117. Piano - September 6-12, 2015
Paul-
Damn. Where’s an accessible piano in Lincoln on a Sunday afternoon when you need one? (Yes, yes: It’s my own fault for selecting the theme.) Due to my manic schedule and travel his past week, Sunday afternoon was my only window of opportunity to shoot something for this week. I needed a grand piano, and so few bars and authentic Lincoln cabarets seem to have them these days.
My daughter—who is eerily prescient about the contents of clothing stores within a 75-mile radius of our house—told me an upscale women’s boutique nearby that had a baby grand which was played for the clienteles’ edification. (Econ 101: Swanky atmosphere = Higher prices.) After getting permission from the store manager, general manager, and pianist--a charming older woman playing a lot of Simon & Garfunkel--that I would be taking non-commercial photographs, I set to work.
As with last week, I decided to rough up some ideas on paper (see attached) that might make for a great shot. I actually used some this time around, but was dissatisfied with all but a few. It came down to shooting the interior of a Cable-Nelson/Yamaha CN151P baby grand. Under the hood—that’s where the “structural action” is. You really get a sense of the incredible tensions being held in check by an endoskeletons of metal frameworks, thick pins, and reinforcing bridges. I also got a couple of nice shots of these components of the piano simultaneously reflected on the underside of the polished, ebony lid. By the way, those lids? They’re heavy.
I opted for this picture. Not only do I like the fairly isolated appearance that this part of the piano has from the larger interior, but it also reveals a kind of functional beauty and industrial elegance. I’m aplease with how the angle at which I shot limited the background to the dark, far side of the internal wall…no unwanted light leaks from where the lid hinges meet the body of the instrument.
I did try to get a few pictures (on what I thought was an appropriately slower shutter speed) of the pianist’s hands moving across the keys, as well as some of the piano’s hammers rising falling. They were unsatisfactory. The former, too ghostly. The latter, too boring.
I know a number of my photos tend towards the “mechanistic” or utilitarian side, but this kind of thing absolutely fascinates me. Besides—and this is important—when you’re listening to a piano (live, on a recording, and especially in symphonic concert) your mind’s eye summons up the musician, the monochromatic keyboard, the flurry of perfectly choreographed hands, and the imposing size of the instrument itself.
But the complexity in and cooperative harnessing of so many tensile forces and many delicate mechanisms inside…for me, that’s the story.
So, this is a small tribute to everything on the inside that makes what comes out an aural delight: the physics, the harmonics, the engineering, the selection of materials, the tuning, and centuries of experimentation and design.
Our story so far: B&W shot in-camera at 1/15 sec.; f/13; aperture priority; ISO1000; center-weighted metering; -2/3 EV; 18-55mm lens set at 27mm; white-balanced at automatic to compensate for natural and artificial light in the store. The camera was hand held and/or rested on the edge of the piano for several “interior” shots. “Quiet Shutter Release Mode” used so as not to bother customers or distract the pianist.
As I mentioned, the elderly woman playing the piano whilst I was clicking away was so charming and accommodating that we discussed the artist and cultural significance of some of the pieces played while she stopped to thumb through her sheet music for the next selection.
(Final note: Ever the puckish mischief maker, I had thought of making a musical request for Jethro Tull’s Aqualung, but then thought better of it. The last thing I wanted was to be mercilessly pummeled within an inch of my life by an outraged septuagenarian inside an upscale women’s store.)
Damn. Where’s an accessible piano in Lincoln on a Sunday afternoon when you need one? (Yes, yes: It’s my own fault for selecting the theme.) Due to my manic schedule and travel his past week, Sunday afternoon was my only window of opportunity to shoot something for this week. I needed a grand piano, and so few bars and authentic Lincoln cabarets seem to have them these days.
My daughter—who is eerily prescient about the contents of clothing stores within a 75-mile radius of our house—told me an upscale women’s boutique nearby that had a baby grand which was played for the clienteles’ edification. (Econ 101: Swanky atmosphere = Higher prices.) After getting permission from the store manager, general manager, and pianist--a charming older woman playing a lot of Simon & Garfunkel--that I would be taking non-commercial photographs, I set to work.
As with last week, I decided to rough up some ideas on paper (see attached) that might make for a great shot. I actually used some this time around, but was dissatisfied with all but a few. It came down to shooting the interior of a Cable-Nelson/Yamaha CN151P baby grand. Under the hood—that’s where the “structural action” is. You really get a sense of the incredible tensions being held in check by an endoskeletons of metal frameworks, thick pins, and reinforcing bridges. I also got a couple of nice shots of these components of the piano simultaneously reflected on the underside of the polished, ebony lid. By the way, those lids? They’re heavy.
I opted for this picture. Not only do I like the fairly isolated appearance that this part of the piano has from the larger interior, but it also reveals a kind of functional beauty and industrial elegance. I’m aplease with how the angle at which I shot limited the background to the dark, far side of the internal wall…no unwanted light leaks from where the lid hinges meet the body of the instrument.
I did try to get a few pictures (on what I thought was an appropriately slower shutter speed) of the pianist’s hands moving across the keys, as well as some of the piano’s hammers rising falling. They were unsatisfactory. The former, too ghostly. The latter, too boring.
I know a number of my photos tend towards the “mechanistic” or utilitarian side, but this kind of thing absolutely fascinates me. Besides—and this is important—when you’re listening to a piano (live, on a recording, and especially in symphonic concert) your mind’s eye summons up the musician, the monochromatic keyboard, the flurry of perfectly choreographed hands, and the imposing size of the instrument itself.
But the complexity in and cooperative harnessing of so many tensile forces and many delicate mechanisms inside…for me, that’s the story.
So, this is a small tribute to everything on the inside that makes what comes out an aural delight: the physics, the harmonics, the engineering, the selection of materials, the tuning, and centuries of experimentation and design.
Our story so far: B&W shot in-camera at 1/15 sec.; f/13; aperture priority; ISO1000; center-weighted metering; -2/3 EV; 18-55mm lens set at 27mm; white-balanced at automatic to compensate for natural and artificial light in the store. The camera was hand held and/or rested on the edge of the piano for several “interior” shots. “Quiet Shutter Release Mode” used so as not to bother customers or distract the pianist.
As I mentioned, the elderly woman playing the piano whilst I was clicking away was so charming and accommodating that we discussed the artist and cultural significance of some of the pieces played while she stopped to thumb through her sheet music for the next selection.
(Final note: Ever the puckish mischief maker, I had thought of making a musical request for Jethro Tull’s Aqualung, but then thought better of it. The last thing I wanted was to be mercilessly pummeled within an inch of my life by an outraged septuagenarian inside an upscale women’s store.)
Jerry-
Lucky me, we have a piano in the living room - with many memories of my daughter learning how to play. Not long ago we put it on Craigslist for $300 and had no offers. Seems like keyboards are what the youth of today are into. I asked my wife to play a few tunes while I placed the D750 on a tripod. The 24-70 lens was set to about 28mm and the exposure was 3 seconds at f16, ISO 100. Mix of light from the lamp on the piano with window light coming in from our South facing windows.
Lucky me, we have a piano in the living room - with many memories of my daughter learning how to play. Not long ago we put it on Craigslist for $300 and had no offers. Seems like keyboards are what the youth of today are into. I asked my wife to play a few tunes while I placed the D750 on a tripod. The 24-70 lens was set to about 28mm and the exposure was 3 seconds at f16, ISO 100. Mix of light from the lamp on the piano with window light coming in from our South facing windows.
Don-
I wondered where I could come up with a piano. As I finished Photography class
I thought to check if there was a music department and if there was a piano.
There were many, covered in locked rooms. I was hoping to find someone playing.
No such luck. I then found one in a hallway and then proceeded to photograph the
keyboard. About 20 different ways. Nothing worked and then I found this student
practice piano and that is the guy you see here. f/9, 1/60, ISO 6400, and 55mm.
I wondered where I could come up with a piano. As I finished Photography class
I thought to check if there was a music department and if there was a piano.
There were many, covered in locked rooms. I was hoping to find someone playing.
No such luck. I then found one in a hallway and then proceeded to photograph the
keyboard. About 20 different ways. Nothing worked and then I found this student
practice piano and that is the guy you see here. f/9, 1/60, ISO 6400, and 55mm.
Byron-
Piano has 2 definitions. 1) the instrument that is played by striking keys 2) playing a section of music quietly. I listened to a Richard Feyman lecture on glass. It has an unusual property of being transparent and reflective. I used that trait in my picture. I found a piece of sheet music that starts with a quiet (piano) phrase. I then photographed it so you see a ghostly image of a piano (the instrument) at the same time.
ISO 100, 55mm, f11, 1/2sec. Available light.
Piano has 2 definitions. 1) the instrument that is played by striking keys 2) playing a section of music quietly. I listened to a Richard Feyman lecture on glass. It has an unusual property of being transparent and reflective. I used that trait in my picture. I found a piece of sheet music that starts with a quiet (piano) phrase. I then photographed it so you see a ghostly image of a piano (the instrument) at the same time.
ISO 100, 55mm, f11, 1/2sec. Available light.
Deron-
Piano was a tough one for me. I don't own a piano. I don't know anyone close to me who owns a piano. I was hoping to do more than shoot a piano, it's keys, it's wires, etc.. A few months back, in Topanga Canyon of Los Angeles, a piano was left on a hilltop overlooking LA. A video production crew left it there after shooting a music video for a local band and didn't feel like lugging it down the steep hillside. People found out about that piano and would hike up to it to play a tune. That piano has now been removed, but that's the kind of shot I was hoping for.
I was left with the piano at the Mission Inn of Riverside. The Steinway Centennial Grand Piano. This piano was crafted as the company’s gift to the USA for the 1876 Centennial celebration. During a national tour, it was somehow “misplaced”, but was rediscovered to be the one and only when it was undergoing restoration in the 1980s. Exactly how and when it came to the Mission Inn is unknown, but at the time of its disappearance the hotel was still a simple adobe cottage.
Piano was a tough one for me. I don't own a piano. I don't know anyone close to me who owns a piano. I was hoping to do more than shoot a piano, it's keys, it's wires, etc.. A few months back, in Topanga Canyon of Los Angeles, a piano was left on a hilltop overlooking LA. A video production crew left it there after shooting a music video for a local band and didn't feel like lugging it down the steep hillside. People found out about that piano and would hike up to it to play a tune. That piano has now been removed, but that's the kind of shot I was hoping for.
I was left with the piano at the Mission Inn of Riverside. The Steinway Centennial Grand Piano. This piano was crafted as the company’s gift to the USA for the 1876 Centennial celebration. During a national tour, it was somehow “misplaced”, but was rediscovered to be the one and only when it was undergoing restoration in the 1980s. Exactly how and when it came to the Mission Inn is unknown, but at the time of its disappearance the hotel was still a simple adobe cottage.
Kevin-
The remark “Let them eat cake” is often mistakenly attributed to Marie Antoinette. It truth she probably said “Let them play the piano"!
As I thought about this week’s theme it was a a bit of a struggle. I can’t play the piano, or any other musical instrument for that matter. And my BMW is far too small to transport a concert grand, a baby grand, or even a console type piano. What to do? Well, eat cake of course! A local bakery makes some wonderful cakes and will decorate them most any way you want. I found photographs of various piano cakes, some actually in the shape of a piano and others simply inspired by pianos. I asked them to make a white cake with raspberry filling and butter cream frosting (because it’s delicious), and decorate it like a piano, with piano keys all around and sheet music on top. This way I got the perfect photographic subject, and a tasty cake!
Nikon D4s, tripod mounted, 105mm f/2.8 Micro-Nikkor lens. Three Nikon flash units were used, two were bounced off the ceiling of the dining room in the background (which was propped with plates and coffee cups on the table for a proper serving of cake) and one more bouncing off the ceiling in the kitchen where the cake was positioned. Those three light sources, plus light from the dining table lamp that hangs from the ceiling and from the kitchen counter lamps which also hang from the ceiling, plus daylight coming though the windows (though I waited for a cloud to pass overhead so the outside light wouldn’t be too bright) all added up to a bit of a color temperature mess. But a grey card placed in the frame gave me a perfect 3200k which is what I applied to this image. ISO 100. f/8 to get the proper out-of-focus but still recognizable depth of field. 1/5th of a second.
Now I’m going to go enjoy more of the (yum, yum) piano cake!
The remark “Let them eat cake” is often mistakenly attributed to Marie Antoinette. It truth she probably said “Let them play the piano"!
As I thought about this week’s theme it was a a bit of a struggle. I can’t play the piano, or any other musical instrument for that matter. And my BMW is far too small to transport a concert grand, a baby grand, or even a console type piano. What to do? Well, eat cake of course! A local bakery makes some wonderful cakes and will decorate them most any way you want. I found photographs of various piano cakes, some actually in the shape of a piano and others simply inspired by pianos. I asked them to make a white cake with raspberry filling and butter cream frosting (because it’s delicious), and decorate it like a piano, with piano keys all around and sheet music on top. This way I got the perfect photographic subject, and a tasty cake!
Nikon D4s, tripod mounted, 105mm f/2.8 Micro-Nikkor lens. Three Nikon flash units were used, two were bounced off the ceiling of the dining room in the background (which was propped with plates and coffee cups on the table for a proper serving of cake) and one more bouncing off the ceiling in the kitchen where the cake was positioned. Those three light sources, plus light from the dining table lamp that hangs from the ceiling and from the kitchen counter lamps which also hang from the ceiling, plus daylight coming though the windows (though I waited for a cloud to pass overhead so the outside light wouldn’t be too bright) all added up to a bit of a color temperature mess. But a grey card placed in the frame gave me a perfect 3200k which is what I applied to this image. ISO 100. f/8 to get the proper out-of-focus but still recognizable depth of field. 1/5th of a second.
Now I’m going to go enjoy more of the (yum, yum) piano cake!