Exposure Center

7 minute read

X-H1 : Jan Gonzales x Fashion -Proud of-

Chris Knight brings together many of the elements we’ve already touched on in this series, to make something a little different

Video 2022 © Chris Knight

In this final chapter, we’re going to make photographs inspired by the surreal paintings of Rene Magritte. In creating them, we’ll use classic lighting techniques, complementary color, staging, and projection, so it’s the perfect way to end this cinematic-styled journey.

You might be wondering, what does the world of fine art have to do with making cinematic images? Well, it’s really a case of going full circle, because this was the inspiration for many of Hollywood’s most successful directors and cinematographers.

Talk to any filmmaker, and they’ll likely have been drawn to paintings in one style or another. For instance, Stanley Kubrick took inspiration from Hogarth when making Barry Lyndon, while directors such as David Lynch consistently draw on surrealist and figurative imagery. The insane cityscapes of Christopher Nolan’s Inception were heavily foreshadowed in illustration and painting, too.

Focusing on Magritte, there are references in the sky-painted walls and shifting perspectives of Peter Weir’s The Truman Show. While John McTiernan’s The Thomas Crown Affair plays with the painter’s imagined world – the iconic faceless men in bowler hats is a memorable chase scene. On a personal level, I’ve always been drawn to the symbolism, riddles, and pure, striking aesthetic charm of Magritte’s work – its juxtapositions of common subjects in fantastical situations – and that’s what made me want to recreate his work in particular.

Photographer directing photoshoot lighting — Photo 2022 © Chris Knight

How I created these images
I didn’t want this project to simply be a case of copying Magritte’s paintings. As a photographer and filmmaker, I added a twist. So, the idea was to make cinematic versions, channeling Magritte through the photographic lens.

I also wanted them to work as a series, so I used a consistent type of look and feel, even though the subjects come from separate paintings. And while the second of the setups uses a level of compositing, in the main, I kept as much of the process in camera as possible.

Finally, as you’ll see in the setups below, it’s simply a process of positioning, coloring, and balancing the studio lighting with the projected images, so that neither is overpowering and working as part of the whole. As in the previous chapter, I took cues from the backdrop, motivating its colors, and it’s the same here.

For an accurate exposure, I used a shutter speed long enough to minimize the flickering of the projector (similar to the effect of filming a monitor or TV screen). In this case, I used 1/60 sec, modifying the power of the LED lights to get what I imagined. Fortunately, using GFX or X Series cameras and continuous lights, the EVF shows exactly how the image will be recorded, so it can all be done without any complex metering or calculation. Finally, I went with a shallow depth-of-field to blur the background projection slightly and hide some of the visible pixels.

Check out the three different setups below.

Photographic recreation of The Son of Man by Magritte — Photo 2022 © Chris Knight

Setup 1: The Son of Man
The Son of Man was a self-portrait from 1946 and probably Magritte’s most well-known painting. I found some similar wardrobe components to replicate the feel, and the apple which obscures the face is suspended in the air by a fishing wire – which needs to be as still as possible, as it might look odd if blurred. Conversely, I did want to soften the details generally, giving a more painterly look, so I used a haze machine.

Photography studio set up with blue and pink lights

Photo 2022 © Chris Knight

For lighting, I used four Nanlite Pavotubes, which can be set to reproduce any color in the RGB spectrum. Perfect for when you want to not only motivate a particular light source, but match its hue.

Photographic recreation of The Therapeutist by Magritte — Photo 2022 © Chris Knight

Setup 2: The Therapeutist
This was painted in 1937, inspired by Magritte’s exposure to the psychoanalysis of Sigmund Freud. To create the sage-like subject – half man, half caged birds – we needed to take two images and combine them in Photoshop. The real trick here is working consistently, so that part is easy. To make the frames line up with minimal shift in perspective, I composed with the camera’s position locked off on a tripod. Similarly, it’s important that the lights don’t move, or change in color or brightness between the shots, so that everything blends as naturally and believably as possible.

Photo 2022 © Chris Knight

Chris Knight photographical recreation of The Lovers II by Magritte — Photo 2022 © Chris Knight

Setup 3: The Lovers II
The Lovers II was painted in 1928 and draws on the young Magritte seeing his mother recovered from a river where she had drowned, with her dress covering her face. Although we’re using a sunset background again to keep the consistency, this time the colors are reversed, and there’s a window frame added, taking a cue from the original painting. So, the motivated lighting is reversed, too.

Behind the scenes of photoshoot of man and woman kissing with scarves on their heads — Photo 2022 © Chris Knight

Put it all together
Now we’ve come to the end of our cinematic journey, taking it full circle and discovering some of the art that inspired filmmakers. So, what will YOU make? What art inspires you? When you’ve decided, just remember to read the painting, taking note of its lighting, and staging, then apply the same looks to your own version. Have fun!

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Exposure Center

X-H1 : Jan Gonzales x Fashion -Proud of-

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Chris Knight