OmoroShoot briefRoll 042Ser.05
WPA Poster aesthetic photography reference
RecTC 00:00:00:00

WPA Poster

Shoot places and people as a poster would draw them: flat light, few colours, big simple shapes

Roll 0425 frames0 / 5 shot
Frames00/05
More in Retro & VintageSynthwaveItalo Disco80s Editorial
wpa poster
SET

The setup

Shoot briefHD[wpa poster    ]00:00:00:00Stop ■
Brief Int(wpa-poster__.BRF)

WPA Poster

01 LightFlat, even light that removes fine detail: overcast days, open shade or a soft key without fill. Colour graded toward four inks, greens, ochres and brick reds, with cream highlights instead of white.
02 WardrobeWork clothes and outdoors kit in single colours: canvas, wool, denim, a hat with a brim. No logos, no technical fabrics.
03 LocationA national or state park
04 Palette
DIR

Director's note

Compose as if the picture were going to be cut into stencils: big shapes, a clear silhouette, a flat sky, and a place for a headline. Reduce the palette in the grade to three or four inks on cream. Choose subjects the originals would have chosen today, work, health, parks and public life, rather than restaging a mesa. No fine texture, no dramatic contrast and no gloss.

All 151 director’s notes, printable: Director’s Briefs, $8 →
VF

Viewfinder

Live

Four controls on the brief's own plate · the meter is real, so you can blow a frame

WPA Poster reference frame
Standby50mmf/5.6 · 1/125 · ISO 400

Running the list sets the camera for every shot in turn. Load your own photo to light and expose a frame you actually shot.

LGT

Light the set

3 lamps

Drag a lamp and watch the frame above change. The brief's own note is the preset

KeyThe light that makes the pictureSoft, farEye level
FillHow far into shadow you can seeHard, closeEye level
BackRound at the front, where it is just another fillOffEye level
On the brief
CS

Contact sheet

00 / 12

Nothing on the sheet yet. Set the camera, then take a frame.

SEQ

Shot list

00 / 05

Tap a pad to mark the frame shot · saved on this device

A ranger or a lifeguard in a plain uniform against a flat sky, shot lowsetup50mm
A lighthouse, a pine and a lake reduced to bands of colour at golden hoursetup50mm
A theatre foyer with a stacked-type poster on the wall and one figure reading itsetup50mm
A clinic or a library counter with simple shapes and a wide empty wallwide24mm
A screen-printing table with posters drying on a linesetup50mm
Rolling
Take it to set: all 151 briefs as one PDF · $8
LOC

Locations

05
A national or state parkA lighthouse, dam or bridgeA theatre, library or civic hallA market or a bus depotA print shop
REF

Explore the aesthetic

Style guideColor palette
DOC

About this brief

How do I photograph the WPA Poster aesthetic?

Shoot places and people as a poster would draw them: flat light, few colours, big simple shapes.

Compose as if the picture were going to be cut into stencils: big shapes, a clear silhouette, a flat sky, and a place for a headline. Reduce the palette in the grade to three or four inks on cream. Choose subjects the originals would have chosen today, work, health, parks and public life, rather than restaging a mesa. No fine texture, no dramatic contrast and no gloss.

Director's note

What shots should I get for a WPA Poster photo shoot?

Leave with every frame on this list.

Shot list

  1. A ranger or a lifeguard in a plain uniform against a flat sky, shot low
  2. A lighthouse, a pine and a lake reduced to bands of colour at golden hour
  3. A theatre foyer with a stacked-type poster on the wall and one figure reading it
  4. A clinic or a library counter with simple shapes and a wide empty wall
  5. A screen-printing table with posters drying on a line
What lighting works for WPA Poster photography?

Flat, even light that removes fine detail: overcast days, open shade or a soft key without fill. Colour graded toward four inks, greens, ochres and brick reds, with cream highlights instead of white.

Light

Where should I shoot WPA Poster photography?

Scout these before anything else.

Locations

  1. A national or state park
  2. A lighthouse, dam or bridge
  3. A theatre, library or civic hall
  4. A market or a bus depot
  5. A print shop
What wardrobe works for WPA Poster photography?

Work clothes and outdoors kit in single colours: canvas, wool, denim, a hat with a brim. No logos, no technical fabrics.

Wardrobe

Omoro Studio · Creative System

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