Reflective Statements

Reflections:

• Overall I am very pleased with the photographs, I think they tell the story quite well and they create individual character personalities as you go through the photos. 
• As I do not live in London anymore, I struggled with getting enough time to go into Brixton and take a large amount of photographs which resulted in me having less photographs to chose from than I would of liked.
• Initially I was going to do an entire collection of Brixton Village photos but decided to focus on one aspect which I hoped would allow my audience to feel a personal connection with those in the photographs
• I regret not getting enough photos of the oyster bar at night which would of created a better contrast
• If I was to do the project again I would dedicate more time to going into the area and maybe taking a tripod and setting up a shoot for the entire day to see the changes. 

Decisions and Revisions

After deciding that the Fishmongers would be the focus point of my photographs, I had to capture the movement of the people around the stall in order to illustrate how busy the area is during the day. I struggled with being able to get the workers to feel comfortable around me. I did not want the workers of the Fishmongers and the rest of the area to feel I was being intrusive so I experimented with taking pictures far away and using the zoom.

Taking photographs in Brixton Village

Further exploration of Brixton Village

• Brixton Village opened in the 30's as a market for fresh fish and produce 
• Sold to new owners in 2009 - introducing of new restaurants and shops, targeting a younger, trendier ground. Similar to that of Nottinghill?
• Transformed the face of the village, pushing out locals and causing rising rent prices
• Is the spirit in which Brixton Village was born still alive?
• Below are some pictures that took last year when visiting. Not very good quality camera

• Could chose to focus on the latest craze of shops coming into the market. Those that have bought out other shops. Chain shops such as Champagne & Fromage - very upper class cheese and wine type place.

• Have access to a couple of independent shops and a bar that started right before the big craze. Could focus on the middle ground of people who believe they've earned their spot in the market and that they are in keeping with Brixton

• Could focus on those that have been there since the beginning and have seen the vast change and are struggling to keep up with the rent prices. Giving credit to those that are being affected the most.

Brainstorming ideas for photography project

• Up and coming - South London. Are locals being pushed out to make room for the middle class?
• Streatham Highroad, Brixton. Brixton Village - Old trading area for fish and fresh produce. Now filled with trendy bars and restaurants. Are the locals being pushed out?
• Juxtaposition of old and new - rising rent prices, white middle class taking over
• Controversy over chain shops coming into the market 
• As you may or may not know a dark cloud is ominously looming above the once pure skys of Brixton, this cloud is called CHAMPAGNE AND FROMAGE and from the 11th of October it will rain on us until we drown in a sea of estate agents, champagne swilling yummy mummies and the so called “fizz fiends”… c-nts! WE WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS. DEATH TO CHAMPAGNE AND FROMAGE! YUPPIES OUT! 
• Taken from Brixton Buzz

Stammer Park field trip - Experimenting with Photoshop

The slant across the bottom of this photograph stops this image from having a bigger impact. 

I tried to crop the photo to make the middle of the house more central. I like the way the chimney's are in line with the lower trees.

This seasonal photograph highlights the changes in nature during the year. I think the reflections of the trees in the pond give the photo depth and make it appear bigger than the frame.

This is a close up of one of the church doors in line with the wall. I like the textures and the edges that are presented in this image. I used photoshop colour contrast to further highlight the different materials.

I like the angles in this photograph and how the two gravestones are almost pointing in towards each other.  The image confuses me when I glance at it which I like and makes me question which part is the gravestone and which part is the wall behind. I used photoshop to intensify the green grass.

Portrait photographs and experimenting with Adobe Photoshop CS6

Experimenting with Nikon D7000

Experimenting with Nikon D7000

Experimenting with Nikon D7000

Exploration of Diane Arbus photographs

love, it's not over yet. Diane Arbus

First noticed: Adolescent boy and girl, presumably a couple. Shallow depth of field, background is blurred. Neither of the subjects is looking directly into the camera. Boy's leg is resting on girl's knee. Sitting on a park bench

Second look: Gap in between their torsos suggests lack of intimacy, making me think that the leg rest is staged. Girl's hips are turned away from him. Boy looking off in the distance whilst girl looks like she's trying to put on a front for a happier relationship. Girl wears a half hearted smile. Title suggests that the love between these two may be over soon.

triplets in a bedroom. Diane Arbus

First noticed: Serious, straight facial expressions, lack of emotion. Clashing prints and patterns. Three very similar looking young girls. Three beds with them all positioned on the middle bed. Same clothes, very formal with white headbands.

Second look: Girl on the far left is the only one looking directly into the camera, suggests that she is the more confident one? Their plain clothes contrast with the frills and patterns on the wall. Lavish bedspread- children of wealthy parents? Other two girls look as if they are looking for direction from the photographer. Girl on the left has shoulder more forward and my eye is drawn to her inquisitive expression. She comes across as maybe more intelligent.