"Dutch" light?

After reading American Photo this month I went to Hendrik Kersten's website. I

think his portraits of his daughter are so interesting. Anyway- they talk about

his use of "Dutch" lighting- what is that? The same as Rembrandt lighting?

Thanks!

Probably. If you added the web site to your post, the rest of us could see. I Googled and got a lot of garbage.

http://www.hendrikkerstens.com/

 

rats- sorry I meant to add that in the first post...

More like Johannes Vermeer.

Ever so slightly off-topic, but how strange is it when a father does (apparent) nudes of his grown daughter?

Prefix the word "Dutch" to anything and it sounds lewd. Go on, try it. :-)

"Ever so slightly off-topic, but how strange is it when a father does (apparent) nudes of his grown daughter"

 

I do think that's a bit strange- but I haven't seen them so maybe they are not very nude? I can see on the sunburn photo she's topless but turned to show the strap marks- that's not weird to me.

 

I do think it's really interesting though to record all of those moments in that style. Think of what he could have sone if he started that earlier- first hair cut- first lost tooth- braces...dumb hair-dos. All in that same style... I'm glad nobody has a record of all my dumb hair cuts (and colors- eek :)

"how strange is it when a father does (apparent) nudes of his grown daughter?"

 

I guess it depends on whether one comes from a repressed culture.

And what's in one's mind and heart.

Back to the subject on Dutch Light. Don't know too much about it, but the Newfoundlands are said to have a different quality, color, of light. So knowing that the light is different many famous artists have painted there just to see the difference in light quality.

 

Anyway, no it is not Rembrandt lighting. It is special lighting only seen in the Newfoundlands.

 

Interesting question for sure. Maybe someone on Photo.net has been there or has studied Dutch Lighting and can share more light (bad pun) on the subject.

http://www.amsterdam-in-pictures.nl/gallery/page/id/268121.html

I've been called a lot of things before, but repressed ain't one of 'em. I checked into famous Dutch painters, and I second Vermeer as one of the painters of "that light that we wish was in every place", as well as Frans Hals.

Actually Mr. Tucci, I was thinking more along the line of Sturges-like shots on the French beaches, where they have a slightly different moral super-structure than we do.

But if the shoe fits.

I think the technical answer is, as suggested, perhaps some of the well-known Dutch painters. But it also got me to thinking (as painful as that is) that the light, in general, is much "softer" in the more northern lattitudes. I've only had the good fortune to go there once (to Amsterdam) but I noticed the light - even on "sunny" days - was so much softer than where I'm from, in Virginia. I recall that when there was a very light cloud layer the lighting was practically perfect for natural-light portraits. And of course there are the windmills, tulips, canals, architecture and a few other interesting things to see and photograph. Makes me want to go back! ;-)

Last wednesday I shoot these photographies and, when downloading it I see what I was doing...

 

Believe me. I did not realize what I was shooting until I see it in the computer...

 

http://1photobyday.blogspot.com/2007/02/maestros.html

 

The text say (in spanish):

 

A master is somebody who teach you without you know he is teaching and, after a time, you find yourself refecting what you learned without realize it.

So if you were going to try and replicate Dutch light- but say in the US where would you start? Window light through a diffuser? I get a lot of natural light in my studio- northern exposure and the windows are old- some are opaque glass- it's a warehouse thats been converted. I'd really like to experiment more with this sort of light- and how I wish I got borrow an 8x10 from someone :) Thanks!

I would characterize the light in the famous Dutch paintings as soft, yet contrasty. Hard to do, because when you diffuse light, it tends to lower contrast. I have seen soft, contrasty light in portraits before and tried to emulate it with varying degrees of success. I think if I had a huge softbox with a few thousand watt-seconds of flash, I could get the look. Basically, you want the light to wrap around your subject, but keep the shadows dark. My $0.02.

Here are more pictures: http://www.artspace.nl/artwork.php?

offset=0&idxArtist=12&idxWork=183

 

I think Peter is right, big source, diffused. Maybe a fill reflector placed just right.

 

I once built a light set up for George Harrison to be photographed by Carolyn Jones.

Broncolors I think, maybe four or five boxes, probably ten heads or more, put up on high

boys like a small tree. Maybe two or three of these trees lined up and staggered at a nice

angle. Then all these lights were curtained in front by a twenty-by silk which was

probably doubled. Wow, what a great light that produced. It was so big and wrapped so

much that I don't think we even used a bounce fill. The walls of the studio probably took

care of that. The real beauty was that you could do anything without ever changing the

light. Here's a close-up, but it looked just as good full-length.

 

However Hendrik Kerstens is doing it, it looks pretty great.<div></div>

Dennis, that's a beautiful shot.

It's pretty subjective, but to me this doesn't represent the lighting we're talking about. The soft,misty effect is lacking. No criticism of the ahot, but it doesn't really display that Vermeer softness, at least to me.

The ligthing on the linked photograph is pretty simple, no special lighting at all. Check the late work of the famous French photographer Frank Horvat for real painting effects with natural diffused window lighting!

Thanks for that link Dennis! Looks like he did start the project while she was very young.

 

I wonder how much of the softness has to do with the 8x10 camera. I mean- no doubt the lighting plays a huge part in these photos, but I think the 8x10 would also contribute. He says in the article that he scans the photos and puts them into PS...

Great examples Igor, thanks.

Oh- I forgot to say thanks to Igor too- I was reading Frank Horvat's interview and it gives me an idea for a project :)

You might find <a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00K5BL">this thread</a> very interesting.

Also <a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00KAf3&tag=">the chiaroscuro theme thread</a> is relative.