Assignment 208: Location Photography - Final 10 Images - Theme2

Location Photography - 
Final 10 Images - Theme 2 
Street Photography - Birmingham (with an exotic ending)

I visited Birmingham over a period of three weeks capturing images of the city at play on a Saturday.  I was lucky that over the three weekends that I visited the sun shone, even though it was moving into autumn/winter, and there was so much happening that it provided copious opportunities to capture many different dimensions of this multicultural second city.

Every time I visited the streets were littered with university students collecting for various charities - providing colourful, playful images to capture - most of them never shied away from posing for the camera for a bit of change in their cans.

I was also lucky enough to time my visit with a number of key political activities - and Birmingham provided a listening platform for these different statements to be made and heard - a number of my images in the final ten are from celebrations of the death of Gaddafi which was a significant event for many, I also have included images from the EDL demonstrations in Victoria Square and the Occupy Birmingham camp outside the city hall.

The Queen
ISO 400, f5, 1/320

Although not the best image in terms of quality I enjoy this image - it presents a slightly surreal image of the queen collecting for charity in a busy shopping centre - everyone else around is rugged up for the cold but this brave collector took her image seriously!  The image has not been altered except to crop the dimensions.

The Big Issue
ISO 400, f5, 1/1000

I chose this image because of the high contrast in colour saturation between the big issue seller and the two passers by in the street.  It was a bright sunny day and the fact that passers by are almost 'washed out' in contrast to the seller give him greater presence.  I took a number of image of this big issue seller because he had such a presence about him that made him stand out in the crowd.

A Private Moment
ISO 400, f4.8, 1/500

I chose this image from a number that I took of the inpromtu celebration of Gaddafi's death - the majority of the celebrations were being led by young men and women - I like it because I feel like I have captured a private and completely honest moment of joy.  The image has been slightly cropped, no other alterations have been made.

Blending in
ISO 200, f5.6,1/400

I've chosen this image because the way in which the street collector stands out by her pink scarf.  Her role is to encourage the passing public to donate to the cause she is promoting but she appears isolated and uncomfortable in her role. This image has not been altered, only slightly cropped.

Making a stand
ISO 200, f2.8, 1/320

I chose this image from the EDL demonstrations for a couple of reasons - the symmetrey of the two men wearing hats and glasses, the red scarf that draws you in - and the set of their facial expressions.  No alteration has been made apart for cropping of the image to focus on the two men.

My Own World
ISO 400, f4, 1/800

This has made my top ten because I like the composition of the image - the character in the forefront immersed in his music with the background thrown out of focus like it doesn't matter - which it probably didn't for him.  The image has not been altered at all - not even cropped.

Tired
ISO 200, f3, 1/500

This is one of my favourite images of my sessions - it says so much about what the demonstrations stood for.  The gentleman holding the placard fits so well with the strap line and brings a depth to the image.  This image did come out a little washed out so it has been worked on to bring out the depth of colour and excentuate the character of the mans slightly weathered face.

Isolation
ISO 200, f2.8, 1/640

Another of my favourite images.  This lad was part of the Occupy Birmingham camp at the city hall.  The previous week there had been a lot of activity around the Occupy Birmingham camp, this week they were sectioned off behind harris fencing in case of riots errupting around the EDL demonstrations that were taking place in Victoria Square.  This gave the Occupy camp a sense of isolation from the rest of the city.  I have cropped this image and turned to a black and white image as I felt it bought out the 'cold bleakness' of the situation to a greater degree.

and the exotic..

My final two images are of a different genre - they are taken during my travels - but I wanted to include them as they present a different dimension to the street photography above - the first image was taken in Sharm El Sheikh.  It is not the best quality image - but it was the closest I came to producing a 'Martin Parr' moment so felt it had to make the cut!  It was, honestly, unposed, this holiday maker was just standing there next to the post in this pose and I was sitting at a table a few feet away.  He totally blended into the post of the bar which is why I wanted capture it.  The image has been slightly cropped and the exposure altered slightly.

Now you see me..
ISO 200, f13, 1/500

This final image is from the backstreets of Seville.  I have included this image as it really draws me in - the vibrant colours of the shop interior, the obvious signal of the location from the red apron - and the young Spanish girl huddled in the corner on the step bringing the modern contrast with her texting.  She seemed to want to disappear or minimise her presence.  The image has been cropped to tightly wrap around the doorframe.

Huddled
ISO 500, f4.2, 1/500

Assignment 208: Research: Comparison of Street Photography

Comparison of Street Photography: How My Research Has Influenced My Work

As in the last blog I want to compare a number of images from my research on street photography with some of my strongest images.  With street photography it was much harder to isolate and replicate the research  -   instead what I tried to do is identify what it was that made the images and how I could bring this into my work.

This image by Cathal McNaughton was taken as an ironic piece - the Queen isolated below all of the other dignatories - an image that I took of an street seller captures a similar sense of isolation - but without the irony, however the pink feather boa and bucket add a strong sense of colour that you get in Cathal's image. 

The lack of eye contact from the people around her also echo the sense of isolation that the Cathal image portrays.

This image by Alfred Eisenstaedt captures a sense of excitement from a group of children - I dont know what the occasion was but the range of facial expressions keeps you looking around the image.  The quotation that went with the dialogue around this image was about clicking with the people - not the camera - which is why I have chosen to compare it to the image below.

Although this picture is focused on one person - similar to the above image it is about capturing a moment - an expression - not posed for - but giving a sense of the crowd and action that was going on around.

This image of Cathal's was about capturing the reality of the harsh,political side of life.  It was about not planning but capturing a moment - taking a photo and moving on - being decisive.

Whilst the images below may not have the same aggression in them - they were taken during the EDL demonstrations in Birmingham - which were kept extremely peaceful - but these two images were about me being decisive in what I wanted to capture. They have both been slightly altered in photoshop - the first one cropped tighter to frame out some of the distraction - the second has been slightly altered to excentuate the colours and contrast

I have found it harder to compare my research on street photography to the images that I have taken which leads me to the conclusion that I need to review and refine my research - or consider expanding my images to reflect the research.

The strongest influence to date has been Cathal's work - and I would like in my research to find more photographers that blend the political statements with their work.

Assignment 208: Location Photography: Post Production - Contrast & Curves

Photoshop - Post Production - Contrast & Curves

With this image there was little cropping required, I feel that I focused on what I wanted and just about delivered on the right composition. 

The minimal amount of cropping done to slightly tighten the focus

I felt the contrast on the image needed deepening to bring a greater depth to the image as the original looked slightly washed out

I also played around with the curves function - I thought this alteration made the image much clearer and seemed to remove the shadow around the image

I was happy with the colour image produced above but wanted to see what the effect of turning the image black and white.  I liked the fact that it dulled out the background - but overall feel the image had more warmth and impact in colour.

Assignment 208: Location Photography: Post Production - Cropping

Photoshop - Post Production - Cropping

This image has too much distraction - the break in the harris fencing, and the label on the fencing.

The aim of the crop was to create total focus on the boy behind the fence, but retain enough of the fence to keep the sense of isolation and enprisionment.

I also wanted to see if this image worked in black and white - personally I feel the colour image has greater impact.  In black and white there is no punch to the image - it doesn't add any depth, whereas in colour the muted hues add to the sense of desolation.

Assignment 208: Principles of location photography: Theme 2: Street Photography

Street Photography - Shoot 3

Birmingham - 29th October 2011

A few more shots from my time in Birmingham - this was a return visit - the weather wasn't quite so favourable - a bit drizzly which meant there were less people around.  It was also the weekend of the EDL demonstrations and there was a very heavy police presence in the city - but I still managed to take a few shots that I am pleased with.

This time I tried approaching people and asking if I could take their photo, as well as the chance photographs.  

This lad was camping out in Victoria Square which was all cordoned off to keep separation between the demonstrations.  He has been camping out for 12 days - and is planning to stay as long as it takes.  Last week the protesters were surrounded by photographers, and there was an air of a summer camp out - today it looked bleak.

ISO 200, f2.8, 1/640, focal length 105mm

ISO 200, f2.8, 1/320, focal length 105mm

How much better would this photo have been if they had all been wearing hats!

ISO 200, f3, 1/640, focal length 105mm

ISO 200, f2.8, 1/80, focal length 105mm

As part of the demonstration there was a stand showing how to tie a turban - it was very popular.

ISO 200, f3.8, 1/500, focal length 105mm

ISO 200, f3.5, 1/200, focal length 105mm

There was no shortage of demonstrators happy to be photographed

ISO 200, f2.8, 1/640, focal length 105mm

Away from the demonstrations there were the usual street collectors and performers.  

ISO 200, f5.6, 1/200, focal length 105mm

ISO 200, f3/5, 1/80, focal length 105mm

ISO 200, f3.5, 1/250, focal length 105mm

This lad asked me what I taking photo's for and when I explained he thanked me for taking his photo and including him - I was just really annoyed with myself that the image wasn't as sharp as it could be - it was actually really crowded round him and I was struggling to get a clear gap.

These dancers came over and asked me to take their email address so that I could send them some of the images.

ISO 200, f3.5, 1/400, focal length 105mm

ISO 200, f3.5, 1/400, focal length 105mm

ISO 200, f3.5, 1/400, focal length 105mm

ISO 200, f3.5, 1/400, focal length 105mm

On this shoot I used a fixed focal length lens - I am not sure that this proved the best lens - at times I found myself too close the subject and having to back too far away to get the full frame - which then lost the intimacy of asking for the photo.

Out of the three attempts that I have had at street photography, I feel the best lens was my zoom lens giving me both options - I just need to get a steadier hand.

But I am definitely getting more confident at taking my shots I feel

Assignment 208: Principles of location photography: Theme 2: Street Photography

Street Photography: Second Attempt

Faces of Birmingham

ISO 400, f4.2, 1/400, focal length 122mm

Some good colours in this picture, just a bit disappointing in the shadows on the face and the reflection in his glasses.

ISO 400, f5.3, 1/1000, focal length 250mm

ISO 400, f4.5, 1/1000, focal length 145mm

Again I am pleased with the rich colours in these images.  I was tempted to crop the images to bring the old lady and the big issue seller closer but the surroundings form part of the social context of these image for me.

ISO 400, f5.6, 1/125, focal length 210mm

A little too rich in colour this one!

ISO 400, f5.6, 1/320, focal length 300mm

I'm disappointed with the quality of this image but I liked the facial expression framed by her fur hood. The two images above were captured in a more shaded street - in contrast to the bright sunlight of the images taken immediately before - but I didn't take enough time to refocus on getting the settings right.

Next time I want to focus more on this subject - I think the two best image are the first big issue seller and the old lady - I will plan images around the composition of these two on my next shoot.

Assignment 208: Principles of location photography: Theme 2: Street Photography

Theme 2: Street Photography: Second Attempt

My first attempt at street photography helped me to gain confidence but didn't produce any strong images.  Feedback from Steve on why the images didn't really deliver was constructive and helped me to plan my second attempt.

How did I change my approach?  

• Changed location:  I choose to use Birmingham for my second attempt.  I felt that this would provide a more diverse range of activity - also as a major city - it would be easier to lose yourself as a photographer in the crowd.  
• Change in equipment:  I moved from my limited 18-70mm lens to a 70-300mm zoom to enable me to provide me with greater scope - I could either zoom in to capture detail further away, or use it to focus up close on a particular person or group.  Using a zoom lens in a busy city centre I also had to be more mindful of health & safety considerations.  Being careful to not place myself in a position that would prove an obstruction to passers by, or put my equipment in a position where it could be damaged.
• Change in attitude: Rather than be shy about what I was doing I went prepared to engage with people, to acknowledge that they were being photographed - show my appreciation of their co-operation with a nod, a smile, a gesture - or a donation if busking or collecting for a charity.

What were the challenges?

ISO 400, f4, 1/800, focal length 70mm

The main challenge was the use of the zoom, it is a heavier lens and is very basic - so achieving a sharp image was difficult, especially at the higher end of the zoom - and this spoilt a number of images.  I tried to compensate for the camera shake by positioning myself against a post, or resting my camera on a wall or bin but this wasn't always possible.

As in this image, I like to composition - the blurred out background with the passer by providing the main focal point - giving you a sense of how isolated you can be - even in a busy city - I like the high colour achieved but I hadn't quite got the focus sharp and I was on the move myself so lost some of the clarity.

What went well?

People were less inhibited, more friendly and even eager to get their photo taken.  I was pleased with myself that I stuck to my guns and resisted reverting to auto anything!  Occasionally people would ask me what I was doing - in return for my explanation I would ask if I could take their photo.

ISO 400, f5.6, 1/60, focal length 70mm

ISO 400, f5, 1/320, focal length 70mm

In some cases it was a matter of bribery - there were a lot of uni students collecting for whizz-kids charity - so I emptied my purse of change a few times to capture images.  

I like this image - although the costume may not be the most elaborate that I saw on the day the image there is something surreal about not knowing who is behind the mask.

ISO 400, f5.6, 1/1000, focal length 300mm

ISO 400, f5.6, 1/100, focal length 205mm

Although this collector didn't enter into the fancy dress escapade to collect her money I observed her for ages from a coffee shop - she seemed uncomfortable with her role, and unlike her fancy dress companions lacking in confidence to approach the throngs of passers by.

What did I learn?

From my day in Birmingham I could see three themes that I could build my street photography around that could tell a social story:

• Street Sellers & Buskers
• Political and Religious demonstrations/preachers
• Faces of a city 

My next blogs will pick out some of my favourite images collected on the day that fit the above categories.

In future visits I will look to plan my work around the above themes and continue to apply patience to capturing that elusive image/s that can be used in my final presentation.

I have learned that as well as confidence - you need patience - you can't stage your image - you have to keep trying, and where ever possible always have your camera to hand ready for when it presents itself.

ISO 400, f5,1/800, focal length 70mm