It’s Victory for Harrison!

 

V FOR VICTORY !!!

They’ve all done it and we have admired them for it ! Winston Churchill…..Lewis Hamilton… John Lennon…Mahmoud Ahmadinejad….(?)

Ok maybe not the last one….

This week my friends, I can finally claim victory! My final piece for my college HND is finished, has been edited in Photoshop and Aperture and, as they say in Hollywood, in the can (not the can as in toilet, although the first few attempts have ended up there.)

And before you go scrolling to the bottom hoping to see it, well, I’m sorry to disappoint as you won’t find it there. Or indeed anywhere else on the blog. Not just yet anyway. I will put it on here after the final show has taken place, so be patient !

To say it has been a tough journey may be somewhat of an understatement. For those who regularly follow this blog (thank you, I love your faces), you may have read in previous blog posts that getting to this stage has been “eventful” to say the least. From starting out at the planning stage it was going to be an epic scene with forests and spotlights and American cars and great Hollywood lighting but it soon resulted in me having to come down from my lofty perch and the fantasy land that I live in most of the time (it’s great there by the way, you should stop by sometime), to the stark reality of a somewhat smaller scale scene with one camera, no lights, a very local location and my lovely neighbour as my model. Not quite Crewdson, but hey – we all have to start somewhere.

And here we are. I have a final image. I must say that I am very pleased with what I have. I find it very easy to be self-critical – name one photographer that isn’t – and throughout this project have constantly questioned myself; Is this the right idea? Have I chose the right topic? Am I good enough to do this? Should I have stuck with street photography? Why am I talking to myself……?

I think I have also learnt a lot about this type of photography too. It has certainly made me more appreciative of Crewdson. Sure – you could argue that he has an army of people to set up his locations for him and do his lighting etc. but he still has to have the initial idea, he has to perceive the first vision in his head of what he wants to portray. It may be why he is so meticulous when he on set. He know exactly to the millimetre how something should look because he has already seen it in his vision of the scene.

Going into my shoot, I had a vision of what I wanted my picture to look like and now, seeing the final version, it’s 99% spot on (it would have 100% but I hadn’t factored for a security light in the car park being brighter than the sun!). Getting to use a Hasselblad medium format camera was a blessing too. The picture quality is beyond expectation. (I’ll happily take a free one Hasselblad in return for this free advertising!)

Would I do this type of picture again? Absolutely. Definitely. In a New York minute. That’s not to say I would cheat on my first love of course! My first love will always be street photography but there is an overwhelming sense of achievement when working in this type of environment. Street photography gives you that hit of adrenalin when you are surrounded by people and the everyday but working on a landscape piece such as this is almost intoxicating. You have a this enormous blank canvas to work with and you control (almost) everything within it. I think I can understand why artists such as Crewdson and Jeff Wall et al. relish working with this form of photography. Every single item in the viewfinder is within your control. It is a mixture of still life and landscape photography coming together to make something truly incredible. What I wouldn’t give to be on set to see Crewdson at work…..

All I have to do is find someone with his mobile phone number….

Anyone?

Finally, the penny has dropped…

There is something to be said for ambition.

Some of the most fantastic things in this world have happened because of ambition.

But sometimes, you have to admit that some things that you want to achieve cannot happen merely by ambition alone.

So the penny has finally dropped. And over the past few days, I have had to face that reality. At the outset of my final major college project, I had a plan. This plan was epic in its scale. Massive in its concept. Ambitious in its execution. But sadly, I have had to realise that because of a number of factors, my plan has now had to be scaled back to something more manageable; something you might call a little less ambitious.

As I mentioned in previous posts, my final picture is a landscape in the style of Gregory Crewdson. The final picture will still have a “Crewdson-esque” style to it – just not shot on the scale that I originally wanted. But do you know something? That’s ok with me. Of course, if I had a spare $20,000 lying around then sure, I’d hire a set designer and director of photography and shoot the picture on large format. But I don’t have that kind of cash. Believe me – I’ve checked down the back of the sofa and in those old shoe boxes in the attic and there ain’t nothin’ there!

During the planning for this picture I have come to realise that you can’t always get what you want. (And if you could, where would you put it?) Sometimes photography is about compromise and this project has taught me more about that than I was prepared to learn. When I’m out shooting street photography, if I don’t capture a certain image, I will nearly always have the chance to get another image with another person.

With this project it has been quite frustrating not being able to find a certain location or afford to hire a particular piece of equipment etc. but it has made me think about how these images are shot. And it has also given me a new-found appreciation for those photographers who work tirelessly to create such fantastic imagery. I love Gregory Crewdson’s work and am continually amazed at the sumptuous beauty and meticulous detail of his pictures.

I just hope that when it comes to shooting my picture, I can produce the image I want.

Gather around everyone…..time to channel my “inner Crewdson”…..

 

 

 

“Meanwhile…at stately Wayne Manor….

….Wayne contemplates how to write this blog entry…”

Hello chums! Long time, no update. Apologies for that. But I’m back and with a new post. And this post is all about leftovers. Not of the food kind (mmm…food….) but of the photographic kind. I’ll explain…

At the end of my last college term, we were given a project about location photography and the highs and lows, the pitfalls and successes of shooting on location. One of the first locations was the rather grand building you see above. Sadly not Wayne Manor – however when those lottery numbers come up, you can be sure I’ll be writing a cheque for some palatial pile of bricks with numerous bedrooms and a marble bathroom with a heated toilet seat!

The building above is Witley Court, built in 1655 by Thomas Foley and later home to the Earl of Dudley. It’s current and rather dilapidated state is thanks to a fire in 1937 that started in the bakery of the house.

At the time of the fire, the owner of the house at the time, Sir Herbert Smith, only kept a skeleton staff and they heroically tried to put out the fire using a pump that was connected to the grand fountain.

However, this did not work as the pump had not been maintained for quite some time. The fire gutted only one wing of the house but the insurance company declined the claim to cover for the damage so Sir Herbert had to sell the property.

However, in its current state, the estate was not worth as much as Sir Herbert thought it was so it was divided up and sold in various lots. The house was gutted and left an empty shell. Everything of any value from Witley Court, including the marble chimney-pieces, the heavy plate-glass from the conservatory, statues that had adorned the gardens, and all the roof materials, were sold off. Dangerously close to demolition, a guardianship order was imposed on the estate in 1972 and, since 1984, the estate has been in the care of English Heritage.

They embarked on plans for restoration of the property with one of the first items being the Perseus & Andromeda fountain that still stands & this has now been restored to full working order.

Also in the grounds of the estate, but not managed by English Heritage, is Great Witley Church which survived the fire and is now fully restored. The church sits on the northwest corner of the house and is considered to be one of the finest Italian Baroque churches in Britain.

As for me, this location exercise was not only to get used to working on location but also to get shots of the house and grounds for use in a later stage of the location photography brief – to make English Heritage more attractive to a younger audience. Apart from pushing the social media angle – who wouldn’t love a tweet or a poke from a burnt out ruin? – I thought that I should look at other options and from researching stately homes, it became clear that many of these estates cater for weddings. According to the Office for National Statistics, in 2012, not only did 60% of all marriages took place in hotels, stately homes and historic buildings but the greatest number of marriages were for men and women between the ages of 25 and 29 years of age.

As the grounds of Witley Court have been restored and Great Witley Church is also within the estate, it made sense to follow this angle. On their website, English Heritage has already put into place the option for holding a wedding at some of their properties but not at Witley Court so after a bit of editing and Photoshopping here and there, I put together this mock-up for advertising for weddings at Witley Court –

As a first forage into location photography, it was a good exercise. And it was a glorious day to take photographs too. Witley Court and its surrounding gardens provide a stunning backdrop from which to get great location shots. I can image if you were a fashion photographer, this would be a terrific scene to shoot for editorial work for example.

 Planning is everything and although this particular day was somewhat pre-planned for us, it still pays to do your research.  So if I can give you, my lovely subscribers, any advice, it would be just that – plan, plan plan!!

Even if the place you’re going is just a pile of old bricks….

Summertime…..and the living is easy…

Ah yes….the summer. No college, no lessons, time to put my feet up and enjoy the glorious English summer. So there won’t be any further updates until further notice….

WHAT?!?

Photographers don’t take holidays!! We are 24/7 ! Well, that’s not entirely true. I don’t get up until 7am and am usually in bed by 10pm. So technically, I’m 14/7!

So yes, I’m finished with college until October but that doesn’t mean I’ve put my camera into storage, no sir! I’m out on the streets (and not in the prostitute sense) capturing life around town and present another instalment of my ‘Hidden Street Photography’ series.

It was a glorious day; the sun was shining, the town was busy and there were just enough interesting people to take pictures of so all of the ingredients were there to shoot some good pics.

My favourite from this set has to be the guy sitting on the steps. He was sat down, in his own little world, letting the world pass by.

I’m trying to add to the series as and when I can so keep checking back to my blog. But for now, here are the latest additions. Hope you like them.

From Street to Street, we pass each other….

So…..

We’ve known each other for a while now right? And I’d like to think we’ve got to know each other quite well. I’d like to think that when I post a new entry on my blog, you get the notification and think to yourself “Ah that’s cool. I’ll check that out, Wayne’s post’s are always a bit of a lark”. And let me tell you chums I’m really glad you think that (if you do think that of course; I realise I’m making a MASSIVE presumption on my part !).

Well, I’m going to do something slightly different for this post; a little bit “left field” as they say. I want to confess something to you. Something I’ve been wrestling with for a while now but I now feel comfortable enough with to share with you and that is…..

Are you ready….?

I AM A STREET PHOTOGRAPHER !!!!!

There. I said it. I’ve made my mind up. I’ve decided that is what I want to do with this fledgling career of mine. Not weddings, not landscapes, not commercial – STREET.

For those of you who know me personally, this may come as about as surprising as discovering when rain falls from the sky and you have no umbrella or raincoat, you get wet. Or that time your Mom told you that the Tooth Fairy forgot to leave you some money because “she had no change”. (I’m still no over than one…)

But on a more serious note chums, I don’t think I can honestly say that I am ever happier as a photographer than when I’m out there amongst the public with my camera, capturing candid moments, stolen glances or hidden smiles. The world around us is a fascinating place and if you stop and take a look once in a while, you see the most incredible faces, the most powerful souls and in a fraction of a second, you capture it. You capture it for the world to see. In colour, black & white, whatever your preference but the most important thing is you have captured it. That single, solitary moment never to be repeated.

And that, for me, is the essence of street photography. The characters and faces will change, of course they will, but the opportunity to record something magical, something that maybe no one else will see in that fleeting second is truly exciting.

The photographer Bruce Gilden once said “I love the people I photograph. I mean, they’re my friends. I’ve never met most of them or I don’t know them at all, yet through my images I live with them.” I get that. I really do. The people you see in your viewfinder 99 times out of 100 are people you have never met before and will probably never meet again but when you visit and revisit the pictures of them you took, they become your friends and dare I say, your family. When I shot my first two street photography projects, I gave all my subjects names – I wasn’t brave enough to go up to them and ask their real names – and even now, when I refer to a certain picture, I’ll say “Oh you mean the ‘Ruby’ picture” or “You’re talking about my ‘Barbara’ image”.

If you’ve been here before, you might have wondered over to my Image Gallery and seen some of my street photography already and if you have, then I thank you for your curiosity. 

In preparation for this post, I have put together a new collection of street images that I have taken that are a little different from my usual style. They are a little bit more direct & up close. And maybe they are the future direction for me; time will tell. As for now, well, all I ask is that you take a look, enjoy them and if you feel like leaving a comment or two, please do so. I read every one of them and appreciate them even more.

Oh yes, before I go….for those who are worried this was a bit “normal”, fear not – general lunacy & irreverence will be resumed in the next post.

Thanks.

W.

“We got stars directing our fate…Seleniuuummmm!!!”

 

Ok, so it’s not the EXACT lyrics to the song but not many words rhyme with Selenium so waddya gonna do?

Anyway chums, I’ve taken the foil off the photography cake, poked it to see if it’s still fresh (and it is), got the plates ready and am ready to serve up another slice of “Darkroom Vs. Digital”.

If you recall, in Part 1 we delved deep into cyanotypes, cross processing, infrared, tilt & shift and finished off with a smattering of diptych & triptych (it still sounds funny when you say it out loud!). If you’re reading this wondering what I’m talking about, well shame on you for not reading Part 1. Take a good hard look at your life and when you’re done, CLICK HERE and take a good hard look at Part 1. And then come back. And all will be forgiven. And you can have some more cake. Mommy loves you really…

So chums, lets start. Take your plate and I’ll give you a slice of gum bichromate. Mmmm….gum…..

Sounds all ‘chemically’ doesn’t it – ‘gum bichromate’…like you’d only find it on the back of a shampoo bottle or tube of toothpaste, hidden away amongst the other ingredients like fluoride and Phenofloxisetaloxabutanollythingy. Oh look – there is it…(apologies for the rather obvious edit!)

Here comes the science…

Gum Bichromate is a light sensitive chemical that can be printed on a variety of papers and other surfaces. Development of an image can take anything up to 30 minutes depending on the UV light source. After one layer has dried, the paper may be re-coated and exposed again.

The digital version of course, needs no exposure to UV – just a few clicks and tweeks from our old sparing partner Photoshop and ta-dah…a digital gum bichromate in just a few minutes.

Here’s my offering..

Have you finished your slice of gum bichromate? Or are you still chewing? No worries. You can wash it down with a nice glass of liquid emulsion…

Ah, liquid emulsion. What can I say that hasn’t already been said….?

What do mean “everything?”

Oh yes, that’s right. I haven’t said anything yet have I? Silly me…

Well, before you start jumping to conclusions and thinking it’s just a fancy name for a tin of paint for the back bedroom, it’s not. It’s a little bit more sophisticated.

In the photography world it is almost the same kind of emulsion you get on ordinary photography paper, but in a liquid form. So by using this way, it allows it to be painted on various different surfaces. Clever eh?

In the digital world, Mr Photoshop once again comes to your rescue if you don’t have access to the real thing. The same effect can be imposed onto various objects that in the real world, would take one hell of a lot of painting!

Move over Picasso, here’s my Photoshop liquid emulsion –

Now that’s what I call ‘vintage’. Take that Urban Outfitters !!

Oh..I see your plate is empty. Have some more of this luscious photography cake. Tuck in to this delicious piece of Polaroid lift…

What is a Polaroid lift?  Well it’s not the name for the new model of Stannah stair lift that’s for sure…

It’s actually a really cool photographic technique, which involves soaking a Polaroid picture in hot water so that its top layer lifts off the backing paper. The layer can then be stretched and manipulated by hand into different shapes and then transferred onto another surface or other piece of paper.

There is a downside though. If you’ve taken a picture of a loved one or a family member, they are not going to like seeing themselves all distorted and bent out of shape in the new Polaroid lift…

Anyway, the digital Polaroid lift allows you to be a little more delicate with your distortion and a little bit more sensitive to your subject. Here is my digital effort –

 

We’re getting close to finishing this cake chums. There is only one slice left. I’m full so I think you should have it. After all, you’re the guest. Give me your plate and you can finish off with this slice of selenium.

Selenium you ask? Yes, selenium. ‘Selenium’ by L’Oréal.

No I’m joking!

Selenium is a toner used in black & white photography that was created to increase the life of photographic prints and reduce fading. It gives an image a purple, brownish tone. It does this by attaching itself to the silver particles in this image.

And yes, you’ve guessed it, Dame Photoshop of Adobe has bestowed upon us the gift of a digital equivalent and here is my offering –

Phew…that feast was hard going wasn’t it? Thanks for coming over and sharing this photography cake with me. I really couldn’t have eaten it all by myself. And don’t worry about that washing up. I’ll do it later.

Shall I call you a taxi or do you want to open these Street Photography cookies?

No colours any more, I want them to turn black…

…..or cyanotype….or gum bichromate…..or infrared….or even solarised…..

No chums, I haven’t been at the absinthe or smelling the ether…..They are merely descriptions of various photographic techniques you can use either digitally or manually to create fantastical and wondrous images.

I’d better explain myself….

So there I am, sitting in my college class when my tutors introduce a new topic with the heading “Darkroom vs. Digital”. At first thought, I was thinking it was the latest Pay Per View on Sky Sports, but no – it was a different battle. A war between the paint and the pixel; the computer and the chemical; Steve Jobs & Bill Gates vs Edward Steichen & William Henry Fox Talbot…(although that last battle would have needed one hell of a team of doctors, some witchcraft and a tremendous amount of portable heaters).

So this topic was to find out which method was the best, which one could cut it, which would stand the test of time. The process would involve testing technology against alchemy and then standing back to admire the result. In the red corner, good old reliable Photoshop; maker of worlds, rescuer of blemishes, saviour of over exposures. In the blue corner, many concoctions of various (dangerous and sometimes noxious) chemicals, painted on blank paper and left in the sun…

There are quite a few processes to tell you about so I’m splitting these posts into two parts. Rather like an enormous photography cake. You would be quite sick if you eat the whole cake in one sitting and quite frankly, I’m not cleaning up your mess half way through, so here are the first few slices….

Lets start with a slice of cyanotype.

So what is it? Cyanotype is a mixture of ferric ammonium citrate & potassium ferricyanide (wow, look at me being all sciencey!) and mixed together. When painted onto something like water-colour paper and exposed to UV rays, it produces a strong blue image. This image is my Photoshop equivalent.

Next, let me tell you about cross processing. Not to be confused with cross dressing. Or cross contamination. Or even Criss Cross, the short-lived, pint-sized 80’s rap duo…..

Cross processing is the procedure of deliberately processing a certain type of film in a chemical solution intended for another type of film. Yes. You read it right. Deliberately. Now, before you start doing this –

the process is intentional because it produces unpredictable and interesting combinations of colours. Like this –

That’s cross processing. Pretty cool eh? I would imagine those of you familiar with Instagram (or “Instagramers” I believe you like to be called) are high-fiving each other right at this very minute….

Next, I’m going to peel back the curtains and let you into the world of infrared. Turns out, infrared isn’t just for the likes of MI6 and the C.I.A. You can use it to take some quite fantastic photographs! The human eye cannot see infrared so when you use it in photography, you open up a while new world, new colours that you would otherwise miss.

Here’s my offering –

BTW – he’s not laughing at you…rather than “with” you…

If I said to you “tilt and shift”, would you lean to one side and then move out of the way? Probably. But if you know your photographic terminology, you would know that I’m talking about the process that mimics miniaturisation. Some call it the “toy town” effect. But it gives you much more that just some fancy toys in your picture. It gives you some really quite good shallow depth of field effects too.

Now if you know your lenses, you will know that some tilt / shift lenses are V.Expensive but thanks to your old friend Photoshop, the effect can be replicated digitally and at a fraction of the cost. And now even smartphones are getting in on the act. Here’s my digital delectation –

A miniature Birmingham. Like a little toy town. Not sure if Noddy and Big Ears would get the same reception if they moved here though!

My last slice of this rapidly melting cake of part one deals with the somewhat comically named diptych & triptych. Now before you ask, they are not Slovenia’s entry for Eurovision 2015. Or indeed are they a couple of breeding Chinese pandas. I’ll explain..

A ‘diptych’ is a presentation of two images that have something in common or tell a story with their imagery. A ‘triptych’ is a presentation of three images that do the same. Simple. What’s that? You want an example? Oh, go on then….

A ‘diptych..’

And a ‘triptych..’

So there we are. Are you full? I certainly am. I couldn’t manage another bite. I’ll wrap the rest of the cake in foil and we’ll have the rest later. There’s quite a lot left. There’s some gum bichromate, liquid emulsion, Polaroid lifts and a bit fat piece of selenium!

But for now, I’ll settle for a cup of tea. I think it’s your turn to put the kettle on…..

Your attention please, your attention please…..

 

I NEED YOUR VOTES !!

I’m not running for your local council or the Presidency of the United States (although that would be a bit of a laugh wouldn’t it? Just imagine…me in charge of the free world…free giraffe’s for everyone and compulsory blueberry muffins on Fridays…)

So why do I need your votes? Well, I love my followers so much (I do you know!), I’d like your opinion on some of my images that I’m thinking of entering in a competition and I can’t decide on which one to submit. I’ve narrowed it down to a list of 10 so all I’m asking of you is to vote for your favourite.

Below are the images and underneath are the names of each one. The voting will be at the bottom so if you would be so kind, click on your favourite and I’ll just love you that little bit more than I do now…

The Queue

The Gentleman

Sign of the Times

Shadow Player

In Motion

Have a break

Balloon Man

Bench warmer

Having a bad day

Having a nap

How to Train Your Dragon…….Fruit

The answer is simple!

You buy a fish tank, fill it full of carbonated water, setup your camera and lights, cut the fruit in half and drop it into the water several times before you get a decent shot !

Easy. You’ve trained your dragon fruit.

All of these shenanigans were for my food assignment as part of a studio task. But I didn’t stop at dragon fruit – oh no my cyber chums. I went all exotic and dropped figs, chilis and even lychees into my fish tank! Look at me going all Heston Blumenthal ! What next?  Cheesy Peas? And who knew that chilies were so buoyant? That was money well spent….NOT !

I must admit, high-speed photography is very frustrating and 1 hour in, it seemed as if I had more images for my blooper reel than useable pictures. Timing is everything and my advice to those thinking of giving this a try? I just have two words for you – remote trigger! It will be your best friend when it comes to high-speed photography. I also suggest you have another person to help you. Let me tell you, it is really difficult to hold the fruit above the water, hold your remote trigger and position the flash gun so you get that perfect capture.

Once you have all of this in place, you can start shooting. I would also think it over about what to dunk in your tank. Like I said, chilis were a total failure and every time I dropped the limes and lemons, they seemed to have minds of their own and would only splash skin side up. The tomatoes? Well, the less said about the tomatoes, the better….

The dragon fruit were the best choice and given their colour and appearance, they have created quite vivid images. The figs also worked well as did the lychees and strawberries.

The result of this photographic fruit salad? Well, if you’re a newbie to this blog, I guess I’ll have to take your hand and guide you to the Image Gallery so when you’ve finished reading this, scroll back up to the top, click on Image Gallery and scroll to the bottom and you will find them. You may want to add a comment or two if the mood takes you and so I’ll thank you in advance should you do.

Right so here is your to-do list –

1. Finish reading this post

2. Scroll back to the top

3. Click on Image Gallery

4. Scroll down the bottom of said Image Gallery

5. Stay a while and take a stroll through the colourful fruit and vegetable vistas

6. Leave a comment

7 Feel good about yourself for the rest of the day.

Thank you my cyber chums. Till the next time!

Sorry I’m Late….

Hello chums.

Yes, I’m sorry I’m late. I’ve been back in time you see. To the 1980’s to be precise.

“How have you done that Wayne?” I hear you ask. “Have you invented some sort of crazy time machine powered by sunlight & moonbeams?”

No my fellow bloggers. No time travel or bizarre dream sequence – I’ve simply been immersing myself back in the fashions of the 1980’s. And let me tell you, it’s not a pretty sight.

As someone who is old enough to remember the 80’s, can I just ask “what the hell were we thinking?!”

Bejewelled crop tops, giant shoulder pads and enough denim to cover the land mass of Africa! And not even good denim – I’d happily punch in the face whoever it was who thought stonewash was a good idea!

The fashion was terrible. Researching this project meant finding appalling images such as that one above and immediately wanting to wash my eyes out with bleach (don’t try that at home kids…)

Anyway, all this reminiscing about the 80’s was all for a good cause as it was the basis for one of my final projects for this college term. I wanted to do a fashion shoot but with an 80’s theme (not that one above).

I concentrated on the types of images that the top fashion houses were putting out at that time and looked at pop videos, especially Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love” video. They all tended to depict strong, confident women, in charge and in control and I liked that idea so that was my plan.

I am also lucky enough to have both a make up artist and willing model in my family so after a quick trip around vintage clothes shops and local charity shops, a call to my niece and a booking made for the studio, everything was ready for my 80’s style fashion shoot.

I really hope you like the results. I am extremely proud of the images. I’m only half way through editing but really wanted to share some of the images with you now.

I must also say one GIGANTIC thank you to my niece Georgia for modelling for me and doing the make up – she was simply fantastic. I also want to thank Dan for helping with the lighting. He is a complete star!

So you know what to do – scroll back up to the top after reading this, click Image Gallery, scroll down to the bottom and you’ll find the images. And while you’re there, pop a comment or two on them if you feel the urge.

The 80’s eh? Almost makes me want to shave my mullet off….