#303 ASSIGNMENT: JIM SOLLOWS #1
A photographer for 45 years, mentoring and training new photographers to work with film and established ones to be reacquainted with the medium, Jim Sollows sets this week's Assignment. We'll be thinking like we're shooting with film, though no more clues! It's been wonderful to see the pictures you have been making from the assignments set so far, so please keep sending your photographs for inclusion on today's show page.
Send your pictures to studio@photographydaily.show - 2000 pixels wide, any orientation you prefer; square, portrait, or landscape.
My thanks to our wonderful patrons and MPB.com who sponsor this show; the number one company in the UK, the US and Europe when it comes to buying, selling, and trading used camera kit online – it’s a safe place to do business, with guarantees upon what you buy.
-
Thinking in an analogue fashion in many ways, observing and making a picture minus any kind of burst mode!
BY JIM SOLLOWS
The train photograph discussed on the show today. Good luck with this week’s assignment.
BY LYNN FRASER
Attached is an image that is one of my favourites in my catalogue. It was taken in 2017 on The Bund, Shanghai, early one morning. I had taken a wander along The Bund the night before and it had been a seething mass of humanity; it felt like the entire population of Shanghai was trying to walk along it. Early the next morning was completely different, however - there was a relatively small number of people out running, exercising, and one chap was flying a kite. The sun rose behind Lujiazui, which provides a classic image of Shanghai with some of the world's tallest buildings. Lying on The Bund, I was shooting into the sun to try and get joggers and their shadows with the classic skyline behind them. With this particular image, in my opinion, I hit gold. I have a man silhouetted with skyscrapers in the background and a large shadow in the foreground, but the element of luck that makes the picture is the classic running pose and the sunburst appearing immediately in front of the man's torso between his arms and appearing to be balanced on top of one of his hands. The silhouette, background and foreground were all planned certainly, but I couldn't plan for such a perfect pose and the sunburst on the hand - sometimes you just need a little bit of luck to help you on your way!
BY JOHN MILLAR
"NO CROSSING!" A bit slower with this week's assignment, but I've attached an image captured today at Alrewas Arboretum. It's not far from home, (about a 10-minute drive for me), so I called in after work on my way back. Inspired by Jim's image on the show page, I had a plan! At the Arboretum, there is a road train, (a few as it happens). They go a little bit quicker than a walking pace and take visitors around the site if they're not feeling up to the walk - it is quite a large area to cover. I've visited here quite a few times, it's a poignant place to visit, and reflect on those who lost their lives serving the country over the years since the end of WW2.
So, back to the shot.... there's a road that the trains start from, and along it some benches to rest if you've chosen to walk around. I spotted an elderly couple at one of these benches and waited for a road train. The wait paid off, and I captured this frame of the couple between carriages, in one shot (though I have to say I went with a low-speed option to make sure I got it in one first time, Jim's train was probably 10 times faster!) The parts of the frame I liked most are the chap sitting in the carriage to the right of the frame, and the "No Crossing!" Sign suspended between the carriages.
BY JASON FOLEY
I frequent this coffee shop (above) for my daily caffeine fix, as do many others, resulting in a lengthy line at the drive-through. On this day, I had my Leica iiif with me and just enough time to ready myself for this shot. This cyclist passing by (below) made for a lovely composition to fit with the challenge. Captured once again with my Leica iiif.
BY ANDREW HARDACRE
Above: sliding door. Below: “Michael throw the rope ashore….. hallelujah!” Pictures made on the Leica M10R and Voigtlander 50mm F2 APO-Lanthar.
BY JOEL RILEY
My sons were playing in the rain garden of the Memphis Botanic Garden, which simulates rain every quarter-hour or so. After the rain subsided I noticed a persistent drop of water falling onto a rain barrel lid and set up to try to capture the drop on impact. I was shooting in single frame and did not capture the exact moment I was hoping for, but I did get the post-impact droplets in the air above the rain barrel!
After listening to Jim Sollows I had the opportunity to sit and wait for a fleeting moment. A pair of Great Tits are nesting outside my Mum’s kitchen window. So Mum and I settled in for the wait with a cup of tea at a little table in the garden near to the nesting box. I used a Leica M10 with a vintage Leica 50mm Summicron lens. The M10 is manual focus only, so I prefocused on the front of the box and waited. I challenged myself to only take one photo on each approach of the bird. The bird approached about 7 times, so I had 7 images and this was my favourite. I hope this counts for the assignment. Either way, Mum and I loved the experience.
BY VICTORIA ROBB
This is I think in the spirit of the assignment in capturing that fleeting moment of sun coming through raindrops, illuminating the bus stop and capturing the raindrops in motion. The rest is largely static - it was the lady sitting under the shelter with the transparent umbrella up and being able to see her through it that caught my eye first!
Headed out today, first sunny day we’ve had for quite some time, to complete the challenge for this week. I decided, given we were to shoot like we were using film, to limit myself to 24 frames. I’ve included my two favourites from my walk around the Brisbane CBD. I had to wait for the first image (above) of the young lady with the phone in front of the poster of (who I assume to be) one of the Kardashians. I was standing amongst a group of commuters waiting for their bus, getting all sorts of strange looks as I pointed the camera at the poster. However, I figured that, in this day and age, it wouldn’t take long for someone to walk through the frame holding a phone in front of them.
The second (below) I grabbed as I waited for my coffee. I just liked the idea of the lady, with her paper and coffee, sitting in front of a sign that basically described exactly what she was doing. Again, one shot only as I conserved my ‘film’. That was however the last image I took which left 7 frames on my ‘roll’. This put me in the quandary of film shooters across the globe - having to ‘process’ an unfinished roll of film!
BY IAN McKELVIE
I was very interested in this assignment because it immediately rang a bell to a picture I framed on the Stone Jetty at Morecambe last year. My intention had been to take some ICM images, but noticed several cyclist riding along. I tried a couple of test shots then repositioned myself slightly and nailed this one with the first shot. Taken at 1/8s with a 6 stop ND filter attached.
BY ROBERT WEIGEL
Attached is my entry for the fleeting moment assignment. The crop-dusting plane in the right of the picture came across the scene one time and he was gone. I heard him flying around and watched him dust the fields and waited for him to come across the lone tree. One-shot and he was on to the next field. I really enjoy the assignments. Have a great weekend.
BY MIKE MILLER
I dipped into my 365 project for the drop photography image (above) but last evening was my first chance to photograph the start of our current soccer season. I had my camera on single-shot mode and made this image (below).
