The London 2012 Olympic Games - Photos 4 to 7

Zero to Pro - Blog 11

The London 2012 Olympic Games got underway in Glasgow, I was there taking photographs.  The London 2012 Olympic Games got underway in London, I was at home

watching all the action unfold on TV and listening to every sports person and spectator under the London sun talking about the amazing atmosphere surrounding the games.  I felt decidedly like I was standing on the sidelines watching a million photo opportunities pass me by at record speed. 

When I saw the games entering the final straight I decided it was time to play catch up and chase some photos down.  It was London time.  I arrived on the penultimate day of the games determined to soak up the last of the Olympic spirit, bottle it in photographic form and take it home for my blog.

Here are the highlights...

The Olympic Stadium

Ok, not so much a highlight as a low point for me.  At the moment there is nothing more demoralising than shooting a fixed target, such as the Olympic Stadium – which was obviously a focal point for every passing lens.  I don’t enjoy taking the same photographs as everyone else (especially when I know that so many of them will be superior to mine).  Anyway I felt that, in the spirit of the games, I should give it my best shot!

                                                                                                            

Not loving this photo.  Every time I look at it I tilt my head slightly to the right in the hope that the photo will straighten up and stop slouching on the left.  The Olympic Park looks messy, it looks like it needs to be rearranged which points to poor composition.  Worst of all the stadium itself is washed out by the white sky.  Any words of wisdom to help me do better in the face of future fixtures would be most welcome! 

The strategically placed wild flowers surrounding the Olympic Park were very beautiful, it seemed as though they had always been there and that the stadium and sculpture had materialised organically along side them, with just a little help from people behind the scenes (or screens in this case).  

I enjoy the way in which this photo is divided, on the outside tranquillity on the inside  a sense of activity.  On the downside, I would have liked to be able to bring the colour of the flowers to the forefront in this photo, for there to be less sky in the frame and for the remainder of the sky to be less grey.  On the upside...there's plenty of room for growth! 

Looks like the Olympic Park is about to set sail...all aboard for the aquatic centre!  The ship shape and the stance of the guy sporting the camera suggest a voyage is on the horizon.  

I'm beginning to understand that looking at everything from different angles is important if you want to get a fresh perspective on 'things'!  I like the alternative view that this image offers.  I also like the odd detail too, like the Olympic rings sitting on the flexed arm of the photographer.  I just wish there had been a blue sky that day or that I knew how to create more contrast with my camera!

The Arcelormittal Orbit dominated the Olympic Park.  By day, the sculpture presented the idea of movement in much too static a way for my liking, I wished that it was free to move around and make its way to an amusement park perhaps?  I played around with settings on my camera until I took a shot in which it appeared as though it might be able to do just that, having taken on a rather robotic form.  The structure looks alive to me in this image, I quite like it for that reason.

Silver & Bronze - Photos 2 & 3

Zero to Pro - Photo Blog 10

At the beginning of August I went on my first photo shoot to Hampden Park, where Olympic action got off the ground with the women's football.

I published my shot of the day in my last blog.  Here are my silver and bronze efforts.

I realise none of the shots will be winning any medals but it's the taking part that counts...right? 

As a complete beginner when it comes to photography I find it challenging, not only to take decent photographs but to explain what I like and don't like about shots I've taken.  Nonetheless, I think it's probably good practise to try to paint a picture of the impression I have of the photos I take.  Then, perhaps, you can give me your perspective so I can begin to get to grips with both the camera and the lingo!

I like all the lines in the photograph above.  The hedge leading into the shot, the red line of the flag and the stride of the man sporting it taking you further along the road and the yellow and white lines on the road running parallel to that.  The lines in the foreground take you to the row of flats in the background.  It feels to me like the lines are guiding you home or that it's 'going home time' (which it was, this photo was taken after the game).  Though first you must get through the other lines...the volunteers, the barriers, the police and the traffic.

I also like the fact that there are no crowds for the flag bearer to negotiate, this tells you something about the day as the games at Hampden were very poorly attended.

Finally, the photo also speaks volumes about the spirit  of the volunteers which could not be dampened by the weather or the lack of women's football fans that day, one of the finer details of the photo that stands out for me.

The negatives that are apparent to me...the photo is too dark, I could have cut back on the amount of hedge in the shot and it feels like there's too great a distance between the front and back of the shot...if that make sense?

You can let me know if I'm speaking a foreign language!

Very simply, I like the repetition of colour and pattern in the shot above.  The reds, whites and blues run throughout while patterns repeat themselves left and right - to the left the print on the boys back and the sign above his head mirror each other while on the right the post in the foreground and the one in the middle of the frame match up.  All these details tie together to make this image fairly pleasing to my eye.

The feeling the image presents to me is that Mum is ready to go home (and perhaps has her eye on the taxi in the background) while the kids have gained energy from the games and and want to take a more colourful route home (via the hurdles no doubt - yes there are no bikes but children can always improvise)!

On the down side... I think there is too much dead space in this shot.  Less pavement and less sky might have made for a more interesting image.  Also, the image round about the colours I mentioned looks very washed out.

Your advice on any aspect of these photographs would brighten up my day and no doubt any future images!

Kicking Off - Photo 1

Zero to Pro - Photo Blog 9

The Zero to Pro project officially kicked off at the end of August.  Earlier that month I thought I had better begin to do a little ground work.  I wanted to have a few photos ready to post when things got up and running so I started to look out for photo opportunities.

One such opportunity presented itself on August 1^st.  The Olympics were to kick-off at Scotland’s National Stadium and so I thought I would warm up by stepping out into the cold with my camera and heading to Hampden Park.

I’ve always carried a compact camera around with me everywhere I go - to family gatherings, to events, if I go out for a walk...just in case something that should be caught on camera catches my eye.  Until recently, there have been very few occasions where I have had the opportunity to go out with the sole (or soul) purpose of taking photographs purely for pleasure.

So, as I made my way towards this big sporting event with my big camera (I know most people call it a digital SLR) I felt a little unusual.  It was liberating to be able to go out into the world just to search for beautiful moments but a bit scary at the same time...what if none showed up?  I knew where I was going but I had no idea what I was looking for and this unsettled the part of me that likes to have a purposeful plan.
 

I decided that the best idea for me going forward would be to get a bit of background on any area/event I’m going to before I arrive so that I can have shots in mind that might be available for the taking.  However, these imagined images can’t be too fixed or fixated on as this may cause my eyes to be closed to other possibilities that I could not have anticipated and that may be far more interesting.

I figure, the other advantage to doing a bit of leg work and having some knowledge about an event/area in advance is that it may offer an alternative angle to that of other photographers in the same place.  For example, knowing who is likely to be at an event gives you an idea of who to look out for or picking up local knowledge of an area might allow you to put yourself in prime position to get the best shot. 

That shouldn’t be too difficult based on my first experience of being out with a digital SLR in sight.  I imagined that you might be met with hostility when taking photos of people who did not ask you to take photos of them.  In reality, people seemed to view me as a safe person in a crowd of strangers.  When I wasn’t in the process of taking photographs people would stop and talk to me or ask directions.  When I was in the process of taking photographs people were happy to get in my way, they wanted to be seen. 

I, however, wasn’t as comfortable with the view they were taking of me.  I felt like a fraud and feared that someone might want to chat about what I was doing when I clearly didn’t know.  I think the photo below is proof of that!

I know that there are many ways in which this photograph could be improved but as a first shot I was relatively happy with it.

It took me a while to get the image I was looking for.  At first I wasn’t confident enough to put the camera to my eye with the crowds streaming towards me.  I was at eye level with everyone which meant some people were way to close to the camera and aware of my presence.  So, I decided to climb up on a wall, where a hedge was handily providing a little cover, and take some photos from that position.  I lined up a shot showing the stadium and flags so that the setting was clear, I was then looking for a sense of occasion...someone who would walk into the frame and tell the story of the day.  

The moment I was waiting for arrived.  A little boy spotted me behind the camera and burst into a joyful state waving his flags as he danced towards me.  The girls that were taking care of him looked comfortable with me taking the shot so I released the shutter. I was only a couple of feet off the ground but I felt on top of the world when out of nowhere everything I was looking for appeared in front of me!  It felt like crossing the finish line first.  I was elated.

 

To me the photo presented the idea that the youth of the day had come away from the event inspired and perhaps ready to be at the forefront in the future with regards to sport.  The boy’s energy also appeared to be in contrast to those behind him, maybe representing the lethargy of the past in Glasgow where fitness is concerned.   

So, overall, I was happy with the composition and the finer details in the shot, like the Irn-Bru van in the background (although it's a bit rubbish that I allowed the bin and sign to creep into the right of the image).  I’m pretty sure everything else could have been a lot better.  The little boy is out of focus and the image is a bit dull.  I’d like to know how to do better next time so if you have any suggestions I’d be happy to hear them?!

A Step In The Right Direction

Zero to Pro - Photo Blog 8 

My main interest at the moment is in making beautiful images.  The subject matter doesn’t matter too much to me at this stage.   I’m sure an interest in specific genres will develop through study of and experience in different fields.  For now, I feel it’s important to take the time to find out where my skills lie (if indeed I have any), where they would be best placed and where I would enjoy using them most.

The photographs I most like to look at perhaps reflect the photographs I’d most like to take.  People and emotion seem to be the central themes.  

I first thought about studying photography a few years ago and started to compile a reading list from which to learn the basics.  I stumbled across a book at that time which didn’t seem at all relevant to my requirements but it stopped me in my tracks and insisted I bought it.  That book was ‘Street Photography Now’ by Sophie Howarth and Stephen McLaren.  As soon as I got my hands on it, I walked slowly through the pages and was amazed to see a running commentary on life in almost every image.  That’s when I really fell in love with photography, when I realised that it has the potential to tell the story of life in a single shot.

So, as a starting point, I decided to hit the streets, aiming to capture images that speak of the human experience or better still the human spirit.

A Future In Photography Starts Here

Zero to Pro - Photo Blog 7  

I always wanted to do...well, everything!  So, I had trouble choosing a path in life because all avenues looked interesting to me, I was reluctant to walk down one and close off all others.

Of course, I had to do something so I took the most general route available...I studied business – a bit of marketing, a bit of finance, a bit of human resources, a bit of law, a bit of everything that could be used in just about any job.  After university, I meandered into the hospitality industry on a full-time basis because I knew it would allow me to work with a wide variety of people anywhere in the world.  I was, essentially, still trying to keep my options open. 

Nonetheless, I’ve always really liked my work though I could never say I loved it.  I liked it because it was, for me, all about excellence.  Every day was about delivering the perfect service, offering the customer the exact experience they had hoped for.  I developed an eye for detail and an ability to build rapport quickly with all kinds of people.  I took pride in what I did but it never felt like it was enough.  I wanted to use my business skills and my creative abilities but creativity was reserved for the kitchen, there was little room for it front of house.

Now I have finally found the freedom that I have always craved within the confines of just a few areas.  Photography and writing allow me to indulge in the diversity of self expression and give my entrepreneurial spirit room to manoeuvre.  Maybe the question we should ask ourselves before we begin on our career paths is how do I want to feel every day rather than what do I want to do.  This question gave me the answer I’ve been looking for, for what feels like forever.

My future in photography starts here!