Welcome!
Thank you for joining me
This moment has been
A long while coming
I know it’s been difficult
A difficult journey
But now
After millions of years
Of our atoms
Jostling around
In random formations
In dinosaurs
And prehistoric slugs
And what have you
Here we are
Yes!
Our first lesson
In foto-grafy
I like to start things of
Slowly
Very slowly...
Thus, the first lesson will be
Easy
A slow affair
Nothing technical
A little introduction almost
A taster
A warm up
For the treats to come
For there will be plenty of these
So called treats
So strap yourselves in
Make yourselves comfortable
Make yourselves a coffee if you like
Or a chai
Or a glass of wine
And come and join me
On an adventure
Let’s lay open that dormant self (so mildewed and old)
Open our minds
And eyes
And do some exploring
Of empty s p a c e s
Lesson 1 : empty s p a c e s
The most powerful and visually striking images are those that, for some reason or other, feed an emotional need within us. Like a gust of wind nudging a candle to life. Have you wondered why some images make us feel and others not? Why is it that some images so stir and bewitch us?
Take a look
A simple image. What do you see? What do you feel?
Perhaps the image feels ‘lonely?’ – the great expanse of blue sky and the dainty branches, stripped of life, bare – trying in vain to reach out to a sky that is cold and distant. Perhaps you feel ‘fear’? – A fear as the lifeless winter wraps its fingers upon the world bringing with it bleakness and melancholy
And this?
The indifference of society to the older generation – What do you feel? Do you feel society has failed this women? Wasn’t she young once with hopes and dreams?
Notice the deliberate use of empty s p a c e in the above images. The empty space to the right of the old women is deliberate. What is it communicating? She has travelled life; a life that promised much from its earliest stirrings – but has it been true to its word?
And what about the void of sky to the left of the tree; the tree beckoning the sky. And yet the sky sits there cold and indifferent. Empty spaces can have a profound effect on the emotional landscape of an image – use them wisely
Another example
The girls are playing in a gang and the boy on his own. Does the generous empty space accorded him make his separateness from the gang more empathic?
And in a similar vein
Emptiness everywhere – completing his isolation from the world. The blank spaces like a force stifling him from all sides
And what about this?
Don’t just plump the subject in the middle of the frame. Experiment by placing it on one side and giving it space to move, to breathe, to speak, to be alone
Off centre subjects can also lend the image a dynamism; a certain daring that placing them in the centre cannot achieve. Look at this
The image looks so much fresher, so much better, so much 'cooler' and spunkier with the off-centre pitching. Do you not agree? You know you do!
And finally, ah one of my favourites: me hopping (or am I dancing?) around the desolate Deosai Plains (the hopping no doubt due to oxygen starvation)
The Deosai Plains is isolation incarnate. And having me wallowing on the very edge of it; barely in the frame in fact, heightens my isolation and descent into the empty stomach of the world! – Yes, my descent into madness. Am I mad? Most definitely indeed.
everyone
needs a place
they can hide
hide away
find a s p a c e
to be alone
Remember : empty spaces and their effective use are a powerful tool. Use them wisely for they can be just as important (and interesting) as the subject itself...
Though this is clearly not the case below. The 'subject' here being far more interesting then the shiny floor ;-)
