Brian’s Photo Blog #5: Sedona Workshop

14th July, 2011 by Brian Lewis | 2 comments

In June, I attended the Hasselblad Medium Format & Panoramic Photography Workshop in Sedona, Arizona. Led by Peter Lorber and sponsored by Hasselblad, this five-day workshop focused on the Hasselblad H4 camera series. Assisted by Eric Peterson, Field Application Specialist from Hasselblad USA, and Courtenay Gilbert of Custom Photo Images, Lorber demonstrated the use of specialised panoramic robots using Hasselblad cameras and software by Phocus, PTGui Pro, Autopano Giga and Pro, and Adobe CS5.

It was five days of grueling work and often involved waking early so as to make it to stunning panoramas in Sedona to catch the dawn light. This was followed by long hours in a computer lab being taken through the various software programs. With only six to eight workshop attendees, there was plenty of personal tuition, and each of us had a dedicated Hasselblad camera with access to a full range of lenses.

Specialised panoramic robots from Novoflex, Seitz Roundshot VR Drive, and GigaPan Epic Pro were used to make sweeping panoramas well beyond 180º. This took over 10 minutes shooting over 100 images [50 MB each], then stitching all the photographs together in a single panorama of such density that you could print stunning, high resolution images exceeding 48” x 240”.

The workshop was a lot of fun and hard work. Below are a couple images of the group in action, and one of my favourite shots. Additional Sedona workshop photos can be viewed on acla:works' Flickr page.

Above: At work in the field. Image © Courtenay Gilbert.

Above: At work in the lab. Image © Courtenay Gilbert.

Above: River scene, Sedona. Image © Brian Lewis.

Brian’s Photo Tip #4: Interiors

17th January, 2011 by Melanie Archer | 2 comments

acla:works director, Brian Lewis, is a highly skilled photographer. His favourite subject? Architecture, of course! In this ongoing series [read Photo Tip #1, Photo Tip #2 and Photo Tip #3], Brian shares tips on successfully photographing buildings.

Brian's Photo Tip #4: Interiors

Building interiors present a range of photographic challenges: colour temperature, mixing daylight and artificial lighting, dressing the space, people, reciprocity failure, depth of field, availability of time. Really good images will take time to compose, light and dress the space and the owners may not allow the time for magazine type photos that can take the better part of a day or more depending on the size of the space.

More recently I have found that owners are moving in quickly – there is very little time to work around them moving boxes of material into the space. This is when the photographer relies upon discipline: compose, check verticals, corners, depth of field, disturbing objects, moving from room to room quickly assessing the best angles to compliment the space. It’s surprising how much can be done in half an hour under these conditions.

In these cases there is no time for lighting set ups and you rely on adjusting lighting in the computer. These sort of photographs may be acceptable for brochures and press releases but they will not produce those excellent images you see in magazines that require hours of lighting set up for each shot.

Fortunately today many of the problems of interior film photography have been made infinitely easier by the design of incredibly complex algorithms in modern professional digital cameras that allow manipulation in order to deliver an acceptable image. 

In this case this image describes how the space is being used by its occupants yet still gives an indication of the general interior space.

Small conference rooms will require super wide lenses and care must be exercised to keep the camera square and level with the picture plane otherwise distortions will emerge.

This photograph was taken when the occupants were moving into the space so care had to be taken to place figures that give some life to the space.

– Brian Lewis

Brian’s Photo Tip #3: Taming the Sun

10th November, 2010 by Melanie Archer | 0 comments

In addition to being a talented architect and quite possibly the most organised person any of us has ever worked with, acla:works director, Brian Lewis, is a highly skilled photographer. His favourite subject? Architecture, of course! In this ongoing series [read Photo Tip #1 and Photo Tip #2], Brian shares tips on successfully photographing buildings.

Photo Tip #3: Taming the Sun

It is always a good idea to think about how the sun will affect the facades of a building before setting off to photograph a building – planning is worthwhile. Prior to photography, if possible and convenient, visit the building at different times of the day and plan when to return to photograph – then wait for the light, clouds and the rain. In Trinidad and Tobago we have to deal with the sun in the south between the months of September to April – it’s surprising how many buildings face north! Usually, buildings look their best in the morning and afternoon or even at dawn or dusk. When setting up remember that the main features and façade of the building should be illuminated with the minor façade in shade. A sun angle that rakes across the façade will help to model its three-dimensional features. 

– Brian Lewis

Above: Sun diagram from Architectural Photography by Michael Harris. Below: The southern façade of the Institute of Marine Affairs during the day and at dusk.

Brian’s Photo Tip #2: Composition

19th July, 2010 by Melanie Archer | 0 comments

In addition to being a talented architect and quite possibly the most organised person any of us has ever worked with, acla:works director, Brian Lewis, is a highly skilled photographer. His favourite subject? Architecture, of course! In this ongoing series [read Photo Tip #1], Brian shares tips on successfully photographing buildings.

Photo Tip #2: Composition

Composition is one of the main photographic skills that can make a good image of a building. Architectural photography, unlike sports for example, allows the photographer the time to think about what is in the frame and to compose the image with some care. Final cropping can also be done with digital software even after the image has been recorded. I like to link the lines of the perspective to the frame of the photo because it strengthens the perspective. Photos that are not attached to their frame tend to float around and lack graphic oomph! So my advice is to take a moment before pressing that shutter – it can make all the difference.

– Brian Lewis

Below: careful composition makes the shot in Brian's photos of an acla:works private residence. Also, you can read about taming the sun in Brian's Photo Tip #3.

Brian’s Photo Tip #1: Lenses

16th June, 2010 by Melanie Archer | 1 comment

In addition to being a talented architect and quite possibly the most organised person any of us has ever worked with, acla:works director, Brian Lewis, is a highly skilled photographer. His favourite subject? Architecture, of course! In this ongoing series, Brian shares tips on successfully photographing buildings.

Photo Tip #1: Lenses

Wide-angle lenses are essential in architectural photography. The wider the angle of the lens the more difficult it is to use – you need to try to keep the film plane vertical, and, when taking a one-point perspective, to keep the film plane parallel to the building or you will get unsightly distortion.

When composing through the viewfinder try to line up verticals and make sure there is no planar distortion before you press that shutter. It is important to remember that sometimes a distorted detail can express the essence of the building but most of the time photographs of buildings are intended as a record so they need to look right. Try this tip.

– Brian Lewis

Below: Republic Bank Trincity shot with a wide angle [no distortion] and without [intentional distortion to emphasize form]. Also, read about composition and taming the sun in Brian's Photo Tip #2 and Photo Tip #3.