For this assignment I have looked at a range of different resources, for both inspiration and research, because I feel that not only is this more reliable but by referring to books and magazines, I have been able to carry on my research when I have been away from the computer.
Some of the sources of information that I have used during this course, are:
Magazines and Books
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| Professional Photographer magazine, for which I had a subscription for a year, which I found interesting in not only did it reveal some of the feelings in the photographic industry, but it also provided an insight into some remarkable photographers who would not necessarily be featured in magazines like Digital Photo, DSLR User Magazine or Digital Camera Magazine. There was a very interesting interview with David Bailey in one issue and they would often cover a photographic legend in each issue. The subscription actually proved very worthwhile. | I also read Digital Photo (which gave me the idea for one of my product shots (Let it pour !), DSLR User Magazine, Digital Camera Magazine, Amateur Photography (when it contains something of interest to me) and several other magazines that I have bought when they have articles that will help me. These magazines have a number of useful articles on photography, techniques, and new developments in photography. The cover disks also contain videos of camera and post production techniques. |
This book, Lighting for Portrait Photography, I found to be invaluable for its demonstration of different lighting set ups, which featured a portrait and the lighting set up to produce the portrait, with a lot of advise of different types of lighting equipment. I bought this from the ‘Focus on Imaging’ photographic show at the NEC, Birmingham, a few years ago and I have used it a number of times – a very good investment !
Another book, from my collection, is ‘Photographing People’ by John Hedgecoe, which has provided me with a number of ideas by presenting me with different styles of portrait photography including high key and low key, amongst others.
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I have two books by Tom Ang, this one I have used for ideas for a number of projects. I like Tom’s way of getting the information across in particular some of the tools and techniques available for post production of photographs.
This book, by Steve Sint, I have borrowed from an old friend, and I have found it very useful again for different approaches to portrait photography.
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Another two books from my collection, which I always find handy. The Digital Photography Manual includes a wealth of information, quite a bit on post production and printing.
I also borrowed some books on studio photography from the Burton Library, unfortunately I did not photograph these before I returned these books.
Exhibitions
Whilst visiting London with the rest of the group we visited the National Portrait Gallery, where there was an exhibition on of Irving Penn’s work.
I found this gallery a very interesting place to visit and a great resource of information for this course, even though I did not actually visit the Irving Penn exhibition. There were portraits from quite a few photographers and I think that all of took some inspiration from this exhibition.
The Internet
Today the internet acts a very large library of information, that can be accessed by anyone with a computer (there own, a college computer or through a public network). The internet has transformed research by providing the latest and most up to date information available.
I know when I was studying a business law module, sometimes there were changes in the law between the law books being written and bought !
But like any resource, you have to be careful what you find and use, because unlike a normal library, there is no control over what is written on peoples own sites and this can easily lead to errors and mistakes being quoted. One resource, Wikipedia, I am always wary of because its content is not monitored so people can, and sometimes do, enter facts which are incorrect and sometimes wildly out. I find the best way in to visit the photographer’s website itself, and then investigate them further, once you have some solid information to work from.
Some of the websites that I have used during this course are:
This site, http://photography-now.net, is a valuable resource for information about top photographers and their work.
This site, http://www.digitalphotopro.com, I found also to be a valuable resource when looking at product photographers, and some portrait photographers as well.
I also visited the various websites of the photographers that I researched, including Chris Collins:
Another website I visited, after some research on Digital Photo Pro, was that of Jose Manuel Vidaurre
I also looked on the sites of some portrait photographers, e.g. Herb Ritts (as shown below), but in some cases there was very little information about the photographer themselves.
I did email some photographers, who I wanted to cover, for some background information and biographies, but unfortunately none got back to me in time for the course.
Some more of the resources that I have used for research during this course are listed on the individual photographers entries.
