Assignment 4 A sense of Place revisited following Tutor Feedback
December 2014
This assignment draws together all
the learning from the previous exercises and the appreciation of what buildings
and spaces mean to the people who live amongst them. The aim of this assignment
is to produce enough images to fill a six page, intelligent, thoughtful travel
publication (not touristic). In total 12 photographs are to be chosen with 6 to
be selected as a first choice.
Whilst working through the set of
exercises for part 4, I moved around through various locations fairly close to
home. In part 2 of this course, I encountered issues of feeling uncomfortable
with photographing in my home town of Mansfield. I gained in confidence during
part 3, and put it to the test again in part 4. At the beginning of the
exercises I still felt uncomfortable and sensed that people regarded my actions
as suspicious (I think because it is a town of high unemployment and benefit
claimants) so I decided to use my local city to “hide” and work through a
period of self-development, gaining confidence with street photography. Eric Kim
wrote an article published by Digital Photography School which I found very
helpful, suggesting that if one stood in the middle of a road junction, no-one
would take any notice of that person, which put photographing people without
asking them into perspective for me. Having looked at the idea of basing this
assignment in Lincoln because I could hide behind the mask of a tourist, I felt
I would get more out of the assignment by challenging myself and using Nottingham
which I know equally well. The point of decision came when I was asked if I
would be willing to take some photographs for a friend who is writing for a
winter sports magazine of Winter Olympians in Nottingham.
The essential character of Nottingham
I held my own opinions of the character
of Nottingham and to test whether these were similar to other peoples, I
discussed them with a number of work colleagues. I was interested to note that
how one views Nottingham and what one associates with depends on social class
and sex. Men tended to look at the buildings from the outside whilst women saw
it as a place to socialise, meet friends and shop. Not everyone went out to eat
in Nottingham (only those who were more affluent or going with work colleagues.)
Nottingham is famous for the legend of Robin Hood, and the tourist attraction
closed in 2009 (5 years ago). It seems that since then, Nottingham entered a
period of decline with shops and businesses closing down fairly quickly. Last
year the city ran a project to fill 20 shop windows with exhibitions in an
attempt to make the shopping area more enticing to consumers. University and
student accommodation buildings are now on the increase along with the
redevelopment and modernisation of two shopping centres and zones are being
created such as the Lace Market (Cultural Quarter) and Sneinton Market
(Creative Quarter).
I see the redevelopment in a positive
light. Nottingham has been the founding home of huge companies such as John
Player Tobacco, Boots Pharmaceuticals and Raleigh Bicycles. Nottingham’s
history involves lacemaking in cottage
industries and within the city, Robin Hood and the Sherriff of Nottingham are
world class fictional characters and sporting legends such as Jane Torvil and
Christopher Dean, Carl Froch and Brian Clough have over the years captured the
lives of many and put Nottingham firmly on the map. Nottingham is proud to
present two long standing football teams (Nottingham Forest and Notts County),
a National Cricket Stadium (Trent Bridge), National Water Sports Centre,
Nottingham Panthers Ice Stadium as well as concert venues such as Capital FM
Arena and Rock City. Fashion designer Paul Smith also comes from Nottingham. We
boast two Universities; Nottingham Trent University and The University of Nottingham.
More recently we had a visit from Batman as Wollaton Hall became Batman’s home
in The Dark Knight Rises, and tourists can find the village of Gotham not too
far away. Nottingham has a lot to offer to investment companies, students, tourists
and locals alike.
The Council House boasts two art deco
lions; Leo and Oscar. Leo is the Left Lion, and one of the cultural magazines
sports this name. The Left Lion is a well-known meeting place for people of all
ages. The Old Market Square, the largest in the country, holds food fairs, shows,
Christmas Markets, the Seaside in Summer for children and political demonstrations.
At lunchtime, workers and visitors alike can be seen sitting around. This is
where the youth of today meet. The fountains (redesigned from old public
toilets) provide a playground for toddlers to teenagers whatever the weather. Nottingham, like most cities, has its own
dialect, although this is harder to capture in photographic form.
What I set out to achieve
I started off with quite negative
thoughts towards this assignment. Having
read around street photography and visited the exhibition at The University of
Nottingham on American Night Photography (see exhibitions page on my blog), I
was left wondering how to present this positively. Nottingham is trying to move
with the times to upgrade the derelict areas and attract more people in.
However, I feel that money is not always spent in the best of ways such as the
closure and redesign of a public space at great cost to the taxpayer within 2
years of a makeover. Change is always
going to be there – some people see is as positive, some as negative such as
the stall holders of Sneinton Market who are unhappy that their market is going
to be turned into a gaming area. There are less affluent areas, and gun crime
is high, so for my own safety I planned to stay in the safer areas. Nottingham
is a large city and if I took images of certain buildings, I would waste space
on a “snapshot of Nottingham’s buildings”. I narrowed my area of Nottingham to
within a 1 mile radius from Left Lion, in the Old Market Square of Nottingham.
This encompasses several of the landmarks of Nottingham that people use and or
associate with.
I drew up a list to carry with me to
look at certain aspects.
My list of suggested shots:
Citycard Bike hire long shot towards
city
Left lion across market square (busy
people)
Trams up South Parade (side of
council house flying horse walk) – busy traffic
Park Tunnel (city of caves) – single
person? steps
Sneinton Market redevelopment no
people
Busker / Religious informers
Nottingham Trent University (Newton
Building) Students (group) small and many
Nottingham Playhouse (Sky Mirror) / Broadway
Cinema (people anonymous) silhouettes in windows
Maid Marion Way (legend of Robin Hood
without using the statue)
Exchange Walk or Kings Walk (shopping)
People in coffee shops (or outside)
Groups of picnicking people in market
square
People at tram stops
Ice arena
I planned my images to be bright and
colourful to attract people to visit. Initially my images were taken in daylight
(with two night time shots) and the time of year meant my images looked cold
and grey. My tutor suggested reshooting some of the images at night time or in
low light to make the images more vibrant. Due to the time of year Christmas lights were
unavoidable. There were plenty of people out on the streets in the evening and
I spent time observing the changeover period from shoppers going home or
staying to eat before going home to the people going out for the evening. I
hoped to show a busy Nottingham. Nottingham has worked hard to incorporate a
continental feel with cafes extending their seating to outside, but I didn’t
think I would capture this at this time of year. With my reshoot images, the
continental Christmas Market in the Market Square was in full swing with a large
skating rink and this is where most people gravitated. I planned to include a sense
of scale and to show off Nottingham’s better side, especially with the
inclusion of public and voluntary services who are out in force to support the people
enjoying bars and clubs in the city centre.
I used the same camera throughout
(Canon 5D mark 2) with the same lens (24-105mm) to capture wide angles, height
of buildings and a tripod for the night time images. I used a variety of
portrait and landscape and spaces where captions could be added.
My images
Initially I took about 400 images and
narrowed my choice down to 22 before narrowing it down to 12. My tutor thought that 3 of these images were
acceptable and suggested reshooting during low light and night time to provide
more consistency. Having visited the American Night Photography in Nottingham
University during the course of taking the images for this assignment, I felt
able to change the direction and reshoot, which involved practicing and learning
new skills before I was happy with my final selection.
My chosen 12 images
At the beginning of collating this
assignment, I thought in terms of set one and set 2 of my images, reasoning
that if I had two similar images, the “editor” would be able to choose one over
another. I now think of them in terms as a set of 12 images because they feel
more cohesive. There are similarities in content between the two sets – both sets
include public transport (bus / tram), both contain voluntary and emergency
services, both contain the people of Nottingham and both contain landmarks,
entertainment venues and residential areas. I left the original 3 images in the
first set and worked on taking a further 9 images to show a sense of place.
These include a mix of landscape and portrait images.
 |
Image 1 1/13
f5.6 ISO200 105mm
|
I came across this image of a man
sitting at a table looking at his phone down an alleyway whilst walking around
Nottingham Playhouse. Nottingham has a lot of alleyways or twichells
(Nottinghamshire slang), some with shops and some without. I was unsure if he
was connected to the Playhouse and just having a break from working. I assumed by
the shadows cast the man had additional lighting on. He is partly obscured by
the stair case leg. I think the clutter in the background and the uneven paving
add to the character of the building. The man contrasts well against the
brighter background. The beer barrel in the foreground helps to set a place to
the image.
 |
Image 2
0.6secs f8 ISO400 50mm
|
This is my favourite image.
Nottingham’s Council House dome is lit up for occasions such as Children in
Need, Nottingham Night Light and as part of the Christmas decorations. The
colours change and unless I take several images, I cannot guarantee what
colours I will have on the image. I was
pleased with the blue lighting which is both masculine and emotional. I mounted
the tripod on the edge of the fountain which was above head height and stood in
a trough of water, waiting for the man on the left to stand still. Fortunately
he did, and the people with him moved away from him. The man is balanced by the
lights on the right hand side and the hint of Christmas decorations on the left
sets the time of year. Separating the image from the reflection are a group of
people enjoying themselves on the temporary skating rink. I liked the fact that
the man has long hair and a carrier bag. When I analysed this image on the
computer, I decided could see more about it than when I took it. It told a
story of a man looking at the Christmas lights and wondering about the expense
of it all. I thought it was quite reflective (contemplative) as well as the
reflection adding to the “stop still and think” notion I was trying to convey.
I was inspired to revisit night photography after seeing Todd Hido’s work at
the University of Nottingham this month and reading his book.
 |
Image 3
1.6secs f13 ISO200 24mm
|
The Cornerhouse cinema complex
(opened in 2000) houses a collection of eating establishments, a night club and
crazy golf. When it first opened, visitors used to spend time going up and down
the escalators to look at the view of the city. Standing on the outside at
night time watching the traffic drive past, one has the feeling that people are
in such a hurry. People who are not local remember this building on their drive
through the city centre. I like the people positioned at the pedestrian
crossing, showing that they are waiting for the traffic lights to stop. The
streak of the bus going past with the cars suggests that the area is busy with
people coming or going. I think the night shot adds an air of mysticism to the
image.
Initially, I had wanted to include
silhouettes of people in the windows. Hido (2014) (p26) made me question
whether this was necessary or whether it was better to let people draw their
own conclusions on what was/had happened. Hido explains that “what’s not shown
is of more interest. It activates the senses.” I now agree with this and
questioned whether it mattered how many people were on the bus, or what the
people in the Cornerhouse building were doing.
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Image 4 f4 1/60 ISO400
28mm flash
|
I came across these two St. John’s
Ambulance volunteers outside the Victoria Centre (one of the main shopping
centres in Nottingham) waiting for a call to help someone. I approached them
for permission before shooting and they obliged. The bike is the quickest mode
of transport in the city to reach those in need of help or assistance. I
included this image as Nottingham has a reputation for alcohol problems and as
I seemed to photograph at weekends and during the evenings, I felt that this
team of people are actually part of the culture of Nottingham.
Photography is not permitted in the
shopping centre and so this image gives an indication of the inside of the
centre. Smokers often congregate outside the shops to have a cigarette. Todd
Hido (2014)(p20) suggests that when one is photographing space, “it is useful
to use the perspective to draw the viewer into the frame. The diagonal line creates
depth, and depth often works well in describing an environment. The diagonal
lines extend your photograph into infinity.” I believe
that in this instance the architecture and reflections of the building fool the
brain into making the space look larger than it actually is.
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Image 5 f4 1/40 ISO400
24mm no flash
|
Nottingham Forest were
playing at home during one of my visits. This chap (Pete) sells memorabilia
from Nottingham Forest to the fans. He is usually around and has a gathering of
collectors with him. By standing on a wall I was able to look down on the scene
before me showing him interacting with the fans. I was drawn to the stance and
facial features of the seller and the way in which he interacted with his
followers. I considered the flood light to be distracting although it added
drama to the scene. I took this image from the other side, asking for
permission as by then I had been seen, but the seller’s cap was obscuring the
details of his face.
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Image 6 f4 4secs ISO200
28mm
|
Castle Wharf in Nottingham
provides a venue for people offering comedy clubs, pubs and alfresco dining. It
takes its name from the castle which overlooks the city. Nottingham canal
opened in 1796 and much of it has been filled in. Areas of it still provide a
thoroughfare through Nottingham for pedestrians and cyclists. Nottingham City
Council have tried to preserve and regenerate the canal waterfront, set out in
a character appraisal and management plan (2008) which encourages restoration
of the old buildings and the addition of new architectural residential areas
and offices whilst keeping a green open space.
The Fellows Morton and
Clayton building was constructed in 1894. This company had the reputation for
being the “largest and best known canal transportation company in England” http://www.fellowsmortonandclayton.co.uk/fmc-history.asp
accessed Jan 2015.
The boat fleet carried a diverse range of cargo including sugar, perfume from
the Boots factory and cocoa beans to Bournville in Birmingham. In the 1980’s
the building was converted into a canal museum and restaurant. The canal museum
is now closed.
This image was taken at 9:15pm
and I was surprised at how empty all the clubs and pubs in this area were. The
attraction of this building for smokers is that they have somewhere to sit
under the canopy. People came and went, but didn’t stay long despite it being
the weekend before Christmas.
The clue that this is Nottingham and
not another canalside building is on the boat with a sign called Nottingham
Narrow Boat Project, and a further sign reads Nottingham City Council. I looked
at making the exposure longer to smooth out the canal but the people under the
canopy became too blurred.
Running alongside the pub is a row of
terraced houses above a coffee shop. When I picture Inner Nottingham, I think
of terraced houses. I was drawn to these with the inclusion of lights on
because although one cannot see the residents, the lights make them look
inhabited and gives a cosy glow to the image.
 |
Image 7 f4 1/60 ISO400
40mm flash
|
Nottingham
Christmas Market sells continental produce alongside Nottinghamshire /
Lincolnshire produce. The seller was absorbed in making Churros for his
customer. This image is bright and colourful, shows concentration and care
going into the food for the customer. This is a character trait that I think is
worthy of showing as customers are more likely to buy from this chap as he is
taking care to arrange the third Churros on the top so that his customer does
not drop it. I think it also demonstrates the pace of life at this stall.
Churros are popular within the Filipino and Spanish cultures.
 |
Image 8 f4 1/60 ISO400 50mm flash
|
The shoppers at the Christmas
Market demonstrate the variety of Christmas gifts that can be sourced from
elsewhere. The lady is trying gloves on. The stripy gloves at the front of the
basket create a focal point for the viewer to explore the customers.
 |
| Image 9 f4 1/60 ISO400 50mm flash |
The viewer is left
wondering if this group of ladies have met up after a shopping trip to share
experiences or plan where to go next.
 |
Image 10 f8 1.3secs ISO200
24mm
|
Nottingham Trent University’s
new residences are served by the city tram. Taken at twilight, the shape of the
building shows up against the dark sky. The colours are warm and inviting and
the lights on in the buildings make it look as if there are people around. I
like the solitary figure who is walking in through the open door the other side
of the tram.
If this image is enlarged,
the viewer can see another tram further up the tracks with people on the
street. This is one image which could be enlarged to use as a double page
spread within the magazine. (Image is labelled combined as I substituted a green
traffic light for a red one to add warmth to the image)
 |
Image 11 f8 1.35 secs
IS0200 35mm
|
Nottingham Forest Football
Stadium moved to its current location on the banks of the River Trent when the
stadium was built in 1898 and renamed City Ground in honour of the city status
awarded to Nottingham. Work was undertaken to modernise “Trent End” in
preparation for hosting the European Championship in 1996. The ground’s
capacity is 30,602.
This image could also be
used as a double page spread in the magazine by the editor. Although this does
not say Nottingham, football fans would recognise the Nottingham Forest football
symbol on the side of the building. When this image is enlarged, the television
screens inside the building are all showing the same programme apart from one.
The people inside the building have stayed still whilst the image was taken,
but most of the people outside are motion blurred as they made their way down
to and into the stadium. It is only the security guards and the people looking
at the memorabilia who have not moved.
 |
Image 12 f4 1/15 ISO800
28mm
|
Nottingham Market Square on
a Saturday Night. All the hire bikes have been returned and the party goers are
out in force. Emergency Vehicles in the form of ambulances and police and the
St. John’s Ambulance create a community hub in the centre of the city. This along
with measures put in place for bouncers in 22 pubs to breathalyse people who
may be over the limit ensures the vulnerable party goers stay safe as pastoral
care will be given advising people of what to do next. This is Nottingham’s
latest response to the drink problem which sees paramedics, ambulance drivers
and police working hard to stop patients from attending an already stretched Accident
and Emergency Unit.
How well I think I succeeded
My original plan had been to look at
taking images for an overseas business brochure. I looked at a few examples on
the internet and the use of bright sunny days made these images more cheerful
and saleable. Realistically to achieve this in October / November was going to
be very weather dependent, and unfortunately on my planned photography days the
weather was cold, wet and misty. Fortunately the time of year was great because
at weekends the city came alive with so many visitors and Christmas shoppers
that I times I thought I had too many people to choose from! Following my tutor’s
advice to reshoot some of the images and take them at night or in low light to
ensure the shots were more vibrant.
Conversely, some of my originally planned
daytime shots were unattainable due to the Christmas Market. I had planned the
left lion juxtaposed in front of a mock Tudor shop front. On the occasions I
visited access wad denied as the Christmas Market was being set up or once up,
it was too cluttered. People use the city differently
in the evenings which called for me to look at the city in a different way. My
tutor encouraged me to look at the work of Dougie Wallace who concentrated on
an area in Shoreditch. Although I appreciate his work, I do not feel
comfortable taking images like his. I had time to examine the reasons behind
this and I think there are two issues here. The first is that in my job as a
Theatre Nurse in the Emergency Theatre, I look after a lot of patients who have
done silly things on nights out such as trapped their fingers in Taxi doors,
fallen over when they have become intoxicated or harmed others and to me these
people are all vulnerable and I may at some point come into contact with them.
I would always help someone in need rather than take their photograph for
example at the scene of an accident. The second issue I had was that I felt
vulnerable not knowing how many of the intoxicated people were carrying weapons
which they could use if they thought I was taking their photograph without
their consent. I discovered through talking to several work colleagues that they
were unaware of the law that allows street photographers to practice in public
spaces. All that aside though, I appreciate that street photographers take photographs
of people without their knowledge and I have a greater understanding of the
type of photography. I did not have any issues with taking images of people
unseen in Assignment 5 which I had done before this one because it was a different
type of situation.
Attending the exhibition on American
Night photography encouraged me to extend the time spent in Nottingham and look
at evening nightlife. I benefitted from knowing the city. To include local
colloquialisms, I had considered using a derelict railway grain storage
warehouse on a piece of wasteland which was within my mile of the city centre
which has Nottingham slang graffiti painted on it. I think this would be a good
future project which I contemplated but the thought of being unaccompanied due
to the structure of the building and its current use were enough to stop me
from visiting alone. There were enough people I encountered sleeping in
doorways and next to cars in the more run down parts of the city. My list of
places to look at helped save time and also meant I could plan a rough circular
route.
Following my reshoot, my
images feel more cohesive. Apart from one image, the ISO varies between 200 and
400 so the amount of visible noise on the images is similar. The images all use
night time or low light which aids the consistency. I was still able to keep to
my original plan of working in a mile radius from the left lion (although I had
to take the shortest route possible to the football ground to achieve this).
The image I thought I might get when I planned my reshoot was customers leaving
a concert venue as I had seen this done before. On the night I planned to stay
late in the city centre, the concert was
too small to make the image effective so I had to abandon the idea.
How I might have approached the
assignment if there was no end result in mind
I think my images would have been
more about the buildings than the people using them if I did not have and end
goal in mind. The assignment was good for focussing my mind, and once I became
absorbed into the subject, I became more confident at capturing images without
worrying what people might think. Am I done with this subject? I am happy with
the outcome for the purpose of the assignment as what I want to take will not
happen until after Christmas when the lights and market stalls are taken down.
By then there will be less people around and the weather will still be
unpredictable. I think this will be a case of carrying a camera around with me
when I go out and about. The exhibition by Hido came just at the right time for
me to open my eyes and make me take note of the world around me. I can now see
how I could do the assignment differently using other places Hido (2014) (p62)
suggests that “That’s when you’re done: when you’re not compelled to shoot the
subject anymore.” I still feel I have more places and people to explore and so
I can associate with this quote.
References
Hido, Todd (2014) on landscapes,
interiors and the Nude, aperture publishing, New York p26
Hido, Todd (2014) on landscapes,
interiors and the Nude, aperture publishing, New York p20
Hido, Todd (2014) on landscapes,
interiors and the Nude, aperture publishing, New York p62
Nottingham City Council (March 2008) The Canal Conservation Area Character Appraisal and Management Plan http://www.nottinghaminsight.org.uk/d/96054 Accessed Jan 2015
Bibliography
ALHS N,
2009, Newark through time, Amberley Publishing, UK
Hido, Todd
(2014) on landscapes, interiors and the Nude, aperture publishing, New York
Freeman, M
(2014) Capturing light, The heart of photography, Ilex press, Lewes, UK
West, J
(2001) Memory lane Newark and District (Memory Lane) Breedon Books Publishing
co ltd Guernsey
Eric Kim,
Digital Photography School http://digital-photography-school.com/10-tips-for-the-aspiring-street-photographer/ accessed October 2014
http://www.nottinghampost.com/Creative-Quarter-support-nurture-Nottingham-s/story-19681078-detail/story.html accessed
Nov 2014
http://www.ntu.ac.uk/apps/news/166043-15/Worlds_first_cultural_centre_for_gaming_to_be_opened_in_Nottingham.aspx accessed
Nov 2014
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0029843/ Accessed
Nov 2014
http://www.francisfrith.com/uk/locations/nottingham/photos/nottingham-bridlesmith-gate-c1950-710675 Accessed Nov 2014
http://www.fellowsmortonandclayton.co.uk/fmc-history.asp
accessed Jan 2015
Nottingham City
Council (March 2008) The Canal Conservation Area Character Appraisal and
Management Plan http://www.nottinghaminsight.org.uk/d/96054
Accessed Jan 2015
Tutor Feedback from Assignment 4
December 2014
This was the Assignment which I found the most difficult during People and Place 1, so it came as no surprise that I needed to reshoot some of the images in order for it to be more successful.
Overall comments:
"Thorough in terms of research and background information"
My tutor understood what I was trying to achieve although it needed to be done over more shots and a longer time frame.
"The time of year [makes it] difficult to produce positive images"
"Become much more confident at taking images within public spaces"
"Lack of depth"
"...Take some more night time / low light images as they are the most successful"
My tutor explained what had not worked about my images. Generally, I had used a mix of ISO settings which had not helped with the quality control of the collection of images. On the whole, most of my images were not close enough to the people of Nottingham. Three of my images, however, were acceptable and using these and referring back to Todd Hido, Will Steacy and Jeff Brouws's images from the American Night Photography at Nottingham University, I had something to work towards.
Further reading:
My tutor suggested that I look at the work of Dougie Wallace who concentrated on showing an area of Shoreditch.
I found this work enlightening and although it is not my style, it gave me something to aim towards and a point of reference to refer back to when working out of my comfort zone.
Extract from my research on photographers
Extract from my research on photographers
"Dougie Wallace
Dougie Wallace is a British social documentary photographer who documents human interactions and emotions. Wallace describes his work as "visually exaggerated, hard edged" (http://www.dougiewallace.com/ accessed Dec 2014) and captures uninhibited behaviour of people. Wallace portrays his work as having a theme to it (rather than a narrative). I recognise this, having looked closely at his work on Shoreditch for Assignment 4.
In Shoreditch,(link) Wallace captures people who are under the influence of drink as well as everyday people in the street. He uses low, night time and flash which gives him more control of the images he takes. The low light levels add to the ambiance of the images and with some post processing enable the people to lift out of the page. I like his work and I found it difficult to emulate in Nottingham city centre. This may be to do with the drinking culture of Nottingham in recent years, and the measures in place now to combat this as the emergency services, A and E and the police are overstretched. Bouncers are employed who can breathalyse and offer pastoral care. It also has something to do with my lack of confidence in shooting with a flash at night in the faces of people who are under the influence (as described in assignment 4) I was happy enough shooting in some situations like the Christmas Market or the before the Nottingham Forest football game.
How do we know that this is Shoreditch and not just any town in Britain? The clue I found was on the bus, going to Shoreditch. In my images I thought about how I could include the name of Nottingham on something to give the collection of images a reference point. A landmark is fine if the viewer is local. Trams within the city centre state where they are bound for, which again doesn't help if the viewer is not local. I found "Nottingham" on a Narrowboat moored outside a pub, the symbol of Nottingham Forest on the side of the football ground and on the scarves of a memorabilia stand.
One of the images which didn't quite make it into my final selection of Assignment 4 was people on the outdoor skating rink in Nottingham. I spent time trying to capture people having fun and with an expression on their face. This was one of my earlier attempts would have been better if the girl was upright. I was still learning with regard to my flash settings balanced with watching the flow of people and trying to pick a moment to shoot. I discovered that using flash took more planning than just see something which may work then press the shutter and I am sure that over time it becomes easier".
Dougie Wallace is a British social documentary photographer who documents human interactions and emotions. Wallace describes his work as "visually exaggerated, hard edged" (http://www.dougiewallace.com/ accessed Dec 2014) and captures uninhibited behaviour of people. Wallace portrays his work as having a theme to it (rather than a narrative). I recognise this, having looked closely at his work on Shoreditch for Assignment 4.
In Shoreditch,(link) Wallace captures people who are under the influence of drink as well as everyday people in the street. He uses low, night time and flash which gives him more control of the images he takes. The low light levels add to the ambiance of the images and with some post processing enable the people to lift out of the page. I like his work and I found it difficult to emulate in Nottingham city centre. This may be to do with the drinking culture of Nottingham in recent years, and the measures in place now to combat this as the emergency services, A and E and the police are overstretched. Bouncers are employed who can breathalyse and offer pastoral care. It also has something to do with my lack of confidence in shooting with a flash at night in the faces of people who are under the influence (as described in assignment 4) I was happy enough shooting in some situations like the Christmas Market or the before the Nottingham Forest football game.
How do we know that this is Shoreditch and not just any town in Britain? The clue I found was on the bus, going to Shoreditch. In my images I thought about how I could include the name of Nottingham on something to give the collection of images a reference point. A landmark is fine if the viewer is local. Trams within the city centre state where they are bound for, which again doesn't help if the viewer is not local. I found "Nottingham" on a Narrowboat moored outside a pub, the symbol of Nottingham Forest on the side of the football ground and on the scarves of a memorabilia stand.
One of the images which didn't quite make it into my final selection of Assignment 4 was people on the outdoor skating rink in Nottingham. I spent time trying to capture people having fun and with an expression on their face. This was one of my earlier attempts would have been better if the girl was upright. I was still learning with regard to my flash settings balanced with watching the flow of people and trying to pick a moment to shoot. I discovered that using flash took more planning than just see something which may work then press the shutter and I am sure that over time it becomes easier".
Reference
http://www.dougiewallace.com/ accessed Dec 2014
Bibliography
http://www.dougiewallace.com/ accessed Dec 2014
http://www.dougiewallace.com/9365/shoreditch-wild-life/ accessed Dec 2014 http://www.ideastap.com/IdeasMag/the-knowledge/dougie-wallace-shoreditch-wild-life accessed Dec 2014
http://www.dougiewallace.com/ accessed Dec 2014
Bibliography
http://www.dougiewallace.com/ accessed Dec 2014
http://www.dougiewallace.com/9365/shoreditch-wild-life/ accessed Dec 2014 http://www.ideastap.com/IdeasMag/the-knowledge/dougie-wallace-shoreditch-wild-life accessed Dec 2014
Other suggested books were:
Education of a Photographer edited by Charles H
Traub & Steven Heller.
Nathan
Lyons - Selected Essays, Lectures, and Interviews edited by Jessica S. McDonaldThese I will be looking at after the festive period.
My main learning points from this assignment are:
- Exhibitions are great for influencing work, shaping ideas and promoting discussion with peers
- When something doesn't feel quite right, it probably isn't so that's the time to contact your tutor for advice
- Get out there and take as many photos as you can - practice and review helps you grow in confidence
Assignment 4 A sense of Place
November 2014
This assignment draws together all the learning from the previous exercises and the appreciation of what buildings and spaces mean to the people who live amongst them. The aim of this assignment is to produce enough images to fill a six page, intelligent, thoughtful travel publication (not touristic). In total 12 photographs are to be chosen with 6 to be selected as a first choice.
Whilst working through the set of exercises for part 4, I moved around through various locations fairly close to home. In part 2 of this course, I encountered issues of feeling uncomfortable with photographing in my home town of Mansfield. I gained in confidence during part 3, and put it to the test again in part 4. At the beginning of the exercises I still felt uncomfortable and sensed that people regarded my actions as suspicious (I think because it is a town of high unemployment and benefit claimants) so I decided to use my local city to “hide” and work through a period of self-development, gaining confidence with street photography. Eric Kim wrote an article published by Digital Photography School which I found very helpful, suggesting that if one stood in the middle of a road junction, no-one would take any notice of that person, which put photographing people without asking them into perspective for me. Having looked at the idea of basing this assignment in Lincoln because I could hide behind the mask of a tourist, I felt I would get more out of the assignment by challenging myself and using Nottingham which I know equally well. The point of decision came when I was asked if I would be willing to take some photographs for a friend who is writing for a winter sports magazine of Winter Olympians in Nottingham.
The essential character of Nottingham
I held my own opinions of the character of Nottingham and to test whether these were similar to other peoples, I discussed them with a number of work colleagues. I was interested to note that how one views Nottingham and what one associates with depends on social class and sex. Men tended to look at the buildings from the outside whilst women saw it as a place to socialise, meet friends and shop. Not everyone went out to eat in Nottingham (only those who were more affluent or going with work colleagues.) Nottingham is famous for the legend of Robin Hood, and the tourist attraction closed in 2009 (5 years ago). It seems that since then, Nottingham entered a period of decline with shops and businesses closing down fairly quickly. Last year the city ran a project to fill 20 shop windows with exhibitions in an attempt to make the shopping area more enticing to consumers. University and student accommodation buildings are now on the increase along with the redevelopment and modernisation of two shopping centres and zones are being created such as the Lace Market (Cultural Quarter) and Sneinton Market (Creative Quarter).
I see the redevelopment in a positive light. Nottingham has been the founding home of huge companies such as John Player Tobacco, Boots Pharmaceuticals and Raleigh Bicycles. Nottingham’s history involves lacemaking in cottage industries and within the city, Robin Hood and the Sherriff of Nottingham are world class fictional characters and sporting legends such as Jane Torvil and Christopher Dean, Carl Froch and Brian Clough have over the years captured the lives of many and put Nottingham firmly on the map. Nottingham is proud to present two long standing football teams (Nottingham Forest and Notts County), a National Cricket Stadium (Trent Bridge), National Water Sports Centre, Nottingham Panthers Ice Stadium as well as concert venues such as Capital FM Arena and Rock City. Fashion designer Paul Smith also comes from Nottingham. We boast two Universities; Nottingham Trent University and The University of Nottingham. More recently we had a visit from Batman as Wollaton Hall became Batman’s home in The Dark Knight Rises, and tourists can find the village of Gotham not too far away. Nottingham has a lot to offer to investment companies, students, tourists and locals alike.
The Council House boasts two art deco lions; Leo and Oscar. Leo is the Left Lion, and one of the cultural magazines sports this name. The Left Lion is a well-known meeting place for people of all ages. The Old Market Square, the largest in the country, holds food fairs, shows, Christmas Markets, the Seaside in Summer for children and political demonstrations. At lunchtime, workers and visitors alike can be seen sitting around. This is where the youth of today meet. The fountains (redesigned from old public toilets) provide a playground for toddlers to teenagers whatever the weather. Nottingham has several buskers, but none replace the memories of the Xylophone Man who always played outside C and A and died 10 years ago. A petition was started to ask NET to name a tram in memory of him. Nottingham also has its own religious informers who have the same spot outside Marks and Spencers. Nottingham, like most cities, has its own dialect, although this is harder to capture in photographic form.
What I set out to achieve
I started off with quite negative thoughts towards this assignment. Having read around street photography and visited the exhibition at The University of Nottingham on American Night Photography (see exhibitions page on my blog), I was left wondering how to present this positively. Nottingham is trying to move with the times to upgrade the derelict areas and attract more people in. However, I feel that money is not always spent in the best of ways such as the closure and redesign of a public space at great cost to the taxpayer within 2 years of a makeover. Change is always going to be there – some people see is as positive, some as negative such as the stall holders of Sneinton Market who are unhappy that their market is going to be turned into a gaming area. There are less affluent areas, and gun crime is high, so for my own safety I planned to stay in the safer areas. Nottingham is a large city and if I took images of certain buildings, I would waste space on a “snapshot of Nottingham’s buildings”. I narrowed my area of Nottingham to within a 1 mile radius from Left Lion, in the Old Market Square of Nottingham. This encompasses several of the landmarks of Nottingham that people use and or associate with.
I drew up a list to carry with me to look at certain aspects.
My list of suggested shots:
Citycard Bike hire long shot towards city
Left lion across market square (busy people)
Trams up South Parade (side of council house flying horse walk) – busy traffic
Park Tunnel (city of caves) – single person? steps
Sneinton Market redevelopment no people
Busker / Religious informers
Nottingham Trent University (Newton Building) Students (group) small and many
Nottingham Playhouse (Sky Mirror) / Broadway Cinema (people anonymous) silhouettes in windows
Maid Marion Way (legend of Robin Hood without using the statue)
Exchange Walk or Kings Walk (shopping)
People in coffee shops (or outside)
Groups of picnicking people in market square
People at tram stops
Ice arena
I planned my images to be bright and colourful to attract people to visit. This meant underexposing slightly to make the colours more saturated to add colour to the cold, grey winter season. Puddles would be acceptable and add another dimension for reflections. Christmas lights may be unavoidable and I wanted lots of people to show Nottingham being busy. Nottingham has worked hard to incorporate a continental feel with cafes extending their seating to outside, but I didn’t think I would capture this at this time of year. I wanted a sense of scale and to show off Nottingham’s better side.
I used the same camera throughout (Canon 5D mark 2) with the same lens (24-105mm) to capture wide angles, height of buildings and a tripod for the night time images. I used a variety of portrait and landscape and spaces where captions could be added.
I wanted to make people feel that they could associate with the people of Nottingham, even if it was to say “I behave like that” or “that looks like …..”
My images
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Discussion took place around whether Robin Hood was a landmark or a tourist attraction.
Set 1
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Why these sets are organised as they are
Set 1 tells a story of what is happening in Nottingham, from what the city council wants to showcase (the posh shopping centre and lit up council building) to our more creative side (knitted bicycle stands and the busker) and what the real people get up to. Set 2 provides an alternative couple of images such as the cinema at night and what’s really going on behind the scenes (Sneinton market buildings being regenerated and people in alleyways.) The 2 people shopping are down a pedestrianized street showing Ted Baker and Hollister on one side to the British Heart Foundation on the other. The religious speaker shows how people keep a wide berth and on a busy shopping day, this space is not being utilised to its full potential.
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| 1/80 f8 ISO800 24mm |
The building is light and airy with a glass domed roof making it feel cathedral like. It was important to capture the sense of space and height, lighting and smartly dressed people. The people show the scale of the building. I was unsure of the photographic policy of this building so I handheld the camera although it would have been better taken on a tripod. I used a high ISO to obtain a fast shutter speed and I think the amount of grain is acceptable. By standing slightly off centre the building is not symmetrical, and shows the direction of travel of the shoppers. The building is busy, but not as busy as the other shopping centres. The people are not recognisable on their own as they are small in proportion to the building and there are several of them.
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| 1/30 f8 ISO400 24mm |
This image captures the creativity of Nottingham’s Creative Quarter. Geographically the creative quarter encompasses Sneinton (will be home to a five storey video games exhibition in conjunction with Nottingham Trent University and the Science Museum), the Lace Market – centre of the lace making industry during the days of the British Empire and Hockley (where this image is taken). The tall Victorian buildings (one of which was owned by Jesse Boot founder of Boots of Nottingham) are home to the alternative shops such as gothic and vintage clothing shops with a number of bars and restaurants with outside seating. This image shows different coloured knitted covers to the bike racks which I think express creativity. The two passers-by on the left hand side of the image have shown an interest in what I am looking at. They are motion blurred making then less distinctive. The day was cold and misty depicted by a trail of cigarette smoke. The bikes added a splash of colour to the image. Nottingham’s winter deal for the lime green city cycles is to make them free to borrow which is a great idea, and meant they were not at the locations which I had planned to capture them so this was my alternative idea. Nottingham is home to Raleigh bikes so bikes had to feature on one of my images.
Todd Hido (2014)(p20) suggests that when one is photographing space, “it is useful to use the perspective to draw the viewer into the frame. The diagonal line creates depth, and depth often works well in describing an environment. The diagonal lines extend your photograph into infinity.” I discovered this was true when photographing the space inside Southwell Minster, and one can imagine how the line of buildings looks going off to the left. I also believe that in this instance, repetition of the buildings fools the brain into repeating the pattern. This does make the space look larger.
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| 1/100 f8 ISO640 45mm |
Low Pavement (above) used to be one of the main coaching routes in Georgian times. The last white building on the right hand side towards the centre of the frame was the old assembly rooms. All the buildings are listed and several contain caves as basements. The point at which I am standing is the main thoroughfare through the designer shops and links to the second shopping centre and the Lace market. Jamies’s is marketed as family friendly dining so I included the child in the image. I had hoped to capture alfresco dining, but the time of year was against me. However, people do look at restaurant menus. I like to think of Nottingham as becoming more multicultural and inviting people to have the opportunity to sit outside.
The two red telephone boxes have become a landmark for the people of Nottingham. This image shows that Nottingham is not flat. It also illustrates the mix of modern and old buildings which can be an eyesore or urban infill depending ones views on architecture.
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| 1/40 f8 ISO400 58mm |
Whilst in Nottingham, most people come across the street busker. I wanted to capture the loneliness of this chap and people’s attitudes towards him. This image hopefully captures the tension surrounding him. In this image, the lady on the right is waiting for someone. She may hear his music but she is not watching him. The lady on the left is marching straight past him pretending not to notice him. The other people are already on their way out of the picture. His violin case did not have many coins in and this image was taken at 3:19pm. A higher vantage point would have helped capture the lack of money. (I was below him and the walkway goes uphill). The image would be better if it included more of the lady on the left. She was on the edge of the frame and my image needed straightening slightly. This was an image where I had to demonstrate quick reactions. I saw something and acted upon it.
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| 1/50 f8 ISO400 75mm |
Friar Lane, Nottingham has nothing to do with the story of Robin Hood and Friar Tuck. One may be excused for thinking that the two are linked, given that its location is fairly near to the castle. The name comes from the Carmelite Friary (visited by King Henry 8th), although no trace of the building remains. To me, this image shows the real Nottingham; kids sitting on the pavement waiting for a bus, exhausted shoppers, and behind the bus stop is Chocolate Utopia which in my opinion looks dirty and unappetising. Even the silver birch tree has been chopped down leaving a tall stump.
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| 0.6secs f8 ISO400 50mm |
This is my favourite image. Nottingham’s Council House dome is lit up for occasions such as Children in Need, Nottingham Night Light and as part of the Christmas decorations. The colours change and unless I take several images, I cannot guarantee what colours I will have on the image. I was pleased with the blue lighting which is both masculine and emotional. I mounted the tripod on the edge of the fountain which was above head height and stood in a trough of water, waiting for the man on the left to stand still. Fortunately he did, and the people with him moved away from him. The man is balanced by the lights on the right hand side and the hint of Christmas decorations on the left sets the time of year. Separating the image from the reflection are a group of people enjoying themselves on the temporary skating rink. I liked the fact that the man has long hair and a carrier bag. When I analysed this image on the computer, I decided could see more about it than when I took it. It told a story of a man looking at the Christmas lights and wondering about the expense of it all. I thought it was quite reflective (contemplative) as well as the reflection adding to the “stop still and think” notion I was trying to convey. I was inspired to revisit night photography after seeing Todd Hido’s work at the University of Nottingham this month and reading his book.
Set 2
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| 1/80 f8 ISO500 24mm |
The statue of Robin Hood was gifted to the City of Nottingham in 1952 by a local businessman to “provide something tangible for visitors to see relating to Robin Hood” (http://www.experiencenottinghamshire.com/discover/robin-hood-statue-p586071) accessed Nov 2014. The sculptor based his work on historical references. It caused controversy when first exhibited as the citizens expected to see a piece of work based on the 1938 Errol Flynn movie entitled The Adventures of Robin Hood. Robin Hood is now located outside the Castle walls which befits the legend. The statue certainly draws the tourists and people queue to have their photograph taken next to it.
The statue stands on a narrow concrete plinth about 2 feet high and becomes very slippery during the wet weather. Without a step, I found it difficult to balance on such a narrow plinth and take the image. The image could be better if there were less tourists around (e.g. on a weekday) and if I had carried and used a step (which was impractical). The tourists in the image are small and many, making them unrecognisable. It gives a sense of scale to the image, although not arranged brilliantly.
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| 1/125 f8 ISO500 55mm |
This image of Bridlesmith Gate from a low perspective captures most of the reflection of the two shoppers in the puddle. The designer shops are mixed in with one charity shop. The buildings along this stretch are a real mix of old and new. The man with a Moss bag hurrying through the shoppers adds movement to the image. I found a photograph taken by Francis Frith in C1950, in which the shop front of Coast onwards on the left hand side look similar. In those days the road still had cars travelling along it.
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| 1/80 f8 ISO400 32mm |
Sneinton Market through the eyes of the developers was an interesting perspective. I came face to face with a security guard! People of Nottingham recall Sneinton Market selling all sorts of things that you couldn’t buy elsewhere during their childhood. It is part of Nottingham’s heritage with buildings dating from the 1930’s. There has been a market here since 1860 and it was always seen as important community space – not only the buildings here but the open plan market square too. The square has undergone considerable redevelopment – turning it from a car park in the 1990’s to a square with colour changing fountains in 2014. On the recent occasions that I visited, the space was occupied by 3 sellers determined to hold a market although people just use it as a place to walk through on their way to the city centre.
The day I took this image the day was foggy and cold – in keeping with the run down area. I think the fact that it is boarded up with a skip outside suggests that work is happening and although there are no workmen in the image, it still looks like work is imminent. Evidence of constructive human activity is shown.
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| 1/30 f8 ISO400 32mm |
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| 1/13 f5.6 ISO200 105mm |
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| 1.6secs f13 ISO200 24mm |
Initially, I had wanted to include silhouettes of people in the windows. Hido (2014) (p26) made me question whether this was necessary or whether it was better to let people draw their own conclusions on what was/had happened. Hido explains that “what’s not shown is of more interest. It activates the senses.” I now agree with this and questioned whether it mattered how many people were on the bus, or what the people in the Cornerhouse building were doing.
How well I think I succeeded
My original plan had been to look at taking images for an overseas business brochure. I narrowed down my images to include a group of students outside the university, a scene with people including a bank in the image, transport (bikes / buses / trams), eating out, wealthy shops and people enjoying themselves. I looked at a few examples on the internet and the use of bright sunny days made these images more cheerful and saleable. Realistically to achieve this in October / November was going to be very weather dependent, and unfortunately on my planned photography days the weather was cold, wet and misty. Fortunately the time of year was great because at weekends the city came alive with so many visitors and Christmas shoppers that I times I thought I had too many people to choose from!
Conversely, some of my planned shots were unattainable due to the Christmas Market. I had planned the left lion juxtaposed in front of a mock Tudor shop front. On the occasions I visited access wad denied as the Christmas Market was being set up or once up, it was too cluttered.
Attending the exhibition on American Night photography encouraged me to extend the time spent in Nottingham and look at early evening nightlife, although at 6pm blue flashing lights constantly drove up and down the city centre roads. I benefitted from knowing the city. To include local colloquialisms, I had considered using a derelict railway grain storage warehouse on a piece of wasteland which was within my mile of the city centre which has Nottingham slang graffiti painted on it. I think this would be a good future project which I contemplated but the thought of being unaccompanied due to the structure of the building and its current use were enough to stop me from visiting alone. There were enough people I encountered sleeping in doorways and next to cars in the more run down parts of the city. My list of places to look at helped save time and also meant I could plan a rough circular route.
How I might have approached the assignment if there was no end result in mind
I think my images would have been more about the buildings than the people using them if I did not have and end goal in mind. The assignment was good for focussing my mind, and once I became absorbed into the subject, I became more confident at capturing images without worrying what people might think. Am I done with this subject? I am happy with the outcome for the purpose of the assignment as what I want to take will not happen until after Christmas when the lights and market stalls are taken down. By then there will be less people around and the weather will still be unpredictable. I think this will be a case of carrying a camera around with me when I go out and about. The exhibition by Hido came just at the right time for me to open my eyes and make me take note of the world around me. I can now see how I could do the assignment differently using other places Hido (2014) (p62) suggests that “That’s when you’re done: when you’re not compelled to shoot the subject anymore.” I still feel I have more places and people to explore and so I can associate with this quote.
References
Hido, Todd (2014) on landscapes, interiors and the Nude, aperture publishing, New York p20
Hido, Todd (2014) on landscapes, interiors and the Nude, aperture publishing, New York p26
Hido, Todd (2014) on landscapes, interiors and the Nude, aperture publishing, New York p62
Bibliography
ALHS N, 2009, Newark through time, Amberley Publishing, UK
Hido, Todd (2014) on landscapes, interiors and the Nude, aperture publishing, New York
Freeman, M (2014) Capturing light, The heart of photography, Ilex press, Lewes, UK
West, J (2001) Memory lane Newark and District (Memory Lane) Breedon Books Publishing co ltd Guernsey
Eric Kim, Digital Photography School http://digital-photography-school.com/10-tips-for-the-aspiring-street-photographer/ accessed October 2014
http://www.nottinghampost.com/Creative-Quarter-support-nurture-Nottingham-s/story-19681078-detail/story.html accessed Nov 2014
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