Hours 2,416 to 2,790
I made a lot of photographs this summer. Many are a development for me in the following two categories:
- Portraits
- Multiple-exposures.
Some monochrome work in both of the above. Portraiture and monochrome were areas of potential growth identified in my “First 2,500 Hours – Review at 25%“.
Growing Confidence in Blended Multiple Exposures
Over the summer I shot and blended nearly 100 multiple exposure images. Given that these take a long time to produce, I was worried that I might be wasting my time developing a technique without merit.
Photography clubs close during the summer so my most immediate source of feedback is unavailable. However, Amersham holds an informal meeting every Wednesday at Cafe Africa. This is presided over by Vic Attfield, former doyen of the RPS and super-accomplished photographer in his own right. Amersham groups tend to give clear and unsoftened feedback. So I was relieved and encouraged when my images were generally greeted enthusiastically.
Similarly, good feedback from the Amersham seniors at the informal CPAGB Advisory day on the 28th July.
In terms of processing these images, I have:
- Provisionally defined a style of 7 images so that some semblance of the individual images is retained, rather than the whole thing being a blur
- Defined a standard colour toning and sharpening so that the images look similar
- Created a Photoshop action to automatically combine multiple exposure according to the above standards.
Street Portraiture
On 21st July, I was fortunate enough to hook-up with the fabulous street photographer Yin Wong, who I know from the Amersham Photographic Society, to go and shoot Portobello Road. Yin is a master of approaching and engaging strangers to make portraits.
Two days later went to the Black Country Museum, then on the 10th and 18th August at the Chiltern Open Air Museum for reenactments of the a Tudor Court or Ragged Victorians. All opportunities to practice approaching strangers to take their picture in a safe environment.
 | …… |  |
Comparison with Last Summer
Last summer was most notable as my introduction to street photography influenced by Sean Tucker the YouTuber and Simon Ellingworth of Amersham Photographic Studios on photowalks/ courses on 8th and 20th July respectively.
Street photography and street portraiture has been a major area of interest ever since.
Although I understood the principles last year, I feel that the images produced this year are better:
- framed – for simplicity and/ or dramatic effect
- processed, particularly colour toned for impact.
References: