1 What Is Photography?
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Basic Photography To P. Still the first for the first . Basic Photography Seventh Edition Michael Langford FBIPP, HonFRPS Formerly Photography Course Director Royal College of Art, London Focal Press OXFORD AUCKLAND BOSTON JOHANNESBURG MELBOURNE NEW DELHI Focal Press An imprint of Butterworth-Heinemann Linacre House, Jordan Hill, Oxford OX2 8DP 225 Wildwood Avenue, Woburn, MA 01801-2041 A division of Reed Educational and Professional Publishing Ltd A member of the Reed Elsevier plc group First published 1965 Second edition 1971 Third edition 1973 Fourth edition 1977 Fifth edition 1986 Sixth edition 1997 Reprinted 1998 (twice), 1999 Seventh edition 2000 © Michael Langford 2000 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form (including photocopying or storing in any medium by electronic means and whether or not transiently or incidentally to some other use of this publication) without the written permission of the copyright holder except in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London, England W1P 0LP. Applications for the copyright holder’s written permission to reproduce any part of this publication should be addressed to the publishers British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress ISBN 0 240 51592 7 Composition by Genesis Typesetting, Rochester, Kent Printed and bound in Italy Contents Picture credits xiii Introduction xv Overview 1 What is photography? 1 Facets of photography 1 How photography works 2 Picture structuring 6 The roles photographs play 7 Changing attitudes towards photography 11 Personal styles and approaches 16 Measuring success 20 Summary 22 Projects 23 Underlying principles 2 Light: how images form 24 Light itself 24 Wavelengths and colours 25 Shadows 26 When light reaches a surface 27 Light intensity and distance 30 Making light form images 31 Summary 36 Projects 37 Technical practice 3 Lenses: controlling the image 39 Photographic lenses 39 Aperture and f-numbers 42 Depth of field 44 v vi Contents How depth of field works 46 Depth of focus 49 Lens care 50 Summary 50 Projects 51 Hardware 4 Cameras using film 52 The essential components 53 Camera types – which is best? 60 How view cameras work 63 How direct viewfinder cameras work 65 How reflex cameras work 70 Summary 76 Projects 77 Choosing extras 5 Using different focal length lenses, camera kits 78 Why change focal length? 78 Lens kits 84 Close-up equipment 89 Essentials, and extras 91 Horses for courses 93 Summary 93 Projects 94 New technology 6 Digital cameras 95 Overview – how images are captured 95 Film versus digital imaging routes 96 CCD limits to your final print size 97 Storing exposed shots on memory cards, disks 101 Point-and-shoot ‘low-end’ cameras 103 ‘High-end’ cameras, digital backs 103 Will digital cameras take over? 104 Summary 106 Contents vii Theory into practice 7 Lighting: principles and equipment 107 Basic characteristics of lighting 107 Lighting equipment 114 Practical lighting problems 120 Special subjects 124 Summary 126 Projects 127 Visual skills 8 Organizing the picture 128 Noticing subject features 129 Structuring pictures through the camera 138 Commercial requirements 146 Summary 149 Projects 149 Materials 9 Films, filters 150 Silver halide emulsions 150 Features common to all films 153 Choosing films for black and white 159 Films for colour photography 161 Storing film – before and after exposure 166 So which film is ‘best’? 167 Filters – how they work 169 Filter kits 175 Summary 176 Projects 177 Practical skills 10 Exposure measurement 178 Factors that determine what exposure to give 178 Exposing different film types 180 Measuring exposure (continuous light) 184 Practical exposure tips 193 Measuring exposure for flash 194 Practical flash exposure tips 198 Summary 201 viii Contents Equipment & procedure 11 Film processing 203 Equipment and general preparations 204 Processing black and white (silver image) negatives 210 Processing chromogenic (colour and black and white) negatives 215 Processing colour slides and transparencies 216 Processing other film materials 217 Processing by machine 218 Permanence of processed results 220 Summary 221 Projects 222 The darkroom 12 Black and white printing: facilities and equipment 223 Darkroom organization 223 Equipment: the enlarger 225 Equipment: accessories 230 Printing papers 232 Safelighting and printing paper sensitivity 237 Processing procedure 238 Summary 242 Projects 243 Darkroom skills 13 Black and white printing: techniques 244 Making contact prints 244 ‘Straight’ enlarging 246 Controls during enlarging 247 Variations 251 Unusual printing materials 255 Common print faults 255 Chemical afterwork 258 Toning 259 Tinting 261 Summary 264 Projects 265 Contents ix Computer skills 14 Digital image manipulation 266 Overview 266 The hardware 268 Software programs 271 Learning the ropes 274 Working on pictures 278 Digital ethics 290 Summary 292 Projects 293 Practical 15 Finishing and presenting work 294 The permanence of prints 294 Mounting methods 295 Spotting 297 Getting your work noticed 298 Summary 303 Projects 304 Appendices 305 A: Optical calculations 305 B: Camera movements 306 C: Expressing film response 313 D: Chemical formulae 317 E: Health and safety concerns 320 F: Digital notebook 321 Glossary 323 Index 333 This Page Intentionally Left Blank Michael Langford completed this seventh edition shortly before his death in April 2000 but, sadly, never saw it in print. The first edition of this book, in 1965, was Michael’s first published title. In its seventh edition it brings his coverage of photography right up to date. This is a classic text and every photographer’s bible. Along with Michael’s many other titles, this seventh edition will ensure that he lives on through his work, providing guidance to everyone who shares his great passion for photography and wants to learn more. xi This Page Intentionally Left Blank Picture credits Figure 1.1 © Harold & Esther Edgerton Foundation, 1999. Courtesy of Palm Press Inc. 1.4 Brendan Corr © Financial Times. 1.5 Henri Cartier- Bresson/Magnum. 1.6 Lee Friedlander, New York. 1.7 Nick Ut/ Associated Press (AP). 1.8, 5.5, 7.3, 8.2, 8.5, 8.17, 8.19 Library of Congress. 1.10 © Jerry Uelsmann. 1.11, 2.1, 14.39 Royal Photographic Society, Bath. 1.12 Stephen Dalton/NHPA. 1.14, 8.8 Bill Brandt Archive Ltd at www.billbrandt.com. 1.15 © Joy Gregory. 1.16 © Hannah Starkey. 1.17, 8.24 © John Batho, courtesy Zabrieskie Gallery. 6.11 Courtesy Phase One, Denmark. 7.20 Robert Freson, Sunday Times Magazine. 8.1 Elliott Erwitt/Magnum. 8.7 © 2000 The Arizona Board of Regents for the Centre for Creative Photography, Tuscan, Arizona. Courtesy of Weston Gallery Inc, Carmel, Calif. 8.10 © Hunter Kennedy. 8.15 © Franco Fontana. 8.16, 8.18, 8.20 Collections/Fay Godwin. 8.26 © Ady Kerry LBIPP/AK Pictures. 8.29, 13.25 Jean Dieuzaide, Toulouse. 9.1 Courtesy Eastman Kodak Company. 9.24 © Jim Mackintosh Photography, Glasgow. 13.24 © Tansy Spinks. 14.1 © Nicky Coutts. 14.28 © Catherine McIntyre. 14.40 © Ian Coates, FBIPP. 14.41 © Paul Wenham-Clarke. 15.9 © David Hockney. 15.10 Courtesy VisualEyes Ltd. 15.11 Courtesy Martin Evening. B.5 © National Trust Photographic Library/John Bethell. (All other pictures by the author.) xiii This Page Intentionally Left Blank Introduction ‘ . .Technique is basic to the art of photography’ Beaumont Newhall, Museum of Modern Art (Essays, 1980) Basic Photography is an introductory textbook, covering the varied skills which lie behind photographic practice. It is intended for students of all ages and, beginning at square one, assumes that you have no theoretical knowledge of photography, nor any scientific background. The book explains equipment and techniques, provides information on how today’s ‘silver halide’ materials and processes work, together with new digital methods of shooting and manipulating pictures. At the same time, since technical know-how and craft skills mean little on their own, the importance of visual content and meaning in photographs is stressed throughout. In short, Basic Photography is planned as a primer for professionals which will interest and inform amateur photographers too. ‘Photography’, or ‘light drawing’, is essentially a combination of technique and visual observation. Developing your ability to make successful photographs must include some basic technical theory, otherwise you will not get the most out of your tools, fully explore materials, or turn out reliable results. This aspect of learning photography is like learning to write: first you have to shape the letters forming words, then spell, then string together sentences and para- graphs. But the individual who can do all this is no writer until he or she has ideas to express through words. In the same way technical theory to the photographer is a means to a visual end, something which allows better control and self-confidence in achieving what you want to say. Basic Photography opens with a broad look at photography – putting it in context as a versatile and important contemporary medium. Then it goes on to show how photography’s components, procedures and chemical processes fit together. The chapters are laid out in the same order as image production, starting with chapters on light and lenses, and proceeding through cameras, subject lighting, and composition. (These ‘front end’ aspects remain valid whether you use traditional photographic materials, or newer electronic methods of image capture.) The book continues with films, exposure, processing, printing, and finishing. Many photography courses start off with students using colour (slide) film, to build up confidence in camera handling and picture xv xvi Introduction composition before progressing to more technical aspects of darkroom work.