My Final Photographs

I have looked at many photos within different news papers, and I liked the different approaches that photographers took within these news articles. Some took rather abstract perspectives on a simple stories. All of them however, tried to give the headline a visual story- this may be a positive narrative or negative. 
    With my pictures, I tried to show different angles and perspectives on the headline

'Beachwatch results show reduction in litter left on Suffolk’s shores'  which featured in East Anglian Daily Times in March 2015, for example I wanted to get empty clean beach space and promote the Suffolk shore-line, I also took pictures of  local fishermen enjoying the clean beaches. These photos were all also taken on the same set of coastline but just from different points. I found this interesting as from the photos I have taken do not show the similarity you would expect to see when taking pictures from the same place, as they all have different perspectives and thought-processes behind them.

This photo aims to represent the golden sands of the shore line, and the calmness of the sea. I chose to use a longer shutter speed to try and show the sea moving in a gentle manner. I do, however dislike the grey and dark sky as this does not promote the beaches as most people like to visit the coast on a sunny day.

The photo on the left represents the motion of the sea as it was taken using a slow shutter speed. I like how I captured the yacht in the background, as it makes the whole image more interesting, when taking the image I was worried the yacht might become a blur due to the use of a slow shutter speed, however I think it worked in my favour. I took the picture of the beach huts due to my research. The original image was rather soft due to it being partly out of focus, however in my post-production editing I did make the image sharper and therefore I kept it in my final images. I really like the bright colours of the beach huts, so I did try and boost them to make the image bolder and more vivid. I also wanted to include the sea and the beach in the image just to reinforce the idea that they are based on the beach and part of the rest of my series but keep the huts at the main focus.

I choose this image as I liked the composition of it, the fisherman staring out at the boat. I found it more thought provoking than promotional as he looks like he is in deep thought. This is partly the reason of why I initially changed the image into black and white to enhance the mystery of the photo, however after some deliberation I took the photo out of black and white because it didn't fit with the rest of the photos. This photo does also fit with the headline as it does show some rubbish next to the fisherman, which could show who were the culprates of unclean beaches.

This photo shows another beach in Felixstowe which is right next to the docks where many ships go. I decided to make the blue of the boat stand out more when editing as I thought this may make a good focal point for the image. I also captured fishermen's rods to the eright of the image to make better composition and balance the image. This image is quite dark however which I tried to overcome while editing but then the image became over exposed and too white. Out of the series this is my favourite image as I like the ship in the image because it adds more of a story to the series of images as well as adding variety. 

I wanted to have a simple image in my series which just showed the beach and the sea, a bit like Sugimoto's work. I thought it worked better when there was something stereotypical in the middle of the image such as the shore signs. I did try to make the green of the signs stand out more but this did not work as well as I planned. I think this image would have worked better if it was shot on a brighter day as, the sea and the sky would have blended more evenly like Sugimoto's series, also if I had the time would have liked to left the camera for  a longer period of time to capture the sea's movement and how it changes.

 If I was to re-do this article, I would take a whole different approach to the title. I wouldn't take it so literary, I would like to have more fun with the idea of beach clean-up. For example I would take a picture of a dirty beach and then manually on Photoshop edit all of the rubbish out and replace it with a golden beach or nicer scenery. I feel like this idea would have given my images more variety and would be more thought-provoking and it may even make a difference to beaches- however I do realise that this is a big ask. I would also ask people to get involved with my pictures   and get their views on rubbish on the beaches and then do a spin off on their ideas like Denise Felkin did.  

Hiroshi Sugimoto

Hiroshi Sugimoto is  a Japanese photographer, he has spoken of his work as an expression of ‘time exposed’, which is photographs serving as a time capsule for a series of events in time. His work also focuses on transience of life, and the conflict between life and death.

I looked at his work called 'seascapes' which he produced in the 1980s, the photographs were taken over a period of 3hours roughly each from all corners of the world. I like this series due to the simplicity of each image, as in most of them all you can see is the sea and beach which are represented as different shades of grey. He captured his work on an old-fashioned large-format camera which was then transferred into black-and-white pictures, all exactly the same size, bifurcated exactly in half by the horizon line. I also liked the fact that they are all the same size as then the only thing different about them is just the detailing within the picture itself.

This is one of my favourite photos out of the series as I like the wave movement in the sea, as the colour contrasts with the dark grey clouds on a white background, I also like how the darkness of the edges draws your attention to the sea rather than the beach. Furthermore, I like how the shadows are cast on the sea and how this adds to the original movement I would like to in my series of pictures show the true nature of the sea, and how it can be calm and gentle with subtle wave movements, similar to the movement seen in this photograph.                                                                                                                        

I find this photo very interesting as I like how the colours blend into one at the middle, the sea is almost moving into the middle which adds a thought provoking element to the image. I also like how this image is not as contrasting as the previous image, this is because it is more subtle and there is not as much action within the image. I would like to use this in my series of images because I think it would add more context to the series as well as being more contrasting and diverse. 

Martin Parr's Beaches

Martin Parr looked at beaches across the world and I found his work on Benidorm the most interesting. I liked the way he used his telephoto lens to capture the true range and amount of people that visit this holiday destination.

I liked this photo as it shows the small amount of space between each person on the beach. I find this interesting as this is a true representation of what is actually happens during the summer months in Benidorm. I also enjoy how he has taken the photos from a different perspective, as all my other research has shown wide empty spaces of beach with a calm tide. Parr however, has shown a caotic side to the beaches by having a true representation.

The legs in the picture above could also mean that people come at different angles, which also then shows the busyness of the beach. 

I found this photo intriguing because of the amount of people you can see on the beach, which gives you a lot to look at and focus on. I like this fact as you notice different things every time you look at it, which is a nice effect. I feel that this picture goes well with the other one as they both show the vast amount of people which all gather in this holiday resort, as well as the similar demographic of people who visit. I also enjoy the depth of field used in this photo as it shows off the different layers of people well, and it adds more texture to the image.   

I will take from this set of images the different perspectives of beaches which may be from different angles or from someone else's different views. I  will also consider how the series of photos go together, like Parr's focuses on the people and the space, I might focus on the beach itself or just one particular beach. 

Similar Articles

I have looked over many articles to try and take photos on and I found one about local beach clean ups in my home county of Suffolk. I then looked at similar beach related articles to gather ideas about beach photography.  One article I looked at was about Britain's best beaches so it aims to promote the place and the sands.

I liked this picture due to the post-production work, for example I like how the photographer boosted the colour on the beach-hut doors to make them look even more colourful and brighter. I feel that this is important when it comes to promotion of Saunton Sands, Devon; as if it was a  a dull day people are not likely to visit. I also like how it is made to look like a foreign beach to make it look exotic and not a  standard British beach, which is also done to try and sell the beach to the picture's audience. I like the composition of the photo too, and how the beach huts are going off into the distance suggesting the beach and it's huts are going on for miles. The clouds also play an important role in the image as they are made to look fluffy to try and get an aesthetic view on the beach, however in the original picture they may have been thick letting in little sunlight but the edited version does not suggest this.

I tried to re-create this shot, as I really liked the way it showed off true British beaches and what is iconic about them. Here is my unedited photo:

I tried to show the right balance of huts and beach so that the whole concept of the news article (cleaner beaches) as well as the stereotypical view of British beaches were included.  I feel that this picture needs brighting up so the beach hut's colour are bolder and brighter which will make this image more appealing to try and promote the Suffolk coastline. I do however think  that this image shows that the beaches are cleaner and therefore will encourage tourists to come to the coast, if the post-production is successful. 

The second article I looked at was about the cleanest beaches in Britain which is extremely similar to my chosen article. Most of the pictures focused on getting the wider angle to capture the whole stretch of beach, this shows that the beaches are clean and puts  them in a lovely perspective. For example: 

This picture shows the beach of Ferring. I like this photo due to the placement of the boat in the foreground, it shows off the true British beach because it shows the heritage of Britain. It also intises people to visit Ferring due to the blue skies and long coast line, as stereotypically this is what people look for in a holiday destination along the coast. From this picture I have taken that journalistic photographs are taken to promote the place and make people want to go there, and I tried to do this when taking my pictures.

For example:

This photo shows a empty, clean and sandy Suffolk beach with a calm sea. I believe that most people will want this when they visit the sea side. This picture however does not show a blue sky like the other one, which may be a fault. I tried to make the sand more golden in post-production this is also because I wanted my photos to promote the Suffolk coast line, however this did result in the sea looking more grey and the sky becoming slightly more black, but this was due mainly the original photos as I took it on a gloomy day. If I was to re-shoot this set of photographs, I would try to go on a sunnier day, which will help my photographs become more atheistic and promotion worthy. I would also try to show the whole coastline running down the beach rather than cutting it off and I would also try looking at the beach from a lower angle to show the beach from another perspective and to make the photo more interesting. 

Denise Felkin

Denise is a photojournalist and has recently done some work for the BBC, she has done many projects on certain protests and the most recent example is why certain people decide not to vote. Her images capture their thoughts of why they don't vote and then the images is then further reinforced by captions below stating why they don't vote. 

"It does not matter how much you scream and shout, they won't listen to us." Sammy, 30, Brighton

I feel this image goes well with the caption as there is no camera-angle towards the subject as it's straight on, this means that the person in the image has the same amount as power as anyone. I feel this is important as the caption suggests that we have less power compared to the government however this image suggests differently. I also like how Sammy is standing as it suggests she is looking for someone to help or for someone to listen like the caption also suggests. The mise-en-scene in this image builds a picture of who she is and where she's from. This is important as you get to know her character and therefore the audience gets to know their character better, which then the viewers will understand even more why she doesn't want to vote.Furthermore, the sign stating that their is CCTV also reinforces her caption as she is being watched but not listened to which is important to getting her point across. Denise Felkin also asked her subjects to wear their own clothes which is important as then she was not changing her subject's identity, which gives an even better portrayal of her subjects.
    Overall I think that is a very strong image which will goes hand in hand which the caption which the image is built up on. I feel that the effect put onto the image lights the scene well as it amplifies the shadows over her face which suggests she doesn't get listened to.

Paul Grover

Grover is a photographic journalist for the Times newspaper he has done features about last years floods; he took an  interesting view trying to capture the hight and width of the waves as it crashed over a sea wall in North Devon: 

I liked this image as you can almost see the houses bracing themselves before the wave hits. I also liked how he managed to capture the varsity and magnitude of the wave as  it rises in the air. I feel that this picture does portray the whole story as it shows how bad the storms were as they first start to hit the towns and villages along the coast, plus it does also show what these towns looked like before the storm hit. 

He has also done other articles such as David Cameron accepting leader ship;

I enjoy the hierarchy of this image as the high angle portrays David Cameron as having power, as now he does due to him now in this photography becoming Prime Minister. I also like how he managed to capture the moment where he goes to shake The Speaker's hand, as this is a very important time . I also like the shadows in the background as it also shows the handshake, but from a different angle and viewpoint. I feel that this picture does capture the story of David Cameron winning the election well as it shows his immediate power and leadership. However, I feel as if The Speak should be included within the shot as he does play an important role in the scenario and therefore he should be seen in the shot and not just his shadow.

Photographic Journalists- Corey Arnold

Corey Arnold is a photojournalist who is mainly dedicated to capturing fisherman at work.
 

                                         

Corey was one of the fisherman's in the Bering Sea, at the time when jobs were scarce and he took his pictures during breaks and when storms began, his photos were then published as a monograph by Nazraeli press in 2011. 

I enjoyed the series of pictures as I found you got a real sense of what it's like to be a fisherman and their emotional journey they went through to catch these crabs.  I like how he captured the motion of the storms for example in the 3rd photo. Using a fast shutter speed meant he could capture the full blast of the wave against the fisherman and I found this very effective. I also like how the white background contrasts with the fisherman's suit, this makes him stand out and become the focal point of the image. The second image shows how many crabs do get caught and you can almost see the relief in the man's face that they caught enough which I think is important to tell a story behind the image. I also liked the dark ages around the main image to give a better focal point of the crabs which also focuses the detail of them.