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Alan Brown's picture

ICM Q&A

As there are members that may be newer to the group and unfamiliar with ICM (Intentional Camera Movement) and terms that may be used I thought it may be worth starting a general discussion on the topic.

I will try to add information I feel pertinent, but feel free to post any questions to the discussion and others will do their best to answer.

To start off, my own definition of ICM is any result that relies on movement of the camera to influence the outcome.

This traditionally means moving the camera as the shutter is open (what some may refer to 'pure ICM'), but can also include the taking of multiple exposures of a consistent subject and blending to create an impressionistic result. This type of work is commonly attributed to the Catalan photographer, Pep Ventosa.

Those wishing to learn more about the techniques in use can visit the excellent tutorial provided by Stephanie Johnson below (founder of the excellent ICMphotoMag online magazine)

https://fstoppers.com/groups/251381/icmphotomag-icm-photography-magazine...

There is also a wealth of ICM information throughout my own website, including a guide for those wishing to understand many of the more advanced techniques I see in use today. Note that this is my attempt to acknowledge a number of techniques as I have been unable to find information otherwise (don't quote as authoritative....);

https://www.alanbrownphotography.com/a-personal-summary-of-icm-techniques

Our goal is to help members experiment and grow so please don't be reluctant to ask questions. The only stupid question is the one not asked.......

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4 Comments

Hello Alan! As I'm going through postings, I keep seeing "blending." Is there someplace I can go to learn more about this? It's all new to me! I guess this is also what "in the round" involves? Thank you.

Funny you should ask that..... blending refers to the use of multiple layers (in Photoshop/other) to create an end product.

"in the round" is a technique attributed to a Catalan photographer, Pep Ventosa (often noted as the 'Ventosa' technique). This is a process where multiple images are taken around a subject (typically a tree etc), with the images being blended as above.

I have been experimenting with this technique for a few years now and have an amount of information on my website by way of guides, and blog entries (as well as pics in my galleries) that take you through my own journey as well as describe the technique.

Check out the following;

Blog entries (Category search = 'Ventosa')
https://www.alanbrownphotography.com/blog/category/Ventosa

'In the round' guide (reprint courtesy of ICMphotomag);
https://www.alanbrownphotography.com/a-personal-guide-to-the-ventosa-tec...

You can also find some YouTube videos that go over the basics - these might make the reading a little easier to digest. (search Ventosa image etc)

The technique for both shooting and processing is a lot of fun - definitely worth playing with if you have the software.

Footnote;
Not to overwhelm you but here is another article that describes the process and offers other possibilities for use;
https://www.leavesnbloom.com/2017/04/pep-ventosa-photography-technique.html

Let me know if I can be of any further help.

Actually I've been working through your MyGuides section in my free time, and Ventosa is coming up next. I bookmarked your ICMphotomag article and the leavesinbloom.com article. Thanks for taking the time to pass on this information. I appreciate it!

Just a quick follow-up on my reply. Just read the articles. It makes A LOT more sense now. Will be giving it a try this week. Thanks again.