An exploration of my self portrait. This is the final order the images should be in.
© Gareth Partington
So this mini project of mine was inspired by a class I am currently teaching to a level one group which was all about self portraiture. I must admit I’m sure the class are less enthusiastic then I am about my assignments, but hey I thought I’d have a go at it.
I’ve done lots of self portraits over the years and wanted to teach myself some new lighting set ups, so it became a technical exercise in lighting as much as it did a project about who I am. Each photo had a different light set up, all done in the tiny confines of my bedroom with little speed lights (for those geeky photographers).
The idea was written in my note pad at about a 12.00am one day and it sat there for a few weeks. I kept saying lets make it then got distracted and found my playstation more alluring. But finally I kicked myself up the bum and got making them.
The first photo to be created was the cyclist one. I wanted to shoot a picture of me in my club kit (Lichfield City Cycling Club) showing off the strange lycra fetish I have at weekends.
This was made using two speed lights with grids either side of my face, then another speed light was added with a shoot through umbrella facing me. I wanted to create a gritty sort of look I had seen in some magazines. I think I kind of pulled it off but the light is a little uneven. Sorry any pros reading.
© Gareth Partington
The second photo in the series to be made was the geek one. I am a massive geek at times and I’m quite proud of it. I was going to wear my Star Wars dressing gown but opted for a more modest cool Haynes Manual AT-AT T-shirt instead. To complete the look the mop was side swiped over bringing back horrors of childhood side partings.
In order to photograph this one it was a pretty easy light set up. One homemade ring flash positioned in front of myself but I soon found out ring flash in glasses is not a good look. So a slight turn to the side sorted that out although you can still see it in the corner.
© Gareth Partington
The third photo to be made was the “I’m a Photographer” one. I really couldn’t work out how to make this look interesting. I tried lots of ideas out and in the end just resorted to the over used, over created, put a camera over my face. I wanted to have photos drifting down around me but throwing them up, putting the camera to face and firing off the digital camera really wasn’t happening. I did try adding falling photos in post production but it looked fake so took them out. For anyone who is eagle eyed though you will notice my name is on the lens.
This was lit by two speed lights, 45 degrees to each other one with a shoot through umbrella the other was a silver reflector.
© Gareth Partington
The forth photo to be made was “I’m a Me” I tried lots of moody looking, pouting, straight glares, poser shots but in the end picked one where I was bored and pulled a face. I don’t know if this really sums up me as a whole but I quite liked the light on my big hair.
This was shot with a speed light directly behind me, a snooted speed light top right and I think I filled in with a shoot through umbrella just so the jacket had some detail.
© Gareth Partington
This was how the photos were going to end but I thought I needed to remake the photographer one so sat down trying to work out how to do this. I came up with an idea of having photos stuck on my face. But when it came to making it I really didn’t think it showed me as a photographer, I decided to break up my face a bit. The enlarged eye and mouth made it a little difficult to work out who I was and as a series of images this fitted perfectly before the final one.
Lit by a single umbrella to camera right up high.
© Gareth Partington
So there we have it my set of images about me. I’m a little bored of starring at my face now but as a series it shows off a few of the things I do, some of my personality perhaps and I learn’t quite a lot along the way. I think my favorite is the “Who am I?” or “I’m a Cyclist”.
If you just read all that, well done to you, if you skipped to the end like I would after quickly looking through the photos, you just missed out on some riveting gossip about my inner soul and self discovery and how profoundly disturbed I am, but you can probably get that from just looking at the images too, so don’t bother going back to read all this.
But thank you for looking at the images, I’m slowly getting back into my photography.
Right whats the next lot of photos? I really want to get out in the landscape again, or make some horrible manipulation.
