I have now been studying for my Masters in Photography for over a month- and I can’t believe how quick its gone! So I thought I’d share with you some of the work I have produced so far, starting with the very task: portraits.
I chose the Barbican as the backdrop as its one of my favourite places in the whole of London. It was an incredibly overcast day so the lack of light made it challenging.
I had to select 5 and these were my picks..
This week I shot a roll of Monsoon 35mm film. The aim of this film is to create saturated blue tones replicating the feel of post-monsoon rain…
Overall i’m not sure how I feel about this 35mm film, I really like the blue tones but the images look really soft which is not normally the effect I go for. But I think it’s only fair to try it out in a different environment so next week I’m going to head to the seven sisters to photograph landscapes.
Yesterday I headed up to London to Enrol on my Masters course! The whole process took way less time then I expected, with 3 hours (?!) to spare before my train back to Brighton, I headed out to shoot some street portraits. Personally I prefer to shoot un-staged images of people out and about, since I started shooting street photography around two years ago I have gained a lot of confidence getting closer to people to capture the action on the streets..
Earlier this week a fairground rolled into town. I already had a roll of Agfa film (£1!) in my Olympus so I set out to see what I could document. As the ISO of the film (hows sensitive it is too light) is just 200 I used the flash to give the film a chance to capture what was going on.
The fairground was fairly small so afterwards we headed out to explore Brighton after dark..
During the summer I got explore the stunning city of Vienna. The streets were filled with well-dressed men and women against the backdrop of beautiful buildings. Here are my favourite street shots I took during my time there:
I was extremely excited to wake up in the hotel knowing I have another full day in Vienna. I feel like we only saw a glimpse of what the city has to offer yesterday.
The Prater is a famous fairground featuring the huge ferris wheel. I love both rides and heights so it ticked all the boxes for me. It was an absolutely baking hot day so after a ride on the wheel we headed to the log flume. The funfair was free to get in and all the rides were extremely affordable. And best of all unlike theme parks I’ve been too, the longest queuing time was 5 minutes!
View from the top of the wheel
After all this excitement we headed for the considerably calmer setting of St.Stephens Cathedral. Although not religious myself, the architecture of the huge building built back in 1160! Entry was free of charge and there was plenty of seats for visitors to sit and reflect although it was so busy it would’ve been hard to zone out.
As we were taking in the stunning interior of the church a huge thunderstorm hit. So we decided to take cover in the best place possible- the shops. After a few new outfits (and lunch) was bought we planned our next move- walking through the bustling streets back to the free film festival where the opera Carmen was being shown. With Ice cream in hand and the stars shining above we enjoyed our last night in the city.
Hiding from the rain in H&M
Locals and tourists mixing at the Music Film Festival
Overall I really enjoyed Vienna, two days is nowhere enough time to see everything with the sheer number of galleries and museums almost overwhelming. I really want to return to see more and experience the famous opera (currently on a summer break). The atmosphere of the city feels older than close cities such as Budapest which has a much younger feel. But if you want a mixture of culture, a good climate and kind locals then Vienna is well worth a visit.
It has taken more than one attempt to visit Vienna. Ill-timed illness as it were caused me to miss out on Vienna earlier this year but finally, this summer I managed to experience the Austrian capital and all it has to offer..
Day One
As with most holidays it started with our plane being delayed and spending an abnormal amount of time in the airport Starbucks. But eventually we were on our way, the flight was just under two hours from London Gatwick. Due to the delay we arrived at night- but this didn’t stop me being impressed with Vienna from the off. The airport was clean, the train station was clearly sign posted and getting through passport control took literally two minutes!
The lift ‘artwork’ in the hotel
After a good night sleep in our comfy yet slightly creepy hotel room we headed out to see Vienna. First up food (obviously). Cafe Central famed for having customers such as Totsky, Stalin and Freud and serves pastry and hot food all day. Given the grand surroundings I was expecting a very high price tag- but instead I consumed the most beautiful food for an incredibly reasonable price.
With full stomachs and time ticking on we decided we should probably see a bit of culture. The museum quarter is packed with museums (of course) but also a well though-out central area with chairs for reading, cafes and a water fountain. Each museum takes around half a day to go round so we had to pick one, we went for the Kunsthistorisches Museum which opened in 1891. It turned out to be the most stunning building I’ve ever seen, it’s packed with original artworks by painters such as Michelangelo, Rembrandt and my personal favourite Gustav Klimt. It’s so big I had to make use of all the sofas placed in all the rooms to give my feet a rest.
After loosing track of time we left and explored more of the city. The city was buzzing and completed by chance we were there during the Vienna Music Film Festival. It’s on for the whole of the summer and takes place in front of the magnificent town hall. Its a big screen showing music-related films with 100 food stalls and around 2000 seats for the audience. And best of all its FREE. It would be unheard off to have an event like this free in somewhere like London.
So with the sun setting we bought some burger, fries and settled in for a night under the stars watching a live recording of an Alicia Keys concert. Tomorrow we have a full day planned- shopping, the famous Prater fairground, St.Stephens cathedral and returning to the film festival.
Dungeness is one of my favourite places in England. It’s not exactly what you would call a summer getaway. Its main attraction is two huge power stations but it also has a beautiful lighthouse which first opened in 1904.
It’s often referred to as Englands only Desert although technically speaking.. it’s a huge shingle beach owned by the energy company EDF.
I also knew I was going to desaturate the images during post-production, I just feel like black and white suits the atmosphere of Dungeness better..
For me, having fun with photography is what it’s all about, and this robot camera provides it in bucket loads.
It’s super light, fits in your pocket and has 3 lenses. The viewfinder is non-existent as is the ability to frame a shot. But this camera is more about capturing moments with the hope that one of the 3 images is usable.
I got given this camera as a birthday present a couple of years ago. As I’m often working on commercial or personal projects this camera isn’t a viable option. But after so long collecting dust on my camera shelf surrounded by my beloved Olympus MJU II and Pentax 1000 I decided to take it with me everywhere I went for a week…
It’s bound to happen, no matter how much you love photography you’ll hit a creative wall, a stumbling block, a rut. Sometimes the best way is to get out of it is to take break from photography- this can feel counterintuitive but it can work. OR the alternative is to keep photographing but you’ve got to mix it up and experiment.
Here, using the same model, I’ll give you a few tips and tricks I like to use when shooting portraits on location:
1.Use Depth
You should give the same amount of thought to the subjects location as much as their pose. Adding depth is a great way to make an image more interesting. My favourite way to do this is either leaving a gap between the subject and the background or by using varied depth of field.
2.Take a Step Back
Close up portraits can be a great way of capturing your subjects expression, mood and persona. But sometimes taking a step back and letting your subject get consumed by the location can result in a less-staged, more natural feeling portrait.
By getting the model to stand on the middle stone it meant I could capture his full reflection in the water.
3. A Portrait Doesn’t Need to Include a Face
The aim of a portrait is often to capture the personality of the subject. You can photograph all kinds of things that reflect a persons personality, job, interests. Here I chose to photograph the models tattoo’s as they contribute to his identity.
4.Use the Light (natural or artificial)
If you’re ever feeling uninspired look to your nearest light source. You don’t have to use it- block it out, cast shadows or shoot night photography. But it does act as a restriction which often triggers creative ideas and solutions.
5.Embrace a Lack of Ideas!
It never lasts for ever and some of the best ideas come after stepping back and taking a break from photography. The portrait below came from me wanting to photograph what it feels like to have a creative block…
