It Doesn’t Always Work

I’ve come to realise that as much as I enjoy photography and sharing my pictures with you all I won’t always be pleased with the work that I create. In essence, the things that I try to do, the shots I attempt to take don’t always work. This is one of those things that I’m sure every photographer experiences and there is no point in allowing myself to become annoyed with it. Instead, I’m learning that it something that I must just accept as a par for the course.

As, with most of my inspiration, I experimented with shooting pictures at the widest aperture my lens would allow after seeing an article on the Digital Photography School website. This was something I’d not thought about before and found the pictures included within the article fascinating. The dream like nature of the shot, created by the short depth of field a wide aperture gives, allowing the subject to stand out from it’s background.

The first few attempts of emulating this style were taken at home. Subjects ranging from money boxes to toys and kitchen utensils.

Stupid Little Coins (f/3.5 1sec 18mm ISO 100)

When I took this photo I really liked the way that the money box reflected the chair that was in front of it. The way the light falls on the object makes the front bright while the side that faces the camera falls in a duller area of light. In order to take this shot I rested my camera on the table, using it like a tripod. This allowed the sharp shot even at a long exposure time. Whilst it would seem I have succeeded in creating a decent wide open photograph, the shot is ruined by the terrible composition of the subject. Using the table to steady the camera was a good idea but in hindsight, it has cropped the subject terribly.

Dalek (f/3.5 1.3sec 18mm ISO 100)

This photo brings together my love of photography and my obsession with Dr Who. My Dalek usually sits on top of my mantelpiece so I moved him to the table and used the same technique to take this shot as I did with the money box. I’m a little happier with this picture as the depth of field is just where I want it to be. I could crop the picture in post processing to make the Dalek a more central figure and remove the table mats and chair but for the purpose of experimentation I have left them in.

Time For A Brew (f/3.5 1/25 sec 18mm ISO 100)

For this shot I moved into the kitchen. The light in here is so much brighter than the living room due to the large window and door at the back of the room. I took this shot three times, focusing on different areas of the shot each time. This is my favourite of those three, the tea bags in the foreground leading your eye in to the frame and the fully focused biscuit and tea bag tins.

Time Travelling Pepper Pots (f/3.5 0.6sec 18mm ISO 100)

This is a great example of how my photography doesn’t always work and seeing as that is the title of this post I thought I should include it. The focal point of the picture should be the two salt and pepper pot TARDIS’ (again, my obsession with Dr Who shining through). Instead, the item that is most in focus is the Daniel Merriweather CD in the background.

Having played around with this style at home, I took my camera to Saltaire in Bradford. Saltaire is a town based around a wool mill which is now home to David Hockney’s fabulous art and brilliant shops dedicated to trendy furniture and antique dealers. There is also a museum about the history of the town and mill.

Salts (f/5.6 1/400 55mm ISO 200)

Outside the mill is this sign, its an obvious shot to take but hasn’t come out very well with my 18-55mm EF lens. Normally I would have swapped lenses to my 18-200mm but I was conscious of keeping my aperture as wide as possible so decided to stick with my 18-55. Another mistake? I’m not sure. The mistake I definitely made was not taking the picture with my telephoto as well.

Suzuki (f/3.5 1/250 18mm ISO 200)

I couldn’t resist this quick snap in the car park behind the mill. Another wide open shot that works but just doesn’t have that something that makes it a great photograph.

Tower of Blur (f/5 1/160 43mm ISO 200)

The last photograph is of the mill tower. It isn’t especially interesting but the stone bollard in the foreground allows the tower to be blurred and therefore rather cool.

 

In conclusion, the only thing that is assured is that I will continue to take pictures and hopefully, continue to improve. I will fail at times but this must not dishearten me and instead make me more hungry for success. If you’ve had any similar experiences please share them with me by leaving a comment.

 

 

First Steps

I recently purchased a new all in one printer and the first task I gave myself to do was scan in some of my film photography taken with my Olympus OM-2n. When selecting the photographs I was reminded of a comment I was recently given on my post Does It Matter What Equipment You Use? The comment came from Jill, who told me not to judge my photography on other’s work but just on my own, previous stuff. Well, these are the very first photographs I took when my Father gave me his old Olympus SLR. I had no idea what I was doing, other than how to focus the frame and that didn’t always seem to work.

So here we are, a selection of the best photographs from my first film. I must add that the film was about 20 years old and this will have  had an effect on the outcome of the pictures.

This is based on a picture that I originally took with my iPhone. One, lonely toothbrush living it's life in the surroundings of a room we only visit when necessary.

Probably my most photographed object in my house. The gate is so old and eroding I love it. I think it looks great in black and white.

This is the light switch at the top of the stairs in my house. The lighting is what makes this shot one of my favourites.

In fairness to myself here, I think I was trying to run the film down when I took this picture of Nicola's scarf hanging from the draws in our bedroom. It isn't the most inspiring piece of photography ever but I look back at it knowing I've come a little way since I took this.

I'm not sure that she will thank me for this shot but I quite like it. My fiancee loves pulling silly faces when a camera is pointed her way but for once I managed to take a fairly normal shot of her. Yes its very up close and personal but I think it's great.

Nookie, a name chosen by combining both my nickname (Chuckie) and Nicola, was given to me as a birthday present a few years ago. The last frame on the film and a lovely portrait of a furry friend.

That’s it for today. I hope you like the pictures. I am very happy with my progress so far and I have some more photos to upload from my Olympus as well as a few shots from more recently. As usual, any comments are gratefully received and encouraged.

People Photography

I’ve read a lot online about the Street Photography genre and looked at a lot of photographers’ work. Some have made me feel in awe of the genre while others have given me an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of my stomach. The thought of taking a picture of someone in broad daylight without their permission scares me to be honest. I’m not a confrontational person so the thought of having to deal with someone being unhappy at having me take their picture without any warning doesn’t sit well with me. I’ve read plenty of interviews with photographers who live and breed the street and the one question they are always asked is whether they have ever had a confrontation with a subject of their photos. On the whole, the majority of answers are quite positive. Most photographers state that once they talk to the subject and explain the reason for the picture being shot, the subject backs down and is actually interested in the photographer’s work. The horror stories are still out there though. Tales of equipment being smashed against walls and punches being thrown don’t make me want to hit Manchester or Liverpool city centre and start snapping away. I feel more comfortable, at the moment, taking pictures in sparsely populated areas such as country parks and woodland areas or while with another photographer.

 

The pictures that I have chosen to go along with this post signify a huge step for me. A couple of weeks ago I spent the day at the beach. It was during our wonderful two-week summer season here in the UK. I took my camera along but found little in terms of landscapes and interesting objects to inspire me. After sitting on the sand for about half an hour I was soon bored and decided to get my camera out and just shoot pictures of what I could see around me. It’s fair to say that the activity was coming from my fellow beach dwellers. Using my Sigma 18-200mm lens I snapped away at the other people on the beach.

 

This first photo is of a man and his two dogs. He and his wife had arrived at the same time as myself and had already made their way down to the tide, allowing the dogs to really enjoy the water and the sunshine. This is my favourite shot of the five or so that I captured of the family because of the way the dog on the right is intently listening to his master while the man is giving his instructions.

Stay! (f/8 1/500sec 200mm ISO 200)

My second picture is of a couple at leisure. While her husband gets forty winks in the warm British sun, this lady makes herself comfortable on a rock and takes in the view.

Lady Of Leisure (f7.1 1/500sec 200mm ISO 320)

The picture (above) reminds me of my parents. My Dad falling asleep on the sofa, later claiming he was only resting his eyes, while my Mum runs around the house cooking dinner and cleaning up after all of us.

It's A Dog's Life (f/9 1/500sec 200mm ISO 200)

The people in the last photo were the closest to where I was sitting. I was very nervous of pointing the camera at them in case they questioned me. Luckily, they were engrossed in their dogs and although I’m sure the guy noticed me, he was too busy to seem bothered by it. I love dogs so to capture this pose is really great to see.

 

You’ll notice that all of these shots were taken at the longest end of my zoom lens. Some of them were due to the natural distance between myself and the subjects but mostly the reason was all down to fear. I felt that by staying sat down in the same place on the beach while I snapped away, I would remain invisible as a photographer and not draw too much attention to myself. I do want to try my hand at full on street photography but  need to overcome my fear first. This session has taken me one step further in my photography adventure and has given me a thirst to photograph more people while they go about their normal routines.

As usual, all comments are appreciated.

Pure Shores

Pure Shores (1/500sec 200mm ISO 200)

 

Just a pretty cool picture of the waves lapping onto Fornham Beach. Enhanced by PhotoShop Express to really liven up the waves and sand, it isn’t the best picture I’ve ever taken but I do like it.

A Chemical Sunset

A Chemical Sunset (1/200sec 106mm ISO 800)

Taken at my fiancée’s parent’s house, this sunset is the result of my first foray into using PhotoShop Express. The reason for the title is all down to the location of the shot. The North West town of Widnes being known for its chemical factories and pungent smell that, although is down to the tower of waste and not anything to do with chemicals at all.

The original shot was incredibly dark. The built in flash of my 1000D just didn’t light up the scene well enough at all. A quick play around with the tint of the sky livened up the shot and makes it look pretty cool. I added some sketch and soft focus to complete the picture.