Stratford-upon-Avon



This is a bittersweet moment for me.  Stratford-upon-Avon was the last place we visited on our English honeymoon; it will also serve as my last blog post of photos from that trip.  It was an amazing trip and I will have these memories for the rest of my life.  Even though this is a closing blog post of sorts, it will in no way be the end of my blogging or my photography.  It is merely the beginning; very symbolic of the England trip, which was the beginning of my married adventures with my wife.  I have material waiting to be posted from my December 2010 NYC trip and I'll have more Lomography posts on the way and let's not forget Project 365.  So, there is plenty more to come.

With that being said, let's get back to Stratford.  We arrived in Stratford-upon-Avon on a late Sunday morning after catching the early train from Oxford.  After making our lodging arrangements and getting settled in, we headed back into town for a bit of sight-seeing.  Every place in England that we visited had a very distinct feel and vibe.  No two places were the same.  London was just a historic, bustling metropolis; Brighton was an artsy, party town by the ocean and Oxford was a historic, hopping, college town.  Stratford was nothing like any of those.  In fact, if it hadn't been the birth and burial place of William Shakespeare, I'm not sure how many travelers would actually stop in Stratford-upon-Avon.  Don't get me wrong, because it's certainly not lacking in charm; it's just that it's very small and there's not a lot going on.  In fact, the main area of prosperity for Stratford is the three million tourists that visit annually.  The area, especially on High Street, is made up of many original black and white half timbered buildings.  These are under some of the highest architectural preservation standards in the UK and they take you back into a different time.  We had a great lunch and enjoyed seeing the architecture and the places of interest, especially the ones relating to Shakespeare.  It was probably the least favorite of my destinations; however, it was the second to last day of our trip and I was very tired and wasn't feeling the greatest.  I'm glad we went and I will forever remember walking along the streets of a different era.  England will forever be a special place to me; I hope I've conveyed that through the images that I've posted. 

Lomography Fisheye

I received a Lomography Fisheye No. 2 camera for Christmas.  I'm just starting to experiment with lomography cameras and I'm very excited about the results and creativity that they can yield.  I also have a Holga and a Diana F+ in my camera arsenal; however, this was my first roll of film for one of my lomography cameras.  I didn't have amazing results, but I did enjoy shooting with it.  The Fisheye No. 2 is a very finicky camera.  It requires a lot of light and usually doesn't produce results on anything lower than 400 film.  I used Fuji Superia 400 for my first roll and I received mixed results.  Only 12 out of the 24 prints came back and a few of them were not good.  I did manage to get a few decent shots.  Obviously, as I'm very new to shooting with film, it's a learning experience.  The Fisheye, regardless of the fact that you don't have to worry about settings, is also a learning experience.  I need to be careful of my lighting situations; I need to experiment with the film and I need to adjust how I shoot from the viewfinder.  However, that's the fun with lomography, film cameras and photography in general.  It's a learning experience.  The more you understand how your camera works, the types of lighting and how it effects your shots, etc. the better results you will achieve.  So, enjoy my first Fisheye shots and stay tuned to see my second roll.  Also, be on the lookout for my first Holga and Diana F+ rolls too!

Oxford Comma

 

Oxford is such an interesting and historical city.  The vibe was completely different from that of Brighton.  Brighton was a very independent, artsy, kitschy and unique town.  While there was some historical significance, it was clear that Brighton was a party town that was more concerned with having a good time, enjoying good food and good drink and supporting the arts.  Oxford is a city that looks and feels like what I would think most Americans would think of when they picture an English town or city.  The buildings are absolutely breathtaking.  They are so old and the architecture just transports you back in time.  It's funny, because as we were walking around on our first day in the city, I felt as if we were extras in Harry Potter.  There were lots of English school children running around with their parents; it just so happened to be "Parents Weekend" and all of the colleges opened their doors for future students and their parents. Oxford University is one of the most historic colleges in the world; in fact, according to Wikipedia, it's the second oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest English speaking institution.  The University of Oxford contains 39 colleges and no central campus.  As you're walking through Oxford, you'll realize that it's truly a college town.  You'll likely pass one of the many colleges, but you'll also see a number of historic pubs, boutiques, antique shops and many libraries, churches, theaters and other gorgeous buildings to view.  Another interesting thing to note is the number of bicycles that are in Oxford.  Almost everyone gets around by bike or by walking and you'll notice bicycles parked everywhere.  I believe you'll see at least three bikes in the shots above.  Oxford is truly a beauty, but my words can not even do it justice.  It's the perfect place to get a slice of England.

Vivian Maier

I just came across this.  Amazing work by an amazing photographer.  Too bad she wasn't recognized when she was living.  I'll try to post more as I have time to research a bit and mentally process her work.  In the meantime, head over to this site:

http://vivianmaier.blogspot.com/

Project 365 Launched

I just launched Project 365 as part of my 2011 Photo Resolutions.  Follow the link above the most recent post and to the right of the home link.  This will serve as the home of Project 365.  Enjoy and keep up the encouragement to help me through this process!

Photo Resolutions

With the new year upon us, it's typical for the resolutions to begin pouring in.  I'm not one for making resolutions, but I have some photography resolutions that I would like to make in 2011.  I've been photographing for a full two years now and I'm approaching the year anniversary of using my new camera.  I've gotten to the place where I'm ready to start expanding my technical skills and I'm ready to start expanding my portfolio and taking on long, themed projects.  So, with that being said, here are my photo resolutions for 2011:

1)  Undertake Project 365 - For those of you that don't know, Project 365 is a year long photo project; one in which I'll be taking photographs everyday.  I will post one photograph to represent each day of the entire year.  This is a daunting project and I will probably need some encouragement from everyone as the year goes on.  As much as I love photography, I'm sure I'll get tired of lugging my camera(s) around everywhere I go and I'll get tired of trying to find new and interesting things to photograph.  Or even making old things appear interesting.  It will be tough, but I'm determined to complete this.  I know I be extremely satisfied at this time in 2011 when I reflect on my year in photographs.  So, if I begin to waver, please help to keep me on track.  I will be creating a separate blog page for Project 365 and they will also be posted on my Flickr profile page as well.

2)  Take a photography class in the fall - The reason this is one of my goals is because I feel that I can't teach myself all of the technical aspects of the camera, lighting, techniques, etc.  I can read and I can experiment; but I will never be able to fully grasp the technical nature of photography and how it can improve images without taking a few courses.  I plan on doing this in the fall because I am three courses away from completing my B.S. in Marketing at Franklin University.  I will be finishing that degree up by the 2nd quarter.  Once that's out of the way, I will have a lot more free time to spend on perfecting my photography.

3)  Begin working on a (or multiple) themed series - Shooting anything and everything can be very interesting, however, there's something very appealing about strictly focusing on one subject.  Putting together a series is a long project.  It's visually appealing and it forces the photographer to evolve because new angles, techniques and perspectives have to be employed to keep the series engaging not only to the viewer, but also to the photographer.  Partaking in series work will not only help me grow as a photographer, but it will hopefully open other doors for me as well.

4)  Develop an idea and create a stop motion video out of my photographs - I recently came across a stop motion video from an individual taking a video class from the Columbus College of Art and Design.  It was hauntingly beautiful.  So much so that it inspired me to try something similar.  The process is fairly easy and I have the editing programs to produce such a video.  The hard part is coming up with an idea, making it work and creating a cohesive, finished product.

5)  Start shooting more film - As some of you may know,  I have a 35mm film camera.  It's a Canon AE-1P.  I really like it; however, I've only shot one and a half rolls of film.  I want to shoot more film in 2011.  Like a lot of us, I like the immediate gratification of my digital.  I love being able to review the shot I just captured and I love being able to upload it to the computer almost instantly and begin cataloging the image and posting it to various places.  With that being said, not seeing your image as you shoot it creates an air of excitement.  I can't tell you how much I anticipated seeing what I was able to capture with my first roll of Kodak 400 Tri-X black and white film.  I want that feeling to continue.  Is digital easier and quicker?  Yes, but that doesn't always mean it's better.  I will slow down and make a concerted effort to take only my film camera out on shoots this year.  In addition to my Canon, I've received a few Lomography cameras as gifts in the last quarter of 2010.  I have a Holga, Fisheye No. 2, and a Diana F+.  I like the experimental and alternative quality of the images that these "toy" cameras produce.  So, you may be seeing some different stuff from me this year as well.

6)  Create my best work yet - I feel that I've grown as a photographer over the course of the last two years.  I feel that my work shows it.  However, I would like to take a giant leap forward this year and create some of my most inspired work yet.  I feel that I have it in me; I just have to accept that I'll have uncreative moments and every image will not be a show stopper.  If I can remember those things, I should be able to achieve this goal.

7)  Show my best work yet - I've been showing my work for about a year now.  I'm a member of the Edison Photo Society at Edison Community College and as a club, we have three member shows a year.  I've also entered my work in a number of other shows and contests.  As each show passes, I'm becoming more comfortable with the idea of showing my work.  With that being the case, I'm in the process of scheduling my first ever solo exhibit.  It's not finalized yet, but it will probably be taking place during the month of August.  I'll keep everyone up to date on the specifics, but my goal is to show my best work yet at this show.

8)  Have fun - The one thing that I have to remember is one of the reasons that I love photography is that I enjoy it and I have fun doing it.  No matter how serious I get about photography, I can never let it stop being fun.  If so, my images will never be as good as they could be and I won't achieve any of my photography resolutions.

So, those are my photo resolutions for 2011.  I hope everyone has a terrific new year and 2011 is better than 2010.  Please feel free to encourage me or offer constructive criticism along the way to insure that I achieve my resolutions.  Cheers and I'll see you along the way!

Brighton Rock

 

The first place we decided to go after our time in London was Brighton.  Brighton is a very interesting city and is definitely worth at least one visit.  It's ocean side and is very diverse.  Not only in it's inhabitants, but also in it's shops, food and art.  Brighton is filled with art galleries, shops selling custom artisan pieces, and restaurants cooking up some of the best food on the other side of the pond.  Every meal we had was outstanding; even the coffee was top notch.  We found some great finds in the shops and we got caught up in the city's vibrant and creative nature.  It was hard not to be inspired on our visit.  In fact, I felt as if I hit a creative high point in Brighton.  I hope that comes through in the images that I've posted, because anything less would be a shame to this great city by the sea.