Night 5 of course: Still Life

[dorsetman]

This was the class I was looking forward to the least as I have no interest in still life, I didn't as a kid at school when studying art either. The night was very straight forward. We went through a power point presentation on what still life is and what most considered it to be and some influential artists. Then we put what he considered we had learned to practise. We each brought in objects that we considered summed up us or our interests and then composed them in a way that we liked. Finally using light we then took our photos and analysed the results. I did learn a few things but again I wasn't blown away as this isn't where my interest lay but I can see what people would have taken away from the lesson.

Next week is half term so in two weeks time we will be working on portraiture which will be interesting and a lesson I look forward to.

[miketoll]

I have never got into still life either but there is a lot you can learn from it, the main ones being subject choice, composition, shooting position, lens choice and of course lighting which you will need to master for portraits too.
All the other things you have learned come into place too like DOF, camera support and such like.
The scary thing is there is no excuse whatsoever if the shot has any weaknesses as you have full considered control over absolutely everything.

[dorsetman]

I agree totally Mike, still life requires many qualities as you mention. Since Wednesday I have been doing a little research and saw a beautiful few photos which were inspiring and I am keen to try a few still life shots but want to take my time in considering what I will shoot. I think for me, the lighting will be key, Trena on here has proved how valuable light is for still life.