the balance between the main light and the fill brings out the shapes of your subjects.

Put the four photos (different then my example below) in a post. Please put the settings you took each photo in the caption.

Include a description of how you lit your subject to get a pleasing balance between the main and the fill lights. What did you use for diffusion? How far away was the main light and the reflector?

Category: Lab: Week 8 – Food Photography Lighting