Week 11- Our final lab; An introduction to large format photography

For our last workshop, we looked at large format cameras and studio equipment.

Studio stand

Large format camera

Setting up the studio lighting

We were to take a still life photograph, so our group researched Renaissance, 16th and 17th Century still life paintings.
We noticed there was a theme in the way objects have been arranged, and in the items that were used, as seen in many of the 16th/ 17th Century paintings.  Different objects meant different things, such as books and quills depicting a personal vanity, while flowers often had a religious connotation.

Pieter Claesz
Vanitas Still Life- Still Life with a Skull and Writing Quill, 1628
Oil on Wood
24.1 cm x 35.9 cm

Willem Claesz Heda
Still Life with Oysters, a Silver Tazza and Glassware, 1635
Oil on Wood
49.8 cm x 80.6 cm

After the session on studio lighting, I read through the chapter on studio photography specifically in John Child and Mark Galer's book 'Photographic Lighting, Essential Skills', and noted how many different types of lighting there is, as well as the different equipment that there is available in a studio.  I'm hopeful with practise and further reading that I'll become more confident at using studio equipment.


We brought in items similar to those we had seen in the still life paintings, including a skull, books, and flower.

Mock setup of our items

Arranging them on some black cloth, we played around with different types of light, firstly using a soft box before settling on a single, more direct light to light the objects from one side.  This cast dramatic shadows across the surfaces of our images, and we felt it gave the picture an intense feel.

Our final large format image

I'm really pleased with how our final outcome turned out; it had the still life painting connotation, but with a brightly coloured, modern feel.


Further reading and research
Information on studio light- http://www.ephotozine.com/article/still-life-photography-tips-15099
http://www.ephotozine.com/article/studio-lighting---a-beginners-guide-to-studio-lighting-132
Research on Renaissance still life- http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nstl/hd_nstl.htm
John Child, Mark Galer- 'Photographic Lighting, Essential Skills', 2008