Single Figures

I'm finding it difficult to work on this section of the course because there seems no particular point; it's a collection of different things.  However, it's been challlenging to reduce the impact of people, or at least their size in the frame.  I'm thinking more about the use of colour and monochrome, too.

Here, amid the drama of this boat-wash at Brighton Marina, the cause of it all isn't immediately apparent.  If I could have got the shot without the intervening boat parts, I would have done, but I think the clutter in the shot helps show the character of the place better than a perfectly clear one would have.  Colour would add little, black and white helps the drama.

Also in Brighton, this time in the Museum.  Security personnel often stand here and watch.  I like the lampshade and the 'upturned boat' structure of the roof, neither of which command this watcher's interest.  This would work in black and white, but I liked the way the warm colours went together.

Blackwell, in Cumbria, is a beautiful Arts-and-Crafts house, uncluttered by artefacts and paintings as most great houses are.  Most of the surfaces are wood; its warmth and beauty would be lost in monochrome.  I had a great time, exploring and hunting.

 Although it's a big house, it has a homely feel; one could move in and live comfortably here.  This man appears to be taking the cosy welcome too far.

 Corridors run the length of the house on both floors.  They provide places to ambush visitors. 

In these shots I'm trying to show the character of the place but introduce a sense of unease when a second look reveals a fragment of human presence.

A gardener takes a rest at Church Beck, Coniston.  I like the sunlit garden against a dark and threatening sky.  This shot has to be in colour because of the similar tones.

The Print Shop at Yale College, Wrexham, is full of lovely heavy old machinery.  As a visitor, I felt I shouldn't interfere, but now wish I'd shut that cupboard door on the left.

Straightening the perspective on this shot has cropped the leg off the big press.  I need to leave room for it...

Or shoot straight and level in the first place.  Here, the lady eating her lunch in contravention of the rules, is partly obscured.