My Photography Plans

There is a lot going on in the world at the moment and this also applies to my photography. I’m not one for setting a rigid plan and then following it to the letter, that’s just not my bag. However, I did think it was worth just reflecting on what my intentions are for the coming few months, as lockdown restrictions ease, and hopefully disappear completely.

Projects

The more avid readers amongst you will recall that I love a good project and I have two ongoing at the moment. 12 Significant Images and Peak District Companion Stones. These are at very different points in their development, but both will be completed. The 12 Significant Images project runs for 12 months, and I will continue to visit the 12 locations I have selected in each of the seasons to capture each location in each season. You can view images of all 12 locations HERE.

The Companion Stones Project is nearing completion and in fact I only have one more stone to photograph and I will be writing up and publishing that Project. You can view the images of the various Stones HERE.

Lake District

You will be able to see from my website that a major focus of my work is in The Lake District, and this will continue to be the case in the coming months. I have plans for a visit to the Coniston area very soon and I’m hoping to be able to get a walk onto Coniston Old Man, as well as a walk ups to Tarn Hows, and Kelly Hall Tarn to capture the classic shots in both locations. There will also be lots of other images of Coniston and the surrounding area.

As a surprise this last Christmas my son bought me a voucher for some more 121 time with Chris Sale. I’ve recently joined Chris’s membership scheme, and i’m also doing the 12 Significant Images as part of the group that Chris has arranged. So I intend to use the 121 time to get to some locations that are a little less known. For a sneak preview of where these might be, take a look at Chris’s website and you will see he’s started to explore a few lesser known places within the Lake District, and intend to tag along on a few of these shoots in the future.

Peak District

I do spend a decent amount of time in The Peaks. The western edges aren’t very far away from where I live, and even the southern sections are only 45 mins drive away. There are lots of places that I have yet to visit and whilst I don’t have any firm plans in place yet, I will be spending more time taking images. I’ve yet to visit Derwent Edge, of the main edge’s in the Peaks, and the whole Edale / Kinder Scout area is yet to be explored. Given its close proximity to my home, I won’t be making specific plans, I’ll just be very opportunistic and use my Friday’s as chance to get some more quality exploring and images bagged from The Peak District.

Scotland

I’ve been visiting Scotland for years and years, but not for the purposes of taking pictures. The trips I’ve had so far to Scotland have all been as part of golfing trips. There will be another golfing trip this July (all being well) and I also have plans to visit Pitlochry specifically to do some exploring with my camera. This year, for the first time on the golf trip, I will take my camera and try to capture some decent images of the areas surrounding where we play golf. I suspect these will be of dubious quality given that the 19th hole will be involved after each round.

Wales

From a photography perspective I think Wales as a location has had the least amount of my time over the past few years. You can see this in the smaller number of images that appear on the Wales section of my website. I’ve had many happy holidays and trips there, and have always taken photographs but it’s not had the same degree of attention as other ares of the country. I intend to remedy this over the coming months. Looking through my Instagram feed I see loads of great places to visit and take classic images, and this makes me more determined to find some time to visit and add to my portfolio of images from Wales.

Developing my Photography

Those who know me will know that I spend I good deal of time researching Photography, mainly through Youtube and other social media routes but I also like to follow structured learning through online courses. I supplement this with the 121 stuff I do with Chris Sale, as well as networking with other photographers through the projects and memberships I have in place. I’m always keen to learn and develop my own style and will continue to pursue my own style but will be influenced through all that I do over the coming months.

I do want to use my time on the 12 Significant Images Project to develop my compositional skills, and regular visits to the same locations and reworking scenes will all help me with that. My skills in Lightroom are developing at pace and I’m getting to enjoy the editting process more and more. I’ve just dipped my toe into the Photoshop software and will continue with this but my main editing software of choice will be Lightroom. I’m still getting to understand the best way to edit RAW files to reflect what I saw with my eyes at the scene. This can be a subjective thing I realise but I do try to capture the scene as I remember it. This sent always easy as there can be a time lag between capturing the images and doing the editing but I’ll give it a go.

One area that I have little skills in is locations planning. More specifically what the conditions are going to be like at particular times and how best to gain the knowledge. I do have access to things like Photopills, and various Weather Apps on my phone but I really do need to think about how to improve this area of my photography. This won’t become my only method of planning images. I will continue to be spontaneous and capture images on walks and trips, and in particular free myself from always relying on a Tripod. Crucial though they are, its not always possible to have one with me at all times.

So in summary these is lots to look forward to in my photography world. Lots of plans in place but all with a huge determination to improve the standard of my photography. However, that pans out I must always remember why I started taking photography seriously and that was because I enjoyed being in the great outdoors, its a chance to develop my creative side (which as an accountant isn’t easily done through normal work). Finally its a way to keep myself fit and healthy and enjoying the great outdoors. Thanks for reading!!