A Photographer's Guide to Meet Your Neighbours
description
Transcript of A Photographer's Guide to Meet Your Neighbours
A P h o t o g r A P h e r ’ s g u i d e
hank you for your interest in shooting
for Meet Your Neighbours. This paper
details how the project will work, what is
required from its photographers and the benefits to
you for participating.
Choose your NGo
Each photographer must partner with one or more
conservation NGOs in their region. They will
provide your fee, in whatever form is agreeable
to you both, and work with you to have the work
seen as widely as possible within your region. They
should also provide assistance to you in accessing
the species they would like photographed.
This photographer/NGO partnership is a core
principle of MYN. You may be tempted, since you
can do this work locally, to underwrite the cost of
its production yourself and see what you can do to
exhibit it. Or you may decide to offer your work for
free to an NGO. Neither approach is acceptable
for good reasons: working with an established
conservation organisation not only improves the
chance of effective outreach into the community
but also asserts the value of cooperation between
scientists and creatives. Better work is likely to
result. Simply giving your photography to an NGO
undermines its value and your work in creating
it and provides no incentive to the organisation
to work hard to have it seen. While some local
NGOs may simply have no internal budget to
commission photographers, they may able to
access sponsorship for your through their usual
funding routes. Alternatively, may you be able
strike a deal for in-kind payment that is acceptable
to you both.
PreseNtiNG the work
Although MYN does not intend to direct where or
how participating photographers should present
the work to their own local communities, we
highly encourage novel approaches to allowing
the work to be seen. So, for example, rather than
solely displaying the work in museums and in other
indoor galleries, why not arrange an exhibit to
be held outdoors, in a public space? This could
be done through digital projection or on weather-
proof materials. By taking alternative approaches
to presentation, the higher the chance that more
people will have an opportunity to learn and
connect with their wild neighbours.
riGhts
The rights to photography produced during a MYN
assignment are pretty much those that go with any
commissioned work. The “client” (in this case the
NGO and MYN) will have exclusive rights for
three years after the delivery of the finished files
and thereafter you will have full rights and the
NGO rights to continue to use the work within its
own organisation in perpetuity. If it licenses pictures
to third parties after that three year term, you are
entitled to a 50% share of the royalties. You may,
however, post your pictures on the web during
the first three years and enter them in local and
international competitions, with acknowledgement
given to MYN and your partner organisation.
MYN’s rights to your work cease after three years.
Now, the PraCtiCal stuff
For the project to work on a creative level, technique
needs to be uniform - as if the project’s entire output
has been created by only one photographer.
Remember, it’s the subjects who are the stars here,
not the photographers! This prescriptive approach
ensures maximum consistency and therefore “brand
recognition”.
there are three basiC requiremeNts:
• That every subject is photographed in the field,
on location (See Right) and NOT in an indoor
studio. In the case of small animals, this may
involve temporary trapping and translocation to
the field studio (a tank in the case of amphibians
or an enclosed set for invertebrates and small
rodents), but plants can be photographed
entirely in-situ. Not only is this approach more
sympathetic to the subject than moving it
indoors but there is a better chance of getting
engagement with the local community if you are
out making these pictures in public spaces.
• That each subject should be represented on a
pure white background without any shadows on
it. By that, we mean 255 in each channel out
to each corner. Why? – because these images
are design-ready elements that can be placed
straight onto a white page without any further
work. This is especially important for building
images describing biodiversity. Why not
shoot on a grey background then cut out and
composite onto a pure white one? – because
A. this is extra work and B., more importantly,
out of focus edges are extremely hard to cut out
convincingly. It’s best to do it in-camera.
• That the white set is backlit. The main reason
to do this is to show the translucent qualities
of the subject and in doing so, to add depth
and nuance to the images. Backlighting makes
it easier to achieve the pure white background
but adds a layer of complication to exposure.
How to manage this is explained in detail on
the accompanying notes and on the training
DVD which will follow at a later date.
other teChNiCal CoNsideratioNs
MYN needs the photos shot during the commission
to be submitted as finished 16 bit Adobe RGB
TIFF files, accompanied by the original RAW
file. Only by working with a RAW file can the
correct exposure balance between subject and
background be achieved. The camera should
be 12 megapixels upwards to provide enough
data for large prints. The naming protocol is
as follows: The first letter of your personal and
family name- the initials of your partner NGO-
your county code – the date of creation- and
sequential number. For example: NB-SWT-
GB-150610-012112.tif. Keyword information that
needs to be embedded includes: your name and
partner organisation; species name – local and
scientific; the continent, country and region; the
habitat; whether or not the subject was controlled;
behaviour exhibited; year, month and season.
what equiPmeNt you’ll Need
Actually, not very much. MYN will supply you with
the Makrolon plastic you’ll need for backgrounds
and set building (that is, the set for invertebrates
and the small tank, if you are shooting aquatic
subjects) and some Flyweight for duffusers.
Although I use a portable studio flash set, you can
make indistinguishable pictures with two or three
old manual flash guns. Beyond that, all you need
is a means of supporting the various diffusers,
backgrounds and flashes.
so, what’s iN the ProjeCt for you?
Well, yes, a fee, and after a while, licensing rights.
But there is a bit more to it than that. This project is
a coordinated effort to highlight, from different parts
of the world, the importance of local biodiversity
in people’s lives, that it’s not all about remote,
uninhabited places. We can talk all we like about
the value of these things to our local communities
but as you know, it’s often only when outsiders take
an interest that local people sit up and realise what
they have. MYN provides that international platform
for “the local.” And you will be part of it. Working
as part of a team creates synergies that are hard
to match if we all work away independently on our
own projects; it is more possible to reach a critical
mass, to overcome the inertia of public indifference
and start using our photography to move hearts
and minds
u s i n g t h e f i e l d s t u d i o
the field studio
We’ve not managed an early start this morning
thanks to all that bed-time reading last night. Dawn
has been and gone and now it’s just another grey
and green summer’s day with a light breeze.
But this is not a problem: today we are going
to use various field studios that allow us to work
independent of the weather – and make some
beautiful pictures in the process. We are going to
photograph the subjects in situ (with the exception
(Above) Moorish gecko in the field
studio, Alicante, Spain. The smooth
sides of the set I photographed this
youngster in deterred escape and
very soon the animal was placid. A
session like this can be completed in
10 minutes. Nikon D3, 200mm, ISO
200, flash, f18
of underwater ones) against a backlit, pure white
background. These near shadow-less portraits not
only describe the subject in amazing detail but also
reveal its translucent qualities. The pictures have a
glow absent from conventional white background
work done in the studio and a verity borne out of
being made in the field. And without the context of
its environment, the subject becomes an individual
rather than simply a member of an ecosystem.
(The following text has been extracted from Niall Benvie’s
book, Outdoor Photography Masterclass, 2010)
(Below) Cornfield “weeds” in the field
studio, Scotland (composite of 10
images). Assembling a montage is
itself a creative process, but remain
true to the subjects by maintaining the
same magnification ratio and natural
associations. Nikon D2x, 200mm, ISO
100, flash, f20
oriGiNs
My own line of inspiration traces back to the
great American portrait photographer Richard
Avedon whose 1947 portrait of a boy and tree
in Sicily lead him to understand the strength of
the simple white background. Susan Middleton
assisted Avedon in the mid 1980’s, and “became
fascinated with the idea of making a portrait of a
plant or animal that could evoke the same kind of
emotional response in the viewer that a fine portrait
of a person could”. She and her collaborator
David Liittschwager’s work on endangered species
over the intervening years has been driven by the
belief that this is possible and they too often use
plain backgrounds to dignify their subjects. What
we are going to do today, then, should be seen as
the continuity of a tradition – albeit one in another
genre - rather than something ground-breaking and
radical. I love this cross-pollination of ideas and
influences. It is interesting to note how many popular
nature images feature very pale, sometimes white,
natural backgrounds. We are simply taking the
next step and producing a pure, clean background
in-camera.
tools
This is my current set up,
using the Elinchrom Ranger
Quadra system with 2 heads
(one inside the softbox).
I use a pretty fancy set up for
this work because I do a lot
of it and like the control I get
with the gear I use. But you
can arrive at the same results
(Far Left) Mountain arnica with
fritillary sp. butterfly in the field
studio, Austria. While field studio
work tends to be highly controlled
and predictable, serendipity (such
as when this butterfly suddenly
appeared on set) can lift the
interest of the picture.
(albeit less conveniently) with a
couple of old manual flash guns,
synch. leads, some Perspex®
(Plexiglass) and plastic envelope
stiffener. It really is as simple as
that. In time you can add some
relatively inexpensive clamps
and stands to compensate for
having only one pair of hands.
fiNdiNG your models
Let’s keep in sight what we’re trying to achieve:
a portrait that stops the viewer in their tracks,
encourages them really to look closely at the subject
and perhaps even to feel awed by its beauty. We
want the viewer to feel they’ve seen something new
and special. The toughest part of the job is not
technical: it is finding the specimens that display
personality. Plants have personality? Well, they
do but it is manifest in things such as their vigour,
freedom from disease, and pose - resulting from
the balance between their leaves, flowers and
stems. Some specimens simply look better on set
than others and it’s best to audition hopefuls by
placing the piece of Perspex behind them first
before committing to a screen test. Invertebrates, in
some ways, are more inscrutable so it is a matter of
working with a variety of models, each for a short
time and seeing which has the best attitude on set.
(Left) Harebell in the field studio,
Montrose, Scotland. Take
time to find the most elegant,
representative specimen; it’s on its
own in the frame with nowhere
to hide. Nikon D2x, 55mm, ISO
100, flash, f16
balaNCiNG the liGht
I first started to make white background plant pictures
in the late 1990’s but on film it was very hard
consistently to balance subject and background
exposure. Digital capture is hugely enabling in this
respect. We are after a background that is 255
in each channel. Not a bit grey, not pure white in
the middle, dimming towards the edges but 255
from corner to corner. We are effectively cutting out
the subject in-camera meaning that the picture can
be laid out on a page, or as part of a composite,
without any further work. In practice, it is sometimes
hard to light a large piece of background Perspex®
from corner to corner: in these cases, ensure that
the background immediately around the subject
is 255 in each channel (set your camera to blink
a highlight warning) then paint out the corners in
Adobe Lightroom with the Adjustment Brush. But it’s
best to save yourself the extra work and get it right
in the first place.
baCkGrouNd PositioNiNG
The distance between the subject and background is
crucial. At the correct exposure, the backlit Perspex
is 255 in each channel regardless of whether it is
10 cm behind the subject or one metre. A certain
amount of light coming from behind spills forward
– this is what makes the subject glow – but clearly
the effect will be stronger the closer the background
is to the subject. If the subject is pale or delicate
in the first place it is likely to become very hard to
separate it from the background at the processing
stage. The rule is really simple: for opaque or dark
subjects, keep the background close; for all others
move it further back. If you minimise the influence
of forward spill by distancing the backdrop, it is
possible successfully to photograph white flowers
on the white background.
GettiNG exPosure just riGht
Let’s look at exposure. We want to blow out the
background, but only just – or else we’ll find it hard
to manage forward spill. You’ll find that even a third
of a stop can make the difference between pure
white and pale grey. Don’t plug in your front fill
until you’ve determined the good exposure for the
background. Set the flash and camera to manual
and make a series of test exposures, adjusting the
aperture, the flash’s output or the ISO (the shutter
(Left) Green veined white butterfly on cuckoo flower,
Norway
speed should be the fastest one your camera can
synchronise with manual flash) by one third of a
stop at a time. The histogram should show all the
background blinking over exposed but none of the
subject. There will be a distinct lack of values on
the left side of the histogram, but so long as some
levels have registered in the second quarter of the
histogram you’ll be able to bring back the darker
tones during processing. Now put on your front
light. Although I use a flash head in a small softbox
these days, you can fire the flash through a piece
of opaque envelope stiffener for a similar quality of
light. The stiffener should be closer to the subject
than the flash is to it for the gentlest feathering.
Check the histogram again to make sure that that
no parts of the subject are over-exposed. Move
the fill back and forth until you’ve struck a good
balance between showing translucence and front
detail.
Don’t be worried if the picture looks a bit wishy-
washy: you’ve captured as many levels as possible
and made your cut-out in-camera. It will turn into
something beautiful in Lightroom.
workiNG with iNvertebrates
The bug set. In this position, the set is used to photograph
animals that are best seem from directly above. I can be
swung round by 90 degrees to work on animals best
seen from the side.
While plants are relatively straightforward, bugs are
less so. For them I use a curved clear or opaque set
suspended from a stand. I can position it to shoot a
subject from the side (as I would a grasshopper) or from
above (more appropriate for most beetles). The clear set
is used if the animal is too translucent to appear directly
on the white Perspex and needs some distance from the
background. In this case, I put a softbox behind the clear
set and it becomes the background. Equally, you could
point a couple of flash guns at a big reflector.
I like to keep the animal’s time on set to a minimum and
prepare everything (in the field!) before the creature
is caught and transferred. If you are unfamiliar with
a species, it’s best to with work with an entomologist
who can tell you if its behaviour suggests it is stressed.
If so, the session ends straight away and the creature is
returned to its spot. Purists may decry moving animals
at all but in light of the casual destruction of these and
may other sorts of wildlife on the roads, in the course of
agriculture and industry and even in our own gardens, a
short spell on the celestial set is rather harmless. Our side
of the deal is to make sure that people see the pictures
and if not care, at least take an interest in the subject.
a sPeCial word about amPhibiaNs
Frogs, newts and toads are highly charismatic
subjects, never more so than when they are in their
element. But amphibians worldwide are dying of
chytridiomycosis, and many populations are in
catastrophic decline. Help to prevent its spread
by using purified water in your tank (place the
bottles in the host pond to warm or cool them to the
same temperature) and use new nets for dipping in
each pond. Put up your set in the shade and don’t
discard the water after the shoot near watercourses
with amphibians. Clean the tank thoroughly after
each shoot and avoid handling the amphibians
with your bare hands.
So long as the subject is quite small, build a small
tank with Perspex®. Obviously, it is less fragile than glass and its tensile strength is greater. As a result, I can get away with a front pane that is only 1.5 mm thick.
(Left) Smooth newt in the field studio,
Alam Pedja, Estonia. Niall and
Jaanus Järva (Right) set up the “wet”
studio in a shaded picnic hut close
to a pond full of newts in the forest.
Set time was kept to a minimum and
soon this fellow was back in the pond
trying to impress the females. Nikon
D3, 200mm, ISO 200, flash, f20
(Right) Red Salamander Larva,
South Carolina, USA.
If you’re worried that flash is going to cause lots of
reflections, don’t. Since I am aiming to expose the
background as pure white, any that might show
there will be blown out. Front lighting comes from a
single diffused flash above the tank; its angle ensures
there are no reflections from the Perspex® in front of
the animal and since you’re probably shooting at
about 1/200 second at f22, ambient light won’t
show either.
What is more of a problem are small specs on the
surface of the Perspex; when it is cleaned it generates
a static charge that draws dust, pollen and fibres from
the cleaning cloth. Keep a small squeegee on hand
too to burst the bubbles that form on the Perspex as the
water changes temperature; you’ll get rid of some of the
fibres in the process. Be aware too that Perspex is very
easily scratched and where these coincide with out-
of-focus parts of the animal, they will show up clearly.
Clay Bolt Project Coordinator & Co-Founder
Ph: 1.864.905.8797eM: [email protected]: 198 Jenkins Way
Easley, South Carolina, 29640USA
niall Benvie Senior Advisor & Co-Founder
Ph: +44.1356.626.128eM: [email protected]: 24 Park Road
BRECHIN, Angus, DD9 7APScotland
joiN us!
Meet Your Neighbours is currently seeking like-
minded individuals, organizations and businesses
who would be interested in learning more about
ways that they might support this effort. For more
information, please contact Niall Benvie or Clay Bolt.
Primary sPoNsor eNdorsiNG PartNer