#14 - Allyson Gibson - July 11, 2017 - Fairfax Station, Virginia
Sunday, July 16, 2017
I've known Allyson Gibson since she was about 4-5 years old. She is the niece of photographer and painter Walter Smalling who I used to assist doing photography. Walter and I travelled all over the US and Canada doing architectural photography for many years. 23 years later, I still work with Walter on photography projects, mainly doing digital post production work for him.
Ally grew up in Northern Virginia right out of Washington, DC. She studied at James Madison University where she did a farming internship class in the Shenandoah Valley which introduced her to the idea of farming. In her own words - "Every Friday, I would walk up the driveway through the ducks, geese, and past the rows of asparagus towards the barn where I was tasked with all the jobs the farm manager didn't want to do. And I loved every minute of it."
After college, Ally went on to work with the WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) and worked on a few other farms but still did not think that she wanted to be a farmer. "I took jobs in small food businesses but only loved the days I was outside or working directly with our suppliers." It wasn't until she quit a restaurant job to work on an urban farm that she finally admitted to herself that she could build a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm.
Ally created Pocket Farms and works a couple of plots of land in the DC area growing vegetables and flowers. Members pay a fee and are provided with a "subscription of flowers or vegetables. She even works with a local bee keeper and they also supply honey from hives that are next to her fields.
I arrived at a gorgeous property where Ally grows the main portion of her produce and flowers in Fairfax Station, Virginia. The property was a bucolic rolling fields farm just outside the hustle and bustle of Washington, DC. It was one of the most beautiful pieces of property I've visited in Northern Virginia in a long time.
The light was a dark overcast and I mistakenly opted to use a low-speed film with an ISO of 80. I pushed the limits of what exposure should have been when making portraits. 1/60 at f/4 with a 110 mm lens is pushing it. If the subject moves off the razor thin focus the shot will not be sharp. With digital, I could have easily just raised the ISO. With film you are "stuck" with the ISO - sure one can underexpose and give more development to the film (known as pushing) - but that often compromises tonal values and adds grain.
I was very concerned that the film would have blocked up shadows and look dull and lifeless because of the flat dark overcast day we shot on. I knew I needed to give the film a bit more development to raise the contrast. I was pleasantly surprised to see the results. Technically I was very pleased with the development of the negatives. Not all the shots were tack sharp - but they were close enough. Lesson learned - next time I will read the light values before I start loading up the film backs. Shooting digital over the years has completely made me forget the lesson of reading the light before loading up the film. I believe digital photographers take a lot for granted. There is an awareness that is lost.
Ally grew up in Northern Virginia right out of Washington, DC. She studied at James Madison University where she did a farming internship class in the Shenandoah Valley which introduced her to the idea of farming. In her own words - "Every Friday, I would walk up the driveway through the ducks, geese, and past the rows of asparagus towards the barn where I was tasked with all the jobs the farm manager didn't want to do. And I loved every minute of it."
After college, Ally went on to work with the WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) and worked on a few other farms but still did not think that she wanted to be a farmer. "I took jobs in small food businesses but only loved the days I was outside or working directly with our suppliers." It wasn't until she quit a restaurant job to work on an urban farm that she finally admitted to herself that she could build a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm.
Ally created Pocket Farms and works a couple of plots of land in the DC area growing vegetables and flowers. Members pay a fee and are provided with a "subscription of flowers or vegetables. She even works with a local bee keeper and they also supply honey from hives that are next to her fields.
I arrived at a gorgeous property where Ally grows the main portion of her produce and flowers in Fairfax Station, Virginia. The property was a bucolic rolling fields farm just outside the hustle and bustle of Washington, DC. It was one of the most beautiful pieces of property I've visited in Northern Virginia in a long time.
The light was a dark overcast and I mistakenly opted to use a low-speed film with an ISO of 80. I pushed the limits of what exposure should have been when making portraits. 1/60 at f/4 with a 110 mm lens is pushing it. If the subject moves off the razor thin focus the shot will not be sharp. With digital, I could have easily just raised the ISO. With film you are "stuck" with the ISO - sure one can underexpose and give more development to the film (known as pushing) - but that often compromises tonal values and adds grain.
I was very concerned that the film would have blocked up shadows and look dull and lifeless because of the flat dark overcast day we shot on. I knew I needed to give the film a bit more development to raise the contrast. I was pleasantly surprised to see the results. Technically I was very pleased with the development of the negatives. Not all the shots were tack sharp - but they were close enough. Lesson learned - next time I will read the light values before I start loading up the film backs. Shooting digital over the years has completely made me forget the lesson of reading the light before loading up the film. I believe digital photographers take a lot for granted. There is an awareness that is lost.
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