It is around 80F in the hight of a Summer evening, but with the October Newsletter
in mind, thoughts wander to what can be done, photographically speaking, once the
nights draw in and the camera is as good as packed away for another winter! Do we
really have to forget about our hobby at these times! Print workers can catch up
with all their backlog of developing and printing etc, but once a transparency is
processed and you have them nicely `filed` away, what does a Colour Reversal Club
member do with the bleak days and the long dark nights ahead?
Well! Don`t pack your camera bag away just yet, sit down a spell and read on and
perhaps the following paragraphs will stop your camera from being forgotten about
for a few months....
TIME EXPOSURE. Or, Long exposure is a good bet. Unlike during summer time, you
don`t have to wait up late for the chance to stroll around in available light
conditions. I once planned Time Exposure shots while on the Isle Of Skye.
Everything worked well, but the landlady thought I was nuts going out after
midnight just to take pictures! You see it was the middle of June, and the sky
didn`t start getting dark until just after 11 p.m.
However, further south, from around the end of September you can venture out just
after tea time and still have enough daylight to avoid extremely black skies and
backgrounds. A mountain or a building will look more dramatic with a little
daylight around. Likewise you don`t need to use a `blue` filter, although any
artificial light will tend to look a bit `green`.
Once daylight fades another `world` emerges, where you can play with the available
light until your heart`s content. Any flood-light building or monuamont is ideal.
However as our slide film is balanced for daylight, artificial light will lean
towards green. This can be corrected by using an 80A or 80B `blue` filter. 80A
will be fine while there is still some daylight in the sky but once you have total
darkness the 80B will really give rich shadows but, of course, will darken colours
such as reds and greens.
All you need is:- Your camera, of course, a sturdy tripod, 80A or 80B blue filter,
a cable release and some sort of `timer`. Your exposure will be in seconds rather
than in 100`s of a second.
E.G. = Lets take Big Ben as an example, Set your camera up on the tripod and frame
the scene. Set aperture to F11 and make sure your camera shutter is set on `B` or
`Bulb`, if it`s really that old!! Many modern electronic cameras will allow you to
set speeds up to 1« minutes, automatically, you really have it made if you have this
facility. But as we will see, you don`t really need it.
Long exposures use up a lot of battery juice so it is recommended you carry a spare.
Likewise using a wider aperture and a shorter exposure time will save power,
giving you more exposures per battery.
Cities, and particularly London, are well light at night, so exposure isn`t going to
be very difficult. In fact you could walk around London and use normal speeds and
exposure without requiring a flash-gun. However what we are looking for here, is
the `sparkle` and extreme depth of (field) focus you get when useing a long exposure
with a small aperture.
Now set your `timer` (A digital watch is ideal) at `zero` and press the shutter
release cable at the same moment the `seconds` hand reaches 12.00. You will
probably have to hold in the release for the duration of the exposure. After 32
seconds, release the shutter and move the film onto the next frame. Repeat the
same scene with exposures of 30 & 28 seconds.
You will most likely find that 32 seconds was pretty close to correct exposure,
but once you get your set of slides processed you can make comparisons and find
the correct timing to use, next time. The interesting thing I find with these
kind of shots is, that there is a considerable `latitude` to play around with, so
don`t be afraid to experiment. Using Big Ben as a standard, extend the time by
2-4 seconds depending on how duller the next scenes are, to that `norm`.
As you open the iris (by stops) you double the amount of light passing through.
Therefore, using F11 at 32Secs as a guide, if you open the iris to F8 you only
need (in theory) 16 seconds for the same exposure, followed by F5.6 at 8 secs, and
so forth. However, while the exposure is more or less the same, what you "are"
changing is the "Depth of Field" (D.O.F.). What this means is, that the point of
focus will get shallower and shallower until only the immediate point of focus
remains sharp. This is an ideal way of making the main interest stand out sharply,
against the background, such as, in portraits. (Differential focusing).
But, as in this instance, we are mainly talking about scenery, you have to decide
how much distance you want to remain in focus. My reference to (in theory) is
that in low light conditions Reciprocity failure comes into play. Put simply, at
long exposures the emulsion sensitivity can be changed by a full stop i.e. 100asa
becomes 50asa. It is recommended that you add, at least, `2` seconds to the times,
with each opening of the iris. E.G. F8 at 18 secs. and F5.6 at 10 secs. or, approx.
1½ stops above the given F setting. Reciprocity failure is more critical from 1
minute exposures and you may not find this any problem. Try two exposures, one of
each timing.
Below is a Ready-Reckoner Chart I carry continuously in my camera bag for this
situation. The top line is the automatic meter reading. You then move downwards
through the following settings:-
EXPOSURES AND SHUTTER SPEEDS FOR
NIGHT TIME PHOTOGRAPHY
1 sec. at F 1.8 1 sec. at F 2. 1 sec. at F 2.8 1 sec. at F 4.
2 sec. at F 2. 2 sec. at F 2.8 2 sec. at F 4. 2 sec. at F 5.6
4 sec. at F 2.8 4 sec. at F 4. 4 sec. at F 5.6 4 sec. at F 8.
8 sec. at F 4. 8 sec. at F 5.6 8 sec. at F 8. 8 sec. at F 11
16 sec. at F 5.6 16 sec. at F 8. 16 sec. at F 11 16 sec. at F 16
32 sec. at F 8. 32 sec. at F 11 32 sec. at F 16 32 sec. at F 22
64 sec. at F 11 64 sec. at F 16 64 sec. at 22
128 sec. at F 16 128 sec. at F 22
156 secs. at F 22
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 sec. at F 5.6 1 sec. at F 8. 1 sec. at F 11 1 sec. at F 16
2 sec. at F 8. 2 sec. at F11 2 sec. at F 16 2 sec. at F 22
4 sec. at F 11 4 sec. at F 16 4 sec. at F 22
8 sec. at F 16 8 sec. at F 22
16 sec. at F 22
What else can you do over the winter months!! There are numerous subjects that
you can tackle that doesn`t necessarily require the bright sunlight of summer!!
If you enjoy casual strolls then don`t forget your camera. The keen eye can
search out interesting objects such as junk. Rusting and decaying buildings and
street fittings can, with the right angle, conjure up quite interesting shapes.
Shop windows and open markets can add some colour to a dull day, with clothes,
utilities, books etc and, don`t ignore the interesting design of shop names and
their wares, often painted or engraved into their glass windows. Interesting
reflections too, both from the windows or from street and shop lights reflected
in puddles or even delivery vans. Pub signes can be very colourful and amusing.
Street life in general changes little over the seasons and people shopping and
strolling around or at work can bring an interesting picture or two.
Animals, whether in the street or at home will often stay still long enough for
a grab shot, but don`t just go for full-length shots, move right in and change
the angle so that the light and the animals expression will stand out. Fill in
flash will be useful to create a bit of modelling. Rather than fire it straight
at the model, bounce it off a light wall or ceiling, but don`t forget an extra
2 or three stops to compensate for the scattered light.
When photographing people at work, hang around a short spell so that they almost
forget you and the camera are there. preferably, ask if it is alright to take
their photograph.
Harbours are excellent all year round, what with the bright colours of boats and
ships and plenty of reflected light to fill in the shadows. Overhead cranes have
excellent shapes to use as a frame in an otherwise grey sky. Or watch out for
tree branches that can be used to break up the sky area or an alleyway that can
be used as a `window frame` that will contrast well with the open scene.
Railways, National or Preserved lines, give opportunity for action shots, or
simply play around with the composition and get the symetrics of machines and
tracks to make `selective` interest, especially in close-ups or with the track
winding into the distance. Don`t forget the `human` interest either, as people
mill around the station and train areas.
Industry (If your town has any left!). Operational or old machinery in dramatic
lighting and complex shapes will get your creativity going, Wheels, cogs, wires
etc can be framed to great advantage.
While scenery is really a `summer` thing, even in the depth of winter it can come
out well. A mountain or hillside scene with heavy overcast sky still has some
colour from the evergreen trees and reflections from ground colouring. If a river
or stream is included, quite dramatic lighting can be had by placing the lightest
part of the sky, just right. Even in snow an interesting if rather B&W scene can
have added colour if you watch out for roadside buildings or perhaps just the
bright colours of a road repair team`s hut etc. Available colour can be used to
give excellent feeling of `mood`.
Shadows can be quite harsh but used to advantage. Watch for them being created
in a long avenue of trees or between the pillars of gothic buildings and churches
or simply, angle the camera just right, looking down of the pavement or road and
bring out the texture of the surface, giving depth.
Decorative rooftops, wire fencing, wooden surfaces or even a pile of pipes can
give texture and design if used in this manner. Different effects of the same
subject can be had by either shooting into or against the light. To help find the
correct exposure for against the light shots, turn your back on the chosen scene
and take a meter reading, omiting as much of the skyline as possible. Set this
aperture reading manually, then turn back to your scene and shoot.
Well, if none of these catches your interest then I would conclude by suggesting
that you try duplicating some of your best slides. Many Print workers use the
winter to mess about with their negatives and making extra prints or try Montage,
Solarized prints, Screen texturing, Tone Separation etc and even hand-painting
prints. Colour Reversal workers are a bit limited in this field, although they
can all be tried in one way or another, but Slide Duplicating is an ideal way to
spend a few winter nights, as it also allows you to keep your hand in with
Weighing & Mixing or using your favourite Processing kit.
There are a number of ways you can go about duplicating your slides. I have
even, simply, re-photographed a few slides off the screen. This works alright,
but you notice the texture of the screen material. If you have a Lightbox, with
colour balanced lamps you could simply focus on the slide by using a bellows or
macro lens, which will give you some form of control over editing the scene.
However, there are slide duplicators and adaptors to fit most makes of camera.
These adaptors have a fixed aperture of, usually, F16 to
give extreme depth of field. They either have a moving barrel or Bellows to
allow you to zoom in and focus on any part of the slide. By adding filters you
can correct the colour balance of a poor slide and improve it greatly. Your
built-in auto exposure meter will get pretty close most times, but again, making
two or three varying exposures will get you the perfect exposure.
Your normal film can be used but gives rather harsh contrast. You get much
better quality by using the specially made duplicating film, which has a very
slow speed, usually around 10 ASA and which gives excellent grain and
contrast control.