Photo Observation #5 (Uncorked!)

Posted on February 29, 2012 by previousstudent

 

2) Photo taken by Nic Christopher; March 12th, 2011.

3) THEME: One Light Source

4) DESCRIPTION: This photo was taken last year for my mom for mother’s day. I was experimenting with my camera and different lighting positions one day after school, and this is one of the many pictures I came up with that day. Originally, I was photographing the image in a light box with a single LED light shining and a 90 degree vertical angle. As I played around with the lighting of these corks I realized that one, direct light source was most desirable in order to capture all the three dimensionality and texture within each cork. I found that putting one incandescent lamp, hitting the object from a 90 degree horizontal angle gave a very interesting and almost tangible effect to the image.

To me, this image captures the essence of my mother. She is not an alcoholic by any means, she simply enjoys sampling wines from across the world. I chose to use corks as my subject as a way to relate to my mom with the composition; however, I also wanted to make sure I had an interesting subject to photograph. One other thing that is worth noting in this image is the way that the light caches the surfaces of the cylindrical corks. The rounded shape allows the light to blend from high intensity light to dark shadows, smoothly and gradually on each cork. The high and low contrasts help differentiate one cork from another and help show which cork is closest to the light source and so on. The grooves found within the wood catch the light wonderfully, enhancing the small imperfections within each one. The final thing that the lighting does for this photo is that with the one constant color from the one source is able to reflect off each cork and clearly define the subtle differences in color tone of each cork.

 

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Light Observation 5.1 (The Last Touch of Sun)

Posted on February 29, 2012 by previousstudent

1) 2/26/12 – 5:22 PM – Adams quad, facing east.

2) OBJECTIVE DESCRIPTION: I was walking out of Lowe on saturday evening just as the sun was going down. The tops of Barnard hall and Davison Hall were lit by the sun and the rest of the buildings were in shadows along with the quad. The library was also lit up by the sun as well.

3) SUBJECTIVE DESCRIPTION: I was working all day in Lowe on saturday. Finally at 5:00 I began to clean up so that I could go meet all of the people who were in tech for dinner before I needed to go to Vagina Monologues. I finally stepped out of Lowe on my way to the student center. The air was clear from all of the wind that day and the sky was mostly clear. The sun was just beginning to set and the shadows on the ground were becoming very long. I could tell that it was starting to get to be the time of day where the sun was low enough that the air began to feel colder and blue. The shadow of Lowe was being cast all the way across the quad and onto the building across the way. The shadow made it three quarters of the way up the building and made the quad feel cooler and more somber. The upper 25% of Barnard Hall was illuminated as the sun cut through the pollution of the long Island air and cast a burning yellow-orange color onto its walls. Davison hall seemed to match this phenomena along with a majority of the library.

As I walked through the “cool” air and darker shadows I looked up at the warmer “polluted” light that was being cast upon the buildings around me. Looking at these colors with their richness and intensity seemed to make me feel warmer just by imagining the sunlight hitting me as I walked through the quad. It was an amazing sensation to be in such a “cool” setting yet feel warmer, simply by responding to the light around me even though that light was simply out of reach.

 

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Light Observation 5.2 (The Starburst Sunset)

Posted on February 29, 2012 by previousstudent

1)  2/28/2012 – 6:22 – Just outside admissions building walking toward “Netherspan.”

2) OBJECTIVE DESCRIPTION: I was walking back to my room and the sun had just set. The sky was blue and orange and the clouds were white and pointed outward in the sky. The blue and orange light split behind the netherspann so the upper sky was blue and the lower sky was orange.

3) SUBJECTIVE DESCRIPTION: I was walking back to my room after class on tuesday to meet my roommate for dinner. I was quickly rushing from Lowe to the turnpike in order for me to cross the street and get to the netherlands as quickly as possible. I happened to glance up towards the “Netherspann” and then back down; I had to take a double take to look back up at the sky. The sun had just set and all of the typical “sunset colors” were strewn across the sky. The muted oranges, looking like watercolors were streaked across the lowest part of the sky. In the upper part of the sky there was a muted blue color that looked to be of the same watercolor look. From my vantage point, the “Netherspann” was dividing the sky; the lower part of the sky was the orange and upper was blue. The structure seemed to fall right in between the two colors to seem them together flawlessly.

What seemed to really enhance this image was the clouds. The clouds were light but covered the entirety of the sky. from where I was standing the clouds were able to catch the light from the sky in the perfect pattern that make the sky literally look like it was exploding from the lowest part upward, into the blue of the sky above me. This pattern looked like a starburst or like a metal explosion shooting white shards across the late afternoon sky. The clouds were hardly thick enough to notice; the moon was clearly seen above me but it was simply the angle that the sun was catching the clouds that made them glow white in all directions. It was a magnificent scene and one of the most beautiful sights I could ever imagine seeing (over Hempstead at least).

 

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Light Observation # 5 – Lee Moore

Posted on February 26, 2012 by previousstudent

1. 2-26-2012, 11:30AM, Nassau/Suffolk

2. The midmorning light projected the shadows of trees across the ceiling.

3. Sunday mornings are a beautiful thing. Waking up at 9.00 AM and knowing you can just roll over and sleep longer in the sun is one of my favorite feelings. Around 11, I sleepily opened my eyes to snuggle further under the covers only to be confronted by a window square of light hovering on the ceiling just above my toes. The branches outside the window left crisscrossed shadows across the light. The black and white projection on the ceiling looked like two color paper cut art right out of a story book. Through my blurry sleep vision, it looked like a door into a fairy world, just out of reach. Snow White’s forest floating in light.  This natural gobo effect in winter morning sunlight was simple lighting magic.

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Photo Observation #4: Night Life

Posted on February 24, 2012 by previousstudent

THEME: Night Life

DESCRIPTION: Life never stops no matter where you are. Deer graze, roosters crow, people move, dream, wake from their sleep. With this kind of life in the night, however, it often seems like life does stop. In rural Northern New York, you have to drive for miles to even see a streetlight. The two stoplights in the area continue to glow their same red and orange.  Past midnight, it’s very unlikely that you’ll see other cars unless you’re traveling a good distance.  The soft, orange glow that is so recognizable as streetlights reminds me that there is enough life, enough movement to warrant that lighting. The lights from the windows of the building remind me that others are stirring. I am not the only one up, not the only active participant in life. Those stoplights change; there is enough traffic to warrant it. Other people are right there, living. Funny how such a dull light can invoke such liveliness.

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Photo Ob #4

Posted on February 24, 2012 by previousstudent

  2. http://www.flickr.com/photos/56237162@N00/5831571848/, Tomash, Firefly at The Decemberists Concert June 13 2011

3. Nightlife

4. This photo incorporates both the party and serenity in nightlife. There are a lot of different sources of light for this photo that create a frame for the firefly, which is how I see night life. There are the occasional concert and spotlights from parking lot lights or head beams but really the only night life you see where I live are these amazing little bugs. I like the contrast of colors, it brings life and energy to play off of. The reflections of both show how much more light, in any amount, affects us during the night rather than the day.

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Lighting Moment #4

Posted on February 24, 2012 by previousstudent
  1. Wednesday 6pm walking from Bits to the NAB in the small hall across from the museum
  2. It seemed to be either a headlight or landscape lighting source at ankle height through a wirey bush creating a small crisp image on the brick.
  3. The shades were the first things that popped out at me when passing by as I was rushing to a meeting but this small 2 foot square caught me off guard. It was almost like a gobo in that it was scaled down and tucked away in the back entrance of Bits. The lighting for the entire hall was dim which made this section stick out that much more. The clear outline of each branch was something I have never seen naturally, only in a light lab with complete control of ambient light. The shades added a spooky and other worldly feel.
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Light Observation #4 – Using the Force in front of the Spiegel

Posted on February 24, 2012 by previousstudent

1)      February 22nd 2012, 11:25PM, Outside of the Spiegel Theater

2)      Watching Phil Tyler and Alex Beja fight each other with lightsabers outside of the Spiegel.

3)      Cabaret is definitely one of my favorite activities on campus. I try to go every week even though sometimes I would be better off staying in catching up on work. Regardless, I made the executive decision to go to Cabaret this past Wednesday. As Geena and I walked from the Design Studio to the Spiegel we caught a glimpse of blue and red in the distance. The colors seemed to mix together and bounce off each other, but very gracefully. As we got closer to the source of light we realized that Phil and Beja were dueling. Up close, the lights seemed much more volatile than they did from far away. With the sources of light in view the two colors seemed to dance very roughly with each other. The blue lightsaber would move quickly up and down as the red lightsaber would intercept the light it by moving right to left. I couldn’t help but think of the light moving to danse macabre. The light moving so quickly, so violently. At first it seemed so artistic graceful. Sadly looks can be deceiving from afar. I was whipped out of the moment as Phil fell to the ground because Beja claimed victory.

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Photo Observation #4 – Those Wildwood Days

Posted on February 24, 2012 by previousstudent

Taken by Joe Barrett Photography – http://www.flickr.com/photos/shorty_two3/923428549/

Theme: Nightlife

Coming from the Jersey Shore, the beach nightlife was the perfect way to spend a Friday or Saturday night. Nights would be spent walking along the pier, under the orange pier lights that seem to only be fixated every hundred feet or so. The feeling of coming into light and going back out keeps a steady rhythm that just seems so calming. Add the scenic ocean and you are transported to a serene state of mind. My favorite boardwalk, that I would spend countless hours of the summer at was Morey’s Pier in Wildwood, NJ. The boardwalk stretched for miles and three piers jet out of the boardwalk and into the ocean. It is impossible to fully enjoy every pier in one day. One pier alone is an adventure for two days.  The best part of the piers were the grandiose entrances. After finally deciding on what pier to go on, you would be flooded with beautiful artificial neon lights. This picture is the entrance to the Middle Pier. Right away the visitor is blown away by the shear magic light. The Ferris wheel pops out of the picture with beautiful colors, magnifying its size. The gold light on the swings to the right bring the eye to the detailed artwork on the ceiling of the ride. Normally this would go unseen in the daytime. A roller coaster fills the left side of the photo, with its magnificent shape. It seems to never end, forever traveling in the darkness and going on forever. Even with all these main attractions lit, it is still not enough. Every little arcade game or food booth also is covered in neon lights. The best part about this picture is the dark sky. Not a single star can be seen. Normally I would think negatively of this but when all these neon lights glow against the night sky, I just feel a sense of excitement and life. This scene is just stunning.  Just like Bobby Rydell sang, “ All I think about, those Wildwood days!”

 

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Lighting Observation # 4 – Lee Moore

Posted on February 24, 2012 by previousstudent

1. Being Auctioned from the Spiegal Stage, 2-23-2012, 12:30 AM

2. Standing on the Speigal Stage, blinded by the bright white of stage lights.

3. Being stood up on a block on the Spiegal stage to be auctioned off at Cabaret falls into the category of “Things that make Lee super uncomfortable”. I suppose then, that I am blessed by stage lights. My vision was perfect brightness, right up until we hit the masses of drunk college students in the seats. Then it was a black abyss filled with titters and whispers. I don’t spend a lot of time being looked at under stage lights, or trying to see past them, so the auction experience was made even more disorienting by my inability to cope with my sudden blindness. The light felt warm on my skin, but looked cold and unfeeling from my perch. I was uncomfortable under these seeming interrogation lights, all alone, hearing only my worth being debated by my friends. This light is not a love poem, but rather Edgar Allen Poe.

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