Soft Spring Morning

'Soft Spring Morning'
Zoë Bull

I love Spring and Autumnal sunrises in particular. In Autumn, the leaves glow a red and golden hue, but in the Spring, there is this softness, a delicate touch of nature that caresses the budding blossoms and a rainbow of pastel light, diffused by the clouds…just lovely. 

I noticed it as I came into the kitchen this morning to have my breakfast. I wasn't interested in watching the news, but just being quiet and frequently turning my head to look out the window every mouthful or so. I loved this view and I had always wanted to take the perfect picture on this window sill, with all the cute little ornaments standing in a line. I had bought the flowers yesterday and though they would normally be placed on the kitchen table, the window sill seemed like a nice change. The sun looked beautiful as it shined on the chrysanthemums and it just felt like Spring had really begun. 

I finished eating my breakfast and had a feeling inside that I just had to get my camera. The moment could pass by the time I went upstairs to fetch it, but I thought it was worth it. Angle and light were everything and I have just got a huge admiration for soft light photographs. It's something I've noticed around on Pinterest a lot and on the web generally, and I would love to get it perfected. 

I know time of day is a commitment when it comes to special kinds of natural lighting. We often find ourselves shooting at midday when we know the sun is out, but as photographers know, the harshest kind of light is during that period so I think if you want to create something special photographing in the morning and evening sounds like a plan. 

'Soft Crysanthemums'
Zoë Bull

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Regarding my knitting photography book project. I have create an additional blog for all my knitting going-ons and discussions on my project - A Journey of String. 

Using Photography To Create A Record of Your Creations

'Ladybird Mug Cosy'
Project 1
Zoë Bull 

It's really great to see a project being made. 

What we look for in life is immediate results. There were immediate results crowding my mind as I was  working on my project and then getting the 'perfect' picture created and then edited. What we really should be grateful of is the journey. The time spent in the studio, getting the lights right and experimenting, and learning how things work if they go wrong. We all just seem to want to rush and then when we have got there…it's on to a new adventure. 

I like to make records of things. I also like to make things, and when I make things, they get separated from other projects and put behind cupboard doors and in storage. I decided that with all the things that I am starting to knit,  that I didn't want them to be separated. Some knits may be gifts, some may get lost. However, it's a good thing I like capturing things through photographs, and it is a great way to record things. 

With this photo book project, I'm going to combine my two creative loves and encase all my knitting projects in a photographic print form that will make think, 'Wow! I made that! I took that too!''

And this was what I was talking about in my first post of this year, doing the things that you love to do. Better more, not only do I combine two of my creative interests, I get to enjoy writing about them too. 

'Ladybird Mug Cosy'
Project 1
Zoë Bull 

• Project 1 out of 30
• A personal project where I create 30 knits of my choice 
• Build up my product photography and still life skills 
• Get creative
• And do something I enjoy doing

Sources

Mug Cosy pattern from Cute & Easy Knitting - Fiona Gable 

 

Watches and Inanimate Objects Through Time

Watch (2009)
By Zoë Bull 

'Rainbow Watch'
Zoë Bull

I have always enjoyed still life. Before I had any people to photograph, inanimate objects were my sitters and it would often be a snap. As I have grown as a photographer, my snaps have turned into conscious decisions and experiments of position and now introducing lighting.

I wish I had known sooner that artificial lighting wasn't scary. I would only rely on natural light and would be sure that I could work something out to make my images look fantastic. It doesn't mean to say that some pictures don't look great, the sun can be a powerful tool. 'Frosty Leaf' from my last post was entirely natural light. It would look a bit strange if it was on a white background but then it is all about the purpose.

I am in the progress of creating a still life personal portfolio. I enjoy knitting and working in the studio with a photography table gives me a great opportunities to photograph my creations and collect them into a book one day.

The first project is almost at it's completion. I am very exciting and will be posting it on In My Depth of Field and my Flickr page so you can watch it's journey as it goes along.

For now, I have been doing some practice and quite interested in getting into product photography for catalogues and websites. None of the these products are for sale directly from me as I have found them round my house, but you will get the idea.

'Lego Desk-Tidy Man'
By Zoë Bull 

Artist's Wooden Man
By Zoë Bull 

Gispy Moth & Postcards And Suntan Cream
Books By Jean Bull
http://jeanbullswritingblog.blogspot.co.uk 
Zoë Bull 

Do What You Love To Do...

'Frosty Leaf'
Sony World Photography Awards Entry
Nature
Zoë Bull

Sometimes it is about going back to the roots to the things that interest you. With Photography we start off by photographing things that we find exciting and it's all just strictly personal. Then if you start a degree or doing work, you sort of forget the photography that was once a hobby, and I think they are two different areas. 

I took this image of Frosty Leaf just after Christmas in my garden. We say winter is so depressing and the worst time for photographers. However, if you look carefully there is beauty within winter and that is what I aim to express in this image. Inside, I felt amazing. I had felt this photographic euphoria for a long time because I had been taking pictures for projects at uni and draining my natural inspiration. 

It was great to wander round the garden with my wellies on, and the sun creating low gentle shadows and twinkling diamond droplets on the washing line. I also had the positing feeling of getting some exercise and oxygen into my body, it was fresh and invigorating. 

Like anything, it is great to get in touch with yourself on a personal level - just you and the hobby that you love. We need this to feel revitalised and it gets us away from being glued to our technology and actually achieving something with our lives. 

So go out and do something that you haven't really done for a while, or try something that you have always wanted to do. That's what I'm trying to do this year. I hope it's a good one. 

Happy New Year!

'Village Wanderer'
Sony World Photography Awards Entry
Travel
Zoë Bull

If you want to something exciting and different with your photography, why don't you send some of your favourite/best photos to an online photography competition. I featured these in the Sony World Photography Awards 2014 competition. It has now closed, but there are many out there for photographers at any level, not just for the professionals. Even if you don't win, you can still feel you have done something productive. You never know, you might be surprised. 

Black-and-White Film: The Selective Photographer...

'Across the Seine'  (2013)
Zoë Bull

Summer. Holidays, sun and photographs. 

The magic thing about photography, now with it's instancy, is that it is so accessible. You can just reach into your pocket or your bag and whip out your phone or tablet and take that picture of a beautiful Parisian building and edit it within minutes of it's capture. But then it just sits there for a while or a little longer while yet, collecting invisible digital dust. It sort loses it's value, don't you think? 

Sometimes if you have a collection of images, such as from a holiday, you may transfer them to your computer, before another couple of months, before they actually get printed. Do they ever get printed? Really? How often these days do your holiday pictures get printed and returned to you in the post, enclosed within an envelope? There is such excitement in that and it rarely happens anymore. 

The present alternative seems to be a photo-book. They can look good, but where is the tangibility; the feel of those thick self adhesive pages, lightly covered in clear film, protecting each individual print, that you have taken time into thinking about and capturing? Is it more about the collection of photos as one, rather than the individual photos that make up the collection? It's hard to tell, isn't it? 

'Stacked Chairs'  (2013)
Zoë Bull

However, regardless of what the modern norm seems to be and how agreeably affordable it is, I wanted to do something a bit different for my recent holiday in Paris. It was hot and the sky was blue, but I had in mind, from the very words that initiated the trip that I wanted to photograph in black-and-white film. 

It had been a while since I had photographed with Ilford HP5 film seeing as the darkroom seemed to be too long winded for me when you would only achieve several decent prints after a whole day in there - I contradict myself with some instancy that I do need. So I have been using Kodak coloured film instead, for the meantime. I do however, adore the aesthetics of black-and-white film, with it's fine grain that gives it that timeless look and the purity in the tones of the highlights and shadows. 

Digital photography is still fantastic and I use it a lot, but it's only crisp. The image of the chairs I captured, would still be beautiful in a digital crisp in black-and-white form, but for an artistic purpose I personally think that the fine grain of the film, brings some little extra magic. It brings value to the image, that I know wouldn't be there if it was a single photo within 200 other photos I took that day.

'My Notre dame'  (2013)
Zoë Bull

I only took two films with me and got about 65 well developed images back, by sending them to one of the few labs in the UK. When it comes to black-and-white film, there is no point going to Snappy Snaps or Boots, because they won't be able to do anything about it. It's not like coloured film where the negatives are digitally developed, so it felt quite special knowing that these films would be developed in a different way. I even got a CD with my prints, along with the negatives.

'Eiffel in Seine'  (2013)
Zoë Bull

The magic of film is that you have about 36 exposures, 36 chances to capture your holiday in the way you want to. You can really think about what you want to take and what would make the moments away from home special. There is more of a reason behind why you took them, rather than just working on impulse. But nonetheless, you can work in the same way with digital photography if you really want to. I like working like that when I can. I ask myself *What do I really want to capture?*. I want my images to have a purpose and not just sit around on the drive of an electronic device or computer.

I want to make the most of my photos, we all should.

'Let us play'  (2013)
Zoë Bull

If you recently have used some black-and-white film and you are looking for a lab to get them developed, try B&W Film Processing based in Plymouth, UK.

Identity

Identity Exhibition (2013)
Zoë Bull 

'relaxed, chilled out and innovative'

Hello!

I'm very excited to have given In my depth of field a fresh face.
After just finishing my second year of university, I have been reflecting over and updating all my online profiles for you to see.

I have been busy working on various projects which I have now handed in for marking; the most exciting of them all is an exhibition. They are always so prestigious, exhibitions when you go to, say The National Portrait Gallery, or those other fancy places, with stunning photography. Really though, an exhibition can be anywhere that has walls. My exhibition group didn't use walls, not that we didn't want too, but we had quite a unique place to hang our pieces: a bandstand.

This bandstand was in Saffron Walden's Jubilee Gardens, just twenty miles south of Cambridge. There were many um's and ah's from the group members but luckily our member most local to the venue, decided on wrapped velcro around the bandstand poles and attaching the canvas' to them.

So, what was our exhibition about? We had to choose a theme, which we decided was identity and the four of us went about our own creative ways, keeping in mind, that we had to stick with the theme and keep it seamless.

I have an absolute fascination with people. What is beneath that underlying surface? Where have they come from? What do they search for in life? And honestly I could listen all day. I am quite fortunate to know a range of characters, from a range of places and a range from ages also. I'm so interested in the psychology of who people are and that is a question I wanted to ask my potential subjects, combining it with photography.

I began in my head with that 'Who am I?' question along with a whiteboard for them to write their 'defining' word down. However it all seemed so limiting. We can't define our every-changing identities with one word; we have so many different facets.

I was after a conversation with my sister who had studied psychology and she told me about 'The 20 Statements Test'. In short the official survey asks the public to fill in a form of twenty statements beginning with 'I am' (e.g. I am tall). The fantastic thing about it is that the subjects can be as open or reserved as they do wish in their answers, and even then it goes down to speak about who they really are. As my board could only fit four statements on it, I got my subjects to write their twenty and choose their significant few. It was very interesting over a range of ages and gender too.

The exhibition was held over a week from 6th-11th May and it was a fantastic opportunity to receive some feedback from the public rather than same after same opinions of the photography lecturers. My top comment was that my work was 'relaxed, chilled out and innovative.'

Identity Exhibition (2013)
Zoë Bull

Identity Exhibition (2013)
Zoë Bull

Identity Exhibition (2013)
Zoë Bull

Exhibition Poster.

The Colour Of...

Currently working on a film only module at the moment, specifically Fuji Colour Film. A requirement is to enter the FujiFilm Student Awards competition with the title "The Colour Of.."

Now, I absolutely adore colour. All sorts of colour, a colourful world, colourful clothes, anything that is bright and cheery, I love it! So this seemed to be the perfect project for me. It was simply limitless, other than the fact that I had never used medium format or 5 x 4 camera's in my life. The good news was the I have been using Fuji Colour Film since summer 2012. Those of you who have been with me a while may have remembered me trips to York and Venice where I went Fuji Colour crazy and now I'm back with it.

The competition closes on the 29th April 2013, but anyone can enter and it is free, so if it sounds like your thing and your are crazy colourful like myself, then go for it. I am going to be working on my 35mm camera and that is absolutely fine.

Here is the link: http://www.fujifilmstudentawards.co.uk





Via Flickr:
Is the title for 2013's FujiFilm Student Awards competition. As part of my module this semester we have to take a few rolls of film and are allowed to upload four. These images are not my final selection but my strongest out of my first practice film.

She returns...

Hello!

It has been a while and I have been doing a lot of thinking and a lot of writing and taking pictures and living my university life. With anything we go through in life, we can struggle and I had a bit of struggle on what to write. But what has drawn me back here is the fact that this blog has been continuously been getting a lot of views while I've been away from it and I'm extremely thankful that people find what I have been writing and the tips I have been giving interesting. I understand however that there may be a few pictures..missing.

There have been a lot of changes. Now in my second year of university I have been doing an Industry Experience module that takes you into the real world of Photography. In preparation for all that, we had to create CV's and professional looking platforms that would makes us standout. I do have my portfolio and I do have my Flickr, but a new Flickr. I reluctantly feel like I'm starting from scratch when I had so much on my old account and it is however sadly gone. Never-the-less I created a photobook that I got printed so that I could see where I started from and where I have gotten now. In a regretful kind of way I wish I had kept my account up as a personal collection and create new one for portfolio standard. But we learn this way don't we? So I have done some good on keeping this blog up. I haven't created a new Photography Blog. Though it is probably more words than pictures, it's still Photography, it's still my progress and I have photos to upload, but I'll be picking ones that I can talk about and base my posts on them to make it even more interesting for you guys.

So thanks for reading. I'm back and I have plenty of interesting images and stories to upload soon.

Zoë

The Manufactured Image

Follow me as I research, develop and create my ideas upon my latest module at university, entitled The Manufactured Image...

Making the most of your abilities...

The Olympic Park
Zoe Bull

Viewing the world on a television screen or even a camera screen is never quite the same as actually seeing the world for yourself. I spoke lightly on the subject on Monday, when I visited Buckingham Palace. I again, visited London yesterday to another iconic place that has been all over the television channels - The Olympic Park. It was fantastic.

I never imagined to be involved in watching the Olympics or Paralympics for that matter but the whole situation of it being in your own country (well, for us Brits) has made it so much more significant. I'd never heard of any of the athletes before August and now they have become like family names and you find yourself cheering after them, even if they don't belong to your country. How bizarre is that?! Brilliant though...

Those who have been to a Disney park in Paris, Hong-Kong, Florida or California may have felt the same feeling that my family and I did when we entered The Olympic Park; the family feel and the vibrant atmosphere of different cultures and the buzzing excitement of all the attractions. Maybe it represented the other kind of buzz...of Rugby and Football and entering their parks for those more masculine hardcore sporty types? Whatever feeling was present, it was certainly a positive one. 

Through a sea of people we queued to the nearest water fountains to fill our bottles and passed the cheery volunteers pepping us up in some (how I imagine) American style Pep Rally. They had that charisma! The one that some us Britons lack in polite yet cold reservation. 

It was exciting to wave the flags and clap until your hands went fizzy and your grin was about to take off once the biggest Mexican Wave I'd even seen filled the stadium with such a cheer. The athletes were phenomenal and as it was an Athletics session in the stadium, they weren't just running with sheer strength like the Olympians, they were turning the wheels on their custom made racing wheelchairs and running with prosthetic legs, throwing javelins at 3ft tall with sheer strength. It was incredible. Not to mention the Long Jump heats with some completely blind athletes who ran towards the sound of their Guide's clapping, jumping incredible lengths. It was out of the world. I feel a bit guilty to have missed it all in previous years because ALL the athletes in the whole London 2012 games have put so much effort into this. They get on with their lives despite being born without legs and losing an arm or being visually impaired and make us think "Why can't we be that strong?" and we can be. I feel that these people have motivated me to be a stronger person and that all these problems we think we have, are really nothing in comparison to what they could be.  

The Olympic View
Zoe Bull

Imagine not having any arms at all...   One swimmer didn't. And swam amazingly, just using her legs. 

Imagine we never know what it's like never to have been able walk, because you have been wheelchair  all your life or never been able to see the rich colours of life, to see your friends of families because your vision is darkness.

We take so much for granted, and when the fire from the Paralympic torch will be snuffed out like it was for the Olympics tomorrow, we may very well forget the strength and power of the disabled and focus selfishly on ourselves, our problems which we deem more important. 

I wouldn't have been able to write this post or take these photos if I hadn't the arms, hands and fingers to do so. You wouldn't have been able to read this post without the ability to see.  

Think About It.

The Classic Tourist and Their Camera...

Hipstamatic
Buckingham Palace
England, UK

It's funny being a tourist in your own country. Many people all over the world come and visit Britain and during the Summer, Buckingham Palace is a popular destination. My family and I have always wanted to go on this 'Royal Day Out' stated on our tickets. It was absolutely delightful and positively British in most the respectful sense. We then rounded off the day drinking tea out of paper cups which couldn't be more of a contrast; quirky though.

Hipstamatic 
Buckingham Palace Garden Cafe
England, UK

Onto more of a photography note now that was the spark that inspired me to write this post...

Hipstamatic
Royal Crown
England, UK

I had a home-bought picnic lunch and ate it in St James' Park just around the corner from the palace and watched foreign tourists take pictures of this immaculate trimmed bush of a royal crown...

 It was extremely interesting because they would walk round all angles of it, finding their place and perfect composition of this...well bush. I wrote a little about Tourist Photography on my trips to York and Venice back in Summer months and it is fascinating how we want to take a picture of the same view a million other people have taken. It could be easy enough to type into Google and search for this sight. After all we all know what the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and the Hollywood sign in LA looks like, even if we may have never seen them in person. After thinking about this a little, I have come to the conclusion that we want to put our personal mark on things. We go somewhere like the Grand Canyon and we have had the memory of it but we want a picture to be taken to validate what we saw. This crown, this Buckingham Palace, no matter where you live, this picture is a reminder of what you did on a certain day which enhances other thoughts and feelings that were part of this day. I guess that is why Photography is so great. We just want to remember. 

People. Places. The World. Life.

Hipstamatic 
Leaf
England, UK

New Changes...

In My Depth of Field has had a makeover. I am now using the Dynamic View template. It's downfall is that it limits the amount of text on the posted once it has been published. I really like to make the make the most of my posts so if you are intrigued about reading more, please click on the post and for more excitement, knowledge and images shall be revealed. Thanks and enjoy the following post

 It's about time I had a bit of a change. Autumn is just around the corner and that word 'September' is just enough to put a chill on your chest and kick through the rusty reds and golden yellows inhaling that oddly refreshing decaying smell.

I have had my blog for a while now...
 Throughout that time I have entered magazine competitions, assisted over fifteen weddings including traditional British and Hindu ceremonies and completed my first year at university. Like all things, change happens and this is what I love about Autumn. We are oddly excited to go back to school, college or university and the excitement of the Summer has just worn off and drizzled in boredom, that couldn't be more grey or dull. I feel September is a crucial month to let go of all the things that are keeping you down or stressing you out. You can do this anytime of year but the symbolism of September to me seems like the strongest influence to make a new start, even more so in a way than New Year and it's resolutions.

It felt it was a time for a change of my blog. I'm growing up now and feel more at one with myself and mature with my thoughts and approaches to life. My blog needed to reflect that. It's like painting or wall papering your bedroom. How often are you going to have it with cute little rainbows and furry bunnies? As you grow you need change.


Visit my new phrase of photography on Flickr and my portfolio here.

Brownsea Island...

Red Squirrel 
Brownsea Island
Poole, England

Summer is always a time where day outings happen. Everyone wants to explore the sunshine covered country in it's rare moments. I went to Brownsea Island the other day. I wasn't expecting it to be much; National Trust and all. However once the clouds parted and a perfect combination of breeze and warmth came through, it was a lovely day in a picturesque set of woods and cute little beaches full of escapism and full blown wanderlust. Red squirrels are very rare in the UK, we don't have many, so it was great opportunity to see one and let alone capture one on camera. I must say, it wasn't easy and with a little clever focusing and a good deal of cropping, I'm quite impressed with my shot.

Dramatic Sky
Pool Harbour
Brownsea Island

Take a seat
Brownsea Island
Poole, England

Little Boat, Little Beach
Brownsea Island
Poole, England

Fairy woods
Brownsea Island
Poole, England

I feel I am really starting to get the hang of Lightroom. I can't get enough of those dramatic skies using the Graduation Tool and with a better understanding of the manual controls on my camera, I feel a great improvement from last year. 

Celebration..

Celebration 'First Anniversary'
Summer Project
Zoë Bull

Celebration is a word that can be many things. 2012 is a perfect year for celebration, particularly for us Brits. It was simply fate that the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and the London Olympics were to fall this year. If you set those large scale celebrations aside, there will always be someone out in the world celebrating something. Everyday there is a birthday to celebrate or an achievement, like passing your exams and getting into University or passing your driving test or getting a promotion in your dream career. As people we take for granted what we have and focus all our energy on the negative because thats what we want to improve on. Perhaps it is time we celebrate that we are living and that this is the greatest gift of all, no matter what our emotions are telling us.

It was hard to find something that would represent celebration that didn't seem so cliche. I wonder how many people would have taken pictures of fireworks or the Union Jack bunting for their celebration piece for the Summer Project for Uni. My sister got married a year ago, and since I didn't have a present for them, I did a double whammy and took this for her and her husband.





Visit my second phase of of Flickr here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zoebull/

Hipstamatic Summer...

I do love Summer and after much trying and pushing to keep up with my Hipstamatic 365 project, it simply wasn't working. I have, however taken a few pictures here and there to capture the summer of 2012 and rather bit them in a slideshow I decided to keep the text short overall for this post and let the pictures do the talking. 

Absorb and observe...Hindu Wedding

It's almost every girls dream to put on that white dress, feel like a princess for the day and walk an aisle to be re-united with the man that has chosen her to marry. That is how Christian weddings go but over this last weekend, I saw two weddings with a completely different arrangement and culture and that was simply fascinating. 

I have stepped up my work experience to assist some Hindu weddings over the next few weekends. Going back 3500 years, many marriages were arranged and the groom would not meet his bride until they were about to be wed. The tradition follows in the same line but with a more relaxed approach where the couple can choose each other, but will be separated by a white sheet until the bride reaches the groom under the Mandap. This is a small covered area held up by pillars where the ceremony takes place (image below taken before the ceremony) It is considered very holy and therefore people under Mandap must not wear shoes, showing their respect to Lord Vishnu. The ceremony is spoken in Sanskrit 'the world's most ancient surviving language' (according to the wedding programme given out on the Sunday ceremony.)

Mandap

Not only is this arrangement different but rather than taking half an hour going straight to the vows and 'I do's', there can up be to thirteen different stages that consist over two hour period.  

Var Agaman (welcoming of the groom)

Stage 1: Var Agaman

The ceremony begins with the welcoming of the groom. In the image above you will be able to see a wooden arch way which is known as the Marriage Pavilion, where the groom is surrounded by his family and friends. The grooms mother then welcomes him by lightly dusting him with red power called kum-kum and rice, which symbolises luck. The groom is the then led to the Mandap for the main ceremony to begin. 

Stage 2: Var Puja

The honouring of the groom - before the bride arrives, her parents honour the groom with offerings of Panchamrit (yoghurt and honey) These ingredients represent purity. 

Stage 3: Ganesh Puja

All Hindu ceremonies begin calling upon Lord Ganesha. This is done through a prayer to rid of any obstacles that may occur during the ceremony or later in married life. 

Stage 4: Mangalashtak 

In English this term translates into 'Request for blessings' that includes a eight versed prayer which requests all the gods, goddesses and planets to bless the couple with a harmonious married life. 

Stage 5: Kanya Agamanand Puja 

The bride now arrives, being escorted to the Mandap. 

Stage 6: Jayamala

The white sheet is removed and the bride and groom exchange garlands of flowers. 

Stage 7: Hasta Melap

Also known as the 'Joining of the hands', the bride is now given away. The brides father places her right hand on to the groom's right hand which symbolise the respect, responsibility and the love that he has towards her. The brides parents then ask the groom if he accepts their daughter's hand in marriage. In the Hindu culture, this is the greatest gift a person can give. 

Stage 8: Vermala

The 'Sacred Thread' is made up of threads of cotton that are placed around the shoulders of the bride and groom. This symbolises the sacred bond of marriage, blessing their happy lives together. 

Stage 9: Mangal Fera

'Circling of the sacred  Fire' symbolises  illumination of the mind, happiness and knowledge. The circuit  includes four rotations:

Dharma/Duty

Artha/ Prosperity 

Kama/ Love and Family

Mosksha/ Engligtenment

The first three rotations are lead by the groom symbolising his lead to achieve the first three goals. The fourth rotation lead by the bride, shows willingness to achieve the last goal. Once the final round is complete they couple are officially man and wife. 

Stage 10: Satapadi

The couple now takes 'Seven Steps' to begin their life together. Each step is a vow:

- To achieve prosperity and help one another fulfil their dreams

- To be lifelong partners and walk through life's obstacles together, to grow in strength

- To preserve each other's wealth

- To share a lifetime of fun and laughter, sorrow and happiness

- To raise a family, to be strong and healthy in mind, body and soul

- To always be honest and faithful to each other

- To be loyal and true to each other, and remain the closest of friends

Stage 11: Mangal Sutra and Sindoor Daan

The groom gives the bride black beaded necklace that symbolises their sacred love union. He now places stindoor (red powder) onto the parting of the brides hair which signifies that they are now married. 

Stage 12: Akhanda Saubhagawati

Married women from both sides of the family whisper blessing into the brides right ear, before the rest of the immediate family and friends.

Stage 13: Vidai Ceremony 

Family and friends bid a farewell to the bride as she embarks on her new life with her husband. This is also known as the "Crying line"

If I have made any errors, please do let me know and I shall change them.  

This was a perfect opportunity to explore a different culture. 

Motivation...

Hipstamatic 365

Starting a post with some positivity is much more exciting and interesting compared to a moan. I find a lot of people including myself can be quite negative. We don't want to see ourselves fail and we complain about it because we think that we will get some sympathy. On some scale, that is ok but if we do it all the time and complain about the same things, it then gets boring.

I can drift on a tangent quite often but I believe that you can have transferable thoughts that can relate to any kind of interest and body of work. It's life. Everyone loses motivation sometimes, particularly if a project we are working on is falling behind, it can be easy to give up, sometimes we just lose interest and want to work on a new project.

I came to writing this post wanting to be more true to myself and to be more positive but in the back of my mind I was writing about how I was going to give up my Hipstamatic 365 project, just because I had hit a few stumble blocks. I have missed about a week in total and I thought to myself that it wouldn't be a 365 project if I hadn't got 365 photos. So what?! I have been trying to tell myself that every photo won't be fantastic and a work of art but what I want to create at the end, won't matter if they are in such a state. The fact is that I would have been more determined and carried on through the rough moments that simply reflect life itself. Challenges are difficult, they are not supposed to be easy and they acquire effort. For too long I have been trying to skip round the effort pole just so I achieve things the easy way when really I would feel like I would have achieved something more if I spent more time on it. I need to get out there and take more photos rather than sitting around hoping that these pictures will find me.

At the beginning of the year, my aims were take photos everyday of the year and select the twelve best ones to present in a slideshow. I may still do that, however I thought a large collage would be more exciting instead. This project is about the bigger picture rather than the individual pictures that I am living through.

Once you have achieved then you can celebrate.

And what a better way with my latest Hipstamatic photos and indulgences from the week before last.

Hipstamatic 365

Hipstamatic 365

Hipstamatic 365

Venice, Coloured Film and Tourist to Professional Holiday Photos...

colour film
Venice (2012)

colour film
Venice (2012)

colour film
(Venice 2012)

Venice is beautiful. I'm a lover of Italy and I have travelled to various famous cities that include Rome and Florence.  There is something about the reddish hue in the landscape and the buildings, that really fascinates me and that it would look stunning through the slight enhancement of coloured film. I use a pretty standard coloured film of 36 exposures with an ISO varying from 200-400 that you can get from somewhere like Jessops or other photography shops. The problem with film is that it is running out, the is less and less of it these days and comes at a price. I think it is important that have a purpose for it. Earlier this year I remember thinking how I was going to take a single roll of film on my next holiday and to try and capture subjects that were not so tourist and were more unique and professional. However I think every person with a camera wants to make their shots interesting and professional as possible, whether they want to get involved with the industry or not.  As I have mentioned before: Everything has been done before and ideas have been created before. 

The fact that I made conscious effort of deciding what I wanted to capture rather than just going 'Oh that looks nice' was what differs the amateur to the professional. The first photo I took is of the water's wake frothing in an almost solid form which I thought looked rather beautiful. I also liked that I was at a lower angle compared to be high up on a cruise ship, looking down at the 'V' . I then found that once I had taken that picture, it gathered interest from my family and they started taking pictures of this scene too. That had selfishly frustrated me a little because I didn't think they were really thinking about what they were taking and they had merely imitated my ideas. The amateur photographer is at lust with their scene. They look into the camera and feeling instantly attracted to this sight, ignoring all else in the frame apart from their chosen subject. Once they press the button, the scene is captured, they move onto another, before being re-aquainted with that scene on their home computer screen, giving it a blank look, feeling forgetful that they took that picture in the first place. 

It doesn't mean to say that enthusiasts and professionals don't have this problem too. It just means that they can handle the situation better, probably capturing more what they want too then what they don't. 

I have tried my best and some of my photos, yes do have those tourist qualities but I was a tourist as well as a photographer. Afterall, we are always learning.