International photographer (Jan-Dec 1934)

Four T h INTERNATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER March, 1934 The Amateur Can Learn From the Professional By Walter Bluemel HE most remarkable difference between the work . of the professional and the amateur cameraman is not in the equipment used, but in the way it is used. The amateur today has at his disposal a variety of 16 mm. movie equipment which in perfection and versatility compares very favorably with the equipment used in Hollywood studios. In principle, standard and sub-standard apparatus is very similar, differing essentially in size only. The smaller size, however, does not give it limitations which larger equipment does not have, but, on the contrary, makes it more versatile because of its light weight, as well as greatly cuts down the expense of equipment and film so that the amateur can afford it. Though in the majority of cases simpler in construction, 16 mm. is made with the same mechanical precision that is to be found in standard equipment and, with the newest types of cameras, the numerous accessories and the modern high speed, fine grain panchromatic films available, there is no reason why the amateur should not in the majority of cases be able to get as good results as the professional. It is very doubtful, however, if the average amateur gets the most out of his equipment. What is the reason for this? Certainly it is not because he does not have satisfactory equipment, time, money, or information necessary to get the best results. In my opinion there are two chief reasons, first that most amateurs do not understand fully their equipment and how to use it (in spite of the wealth of information available) and, secondly, that many amateurs lack either the ambition, imagination, or ingenuity that makes the work of the professional cameraman outstanding. The fact that many prize winning pictures have been made with a minimum of money and equipment bears out the fact that these are not essential to get good results. In a recent national contest the award for photography went to a picture shot on an 8 mm. camera, for which a minimum of accessories are available at present. It is not the amount of equipment, but the expertness and ingenuity — one might almost say inspiration and genius — with which it is used that determines the quality of the result. Many amateurs will never excel in their photography because they lack the interest, the ambition, to thoroughly learn the medium with which they are working. By the trial and error method they may eventually succeed in getting fairly good results, but their work will always bear the stamp of the ordinary amateur. In spite of the simplicity of most 16 mm. equipment and the rules of composition and lighting, too many amateurs feel that motion picture photography is a difficult subject which requires years of study and experimenting to understand fully, and hence make little attempt to learn the basic principles so necessary to make good pictures consistently. They become discouraged with their first results and, instead of trying to find out what is wrong, they blame everything but themselves, and soon lose all interest. They fail to realize that a little time and money spent on studying the medium would soon more than repay itself in the results obtained and the film saved. With the amount of information available on motion picture arts and crafts the amateur has no excuse for making bad pictures. I cannot hope to cover fully all the aspects that are necessary to consider in picture making, but I will mention briefly some of the things in which there is always room for improvement. It is hardly necessary to emphasize the importance of correct focus and exposure. Every amateur is told about this time and again. Focusing is merely a simple mechanical procedure which is simplified to the utmost on most sub-standard cameras, but, except in the case of universal focus lenses, it must not be neglected. Exposure seems to be the chief difficulty of the beginning amateur. The best way to get correct exposure, and in the long run perhaps the cheapest, is by the use of a reliable exposure meter, of which there are a number available. These are simple in operation and quite accurate and in most cases correct for the difference in cameras and films. Many cameras have an exposure guide on the camera, which if followed correctly gives satisfactory results under average conditions. After the exposure meter and exposure guide has been used for some time it is wise to try to estimate exposure without their use. With some practice it is possible to estimate exposure quite accurately, and frequently it comes in handy when a meter is not available or when there is no time to use it. A great aid in judging exposure is a dark panchromatic viewing filter, which shows the lights in its monochromatic values (as the film would record it) and by cutting down the light makes it easier to judge the exposure in highlights and shadows. It is also a valuable aid in judging lighting and composition. Many professional cameramen use viewing filters, and also find exposure meters of considerable help because of the variety of lighting conditions which they encounter. An understanding of the use of filters in photography is very important. Panchromatic emulsions have made the use of filters particularly desirable and in many cases indispensible. This is true, of course, only for exteriors, since filters are used in interiors only to obtain certain unusual effects. In most exteriors it is good practice always to use a filter when the light permits, especially for landscapes and scenes including considerable sky, for the proper filter will give a black and white color rendition more clearly like that perceived by the eye than if no filter had been used and, also, prevents a glary white sky. There are a great number of professional filters on the market which can readily be used with amateur cameras, should special filters for these cameras not be available. The choice of the filter depends, of course, on the effect desired, whether to correct or over-correct color value, whether to increase or decrease contrast, or whether to obtain night effects in daylight. Much in Please mention The International Photographer when corresponding with advertisers.