I have left the original image 5 (the rope) and the Image 7 (passengers) as while they are not perhaps unique to the Star Ferry, they do capture what I am trying to achieve. The picture of the rope is one of the small details that catch my eye each time I board, something that indicates we are on a boat and something that will never change while ever the ferry is in service. Similarly, with the passengers it is meant to show a normality because while the ferry is perhaps a quirky working piece of history it is part of everyday life for many people.

I have removed the original image six in favour of a bilingual sign, as it shows more the audience the age that the ferry comes from and I have removed the Image 10 the standard ferry shot and swapped in a more quirky image of the crew cutting rope mid crossing on the deck of the ferry.

I have looked at the order of the pictures and they are presented to how a sense of journey from what you see as you board the ferry, to what you see as you walk around and finally the ferry arrive at the pier.

I feel that this set builds on the original set tightening and plays more to the quirkiness of the ferry. I have considered captions to the images, but I like that the feel it better to allow the audience to guided by the own thoughts, as would look to present this as an exhibition with the introduction being why 300 “what is it about.”

The Star Ferry

What is it about?

For HK$2 you can climb aboard the Star Ferry at Pier 7 in Central, Hong Kong and embark on a journey that has despite the marching of time and modernization has remained remarkably untouched in decades.

The Star Ferry was the one thing I wanted to do when originally came to Hong Kong on a short business trip – if I did nothing else I had to tick it off my bucket list. Now some seven years later I still take the ferry on a regular basis, and I am still as happy as I was the first day I sailed across the harbour. The ferry is to everything about Hong Kong that I love. For five years I lived stones through away and it would often be the starting point for me on many a day out.

The Star Ferry that it is living museum, a ferry runs from 6 am to 11 pm only stopping for typhoons, not matter how many passengers there are. Even though this is no longer the only way to cross the harbor it is still as relevant now as it was then.

I once said happiness was getting on board the star ferry, coffee in hand, and setting off on the short seven-minute journey across the harbor. There is peace and tranquility on the ferry, even at the busiest times, that you cannot experience any other form of transport. Life on the ferry moves at a different pace, there are details to take in, free air to breathe, there is personal space that you never feel on the MTR (Hong Kong’s underground); these images are an attempt to show the peace I feel every time I step on the ferry.

Image 1

Image 2

Image 3

Image 4

Image 5

Image 6

Image 7

Image 8

Image 9

Image 10

Simon has not only given pointers about images I should reconsider in rework, but he has also given me a lot of pointers towards how I should consider presenting the images.

I thought that I had made it clear in my notes that the images were arranged in a particular way to show the journey across the harbor on the ferry. The initial images are the stars that are in the funnel of the boats to introduce the subject leading to timetable showing the direction of travel and finally onto the vessel itself.

I believe Simon is right about the last image, the ferry, everyone who has been to Hong Kong has that pictures, and I think in hindsight it isn’t 100% necessary to show the ferries sense of location.

I also agree with the comments about image 5 – doesn’t show anything unique the Star Ferry. This is an image I would look to replace the picture mentioned above.

Image 6 – understand Simons comment, however, to me there is more to this image that the signage, there is the lights on Hong Kong island in the background that help, set a sense of place to the overall image set. Again with image 7 the “normalness” of the passengers is what I am trying to portray, there is nothing quirky about the passengers on the ferry – it is just a practical way to get to from Central to Tsim Sha Tsui.

This first step to polish and rework this image is to look for alternative images; there were some pictures that I wanted to include originally that I was conflicted about leaving out – these will be my first considerations. I will have then look at the presentation style of the assignment and some accompanying captions for the images to help with the context of the set.

In addition to the assignment rework, there are a couple of areas with my coursework mainly ex 5.2 and ex 5.3 where I need to review and revise my work.

Highlighted Tutor feedback

Demonstration of technical and Visual Skills:

These images were shot with a range of cameras over a several visit to the ferry, sometimes a small compact EOS M mirrorless with 35mm Equiv lens. Other times with a full frame DSLR with a range of focal length lens.

Reviewing the shot on the Mac one day shoot most of the outside shots were in my opinion unusable as the light was too flat and grey. The images were shot in aperture priority mode, taking are to have unclipped highlights and shadows.

Post processing was very minimal across the pictures, just to make the RAW file pop and keep a consistency to the shots.

I lost count of the ferry journeys that I took over those days; I did keep swapping from the Wan Chai and Central ferries and the upper and lower deck for two reasons different views and to keep suspicion level down.

Quality of outcome
Photography is simple; of course, it is you just point your camera and viola, if only that were true. I have learnt a lot from the past for assignments, and I think that new knowledge was what made the picking of a subject and concept difficult.
The photography in a way was easy, but the tying the elements together that were a different story, but I like the final images I have submitted for this assignment, and the set was received favourable comments from peer review in the OCA Facebook groups and course message board,

A lot of thought went into the final images and their presentation order. The set is designed to reflect the direction of travel from getting on at Tsim Sha Tsui. Although, the set is not intended to reflect a single journey, it symbolic of the sights on that journey that have left happy memories, with the final image symbolizing that the ferry continues to run and will always be there for me when I need it
I conflicted, on the pictures, to pick, the brief was to show new information with each shot, but there was a need to show context and keep the feel set together. I have stepped toward the more eclectic set to show progression, and I hope that my tutor and assessors see it the same way.

Demonstration of Creativity or Imagination

Here I have explored the happiness that they I have felt by riding the Star Ferry, I was once quoted as saying as long as I could afford a coffee and the price of the ferry, I would always be happy in Hong Kong.

I have tried to explore that by showing where my mind takes me while on that 10-minute journey, to show the peace that ferry travel brings. This something you can’t experience any other form of transport – in my opinion. Perhaps for a future project a series of diptychs, partnering the ferry with another form of transport would be an idea to pursue,

Context

My research for this was the work of Alex Soth and Olivia Arthur, how they have captured the lives and expression of different cultures in their projects. Both those photographers have used people extensively in their project, but I just wanted to distill that idea to my ferry journeys but without focusing too much on the human aspect. I also was working with Robert Franks – Americans in mind as well.

Perhaps my the level of research isn’t quite right, with this Assignment as I was more focused, on achieving my aims visually. A ferry journey is a trip road, if only for 10 minutes; it is a journey I have tried my best to convey this fact.

There are element about the ferry I would have liked to have included that would have taken the set down a different viewpoint that is the finance’s behind the ferry, but I struggled to find a way to illustrate this.

After a quick cull of obvious bad images here are the contacts for 3 days worth of shooting to be whittled down for submission

Olivia Arthur is a British Magnum photographer, in fact, one of the youngest Magnum photographers.

Here series Jeddah diaries were taken in 2009 as a part of larger project on the differences between women in the east and west. It shows a fascinating insight into the world that is rarely seen, which gained by here building trust with the subjects.

I think that this set if images, really does fit with the expectation and the brief for Expressing Your Vision assignment five extremely well indeed. In that, she is showing the many facets’ to the life of women in Saudi Arabia, and while the images are similar and overarching in context, there are enough variety and diversity to keep the viewer fascinated.

There is a context to the pictures too in that, Miss Arthur is not trying to show repression, but the Title the project Jeddah Diaries gives a clear indication as to what and where we are looking at. So we can make up our minds, she has captioned the photo’s concise to add further depth to the context.

Overall, I like how this set of images is presented; they fall not into my style, but more in the form of pictures, that interest me.

“Everyone can take great pictures. What’s hard is taking a collection of great pictures and making them work together. It’s like language: everyone can speak but putting the words together is the real challenge.” (Alex Soth)

Alex Soth is widely regarded as one of the leading contemporary American photographers, and my tutor suggested a look at his work in the lead up to assignment 5 of Expressing Your Vision.

“Gathered leaves” is a current retrospective of his work at the Science Museum in London, UK and while I have not been able to attend. I have researched online, as this seems an excellent source of his work and to show the progress through his projects.

Soths work is often a likened to that of Robert Frank and Walker Evens in that he tends to engage in large-scale projects of on a road trip. The focus on a particular element in American Life. For example 2006 “Broken Manual” a series about people who has chosen to live “off the grid”.

Soth’s work appears to have a cohesion between concept and the resulting images which if I am honest my images don’t have. Soth seems to have pre-visualized what he is looking to achieve delivered. In an interview with ASX on YouTube, there is an interesting quote in that no one disappears, and that is something that he has apparently thought about before the images for “Broken Manual” were shot.

Soth process is that a project is as much about him as it is about the subject matter. He takes the subject apart in his process and that gives great context to the work and the time of Broken Manual is was himself in very introspective state.

Soth is an exceptional photographer that will continue to study and my journey through my degree progress.

Bibliography

AMERICAN SUBURB X (2015) ASX interview with Alec Soth (2015). Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w91iWM_57RU (Accessed: 6 March 2016).

Gathered leaves: Photographs by Alec Soth (2015) Available at: http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/visitmuseum/Plan_your_visit/exhibitions/alec-soth (Accessed: 6 March 2016).

Kim, E. (2014) 14 lessons Alec Soth has taught me about street photography. Available at: http://erickimphotography.com/blog/2014/02/25/14-lessons-alec-soth-has-taught-me-about-street-photography/ (Accessed: 6 March 2016).

Soth, A. (2013) Alec Soth. Available at: http://alecsoth.com/photography/ (Accessed: 6 March 2016).

Written and James, D. (2015) ‘Photography is a language.’ Alec Soth on his first UK exhibition gathered leaves. Available at: http://www.bjp-online.com/2015/10/photography-is-a-language-alec-soth-on-his-first-uk-exhibition-gathered-leaves/ (Accessed: 6 March 2016).

The Hepworth Gallery Feb 2016

On a brief visit home to Leeds over the Chinese New Year period, I took the opportunity to visit the exhibition of Martin Parr’s latest project at the Hepworth Gallery in Wakefield. The project is a study of the “The Rhubarb Triangle” which exists in this area of West Yorkshire.

It might be the fact that after living away from West Yorkshire for some 18 years, 8 in the Isle of Man and the past 7 in Hong Kong, but the sight of a project on something so close to home was quite an emotional feeling.

Rhubarb is such a British thing, a fruit that is a vegetable and I grew up (although not exactly in the Rhubarb Triangle) with stories that how when my mum was young that where I house was now situated, was then rhubarb fields as far as the eye could see. My grandparents always had a small rhubarb patch behind the shed (perhaps subconsciously in honor of this fact as it was rarely eaten).

The exhibition was laid out logically clockwise around the room, with the different sections of the rhubarb production on separate walls, Farming (growing), Harvest, Public consumption, Products. All the prints were in the same aspect ratio, with a mix of A2 and some A0 prints – this was the first thing that I picked up on as it is something that was highlighted to me in my first assignment feedback. Keep collection in the same aspect for visual consistency.

What I found most interesting and perhaps reassuring was that Parr’s images are ordinary; they are a compilation of the type of image you would expect in a photo essay, environmental shots, portraits and details. They show the “warts and all” of the apparently hard dirty work of producing commercial rhubarb and here is a closeness to the subject.

I think it is entirely fortuitous that attended this exhibition at this point in the course because it has helped with my understanding of the “distance between us and the camera” and the context of the images.

While Parr is quite obviously a stranger in the rhubarb triangle as I have said above there is closeness to the subject, he has captured the essence of the back-breaking work, this either through his love of rhubarb or interaction with the protagonists.

Also, the context I find these images very common (not a criticism) just because it what I associate with my home in the west riding. If they were viewed by someone here in Hong Kong, for example, they will be full of mystery and unseen detail, in the same way as I see the street markets of Asia.

Bibliography

Bayley, S., Chisholm, K., Killen, M., Delingpole, J. and Wordsworth, D. (2016) ‘I enjoy the banal’: Stephen Bayley meets Martin Parr. Available at: http://www.spectator.co.uk/2016/02/i-enjoy-the-banal-stephen-bayley-meets-martin-parr/ (Accessed: 6 March 2016).

Cumming, E. (2016) Mysteries of the Rhubarb triangle, revealed by Martin Parr. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/global/2016/jan/31/mysteries-of-the-rhubarb-triangle (Accessed: 6 March 2016).

Parr, M. and Magnum (no date) The Rhubarb triangle and other stories: Photographs by Martin Parr. Available at: http://www.hepworthwakefield.org/martin-parr/ (Accessed: 6 March 2016).

I believe she has picked up on the peace of the ferry, which something that I very much identify with. Although, in her shot there is a feeling of emptiness which is something I don’t always feel. Yes, the ferry can be quiet at times, and taht one of it charms is that it sail no matter who is on there. However, there is peace also in the busiess of times which is something I would wnt to show in my own set.

Bibliography