NQ Photography: Studio Portraiture

Another year and another photography course, well I'll need to do something with all the free time that I'll have after the London Marathon.  This time I’m back at the City of Glasgow College and I’m doing the NQ Photography: Studio Portraiture evening class. With the course leading to an SQA certificate, it has to have a set syllabus, which includes both research and practical. Despite the course title some of our photography will be in the studio but some of it will also be ‘on location’. To gain the NQ, I’ll need to submit a workbook at the end of the term, containing about 600 words of research, five images that I’ve shot as part of the course and an evaluation of about 700 words.

It’s quite a big class, with about 20 students, most of which are semi-professional photographers aspiring to be full-time. I’m in the small minority of students who are doing it just for fun, although if you do want some photos taking………..

As well as introductions to the other students, I already know the tutor, we spent the first half of the class looking at the work of some famous portrait photographers including: Arnold Newman; David Bailey; Annie Liebovitz; Anto Corbijn; Nadar Kander and Scotland’s own Rankin and discussing how their shots were taken, with particular reference to the type of light sources used and where they were placed. The idea being that we should be able to understand how particular photographs were shot and learn the various techniques.

Light Meter



After the break we had a quick refresher on ISO and aperture and shutter speed settings as well as metering and how to use a light metre before moving on to some practical work in the studio. I was lucky enough to be the photographer and took the pics, whilst another student took the light readings and another acted as a model.

Barndoor

 We started with using a Strobe light on one side of the model’s face, then added a dark background, then changing to a Barndoor light to absorb some of the light and then added some reflection on the other side of the model’s face.

and before we knew it class was over for the night.  I wonder if the London Marathon will go so fast......