The Art of Photography: A Personal Approach to Artistic Expression, 2nd Edition

652 Pages·2017·33.7 MB·English

by  Bruce Barnbaum

BRUCE BARNBAUM
The Art of Photography
2nd Edition
A Personal Approach to Artistic Expression
The Art of Photography, 2nd Edition A Personal Approach to Artistic Expression Bruce Barnbaum
www.barnbaum.com
Editor: Gerhard Rossbach
Project editor: Joan Dixon Project manager: Lisa Brazieal Marketing manager: Jessica Tiernan Layout
and Type: Petra Strauch, [email protected]
Cover design: Helmut Kraus, www.exclam.de
Cover photo: Bruce Barnbaum ISBN 978-1-68198-210-6
2nd Edition (1st Printing, February 2017) © 2017 by Bruce Barnbaum
All photographs © Bruce Barnbaum (unless otherwise noted) Rocky Nook Inc.
1010 B Street, Suite 350
San Rafael, CA 94901
www.rockynook.com
Distributed in the U.S. by Ingram Publisher Services Distributed in the UK and Europe by Publishers
Group UK
Library of Congress Control Number: 2016950247
All rights reserved. No part of the material protected by this copyright notice may be reproduced or
utilized in any form, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any
information storage and retrieval system, without written permission of the publisher.
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While reasonable care has been exercised in the preparation of this book, the publisher and author
assume no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the
information contained herein or from the use of the discs or programs that may accompany it.
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Printed in China
To the wonderful memories of my mother and father.
For as long as I can remember
they both encouraged me to teach.
Bruce Barnbaum
PO Box 1791
Granite Falls, Washington 98252
USA
Phone or Fax: [phone]
[email protected]
www.barnbaum.com
Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
1 COMMUNICATION THROUGH PHOTOGRAPHY
Enthusiasm
Judging Your Own Personal Response
2 WHAT IS COMPOSITION?
How the Human Eye Sees
Unified Thought
Simplicity
Expressing Your Own Point of View
Simplicity vs. Complexity
3 ELEMENTS OF COMPOSITION
Contrast and Tone
Line
Form
Line, Form, Contrast, and Emotion
Pattern
Balance
Movement
Positive/Negative Space
Texture
Camera Position
Focal Length of Lens and Cropping
Depth of Field
Shutter Speed
Relationships
Involvement with the Scene
Rules, Formulas, and Other Problems and Pitfalls
4 VISUALIZATION
Step 1: Photographic Looking and Seeing
Step 2: Composing an Image
Step 3: Envisioning the Final Image
Step 4: Suggested Procedures for Those Having Trouble
Envisioning a Final Image
Step 5: Planning a Strategy for a Final Image
How Your Eye Differs from Your Camera
Alternative Approaches
5 LIGHT
Looking at Light
Exercises in Learning to See Light More Accurately
Light Determines Form
Types of Lighting/Quality of Light
Light as Seen by the Eye and by Film or Sensors, and the
Inverse Square Law
6 COLOR
The Color Wheel and Color Sphere
Color Composition
Color Families, Color Contrast, and Their Emotional Effects
Subjectivity and Mood of Color
Working with Color Digitally
Working with Color Traditionally
In Summary
7 FILTERS
Black-and-White Filters for Film
Examples with a Hypothetical Landscape
Contrast Control with Filters
Infrared Film and Filters
Color Correction Filters for Traditional Film Imagery
Neutral Density and Polarizing Filters
Problems Associated with Polarizers
Digital Polarizing Filter
Digital Black-and-White Filtration
Digital Color Filtration
8 THE ZONE SYSTEM OF EXPOSURE FOR BLACK-AND-WHITE FILM
A Brief Overview
Film’s Response to Light: Building the Zone System
Translating Negative Densities to Print Tonalities
The Light Meter—How It Works
Review of Negative Exposure Procedure
Using the Zone System to Depart from Reality
The Zone System for Color Negatives
The Zone System and the Inverse Square Law
In Summary
9 CONTRAST CONTROL AND THE EXTENDED ZONE SYSTEM FOR BLACK-AND-
WHITE NEGATIVES
Chapter 9 Overview
The Negative During Development
The Bellows Analogy
Putting Higher Zones to Work
Reciprocity Failure
Examples of Decreasing and Increasing Contrast
The Exposure/Density Curve and Zone 4 Shadow Placement
Differences Between Photography and Sensitometry: Texture
vs. Tone and Zone 4 Shadow Placement
Developing the Exposed Negative