Pro Pix Tips. I thought it most appropriate to talk about cookies in this PPT post. Not the kind you eat but the kind that we use in photography. They are a part of the GOBO family of light shaping tools. So what's a GOBO? It's technically anything placed between a light source and the area that the light source is illuminating for the purpose of controlling or shaping that light. In other word something that GOes Between (BO) the subject and light source. GOBOs have several different styles to produce several different results. Two of the most common use are scrims and flags. We well look at these in a upcoming post. The cookie is used to project a shape or pattern onto an area of the subject. They can be made of almost anything which will reform the light in color or shape. Size has no issue except as it pertains to the composition placement. It can be any form. I have seen ladders used as well as glasses, plants, stained glass windows, window frames, window blind, you name it, it's probably been used. They can add to the natural sitting of the photo or be use to create feel or emotion, or add a clarifying element in the tell of the story presented in the shot.
The term cookie is kind of a nickname for the word Cuculoris which is found in the movie and theatrical field. Another nickname is the word coo-koo which is not used nearly as much as cookie. If we were to really dive into this subject in depth we would note the cookie is broken down into at least four categories which more or less applies to the material they're made of.
If we were in the studio and wanted to create a natural on location look of a subject looking out a window when there's no window to look out of, we could place a cookie that would cast a window frame shape onto our background surface. With the use of a filter we could make it look as though the sun was shining right in even if we were taking the photo in a cave. Cookies cast shadows that create an illusion which we want to help in the composition of our photograph. They can add to the story or be used to direct attention to the subject.
The truly funny thing about cookies is that they can be found in must general every photograph especially those taken outside the studio. Where theres a shadow being cast there's a cookie casting it. Now there are some who would tell you that in order for it to be a cookie it has to be unnatural or even had to have been place into position. Well what ever floats your boat but the results are the same. I know that there would be a difference but if I want a leafy branch shadow behind my subject whether it comes from a real tree that is living there or from a rubber hose with leaves cut out from construction paper, I don't care. What you decide is up to you but for me, well it's rare for me to find a cookie I don't like.
That's cookies in a nut shell (yes I meant it say it that way). We will talk more about GOBOs and how to use them to compose you photos in our upcoming post. Until then, have a great day everybody!
Richard
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