Week One
As is the case with so much I do, things did not go as planned. I try to imagine the location and composition before I head out for the shoot. Come January 1st as the sun set and the lights began to blink to life downtown I took off on foot. Location found and tripod setup with the camera. The composition and settings are good, I look through the viewfinder and prepare to press the shutter and a car pulls up and parks almost dead center into the shot! Staying calm, I figure this joker is parked on the side of the road and won’t be long. Ten minutes later and with an appointment looming it was time to fall back on plan B. Problem was there was no plan B. So quickly walking and searching for something that catches my eye I notice the trees on either side of the Courthouse clock tower. Having taken many photos here I had always kept the trees in my peripheral vision. Tonight it occurred to me it would be interesting to use the trees as part of the composition. The trees would offer an unusual companion or juxtaposition to the clock tower that lives downtown in an area largely devoid of trees of any size. It was a quickly formulated idea with ok results. Not what I would have imagined for my #1 photo of the year. The composition could be better and I hope to revisit it again later.
On day two while running errands this tiny historical house that sits alone in a large empty lot caught my attention. Thanks to my daily hunt for a subject I’m paying more attention to things that would normally get ignored. Another reason these types of projects are important. Here I wanted to experiment with shooting the house out of focus with a wide-angle lens. Like an impressionistic painting. You can recognize places and things even though they are represented with low fidelity or detail. Color, shape, and composition become the key to successfully conveying the subject. It sorta works but I want to explore doing this without the subject being this extremely out of focus.
Day three is the result of a photo walk when downtown is the least active. I took a few photos but nothing jumped out as the day’s photo. The photo I settled on had the most character with the lighting and colorful bottles. The scene tells a story or at least reminds most of a moment from their past. Maybe when we could all eat and sit near one another in a restaurant. Even sitting at the bar! What a strange idea!!!
These first three days have reminded me how much one’s attitude or focus can affect the success of a photoshoot or photo walk. It works best when you put aside the worries or concerns of the day and focus on what you see. Look for the composition, the story, the impression you want to convey. Once done you will feel refreshed and the creative juices should be flowing. You might just look at those worries and concerns with a different viewpoint!
