AOP Student Awards

Received notification the other day that I have been selected as a finalist within the AOP Student Awards!

Surprised and still speechless...

5x4 Portraits

After having the chance to work with the 5x4 camera a few weeks ago and the recent workshop with John Myers, it left me wanting to take more portraits.

It seemed the perfect answer to how I could capture some of the builders portraits over at St. George's Park. Alongside the pop up photographs I have already captured, I still had an urge to photograph some of the builders in more detail.

I will be hoping to get in the darkroom over the next week to process these but for now have scanned them in. I'm really pleased with how they have come out and glad that the background, a freshly plastered wall worked in the way that I hoped it would by creating a multi tonal wash of colour. 

Looking back I can see how much more organized I was working with the 5x4. Not working slowly but knowing how many films I had, shooting them and then leaving. I think its something all photographers do when we are photographing, we get the shots we want and then hang around, just in case, or in search of another photo and another. I much prefer knowing the shots I want to get and focusing on getting them as best I can.

35mm Boring Photographs

Since going to IKON a few weeks ago there has been a lot of inspired sessions on "Boring Photographs" in response to John Myers series. The first session was capturing boring photographs around Burton using black and white 35mm. 

Looking for boring photographs takes more thought than you might believe. Very quickly I discovered there is a difference between boring photographs and just pressing the shutter aimlessly at anything.

We all take photographs at times that we look at and question why on earth we chose to press the shutter. We tend to discard these images but when you choose to look for boring photographs or irrelevant photographs they somehow start to become interesting.

Up to now I have only had time to print 2 of the photographs from this session but will certainly be trying to find time to print some more.

Since IKON we have also been out working with the 5x4 camera. The intention of the session was to understand how the camera works and to capture boring photographs using the same equipment that Myers used for his photographs within the exhibition.

There is a lot to remember using the 5x4 but it's straight forward. The detail within the photographs are incredible, but for me its the joy of slowing the process right down.

Kelly and I set up this photograph together and she later printed a copy for me. We were drawn to the sharp lines and different textures within the frame. Unfortunately the focus was not very sharp, its not an easy camera to focus.