April 17, 2010

A Morning Field Trip

Digital original, 3 image stitch
This field trip was unusual, with the students setting the location (a beach in St Margaret's Bay), but the day had great light and dramatic skies, so it was a joy to be out and out.
Digital origina
In a little pool beside the beach I found this lily pad reflecting the overcast sky.
Digital original
From time to time, I find myself making images during field trips with students that really stand out - and this one is one of the strongest in that catagory. I find both the composition and depth of field are really pleasing...the fact it is of a yellow school bus (yellow is my least favourite colour) is ironic.

April 05, 2010

My First 2010 Outdoor Session with Stephanie (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Digital infrared original
As soon as the spring weather begins to arrive in Nova Scotia, I am eager to be able to head out and work with models again, after months of waiting. For this session, Stephanie was available, so we headed to a burnt forest site near Halifax - though the first area we had any real successes with was an old oil tank, which was covered in rust and pock-marked with age. The tank provided the only shade from the harsh direct sun, and though the space was relatively limited, in regards to pose, the above image was the first strong photograph of the session.
Digital infrared original
After we ran out of ideas in the shade of the oil tank, we moved back onto the path through the forest, where we unexpectedly came across a pile of cut granite stone (likely left there in the 19th century, when a near by fortification was constructed). With the underbrush still bare from winter, and the burnt trees devoid of needles or leaves, the stone piles were one of the few areas in which provided an environment that would work with the body; with a little experimentation, the above pose, with Stephanie leaning forward, and extending her right leg along the line of the blacks, was discovered.
Digital infrared original
For the rest of the session, Stephanie and I worked on the rocks, constantly trying to work around the harsh sunlight through a combination of camera angle and pose. Overall, the session was a great beginning to the outdoor work for the year, but a little more time, and either a later session start, or softer light would have gone a long way to making Stephanie's job easier!

Stephanie and Skulls (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Digital original
This indoor session with Stephanie focused on working with a sheep skull; she'd seen the earlier work I did with Ingrid and skulls, and wished to explore the possibilities.
Digital infrared original
As with her first session, we worked with natural light in my apartment, taking advantage of the soft directional quality of the light, and the unbroken wall. During a break between making more directed images, Stephanie let the skull hang by her side, and I immediately thought of a warrior holding the head of a vanquished foe - and made the above image.
Digital infrared original
My favourite image of the session was one of the last we made - Stephanie held the skull with horns against her, and I used a large aperture to throw her body out of focus - I really like the sharp detail on the skull contrasted against the gently out-of-focus quality of Stephanie's figure behind.

April 04, 2010

A Morning Walk (Salt Marsh Trail, Nova Scotia)

Digital infrared original, 2 image stitch
The combination of the ultra-wide 17mm lens, stitching together two frames, and the infrared camera turned a relatively bland day into a beautifully dramatic panorama.