Langford's Advanced Photography

429 Pages·2007·21.29 MB·english

by  Efthimia Bilissi

Langford’s
Advanced
Photography
Seventh Edition
This page intentionally left blank
Langford’s
Advanced
Photography
Seventh Edition
Michael Langford FBIPP, HonFRPS
Royal College of Art, London
Efthimia BilissiMSc PhD AIS ARPS
Senior Lecturer
University of Westminster, London
Contributors
Elizabeth AllenBSc MSc
Course Leader BSc (Hons) Photography and Digital Imaging
University of Westminster, London
Andy Golding
Head of Department of Photography and Film
University of Westminster, London
Hani MuammarBSc MSc PhD MIET
Senior Scientist
Kodak European Research
Sophie TriantaphillidouBSc PhD ASIS FRPS
Leader Imaging Technology Research Group
University of Westminster, London
AMSTERDAM• BOSTON• HEIDELBERG• LONDON• NEWYORK• OXFORD
PARIS• SANDIEGO• SANFRANCISCO• SINGAPORE• SYDNEY• TOKYO
Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier
Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier
Linacre House, Jordan Hill, Oxford OX2 8DP, UK
30 Corporate drive, Suite 400, Burlington, MA 01803, USA
First published 1969
Second edition 1972
Third edition 1974
Fourth edition 1980
Fifth edition 1989
Reprinted 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995
Sixth edition 1998
Reprinted 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006
Seventh edition 2008
Copyright © 2008, Pamela Langford, Dr. Efthimia Bilissi.
Contributors: Elizabeth Allen, Dr. Sophie Triantiphilidou, Andy Golding and Dr. Hani Muammar.
Published by Elsevier Ltd. All right reserved
The right of Dr. Efthimia Bilissi, Michael Langford, Elizabeth Allen, Dr. Sophie
Triantiphilidou, Andy Golding and Dr. Hani Muammar to be identified as the authors
of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted
in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or
otherwise without the prior written permission of the publisher
Permissions may be sought directly from Elsevier’s Science & Technology Rights
Department in Oxford, UK: phone: ((cid:2)44) (0) 1865 843830; fax: ((cid:2)44) (0) 1865 853333;
email: [email protected]. Alternatively you can submit your request online by
visiting the Elsevier web site at http://elsevier.com/locate/permissions, and selecting
Obtaining permission to use Elsevier material
Notice
No responsibility is assumed by the publisher for any injury and/or damage to persons or
property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or
operation of any methods, products, instructions or ideas contained in the material herein.
Because of rapid advances in the medical sciences, in particular, independent verification
of diagnoses and drug dosages should be made
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Langford, Michael John, 1933–
Langford’s advanced photography. – 7th ed.
1. Photography
I. Title II. Bilissi, Efthimia III.Langford, Michael John,
1933–. Advanced photography
771
Library of Congress Number: 2007938571
ISBN: 978-0-240-52038-4
For information on all Focal Press publications
visit our website at www.focalpress.com
Typeset by Charon Tec Ltd (A Macmillan Company), Chennai, India
www.charontec.com
Printed and bound in Slovenia
08 09 10 11 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Picture credits xiii
Introduction xv
1 Amateur and professional photography 1
Differences in approach 1
How photographs are read 3
Markets for professional photography 5
Roles within a photographic business 11
Turning professional 13
Summary 14
2 Camera equipment 15
Camera design 15
Image format 16
Specialized accessories 24
Which one is best? 26
Avoiding camera failures 26
The digital revolution 28
Digital camera equipment 35
Comparing digital and silver halide camera equipment 38
Summary 39
Projects 41
3 Choosing lenses 42
The lens designer’s problems 42
Checking lens image quality 47
Understanding modulation transfer function 48
Buying lenses 55
Special lens types 56
Influences on image sharpness 63
Using lenses created for 35mm systems on DSLRs 64
Summary 65
Projects 67
v
CONTENTS
4 Colour in photography 68
Light and colour 68
The human visual system 69
Light sources and their characteristics 71
Colour temperature 72
Standard illuminants 74
Classification of colour 77
How we see colour 80
Summary 83
Projects 84
5 Films – types and technical data 85
Film design 85
Choosing films 87
Understanding technical descriptions 90
Film MTF 94
Characteristic curves 95
Spectral sensitivity 98
Reciprocity failure 99
Product coding 101
Special materials 102
Summary 106
Projects 107
6 Image sensors 108
An introduction to image sensors 108
Alternative sensor technologies 118
Image artefacts associated with sensors 120
Summary 126
Projects 128
vi
CONTENTS
7 Lighting control 129
Size of light sources 129
Direction and angle of light 132
Distribution of light 133
Contrast and exposure 134
Colour and colour temperature 137
Practical control of colour 139
Guidelines for lighting 140
Lighting equipment 142
Lighting principles in practice 144
Summary 154
Projects 155
8 Tone control 156
Practical influences 156
Tone control theory 159
Precision measurement of exposure 163
The zone system 165
Putting the zone system to work 171
Limitations to the zone system 173
Tone changes after film processing 174
Controls during enlarging 176
Summary 177
Projects 178
vii
CONTENTS
9 Subjects 180
Sport and action 181
Photo-journalism/documentary 183
Portraiture 184
Weddings 186
Landscapes 188
Architecture 190
Built studio sets 193
Studio still-lifes 194
Natural history 196
Aerial subjects 198
Night skies 201
Summary 203
Projects 205
10 Digital imaging systems 206
The computer workstation 206
Inputs 208
Types of scanners 209
Scanner characteristics 212
Setting up the scanner 214
Image outputting – Displays 217
Characteristics of display systems 219
Image outputting – Digital printers 222
Printer characteristics 225
Summary 227
Projects 228
viii
CONTENTS
11 Digital image manipulation 229
What is workflow? 229
General considerations in determining workflow 229
Capture workflow 233
Digital image files 237
Choosing file format 240
Image compression 241
Properties of common image file formats 246
Image processing 247
Image processing workflow 249
Digital colour 256
Summary 264
Projects 266
12 Film processing management and colour printing 267
The processes themselves 267
Points to watch 272
Equipment 275
Making a choice 279
Process control 280
Silver recovery 284
Colour printing equipment 285
Print materials 288
Negative/positive colour printing 289
Positive/positive colour printing 292
Shading and printing-in 293
Making a ring-around 293
Additional points to watch 295
Colour/exposure analysing aids 296
Other colour lab procedures 298
Summary 299
Projects 301
ix