LO5: Final Photos

1) Surprise View Long Exposure

This shot was taken in the Peak District above Surprise View. To take this picture I used a Nikon D800. I took this image on the 24th January 2016. I took this photo at evening time so the lights from the cars and bus could be seen in comparison to the background. The intentions that I had when creating this photo was to get the headlights of cars streaking along the whole road so on one side I would have the red lights from behind and on the other I would have the white lights from in front. What's happening in this photo is the bus and cars are on their journeys in and out of the Peak District, and I managed to capture this by using a low shutter speed on my camera, creating a long exposure. The 272 bus that passed through the shot at the time was a great addition to the photo as it gives different streaks of light at different heights, giving the image a variety of lights. The technique I have used in this image is centre of interest as the cars and the bus are in the middle of the photo, drawing your eyes directly to the centre. This image fits the brief as it shows the natural landscape of Sheffield and it is something different which many people living in the city may not be able to experience.

2) Sheffield At Night

This shot was taken above South Street Park, overlooking the town centre in Sheffield. To take this picture I used a Nikon D800. I took this image on the 22nd February 2016. I took this photo at night time so the lights from the city are able to be more vivid and striking. What I wanted to do when taking this photo was to capture Sheffield at night, showing all the bright lights of the city and what goes on when everybody else is normally sleeping. The lights of Sheffield are such a beautiful sight so I wanted to show all the different colours and variety of lights in this image. I used a low shutter speed to make the lights stand out more and have a more 'wavy' effect. The park at the bottom of the picture and the city in the middle part give a contrast of a relaxing area to a busy, exciting part of the City. The sky above also makes the image look calm, but there is no doubt lots of parties and people enjoying themselves in the town centre. I have used the rule of thirds technique in this image as at the bottom of the photo is the grass from the park, in the middle is all the things that relate to the city like the town centre and the train station, and at the top is the sky, providing a backdrop for the buildings of the city. This image fits the brief as it shows Sheffield in its raw format, and what happens in the city at night.

3) The Crucible x The Lyceum

This shot was taken in Sheffield City Centre, next to the Crucible and the Lyceum theatres. To take this picture I used a Nikon D800. I took this photo on the 18th April 2016. I took this photo at night so the lights from the building would easily be able to stand out against the dark background of the sky. What I intended to do in this picture was to show two of Sheffield most iconic and prominent buildings at night. I was also aiming to have the buildings lit up to make them stand out against the floor and the sky. The way the buildings are lit up shows that they are influential buildings in the town centre, this is backed up by the fact that they are historically important and well-known. I used a  slightly longer exposure so that the lights on the buildings would be softer and light up just the building, not the surrounding area too. The photographic technique that I have used here is composition. I tried to arrange the buildings so that the gap between them was in the centre while having both of them either side. This image fits the brief as these theatres are iconic and quintessential in Sheffield.



4) World Championship Snooker 2016

This shot was taken in the Crucible theatre for the World Snooker Championships 2016. To take this picture I used a Nikon D800. I took this photo on the 18th April 2016. I took this photo in the evening time as this was when this session of play was scheduled for. My intentions for this photo were to capture the snooker player (Sam Baird) in action, while he was taking a shot. The way that he is looking down the cue at the ball shows he is really concentrating on how hard he is going to hit the ball, where the ball should end up and how he could use this to his advantage for his next shot. I used a very quick shutter speed and a ... lens to take this photo as I wanted to make sure that the image would be close enough to the player and to the table to fit in all the action. The photographic technique that I have used in this image is narrative, as the photo tells o story of what could be going through the players mind at that stage. This image fits the brief as snooker has always been something that Sheffield is known for as the World Championships is the most important event in the snooker calendar. 

5) Red Lights On The Road

This shot was taken on Ecclesall Road. To take this picture I used a Nikon D800. I took this photo on the 10th March 2016. I took this photo at night so that the lights from the road would be easily visible in the shot. What I was aiming to do with this photo was to capture the lights of the traffic on a busy road, so that there would be lots more streaks of light appearing on the image. I chose Ecclesall Road as the location for this shoot as it is a main road that lots of people use to commute, so there would be more opportunities for me to take pictures of the cars and their lights. I did the shoot at night so the lights would be able to stand out against the dark background of the sky more. I also used a red filter over the top of the lens to give the photo a different look and to make the lights more striking and pleasing to look at. I set the camera to a long shutter speed so that the cars would have time to pass all the way along the road, giving a full length of light from the top to the bottom. The photographic element I used here is repetition.

6) Sheffield Sharks Basketball

This shot was taken at the Sheffield Sharks vs London Lions basketball game at the EIS. To take this picture I used a Nikon D800. I took this photo on the 11th March 2016. I took this photo in the evening time as the tip off was due at 7:30pm. With this photo I was wanting to show the basketball alone on the court, to give the impression that the game had stopped and the teams had gone to their benches for the time out. Once the ball has been finished playing with, it's just left there on the side of the court, ready to be picked up again once play has resumed. I made the ball stand out by changing the background to monochrome and leaving the ball in its original colour. As the ball is in the middle of the image too, it gives the impression that it is the centre of interest. I used a quick shutter speed and focused in directly on the ball to make it stand out more when viewing the photo. The shallow depth-of-field that I also used helps to focus your eyes onto the ball. The photographic element that I have used here is centre of interest. It fits the brief as basketball is something that Sheffield is known for in the sporting world.

7) Alone

This shot was taken on route to Surprise View on the outskirts of Sheffield in the Peak District. To take this picture I used a Nikon D800. I took this photo on the 24th January 2016. I took this photo in the late afternoon as this is the time of day where there is likely to be hardly any light in the sky as it was going to be getting dark soon after this image was taken. In this photo I was aiming to capture the tree and no other form of plant. This is so that it would make the tree look alone and isolated. I changed the gradient of the image to black and white to give the effect of a gloomy and dark setting. As the tree is in the bottom, middle and top parts of the photo, it makes you look all along the trunk and the different branches. I used a fast shutter speed to make sure  that the branches and the tree were sharp and in focus. The main photographic element I tried to use in this photo was centre of interest. This image fits the brief as Sheffield is known for being a very green city, with lots of trees and landscapes. 

8) Sheffield In Motion

This shot was taken on Ecclesall Road. To take this picture I used a Nikon D800. I took this photo on the 10th March 2016. I took this photo at night so that the lights from the road would be easily visible in the shot. In this photo I wasn't aiming for anything specific, I was just experimenting with different techniques of taking photographs. To create this effect I set the camera to a longer shutter speed of 8 seconds, started off by having the lens zoomed in and then as the camera was capturing the image I started to zoom out until the 8 seconds was up. I enhanced this photo by making the lights more prominent, by making the colours brighter and I made the sky and road darker so these colours would stand out even more. The photographic element in this image is repetition. I have used the text and image elements and combined them to create the concept.

9) Snow In The Park

This shot was taken at Endcliffe Park. To take this picture I used a Canon Powershot SX170 IS. I took this photo on the 17th January 2016. For this photo I went down to my local park. I took this photo in the late morning time as this is when there was the most light was available to brighten my image. The snow on the trees made it a great setting for taking photos. On this branch in particular there was some snow hanging off the bottom, which I though was particularly interesting. What I wanted to do was to make the snow hanging off the bottom of the branch stand out the most against the background and the branch. I tried to do this by taking the picture of the snow directly in the centre and at a shallow depth-of-field, making the background more blurry. The photographic technique that I have used in this shot is centre of interest. It fits the brief of the identity of Sheffield as the city is known for its green areas and parks. Endcliffe Park, where this photo was taken, is one of the most popular parks in the city.

10) What Once Was

This shot was taken outside the old Henderson's Relish factory. To take this picture I used a Nikon D800. I took this photo on the 21st February 2016. I took this photo in the daytime at around midday as this is when there was the most natural sunlight available to brighten up my photo. In this photo I was aiming to show the Henderson's building in full while also showing the surrounding area and the pavement. I decided to make the building black and white as production in this factory has ceased and is no longer in progress. I kept the surrounding area in colour to show how the building is placed in the city. I decided to keep the Henderson's sign orange as this is the iconic colour represented with the brand, and even though production at this factory may have stopped, the business is still in existence. The photographic technique I have used here is narrative. This photo tells the story that the factory is now disused and the company have moved on. It fits the brief as the Henderson's brand is an iconic part of Sheffield's history. 

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Something that I could improve on some of the shots is to try and take them at the right angle. Some of the images seem to be slightly slanted which doesn't really take anything away from the photos themselves, it would just make the photos that slight bit better and even more visually pleasing.

My final photos compare to the photographers that I looked at in LO1 as I have looked into sports photography, which is similar to Duncan Philpott and Vladimir Rys and I have taken landscape photos of Sheffield and the Peak District, just like James Grant. These photographers have had an influence on my work by giving me inspiration in terms of location ideas and the techniques they use to frame the parts of an image together.