Category Archives: Module 3

M3 Wk7: The current commercial environment

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Week 7: Your Market

I want you think about who your audience and your market are. Are they the same? If you haven’t got a market yet, think about who you want your future market to be. For this week’s forum I want you to sell one picture, in whatever way. You might sell an image through a picture library, a print to a relative or a stranger on the street, or a current affairs image to a newspaper.

Use the space below to tell us more about how you chose the image, how you sold it and how you negotiated its value / price.

Anna-Maria Pfab

The Photography Show always brings welcome opportunities.  One I always appreciate is the ability to have 24″ prints produced FOC by a number of companies selling their printing technologies.  At this year’s show, I took the opportunity to experiment with different paper types in order to identify the print solution most appropriate to my stained glass images.  Consequently I have a couple surplus, identical, high quality archive prints, each on a different paper type.  Having helped me to decide upon the preferred paper, these duplicates now serve no sensible purpose.  Not wanting to jump into more significant marketing just yet, it is these two prints that I shall proffer for sale… with all monies being profit, in this instance, I have nothing to lose!

03 - Completed - The Lord is my Refuge

Perhaps a little bit of a cop out, but they are each perfectly good, archive quality prints that deserve more than to sit in a portfolio folder.

Additionally, the image predates my current Research Project portfolio (albeit featuring a window that I will inevitably revisit before too long) and can definitely be improved upon in the future.

 

 

Project Development

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Harris Manchester College Chapel – Angels

I have commented extensively on the stained glass of The Chapel of Harris Manchester College and in particular its East Window.  Having previously edited the rose ‘Teaching the Ignorant’ I was drawn to the selection of angels that that flank the rose.

I have yet to find a detailed guide to tracery in order to identify and name, appropriately, the various parts of a church window.  Notwithstanding, below are edits of these beautiful, yet subtle components of the window.  I have cropped each as a square to optimise their use on Instagram, but also because they might lend themselves to greetings card design.

HMC - Angel Left (low res)HMC - Angel Right (low res)HMC - DCP_8711 sq (low res)HMC - DCP_8691 sq (low res)HMC - DCP_8734 c qs (low res)

East Window tracery lights (BJ237 Edward Burne-Jones, 1896) The Chapel of Harris Manchester College

M3 Wk7: The current commercial environment

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Week 7 Challenge: Innovate Distribute

As you have heard in this week’s lectures, the markets for photography have changed and are rapidly continuing to do so. For this week’s activity, please imagine you are able to erase all of your knowledge and ideas about how to present a photograph or a photo story. You have never heard about newspapers and magazines or prints and photo books. But you have a brilliant photograph, or photo story, and you want it to be seen. So you will need to find a new way of communicating this to a chosen audience.

First, ask yourself which audience you want to reach – this can be anything from another country to your family. Then, think about the most effective and innovative way to bring your image or story to that audience. A few things are now allowed: you are not allowed to make prints, you are not allowed to make a publication, and you are not allowed to publish it in a magazine or newspaper. And you also cannot publish it online.

Try to find a new way of distributing your image or story: everything else is allowed, from peanut butter jars to license plates.

Anna-Maria Pfab

This is going to take quite a bit of off-piste effort to sort out and is thanks to a fantastic idea from Tessa Huff: Stained Glass Cookies

A discussion with our Head Chef has ensured that this is the most appropriate recipe.  However, the images are stock and do not compliment directly my particular field of stained glass windows.  It is my hope to produce some cookies of a more appropriate and fitting design in due course.  My concept for this challenge is to produce a number of small card boxes containing a number of cookies of a design befitting stained glass windows – ideally linked directly to the image being marketed.  The box would be printed as an advertisement for my image.  The boxes could then be left in the reception area of an appropriate location (be it the Porter’s Lodge of one of the Oxford Colleges, for example).

Stained Glass Sugar Cookie Recipe

  • 250g all-purpose flour
  • a pinch of sea salt
  • 170g unsalted butter
  • 200g granulated sugar
  • 60g icing sugar
  • 50ml milk
  • 15ml vanilla extract

& 200g bag boiled sweets (Fox’s Glacier Fruit, for example) for the ‘glass’.

  1. Whisk the flour and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
  2. Mix in a large bowl the butter, granulated sugar and icing sugar until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes using a mixer or hand whisk). Add the milk and vanilla; mix until combined. Slowly add in flour mixture and stir until smooth.
  3. Divide the dough in half, shape into disks, and cover in plastic wrap.  Chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
  4. When ready, roll out half of the cookie dough at a time to 5-6mm thick on a lightly flour-dusted work surface.  Using a decorative cookie cutter, cut out shapes of dough.
  5. Transfer the cookies to a lined baking tray, spaced about an 3cm apart.  Use a smaller cutter or the end of a round piping tip to punch out holes.  Chill the cookies (on the baking tray) for at least 30 minutes.

    BBPCcGo

    © Food Network Canada (2018) filling-stained-glass-cookies-with-candy

  6. Repeat with the remaining dough (and off-cuts).  Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 190°C.
  7. Grind the hard candies into a powder using a food processor, one colour at a time. The powder will begin to clump and harden if left out, so use immediately.
  8. Using a small spoon, carefully fill the holes of the cookies with different colors of ground candy. Fill the holes completely.  Try to prevent the candy from spilling onto the surface of the cookie.  Brush away any excess candy.

    BBPCjaR

    © Food Network Canada (2018) stained-glass-cookies-on-tray

  9. Bake the cookies in the pre-heated oven for 9 to 12 minutes.  If at 9 minutes the candy-filled holes seem thin, very carefully spoon in a little bit more candy and continue to bake just until melted.
  10. When done, place the baking sheet on a wire rack. Allow cookies to cool completely before removing with a metal or rubber spatula.  The melted candy will be very hot.  Please take case and do not touch until cookies have cooled.
  11. Store cooled cookies in an air-tight container.

    BBPCcGB

    © Food Network Canada (2018) Stained-Glass-sugar-Cookies-on-plate

We remember them…

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Light boxes

Gosport’s War Memorial Hospital has had a chequered history in recent years, making the headlines for all the wrong reasons.  However, this week a positive snippet of news came thanks to the support of Gosport War Memorial League of Friends.

The hospital was built in part with contributions from the Royal Marines and has, to this day, been a memorial to those killed in action.  To celebrate the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War, three back-lit stained glass lights were commissioned.  Crafted by Sunrise Stained Glass, Southsea.

Sunrise Stained Glass

© Sarah Standing (2018) Gosport War Memorial Hospital stained glass

This is the first example of back-lit stained glass that I have seen and it is a concept that I have considered for my work.  For years this has been used widely in advertising, and with the ever falling price of LED strip lighting, this might become an option for me (although unless the Lottery is kind, I cannot imagine that I will be able to afford more than one or two such units).

While there are many companies proffering light box solutions and I have investigated a few at The Photography Show, one of the better is LiteHouse, who have produced a number of significant commercial installations in addition to a few specifically for stained glass.

We remember them…

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100th Anniversary of the end of WW1

Working alongside my brother-in-law has given me a shared interest in his passion for military history.  I have supported him on more than thirty educational visits to battlefields across the world, creating a resource of more than 3000 images.  Many of those images illustrate a book he published, detailing the 300+ former pupils who died in action, spanning almost the entire 150 year history of the school, from the Zulu wars up until the trouble in Northern Ireland.

The school in which we work believes very strongly in maintaining the pupil’s understanding of the sacrifice given by their predecessors and Remembrance Sunday is one of our most significant services in chapel.  This year, each boy laid a Remembrance Cross on the chapel altar, detailing the name and dates of one of our fallen old boys as a poignant start to the service.

We Remember

This is very much my typical photographic work, with the images from the numerous battlefield visits having to fulfil the expectations of various targeted audiences: the school is always keen to have ‘PR’ images for newsletters, the website and the school magazine; the School Archives desires images of all former pupil’s headstones, together with any associated images.  Additionally, I am always keep to capture poignant images that might have a value in the stock images market.

M3 Wk3: The digital new possibilities

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Week 3: Challenge – Image Virus UPDATE

My decision here was to reinterpret the challenge and use the ‘power of the Internet’ to identify a series of negatives that have been in my possession for a number of years.

As I only have a 35mm negative scanner and these were Kodak 116 negatives (frame size: 65 x 110 mm), I had to enlist my Father’s help: he has a scanner capable of handling large format negatives.

On Thursday 08 November,  I used Facebook to publish a public post relating to the negatives, requesting help in identifying the locations, Regiment, date, etc.. LINK

Quite quickly suggestions came in postulating that images related to either the Mesopotamia Campaign or the North West Frontier.

Old 01 (lr2)In a second batch of images emailed from my Father, I was able to carry out a reverse image search on an iconic building, promptly revealed as the remains of Taq Kasra – the Arch of Ctesiphon, 35km south east of Baghdad.  This confirmed that (at least some of) the images related to the Mesopotamia Campaign.

It is currently looking most likely that the military manoeuvres are preparations for the Battle of Ctesiphon, including the construction of a bridge over the River Tigris.  The confusing appearance of Indian’s is explained because the major part of the ‘British’ force in the campaign was taken by soldiers from Indian Expeditionary Force D.

Old 02 (lr 2)Old 05 (lr 2)

It would seem that I can state the following with some certainty:

  • Location –  Ctesiphon, Iraq.
  • Date – Late 1915
  • Regiment – Indian Expeditionary Force D

These results look quite promising and in a short period of time.  However, I do still require verification and may seek this from the Imperial War Museum.  I would love to find out who was taking the photographs and for what purpose-are these simply ‘holiday’ snaps, or were they for a more practical purpose?

Project Development

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University College Chapel

Best known for its windows by Dutch artist Abraham van Linge, it seems somewhat ironic that today’s visit saw me photograph none of those.  Sadly the lighting was too bright and harsh to capture any of the south windows and as a result of this, the north windows were too brightly lit internally by the other windows.

Univ - Chapel (low res)Univ - Chapel 02 (low res)

This only left me with the ‘new’ east window.  For the first time, I opted to capture all five of the main lights within the window as they tell the story of the crucifixion in its entirety.  In addition to this, and in keeping with most of my visits this Module, I photographed a number of the angels that make up the reticulated tracery at the top of the window.

Univ - Rose - Left Angel (low res)Univ - East Windows - Centre Angels (Low Res)Univ - Rose - Right Angel (low res)

Scenes from the Passion – Angles (Arthur & Michael O’Connor, 1864) University College Chapel

These images were shot at 400mm using the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens, at an aperture of f/8.0 and exposure times ranging from 1/50 s to 1/2 s.  Currently I have yet to start editing the main lights, but will post an update once it is complete.

I plan to return to photograph other windows within the chapel when the light is more favourable, although am inclined to capture the Adoration of the Magi (Clayton & Bell, 1866) rather than one of the van Linge’s, since this will tie in with my plan to generate a supplemental portfolio of image appropriate for use in the production of a collection of Christmas cards.

Project Development

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University College Chapel – East Window

My first stab at (almost) an entire window warrants a before and after look.  I was ambivalent about the support bars, and despite there being only two or three per light, I opted to leave them in as they do not detract (much) from the image.  Now, as I type this, I find myself questioning that decision.  Perhaps at a later date I might re-edit the image, but for the time being they remain.

Univ - East Window - Scenes from the Passion (low res) BEFOREUniv - East Window - Scenes from the Passion (low res)

Scenes from the Passion (Arthur & Michael O’Connor, 1864) University College Chapel

This blog does not do the five lights sufficient justice, so below is the window split into three, running from left to right:

Univ - East Window - Scenes from the Passion (low res Left)Univ - East Window - Scenes from the Passion (low res Centre)Univ - East Window - Scenes from the Passion (low res Right)

I am surprised by the lack of support bars – based upon previous experiences, I would have anticipated four or five per light, but instead there are two or perhaps three, with an extensive area of unsupported glass in the middle.  Perhaps this is a feature of Arthur & Michael O’Connor lights – as these are the first that I have (knowingly) seen, it is hard to tell without further research.

The presence of two candelabras necessitated the photograph to be taken from an off-centre position to the left of the window, leaving the candelabra chain running between the fourth and fifth light.  The existence of raised pews and high kneelers at the west end facilitated a pleasingly high tripod location, some 4m off the ground.  As a result, there was only minimal post-production perspective control required, with a minor amount of converging verticals and not too much horizontal convergence, with the degradation in image quality being difficult to notice.

A total of 18 images were shot at 148mm using the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens, at an aperture of f/8.0 and exposure times ranging from 1/50 s to 1s.

Project Development

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Why do it?

Univ GIF

‘There is considerable emphasis on how much time it takes to make such images, which is appreciated but it merely raises more questions about why you choose to do it.’

I am a perfectionist whom enjoys the intellectual challenge of optimising the production of projects as far as it is possible to take them.  To that end, when I am setting up the shots within a chapel, I am always a little frustrated that I do not have something more like a Hasselblad H6D-400C MS for its outrageous resolution and a mobile aerial work platform to enable me to photograph at the height of the windows, so eliminating the need for post-production perspective control.

I believe, fundamentally, that postgraduate studies in photography should be a challenge photographically.  Within my project, I am using my experience, knowledge and understanding to produce images that are currently beyond the capabilities of cameras.  Me augmenting technology if you like.  Because cameras do not have the dynamic range to handle stained glass, there are precious few quality images out there (with the exception of those taken in museum collections, in which the glass has undergone expert cleaning and the unit is backlit by a light box of precise, known, colour temperature).  Such challenges make this work interesting.

I enjoy the challenge.  I am doing something that is innovative within its field, and I am cataloguing an aspect of a collection that did not even exist on paper until I created the list.

Project Development

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Worcester College Chapel – Planning Visit

Perhaps stretching the truth a little: today I was singing evensong at Worcester College with the school choir, which cancelled out much of my half day, precluding my ability to work creatively on my project.  However, having sung here several times before, and already knowing the Chaplain, it did afford me the chance for some planning and a verbal request to photograph the windows.

Sadly, being an evensong in the winter months, it was dark by the time of my arrival in chapel, so my iPhone battled to drag any suggestion of light from the windows.  However, all is not lost…

Worcester_College_Chapel,_Oxford,_UK_-_Diliff (low res)

David Iliff (2015) Worcester College Chapel

The lavish appearance of the current chapel is thanks extensive renovation and redecoration work by William Burge, that started in 1863.  Its stained glass windows were to have been designed by John Everett Millais, but Burges rejected his designs and entrusted the work to Henry Holiday.

Surely that has to be a story in itself!  The fact that Burges rejected the designs himself would suggest, sadly, that they did not even get as far as the College, who would likely have archived them.  My penchant for Holiday’s work is no secret, but I am fascinated to know what might have been had Millais’ work been used.

Millais was no fool where Pre-Raphaelite art is concerned, perhaps best known for his oil-painting on canvas Ophelia, he became friendly with William Holman Hunt, whose famous work The Light of the World (painted at the same time as Ophelia), hangs in the Side Chapel of Keble College, Oxford.

N01506_10 (Ophelia) (low res)

John Everett Millais (1851-2) Ophelia ©Tate, London 2014

A moderate level of research reveals surprisingly sparse reference to Millais’ stained glass work, besides another oil painting Mariana, which features the stained glass of Merton College Chapel, Oxford.

T07553_10 Mariana (low res)

John Everett Millais (1851) Mariana ©Tate, London 1999

Stories within stories.  Definitely worth of further investigation, but not right now at the expense of my current research.

The chapel is unusually wide, which might afford some good photography of the windows that adorn the north and south walls – despite their height.  As is increasingly the case, the east window will prove most straightforward to photograph, with an uninterrupted view along the nave.

Worcester_College_Chapel,_Oxford,_UK_-_Diliff 02 (low res)

David Iliff (2015) Worcester College Chapel (tight crop)

With the support bars being an integral part of every window, it may prove sensible to preclude any removal from this location… the idea of editing out eight horizontal and two vertical bars is horrific!

After the service, the Chaplain kindly granted me open access to photograph the chapel windows whenever suits me, so I suspect that this will be one of my first visits in the New Year.

Looking at the exquisite image by David Iliff makes me realise that I should be recording a quality locational shot on each visit.  While this is something that I have been doing, for the most part, it has been a little half-hearted thus far.