Getting Started with Pratt Paper
So, I decided to mess around with some Pratt paper the other day. Had a few sheets lying around from ages ago, you know how it is. Stumbled upon them while cleaning out a drawer and thought, why not try and take some interesting photos? Wasn’t really a plan, more like a spur-of-the-moment thing.
First thing, I needed to figure out what exactly I wanted to do with this paper. It’s got this kinda specific texture and weight, not like your regular printer paper. I thought maybe folding it or layering it could create some cool shadows and shapes.
Setting Up the Scene
I cleared off my desk, needed a clean space. The lighting in my room isn’t great, so I grabbed my old desk lamp and pointed it right at the setup. Didn’t have any fancy camera gear, just used my phone. Honestly, phone cameras are pretty good these days for stuff like this.
Here’s basically what I gathered:
- The sheets of Pratt paper
- My phone
- A desk lamp
- Some random objects to maybe prop the paper up (like a book, a mug)
I started folding one sheet into a sort of fan shape. Another one I just curved gently. It was a bit fiddly, the paper didn’t always want to stay how I put it. Had to use a bit of tape on the back once or twice, kept it hidden from the camera though.
Taking the Pictures
Okay, setup done, time to actually take the photos. I moved the lamp around quite a bit, trying to get different shadows. Sometimes aiming it directly, sometimes from the side. Side lighting seemed to bring out the texture of the paper much better. Took loads of shots. Close-ups, wider angles, focusing on the edge of the paper, focusing on the shadows it cast.
It was mostly trial and error. Some shots looked boring, others were kinda interesting. I wasn’t aiming for perfection, just wanted to see what I could get. Spent maybe an hour just playing around with the angles and the light. Changed the folds a few times too when I got bored of one shape.
Looking at the Results
Afterward, I transferred the photos to my computer to see them on a bigger screen. Deleted a bunch straight away – blurry ones, badly lit ones. Kept maybe ten or fifteen that I thought looked alright. Didn’t do much editing, just maybe tweaked the contrast a little on a couple of them to make the shadows pop more. Used the basic photo editor that comes with the OS, nothing fancy.
Overall, it was a fun little experiment. Didn’t create any masterpieces, but it was good practice just focusing on light, shadow, and texture with a simple subject. The Pratt paper photos ended up looking quite abstract, which was cool. Just a simple way to spend an afternoon being a bit creative without much fuss.
