Thursday, March 3, 2011

My Photography Independent Study

Darnell Bates B&W minimalist, Landscape Photographer for DB8S Photography,  Long Beach, CA 2011. (DB8S Photo/Darnell Bates)
My attempt at understanding the zone system


This semester I have decided to back up and really focusing hard on the technical side of my photography. As a landscape photographer (with a preference for B&W film and major interest in Night/Low Light Photography) I am finding that in order to gain this knowledge, I needed to take the time and learn that in which I am not learning via my standard instructions at LBCC and teach myself.

My Goals: 

  • Learn the Zone System and Hyperfocal Distance
  • Looooong Exposure
  • Study the Romantic Period and Minimalism
  • Study the Olde Master 
    • Ansel Adam
    • Eadweard Muybridge
    • Carleton E. Watkins
    • William Henry Jackson
    • Dorothea Lange
Tools
  • "Ansel Adams and the Photographers of the American West" by Eva Weber (read)
  • "The Land Through A Lens" Highlights from the Smithsonian American Art Museum (read)
  • "Night Photography" by Lance Keimig (read)
  • "Night and Low Light Photography" by Jill Waterman (read)
  • Many hours of Podcast (faves Photography.ca and Harvard Extension School's Computer Science)
  • Many hours of viewing actual and digital images (museums and on-line)
  • Images captured via 35mm & 120 Holga
  • ND Filters
Starting Monday (Feb 7) I will begin to process more film and see if the studies have progressed my work.

  • I learned that "The Print" is EVERYTHING 
  • You are only as good as your series.

2 comments:

  1. Great post Darnell, keep me posted on those museum trips, love to go along.

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  2. Hey thanks for the mention, it's an honor. Nick John, who teaches at the New England School of Photography in Boston with me has written what I believe to be the most easily understandable Zone System book. It's a self published spiral bound book, but truly excellent. Reading it was what really helped me to fully understand the Zone System. I'll be seeing hi next Friday, and can ask about copies if you're interested.

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