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Published 01/12/2014
Sergio Muscat
This year has seen Sergio focussing on his Masters in Digital Art and publishing academic papers on photography. "Writing academically is not easy since you need to be very careful and reference every statement you make." It may have been a difficult process, but Sergio feels that it has been worth the long hours: "Studying opens up your mind to endless new possibilities and in my case it showed me how little I knew! It has expanded my horizons into the world of both contemporary art and the history of art. Although it might not impact my photography directly I know that my future photography will be affected by what I have learnt over the past couple of years."
However, Sergio has not abandoned taking photographs completely! "I remain fascinated by nature and humans and this is what I've mostly been working on recently. I find abstract work particularly satisfying since it liberates my mind from the rigours of life and academic studying so this is what I have been focussing on." Sergio's abstract work includes everything from architecture to nature, creating beautiful and haunting photographs that sometimes don't even appear to have been made by a camera.
At The Societies' Convention 2015 Sergio will be teaching two Masterclasses that focus on what happens after you shoot your images. The first will be looking at curves and layers in Photoshop - two basic yet powerful tools available for post-production. "Ninety per cent of my Photoshop editing is done using these core tools. In order to use them well though it's important to understand their inner workings. Learning about the histogram will mean that you can 'read' the image much more easily, break it down and then modify it." Sergio believes that being able to read the image is a crucial ability when it comes to postprocessing in Photoshop and that once you understand how to use the basic tools available, anything is possible. "In today's digital world, photographs are made to be edited - no image should leave your computer without some form of postprocessing."
Sergio will also be delivering a Masterclass on processing and printing your work for exhibition. With several solo and collective exhibitions behind him Sergio understands what visitors to exhibitions and gallery owners are looking for in a high quality print. "There is a huge difference between presenting commercial work and showing photography asart. I often see images, sometimes even during judging sessions, thatlack a certain kind of refinement. Seemingly minor things such as dust specs, unrefined editing or incorrect calibration can mean the difference between a top-performing image and a mediocre one." Since so much of our reputation as artists is built around the quality of our work, we simply cannot afford to put images out into the marketplace that are not of the highest standard. Sergio's Masterclass will cover all the considerations that you will need to make for printing if you choose to have a go at producing your own exhibition prints.
There are 0 days to get ready for The Society of Photographers Convention and Trade Show at The Novotel London West, Hammersmith ...
which starts on Thursday 1st January 1970