Beneath The Surface 3
Beneath the Surface is my final major project from the Photography BTEC Diploma course which I studied. My intention with this project was to show more of a per...
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Beneath the Surface is my final major project from the Photography BTEC Diploma course which I studied. My intention with this project was to show more of a person than what you originally see. When creating these images, I was highly inspired by Christoffer Relander and Andre De Freitas.
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Jul, 2016Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
This image is made up of 2 separate photos, which were both taken in a local park for my college final major project.Time
This photo was taken in April 2016, in the early afternoon.Lighting
I wanted my portraits to be very natural but still make strong photos. As I didn't have any kind of flashes, except the one on my camera, I decided to stick with natural light as I didn't like the effect the built in flash created. Whilst capturing these photos, the weather was very overcast - which I think was the perfect lighting for the effect I wanted.Equipment
This was shot on a Nikon D3100 with an 18mm-50mm lens. Neither photo required a tripod and as a college student, that was the only equipment I had.Inspiration
I created this photo as a part of my final major project, which I based on Identity as it's a theme that interests me and doesn't really have any limits. My initial idea was to layer a photo of a personal belonging with a portrait of the person. This then developed into layering portraits and photos of nature. Nature has always been something that fascinated me - so I was thrilled when I got the idea to bring it into my project! I decided to photograph places of nature that held some sort of meaning or memory to my models. Throughout my project, Christoffer Relander's series 'We Are Nature' was a huge inspiration to me, as his double exposures are extremely eye-catching and unique.Editing
When taking photographs, I always shoot in raw format as I find them easier to edit. After shooting and selecting these 2 photos, I opened them both in Photoshop. I started by changing both photos into black and white, also using 'curves' to increase the contrast. Once both images were in monochrome, I layered the nature image on top of the portrait (making them the same size using the 'free transform' option). I flicked through the different blending modes to see which best suited my image - hard light. I then used the 'eraser' tool to reduce the opacity of the nature background, as it was slightly overpowering. Finally, I saved the image as a maximum quality Jpeg.In my camera bag
Whenever I go out capturing photographs, I always take my Nikon D3100, 18mm-50mm and 70mm-300mm lenses. Occasionally, I will take my Cannon A-1 camera if I fancy working in film and a tripod if I think I might require it. I often carry 3 or 4 SD cards with me, in case they run out of space - I never know just how many photos I'm going to take!Feedback
Whilst taking photos of landscapes and nature, I've found that sunlight is the best light to use. As for portraits, overcast lighting helps to create that natural look, whereas sunlight can sometimes become overpowering. When photographing someone who isn't used to modelling, I tend to capture them by surprise, when they're most themselves. If you're going for a moody atmosphere, try shooting at sunrise or sunset as they can create very powerful and memorising photos.
