Bringing Bow & The Olympics Into Focus

Last Saturday 7th May, Graham Barker of Walk East and Natalie Clarke kicked off a course of photo walks to the Olympic site.

The course explores different walking routes from Mile End Park to the Olympics site using photography as a focus. It is aimed at local Bow residents and has been made possible thanks to funding from Action for Bow.

“When dashing about by car, bus or tube, it’s easy to miss interesting landmarks and green spaces on our doorsteps,” explains Walk East director Graham Barker.

“This course offers a closer look at what’s around, and a chance to re-discover the local area through photography. By following different routes each week, there’s always something new to see and photograph, whether it’s local history on the Bow streets, wildlife in Mile End and Victoria Parks, architecture on Fish Island or the latest developments on the Olympic site.”

The 5 week course of photo walks was first trialled in October 2010 and due to its successful completion, including the production of a photo book, the course is running again throughout May with over 10 new participants.

Photo Walk Week 1 – Learning To See, Not Just Look

In the first walk, we started at Mile End and made our way along the Regent’s and Hertford Union canals to the View Tube.

Graham delivered many fascinating stories about the East End and the sights we saw along the way, whilst I talked about the basics in being a better photographer and how to move away from beginner’s mindset.

In the next 3 weeks, I will be introducing the group to camera settings and composition to help them improve their photography. Participants had been asked to leave their cameras at home in week 1 to help them concentrate on spotting the ‘extraordinary in the ordinary’ and to get a sense of what they might want to photograph in the following weeks.

High Street 2012

Also on the same day, we ran another photo walk which took in the interesting places off the main route from the City to Stratford.

During the next five weeks this course will take in Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park, Mile End Park, Grove Hall Park, Queen Mary’s University, Bow streets, Three Mills.

We’ll pass by old and new architecture, cemeteries, green spaces, canals, river… the photographs will be great! Keep an eye on the photos below to see what the group gets up to!

Photography Exhibition on Brighton Seafront

Last weekend I was in Brighton for a day trip out of London. It’s an interesting place to take photos as there is both the seafront, the pier and the Lanes to explore.

There was also the surprise of a wildlife photo exhibition along the sea front. This exhibition is run by NHM and Wild Planet and shows various photos from across the years of the wildlife photographer of the year competition. It’s there until 26 September and is lit up at night!

There were also a few billboards with beginner photography tips on them. I enjoyed seeing these as the photography group are off in September to the London Wetlands Centre to learn how to photograph wildlife, so it was good to read the tips and get a head start!

So Brighton is well worth a visit at the best of times, but definitely until the 26th September if you like photography as the outdoor exhibition is a great chance to learn. As it says in the shot above, pick out your favourite photos and work out what makes them a great image.

Mass Photo Gathering

Do you remember the mass photo gathering at Trafalgar Square, London in January? Unfortunately I couldn’t go as I was running photography workshops that day, but a few of The Photo School group did get over to Central London to join in and take some photos.

The Mass Photo Gathering was set up as a way to bring awareness to the way street photographers are being viewed by the police. It follows a series of incidents where

• photographers have been stopped as suspected terrorists
• parents are having to write to the council to get permission to photograph their own children

Supporting Photographers’ Rights

I really enjoyed reading the article in the Sunday Times Magazine this weekend about the Gathering and what the future laws with regards to photography might look like.

If you haven’t yet read it, do it ASAP! Some of it is laughable, especially the Haddock fundamentalism part, but generally, the whole ‘health and safety’ culture which seems to exist to protect organisations yet evades common sense.

Be Confident With Your Camera

The article and advice from my photography friends tell us that:

• Nobody can force us to delete our pics (I’d leave that to your morals)
• It’s best to stay on public ground (and don’t use a tripod if on private ground)

There are no photography laws as such banning photographers from taking photos in public places but be aware that if you fail to cooperate with the police or the person asking you not to take their photo, laws designed to protect us from terrorism, harrassment and trespassing can come into play.

I don’t think photography should be something we have to worry about. For most of us it’s a hobby and should remain a pleasurable, fearless one at that.

What do you think about photography being under threat? Please leave a comment.

5/5 To Eamonn McCabe’s Exhibition “Artists And Their Studios”

It’s currently on show at the National Portrait Gallery and is a small and sweet, yet great insight into the world in which others – artists – work. It features photos of Gilbert & George, Tracey Emin, Damien Hirst amongst other less well-known artists.

It’s well worth a visit if you are in town. You can whizz round the 14 portraits probably in 14 minutes, giving time to stop off at the cafe just next door :) It’s on until the end of the October.

McCabe Began His Photographic Career In The 1970s.

He joined the Observer in 1976 and was voted Sports Photographer of the Year four times between 1978 and 1984. In 1988 he moved to the Guardian as Picture Editor and became the chief photographer of the Guardian profile portrait. In 2000 he left the picture desk to concentrate on photographing people in the arts.

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The Photo School Blog Is For Beginner Photographers

As the author, I’m into digital and utilising web 2.0 websites to improve photography and the way people share their photos.

I have a Canon EOS 350D and love getting around London taking photos, as you can see in the photo below of myself.

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