C&N A1 Tutor Feedback Highlighed

Thank you for your response to my first assignment and while I generally with your comments and I very much agree with one sentence which sums up my feeling towards this assignment:

Your text suggests you’ve understood some of the social dynamics going on in Pattaya but the images do not show you’ve found a way to visualize it.

I think what I was visualising in the series of diptychs is not what you have seen – for example, the image 4 I was showing tourist returning from a trip against the “trip organisers” waiting bored for there return; image 2 the tourist almost gravitational pull towards home comforts against the freshness of (cheap) street food and image 3 here the beach for tourist involves sitting in the sun against for a local it involves giving an old man a pedicure.

HOWEVER, the fact that I am having to re-explain this to your show to me that my ideas were poorly conceived and not well executed. I am learning that this module is much more personal than EYV and I need to search more within my self for the ideas and images.

I will revisit this assignment and rework it substantially one I have had some more time to process and distil my thoughts – as iI was trying to allude to in my notes “by weighting images towards the daytime and Chinese/Indian family groups” I was trying to avoid the sex tourism aspect of the city – for a couple of reasons, one,  it seemed to be “low hanging fruit” (however looking at the assignment I have gone for that anyway) – I tried to show it subtly with the last image the massage shop and clinic offering STD checks and two, it can be hard to photograph as the post sides of the industry do not really want the involvement in publishing…

I understand your comments re. getting closer to my subjects I have noticed this myself in my photography of late that I have become very shy and reticent to approach – I’m stuck on stranger 99 form 100 strangers project. While I have never been Bruce Gilden I closer than I am now. I need to reignite the mojo I had; hence will press on with the research and exercises for the build-up to assignment 2 and not dwell and spiral on assignment one. I think if I can rebuild my street photography confidence over the next couple of weeks I can revisit assignment 1 with new vigour.

Thing to consider for rework:

• Clothing
• Barefoot culture
• sex tourism/money

I’m being to think that I do perhaps need to be braver and tackle the sex tourism angle.

Demonstration of technical and Visual Skills

This has been an interesting assignment and I have “followed my gut” in how it has been presented I have shot in a street/travel style to produce a set of image that works together as a set. The images are crisp and the post-processing has been kept consistent across all images so that there is a feeling of belonging across the sets. Whilst not necessary the main part of what I have trying to show I have tried keeping a sadness emptiness to the images as an overarching secondary theme to help with this overall feeling of belonging

Quality of outcome

After view of my first, I think that the presentation of the sets of diptychs improves the coherence of the images and the point of view I am trying to show. However, I do feel that is a little lacking in experiment creativity. However, I have struggled with a further idea and therefore feel that is best to follow my gut in this diagnostic first assignment. However, I fdo feel I have present the images is a ordered and clean way which guides the tye viewer and raises enough question to allow them to raise there own opinion

Demonstration of creativity

As I have touched on above I’m sure some of my course mates will have more conceptually creative ideas, one such suggestion was a series of self portraits with my work situation and in more tourist situation or perhaps a for focused investigation into the life of the tour guides – embedding myself with them for a few days like a war reporter.

However, I do feel that there is not a vast gulf between the normal tourist and local worker in Pattaya both sides may argue there is but what is drying them is value for money – tourist/expats are here because it cheap and local workers are here because of a  better chance of income.

Context

I think if the set has a main criticism is that it could be viewed as  “the story of one place with different people passing by; more about place than people as we are always distant from them in the images” this came from a comment in peer view and I understand that sentiment and worry that it has taken over from showing the subtle differences in the lives of the residents.

Assignment Notes

I’m a relatively new resident to Pattaya, Thailand a holiday destination of the eastern coast of Thailand, 2 hours south of the capital Bangkok and I have tried to illustrate within these 2 sets of images a slice of life for both the tourist and the locals.

As a tourist destination, Pattaya can have an unseemly reputation in the eyes of westerners however, it is a major destination for Mainland Chinese and Indians tours, so I have tried to weight the images in this way and avoid obvious nightlife scenes. Also, as we are currently in “low season” the town is relatively quiet and has the slightly sad feeling that all seaside towns have in their closed season, again I have tried to reflect that in the images

I have entitled the assignment “This is the life; this is life” and I have presented the 2 sets as diptychs, pairing the images with the other side each other’s story. The Tourist to the left, locals to the right. Each pair is a slice of how I see both sides, from the point of view someone who involved in the tourist industry on a daily basis.

Tourists and Expats are here to be “living the life”, or their version of it; whereas locals are here living their life. This life may be that of a normal 9-5 job as with the girl collecting her lunch or it could just involve waiting around for hours on end for the waves of tourist. Many workers in Pattaya are migrants from other areas who are drawn to the holiday resort by tourist dollar but for most this just involves them competing against each other for the same few dollars. However, it is not perfect for expats as shown with the slightly unhealthy-looking man, a reflection of the drinking culture that the expats fall into. Also, the demographics of many of tourist are on low-cost tours and do not have the spending power, that perhaps the locals expect.

I have tried to show varied but not eclectic sets of images that show the subtle difference for many between the tourist and the local, everyone is in Pattaya because of many either the lower cost of living for the expat, cheap destination for the tourist and draw of tourist dollar for the local.

While I stand by my opinion that the 2 sets show 2 sides to Pattaya, I do think and this is reflected in the opinions of other students that there is not enough information to show what I am driving at. That images to capture and place at different times perhaps not from a different side not enforcing the how an image can be polysemous.

I received from great feedback and opinions from other students which I have taken on board, however, I think as a diagnostic assignment of my ability I feel that it would be counterproductive to my own development to drastically change the idea for submission as this could lead to a  sense  of false confidence going in to the next stage of the course.

I have reviewed my images and feel that they will be better presented as diptychs and with a better title. The title will be “This is the life; this is life”, reflecting how the different group see each day. Reviewing the pictures as diptychs has made me ensure that each picture has a matching pair and this has lead to the removal of the Gogo bar logo and the girl on a motorbike, these do not add to the sets.

Brief

Create at least two sets of photographs telling different versions of the same story. The aim of the assignment is to help you explore the convincing nature of documentary, even though what the viewer thinks they see may not in fact be true. Try to make both sets equally convincing so that it’s impossible to tell which version of the images is ‘true’.

Pattaya from 2 Angles

Locals

Tourists

Assignment Notes

I’m a relatively new resident to Pattaya, Thailand a holiday destination of the eastern coast of Thailand, 2 hours south of the capital Bangkok and I have tried to illustrate within these 2 sets of images a slice of life for both the tourist and the locals.

Now as a tourist destination Pattaya can have an unseemly reputation in the eye of western, however, it is a major destination for Mainland Chinese and Indians tours, so I have tried to weight the images in this way and avoid obvious night scene. Also, as we are currently in “low season” the town is relatively quiet and has the slightly sad feel that all seaside towns have in their closed season.

Pattaya is also a large town with local Thai’s going about the daily business however, much of this is dependent on the tourist trade as many of the workers are economic migrants from other areas of Thai and they case the tourist money where they can often lead  many people doing the same thing and involving long waits whilst the tours return in the afternoon to the buses.

The sets were shot simply with a Canon 5D3 and a 50mm and 24 -70 lens not that equipment is important. And post-processing was kept consistent throughout the sets with overall slightly cool white balance and only minor adjustments to individual images. A consistent 10×8 crop is maintained throughout. Each set is a slice of how I see both sides as someone who involved in the tourist industry on a daily basis. They wide without being eclectic and the images for example the unhealthy-looking westerner should raise enough with in the viewer them to look at the images within the set and pull together a story for the average person in both groups.

From the original set of images, I have further split the images into 3 sets of contact sheets. These contact sheets cover 3 main area I think of when i think of when i think of the demographic of Pattaya.

The expat (or long-term foreign resident).

You would normally associate expat as living a working in a country other than your own, perhaps as a teacher or executive. However, the expats are more financial refuges – retired / semi-retired making use of the very low cost of living.

Tourists

Short term visitors on tours from their own country, majorly India and Mainland China. A lot of these guys have the days organised for them and they ushered around in groups although there are some independent souls.

Locals

Thai’s living and working in the Pattaya area many of which are economic migrants from poorer areas of the country and whilst they are going about there day to day lives, their lives are tied to the tourists and expats

What I am looking for here are images that mirror or illustrate how life is different for these groups.

Over a period of 3 days, I took a wander around Pattaya to capture images that I thought fell into the 2 rough pigeons holes – the tourist side and the local side.

Without doubt, Pattaya is one of the most famous holiday resorts in the world but it is home to thousands of local Thai people and to expats who to them a day in Pattaya is just a normal day. For this assignment to want to show the difference between and how the particularly the Thai side of local life blends with the tourist.

Currently, it is low season in Pattaya so there is a tinge of sadness about the place many of the restaurants, bars and beaches have a deserted feel to them as do many seaside towns in the UK in the winter – although it is not winter but rainy season here.

While note exactly 2 sides to a story Lauren Henkin’s work The Park show the relationship between New Yorks central park and it surrounding environment and its interaction with people.

Central Park is the lungs of New York it allows the city and its inhabitants to breathe and I like how in this work Henkin has shown this – just a juxtaposition of parkland against urban. It much more considered than that it shows the soul of the park. it captures the fleeting solitude that the park gives, for the park is just that a “walled” urban park, not the Yorkshire Dales.

I have visited NY  city on a few occasion and the soul of the park is unmistakable even at a tourist and that how this project was started by Henkin then completed as resident.

Henkin states

While the Park has been the subject of important bodies of work, my goal is to present it from a fresh perspective—not as a backdrop for human interaction, but as an active player; and to use photography to stop time, enabling us to see what we’re often-unconscious of without the help of the camera—scale, escape, folly, irony, juxtaposition, awkwardness and authenticity.

And can feel her intent the picture capture the unseen as well as illustrate the parts position and as such, I think this series will also assist in the planing for assignment 2.

References

Smithson, A. (2014). Lauren Henkin: The Park. [online] LENSCRATCH. Available at: http://lenscratch.com/2014/12/lauren-henkin-the-park/ [Accessed 20 Jun. 2018].

What does 2 sides to the same story mean? My immediate thoughts is – opposites e.g. good / bad or Dark side / lightside. However, it could involve:

1. recreating an event (or parts of) from different points of view
2. image manipulations to change perception e.g. “airbrushing” out the ugly
3. the use of symbolism
4. shooting a real event in 2 different ways

I live and work in Pattaya, Thailand which is a city of many sides and faces – not all of them very nice, in fact, I received many knowing looks when I said of was moving here. I am therefore drawn to representing this somehow. Ideas which would fit would be

1. The dark and the light – Pattaya by night and day
2. Saints & Sinners – the world of sex tourism
3. Empty city – inspired by Sarah Pickering’s Public order; scenes from the city with people removed at different times of the day.
4. Behind the scenes – show the public and private sides of tourist activities e.g. scuba diving
5. Above and below the water
6. Framing and context – use different framing of a single image to convey different meanings/viewpoints
7. Driver vs Pedestrian – not a PlayStation game but how a route is different in a car than by foot
8. Social inequalities – Beggars vs Luxury goods etc
9. Expat vs Tourist vis local

Of these ideas over the last few days I have discounted a few for practicality, e.g

• I am still new here in Pattaya so projects that will require 3^rd party involvement would be difficult.
• Empty city – my tripod is still in Hong Kong (3hrs flight away) along with my ND1000…
• 2 sides of an event – not sure when a suitable event is available and is time restricted making reshoots impossible
• Above and below water – although Scuba is my day job it now the lowest tides and poorest visibly of the year. All the underwater shots would be pea soup!!!

I have mind mapped some ideas of tourist vs local sides of Pattaya on a Starbucks napkin – schoolboy error note book left at home.

The most obvious idea is the difference between day to day life and the cities reputation as the world largest sex tourism destination or indeed an extrapolation of this in the 2 sides to the story of the girls working in this industry. However, these are projects that would require a high level of sensitivity and planning for access and I think are beyond the scope of od assignment 1.