In The Office Alcove

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Page created December 24, 2011
Sitting date:  June 29, 2011

 

We move further into the top floor -- the finished attic.  In the far room, my office, there is this little alcove -- on the outside of the house, it is a little dormer.  The window has a good view of the northern sky, which is favored by the old master painters.  On summer days like today, with the sun high in the sky, we can enjoy some nice soft light.

I also like how the rich green wall colors compliment skin tones.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Many photographers eschew cropping.  Certainly, they get the most out of an image by utilizing all of its surface area.  But from the beginning, I often crop my image in post-production.  I suppose this is because my first camera was a rangefinder -- the image in its viewfinder was slightly different from the image recorded in the negative, so to be sure that I was capturing everything, I stepped back slightly to include more in the negative; then when I printed the image, I cropped it down.

I often find opportunities to make adjustments in post production, and that often means subtle or even radical cropping.  

This image is a good example:

  • I like the light on Ryonen's face.  It's unusual (but it's something I may want to explore in the future).
  • I like the contrast between the green wall and Ryonen's skin tones.

But I don't like the white-ish carpet or the white trim (I can't remember the word) -- I think that's a distraction.  I like to reduce images to the bare necessities, so this is a candidate for cropping (and for artistic effects).  Check out the variations below, and let me know what you think. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We were getting tired -- at least, I know that I was.  Ryonen has a posing method that is unfamiliar to me:  she would take a moment, gather herself, and then turn her focus to the camera.  Sometimes, I would catch her in mid-gather.  

Again, this is s cropped image.  I like the separation of tonal values throughout -- the shadows against Ryonen's well lit skin really define her lovely figure.

Below is another "mid-gather" image.  I usually hate the ubiquitous "model staring out of the window" cliché:

  • I always wonder what the model is looking at.
  • I wonder why the model is ignoring the photographer.
  • The model's shadow side is often not distinguished from the background.  

This image below is somewhat okay because you can't see the window, and the shadow side of Ryonen's face is well lit.

 

 

 

 

The space is tight, which means that there wasn't a lot of room to move.  Further, the configuration of the room means additional limitations.  So, we quickly exhaust our options, but before we move on, I ask Ryonen to stand up.

Ryonen is taller than the top of the window, but the light is bouncing around.  The carpet is light colored, and the diffuse light defines shapes well.  It is unusual, and I like it, a lot.

 

 

 

 

 

By this time, it was getting pretty late, and I was almost ready to call it a day.  However, as I stood up, my eye wandered over to the end of my office seating area.  There is a little blank wall, lit by a spotlight.  I have photographed models there before, and many visiting photographers have also used that exact spot.  All the images Ryonen & I made today were lit by the sun; I decided to make a few exposures using the spotlight.

Ryonen In The Office Spotlight

 

(Remember -- feedback is always appreciated) 

All images (c) 2012 Looknsee Photography

Natalia, Fifth Visit Out Takes

Over 200 more images from this sitting are available in the Out Takes Galleries, which are available to those who have made a donation to the upkeep of this web site.  See this FAQ question for more details.