The relationship between points

If there are two isolated objects in the frame, two points, the basic simplicity of the situation is lost.  Find normally occurring situations in which there are two points, then compose and take pictures without preconceptions.  Assess each image, making a note of which point is the strongest.  Then take another picture of someones face, go close up to include only the eyes, ensure the eyes are evenly balanced within the frame, also make an assessment of the finished photograph.

Finding the right subjects for this exercise was not too difficult, I had taken about half a dozen photographs that fitted the requirement.  That does not mean they were all good enough to use nor had sufficient thought been given when taking them.  I have included all the pictures below, I have then chosen two that I feel fit the requirement of this exercise, not for their image quality.

You could say that the relationship in this photograph is obvious, and not what I saw, when taking the photograph, two separate things, the dog and the two people, two points.  When I look at the picture now, my eye goes from the dog to the people and back again, which I would expect.  The image seems well balanced, even though the subjects are of different sizes, also there is an impression of movement with just enough room for them to go into.  Unlike the jet ski in the previous exercise which had too much empty space top and bottom, I don't feel it is a problem in this picture.  The couple following the dog are obviously the dominant point, apart from the size difference, the man is wearing a red coat, this makes him stand out above anything else.  I picked this image as having two points, the dog and it's owners, because  there is space between them. It would not have worked as well, had the dog been on a lead.  However it could be argued that they are obviously a single group and therefore do not fit in this exercise.

I feel this image relies on colour to make the two main subjects (points) stand out, obviously there is a vast difference in  their size, therefore the joggers fluorescent jacket, is very important.  Even though this picture seems to fit the requirement of this exercise, it does not work as well as the previous photograph.  Maybe it's the railings forming a barrier, if I look away for a moment then look back at the image I immediately see the runner and lighthouse, however after a few seconds my eyes focus on the railings again thus spoiling the composition.  Perhaps this photograph should not have been picked for this exercise.

This is Dempsey, my neighbours greyhound, he has the most amazing eyes, perfect for this exercise.  They are very hypnotic and when seen in isolation, somewhat scary and slightly menacing.  I have looked at the above photograph for some time, it is almost impossible to look anywhere else but into his eyes.  I believe this to be a very strong image, completely different to the other photographs in this exercise.  Positioning the eyes symmetrically within the frame is its strength, it would not have worked had this not been the case.  I have included a "head and shoulders" shot of Dempsey, which shows how friendly he really is, this I feel shows the importance the composition has in the photograph showing only his eyes.

Dempsey dog.

Stuck in the mud!

I've managed an early start this morning, so arrived at New Brighton before dawn hoping to catch the sun rise.  This was not to be, the pre-dawn light looked promising, but just before the sun came up, black clouds arrived followed by heavy rain.  Thankfully it didn't last too long so I went back to the lighthouse.  I photographed it from different angles, trying to show its relationship to other buildings.  I wandered along the promenade, again there are plenty of dog walkers on the beach.  This is obviously a popular time and place for photos as I bumped into other photographers, most of them, seem very chatty and share information as to where I can find other subjects to photograph.  Having succumbed to another portion of fish and chips I head off to Heswall, I've been told there are some derelict boats out on the salt marsh.  The information was correct, I found the boats very easily, there were lots of them, some are too far out across the mud.  By now the sky had turned very overcast and the light was going, so I took a few quick photos for reference.  I could see shapes, curves and triangles all around in the wrecks, things that I knew would come in for this exercise, I will come back when there is more time and the light better.  Before heading home I got talking to an old guy from a nearby boat yard, who was very chatty, he told me I would be welcome to take photographs in his yard if I wished, he suggested  a good time would be at high tide for photos out on the salt marsh.  A few of the photographs taken are below.

Like these boats, I see myself stuck in the mud, progressing through my course is what it must be like trying to walk across this salt marsh, very slow and laborious.

Tower promenade, Wallasey.

The ubiquitous Owl Telescope, made in Crewe Cheshire also the home of  Rolls Royce and Bently cars.
I'm not sure how old  the telescope is but the shelter  is Victorian, both are synonymous with the seaside.

Project: Points.

                                             Positioning a point.


Following on from my earlier postings I must knuckle down to Elements of design.  I have spent a long time
trying to find somewhere or something to give the assignment and the different exercises some form of association or link. Getting this blog going has been a very steep learning curve for me and has taken some time.  Time that I didn't really have to spare, I do however believe that it will be very beneficial in the long run also so much quicker than the way I compiled the first assignment, using Photoshop and Word.  The exercise of positioning a point was not to difficult.  Being a member of a camera club where you hear competition judges criticise your picture's, because the main subject is in the wrong place telling you if only you'd moved to the left or to the right, how much better the composition would have been. Even though that might have meant standing in the middle of a fast flowing river, judges can be very frustrating.


Take three photographs in which there is a single point, position it in a different part of the frame in each example.  With a short note, justify the composition of each photograph.

Starting with the photographs that were taken with this exercise in mind.  I have then included pictures found in my library which I feel have specific points, however some that may not fit the brief.  As suggested in the introduction to this exercise, I considered what might be classed as the point of an image, and came up with following.  A solitary person on the beach or grass area, a plane in a clear blue sky, someone wearing brightly coloured clothes, a light or lamp in an overall dark scene, a shaft of sunlight, highlighting a small area in a landscape,something white, again as part of a darker image, contrasting colours for example a red door on a white painted cottage.




The photographs here are my interpretation of positioning a point.  The jet ski being central in the frame, makes this a poor image, there is too much empty space top and bottom.  The ski needs room to move into, while the wake behind it shows speed and movement.  This image would be improved by cropping down to a letter box format as I have done below.  It is still not perfect, if only the jet ski had been red.

The point in the next picture I think is fairly obvious, the lifebuoy being red, stands out. It's position at the very edge of the frame, I don't feel is too much of a  problem.  The composition of this image is quite strong, even though it does not comply with the "rule of thirds".  The gap in the wall along with the railings
are helping to balance the photograph so maybe this is not just a single point, however the red ring is still the strongest element.  I wondered if a monochrome image would still work.  I don't think it does, Iv'e included it below for comparison.

In the last photograph I have tried to position the subject around a third of the way in from edge of the frame.  The point, a jogger, is moving into the image, he is wearing a bright yellow jacket, this like the red ring in the previous picture, stands out because of the strong colour.  Again I converted it to monochrome for comparison, this still works quite well, as the runners jacket is now white, this also stands out well.  This picture should have the best composition, if you follow the rule of thirds, however the overall image is not very good. Had the jogger been running towards the camera, this would be a much better picture, so I prefer the lifebuoy.

                 The photographs below,  have been picked out because they have specific points.

Excellent fish and chips.

M V Royal Iris.

2nd January "New Years" day.  Again I drove up the M53 only to find New Brighton heaving with people enjoying the good weather, anyone would think it was a summers day.  So with nowhere to park I decided to explore further out and found a good viewpoint overlooking Liverpool across the Mersey, where I took the above photograph, the Royal Iris is one of the Mersey ferries now being used for sight seeing trips. I quite like this picture, o.k. I know its very much a record shot and again not very creative but the composition is good and it shows Liverpool of at its best.  I wonder if the local tourist board would be interested in it.  Without really trying, the photos I have now taken seem to have a common theme - the Sea.  I have also started to see vertical and horizontal lines in things, something that is part of this assignment.  I am posting some of the other photographs taken at the same time.  The first two are following on from the one above, the rest were taken around the old docks at Birkenhead.

Royal Iris with the Liverpool cathedrals behind.

Jet ski jumping the wake of Royal Iris.

                                                                        Birkenhead docks.                                                                                                                                  

I believe this dock is known as the East Float.

Remains of old footbridge that once spanned the Mersey Docks and  Harbour company railway.

 

       The now derelict Central Hydraulic Tower designed by Jesse Hartley and completed in 1863.  The tower is based

                                                                  on the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence.

The Sarsia has known better days!

Looking around the docks at Birkenhead, I am certain I will find lots of subject matter that will be suitable for the course as well as providing some really interesting photographs.  The sea was very calm so not as dramatic as previous visits, however I feel the day has been well spent finding some new locations.  After finding an excellent fish and chip shop I decide to call it a day and return home.

                                          

Wet Feet.

Perch rock lighthouse.

I return a couple of days later, the weather is dreadful, heavy showers and gales.  As I watch the waves crashing in on the sea wall I realise there is potential for some good photos.  Looking around New Brighton I can see they have a good variety of mainly Victorian buildings, also some ornate promenade shelters and a large area of partly derelict dock land nearby containing some really interesting architecture. The theme of the assignment could be the old buildings or to be more specific, shelters.  Just before high tide I notice the waves breaking round the lighthouse It looked impressive, however whilst concentrating on getting the shot I wanted, I managed to get soaked by a massive wave, was it worth it I wonder, the light had been perfect with a very dramatic sky behind the lighthouse.  I have to cut short my visit due to soaking wet feet and trousers.  Driving home I feel I might now have found my theme and with luck avoid getting wet in the future.

Assignment 1 response to Tutor's report.

Stokesay Castle.

I'm really pleased to read how well my first assignment has been received by Clive.  He says;

'A good start to the module that displays good technical skills and a developing compositional eye; inevitably there's some need for refinement but that's the purpose of the module'.

Considering that I have never done adult learning before and the length of time it has taken me to arrive at the point where it could be submitted.

I will take note of Clive's comments and hope that I can do better next time.  This assignment has opened my eyes to the things around me and has taught me in some small way to be more observant, which I guess is the point.

Assignment 1 and a New Year.

                 Happy New Year.

Now Christmas is out of the way and a new present of a Dictaphone from the kids to help me record my thoughts when taking photos, I decide to take my dogs to the Wirral for a run on the sands.  Armed with my camera I start photographing dogs and their owners on the beach there are so many around and as I walk my dogs every day I wonder if my common theme could be dog walkers.  Back home I look at the pictures on the computer, most have just not worked, as usual the photographs were not as good as I thought they might have been when I took them.  However I approach some local characters who meet up every in the same car park to walk their dogs and ask them if they would mind if I took their photos, this is something I will do even if I choose another subject for the assignment.  I think dogs and their owners might be too limiting but the Wirral peninsular is a big area and it may be worth returning.


Assignment1.

A Dog's best friend and my 1st assignment.

So this is it,my first attempt at blogging and I'm finding it very hard to put my thoughts into words. Having spent the past forty years in a mind numbing job being controlled by the whims of people in the construction industry, I have now got to find my creative side.

I was pleased with the comments I received from my tutor, which on the whole were better than I could have hoped for.  One of his suggestions was that I should follow a theme for each assignment, something I had not done with assignment 1.  My first impressions when reading the introduction to part two of the course was this may prove more difficult than I could have imagined.

I have spent several weeks reading through the notes and trying to find inspiration.  Creativity, as I said before is not my strong point.  The lack of it was my main reason for taking on the course, having been interested in photography for many years I felt my pictures were always missing something.  The immediate area where I live does not lend itself to anything creative, maybe because I am too familiar with it.  I therefore spent several days driving around the surrounding towns and areas trying to find subject matter with a common theme.

Unfortunately, Christmas is looming so all thoughts of photography wil be put on the back burner while shopping and all the other things take priority, I will however find time to add the exercises from assignment 1 to my blog.