For the first section in my major project I chose to focus on the theme of the village by day, basically the premise was looking at the area under normal everyday conditions and seeing what aspects of it stood out. I think I need to make this point right from the start this section is very much still a work in progress, I like the photo's I've produced up to this point and the five here I'm including are some of the best but my aim is to give a feel for the place and I'm not 100% certain I've quiet achieved this yet. Coming into this project I'd done a fair bit of research on how other people had approach similar subjects (you can see this in my Major Project Planning section) and had settled on the idea of approaching it in a kind of Street Photography way with a slight surreal edge because I felt this the best way to get over the feel of the village and show the kind of place it is.
In the first photo below I wanted to convey how the village sits in the surrounding landscape and I felt this view with the power station looming on the horizon kind of work well. What I like is the contrast between the village, the open countryside and then the more industry urban area in the background. What I'd like to think this says to people is how rural are rural communities these days?
Tech. Details
F-stops- f/5.6
Expo- 320sec
ISO- 500
Expo. Bias- 0 steps
Focal Length- 130
With the next couple of images I've really captured the more surreal side of life whether it be a strange place to collect shoes or a giant snow man outside the local pub. What I want to avoid is this project as a whole turning into something more serious then I intend, their some real powerful issues to look at in the following sections so I don't want to get to bogged down now so the more light heart I can make the subject in a couple of the sections the better the project will be in the end I hope.
In the below image I used a little burn tool in Photoshop to bring out the wall texture, with it being very white and making up the bulk of the shot I didn't want it to feel very flat and bland but by doing this it makes it feel far more real and part of the whole.
Tech. Details
F-stops- f/10
Expo- 250sec
ISO- 400
Expo. Bias- 0 steps
Focal Length- 27mm
The question you might ask is how to you build a snowman that tall, well the answer a little bit of a mystery but I'd guess it has something to do with a few pints on a snowy evening and no one being in a hurry to go home on a Saturday night. As a point of fact the next day the top was taken out of it for health and safety reasons, what a world we live in today.
Tech. Details
F-stops- f/8
Expo- 160sec
ISO- 400
Expo Bias- 0 steps
Focal Length- 55mm
The last two photos in this part are the ones that I feel could do with be changed because they don't really add anything to the section, the first below is just a simple village view I suppose with a little bit of a surreal angle to it with the antique sign being located on the clearly old building. Also there's a contrast between the old and the new but for me it's just lacking a bit of something to make it special. You're probably asking well why include it if you're not going to use it at the end of the day? Well the simple answer is it still captures the make and landscape of the village so in that respect it works but just not really well with the other shots.
Tech Details
F-stops- f/14
Expo- 500sec
ISO- 640
Expo Bias- 0 steps
Focal Length- 28mm
The final shot does fit in more with the others in this collection but again there's just something that makes it grate in my mind. I think its possibly the way the tree branches intrude to far into the frame but what I do like is the way the child's horse toy seems to be looking into the village drawing your eye in this general direction. Again if in the future I capture a better scene I'd replace this image without a shadow of a doubt but for now it stays.
Tech. Details
F-stops- f/9
Expo- 200sec
ISO- 500
Expo Bias- 0 steps
Focal Length- 24mm
For my first section I'm fairly happy with what I've achieved there's some good images and I'd say it does give an interesting snap shot of the place. One think you might have noticed is the lack of people in any of the photo's here and there is a reasons for this. First I have a whole section to come on this subject but secondly because during the day the place can seem pretty much empty of life dew to the fact very few people actually work and live here, it's a very much ageing community and anyone below the age of retirement has to work every god given hour to afford to live here in the first place. In away I'm one of the luck ones I haven't left yet but like everyone else my age in time I'll have to leave too.
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