three sloping chairs....

Taken in the backstreets of Madrid whilst walking along countless antique shops and surrounded by old style restaurants and buildings the image on the right presented itself to me when walking past an old antique shop late afternoon. The vertical aspects of the photograph, the chairs, the building itself and the graffitti in the backround all lended itself to me taking the photograph in a portrait style to add to the vertical spect within the photograph. I decided to take it in black and white aslo because of the many black and white colours throughout the photo to enhance their colours. I took the photograph with the camera exactly flat, however if you look closely at the ground itself it is on a very heavy slope down to the left, adding to the quaint rurality and picturesque cobblestone roads that line the back streets of the magical capital.

take a weight of your feet, and have soup!

The photo on the right was taken during an intense day of wlaking and museum visiting around the city of Paris with our photography group on a recent trip to Paris and Madrid in order to take photos and extend our creativity to the haven that is Paris. The photo on the right depicts two long lines of trees either side of the gravel pathway, lined with quaint little patisseries and boulangeries with a small invitation on a chalk board for soup and wine. To me this is the image of France that I hold, and still hold after the trip, in my head as it is quiet, classy and typically French- wine and food.

old school d.moor

Whilst on a walk on Dartmoor with my brother we stumbled across these rocks pictured on the right, called Foxtor Rocks in the middle of the Dartmoor National Park. I took the photo with my Diana F+ a vintage 1940`s camera with medium format film, hence the 5x5 image. The camera produces a soft focus dreamy image with very differing colours throughout the image. The simpleness of the photograph and the low sunlight enabled me to photograph a scene on Dartmoor making it look like a back drop from a John Wayne western movie in Texas.

wish you were here...

Taken on a relatively cloudy, dark day the photo on the right contains strong blacks against strong whites contrasting the photograph brilliantly, from foreground to the backround, from the relaxed calm of the chairs to the hustle and bustle of the people in the backround. Furthermore the angle of the chairs are sloped back a long way, thus illustrating the peacefulness and serenity of the very fashionable city; and it opens the image out to the negative space on the left of the photo in the backround to the silhouetted trees and the people enjoying the culture and way of life in Paris.

THE chair

After much experimentation and much failure I have realised that when taking photographs with medium format film the subject that you are capturing must fit in a square. Now this may not seem like much of a difference but after years of photographing subjects rectangularly, it was extremely annoying realising that I had to change my photographic style to compliment medium format film. So when I came across this chair then I knew that it would compliment this type of film and format.

rural idyll

The photo on the right was also taken on the same day, late afternoon just before sun set in the middle of Dartmoor on my Diana F+.The soft focus image and the medium format film has enhanced the tones of the clouds and the sky in the backround and has created a slight vignetting around the edges and corners of the photo. This creates a wonderful effect that the viewr is concentrated on focussing in on the tree, th emain subject of the image because it is in focus and the clearest part of the photo. Furthermore the image has been divided into three parts, with the green grass in the foreground, the wall in the middle which divides the top part of the photo, the sky and the clouds at the top of the image breaking the photo into more manageable pieces for the viewer to comprehend.

good times with a merry go round

Taken in Madrid the photo on the right depicts a merry go round for all ages. The bright lights and the various abstract colours add another dimension to the image as the colours on the attraction focus the viewers attention onto this part of the merry go roun, keeping their attention on the movement of the meery go round. This movement and obvious freezing of the image is felt from the sudden staticness of the ponies and carriages.

the journey to school...

Whilst walking to school in the mornings, I stop off at a few friends houses as we walk to the bus stop. However this means waking up early in the morning and some people, josh pictured here on the right, dont really like that idea. His evident discomfort and pain in his face tells the viewer that he is clearly unhappy with the current situation, as he is pictured outside his house on a typical journey to school.

the journey to school part 2

Another journey to school and the image on the right shows my brother ready and prepared for a day at school. His evident joy and pleasure within his expression tells the reader clearly that he is happy and enjoys his time at school. What I really like about the photograph is the small shard of light that is just peeping through the top of the image creating this halo like effect around his huge barnet.

light at the end of the tunnel

Taken in Chudleigh in the middle of the night the image on the right depicts a lone light just shining through the pitch black darkness that covers the horizon and the surrounding area. Furthermore the way that the light is placed in the middle of the image creates a focussing point for the viewer, making it the most important factor in the entire photograph. But what I really love about the photo is the way that i have framed it creates a vanishing point for the viewer as the bridge takes them from the foreground back to the backround until the vanishing point in the darkness.

light vs dark

Also taken in Chudleigh the image on the right depicts a lampost on the far left of the photo fighting the edges of the darkness and what lies beneath this cloak that hides all. The path that takes the viewer from left to right is illuminated by the light however as the viewer moves their eyes to the right of the image they can see that the green bin and the rural postbox are being hidden by the darkness and create heavy shadows from the strong light on the left.

Parkway Road

This series of night photography in Chudleigh is one of my favourites from the village as not a lot of people have seen or even photographed for that matter Chudleigh at night. And so i feel that this photo on the right taken near to the chippy, one of the most central meeting place in Chudleigh, shows the subtle light and soft tones that the lampost offers in the middle of the night.And what I really like aboout the image is the way that the light in the top right of the image has split into many shards of light almost like the sun on a summers day.

The multi-coloured garages of Chudleigh

Taken slightly further up from the previous image on parkway road the photo on the right depicts a series of multi coloured garages going from left to right, and as a result, taking the viewer along this pathway and down to the many lamposts in the distance. The soft subtle lighting within the image just about illuminates the different colours of the garages, and without a tripod the image would have become blurred and rough. However because of the steady tripod the image remains soft calm and steady.

ghostly trails of the night

Photographed next to Chudleigh Hall, the car pictured in the photograph braking all the while is navigating through the twists and turns beside the memorial in Chudleigh and then out of the village towards Chudleigh Knighton. The long exposure was needed to illuminate the entire picture and believe it or not, this is the busiest part of Chudleigh, and so the car passing through here created these fantastic light trails in the night. I love how because of the obvious movement of the vehicle, that it is not actually pictured here as it is a ghost and has not remained still enough for the camera to capture it. This and the shadows on the right of the picture make this one of my favourites from the night series.

Chudleigh Hall

Pictured here on the right, under the cover of darkness but with obvious visitors inside as the lights are on. What I really like about the photograph is the way that I have set up the image is so that the small bollards run from the foreground in the right corner all the way to the edge of the image in the backround on the left. The differences in tones and the different shades of light and dark are another factor which I like about the image as the harsh lighting at the back contrasts brilliantly with the pitch black sky behind and then in the foreground the shaded bench and bollards provide another different element to the image as a whole.

Motorway Madness

If you almost walk out of the village Chudleigh offers a fantastic view of the A38 road below as it travels on its way towards Exeter, a major town and key to the South West. The amount of cars that pass below the bridge and towards Exeter are phenomenal and as the picture shows even in the middle of night there are still many coming back and some even travelling to work in the late hours of the night. The long exposure has created the light trails and has even managed to capture the neighbouring town of Chudleigh Knighton on the left of the image.

Motorway Madness part 2

Taken on the same bridge to the image above, however for this photo I decided to take it further down the bridge and landscape style. Now you dont normally see photographs like this over motorways landscape style as it simply does not compliment the road or the flow of traffic. But i took it this way as I felt it offered a wider view of the valley below and it even gives an insight to where the road is heading as it dissapears around the corner into the darkness.

Friday Football Funtime

These next series of photographs come from a set when I photographed my friends playing football at our local football pitch, every friday after school. About 14 of us play football of the same standard and ability and we play for around 2 hours on a normal size playing field. And the photo on the right depicts ed and thom running quicklytowards the ball in a blur of motion. Their extreme speed and franticness if portrayed brilliantly throughout the photograph as their arms and legs have been blurred, all making it extremely difficult to photograph; however I am happy with the result.

watch out!

Taken on the sidelines of the pitch, the photo on the right depicts bug pictured in yellow just nudging the ball around sam the defender, picutred in blue. He is in the middle of performing his slide tackle in an attempt to push the ball away from bug but as you can see bug is at full stretch to prevent this from happening. This shows how committed he is to the game as he wants to win so bad he will do anything to keep the ball.

They think its all over.... it is now!

And following on from the previous photograph it is obvious to see that Brendan did not save that previous shot from James and is pictured here on the right sitting down pondering where it all went wrong. The obvious dissapointment is evident from his expression and his hunched manner suggests a sense of defeat after a long epic game. The shoes in the foreground add an abstract sense to the image, something different and the colour as well compliments the mud in which Brendan is sitting in, making the picutre flow from foreground to backround easily.

Last Man Standing

The last defender, sam, has been beaten and its all left to brendan the goalkeeper to save the intense shot by james or the game is over. The angle in which I have taken the photograph adds another dimension to the photograph as the players on the right of the photo are running at an angle towrds the goal following the line of the ball. The intense blurring in the photo adds to the drama and motion of the photo to a brilliant effect.

Time for Reflection

Whilst working hard one day I got bored. And started to stare outside the window to what lies out there apart from boring Chudleigh, when I was suddenly joined by my friend here bailey. He is a wierd cat but the natural sunligh from the right illuminates his face and creates this wonderful photograph, so I dont mind.

pine cones and barbed wire

pine cones and barbed wire. I really like the barbed wire in this picture as it is not perfectly straight and curves from left to right, unlike the pristine almost perfect normal barbed wire. Also the way these cones are growing and blossoming like flowers next to the destructive and fierce barbed wire, it is conflicting and showing both sides to the forest.

the old bench

same bench, but i prefer this picture. I like how you can see more of the surroundings with the tree in the bacnround and the large rock just resting neatly behind the rickety old bench and the colours aswell. The colours of the bench make it seem very old, rickety and quite uncomfortable also the colours of he grass are very vivid and the path next to it seems worn and old just as the bench. Also i think that this picture is framed much better with negative space above the bench and room below the bench to put it in the middle level of the picture with space to the left of it for the eye to wonder........

take a seat...

On a walk somewhere near a forest and i found this bench covered in grass and very old. I really liked the colour of the bench as it much of the similar tones of the tree behind it, this makes it almost blend into its surroundings and many would not see it hidden here beneath the undergrowth. Also i like the lighting that day aswell as it creates a bit of mystery, the light is not illumintaing the entire picture, therefore it leaves the rest up to your imagination and adds to hidden mystery of this picture.

by the boats in dartmouth

Busy day in Dartmouth it was indees, and this picture demonstrates this fact to its entirety. All along the far left of the picture there was a competition for all ages to take part and draw drawings of whatever they desired in chalk in the pavements of dartmouth and you can see them all dotted along the edge of the photo clinging to the pavement for any space to show their artistic flair. I decided to take this photo in black and white as the day itself was very gloomy and didnt bode well towards colour photography and plus i like how it brings out the old style of the victorian house in the backround.

dartmouth carnival

In the midst of the frantic eating and the chaotic crabbing down at the Dartmouth regatta/carnival (you choose) was this old lady selling these bubble machines to the public. She did have many people buying them as many children were very much amused by her demonstations and felt no need to purchase the product! And this shows just one of the excited child by the bubbles, myself included, playing with the bubbles there at dartmouth. Also i like the contrast in activity in the picture. As there is a lot of activity in the backround of the picture, with many families argueing and rushing around, however there is a sort of serene in the foreground with the child playing quietely and happily in his own bubble oblivious to the problems that surround him.

sorry no eggs

shame.

my cat. (again)

a bit too close for this picture, but i managed to take it anyway, because it gives the effect that you are so close that it looooks quite big, almost like a bear. But it isnt.

my cat.

cat on lap+sunny day= this picture

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

A view from an old window

Nearing the end of our travels in Portugal and we stayed in this very old medieval styley house, on the outskirts of Lisbon,for about 3 or 4 days. It was quite boring there as there was nothing to do at night so whilst daydreaming out the window i noticed how old and broken the window was and just took a picture of it really, and put it in black and white as it gave it the effect to be really old.

Boats by the Port

On a sunny day when travelling through more quaint villages we stopped at this fishing village. So we went down to the port as the weather was glorious and i took this picture. I liked how many different colours there were in its entirerity with the strong orange in the foreground and the different shades of blue in the backround.

King of Diamonds

Bored one time in the small rural village of Monchique when it was raining so decided to play solitaire and this magical picture presented this wonderful opportunity. I liked how the entire room was flooooded with the light from a window on the left and after messing around with the camera and position of the cards i was happy with the result. i like how there are many shadows in the picture especially under the top card.

Glasses on the table

This close up of the wine glass on the table is also one of my favourites. I like how many of the things in the backround are very shiny and have caught the light from the surrounding light sources. Also the way some of the things in the backroundhave been slightly distorted from the glass in the foreground is kind of why i took the picture as it is different.

Mackerel on the BBQ

Fish is big in Portugal especially in the rural parts, like where we were staying and we decided to buy some!yay fish! we had to gut them and de-head them and then decided to put them on the BBQ, just a picture really of all the tails as i saw how they were all grouped at one end, like a school of fish but rather hot!( they were yummy)

Jus` chilling by the pool

We managed to stay in a villa in our time in Portugal, in a small village in the south called Monchique up in the hills where all the locals stare at you but are kind of friendly but not really. For most of the time we just sat by the pool and relaxed, absolute genius! This is my brother here, obviously, just sat here by the pool with a palm tree in the back just sums up our time in Portugal.

Black and white church

This is one of my favourite pictures from this album. I love taking pictures in blac and white and this shadow picture presented this unmissable opportunity for me. I like how the shape of the windows are portrayed on the floor as you cannot see them very well in the first place from where i have taken them from. Also the light in the middle of the picture at the end draws your eye right through the shadows and up to the end.

Portugese Roman Ruins

Went to visit the oldet roman ruins in Portugal and took many pictures that day, and this was my best. I really like how that because of the negative space, the sky as it is known to you and me, has made the picture seem very large because there is so much open space left at the top of the picture. Also i like the clouds in the sky and how wispy they are floating in the sky hehehe

The Door of Names

I managed to stumble across this door whilst in a Portugese village in the day. I liked how it was very light at the time and all the writing was in white with the contrasting black handles that is why i decided to take it in black and white. Furthermore i like how the line of hearts in the middle of the door are kind of demented and not perfect almost like the door itself.

Senor what an awesome tash you have

This local Portugese man just out for a smoke, thoroughly deserved a picture with handlebar tash like that!!

Skulls close-up

In the house of bones i really liked the orangey-yellowey mood lighting that was dotted in and around the skulls and the house itself. So i decided to get up close and personal with the lucky few on the walls and take a few pictures of a few of them with the light flooding in from the right to illuminate and present a crisp image from a dark and creepy house of bones.

House of Bones

In the South of Portugal now, i think, and as we were travelling thorugh a small little village on our way to our hotel we found this creepy church/cathedral-im not sure!, and this small house at the back was built as they were short on bricks. No actually it was built by the monks as a warning to all of those that death was always apparent and never far away!

The Cork Collectors of Portugal

Now because everyone is becoming more and more aware of how they are destroying the planet, through plastic bags etc organic wood corks are becoming more and more popular. So in many regions of Portugal (and im sure other places too) the collection of wood cork- the process of stripping the trees is ever more apparent. And here we can see some of the men at work who have the jog of stripping the trees half way round and then loading the small tractors with the bark and then shipping them away.

Q.E.2

Whilst visiting Portugal we managed to see the very famous Q.E 2. It was merely by chance that we managed to see it leaving and when we were on a high vantage point the wind nearly took away my mum`s hat. So i thought that her arms framed the boat beautifully but i had to wait a while for the boat to reach the perfect place when it was in the middle of the picture but i believe it works very well.

Candles At Night.

Last picture from the church and another experiment with the lights!I made sure i found a dark place with these candles as it just illuminates the whole picture and makes the lights seem brighter. Once again you can tell the direction in which i moved the camera, as the candles have moved in that direction as well.

The Ceiling (from below)

Another picture of the ceiling, yes it was amazing wasn`t it?!!yea but um this time i decided to use a different setting on my digital camera as it meant that it gave it a slightly more skin tone feel and not as warm tones. But i feel that it has given it a better style and you can see the detail of the 6 shields more clearly and the tiling because it has been taken in this way.

Light at the End of the Church?

Another from this spectactular chruch and when i was walking around, now at the other end of the church, noticed that the amazing ceiling and how it lead neatly to this circle of light at the end of the ceiling, and how it illuminated the entire church. Furthermore i liked how i managed to take the picture with the light right in the middle of the picture and not at an angle as i thought that would not have had the same effect.

Sitting in the Pews

Whilst sitting in the pews of the church i decided to take this picture as it showed simply the beautiful ornate surroundings and how many people like i were just sitting quietly and admiring the beauty of this old relic.

Messing With The Lights

Going into the church where the great vasco De Garma is buried and took this picture whilst walking around the place. I usually like doing this sort of thing with the lights, putting a slow shutter speed and waving the camera around like a loon and hopefully achieiving something worth showing!But you can tell which direction i waved the camera around as the lights of the candles have reflected this direction.