World of special effects

Abstract

Photography has always been closely tied to the concepts of time and place. The documentarian and the fine art photographer each inspire a similar kind of wonder, how were they able to see and capture so remarkably the moment that we could have seen too, if only we had known where to look. When we come across another kind of picture, however, portraying the place or the moment that previously existed only in a photographer's mind, we may be overwhelmed surely by the technical aspect of the image. Our sense of time and place, so crucial to our understanding of the photographic medium , may become disjointed . There may be little or nothing comfortably familiar in the image and our perception of the moment, the time of day, or the exact location may be completely distorted . Instead of asking how the photographer was able to capture such beauty and emotion, we may ask ourselves an embarrassingly pedestrian question, perhaps even scratching our heads unfetchingly as we intone; how did he do that? Suddenly the entire basics of our love for photography may turn from meaning to method, and we may be tempted to risk almost anything in return for a simple explanation of how the moon ended up in the Atlantic . 'How' is the question that seems to arise whenever Special Effects Photography is mentioned. Understanding the techniques will help us gather an answer to valuable clues, but the solution to the mystery of these pictures will be found only in each individual photographer's unique way of thinking . So what is a Special Effects photograph anyway? We can begip by stating what it is not . A Special Effect photograph is not anything that lacks dimension, visual appeal, or magnetism. It probably is not a photograph that looks like your mother made it at your fifth birthday party . Nor is it a picture characterised by a lot of grey-to-black zones. A Special Effect photograph is , however a picture that is made, usually by some type of physical manipulation, either in the . camera or in the copying device. Special Effects photography is concerned with manipulating reality to form an eye-catching image, or to create a dream-like, even nightmarish visual situation. Photography today makes most use of Special Effects to create surreal images - pictures with themes based on the irrational subconscious. This surrealism can take the form of either pure dream-like fantasy shots, or pictures which at first seem normal, but contain some impossible juxtaposi tioning of structure or subject . If you are a beginner in this field of photography, first experiment with simple camera techniques such as panning, the use of slow shutter speeds, and improvised optics.In the darkroom photograms and solarized images are a good starting point.