MULTIPLE EXPOSURES
The idea of double or multiple exposures came to the table during brainstorming for our third Assignment. Soon we all realized that none of us had any past experience shooting multiple exposures. Going ahead with the theme therefore seemed somewhat of a no-brainer and we embarked on our first technique-based photo assignment.
Kris
An Otherworld
I went into this months assignments ‘In Camera Double Exposures’ with an open mind. I had no experience whatsoever with creating this sort of thing, other than the occasional hack job in Photoshop. Between our Sunday Stolen Echoes chats and coming across this, I started to gain a bit of an understanding of how two images might go together. But most importantly, I went out into the field and gave it a go.
Christmas season in Chicago is great fun. Festivals and lights, live music on the street, and magical displays in storefront windows attracts people from all over the world. It’s certainly one of my favorite times of the year.
Gazing into the glass of the storefronts on Michigan Ave and State St, I was drawn to the silhouettes found in the light on the other side of the street. It seemed like a strange type of surreal otherworld that was worthy of exploration.
An Otherworld | 2022
The Mannequins and the environment they occupied became more and more fascinating the more time I spent at each window. Some had facial features similar to humans, while others had limited ones that took the form of unusual shapes. Some had no features at all, just the shape of a human head that intrigued me. Some possessed alien like hands that presented really good opportunities for a more minimal approach. I found all this super fun to photograph. Motionless and firmly under my control, the mannequins provided for me a sense of command that’s rarely present when pursuing subjects on the street.
Alien | 2022
Untitled | 2022
The more time I spent with the mannequins, the more I realized a new process was emerging. Using them as subjects in the first image, I tried to build a solid foundation. For the second shot I looked for things that seemed interesting, drove them out of focus, and used them as a background. How can I merge the interior with the exterior? I decided to use headlights, holiday tree lights, and various other light sources within the store windows to build the image. I also brought together different subjects in the same window, placing them closer together hoping that I would find a story, or something that seemed interesting. It was a bit like adding ornaments to a Christmas tree.
Untitled | 2022
Untitled | 2022
Untitled | 2022
Putting technique first was refreshing. A part of me was lost while something new emerged. I felt free to trust my instincts. Questions of composition came up: How does that look? What happens when I put this mannequin over here and leave space for something else? How do I merge a typical street shot with these new subjects? How does it feel? The amount of opportunities seemed endless and I was filled with excitement. Mystery, wonder, and possibility have been re-introduced into my process, and for that I’m grateful.
Happy New Year | 2022
Bowie | 2022
Untitled | 2022
Tim
This assignment marked my personal introduction to shooting in-camera double exposures. If I'm honest with you, the main reason why I'd never gotten into shooting double exposures previously was because somehow I saw them as a bit of a gimmick. Sure, I'd seen some pretty compelling images using in-camera double exposures being shared before; yet somehow the lack of interest remained. I’d never even thought to look into whether or not my camera even had this feature.
Having taken on this assignment and discovering that indeed it did, I started out learning about how the feature worked and what considerations may be necessary when creating images this way. Amongst all this, and while trying to come up with some results, I eventually realised I was rediscovered something; The joy of experimentation! I started to have a lot of fun trying things out. Aligning various features in geometrical compositions, layering different elements of a given scene, rotating my camera to create reflection-like symmetry and creating abstract images with soft focus and blur.
At the end of this assignment I sit here now with an evolved view on the double exposure. I see the in-camera tool now as a door to in-field creativity, an extension of the photographic eye and a personal reminder of the phrase: “don’t knock it until you’ve tried it”.
Jeff
I was excited to explore the assignment of in-camera double exposures. I saw it as a challenge — blend two images into a single photograph which causes the viewer to pause and do a double take. I aimed to make photographs that appear on first glance to be single exposures — with a twist. I did so by using lines in the frame to serve as alignment points for overlay of the second photograph. I tried to use color and depth of field to infuse contrast into the final image. I did struggle to find ways to bring meaning to my double exposures. As I reached the end of the assignment and saw the work of others, I realized that I should have been more experimental in my approach to the assignment and found ways to tell a story. Thankfully, the end of the assignment does not mark the end of in-camera double exposures for me. I look forward to practicing this technique more often in the field to blend context with narrative en route to creating moments that expand time and place.
Hugh
One of the benefits (and joys!) of working together to set an assignment is that we find ourselves challenged by things that we would never have considered or chosen for ourselves. Multiple exposures, shot in camera, is definitely one of those that I would have put back in the pack and picked another card!
My photography on the street is very much rooted in following a whim - a one shot reaction to something that unfolds quickly before my eyes. Multiple exposures, on the other hand, meant far more pre-meditation than I was used to. The first shot would be easy but then I had to find something that would sit intelligently with it. Something I am not sure I ever fully accomplished. Having put it off for as long as I could, and having finally found how to do it in my camera menu, I decided that I would try to take images that captured the essence of a place. Bright lights superimposed over crowds at Piccadilly. Well, I tried. I shared them with the group. Somehow it wasn’t working. I knew it wasn’t.
Sometimes you can try too hard and I decided that I would not go looking for anything specific but would see what came along - if nothing did then so be it. I wouldn’t post.
Then, as is so often the way, on the journey home, the scene began to unfold before me. A commuter, suit smart and strained with all of the day’s work written all over him, was reflected in the glass of the railway carriage as he tried to unwind. He became my muse. As the train pulled out of London, I shot his reflection - the double glazed window giving his appearance a softer feel which I liked. The journey then delivered up a series of backdrops to superimpose on his face. Each image seemed to become more intense - not the relaxing homeward journey he had hoped for. The solid window blocks of homes are then replaced by the bokeh and lights of a bustling journey. Finally, the light from an oncoming train, blasted through his right eye in what, I feel, is a true headache of an image.