Montage and selection tools

In photoshop we can create montage pictures by blending 2 or more photos together, under the same theme. For example here for practice I just created one about Senna and Mclaren the biggest names in f1 racing history.

First I used the selection tools. To select a rectangular object you just simply select the rectangular marque tool and just crop where I want to apply. I selected the whole picture by pressing the Ctrl+A buttons and selected the whole picture. Pressed Ctrl+C to copy it.

Pressed Ctrl+V to paste the image what I use as a layer now. Ctrl+T for free transforming the layer. Also don't forget to use the 'maintain aspect ratio' button on the top, to keep the correct ratio while we transforming the image.

With the brush tool just soften the edges. Used a round shaped brush. Around 50% flow to not make it too harsh.

I have done the same with Senna's face, select all by pressing Ctrl+A cut it and paste it by pressing Ctrl+C; Ctrl+V on the main image. It will look like something like that.

Free transform with Ctrl+T and blend it into the picture with the soften edge brush.


Final image:

Unit 1: Digital, street photography slideshow

Photographing people on the streets and documenting the everyday's life in the big cities is a kind of photography what I was always interested in. I just love the idea to go out to the streets and do what I love to do, taking pictures. For me street photography means a lot because I was always interested what's going out in the world and this kind of documenting could be very tasty and thrilling sometimes. The more like I'm getting into this the more I will like it I'm sure.

Taking photos of strangers could be fun and also frustrating. For me the thing is to work with people who I don't know and I don't know what will be their reaction when I put my camera in their face, is freightening. Most of the time people are amazing, so friendly and helpful. If our approach is friendly and also polite and make sure they know you are not some kind of perv, about 90 percent of the situations will be all right.

So this was my first time when I actually went in with my wide angles. If it is about street photography I rather use my wide angle lens. 35mm on my Canon A1 or just my 18-55 on my 400D. Wide angles are good for get in and show what is around the subject, to fill the frame with more action and to try to make the viewer feel like he or she is there. Feel more personal. Like William Klein, one of my favorite photographer used to do it. Operating with wide angle lens, approximately 28-35 mm-s or 50 mm is the ideal for street shooting. So these are the advantages but what about the disadvantages? My biggest problem would be to step in the area to fill the frame. I try to get over it and I think with practice I could easily get rid of the frustration.

Basically that would be my first work on the streets by myself. Where I want to improve as a photographer is to be more confident in the situation on the street when I take pictures. I have recognized that when someone just can't stand you taking pictures of them and they a little bit more hostile with you, you just smile and wave to them. Those people might just walk off or smile back. As I said being polite and friendly while shooting street photography, could be a great help for the photographer. What also learnt is you have to be always prepared for action because things just happening front of your eyes without being noticed. So a good street photographer is always ready to shoot. I tried to use slower shutter speed to add more movement to the picture or sometimes I just set the aperture higher to make most of the depth of field more sharp and just shot from the hip being unnoticed. I think with experience street photography could be my favorite kind of photography.


Joel Meyerowitz is one of the most influential photographer for me maybe because he is one of the first street photographer whose work got my interest in street documentary. He started working as am art director and soon he changed his mind after he seen Robert Frank in work. He became a photographer, an artist. He mostly known about his street work and also he was the first photographer in the late 70s who used colour film.
I always think he's photographs are more like paintings, a frozen moment of the very busy NY streets. Colour photography is a little bit far from me but that is what makes his work more unique for me. I am planning to do some colour street photography in the future, but at the moment I prefer black and white.

One of my favourite image

Colour gives a different depth of his images, using wide angle lens to get in more and fill the image.













Garry Winogrand another famous street photographer from the US. His work is all black and white and using wide angle lens mostly 28mm or 35mm. Using a Leica he's able to capture images from the everyday life. The important part is in street photography is to get in close and that's why I like the listed two photographers work.

Winogrand shot everything. In his active years he shot thousand of images. Millions of images he left behind at his death.

“When in doubt, click”

Always focus on form and content.
"Every photograph is a battle of form and content."











Winogrand often shot the streets of New York with Joel Meyerowitz side by side.
Usually shot in black and white but I found some pages where you can find his colour work.



Project
When I was in the city center of Manchester I also had to look after a few things. Health and safety is also a very important subject. The fact is that the photographer usually behind his or her DSLR and completely reduces the whole view for the world could be dangerous. I've nearly had a serious confrontation with one of the metrolink vehicle. So always important to think twice before the framing, is it could be dangerous or not.

I have also used my iPhone to record the environmental sounds and in powerpoint I just put them together as a slideshow and uploaded to vimeo.

My first photo was at the university district. I've taken this picture with my film camera and I used the ilford xp2 film. What I tried to use on this picture is the negative space composition. This guy on the picture wouldn't mind being photographed he just turned around. What I should have done is wait until this place would be a little bit crowded and then move in a little bit closer.

Also the same spot. I took this picture about these guys packing out their van. I liked the straight lines and the boxes in the foreground. It also looks good better on black and white.

On this picture I just tried to create a blurry image with a slow shutter speed. This photo was taken at Piccadily tram station. But this photo's composition accidentally not that bad. I tried to create a similar feeling when I have a look at William Klein's photos. He said that the Blur is an element of photography. I think the same. What I tried to do is to show how the crowd getting off the trams and that would have created a motion effect. But this is all right as well.

The next picture, I traveled to victoria station with tram and I saw this guy standing there and I just took a picture of him. The reason why I took this picture would be because of the big gate. That gives a frame to the picture.

This photo looked interesting for me because of the vans. I could "cut" them in halves and the guy with the chairs also gives a bit to the image.

This weird band was pretty interesting they were wearing masks. Bit weird but the tall man and the short old man gives a little bit to the composition. Basically I tried to create a rythym in the composition woth them two. And also the band is funny in the background.

This guy was a pretty good musician I think. I tried to frame this picture so I can see the people moving that gives a motion to the picture and it is not that boring like that. Also used a wide angle lens but what I don't really like is the two persons are not more in the frame.

This guy was on Market street in the city centre. I just asked him can I take a photo of him he said of course. I should have stepped back and show more in the frame I think. He didn't make any problem of being photographed.

The last picture would be a night scene of a dirty alley in chinatown. It is a little bit defocused but I still like the depth of field. I also shot this one on film.

This would be my slideshow of my street photography. Also uploaded to vimeo.

I hope this little street photography taught me a few things about capturing a moment what is basically the street photography's principal. And also learnt that to think before press the shutter. I tried to focus to the image exist in my mind before I take the picture.

HDR image

HDR images made of several pictures taken with a different exposition. It could be under-, over exposured. After all this we just have to put the images together and make some adjustments in photoshop.

First of all I open my image in raw mode. I make 3 jpeg files by under exposing one and over exposing the other one.

Ok now open them in photoshop. After I opened them I'll pick the over exposured one select all with Ctrl+A or we can also use the rectangular selection tool. Ctrl+C to copy the image on the under exposured one with Ctrl+V to paste the image. Now the first image will appear as a layer on the second image.

Now I used the gradient tool to fade away the are what I didn't want on my picture. Using a layer mask set to white and using the gradient tool which is set to black, and just drag it from the area what we don't want to.

From the bottom left corner I applied the gradient tool towards to the centre of the picture. I have also used the dodge and burn tool to lighten or darken a few areas near to that little runnel. The burn tool or the dodge tool is practical if we want to lighten or darken an area. On keyboard just press the O button.

That's how I use gradient tools to create an HDR image.

Levels and curves

Levels

The first thing we do with our picture is to adjust the saturation with shifting the levels of black and whites. On this picture I've shifted the greys to the level I think is good.

Once we double clicked on the background layer we just go to the levels option on the bottom right corner.

After all this I've just flatten the image and saved it with 72 ppi resolution in jpeg.

Curves

In the curves option we can fine tune the colour contrast. We can adjust all the three colours contrast at once or individually.

On the curves menu we see the dark tones on the left and the light tones are on the right.

This is a non-destructive method to adjust the saturation of the colour. So if we use only the layer- adjustment layer menu it will harm the finished photo. If we work with layers only we can always also go back in the history and edit it or remake any changes.

Photoshop layers /multilayering

Today we have a look at the layers, how to work with multilayering technique in photoshop.

The first thing is to pick the images what we want to blend into each picture to work with them.

The first thing I did was to modify the images. Started with the levels to create a darker image.

 Darken the blacks in the curves mode.

 Used black and white to create a more moody picture.

Selected with the ecliptic tool and inverted the selection in the select menu. I did that to darken the edges

Adjust the feather higher.

Once it is done just flatten the image. Select the move tool by pressing V. Grab this image to copy on the main image.

Now we use the previous image as a layer. Pressing the ctrl+T you can adjust the size of your layer. Don't forget to press the little chain icon to keep the measures.

Applying the layer mask and using the brush tool by pressing B. I've changed my brush to create a dry brush effect. Just brushed around the stones with a low opacity. After all just changed the screen mode of the layer for 'screen'.

 Added another layer with the same technique before.

Change the screen mode of the layer to overlay or screen.

And here is the final image with the layers blent into each other with a bit of brushing.

Self portrait

Hey everyone! My name is Daniel and I live in Manchester in the last few years. I started going to college this September to study photography. Our first thing to do was a self-portrait. So here we go my first picture on this blog will be my first still life self-portrait.

My first picture is a still life self-portrait.

I`ve just put a few of my favorite stuff together like my books about photographers, or my boxing shoes. Both of them are important thing in my life since I was a teenager.

So my second photo is a self-portrait. On this picture I was just messing with my phone and I liked this framing because of the mirror.

Destroyed portrait

The first thing we had to do with our portrait, that we had to destroy it. So I took mine and done a few things to it.