A Single Small Figure

The challenge for this exercise was to be able to find somewhere in London where a single figure would enter the frame. I decided the back or side of a building might offer me more opportunities.  The image here is the back of St Martins in the Fields.  I liked the uniformity of the windows and in particular the shapes in the central window. This turned into a waiting game. Lots of couples walked by. I also wanted someone in neutral colours. Wearing red would have made the figure more prominent in the picture.  My interpretation of the exercise was to make the person appear small, so someone in black or grey was what I was after.  Eventually this person walked into the frame.  I chose him walking out of the frame for two reasons. First when he came around the corner he was facing me, I wanted him more anonymous. Secondly I wanted to try and match him to the dark grey stone on the pavement. I felt that positioning him in this spot accentuated the size of the building and was placed so at first he isn't obvious.  Putting a figure in a picture like this, keeps the building the main feature of the picture, but adds interest and also scale to the image.

I have taken a second image similar to the one above but this time complying with the rule that the figure should walk into the frame not out of it. Is it better balanced? Probably it is.  The second image also has a curved white line leading to the figure.  This also helps to give the picture better balance. The lighting is also better in the second image giving more depth to the scene.

I am still happy with the first image but the second one shows that you can do better by waiting for all the components to come together.

Portrait - Scale and Setting

The brief for this exercise is to take four scales of portrait:

1. Face, cropped in close
2. Head and Shoulders
3. Torso, taking into account arms and hands
4. Full figure

Also consider the background.

Face, cropped in close

To me an image that is very close on the face is an intimate image. You are connecting with your subject and have to make them feel very comfortable.  I am using a 50ml lens so I am close to my subject.  I also found that the face can distort when you are this close so I chose a very wide aperture (1.4) so I have only the eyes sharp and the rest of the face softly out of focus.  Of the four images I am presenting in this exercise this is the one I like the most.

Head and Shoulders:

Although we were told the eyes should be the main attractant in our images I opted for for an image where this is not the case.  Expression is also very important.  I feel I have captured that moment we can all relate to 'don't let the soap get in my eyes!' I have the fingertips at the bottom of the frame to anchor the portrait. I have used a zoom lens and fill in flash.

Torso:
 

I prefer whenever possible to use natural lighting. Which means most of the pictures I take feel more natural. I find it difficult to pose people so would rather have them where they feel comfortable and chat with them until they aren't bothered by the camera.  Here I have used side lighting from a large window and a reflector on the other side to reduce the dark shadows on her face.  Arms and hands present a problem when more of the body is included.  This shot came when we were about to take a break she leant back twirling her hair at the back.  I asked her to hold it and took the shot.  It resolved the problem of what to do with her hands without looking overly posed.

Full Figure

I played around with the full figure I needed a wider angle to get the entire figure in. It is also easier if the model is occupied. Having a prop whatever it is relaxes the person quicker than just standing not knowing what to do with their hands and feet. Taking a full figure i find the hardest to avoid the 'snapshot' look. For this shot I have needed a bit of fill in flash even though it was outside in broad daylight to ensure that her face wasn't to dark and with strong sshadows on her face.