The final chapter, My working life.

Money, Money, Money...makes the world go round!

Never was that statement truer than when I was trying to get finance to start my business.  Fill out this form, that form, go for this interview that interview. I was finally grateful for the business plan I’d produced whilst at college at least my business venture looked viable on paper. Banks have always disliked loaning money to people with no collateral but I really was a bad lot when it came to them helping me set up in business. I didn’t own my own home, had three dependants, no income and at forty three and a half I was hardly a spring chicken able to dabble in this that and the other in order to repay any loan I was granted.  I was asking for approximately £12.000 this would be enough to cover the rent on my premises for a couple of months and purchase the equipment necessary to begin making some money (hopefully). I’d opted for a unit on an industrial estate in Leeds, not the easiest place to get to without a car but it was on a main road and within easy access from the city centre.  Based on what I felt was my best forte during my college years I’d chosen to pursue portraiture as my main earner. Mostly children and family but I’d have just about photographed anything in those early days just to get my business name out there and expand my cliental. I’d always enjoyed taking portraits especially of babies and young people; I had a good rapport with them and generally found I put them at ease. Even the ones who came in screaming usually went out with a lollypop and a smile on their faces.  That was what it was all about to me, making someone believe they were special to me, my only client and I gave my all whilst with them.  There was no point treating people as objects if you wanted them to be relaxed and forthcoming in their photograph. So here I was limited experience but all the knowledge necessary to become a great portrait photographer, All I needed was the finances to start my business.

I’d always appreciated the work of Richard Avedon, especially his series depicting people in the American West.  I loved the way his portraiture captured the personality and soul of its subject, simplistic but with a huge story behind every character he photographed. another of the most striking images I’d seen of his work was an intentionally over exposed close-up of Audrey Hepburn’s face in which only her famous features her eyes, her eyebrows, and her mouth are visible. 

                                                        Richard Avedon, Audrey Hepburn

The fact he’d purposely made the image over exposed fascinated me and gave me something to aspire towards. Although I didn’t necessarily want to over expose my image I did want to create photographs that weren’t necessarily the norm and had character. I enjoyed the thought of candid and alternative portraiture rather than the basic high key, Low key images seen in most photographic studio windows. I believe that because I’d already had some fairly difficult life experiences of my own I was able to read a person quite well and knew what style of image would best suit them.

Having all these grandeur ideas was still only a pipe dream though because unless I could get together the £12.000 needed to equip the studio the ideas I had were non starters. I’d almost given up on the bank or loan company providing me with funding and was looking for other ways to raise the money myself. My family offered small amounts of money which was helpful but by no means enough to set up properly.

It was around this time that I remembered the offer of taking images for St George’s Crypt that could be used in the publication of a book depicting the work they do for the homeless in Leeds and surrounding areas. I got back in contact with the coordinator a long term friend who initially asked me if I’d be willing to undertake the job, which at the time I was asked was unable to do because my studying was taking up so much of my time.  I arranged an appointment and we thoroughly discussed what he wanted for the book that would be sold to raise awareness of the plight of homeless people in the United Kingdom.

The final book would be sold throughout the country and hopefully make the charity enough money to build a new centre. We discussed fees and it was agreed I’d get £5.000 upfront then a percentage of 30% for every book sold. 

Finally I had something to take back to the bank in writing proving I’d have an income within the next twelve months. I hoped this would be enough proof my business was viable and they could loan me the finances until the money started coming in from the sale of the book. 

For once my hunch was right and Barclays bank came up trumps offering me £10.000 to be paid back over ten years. I was elated and immediately contacted John Angerson, he is a photographer friend of mine who has travelled worldwide taking images of people in a documentary style. He also written a book with photographs about St Georges Crypt titled “Entertaining Angels” so I knew he’d be able to fully understand the importance they were paying in the role of me becoming a professional and successful photographer. Also more recently he’d returned to St Georges Crypt where he produced a new series of portrait images showing clients and staff members with low key lighting.

These images produced by John Angerson are a wonderful example of how simple low key lighting can create a striking and meaningful image of someone. 

It was great seeing John and after a chat about the weather etc we got down to the nitty gritty business of the book I proposed to make for St George's. He thought the idea was fantastic and offered to support me in any way necessary to get out of it what I wanted.

Producing that book was probably the most pivotal moment of my career as it opened up the world of business to me.

The book took almost a year to complete and throughout that time I really got to know the people I was photographing, I became part of their life and they in return became part of mine. It was easier to photograph them in the right way to give the best portrayal of their personalities because I’d managed to gain their trust.

Throughout the time I was making the book I was also doing wedding and portrait photography in my studio, this was going fairly well and although I wasn’t making a fortune I was able to keep my head above water and pay my bills. The forward thinking during my course was finally coming together and what had originally been on paper was now becoming a reality.
 

The documentary side of my work although at this time amounted to really only the book for St Georges Crypt was coming back to the surface and I felt I was ready to start a new venture. I’d been looking at the work of Martin Parr and Don Mc Cullin and decided to contact Don McCullin in the hope of gathering some Primary research on documentary photography. What I really wanted to hear from him was how he interacted with his subject and what drove him to continue taking images the most people wouldn’t want to photograph. A quote he’d said previously in one of his books made me realize that just taking photographs doesn’t achieve anything; you have the ability to share the subjects mind to create a truly great image.

"Photography for me is not looking, it's feeling. If you can't feel what you're looking at, then you're never going to get others to feel anything when they look at your pictures." - (Don McCullin, Sleeping With Ghosts: A Life's Work in Photography by Don McCullin p96)

This helped me an awful lot and I began researching more into documentary photography and how I could move my ideas forward.  I wanted to produce images that would tell a story, make people think and possibly change the way they viewed the subject I was photographing.  My budget was limited at this time so my project needed to be close to home and reasonably simplistic. I was confident about my work but felt I lacked the nerve to approach businesses for sponsorship. Perhaps this was the biggest mistake of my career because although my heart was telling me to find the images I wanted my head on the other hand was telling me “no, stay in your comfort zone”  so, that’s where I stayed unfortunately and my dreams of taking those inspiring photographs never materialised.

I had to work out a plan to gain more confidence in selling myself for money, I hated telling people how much I was charging them and always felt somewhat guilty when their faces dropped because I was too expensive...can a great photographer be too expensive? That’s what I asked myself continually throughout those early years.

By chance about three years into my career I was invited to exhibit some of my work at a Charity event organised by The Bradford Photography museum, Bradford.  They were holding an exhibit of works of up and coming photographers in the United Kingdom and emailed me requesting a proposal.  I needed to think fast and organise a series of images that would fit their criteria of the exhibition which was “Surreal”.  I came up with the idea of eight photographs that contained quick witted humour with a hint of irony.

Amazingly my proposal was accepted and I had six months to produce the work. It was hectic trying to organise everyone needed for the photographs along with props, costumes and make-up. Finding suitable locations was also difficult as I was without a car at this time which meant I was unable to get to suitable locations as easily. I did manage it though and within the six months allotted I’d produced the photographs I desired.

My exhibition pictures are staged but show a visual alliteration of subject matter. Although when people first view my work they may not completely be aware of the strangeness within the image it is hoped within a short space of time they will recognise the irony or humour within each photograph.

All my images in the series used everyday subjects we are all aware of but each photograph had been altered to produce an image that wasn’t technically correct. There was an element of oddness, strange quirky and sometimes surreal scenes that would hopefully impress upon those viewing that even the familiar can be humorous.

The overall effect I achieved were deliberately staged scenarios that prompted the viewer to question their perception of what was happening in the scene. By taking my subjects, in this case people, out of their usual environment and repositioning them in an alternative reality to bring humour to the image. The style of photography I employed could be perceived as being grossly theatrical. By using exaggeratedly unnatural lighting aimed at a specific subject within each photograph I manipulated the scene to highlight the context. I wanted the viewer to go beyond what was on the surface of each of my photographs and visually express that not all humorous photography has to be created by chance. My images may not have been hilariously funny but because they were somewhat ironic I believe they were able to make people smile if only in a perplexed manner.

I was right; my work at the exhibition went down a storm. I was interviewed by several photographic organizations including Magnum the leading photographic journal in the world. I was invited to become a member the greatest achievement in any photographic career and that is basically how it all started. Once I’d established myself into the photographic world it was much easier to expand my portfolio and with the new found confidence I had I continued along the path of my great and fulfilling career as a freelance photographer.

I still take portraits and even photograph the odd wedding and bar mitzvah but my passion lies in Documentary. I’ve travelled right across America taking images along the way of the true citizens of each city, town and neighbourhood I visited.  I’ve published several books including  ‘my life’s work’ from my first ever photo’s to my current series of images taken in the UK where I shadowed the Emergency services capturing every aspect of their day and night.

I've added a few of those life changing images exhibited in Bradford 2014

'Homeless eats out'

'Mechanically waiting'

I truly love my work and everything that it entails and I look forward to waking each day with a new venture to tackle. I see my photography as not only a skill but a highly developed art that without doubt brings joy and sometimes sadness to all those who view it.

 Marijke Danielle Photography


Bibliography 


http/:Johnangerson.com (17th March2011) 


 John Angerson, Shaw Willlian Love, Power, Sacrifice: Life with the Jesus Army (2011)
Angerson J. Entertaining Angels (2004)


www.impressionasgallery.org.uk   March 16th 2011

  McCulllin. D,Unreasonable Behaviour, An autobiography, London (1992)
Mc Cullin, D, In England. Jonathan Cape; First Edition edition (8 Nov 2007)


www.nationalmediamuseum.org.uk  March16th 2011.

                                                               ‘Regression’

29^th May 1968, probably a relatively non important day for most people but for me it was the day I made my way in to the big wide world...

Born to Loesje Van Cappellen and Charles Alan Sapherson at the maternity unit in St Mary’s hospital Leeds, I made my entrance at approximately 11.27am on a warm spring morning.

That was probably my introduction to photography as with most babies within seconds of popping out of the warm safety of my mother’s womb a camera lens was shoved intrusively into my face, there were no fake smiles or interesting poses the images were candid and I didn’t care that my face was screwed up and my mouth was wide open while I squawked and wriggled uncomfortable in my mother’s arms.

I suppose like most babies and young children the early years of my youth were recorded in numerous amounts of photographs taken at social and family gatherings...then of course there were the snapped milestones, the first smile, the first time I sat or crawled right through until I was old enough to start school.

                                                           As a newborn May 1968

                                                         With my brother end Nov 1968

                                                       Finally a laugh!! End November 1968

It’s quite odd really that even at such a young age babies and children associate the camera lens as something you perform to.  Even the tiniest baby if made to smile with play to the camera, I think that is where my fascination with taking photographs probably started from.  I remember being asked to smile and thinking how much fun it would be to be defiant and make silly faces rather than do the pose I had been asked to do...funniest part for me was looking at the developed pictures and seeing what a dork I’d made of myself and how amusing it was to watch the reaction of others looking at my silly photos.

I suppose the reality is at this early stage in my life although I knew what a camera was used for and how to perform in front of one I really hadn’t had the opportunity to actually take photographs for myself. This came several years later probably at around seven or eight when my parents suddenly started to allow me to hold the camera and play with the buttons, this intrigued me and when I was around nine I can clearly remember a photographer from the Yorkshire Evening post turning up at my house with a “great” big camera to take my photograph for a story that I’d written that was to appear in the newspaper.  How thrilling this was for me, strange really but just because the camera was massive compared to what I’d seen I felt really important and even at the tender age of nice felt the size of the lens made the camera so much more impressive.

That’s basically when I started having an interest in taking photographs and although I didn’t get my own camera until a lot older I do remember enjoying the experience of taking photographs at parties and events we visited.

When I look at the old photographs I have of myself and those I took I can see so many things wrong with them I wouldn’t have noticed prior to doing this course or learning good photographic techniques from books and the internet.

This was the article used in the Yorkshire post along with the photograph which was taken by a professional photographer back in 1977.

For several years I continued just messing with my parent’s camera until the age of eleven when for the first time I actually wanted to take a really great photograph for a competition I was entering with the Girl Guide Association.

It was a beautiful sunny day, cold but the sun was shining majestically in the sky. I’d gone to the cupboard to find the camera as I needed to take some photographs for this competition.  After searching furtively for a few minutes I realised the camera was missing so went around the house asking if anyone had seen it.  Upon finding my older brother I found he had the camera in his room and although not using it he was reluctant to hand it over to me as there was only half a film left and he wanted to keep that in case he decided to take some photographs at a later date.

The camera was right there , I could have grabbed it and run out of the room but I was scared of how he’d react so argued with him as siblings do until my mum got involved and chose me over him...I’d won the battle over who could use the camera and now through spite more than necessity I was determined to use whatever film up that was left just so he couldn’t have it, I was a devious little so and so but luckily over the years I’ve changed for the better.

I remember going outside in to the garden just because it was bright and sunny and wondering to myself what I was actually going to photograph. There were no specific instructions for the competition to what your picture had to be of so I just went out and looked around.

Hanging from my mum’s washing line was a pair of socks, nothing else just these socks gently blowing in the wind, the way the sun was cascading across them resulted in them appearing strangely interesting.

I took a shot with precision or what I believed was precision at the time, thinking to myself this will be the winning photograph if it comes out as I see it with my eyes.  At this point there was no way I was going to succumb to my brothers wishes of allowing him the remainder of the film so I continued snapping inanimate objects around the garden just out of spite really.  Although I had absolutely no idea about camera skills, lighting or aperture I do remember thoroughly enjoying the experience of having complete control of what I was capturing and found some bizarre objects to photograph.

Needless to say I never  did win the photography competition but it did make me much more interested in learning about techniques and what each button was actually for...subsequently I forgot most of what I learnt in my childhood prior to starting this course.

‘Swaying socks in the sunlight’ (Sept 1978) taken with an  Olympus OM-2

This is the image I took for the girl guides association photography competition.

                                                                

                                                              ‘Teenage years’

As a teenager although I still enjoyed taking photographs they tended to be mostly snap shots candidly taken of my friends, holiday destinations and nights out that I went on. At fifteen I actually asked for my own camera for my birthday and remember going around Leeds city centre looking at cameras available to purchase at that time. I think I eventually decided on a modern looking point and shoot battery operated Kodak one. I was so proud when I was eventually allowed to actually have it on my birthday and remember loading the colour 35mm film in so carefully and precisely as to not ruin it at all.

At this point I joined a camera club in North Leeds which really opened my eyes to what was possible to achieve in photography with the correct equipment and knowledge. I loved attending the club and learnt a lot about processing and styles of photography.  One night at the club we took photographs with professional lighting and processed our own films with the guidance of a professional photographer.  Oh boy was I proud of my first ever print and I really wanted to become a qualified professional photographer right at that moment.  Unfortunately as with most wishes we have as young teens my life didn’t quite go the way I’d have liked it to and I never got to fulfil that desire until almost thirty years later.

This was the first image I ever processed chemically myself, I would have been approx fifteen at the time.

                                                                    


                                                                    ‘Adulthood’

1988...at the tender age of twenty I embarked on a career working with people with HIV and AIDS at what was then ‘Bridgeside’, now better referred to as the Terrence Higgins Trust drop in centre in Leeds City centre. I loved the work but felt I would earn a better income if I gained some qualifications that would give me more scope to be promoted. I enrolled on a BSC in Human Biology which I completed in 1992. Although I loved the work at Bridgeside I disliked the course I’d chosen tremendously. I completed it with a heavy heart as I knew even though I was a worthy of gaining better paid employment I opted to stay at Bridgeside as I’d developed great friendships with the clients and enjoyed the different experiences I was involved in.  I’m not a particularly money orientated person and felt much happier working in an environment that was interesting and gave me an insight into other peoples difficulties. Perhaps this is partly where my interest in documenting the homeless in my photography came from, I’ve always felt drawn to people less fortunate than myself and like to feel needed and wanted.

Photography was a part of my experiences at Bridgeside and I remember taking many photographs of the clients throughout my time there. I suppose I became the resident photographer and began to be nominated to take photographs at events and parties hosted at the centre.  I don’t have many of these images still but I’ve managed to find a few of the later ones taken probably in the late 90’s.

                                              Irish band raising money for HIV and Aids 1998

                                                          Annual Bridgeside Party 1999

As you can see from the images they are not of any great quality but I did manage to at least get some movement on the second image.  I think it was probably more accident than skill to be honest, but I do remember noticing that it looked good even though at the time I wasn’t aware of why.  That’s one of the major changes between now and then, since taking a BA honours in Photography I’ve actually learnt what the techniques are called and when it would be appropriate to use them.

My life for a few more years continued on a fairly mundane route, living life, working and then in January  1996 meeting who I thought was the man of my dreams...unfortunately I was wrong, perhaps as wrong as anyone could be.

I’d found out I was pregnant at Christmas 1996 almost a year after meeting my ‘Knight in shining armour’, once he found out the news he was completely against the pregnancy and I quickly began to describe him as my ‘Nightmare in tinfoil’. I was twenty eight years old, living in a one bed roomed flat in a not so wonderful part of Leeds (mainly because it was close to where I worked) and facing a pregnancy alone. I sunk into a deep depression and couldn’t imagine having any kind of future as a single mum.  This is probably one of my bleakest moments, an area I don’t like to think about often.  I gave birth to Joshua William Sapherson on 28^th August 1997 and I knew as soon as I saw him I’d be ok...I knew no matter what was thrown in my direction I’d overcome it for the sake of my baby, a person in his own right yet completely reliant on me.

Joshua was probably one of the most photographed babies on the face of the earth, I know all parents are biased about how gorgeous their babies are but Joshua truly was the most beautiful baby I’d ever seen. People commented on his looks all the time and having photographs of him all around my home not only gave me loads of practice taking photographs but it also made me recognise just how much I really had achieved photographically without any formal training.

I had a little red 35mm camera and must have spent a fortune on film and developing over the first year. I always got excited about how my photos would come out and raced to boots to have them developed as soon as the film was finished.

One of the most memorable experiences I had as an unprofessional photographer was when I decided to go off for the day with my kids to the Yorkshire Dales. I hoped to capture some candid shots of the boys and some breathtaking scenery.  Unfortunately this wasn’t to happen as within ten minutes of getting there I’d managed to drop the camera fully loaded with a new film into a stream...I never got my photographs but it taught me a valuable lesson. Now I knew I’d always have to take extra film and a second camera if I was serious about getting some decent photographs. The camera dried out and worked fine surprisingly. I went on to use it for years until I finally bought myself a digital about four years later.

                                              (Taken on 35mm film) ‘The boys as babies’

My first ever digital camera, I can recall feeling really proud of it when I took it anywhere. Digital was fairly new at this time and if I remember right I paid about £140 for a 2mpx Kodak Easy share camera, it even came with a CD that had Kodak’s own editing suite on. I was made up; it was the bee’s knees at the time.  The initial layout for the camera almost broke my bank but I quickly realised how much I was actually saving on print costs and how much quicker and easier it was to see your photographs.

I loved this camera and I really got my money’s worth out of it. I replaced it with a 10mpx Samsung in2007 and that is the camera I took the photographs with that I used for my portfolio to get a place on the Foundation Degree. I still have it and it still takes really nice quality photographs, although since being on the course I can see a huge difference between the quality of a point and shoot compared to an SLR.  The clarity of the image is so obvious once you are aware of what you’re looking for. 

September2007, all my kids had started school and I was working part-time as Bridgeside still. I’d had the idea of taking some kind of photography course for a few months but really had no idea what it was I really wanted to learn.  I had a passion for taking photographs but wasn’t really sure if I’d be good enough to take my hobby any further.  Of course my family and friends all said my pictures of my kids were really nice but it wasn’t until I took a holiday to Reykjavik I really wanted to become better at taking photographs.  Whilst visiting I saw the Aurora Borealis and it was breathtakingly beautiful. I took photographs and realised that although they were nice if I had the right equipment and knowledge I could take photographs of such a wonderful sight and actually sell them.  I have never experienced beauty like you see at Aurora Borealis, the light is awesome, the colours and textures in the sky are surreal.  I came home in the January of 2008 and I was ready to tackle whatever it took to become a photographer and make money out of my images.  Reykjavik was my eye opener to what real photography was all about!

      

New Year 2008, I’d just returned from my holiday to Reykjavik and seriously began searching for courses or classes that were available to teach me the whole concept of photography as both an art and a skill. I’d seen a few courses that ran in the evening for a night a week for ten or twelve weeks but as a single mum, working part time and claiming tax credits to boost my income I knew I’d struggle to pay for something like that.  Park Lane as it was at the time was offering a BTEC in Photography that read well and seemed to cover the subject to a level I felt I could achieve.  Having been out of education for almost twenty years I wasn't too confident about how I’d manage the work load. But nevertheless I filled out the relevant application forms and waited to hear...and waited and waited! Finally midsummer 2008 I got the letter I was hoping for, I’d succumbed to the idea that I’d not been accepted as I’d waited that long to hear anything. Receiving the letter asking me to go for an interview lifted my confidence slightly but I was still extremely anxious about the prospect of being interviewed as it wasn't something I’d done for years.  I gathered a few of what I felt were my best photographs at the time and had them enlarged and printed out to take in as my portfolio. I had no idea what a portfolio should be like and took in a miss- mash of images all different sizes and just stuck them in a large brown envelope...how different that same interview would be today now I know exactly what a portfolio should be presented like. There would be no brown envelope but a leather bound professional looking folder with images neatly mounted in between sheer plastic sheets.  It’s funny how something that seemed so unimportant three years ago would now be one of the most important factors for any interview I attended that had to do with photography.

I can’t remember the exact date of my interview but I do know it was a Thursday and the weather was wonderful, the sun was shining it was warm and I felt content although rather nervous about the impending interview. I remember David my best friend came along to give me some moral support, I expected he’d wait outside whilst I went in for my interview, but in true Matt and Phil (my tutors) fashion they invited him in and showed him around the studio.  As soon as I went in my anxiety lifted and I saw the work other student had done and thought I want to do that.  I was being interviewed in a completely informal relaxed way and that made it so much easier for me to express how important doing the BTEC was for me.  I showed them my photographs and we had a good old natter. I wasn’t expecting what happened next in the slightest. Matt basically told me I seemed competent and keen and he suggested I forgot about applying for the BTEC and went straight for the foundation degree. I was gobsmacked, didn’t know what to say. I wasn’t even sure what the foundation degree was as I’d not seen anything in the course handbook about it.  The nerves kicked in again and as they explained more about the course the more nervous I became about not being intelligent enough to do the work.  Another concern of mine was the financial aspects. I knew with the BTEC I could still work and claim benefit to boost my income, with a Foundation degree I had no clue what money I would be entitled to claim.  I shouldn’t have worried like I did, Matt and Phil both talked me through everything, and then directed me down to finance support to discuss what entitlements I’d be eligible to claim.  To be honest at this point I really wasn’t sure if I’d get a place or even if I did get a place whether I could manage the workload.

I left feeling slightly uneasy, I knew I wanted to do the foundation degree but it seemed as though there might be just to many obstacles in the way for me to actually take a place if one were offered.

I wasn’t a single young person with no commitments or money problems. I was a 40 year old woman, I’d a home to run, kids to support and worked part-time. How would I cope?

You know what I did, I went home and I sat down and I said to David, if I don’t take this chance now it may never be offered to me again. I knew it was going to be hard and would probably cause a lot of disruption to my children’s lives but for once in my life I was prepared to put myself first and do something I wanted and needed to do.  In the long run my kids would benefit although I knew for the three years I was studying things were going to be very hard and we’d all have to make sacrifices. To be fair I didn’t think that was such a bad thing for any of us, change isn’t always easy but I wanted to show my children that taking risks now and again is an important way of growing as a person and developing new skills both academically and socially.

 The letter arrived offering me a place as long as I had the funding to pay for the course, which by this point I knew I could get.  So, I signed it posted it back and accepted the offer.

I was ready to learn and spent a good few weeks trying to convince myself that I was intelligent enough to do this course and I’d be absolutely fine.

To be continued.....

Photographic Education

                                                           Photographic Education

October 2008 day one at Park Lane College...

The nerves kicked in as they always do when I start a new venture but nevertheless I was there and quickly introduced to a group of people I’d never met before.  As with all first days we did the “get to know you games” and went through the subjects we’d be covering throughout our time at college.

Things moved on fairly quickly and over the next few months I quickly learnt the basics of camera techniques, lighting and developing. We spent the first semester covering different photographers and producing a journal of work showing what we’d learnt and produced a set of images as a finale.

The images below are some which I chose as my best for the final set I'd to produce. 

Photoshop was introduced and quickly became the bane of my existence, having never worked on a computer I struggled immensely, managing to make images look worse rather than better. I completed a SWOT analysis and clearly remember Photoshop being top of my list of Weaknesses.  I look back now at my original SWOT and although I see Photoshop as a weakness still I have definitely improved dramatically.  I remember working on Photoshop with Matt and having no understanding of how the layers worked, he showed great patience and a eureka moment for me was when I finally realised what a layer did and how to move from one layer to another to edit whichever section you wanted. 

One ofthe first photographs I edited using photoshop layers was one I’d taken of a group of kids at a youth club. I needed to removed the background leaving them on a white background. As  you can see from the two images below, I removed all the background and placed the image onto a new white background. This was a inspiring moment for me as I'd struggled so much working out Photo shop. 

image prior to editing

Final after editing

 The hours I put into cutting them out, trying to remove the background without rubbing out their feet  it was an absolute nightmare. But..i did it and I think that moment I saw that finished photograph, although it wasn’t anything special to most people for me it was proof to myself If I percevere I would be  able to master this huge hurdle Photoshop.

I had very little confidence  in that first year at college, although I felt reasonably ok about my written work I  still felt my photographic work wasn’t up to the same standard as other peoples. Also the fact I has barely any IT skills really didn’t help boost my confidence. I’m actually amazed how much betetr I’ve got with using the pc, initially I basically only knew how to type, email, possibly save a document. After only two full years at college I’d now consider myself to be about average for someone my age on the pc.  Ok so I still can’t work as quickly and effectively as some fo my peers but computers weren’t something I really had any contact with until starting thie course so I guess that’s to be expected.  It’s remarkable really how without even being taught anything you pick up skills from just watching others, I’ve definitly done this with IT and other programmes we have been involved with on the computer.

I had concerns about not being very apt at numeracy and finding the time to actually complete the assignments in my first SWOT but funnily enough neither of these became a problem. There was hardly any numeracy involved and all my work was submitted on time.

 Learning about High and Low key photography was also a revelation to me, I'd never realised it depended on the lighting whether an image had a dark or light background. I assumed it was about the colour of background you were using. Where the shadow fell across the subject because of how you had set up the lighting...wow all these new techniques i was in awe at how different an image could look just because of a set of studio lights.

I loved fiddling with the lights to create different styles of image. Some I took I was really pleased with and they are probably some of my favourite photographs to date. 



This image created by using low key lighting is still one of my favourite photographs I've taken.

I'm not going to pretend that everything at college was great and that there was never a time when I've felt like jacking it all in but one thing I learnt throughout my time there is that no matter when things feel like there is no point going on it is always best to be upfront and express your concerns to a tutor.  One of the most difficult periods for me was when we were asked to produce a website for our up and coming business. As previously mentioned I had basic IT skills and this particular project felt like impossibility to me. With absolutely no idea even where to begin I felt like I was drowning in an extremely deep pond.

Ok, so I couldn’t grasp the idea of HTML’s and elaborate web design but after several weeks of trial and error I did manage to complete a working website using a web design program.  It wasn’t the greatest of websites and was fairly basic although the design and concept of using a quick witted and memorable logo made it interesting and it worked which is what the assignment had required. I was chuffed; pleased I’d succeeded and created the website myself without giving up.  This was one moment throughout the course I realised I was able to keep up with my peers even if it did take me slightly longer to grasp certain aspects than those who already had a great deal more knowledge about  how to use a computer.

Year two of the course brought forward my interest in people and their situations. I believe that this is where my talent photographically really is. I took photographs of people…people who were homeless in both the UK and America and I loved it. I began looking at the documetary photography work of John Angerson, I loved the way he captured the angst and slightly innocent appearance of his subjects. We began communicating via email and then moved on to speaking on the telephone. He helped me with many of the projects I completed for college and also after I began my photographic career.
Another photographer who's work I found exciting to look at was a guy named Gary Austin, he worked in documentary photography mainly concentrating his work on street photography. Whilst working on ym documentary images on the homeless I emailed him for some guidance, his response to my work is below.

Hi Danielle,

Ok first off, consider this as constructive criticism and in the context that I am not familiar with what you are trying to achieve.

First of looking at them as an overall set:

The first image is a tad darker than the rest, a good strong opening image which says what's in the tin. 

The sequence is good, but the image with the flower, is the odd one out, although we get the message, it might work best at the end...its very close up and shows no people and being at the end it may show the frailty of being homeless, the current last image I would move to the middle, near the sofa picture to hold the attention, midway through, perhaps after or after the fifth image...its not all sitting around in comfort!

The third image I would move to the middle as it does not say the person is homeless, but in the middle there are pictures of people sitting around with nothing to do, and I think it would work better there, perhaps before the sofa picture. The second to last picture of the belongings I would move to the second place as there are to many people pictures in the beginning, so needs to break it up.

The best way to sort the order is to print them off and blue tack them to a wall and keep changing them around, walk along as if you are a viewer approaching them for the first time and stand back and look at them as an overall set. You need to see them printed and on a wall!

The images in general have a lot of detail centrally focused, and there is nothing wrong with that, but as the backgrounds are light in tonality the eye wanders of the edges of the picture, so my preference would be to add some edge darkening to hold the eye (use the vignette tool to darken the corners but not so much it looks obvious, if you use photoshop I have an action I run to do it for me, that I can send you)

Notes on individual images:

Image 1 darken the top edge with a gradient

Image 2 reduce the foreground darken background

Image 3 darken the sky, 

Image 4 same as above

Image 5 darken sky and crop away foreground and left edge

Image 6 crop right and reduce the foreground (remove the distracting pole leaving the frame)

Image 7 Fine, but strong in colour, maybe reduce overall saturation to tone down so fits with the rest

Image 8 Fine

Image 9 Crop away sky and left hand edge, darken sky

Image 10 Fine

Image 11 crop bottom and left edge

The sky is a problem as it is washing out, the flat white cloud is actually good for photographing in ( The East German School of Photography and the Becher's are a very good example as is fashion on location as its low contrast light) but because you have got down to their level, the sky becomes more prominent than if you were stood up looking down on them, so either use a gradient to darken the top edge, again this will help keep the viewers eye on the subject.

The cropping is needed for consistency, some are very close up and intimate, but others look like you are having doubts at being to close or not wanting to disturb, so crop in a little for more consistent visual. Image 4 is really good.

You are certainly on the way for developing a consistent voice, well done

Some things to think about, although you have shown the issue, you have not shown the cause

What happens at night?

How do they get money...begging, state, crime?

who is helping them, interaction from the public?

Just in case you get asked, but that's for you to look at next time :)

Any further help just get in touch

All the Best

Gary Austin

His advice gained me a really high grade in my final exhibition images in year two.

It was documentary photography and although I’d done plenty of portraiture I’d never got the buzz I got from working with the homeless. There was an element of fear whilst walking around the streets of downtown San Antonio asking homeless people if I could take their photograph but the adrenalin running through my body felt like the best feeling. I loved the idea of showing their lives through my images and I really felt this was the kind of photography I wanted to pursue in the future. Below are a selection of images taken in my second year at college. They show the homeless in San Antonio, Texas and some homeless people from St George's Crypt in Leeds. 

Some of the funniest moments I have been involved in happened during my college years…I remember once setting everything up for a major photo shoot , I’d hired models, paid for a venue and carried a ton of equipment across a muddy field to a forest where the shoot was to take place. It was wet, muddy and bloody freezing. I set everything up to find the lighting kit I’d brought was more complicated to use than I’d expected it to be and I couldn’t no matter how hard I tried get the lights to work. I felt like a complete buffoon and in the end I just had to apologise profusely and pretend the lights were broken. Luckily I managed to appease the situation with some quick witted humour and everyone involved saw the funny side. I’ll tell you what I didn’t make that mistake again, first chance I had I got some extra tuition on portable lighting kits so next time I’d succeed with shoot and not look like a complete plonker. I did manage to get some shots of the forest and models with no lights and they came in handy for the journal I’d to complete as part of the same module.

These are some of the images I did manage to get on that fateful "Oh no the lights are broken" day.  

One of the things that really sticks in my mind throughout my college days was how things creep up on you so quickly, not only deadline dates but the things you don’t realize you have learnt until suddenly it comes to you that you can pick out what is considered a good photograph.  One of the pivotal moments for me that this happened was when I’d done a photo shoot and could see that the image wasn’t completely in focus. Although it was really only very slightly out I could see it and actually remember thinking had l looked at that image two years earlier I’d have though it was a good photograph. 

There have been several times similar things have happened for example I belong to a networking group called “worldwide photography” and every week people submit online. These images have to fit the title of the weeks theme be it water, motherhood, glass, black and white etc. I’ve been a member for a few years and when I first joined I used to look at the content of the image only, now I vote for the one which shows the photographic skill.  The funny thing is if I vote early I see a lot of others voting for the same image as me which shows I have developed better skills at picking out what makes a good photo.  I know for a fact prior to the course there is no way I’d have looked at an image and thought about the rule of thirds, composition, clarity of image, contrast etc. 

My time at college was a huge learning curve for me, not only did I develop my photographic skills I also felt I’d grown as a person.  I gained confidence that had been buried deep inside my head somewhere and also developed a better understanding of other people’s failures and successes.  Leaving knowing I was ready to begin a career in the photographic industry was daunting yet full of excitement and I couldn’t wait to put in to practice what I’d learnt over the three years of my degree.

Bibliography 
http://www.tate.org.uk/research/tateresearch/tatepapers/04spring/stimson_paper.htm
http://www.wix.com/danni1968/website


 Briot Alain,Mastering Photographic Composition, Creativity, and Personal Style, (2009)