Criteria 3

Be able to choose accessories to achieved a required outcome

3.1 - Explain when the visual effects produced by different lenses would be used

Evidence:  Written explanation

Explain when the visual effects produced by different lenses would be used. Include images alongside.

Standard Lens (35mm-85mm)
A 50mm lens is the most common and has the same angle of view similar to the human eye. The lenses usually have a fixed focal length and a wide aperture which makes them ideal when performing in low light conditions. This lens can be used for a wide range of subjects including portraiture and landscape photography.

Wide Angle Lens (24mm-35mm)
The wide angle lens has a shorter focal length which allows more of a scene to be captured in a single shot. This lens is particularly used to photograph landscapes, cityscape's and other subjects that will not fit into a lens field of view.

26.11.18
18mm - ISO 100 - F16 - 1/60

Telephoto Lens (85mm-145mm) and Zoom Lens (135mm-300mm)
The telephoto and zoom lenses have a long focal length combined with high magnification. This allows images with detail to be seen and photographed at a distance. Images can be photographed where you cannot get close to the subject, such as various sporting activities, social events, street and wildlife photography.

Two photographs below which I have taken of the same view point. The fist one illustrates a 40mm lens giving a similar view to the human eye. The second one I have zoomed in to 140mm showing the telephoto lens magnification.

26.11.18
40mm - ISO 500 - F4.5 - 1/80

26.11.18
140mm - 1SO 5.6 - 1/80

Fisheye Lens (8mm-24mm)
The fish eye lens is an extreme version of a wide angle lens, as these capture images at 180 degrees. The photographs created have interesting effects because of the distortion and abstract feel to the images.

https://photography.tutsplus.com

Macro Lens
Macro lenses have a different construction from other lenses because of the sharp image of a tiny object requires the lens to be positioned much closer with the lens moved further out than for normal photography. Typical subjects include close-up detail of insects, animals and plants.

https://www.adorama.com

1S0 200 - F/36 - 1.6s

Extension tubes can be added to a none macro lens to try and get in closer to the subject because it moves the lens further away from the camera  The closer you can focus the more magnification can be achieved. Extension tubes are not optical elements therefore not as good as a dedicated macro lens.    

Specialist Lenses
These lenses are used to create special effects. For example tilt and shift lenses are used to control perspective particularly in architectural photography as this helps straighten the appearance of tall buildings. The tilt movement of the lens changes the angle of the focal plane. This allows objects that are in sharp focus to be parallel to the camera lens. There are also soft focus lenses for portrait photography and infrared lenses for capturing invisible light which creates high contrasts against white glowing objects.

Tilt and Shift Lens

http://ryanbrenizer.com

   3.2 - Demonstrate the effects obtained when utilising different focal length lenses

Evidence: Lenses Task images
Explain your findings.

By using different focal length lenses not only the magnification of the subject changes but the field of view, the depth of field and the perspective also adjust all at the same time. A wide angle lens has a short focal length resulting in a wide depth of field giving in an overall sharper image. The zoom lens increases the focal length which in turn draws in the field of view making it narrower. Therefore the longer the lens, the narrower the field of view whereas the shorter the lens the wider the field of view.

I have tested my focal range using my 18mm-140mm lens in Townley Park. I have captured the effects by taking the photographs in the same position using the tripod for stabilisation. By keeping the same aperture setting of F20, the shutter speed and ISO settings adjusted automatically to the light available combined with the focal range of my lens. By comparing the results from the first 18mm image and last 140mm image you can clearly see the magnification and its effects. The 18mm shot shows a wide depth of field displaying lots of trees, grass and sky area. The path seems longer almost disappearing into the background and the building at the end of the path seems tiny. You can hardly see the people walking down the path as they just seem dots in the distance. At 140mm magnifies the scene giving a narrower field of view. The path is shorter with no sky and there are hardly no trees in view. The building and people can now be seen in the distance, in fact the distance between the people and building seem closer together. Generally, you can see more detail in the distance that a human eye would not normally see.

The perspective on a wide angle lens stretches out the view expanding the perspective. . An object that is positioned close to the lens will appear large whereas objects further away will seem to be tiny. With a longer lens the magnification compresses the perspective, which makes everything behind the subject seem closer together flattening perspective.

To demonstrate perspective I have taken three photographs of the same street scene, using the signposts as pointers. In the foreground is the blue roundabout sign and I have circled in the distance the second signpost. By using a focal length of 18mm, the view as been expanded. The photograph is taken in portrait therefore, there is lots of sky in the scene as well as the street below. The signpost in the background seems to be far in the distance. The second photograph shows the focal length of 50mm. I moved backwards in order to get a similar size sign post in the foreground. It is evident that the distance between the two sign posts as been significantly reduced as well as less sky and street view. The last photograph at 140mm focal length shows how the distance between the two signpost have been squashed further together. You can also see that the sign in red circle almost fills the circle in contrast to an 18mm focal range. There is hardly any sky on show and the street scene has been visibly reduced. You can now see the magnification of detail in the distance showing individual bricks and tiles of the buildings.

The perspective of a picture changes with distance as a wide angle lens stretches out the view expanding perspective to increase the distance between the foreground and background. An object that is positioned close to the lens will appear large whereas objects further away will seem to be tiny. With a longer lens the magnification compresses the perspective, which makes everything behind the subject seem closer together flattening perspective.

www.bhphotovideo.com
Illustration showing different focal length options.

The depth of field on a short lens is wider creating a sharper image whereas on a longer lens the depth of field is shallower so the distance or foreground will be softer in its appearance.

3.3 - Evaluate the visual results obtained when using a variety of light modifying filters

Evidence:  Written explanation

Explain the results obtained when using different light modifying filters.  Include images alongside.

Ultraviolet Filter - I use this filter mainly to protect my camera lens from moisture, dust and scratches. This filter also helps to reduces haze by blocking out ultraviolet rays.

Neutral Density Filter - Is used to cut down on the amount of light without adding a colour cast. I would use this on a bright day where I wanted to use a slower shutter speeds and wider apertures allowing me not to overexpose an image. This filter is used to create motion blur on a bright day.

 https://www.capturelandscapes.com/neutral-density-filters-will-improve-photography/

Photograph illustrating the milky water effect when combining a slow shutter speed and by using a neutral density filter 

Natural Grad Filter - These are used to preserve more tonal data by graduated from clear to dark providing a sharp transition between the top and the bottom of an horizon. The filter is placed in a holder and can be rotated round to achieve an tonal effect.

Polarising Filter - This filter is similar to wearing sunglasses as reduces the amount of reflective light allowing the images to appear crisper by reducing haze. This makes the colours seem richer and more contrasting by darkening blue skies and reducing reflections from glass and water. The filter can be rotated on the lens to achieve a desired effect.

ISO 640 - F16- - 1/640
This photograph is all about the sky and the dark silhouette shapes of the buildings. Using a polarized helped to add contrast to the light and dark areas resulting in a 3D effect. This adding depth to the picture. 

Colour Correcting Filters - These filters can be used to cool or warm up colours and can also be used to correct and enhance. Colour changes can also be achieved in post editing software such as Photoshop.

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Examples of Colour tinted filters

Close-Up Filters - I have used these filters to simulate macro photography without using a dedicated macro lens which can be very expensive. Close-up filters are a selection of magnifying lenses which have different strengths of magnification that helps regular lenses to focus closer to the subject matter.

Special Effects Filters - A variety of effects can be achieved with these filters such as softening or diffusing edges and customising the shape of bokeh lights. These effects can also achieved in post editing software such as PhotoShop.

www.zimbio.com
Photograph showing a special effects filter effecting the lights in the background.

3.4 - Identify situations where additional light sources may be required

Evidence:  Written explanation

• When would you need to use additional light sources in your photography?
• Why?

I use additional lighting mainly for two reasons one is when natural lighting is poor and the second is to be creative.

1. There are situations where by adjusting my aperture, shutter speeds and ISO settings have not resulted in an exposure that I happy with. This is because the available light had been poor. For example, If I wanted to capture movement I would require a fast shutter speed to try and freeze the action such as 1/500. Also If I wanted a wide depth of field to capture lots of detail my aperture setting would be narrow, such as F22. This means by combining these settings together the amount of light hitting my camera sensor is restricted. The only other option is to up my ISO levels, but again I can only adjust so far because going much higher than ISO 1600 can result in a pixelated effect called noise. The end result is a underexposed image. In this situation I would use my flash gun particularly if I was shooting indoors and may position reflectors to try and help to bounce the light on to the subject. In certain situations where I not allowed to use additional lighting such as taking photographs of a band playing in a club I would have no option than to up my ISO levels and try position myself nearer to the band. I would also try and use stage lights to my advantage. 
2. I use additional lighting mainly in my still-life photography. I use a combination of a light box, various small lamps and torches. Experiment with different lighting allows me to be creative. I find high contrasting shadows interesting because of the patterns and shapes that can be created within a composition. When I use a strong light source on a subject I can play around with high and low contrasts which I feel works well on my black and white images. I can also use lighting to give attention to detail, line and texture. I like how lighting can add atmosphere to a picture such as dark underexposed images can be mysterious and intriguing, whereas overexposed images can give a feeling of lightness and comfort. I have also recently experiment with my flash gun using it separate from my camera. I have been using the high speed sync feature, which has allowed me to use to a fast shutter speed combined with a narrow aperture. This has enabled me to freeze detail and movement in low light conditions.

Using small lamps in my light box to try and create patterns and shapes by using reflections and shadows.

ISO 250 - F/3.5 - 1/2O

1SO 250 - F29 - 1/200

Using high speed sync feature of my flash gun to help freeze the splash when a lemon was dropped into the water. I used this because the flash became a problem when I wanted to select a faster shutter speed to freeze the action. The time it takes for the shutters to cross the sensor would fall short of the full range of shutter speeds needed.

When I photograph outdoors using the natural light, there are situations that may need me to control the light. For example, if the light is too bright on a sunny day, the shadows created could harsh especially in portrait photography and opting to use a fill in flash would help by brightening the shadow areas. I particularly like photographing on bright days because I find these shadows and the shapes interesting especially when taking photographs of buildings. I think the high contrast between light and dark is more dramatic when transformed into black and white images.

Photographed at the submit of Pendle Hill (26.11.18)
I converted this to black and white as I liked the illuminance of the simple white stone against the dramatic backdrop.

26.11.18
ISO 250 - F10 - 1/160

Cloudy days make good lighting because the clouds act as a diffuser which can be flattering to the face. I prefer where you have a directional light such as when the sun tries to break through the clouds or when using an extra light source as I feel this adds more texture to an image.

I recently taken outside photographs of my son potentially to use for my Rough Trade album cover project. My intention was to make the photographs black and white and even transform into a more extreme graphic image. To do this I needed to direct the light to emphasis the shadows. I used a large piece of white card which seemed to help when I positioned to the side to exaggerating the light when it broke through the clouds.

Screen shot showing the result of using natural, directional light to capture the light and dark contrasts.