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On ‘f/8 and be there’

Fellig. Arthur “Weegie” Fellig. He’s the guy who responded with that  simple “f/8 and be there” statement when asked how he consistently came up with those outstanding photographs that he made. And in making that statement he alluded to what was a philosophy of sorts that hinted at how to go about making great images…

 

A philosophy that in my humble opinion is  understood by few people, totally misunderstood by most. And I must hasten to add that this-here post is going to be frowned upon by many a “photographer”, but then I’ve never been known for pulling my punches. So here I go again, upsetting a couple of hundred souls as I’ve done before…

 

To understand what Arthur Fellig meant, a bit of background is called for. Arthur Fellig was a photographer and photojournalist, known for his stark black and white street photography. Working  in Manhattan, New York City’s Lower East Side as a press photographer during the 1930s and ’40s, and he developed his signature style by following the city’s emergency services and documenting their activity. Much of his work depicted unflinchingly realistic scenes of urban life, crime, injury and death.

 

Now, think about those terms above. Specifically “unflinchingly realistic scenes of urban life, crime, injury and death”, “photojournalist”, “city’s emergency services and documenting their activity” for a while, and three very obvious things should come to mind:

 

  1. Arthur Fellig had an uncanny instinct – a flair of sorts – of being exactly where the “action” so as to put it was playing out

  2. His compositions (the co-relationships) – between so-called subject, supporting subjects and context were highly effective in making an image. An image that…

  3. … literally transported  viewers of the image to the location, made viewers see the scene as it was through Arthur Fellig’s eyes. And most important , actually feel what it must have been like to be there.

 

When asked how he managed to do so – and so very consistently at that – Felig simply responded with “f/8 and be there”. And therein lies the tale.

Let's start with the f/8 thingie, shall we?

I’m going to get just a wee bit technical here, but ever so slightly. So if you feel you’re technically challenged (no such thing IMHO, it’s just that you haven’t met an instructor who could simplify it enough. Till now, at least!), rest easy! You won’t even feel a hiccup!

 

All cameras have an opening in their lens through which light is admitted, light that then goes on to strike either film or a digital sensor. This opening in the lens is called the aperture. With me so far? What a foolish question, of course you are!

 

It follows that any opening must have a size. In the context of  the opening in the lens (the aperture), that size is represented by a value that we’ll call Aperture Value (extremely imaginative, ain’t it?). And just like millimeters are represented as mm, centimeters as cm, meters as M etc., Aperture Value is represented as f-value, or more commonly f/value. And I’m not going to ask if you’re with me so far, because I already know the answer.

 

Trust me, it ain’t important to understand just why it is so, but f/values have the following typical… well, values:

 

f/1.4,   f/2,   f/2.8,   f/4,   f/5.6,   f/8,  f/11,  f/16,  f/22,  f/32,   f/44

 

Now, repeat after me: “I am not going to get scared by what Neville has to say, he will make it clear as clear can be!”.  Good, read on…

 

The f/value determines what is called the Depth of Field or DOF. And before you go  “Help, what’s this DOF thingie!!!!”, let me state that it’s really very simple.

 

Think of some of the photographs you’ve seen. In some of them, everything from foreground to background is clear, in sharp focus. And in some of them, only some things are in sharp focus, other objects in the background and / or foreground being rendered as soft, dreamy and out-of-focus.  So what’s that got to do with that DOF thingie, and what’s it got to do with f/value?

 

When your camera lens focuses on any damn thing, it will be in sharp focus. In addition, there will be area in front of what you focused on, and behind it that will also be in sharp focus. That, in simple terms is DOF or Depth Of Field – the area in front of – and behind the subject focused on – that will also be in sharp focus.

 

Essentially, images with everything from foreground to background (typically landscapes) have a large DOF, while most portraits where the subject is in sharp focus and the background is blurred have a small or narrow DOF.

 

OK, so you’re nodding your head in understanding, but are still wondering what that’s got to do with our f/value. 

 

Here’s how it goes: The smaller the value part of the f/value, the smaller (narrower) the DOF. And, the larger the value part of the f/value, the greater (larger the DOF). Or to put it simply – all other things being equal, a photograph taken at f/16 will have a large DOF, while a photograph taken at say f/5.6 will have a much shallower DOF. The three photographs below illustrate this; from left to right they portray images with a shallow Depth of Field (thanks to a small f/value), a medium Depth of Field  (courtesy a medium f/value) and a large Depth of Field (owing to a large f/value).

 

Clicked on the Pushkar Camel Fair leg of my annual Five Stops of Light India Photography Tour, the photograph above  is a classic example of the the use of a shallow Depth of Field. Seeing as I did the very real sense of closeness between these two friends, my objective was simple: To highlight the joy of the meeting between two friends after a long gap of time. I cropped closely to eliminate everything that would take away from this sense of intimacy. It was also important that nothing in the background take away from what I wanted to portray. The solution was simple: A small f/value(f/4 or f/5.6)  resulting in a narrow depth of field.

In the case of the image above, what caught my eye was the colorful turban and muffler sported by this camel herder leading his camels to the fair. The camels in the backdrop are important to this image, providing as they do the much-needed context of what this image is all about. However, it was important that the camels – and the people behind them – not be so clearly in focus that they would take away from the herder in the foreground. Hence, I decided to use a medium f/value – typically f/8 or f/11 –  which would result in elements behind the man dropping out of focus in a gradual fashion.
Photography Tour Varanasi
In the above photograph, the man in the foreground serves several purposes, but he is not what the image is about. What the photo is about is the sheer sweep of the ghats at Varanasi. What was called for was to ensure that everything from the man in the foreground to the distant buildings far in the background is in relatively sharp focus. Achieving this called for a large Depth of Field, a large f/value (f/16, f/22 or larger) being what the doctor ordered.
 
Simple, ain’t it? That f/value thingie and its relationship with Depth of Field.  But it still doesn’t explain that “f/8 and Be There” admonition.
 

Fellig's f/8 fetish

When asked how he managed to get the images he did, Fellig would just go. One But why f/8? The answer is to be found in the very nature of his work – work that involved photographing urban life, streets, photojournalism…

 

Now think about all these genres and you’ll realize that there are times when – depending on what would have been unfolding in front of his eyes – Fellig would have needed to either (a) render everything from foreground to background in sharp focus, (b) have the focus drop off in a nice gradual fashion, or (c) only have the main subject in sharp focus and throw everything else dramatically out of focus. And of course, as we saw above, he’d have to essentially achieve either of these results by changing his f-value. Seems simple, till you think about just how rapidly real-life events play out out in the context of urban life, street photography and photojournalism…

There’s no scope for error. No question of posing of subjects. All you get is an fraction of a second to decide on what f-value to use, and set it!

Let’s try and visualize this, shall we? There’s Fellig out there in the street and he sees this thing unfolding in front of him that tells the story. And he needs to photograph it with a shallow Depth Of Field with an f/value of  f/5.6 or lower. Except that the f/value on his camera is set to f/16. So there goes Fellig turning that dial that changes the f/value, and several turns at that to get to f/5.6. Except that by the time he gets there.. “Oops! Sorry Mr. Newspaper Editor, but I couldn’t get the shot. My camera wasn’t at the settings called for, and by the time I got around to setting them the moment had passed…”

 

Or, how about this:

 

There’s Fellig out there in that  street again and he sees this thing unfolding in front of him that tells the story. And this time he needs to photograph it with a large  Depth Of Field with an f/value of  f/16 or higher. Except that the f/value on his camera is set to f/4. So there goes Fellig again, turning that dial that changes the f/value, and several turns at that to get to f/16 . Except that by the time he gets there.. “Oops! Sorry again Mr. Newspaper Editor, but I couldn’t get the shot this time across too. My camera wasn’t at the settings called for, and by the time I got around to setting them the moment had passed…”

 

Of course one can’t be certain, but I have a lurking feeling that  Mr. Newspaper Editor’s reaction wouldn’t be much different than that of J. Jonah Jameson – the editor of the The Daily Bugle newspaper where Spiderman held his day-job!

 

And that’s where Felling’s f/8 fetish stems from. Let’s look at it in greater detail, starting with that list of f/values I listed out towards the top of this post.

 

f/1.4, f/2, f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6, f/8, f/11, f/16, f/22, f/32, f/44

 

And viola! What do we see? That f/8 is right there in the middle. It’s middle-ground, offering a compromise between a shallow depth of field and a large one.

 

Essentially, if Fellig set by default a f/value of  f/8 before he went prowling those streets, he would be in a position to make a shot which struck a fine balance between everything being in sharp focus on the one hand, and contextual elements being slightly out of focus. If there was no time – not even a split second – to change his f/value, he’d just take the shot. And the chances would be that the shot would achieve its objectives of showing what he wanted to show. Yet, that’s just part of it…

 

The other part to the f/8 bit is that being in the middle, it’s not too far from either end. Essentially, if Fellig had a moment or two to change his settings based on whether he wanted a shallower or larger depth of field, being at f/8 ensured he could get to his desired f/value faster, with far fewer turns of the dial.

And that’s that about the f/8 thingie in Fellig’s equation; why he chose to keep his camera by default on that aperture value. I’d encourage you to do so too. Time we moved on to the second part of the equation I think.

 

"and Be There"

“Be There”. That – according to me – is the most misunderstood part of Fellig’s equation on how to go about making great photographs. The misunderstanding stems on account of two things: (a) paying too much attention to the f/8 bit in Fellig’s formula(essentially, the technical issues of photography, thinking it’s all about the camera), and (b) thinking that “being there” is about being at a place in the physical sense.

 

“Wait a minute,” did I hear you go? “What the hell else would it be? Of course you need to be there to make an image of whatever is unfolding! How else would you get the shot?!?!?!”

 

That’s what went through your mind, didn’t it? Thanks for admitting it! And therein lies the problem.

 

The mistake that many a photographer makes – as did I – is about paying attention to the “There” in “Be There”. In the process, they ignore the importance of both the word “Be” in itself, as well as that of what’s really implied in the sum total of the words “Be There”. And since a picture is worth a thousand words, I think an image or two would best illustrate this…

Varanasi Photography Tour Varanasi Photography Workshop
photography workshop varanasi

Even a cursory examination of the above two photographs makes one thing obvious: Impeccable Timing. Not just in capturing the action, but capturing it in a fashion, and that very moment when – as Henri Cartier-Bresson described it – “… the elements are in perfect balance”. And that’s the ideal photograph for you – when all the disparate elements come together just perfectly in a cohesive whole. Without it, there’s an imbalance. Without it, there’s chaos. Without the elements being in perfect harmony and working together, the eye is lost – and a picture is broken.

 

The trick hence lies in seeing the confluence – the coming together – of elements to form a cohesive whole. Coming together – again to quote Cartier -Bresson – for maximum emotional impact“. Seeing it before it happens, anticipating it, visualizing it. And then taking the shot when it does happen…This is Being There.

 

Being There is not being there physically. Think about just how many “photographers” go to Varanasi. Or Ladakh. Or anywhere. They’re all there physically. But how many come back with really evocative photographs? Evocative original photographs, and not mere copies of the compositions of others? Few and far between, I’d think.

 

The reason is this: it’s not about the f/8, f/anything, ISO-anything or Shutter-speed-anything. It’s not about the “being There” either. What it is about really is Being Wherever You Are!

 

What do I mean by “Being”? It’s a heightened state of awareness. Of the world around you, its building blocks, and how they are connected both to each other and to you. That, is Being. And when you can just Be, you can be that state – for that is exactly what it is, a state – anywhere! You are – literally with eyes, mind, heart and soul – wherever you are! That’s why I say my gear consists of “eyes that see, a mind that thinks and a heart that feels” – that’s Being.

 

And that’s the single most misunderstood part about Fellig’s “f/8 and Be There” formula. It’s about Being. It’s more about You than it is about Place. ‘Nuff said!

 

Ooops… almost forgot about the bit where it’s time about the shameless plug. Scroll below, willya?

 
 

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“Because Photography is just this: Being!”

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Fine Art Print: Kashi – City Of Light, Colours & Mystery

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“For an image to speak to me, it must be an image of something; the role of color is to accentuate that thing and the emotion triggered in me. It is only then that I can communicate what I felt; to begin to truly understand color is to begin to understand the many hues and emotions of Life itself.” (an excerpt from my Artist Statement)

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The Making of “Kashi: City of Light, Colors & Mystery”

Sometimes it happens: You’re there with your camera and something astounding comes to pass. And you have but a split-second to capture it. People say I’m lucky to encounter such moments as regularly as I do. My reply is that Luck favors the prepared mind…

And there I was in a boat on the river Ganges in Varanasi when the events that went into the making of this photograph came to pass: this lady, who’d probably just finished taking a dip in the holy river, a shawl thrown over her as she changed out of her wet clothes, the better to protect her modesty.

 

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What caught my eyes were the colors. The emotions triggered – had I not known the setting and the circumstances in which this photograph was taken – would be one of a deep sense of Mystery: Who is that? Why is she covered like that? What is she doing? And where is she? And while I – in the paragraph preceding this one – have answered many of these questions, there is still such a deep sense of mystery to this image; one cannot help but want to know even more about that woman.

Such is Kashi – The City of Light, Colors, and Mystery!

In post-processing I strongly boosted the contrast to better give the feeling of depth and mystery, while boosting saturation. I also gave the image an impressionist feel, resulting in a fine art print that is more a painting than a photograph.

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A priest - his early morning dip in the river Ganges over and done with - climbs the steps to a temple - Varanasi, India

Pattern, broken – Varanasi, India

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The Making of “Pattern, broken – Varanasi”

As I mention in my Artist Statement, one of the driving forces in my fine art photography is Contrast; and it was the contrast at play here – between lines horizontal & vertical – that made me raise camera to eye and trip the shutter.

The place was Varanasi, India. The event – one of  the photography workshops and tours. My guests and I were at the fag end of  our boat ride on the river Ganges when I saw this man walking up a flight of stairs on the ghats after taking a dip in the river Ganges.
Now there’s nothing extraordinary about a man walking up a flight of steps that would prompt one to raise camera to eye, let alone spending precious time in processing to end up with a brilliant fine art photograph. Nothing at all, if I hadn’t seen what played out in front of me differently…

This photograph is all about horizontal lines, you just can’t miss them. A pattern of sweeping row upon row of red and white bands make this panoramic fine art print ideal for wide walls. And then that pattern is broken, and that is what really makes this image work: The small yet so very significant visual impact of what is essentially a vertical shape across those horizontal lines.

In post-processing, I actually added a bit of black to the reds (deepening them) so as to ensure that that particular colour did not end up taking away from the man; red has that impact – it is an attention-grabber if ever there was one, and one must know when to do what with it. I also accentuated the lines that define the shapes of everything but the steps themselves, the better to make them stand out. The end result is a fine art photograph that looks like an impressionist painting with some of the shapes (such as that of the man) emphasized by the use of charcoal on their edges.

 

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Fine Art Photography India : A Day in the Life of India - NH 8

Fine Art Print: A Day in the Life of India – NH 8

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“A kind of golden hour one remembers for a life time… Everything was touched with magic.” ~ Margaret Bourke-White

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The Making of  “A Day In The Life Of India – NH 8”

National Highway 8 (NH 8) is a highway that connects the Indian financial capital Mumbai with India’s capital Delhi. According to estimates, it is the busiest highway in the subcontinent.

I’d started off very early that day from Mumbai; my final destination was the picturesque hill-station of Manali in the Himalayan region of India, with a night’s stopover each in the cities of Udaipur and Delhi. By late afternoon I’d passed the city of  Ahmadabad in the state of Gujarat, and it was then that those few moments that defined this one day in the Life of India on NH 8 came to pass. The huge – and I mean HUGE – herd of cows, with several cowherds in tow trundled onto the highway. Step on brakes – check! . Leap out – check! Grab camera from backseat – check! Stop drooling long enough to make this  fine art photograph of A Day in the Life of  India on NH 8. Check!

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The Photograph

Apart from the sheer spectacle that presented itself to me, what really caught my eye was the play of light that was perfect for photography – soft , golden angular light, the magic of which was accentuated by the dust kicked up by this bovine herd. The pattern of U-shaped horns of these magnificent creatures does a lot for this image. I needed something to break the pattern, something that would yet provide context – the two herdsmen. I made several shots of the spectacle as it  played out before me before settling on this one.  On the technical front, it was vital I get my exposure right, mastering your dslr and exposure helps.

In post-processing I adjusted contrast to do further justice to the play of light and shadow. I also gave this image an impressionist touch. To be quite frank the image as viewed here does no justice to the final fine art print; if there was ever a fine art photograph that portrays the essence of India, this is it!

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fine art print - kashi - the city of light

Kashi – The City Of Light #1

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The Making of  “Kashi – The City Of Light #1”

“You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.” ~ Ansel Adams

On the banks of the river Ganges in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India stands the spiritual capital of India. Its many names include “the city of temples”, “the holy city of India”, “the religious capital of India”, “the city of lights”, “the city of learning”, “the oldest living city on earth”. It is more commonly known as “Varanasi” and also “Benares”. But the only name that really does justice to it is the original name mentioned in the scriptures: Kashi – The City of Light.

Kashi is said to have been founded by the Great God Shiva, who is said to be eternally present here along with his consort Parvati. Kashi is home to over 23000 temples and is one of the most important places of pilgrimage for practitioners of the Hindu faith who flock here to perform their rituals and bathe in the holy river Ganges. Life in Kashi hence rotates around its temples and the bathing ghats (flight of steps) that lead to the holy river.

In the making of this photograph, I was primarily driven by a couple of factors. Driven as I am by my quest for Light, Color and Contrast, it was natural that I was drawn to what I saw unfolding before me. The intensity of the colors, the glow of light off the steps in the background, the contrast and juxtaposition of the players in the scene all screamed out to be photographed. And therein lies a story…

Central to hindu philosophy are the terms Purusha and Prakriti. Purusha is the self (spirit/soul), Prakriti is matter/energy. They are quite similar to the concepts of Yin and Yang in Taoist thought, seemingly opposite forces which are actually complementary parts of the same unified whole.

Shiva – The Lord of Kashi – is Purusha personified. As  the supreme renunciant,  he is not given to action. He does not participate in the going-ons of the world. He merely sits and observes. His wife Parvati on the other hand is the very energy that drives everything to action; she is Nature, she is Movement. She is Prakriti personified.

Stillness and Movement. Male and Female. Yang and Yin. Purusha & Prakriti. Seeming opposites, but in reality the material world cannot exist without the play of both. Just as it is contrast that makes an image, so is it that this play of seeming opposites makes the world and Life so interesting.

The Photograph

This image.  I must say,  is one of my favourites. Gorgeous colours, light to die for, brilliant composition, perfect moment, outstanding post-processing. This photograph does not look like a photograph at all. Rather, it comes across as a painting.

This photograph is all about contrast. Contrast of colors, contrast of subjects, contrast of movement and stillness, contrast of genders. It is perhaps apt that  for the first time I truly viscerally felt how the play of opposites is vital to the balance of an image as it is to life; how apt that it should occur at a location that is the very soul of India’s hindu faith!

In post-processing I gave this image an impressionist feel, the better to convey the City of Light aspect of Kashi.

The Fine Art Print

This photograph is available in two formats: (a) as a ready-to-hang mounted canvas print, and (b) a framed image printed on either canvas or Fine Art Paper. Owing to the nature and post-processing used, I personally recommend option (a).

The print is available in two style sizes: Panoramic Collector (20″×8.35″), and Panoramic Gallery (32″×13.4″). Sizes are in U.S. inches and are approximate. Please view the Pricing Guide – Images in Panoramic Format below for pricing details.

All materials used in the printing and framing process are acid free, making the print especially resistant to aging. Prints are produced using the highest quality papers / canvases using the best inks possible.

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