On Location: The National Memorial Arboretum

Sometimes trips are planned well in advance, and sometimes they just happen.  My visit to The National Memorial Arboretum was one of the latter situations.  I was on my way to Derbyshire - for reasons I will talk about in a post next month - and on the way I passed a brown sign saying 'National Memorial Arboretum'.  So on my way home, I took a detour and paid a visit. 

I knew about the main circular memorial.  Set on a mound in the centre of the Arboretum, it's made up of a series of sweeping curved stone walls bearing the names of over 15,000 people who have died in service to their country.  

A large expanse of stone is empty.  Each year the names of those who have fallen during the previous year are hand carved onto the walls.  

There is space for several thousand more...

I hadn't realised until my visit that as well as the central memorial, there are many smaller memorials to specific regiments and organisations.  Some are small and discreet, some far larger.  

They are being added to all the time.  The statue of Bellerophon riding Pegasus, leaping from a plinth behind a soldier of the Parachute Regiment pulling in his pack is one of the newer additions.

It was a blazing day, and I was there when the sun was strong, and the light harsh.  While walking around the 'Paras' memorial, I noticed that the shadow of Pegasus was falling in such as way that it looked as though the shadow of the soldier had somehow formed the shape of the flying horse. 

There are many beautiful and striking monuments, but one of the most beautiful is not stone, metal or wood.  It's the Royal British Legion's Poppy Field.  A mass of red, white and blue wild flowers, with some interloping yellow splashes of sunshiny brightness, this speaks to all who see it, with little need for signs or explanations.

A superb location for photography, but one which should not be viewed only through the camera.   Moving and thought-provoking, time should be allowed for pauses and reflection.

Aiming for an 'A' - Part 5. Assessment Day (But Not Mine).

8 May dawned fine, but I didn't.  I woke up feeling grotty.  So perhaps it was just as well that this day, which should have been my assessment day, was not. 

Although I had deferred my assessment, and in fact was now not even sure which category to apply within (haven't I been here before...) I  planned to attend the day as an observer.  I had already taken the time off so it seemed a good idea to go along and see the other panels, and hear the comments.  Another training exercise for me, in effect!

I settled at the back of the room, where I could stand up to view the panels without being in anyone's way and keep out of the view of the large camera with which the RPS were filming this assessment day.   My tiny 'handbag' camera (Panasonic Lumix TZ6)  was a fraction of the size, but came in handy to take a few record shots from time to time.

There were 20 panels put forward during the day and the standards were high and strictly kept to.  Only 4 were recommended for the A.  A couple of others went on to the referral process.  One was moved to another category since it clearly fitted 'Travel' better than 'Professional and Applied'.

Things started off well with the first two panels presented both passing.  Then things got tricky, with quite a run of 'not recommended' panels and a bit of an air of rising tension.

I made notes of as many comments on each panel as I could, both the positive and negative, and afterwards (because I'm sad) transferred them to a spreadsheet and assessed which were the most common problems so that I could try to avoid replicating them in my own panel.

In the lead by considerably more than just a short head was what the judging panel called insufficient photographer input.  Around half of the presented panels received variations on this comment.  It's clear that this area needs careful consideration during the shooting and selecting process of producing an A panel.  I've asked about 'photographer input' before, and my understanding of it is that it means presenting something more than a series of 'good' images.  It's demonstrating use of different focus points, shutter speeds, camera angle, perspective, position, depth of field, inclusion or exclusion of the environment and so on.  To me, it means showing that I am using my camera as a tool to make an interesting picture from what is in front of me, and not simply snapping what is literally in front of my eyes.

A lack of photographer style also affected some panels, which is important since the RPS considers that ARPS candidates should be at a stage where they are developing their own recognisable style.  The comment that there was not enough variety was also made a number of times, and this seems to me to tie in quite well with the photographer input issue mentioned above.

Some panels had colour problems.  Some of the colours looked a bit aggressive, and some of the monochrome tones were either flat or too dense!  Because of this, some of the panels didn't look as cohesive as they might have because the variations were usually not across the whole panel.  It interrupted the 'flow' (IMHO!).  Those old favourites from 'L' days - 'over sharpening' and 'blown highlights' made an appearance again, reminding me that I can't afford to forget or disregard what I learnt putting together my 'L' as I work towards my 'A'.

Some post-processing was referred to as being 'a bit ordinary' and some as 'over processed'.  That's a tough one in some cases as it's a bit of an 'eye of the beholder' issue, with some people liking plainer approaches and others preferring more 'worked' results.  For me, I think I learnt that if I were to use a particular processed look, I would need to be cautious.

A quarter of the panels were affected by print quality problems.  I was quite shocked by this actually and it does worry me.  So I will ensure that I check and then order my prints all together, and well ahead of my assessment date in case I have to do it all again.  (I have no large printer at home, so have to have them professionally printed).  I will also ensure my monitor is kept correctly calibrated!

So there were a wide range of things to think about.  Problems flagged through the day came from  right across the entire process: the planning, shooting, processing, printing and final panel selection stages.

Which just shows that the level of the challenge of producing well conceived, well shot, well  processed, well produced and well selected images cannot be underestimated for the 'A' candidate.

Aiming for an 'A' - Part 4. Advice, Then More Advice

Back in April, I posted a rather forlorn note on the RPS Forum.  I was really struggling to get my 'bell pictures' to the necessary standard for a ARPS panel, due in no small part to the technical challenges of photographing bells.  I was perfectly prepared to accept if necessary that my panel might fail if I submitted it, but I wanted the submitted panel to be as good as I could make it, and that was proving very difficult indeed.

I therefore sent into the ARPS the 'advice form', duly completed, and with several sample images.  The results were rather discouraging.  Not because of the comments on the technical shortcomings - I had expected that sort of feedback and it was useful.  But because some comments were made in terms of suggesting some additional images which I just couldn't see how I could achieve, and I was concerned that the assessment panel would have an expectation of what they might see which it was not realistically possible to shoot safely.

Given that I was already struggling, I found the feedback a bit crushing initially.  And so my 'forlorn note' (link to the thread here!) was posted on the forum, asking for comments from others who had also hit a bit of a black spot in their ARPS journey.  There were a number of kindly comments!  As well as the forum responses, I received a message in response via my website, from two very kind people with much experience of RPS distinctions, offering to chat to me on the phone and see how they could help.

I snapped up the offer, and after speaking on the phone we arranged to meet up.  Looking at my still incomplete panel with people who didn't have the same emotional connection as I do, it was sadly obvious pretty quickly that my bells images were not going to be the right path for the 'A'.  I had taken some of my other work with me, and it was interesting to see how some pretty quick changes changed some of my images from 'ok' to 'possible ARPS candidates'.

A couple of sample images, after tweaks:

This is what they looked like before:

This was encouraging, as was the wider conversation about photography in general, and going for RPS distinctions in particular.  Unsurprisingly, looking through my work and talking about options meant that the old issue of which category to apply for came up again. These two images would suit a Visual Art panel, whereas my current slot is for Professional and Applied!

You often hear negative comments about the rift between professional and amateur photographers, but this experience certainly counters that view.  In all I took up a good couple of hours of the time of two busy professionals, and it was really valuable, and very much appreciated.  

So I am now starting again AGAIN! :)  This time I've started from a little further forward though.  I have a couple of ideas and am working with them both at this stage to see which progresses.  As previously, watch this space!

A Canon and a Clock Weight

Like many a photographer, I generally like to have a camera close to hand as much as possible.

Which means my Canon G11 is usually in the car, 'just in case'.  Tonight it came in useful again.

* * * * * * *

This is the (large and VERY heavy) clock weight which broke free from the clock at the top of the church tower in which I was ringing bells tonight.

It crashed through the base of the clock casing, broke three planks, fell two floors in between six ringing bells without hitting any of them (almost a miracle!), and then caught the rope of the five, which I happened to be ringing at the time.  A large length of rope was pulled through my hands, which meant the bell began to 'ring down', and I got smacked in the face with the extra rope!  Fortunately the rope was not pulled right out of my hands, and another quick reacting ringer caught the sally and we thus avoided breaking a stay, and the bell was rung down while the crashing from above subsided.

A lot happens very quickly in bell ringing when things go wrong.  Even while something was obviously breaking above us, and I was struggling to regain control of my bell, we were all trying to work out what on earth was happening.  

As I knew I hadn't done anything 'odd' or stupid, but also knew that the something which had gone wrong had clearly involved my bell, I thought something on the bell had failed.  My home tower has a bell which has twice lost it's counter weight so I thought that might have happened tonight.  It wasn't until someone went up to investigate that we discovered what had really happened.

We were very lucky indeed that no-one was injured, and none of the bells or their fixings were damaged. It was interesting (for me at least!) to be able to grab a record shot of the offending item.  It adds something to this latest addition to my personal collection of bellringing stories!

The Gift of Hope - The Path to Publication.

Here it is!  Drumroll!  The cover of my forthcoming book The Gift of Hope, which is due for release in August.  There will be more on it nearer the time, but I wanted to post a sneaky preview on my blog!

It is being published by TLM (The Leprosy Mission) who sell a range of products including some of their own books to raise money to support their work internationally.  I had two advantages with this book.  Firstly, I know Judith, the editor at TLM because I used to sell books to her!  Secondly, working for a publisher myself gave me some useful insights into what to do and what not to do when it came to creating a product.

The idea started at least 18 months ago, when Judith and I were chatting about photography, and she suggested that I might be interested in submitting some images for consideration for use on cards.  Somehow that moved along into talking about a book.  The theme of 'Hope' was Judith's idea, as it fitted alongside other products either already published, or in the pipeline.  Plus they had had some customer demand for such a title.  Always a good starting point!  So I went away, and started thinking about how to get started.  Shortly afterward I had a call from Judith: '...and would you be writing the text?'  'Umm, no problem.' I replied.  Mistakenly, as it turned out.

 

A loooooooooonnnnng time passed.....

 

I was stuck. Who'd've ever thought that putting together a small, gifty book, a mere 48 pages long, would be so hard?  More time passed.  Then I went on sabbatical for four weeks.  I spent a week of that time on the beautiful Channel Island of Sark, spending a lot of time thinking about my photographic plans for the future, including the book.  In November I returned to the island and it turned out that quite a few of the photographs I took during those two visits ended up being used in the book.  In fact even the cover image was taken on Sark. 

 

An inpirational giftbook is not all about pictures though.  Although I now had a reasonable pool of images to choose from, I still had to do some writing. 

 

I reviewed other books previously published in the same series to see how long they were, how text-heavy they were, how the images in them had been used, and what the series 'look and feel' was.  Then suddenly, after months of stops and starts, everything came together. I knew what I wanted to do, how to approach it, what level of text to picture I needed and what I wanted the end result to look like. 

 

Because the text and images were so symbiotic, I ended up creating the book in Powerpoint, so that I could add or change the relevant image as I was writing the text. Interestingly, my experience of putting together my LRPS Distinctions Panel for the Royal Photographic Society came in useful as it had taught me to look at a series of images as a whole, and this helped hugely with making sure there was a cohesion and flow to the book. It is not enough to have a series of pictures and comments, they must make sense as a whole, too.

 

I worked on the book in every spare minute - and in quite a few minutes which, strictly speaking, were not spare....  It was surprisingly personal, which I had not expected.  I went to a friend's funeral while I was writing, and that experience is referred to in the book, for example.

 

Finally, it was ready.  So I sent Judith a note to ask whether she had given up hope (pun entirely intended) of ever seeing a proposal from me, or if she was still interested.  I was relieved to receive an email back asking me to send in my manuscript. 

 

I sent the manuscript and disc of images off on a Monday.  On Tuesday I had an email to say it had arrived and that Judith liked it, and that the selection meeting was on the Wednesday!  Wow, talk about miraculous timing.  If I had finished 24 hours later I would have missed this vital meeting.

 

Working for a publisher I know all too well that a product one person likes very much may still fall down at a selection meeting, so I was by no means certain of hearing back positively even now.  The email telling me the book had been selected for publication was probably one of the most exciting messages I've ever received!

 

Now, at the start of May, the editorial changes and checks are complete, the cover is finalised, and the project is signed off.  When the first proofs came through for me to see I almost cried.  Judith's editorial input, and the design team's beautiful work on the layout have resulted in a finished book of which I am really proud.  And one which I hope will indeed be inspirational, even to just one reader.

 

I can hardly wait to see an actual, physical copy!

Price: £5

ISBN: 978-1-909092-05-1
UK Publication Date: August 13
Published by: TLM
(More about TLM's work.)

 

Aiming For an 'A' - Part 3. Statement of Intent

When you are submitting an 'A' panel it must be accompanied by a Statement of Intent.

When I started working on my bell ringing panel I took notice of some advice I'd been given, which was to write my SOI early in the process because it helps to give planning structure and order to producing the panel. That made sense to me, so I tried it.

First of all I read the ARPS handbook, so I knew that it needed to be no more than 150 words. That doesn't sound like a lot, and in fact it isn't. However, when I attended an ARPS assessment day and listened to SOIs being read out ahead of the panels I quickly realised that 150 words are more than enough to lose the listener's attention.   Which is pretty key if your SOI is to do it's job and position your panel for the assessors. 

 

The SOI should give clear direction to the assessors as to the purpose and proposed end use of the photographs.  In my chosen category (Professional and Applied) the panel must 'illustrate, record, promote or inform on a specific subject or project'^, and so this must in some way be factored into the SOI.

 

After listening to several SOIs being read out on my visited Assessment Day I went home and re-wrote my SOI.  Then I had some feedback from the RPS.  I rewrote it again...  and sent it off for some 'official' feedback from the RPS. Hmmm.

I'm now on version four, and I'm keeping five elements right in front of me:

• Keep the SOI as brief, informative and interesting as possible.
• Make sure the SOI reflects exactly what the panel does!  (So don't include elements in the SOI which will be impossible to support in the panel.)
• Make sure the final version clearly outlines the purpose and the proposed end use of the photographs - ie. publication, exhibition and so on.
• Avoid references to technical matters or problems (these were included in SOIs at the Assessment Day I sat in on, but are given as a 'no no' in the ARPS Handbook, at least in my category).
• Avoid too many uses of 'hope', 'feel' or other words open to various interpretation.

I am beginning to think that ringing 21,363 changes of Stedman Caters (the longest peal ever rung by one band, taking a mere 12 1/2 hours - a VERY long time to be ringing a bell!) might be less stressful to attempt...

Meanwhile, it is no longer 'early in the process'.   Unless I end up deferring again, which at the moment looks increasingly likely.  Argh! 

I have exactly a week to fine tune my SOI.  After which I will post it with any relevant comments!

Any feedback or 'clues' from anyone who has actually written an SOI for a successful P&A ARPS panel would be gratefully received!

Watch this space...

* * * * * * *

^Associateship and Fellowship Distinction Handbook, Issue 6, January 2013. A4.4.

Book Review: International Garden Photographer of the Year

There have been individual books resulting from the International Garden Photographer of the Year, but this is a collection of images from five years of the competition, and it is simply stunning.  In fact, I can honestly say that this is one of the most gorgeous photography books I have ever seen.

If you enjoy gardens then you will love this book.  If you appreciate photographing them it is a fantastic source of inspiration.

The book itself is beautifully produced with weighty paper which showcases the photos to their fullest.

There are images here ranging from macro views of seeds and single plant heads, to wide vistas across huge gardens.  Pictures taken by professionals and amateurs, on top of the range digital DSLRs, on camera phones, and on lots of things in between.

The Walled Kitchen Garden at Claydon (Nigel Burkitt) on pages 108 & 109 is a beautiful image which just shouts 'English garden'.  The detail, colours and lighting of this photo blend to give a timeless quality and made me want to take a walk there!

Water Lillies (Nigel Symington) on page 90 is a simple composition with few colours and limited details.  It looks like a Chinese silk painting!

Kenrokuen (Claire Takacs) on pages 8 & 9

This was the winner in 2008, and I can see why.  Taken in Japan during the cherry blossom season, the photographer visited the gardens as snow was falling.  Other visitors carrying umbrellas were crossing the bridge in the middle of Claire's frame.  One had a pink umbrella.  If you cover this small pink splash of colour with your hand the whole picture loses a little impact - though still remaining mystical and soft.  To me it is an utterly magical photograph.

Ancient Coppice in the Grip of a Deep Freeze on pages 234 & 235

I love trees, and in winter their structure is often striking.  The lighting, colour and detail in this picture are all beautiful.  It manages to look cold yet not repelling and you can see every twig!

Throughout this sizeable volume there is enough detail about the cameras and post processing used for each picture to satisfy the photographer, and enough detail generally about the picture to satisfy those less interested in the technical details.  

I have a decent collection of photography books, and this will definitely be one to which I will return for enjoyment and inspiration.  Well worth buying.