Sunday 28 January 2018

Triptych of the Week #4

Saturday Morning

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I shot in black and white yesterday morning. Saturday mornings are always such a relief: not having to get up at 6am and getting some time to myself. The slow pace of a Saturday morning is what I wanted to convey with this triptych. I had quite a few photos of Maisie to choose from, but I liked the silhouette of her in the photo I chose. I turned up the exposure to capture a crisper shot and I particularly liked the stripey top in the background.

The first shot is not particularly original or exciting, but as this was going to be self portrait photography, I wanted to have a photo that opened the narrative of waking up. The shadows in the photo help to get that across.

I obviously had to wear that stripey top today! I got a tripod for Christmas, so I set it up and started playing. It's a bit of a luxury to have time to do my make-up and hair on the weekend. Usually I'm bleary-eyed and in a rush. Being childless has its perks and I find the whole process of doing my skincare routine, make-up and hair very cathartic. The tripod enabled me to actually snap away while I was doing my routine. There were a lot of shots to choose from, but I chose this one because I liked the texture of the brushed, damp hair, particularly the lines which link to the other lines in the images. 
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Sunday 21 January 2018

Triptych of the Week #3

January Reflections
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These three photos were all taken on the same day, with photos 1 and 3 being taken on a cold evening walk. Last year, when I was doing my 'Photo a Day' challenge I realised that reflections were a subject that I was drawn to photographing. These reflections convey the coldness of the time of year due to the colour theme, but also perhaps there's a allusion to the hope and 'wonder' of the new start.

Photo 1 is a reflection of a reflection of someone looking in the window at a shop's January sales. There's something a bit miserable about January sales to me! I'm a hypocrite, because I will hunt the sales (particularly online), but it feels sad to see the presents that you carefully chose for people on sale as if they are discardable objects. I guess, in the grand scheme of things, they are! 

The other two photos are reflections in water (it's been quite rainy in January). Photo 2 is obviously colour-enhanced in editing to give it a more whimsical style. Photo 3's sky is a contrast to the colours within it and bleak. I could have photoshopped out the car, but there's some element of narrative to be had with it being there. 

Overall, I'm quite pleased with the photos, but I'd like to get better at using Photoshop to get a more professional finish. Any tips anyone?_____________________________________________________________________________________

Sunday 14 January 2018

Triptych of the Week #2

Circles of Time
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On January the 1st, I felt at quite a loss. Not really one for change, the new year business is always bittersweet for me; the loss of the old and familiar, yet also the feeling that something new and exciting should be happening. The bleak weather, the passing of Christmas, the impending idea of going back to work: it's a dark cloud which I feel guilty for allowing to cover me. Do we all feel this way at this time of year?

Then there's the familiarity of the whole process of starting a new year in which I will get a year older. The neuroses of time slipping by and not achieving what I think I should; the fatal flaw of not living in each precious moment. I've got a bit better at that, but there's still the pining after those memories once they're gone. We're complicated creatures aren't we.

So this triptych expresses the cyclical nature of our years. The cold season and the feelings that come with it. I chose the final shot (ironically the first I took which inspired the 'circle' theme) to complete the triptych. It is there to represent newness and growth. 

I'll leave it on that more positive note!
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Sunday 7 January 2018

Triptych of the Week #1

The Park

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Taken in Tonbridge park, these photos document a solitary stroll around the perimeter of this wide, green space. 

I used the zoom feature on the top and bottom photos, more out of wanting to be inconspicuous than anything else. I also shot using the 'pop colour' feature for these shots. The difference in vibrancy between the top and bottom is a happy accident, but adds to the narrative. 

As a kid, I loved the zip-line; the man with his dogs was also a solitary stroller who I passed on my walk and then captured later. He was sat on a bench with his two dogs for company. I thought about asking to take his photo then and there, but it seemed quite obtrusive as he was clearly out to have some time to himself, perhaps a pre-Christmas day breather. The goalposts in the two images tie them quite nicely, I think.

The middle shot was taken with a slower shutter speed; I achieved more or less what I wanted here. The framing could be better in this image, but I chose this one because the foot was in shot and the shape of my coat with the button looked better than in some of the others.

So this is my first attempt at a triptych and I hope to produce some interesting images this year, pushing myself to tell some stories with my photography.
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Friday 5 January 2018

New Additions to my Vinyl Collection, January 2018


Since my first vinyl collection post last April I've acquired some new editions to my collection- both newly pressed and second hand. It's quite hard to group my new records in the same way as I did before ('classic'/'iconic' albums vs. random finds) as I have found some popular, classic albums by chance when out and about. A gem of a place for good prices on second hand vinyl is a shop called Boiler Room in Poole, Dorset. 

Monday 1 January 2018

The 2017 Photo a Day Photography Challenge: A Reflection

At the start of 2017, I set myself the challenge to post a photo to this blog every day in an effort to explore my photography hobby. Yesterday I posted my final photo for the year and felt an unexpected moment of sadness. It was unexpected because it has been testing at times. For certain stretches of the year, during busy periods at work, it was hard to find the time to post on a daily basis. I found at my most productive periods I was taking hundreds of shots and pre-scheduling a weeks' worth of photos, but at other times I had to get creative with my posting. It was simultaneously enjoyable and challenging- and now, looking over the collages above, there is a feeling of achievement (for someone who doesn't always feel they have achieved much). In fact, I posted twice on a few days by accident.