Ok, so I have a number of appologies to start off with. Firstly, and largely to myself, I am sorry for not blogging in so very long. Sadly this is largely due to my camera lying dormant on my bedroom floor gathering dust, while I was a tad overwhelmed with work.
Secondly, the post that follows is not the normal focus on the nature of London that would normally fill this page - In fact, the shots arent even from a captial... BUT, what i have for your delectation today is a foray into the world of black and white, and I hope you enjoy :)
So, these pictures are a short sequence from my recent trip out to Vietnam. In the past, I have generally stayed clear of black and white photography - largely because it is completely new to me. Havng toured a few galleries, it occured to me that black and white can very easily make a picture look good - deep contrasts and a sense of monochrome romance - but to take a great photo in black and white that stands out in the crowd is no mean feat.
Experience lacking, I have used this skirmish with B+W to practise the things that I had been working on last time to went to the WWT centre. Along with my bird photography, I have been aiming to improve my compositions, bringing more depth and atmosphere to my photos. The subjects that attracted me in Vietnam were the markets. Walking through them was like wading through humanity - alive with sounds, sights and (of course) motorbikes. There was huge contrast not only between individuals, but between calm and chaos - These are the things to wanted to capture.
Pictures 2 and 4 are from a little town called Hoi An. The town itself is frozen in time - designated a heritage site, the old architecture of centuries of trade have been preserved, leaving the only real change being the change from traders of the old world commodities of asia to those of the new world, i.e. the trade of the tourist.
The photo below is one of my favorites. When I was perusing this stall, the lined features of the man behind the table really caught my eye. It seems I want alone with my interest in him, as the little girl in the darker background also sits watching him. This is the picture which really sums up the Vietnamese markets to me - goods of all shapes and sizes, sellers of all ages.
The next photo is the last from vietnam for the blog. Taken without tripod, propped against a building to try and steady my hand, this lantern shop really shone out of the darkness late in the evening in Hoi An.
Last, (and possibly least!) this was an earlier experiment with B+W that I thought i would tag on. Taken at HORR in Putney, it shows the Imperial 2nds coming back in to the boat house after a very sucessfull race. The 1sts were already landed and dry and I wanted to catch the rowers as they passed the bundle of oars on the foreshore. Sadly, in my haste, the end of the oars was just cropped out of the photo by my zoom. Humph.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the pictures this week. Next post (which will be soon!) Will be back to wildlife with some shots from Singapore. If anyone has any advice or comments in general, please write them below :)
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