Title: Bike Circles

Exercise: This was another attempt at the fixed aperture/framing exercises undertaken at the beginning of the course. I wanted to try it again as this subject matter really appealed to me and I didn’t like the results I got at the first attempt.

Approach: I was undertaking the sequence of composition exercise when I came across these bicycle racks and they seemed to me a perfect subject for such an exercise.

Title: Robin Nesting and Urban Flowers

Exercise: Find a subject in a large, even background. Take a series of photographs that place the subject in different positions in the frame – centre, off centre, close to an edge or corner.

Approach: I think it is fair to say this exercise drove me a little nuts as I tried to find the right subject matter. I thought the nesting Robin would work but the combination of its movement and a very busy background meant the quality of the images were not as I would have liked. Some weeks later I was in Birmingham and spotted the flowers growing through the pavement set against the brick wall.

I have a definite preference for the off centre versions as I think they give more visual interest.

Title: Drought

Exercise: Fix the camera in front of a subject that moves several times or continuously across your view. Make a series of exposures, from the fastest to the slowest shutter speed.

Approach: I had been thinking about this exercise for some days before I attempted it. I knew I wanted to do something outside but it had been raining for most of the week. This was all during the period that a ‘drought’ had been declared and a hosepipe ban enforced hence the slightly tongue in cheek title.

My favourite images are those on the slower shutter speeds where the water appears to turn to a veil of gauze over the rocks. To get this effect I also had to change the ISO setting so i could get the slower shutter speeds in the bright afternoon sun.

Title: Yellow Orbs

Exercise: Decide on a subject that is clear in appearance and compact in shape  and that is easily accessible. Moving in and around the subject work from it being full frame to just capturing a small area. Then use a set of L frames to crop the original full frame image and develop different compositions.

Approach: I didn’t have a subject in mind for this exercise when I started and let it sit for a while before deciding. I was out cycling and came across the child’s playground with this climbing frame in the centre. I was really attracted by the shapes and colours and used my iPhone to capture the different frames. I kept my fingers crossed that this would be acceptable but also thought I could go back again with my DSLR at another time. I started by using a distance shot capturing the climbing frame and some of its surroundings. I then moved in to capture more of the detail of the subject. My preference is for these later shots where the colours and shapes are really emphasised.

Title: Flight

Exercise: Take the camera and follow a moving subject keeping it in the middle of the frame. Compare the results at different shutter speeds.

Approach: This was an exercise I wasn’t sure would work, I think I was slightly put off by the implication that panning comes naturally to most people as it made me suspect I would be one of the few who could not do it. I therefore put it off for some time and it was by chance that I caught a group of Magpies flying about. Although I didn’t have time to experiment with different apertures before they flew off I was relieved to find I could follow them with the camera. Initially, it was difficult using the camera screen to see if I had captured the shot or if I had camera shake.

Title: Parking

Exercise: Take a similar approach to the previous exercise for focus with a set aperture. Find a similar subject with a row of things that can been seen from an angle. Put the camera on a tripod so that each photograph will be framed identically. Focus on an obvious point somewhere near the middle.

Approach: following my less than successful attempt at the previous exercise I tried to take more care in executing this. The impact of the different apertures can be seen in each of the images although I am not sure that it is as clear as I might have imagined but that may be to do with my subject matter and the fact that the central point did not have a clear impact like Simon’s Cat.

I am already noticing the importance of subject matter to my engagement and motivation.

Title: Simon’s Cat

Exercise: Find a scene that has obvious depth. From the same place take 2-3 pictures, each focused on something at a different distance (for this to work use a wide aperture).

Approach:  When I read through this exercise I was sitting by the bookshelves downstairs. I wasn’t particularly inspired at the time so thought I would try it out on something close to hand at first. I knew I was going out later and could always do something different then if I wasn’t happy. I’m not sure quite what I was doing because for some reason I changed the apertures a couple of times. I had read several exercises at the same time and think I just muddled them up.

So, while I understood the principle of the exercise it’s execution was possibly not what was intended!

Title: The Bird Feeder

Exercise: Take three photos of the same scene using different focal lengths. Print the images on A4 paper. Return to the scene and hold the images up until the printed scene and the actual scene appear the same size.

Approach: I decided to take photos of a scene that was close to hand so I could easily return with the larger images. Physically experimenting with the different distances really emphasised the focal length effects. I seem to have a natural preference for the close-up, something about seeing the detail of the everyday differently I guess. The images are not particularly special but I thought they worked for the purpose of the exercise.

I have a weak left eye so trying the experiment of keeping both eyes open while looking through the viewfinder was not particularly successful!