Living The Dream ?

A blog during lockdown. Where to begin ?

A Street Photography blog seems irrelevant during these turbulent dangerous times , like it or not we are all documentary photographers now , perhaps we always were ?

The pictures we are making now possess a greater significance than captures made in better days, pictures of friends , family and strangers have increased in importance during these recent days of isolation. Pictures of my everyday are beginning to feel like “a last look” , Covid 19 is a global game changer, things will never be the same again !

Ironically every photographer dreams of being in the right place at the right time to capture important moments in history, that dream has come true for us all , simultaneously , unfortunately its not like the brochure, are we “Living The Dream” ?

Everywhere is the right place and anytime is the right time to witness, photograph or transmit this invisible threat !

“Living The Dream” , Self Portrait During Lockdown , 2020

How did capitalism , globalisation , greed and incompetence conspire to convince me that putting a box on my head, was a good idea ?

Not only does this image make total sense to me, this self portrait probably resonates with you too !

Strange times inspire strange thoughts, actions and imagery , Rant over !

Looking for the positives where few exist I have managed to pull my Tomorrow Was Created Yesterday project together and have published it on this website, The series is a collection of images that are inspired by a “nostalgia” themed fence that evolves into a visual time barrier ( The Past ) that exists between ,present and future ? The captures are as found over four years and represent the never ending cycle of urban regeneration, these captures throw up some interesting juxtapositions

The Tomorrow Was Created Yesterday project pictures might be small in number but they are beautifully formed ,even if I say so myself !

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The Trip Around The Sun project is taking a direction of its own and evolving into a journal of the pandemic crisis , its not the best subject to shoot if your trying to stay positive and upbeat during lockdown , It has to be done !

I am not in a hurry to share all of the images from what is a daily shoot within the coronavirus restrictions .

My last series seems like a long time ago , as I shot The State Of Britain series I thought I was photographing the most significant period and historic event of my lifetime . I was wrong !

Brexit was just the support act !

Stay safe and positive …

Photography In Isolation .

Definitions of isolation or freedom are hard to pin down , being free to walk within a prison cell is a freedom of sorts, conversely , walking alone within a huge rural landscape is still isolation , especially if it is enforced !

Real freedom , exists only in our minds , creatives know this more than most, we exercise free thinking on a regular basis, that is the appeal for most of our creative pursuits , regardless of medium !

My photography addiction is not about cameras or even the resulting photographs , my photography is an addiction of process , not ID 11 or D 76 for ten minutes , not Dev, Stop , Fix or any other actual photographic process, although I love the smell of darkrooms ? (I’ll edit that bit out later)

The bit between starting with nothing and ending with something is the real driver for me ! My photographic addiction is all about mental state, I enjoy being in a certain place within, “thought process” ? Call it what you will , I know that engaging with picture making, induces a positive adventurous mindset inside me that connects me to my everyday and life itself !

That is why the often asked “Favourite Photograph” question is met with the repeated reply “The Next One” by so many photographers , the mental and actual search for “The Picture” is endless and compelling !

Inducing a creative mindset can be a place of great isolation & liberation in equal measure , that is part of the appeal but it is also a destination of loneliness unless you are happily independent or surrounded by like minded folk , thankfully the internet makes it much easier to find the essential beacons and lighthouses !

A few weeks ago I twisted my back and could barely function , I managed to maintain my picture each day Trip Around The Sun project despite the challenges , the images I made at home were actually painful to create but I needed the mental exercise of picture making , the pictures were my “Daily Positive” during a difficult time , I recommend this habit to those photographers who are stuck at home now !

Learn to enjoy the positive & mental freedom of personal self indulgent me time !

You might not be making the pictures you want but making the images you can is better than doing nothing, the new pictures might not be better than your best captures but they are definitely better for the soul !

Window light and everyday objects can help to maintain your photographic focus .

I shot this on 15.02.2020 when the weather was bad , the symbolism here was not intended , time changes what and how you see !

Take ideas from projects like Parrs , Signs of the Times, Irving Penns , Cigarette Butts or if your really brave take a look at Richard Billinghams , Rays A Laugh for inspiration ? .

A day to day study of meals, toilet roll alternatives or your garden could all provide opportunities for projects during these difficult times , a macro lens , close up filters or slow shutter speeds might open up new perspectives on your picture making ?

Make the pictures now , photograph these times , you can defer the “share or not to share” dilemma !

Don’t let the negativity win , use your unexpected time gain to grow as a person and a photographer , these dark days will pass .

Spare a thought for the everyday folk who are in the front line of this crisis…

Stay safe …

Whats Going On ?

A strange week this week , plenty of controversy in the Photo Awards sector, involving claims of plagiarism and sponsor interference, not great for anyone involved in any of the “Open Calls” , sponsors or the Photo community generally !

With photo festivals, trade shows and exhibitions being postponed or cancelled due to the pandemic it is clearly not a good time to launch a International Street Photography Call For Entries with a awards celebration in Paris, that is what Lensculture have done , good luck to them and anyone who enters !

Every Time A Bell Rings… , 2020 , my free entry into this years Lensculture Street Awards .

One of my 2020 commitments was to make a picture each day during this year, in fact the capture above is one of my pictures from this project , like photography generally the Trip Around The Sun project rolls on and some days are better than others , this week was different , as I met and photographed a gentleman in unique circumstances, this story and the pictures I have already made have taken me by surprise , this shoot is turning out to be much deeper than I thought , I’m rediscovering a photographer that lived within in me years ago !

Is this Street Tog in danger of going all Documentary ?

I’m always grateful to those who take the time to visit this site and humbled by those who say nice things about this place on social media, most of my visitors are unknown to me, all I know is that lots of folk from all over the world appear to like what I do here and how I do it , special thanks to Steve Wales for his kind words on Twitter this week !

Thanks to Steve Wales for giving ukstreet.photography a mention on Twitter ! Oop’s , there go my brand ambassador aspirations ?

Finally I can’t finish this post without mentioning toilet roll and how folk are becoming really angry about those who have much more than they need , perversely the same people seem to be relatively relaxed about the wealthiest 5% controlling 95% of the worlds cash and assets ?

Perhaps “ The 5%” have bought all the loo rolls too ?

Until next time keep it real, wash your hands and stay safe !

PS , I’m beginning to wonder if The State Of Britain project has come back to haunt me , as a sequel or extension is looking increasingly likely ?

Photographic Potential ?

Funny thing potential , one persons vision of potential can be another persons visual dead end ?

The interesting point here is that this statement is true for each person , what do some photographers see that others are missing ?

Winogrand said that “Everything Is Photographable” ! That’s not to say that everything has the potential to become a “good” photograph ! Photographs fail for many reasons , technically , compositionally or the worst sin of all, being boring , the technical and compositional bit can be learned and improved over time , becoming visually interesting is much more challenging for all of us !.

Anyone who rocks up to a potential subject and does little more than shoot one frame “as is” before moving on is unlikely to have made the most of their photographic opportunity, any potential that existed will probably have been missed, although if the intention was to show how something looked and nothing more, then this approach is probably appropriate ?

I assume that if your reading this that your photographic ambitions reach beyond reflecting how something looks , I created a shot for my Trip Around The Sun project this week that surprisingly punched above its weight and exceeded my limited expectations , I don’t expect Rene Magritte to influence my thoughts & approach as I go about my 365 day to day Street Photography, but he did on Monday morning ?

None of the elements within this view are that interesting in isolation , collectively they become stronger and more significant, dare I suggest interesting ?

The reality of this picture is that it is little more than a view of a mannequin through a shop window, featuring a reflection of a cloud , initially I saw the bright light and the cloud reflection as a problem , it took me a while to realise that my perceived problems were a great opportunity to overlap these subjects, producing something surreal, with a ethereal dreamlike vibe ! A polarizing filter was not used.

I have included a view of the location below , I hope this helps you to understand the humble beginnings of this picture, the take away point of this blog is to encourage photographers to look and think more deeply before writing off photographic locations & opportunities , decent pictures are there to be found if you invest enough time, adopt a positive mindset and search beyond the obvious reality,

Potential , is potentially everywhere, if you can convert your problems into solutions !

Until next time , keep it surreal !

The unlikely location that inspired the picture above .

"Bad" Weather ?

It’s rare for me to dedicate a blog to one capture , today is such a day !

I braved the elements last Wednesday to find picture number 50 for my 365 project , I had photographed the floods earlier in the week in a editorial style and was hoping to embrace a more creative vibe during today’s shoot, despite the despicable weather conditions .

When I return home from my 365 daily shoots I usually have a fixed idea of the picture I am going to share, one capture usually sticks in my mind , I find it, edit it , write the words and share, job done !

The serious edit takes a while and does not start properly until later in the evening when I bring a more considered view to the days work , I can’t afford to let the “unedited work” pile grow too much, so I do it daily to ensure I don’t miss anything !

The capture below was a spontaneous grab shot that I nearly missed in the edit due to my low expectations, this shot was little more than a roll of the dice that beat the odds, thankfully I found it at 10.35pm, too late for my 365 project but better than not finding it at all !

Everything about this painterly bad weather picture has taken me by surprise !

I knew this stormy weather had to be good for something ….

Stay safe and keep it real .

Is Better, Best ?

I took refuge in the past this week and it confirmed everything I already knew , if the truth be told the seventies were shit but being a teenager in the seventies was fantastic !

I mention this today because I was reading the Daniel Meadows “Living Like This “ book, last weekend , Mr Meadows lived in a double Decker bus during his photographic tour of Britain in the seventies, more importantly for me, he photographed Tyneside and Walker, he shot views I grew up seeing as a kid. Daniel was probably one of the first serious documentary photographers to record this part of the world in the 1970’s, blazing a trail just before Side Gallery, The only disappointing element of this book , is the quality of reproduction and paper, this publication looks like it was produced on a very tight budget and printed on 1975 bog paper . Perversely these low production values now contribute to the unique charm and authenticity of this 45 year old photographic artifact.

The quality problem inspired me to search for a more recent , better quality edition of this warm & honest depiction of Britain , without success, the pictures are great but the printing does get in the way !

My search was not a total failure, as I discovered Now And Then , 1970 - 2015 which went some way to quenching my thirst for this work, although I would still like to see a better quality 2nd edition of” Living Like This”, with a budget !

Both books are great reads, “Living Like This” reflects the evolving nature of British Photography at the time of the books creation and is richer for it , Now And Then was published last year to coincide with the exhibition of the same name . Both books are very different and of their time !

Despite everything I’ve said if I could only keep one of these reads, my tattered version of “Living Like This” would probably retain its space on my bookshelf, the new copy of Now And Then is much better but it lacks the authenticity & 1970’s pioneering ethos of Living Like This !

I ended up getting more or less what I was looking for from Now And Then and a bit more, it is much better but “much better” isn’t always best !

Now And Then, England 1970-2015 By Daniel Meadows , Printed by The Bodleian Library, 2019.

Until next time , keep it real !

365 Project , Try Again Tomorrow !

Month 1 of #365aroundthesun done !

Congratulations to my fellow 365 Trip Around The Sun travelers , at close of play today we will have completed a whole month, shot and shared 31 photographs and more importantly engaged with our everyday lives photographically for 31 consecutive days !

This trip is definitely about the journey, although the idea of having a personal day to day photographic record at the end of 2020 appeals to me too !

This is the first time I have ever gone into a new year where I have hit the ground running, my personal photography normally gets caught up in the lethargy of the Christmas holidays, cold weather and a general feeling of apathy, not this year , I don’t have time for that !

I am already very happy with a number of the captures I have made this year , proving that this picture each day positive mindset is a contagion that really does payoff in the short term, as the cumulative effect of success and the small lessons learnt each day sparks ideas and new visual investigations, this would not have happened before I started this photo each day lifestyle !

The challenge on some days is to fit the photography around existing commitments , I have already included a picture from a dentist chair , admittedly its not my best capture ever but it illustrates that life itself can be the subject on those busier than usual days , my 365 photo shoot each day enables me to ring fence a bit of me - time and I’m all for that !

Although we may only be sharing one photo each day , many of us are shooting more than that , once you bring a curious mindset to a photo shoot it has to be satisfied and exhausted, all angles, lighting and variants explored, you can’t dig half a hole !

The negative aspects of the project are few, although I have to admit to taking photographic refuge within the occasional visual cliche, especially when the clock is ticking, the winter light vanishing and The Original Ideas Department closed !

I also have to admit that on the bad weather days the big challenge is getting off the sofa and doing the 365 thing, on some days just maintaining the integrity of the project and keeping the faith, is enough , although the coffee always tastes better on returning from one of my freezing winter 365 photo-shoots, I tell myself, its not a masterpiece each day, just a picture of my everyday !

I know that during 2020, I’ll always get a chance to find a better shot tomorrow …

Until next time , keep it real !

To read my insights & see my Trip Around The Sun so far, visit its dedicated blog, just click on the header above .

Use the #365aroundthesun hashtag to see everyone’s work on Twitter.

Abstract Learning !

Following on from the last blog , I thought I would expand on the photographic abstracts theme , apart from finding the images interesting myself , I believe that the adoption of this freestyle approach can teach photographers many lessons !

When the footfall is thin and things go a bit quiet on the streets I often resort to the creation of these visual interpretations of my surroundings , one of the most basic photographic lessons that can be illustrated here is the effect of slow shutter speeds to give a feel of movement to this static walkway graphic, a speed of 1/15th sec and deliberate movement was used here !

Proving that one photographers error is another photographers effect !

Do photographs have to be sharp ?

Focus is optional, once you throw off the shackles of conventional photography ! We all adopt the bokeh / out of focus benefits when shooting portraits etc . Could we , should we, adopt the blending of these light rays as an effect/subject worthy of pursuit in its own right ? The problem I have with most deliberate focus “errors” is that most are not bold enough, half hearted efforts can appear to be “bad” technique. If your going to break the conventions of photography break them BIG !

The blending of the light & colours here is unique to photography, celebrate these unique Rothko-esque qualities, set yourself free !

Composition is a skill that improves with practice, street photographers not only need to understand the principles but need to utilize them quickly when confronted with a unexpected moment of significance !

Shooting abstracts will help photographers underpin these skills while developing a level of framing precision, the example below also uses good hard light to make best use of the shadows & textures, Notice how this image builds its tension in the bottom right corner which is perfectly placed to exploit the “rule of thirds”, probably the most “Borrowed” compositional tool in Street photography !

These scenarios are still and going nowhere , shoot as many variations as you wish, take your time and learn as you go !

Exploiting the rule of thirds within a abstract composition .

Many of my favorite captures follow a Abstract Expressionism vibe , where the nothing (the space) is of equal importance , if not more important than the something, (the lines,subject, textures etc) . The compositions that explore structure, composition, light, shade and form are all the more interesting because they are created serendipitously within the urban environment , by the wear and tear of the day to day !

Care should be taken to ensure that the verticals and horizontal lines are exactly that ! Photographers need only identify , compose and capture these photographic gifts , I often imagine these works as 6 feet tall prints !

Its not hard to see how these Abstract aesthetics have been utilised in the picture below , for me this orange garage door composition delivers more than the sum of its parts, notice how the viewpoint flattens the perspective ensuring that the shapes and lines rather than the form dominate this composition !

Finally if you have got this far and remain unconvinced by the relevance of this blog to your Street Photography I will leave you with the view below , this capture started life as one of my abstract views, with a little patience and luck it became a bit more significant !

Try shooting a few abstract views, its great fun and a visual education, enjoy !

All of the views in this blog were shot in the last two weeks apart from this one .

Are You Fit For 2020 ?

While the nation is taking out gym memberships, giving up alcohol or embracing other goody, goody regimes, what habits should photographers adopt during 2020 to raise their games ?

1 , Take lots of / more pictures !

The first and best tip is that simple , most photographers do not make enough photographs , the act of making a exposure is not really the skill that I’m promoting here ! Developing a mindset and a feel for “the Moment” is something that can not be taught and must be earned & learned solo , perspiration , failure and a thirst for creative photographic exploration are the required building blocks of good photographic practice..

A picture each day project will accelerate photographic learning and make picture making a daily habit .

Success that comes easily, teaches least !

2, Shoot Abstracts

The plan here is not to turn you into the photographic equivalent of Jackson Pollock or Mark Rothko, .although that idea does not sound so bad to me ! The attraction of abstracts for photographers should be that it demotes the importance of subject to a position of irrelevance , allowing photographers the freedom to explore texture , form, shape and light ! Break the rules ! - What rules ?

Static abstract compositions can help photographers play with colour, composition and space within a curious mindset , the still life nature of these creative compositions allows photographers to continuously improve each capture until a satisfactory result is achieved. Photographic abstracts are a great opportunity to learn real creative transferable skills !

Abstract captures are a important part of my Street Photography warm up regime, one persons abstract view can be another persons background !

3. Learn the language !

Photography is a visual language , learn to identify what you like and why, photography books , art exhibitions and a more thoughtful, objective mindset will help .

It’s important to learn what messages you want your photography to communicate , iconography , symbolism and ideas based on subversion can be useful places to start ! Don’t underestimate the power of surprise in picture making !

Analysis of failure is more useful than the celebration of success in creative pursuits !

Ask yourself “WHY” every step of the way, question the most basic of conventions, Why am I making this picture ?

Last but not least try not to fit in with the crowd , creative wolves will have much more fun than obedient sheep during 2020 !

Wear good shoes & keep it real !

Shot on one of my 2020 365 Trip Around The Sun shoots, this simple daily photo commitment changes your photographic mindset !

The 365 Trip Around The Sun Project

Following a online conversation with Barry of @pixelsonapage on New years day the hashtag #365AroundTheSun project was born.

The project was inspired by a blog that the photographer Joel Meyerowitz maintained for a whole year back in 2015. Initially Barry and myself thought it might be worth emulating the project and challenged our online friends and followers to join us and shoot a picture each day until 2021 , we were surprised by the response !

Those of you with a eye for detail will be aware that 2020 is a leap year, making a mockery of our humble hashtag , no worries , this project is a relaxed no Photography Police zone, no laws exist , shoot each day and post share when / if you want / can on Twitter with the #365AroundTheSun Hashtag . It’s that simple !

The integrity of your project is down to you !

It’s not a masterpiece each day, just a daily survey of your everyday !

Remember this is a Marathon not a sprint , don;t over think it ! Think of these captures as sketches and maintain a daily journal approach .

In my opinion the best subject for a 365 shoot is life itself , YOUR LIFE ! Your the best person to shoot it, as no one knows more about it than you, it is always available to be photographed and will make a fascinating record of your day to day in the future, the “whole” should become greater than the sum of its parts, hopefully ?

Good luck if you choose to take on the #365aroundthesun challenge !

This abstract view failed to make the cut on day three.