Keep still
Still-life photography leaves nothing to chance. Tim Clinch explains how to maximise the potential of this classical and underused genre of photography
tim Clinch explains how to maximise the potential of still-life photography
What do we mean by still life? There are a number of dictionary definitions but they all, pretty much, come down to the same thing: ‘ The depiction of inanimate subject matter, typically a small group of objects.’ This encompasses several photographic disciplines, but sums it up pretty well.
The true skill lies in the ability to take something mundane and everyday out of its normal habitat and transform it into something of beauty by using our skills as photographers.
So what is it about still life that I like so much? First of all, obviously, it’s the pictures. Some of my all-time favourite images are still lifes.
Edward Weston’s photographs of peppers; the wonderful imagery by my photographic hero, Irving Penn; Tina Modotti’s beautiful peaceful pictures; and the quite perfect images shot by Charles Jones in the late 1890’s (who was not a photographer at all, but a gardener!) come to mind. But above all, it’s the discipline involved that gives me such satisfaction.
This genre of photography is 100% down to you – your eye and your skill as a photographer. It takes no prisoners. You choose the subjects, background and lighting. You set it up, and you shoot it. Unlike say, landscape photography, no spectacular sunset is going to miraculously happen to save your bacon. Or in ‘street’ photography, for instance, no punk rocker with a scarlet mohican is going to wander into your shot to enliven an otherwise dull image. It is all about you, your eye and your skill.
Draw inspiration from the greats
As a discipline, still life has an amazing history. It is all about composition, and for inspiration we must not only look at photographers, but also at some of the great painters. For me the king of them all is the Spanish painter Luis Meléndez (1716-1780). Even though his work received little recognition when he was alive, he is considered the greatest Spanish still-life painter of the 18th century. His mastery of composition and light and remarkable ability to convey the volume and texture of individual objects enabled him to transform the most mundane of kitchen fare into powerful images. We can incorporate a lot of his influence into our photography. The composition of a still-life image is a discipline and has rules, so study the greats and aim high. The rich and varied history of still life as a genre should inspire you.
Backgrounds and lighting
For me, especially in still-life photography, the acronym KISS – Keep It Simple Stupid – is all-important. It is most
often the answer to most photographic conundrums! All still-life pictures require a background of some sort. This can be as simple as a plain piece of cloth or a battered old table. Choose carefully and don’t let the background take over the image. Make sure it complements the objects placed on it, or in front of it, but that it’s the last thing you notice in the picture. Always ask yourself what is the ‘star’ of a picture and make sure that your eye goes to that object/person first.
As for lighting, again, simple is best. What did the great 18th-century painters do? Put things next to a window, and, if necessary draped a sheet over it to soften the light. This is exactly what I do. There is no fancy lighting set-up. Just a big, soft sidelight, if needed a diffuser, and normally some sort of reflector to lift the shadows slightly. You really can make it as complicated as you want but, quite frankly, if it worked for Rembrandt, it’ll work for me.
Natural versus staged
If we agree with the description of ‘still life’ in the introduction, there are two types of images we can come up with. The first is a group of objects that already exist. These are ones that we notice along the way or that are already in a setting, which we then photograph. The second type of image is something that we set-up from scratch. That is, we use objects that we have chosen, put them on a background or in a situation of our choosing, and move them around until the composition looks pleasing to our eye.
There is nothing wrong with either set-up, but the important thing to remember is that nothing is perfect. So feel free to move things around a little to get exactly the image you want (unless you are somewhere like the British Museum when I would seriously advise against it!).
Food photography
Where does still-life photography end and food photography begin? This is impossible to answer. Several of my images in this article have been featured in food-photography competitions, but they also fit the criteria for still-life photography. I’m often asked about this and my response is always the same. Does it matter? Not really.
So, to sum up my approach to still-life photography, I believe that simple, strong, uncomplicated images always work best. Don’t over-worry about ‘styling’, and go for impact. My rule about whether you should add another element to your picture is ‘if in doubt, leave it out.’ Be bold. Once you start looking for things to photograph you’ll surprise yourself about where you find beauty.