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French to English translations [PRO] Tech/Engineering - Photography/Imaging (& Graphic Arts)
French term or phrase:plan
"...cette vue de Paris est composée d’une succession de plans..."
I know exactly what that is i.e. foreground, background, etc., but as it happens in our job, I have been stuck with that for half an hour, and I should know since my eldest son is a fashion photographer...! I have been thinking of "layers", but am quite sure it's wrong... HELP ! Thanks...
Explanation: mattrunks.com › Tutorials › Premium › TutorialAfter Effects by Mattias Peresini - in 797 Google+ circles "Preparation of the photo in Photoshop before importing it into After Effects."
-------------------------------------------------- Note added at 4 hrs (2014-06-12 13:31:48 GMT) --------------------------------------------------
Re "layers", that would be used if the picture was built up from a number of superimposed images, possibly of varying degrees of transparency. However, the "layers" would relate to the technical way the image was produced rather than to the viewer's perception of the finished image, which is how I read the question.
Thanks a lot... Considering your suggestion about a required break and glass of wine. Actually had the glass of wine, but no break yet !!! :-) 4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer
How well do I know... This is one of these series of reports by so-called "art critics", who always make sure that whatever they say cannot be understood by anyone... Unlike my Parisian sister who has worked in the world of art galleries for 35 years, my judgement is limited to a yes or no question: would I like to wake up in front of that artwork every morning? Yes means it's good, no means it's not... to ME!!! I am a (very amateur) musician, and have been playing by ear for 60 years. My teenage daughter wants to be a music teacher. She always tells me: Dad, this is good, or this is rubbish. I invariably reply: I like it, I don't like it... but I don't know if it's "good" or "bad". However, I enjoy the chat with you, and more than just looking for help when one is stuck, I think the great thing about this site is the opportunity to discuss the issues we all face, all the time. Thnaks a lot.
I too am very much aware of what British and US photographers call "previsualisation", and is essential when using time-consuming large format view cameras. As a scientist and photographer I try to keep my feet firmly planted in reality, as it were, but the truth is, language is an inefficient tool for conyeying the meaning of an image. You only have to read some of the purple prose which introduces many exhibition catalogues to be convinced of this. I have never thought of foreground or background as separate "planes" and for the author to say that "...cette vue de Paris est composée d’une succession de plans..." is (IMHO) not really very illuminating.
As usual, my friend, very, very efficient...! You really are a star when it comes to accuracy and like many colleagues, I guess, I fully and always appreciate your input... :-)
Yes Tony spot on! the picture can be read at different levels and you can "focus" on some of them from "the front" to "the rear" of the picture itself. More than one image in a single shot
Thank you, Chris, for your comment. As you are aware, and whether this is about a painting, a photo or a film, the "artist" creates his picture according to what he actually "sees" in his head. My eldest son, when studying at the Ecole Louis Lumiere in Paris, was defined by his tutors as "having the eye" - like musicians have "the ear": he could see the finished picture before he had taken it, and that is a special talent. This means he could see the outcome beforehand - the actual structure that would make it a good snapshot, and in those days, they didn't have facilities like "automatic motorised snapping" - if that's the appropriate way to say that they now press a button, and the camera takes x pictures a minute. The pictures were built up in his (small...) brain before he ever pressed the button, and it meant he had assessed the importance of each plane - or layer - to ensure he would produce exactly what was required.
In a strictly mathematical sense yes — but in photography, and indeed, art in general' we tend to talk about the 'vue' as a scene or a shot that has an existence in its own right above and beyond the literal, physical 2D image.
Likewise, although we know that in reality there will be an infinite number of planes, in practice we talk about a smaller, finite number of planes identified by certain key elements in the scene that enable us to define, as John says, foreground, background, and various intermediate planes containing key or prominent objects...
Strictly speaking, the image itself is just one plane. Also, a 3-D scene is actually an infinite number of (2-D) planes, but I wonder if the author just meant that the image he's talking about is a composite?
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Answers
11 mins confidence: peer agreement (net): +5
plan (in this context)
plane
Explanation: mattrunks.com › Tutorials › Premium › TutorialAfter Effects by Mattias Peresini - in 797 Google+ circles "Preparation of the photo in Photoshop before importing it into After Effects."
-------------------------------------------------- Note added at 4 hrs (2014-06-12 13:31:48 GMT) --------------------------------------------------
Re "layers", that would be used if the picture was built up from a number of superimposed images, possibly of varying degrees of transparency. However, the "layers" would relate to the technical way the image was produced rather than to the viewer's perception of the finished image, which is how I read the question.
@Asker, that's generally a good sign that a break and perhaps a glass of wine is required.
B D Finch France Local time: 13:26 Works in field Native speaker of: English PRO pts in category: 28
Grading comment
Thanks a lot... Considering your suggestion about a required break and glass of wine. Actually had the glass of wine, but no break yet !!! :-)
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thank you both. Must admit I am still confused because I called 3 pros - 2 in the photography industry and a friend film editor, and its 50/50 between "planes" and "layers"... The good news is that, in 1850, it could not have been "aero"-planes!!! Do you find it as frustrating as I do in this job when you know exactly what it means, but remain stuck when it comes to find the appropriate word in the other language...? :-)