Day 12 - Number 5, 2014 'The Gallery'

I took this photo because I enjoyed the space, light, texture and leading lines created by the walls, floor and roof supports. Little did I realise where this  room 'The Gallery' would take me.

One of the good things about Project365 is that you take plenty of photos each day but as you only get to pick one, there are a few spares you can use latter if needed.

When I processed the room image raw file, my eye were naturally drawn down the walls, past the light coming through the door and finally towards the end wall. I though what a great place to put a sea container, as you do.  Happy with how the image, 'Mural' looked in its new space I went searching for three other images (two for the walls and one for the floor) that would complement the space and texture of the existing sea container.

I am really happy with the final result. It really looks like a street artist has been busy with their chalks.

Number 5, 2015/The Gallery

Number 5, 2015/The Gallery

Project365 Reflection

Although it has only been twelve days I am really surprised at what is happen to me.

Everywhere I look, I now see Colour, Lines, Shapes and Texture, it's wonderful watching this new world appearing before me.

I now feel I walk around all the time focussing on the end point without taking care to enjoy the journey. While it's great to get to your destination, I realise it is worthwhile to also enjoy the journey, which can be just as good, even better than the destination. Unless your going back home to see your wife after being away for four weeks.

What I am now hoping and expecting, is that my pre-visualisation of the final image will improve dramatically.

What every happens, with just over 50 (353 Images) more weeks to go, I know there will be plenty of surprises along the path to my final destination, Day 365.

I also acknowledge that this Project365 will likely only be the fist conscious step along my journey to develop a better photographic vision of my style.

Until tomorrow.

 

Day 11 - Number 4, 2014 'Potential'

A make-shift corner shop just outside our compound in rural Bangladesh became the setting for this image. I headed off expecting to get one shot and walked away with 'Potential'.

I didn't expect to see this young boy sitting beside a small desk surrounded by cigarettes and chips. I guess something for the kids and something for the grownups.  All bases covered. It made me reflect on my childhood growing up in Broken Hill, New South Wales not wanting for much.

Since first arriving in Bangladesh, I have been struck by the difference in living standards from Australia. Based on GDP per Capita, Bangladesh is the 34th poorest country in the world, 18th percentile (out of 184 countries). Australia is at 175 out of 184, 95th percentile.

On the flip side of that information is that Bangladesh has good potential for growth, being the 36th largest economy in the world.  The growth potential of the economy has led to Bangladesh's inclusion in the Next Eleven (N-11) of Goldman Sachs and the Global Growth Generators countries.

The people, like all people in the world, are very friendly, generous, happy and a pleasure to work beside.

While the shop the boy is in may seem primitive to us, relative to others I have seen it is very good.  Some owners sell goods off a mat on the ground. Again it's all relative.

Since working in Bangladesh it has also stuck me the importance of a good education. It's the way to get a good job and to have choices. I would like to think this young boy uses this desk to do his home work, giving himself a chance at having choices when he gets older.

Hopefully you can understand why I have co-named the image 'Potential'. There is much potential in the boy as an individual.  As part of the 160 million strong population of Bangladesh, this country also has great potential.

Number 4, 2014/Potential

Number 4, 2014/Potential

Until tomorrow

Day 10 - Number 3, 2014 'Books'

Ok, so I am not quite ready to call every image by a number.

Books or Number 3, 2014 started out quite by accident. I was looking for some paper and came across these 'Accountant Ledgers' 17.5" x 12" absolutely beautiful 1 1/2" think full of blank paper. It is time like this I wish I could draw.

Accountant Ledgers, 17.5" x 12.5" captured with iPhone 5, vision with Snapseed

Accountant Ledgers, 17.5" x 12.5" captured with iPhone 5, vision with Snapseed

I absolutely love books, there is a place near where I live called Berkelouw's that is a must if you are every in Noosa, Sunshine Coast, Queensland. I saw am image that I liked, it was just full of books, so I did my own. Trying to make the image more meaningful got me thinking how technology has changed the way we buy, read and use books.

Enter the iPad or Kindle or what ever digital book reader you use.  They are great I have a mini iPad and have lots of books downloaded from Kindle Store. But I am still of the age that remembers "The Time Before iPads". The touch of the cover's texture and the smell of the paper, all make the experience more tactile and enjoyable, for me anyway.

So back to the image, Books. I created two images and combined them.

The first is the Accountant Ledger and computer image on the desk, with all the distractions removed and the second is by book pile image. I made the image in the book look old, given the new technology advances and placed it on the pages of the Accountant Ledger using a Photoshop technique called 'Displacement Mapping'.

On the computer screen we can clearly see the Amazon Kindle Store showing a Kindle, creating a juxtaposition between the old and the new, now and the past, paper and technology. What ever way you want to look at it, i.e. the vision behind me creating Number 3, 2014; Books.

We also have the rays shining from the computer display onto the book as if it is saying "I am Diviine, I am Better!"

 

Number 3, 2014; Books

Number 3, 2014; Books

The Making of Number 3, 2014; Books

Until tomorrow.

Day 9 - Number 2, 2014 + Movie

Its quite exciting not knowing what image will be posted at the end of today, and this post was no exception.

Todays image "Number 2, 2014" was inspired by colour, shape and texture.

I hear you asking "What about Number 1, 2014?"

Number 1, 2014 below, was an image I was hoping to use as a texture. Originally I was attracted by the rich red colour and after taking the first image I moved my camera down a bit lower and saw what would become Number 2, 2014. I still saw colour, but now there was more types of texture and different colours and shapes which I though would contrast well with each other.

Number 1, 2014

Number 1, 2014

Struggling what to name the abstract image, I thought how was Blue Poles by Jackson Pollack named and discovered that he just used to call them Number 1, 1952; Number 2, 195; etc. Pretty easy and it lets the viewer decide what they want to call the image.

I am quite excited how Project 365 is changing the way I see and create and it is only day 9.  I have posted a screen shot below showing some the 15 layers in Photoshop used to create the vision that developed.

Photoshop layers of Number 2, 2014

Photoshop layers of Number 2, 2014

We can see colour and texture, but I want to point out all the rectangles.  Like one of those games I can find six very easily. Also it was a conscious decision to have the top red texture in the stopping in the middle to balance the three obvious rectangles below.

Number 2, 2014

Number 2, 2014

I personally enjoy it when I can see what the original image looked like when it was originally seen then the creative process that takes place through to the final vision.

The Creation of Number 2, 2014

Until tomorrow

Day 8 - Faith + Movie

I started my day off as usual, looking for the day's image. "What do I like and why?"

Off all things, I ended up liking the razor wire that surrounds a Gas Plant. It's a pretty important plant as is supplies half the gas to Bangladesh that has a population of a 160 million people.

The back drop was an overcast sky.

The initial interest was what I thought razor wire represented. I say thought because i found some deeper meanings.

At first, I thought security, protect the plant from who ever. Then I did some digging on the internet and discovered the razor wire (or barbed wire) can represent faith, hope or salvation. These come from the thought of the crown of thorns Jesus was forced to wear on his head. Interesting you can decide.

Then I thought about the sun and it can mean divine life, power, strength, energy or simply life sustaining.

Finally the clouds in the Bible represent signify 'Divine Truth.'

Surprisingly the image took a spiritual life which I have tried to represent in the final image.

I have also included a short 52 second movie showing the creation of faith (that sounds a bit cliche ) from start to end. The numbers (finishes at 13) on the side are different snap shots taken during the editing. The image ended up with 21 layers and a file size of 1.65 GB, not bad from the original Fuji file of 67 MB.

I hope you enjoy looking at "Faith" above and how the image was made in the movie.

Until tomorrow.

Faith

Faith

Day 7 - Sakil

Well this is the last post for week one and what have I learnt.

  1. It's great to have your camera with you all the time as you obviously can get those opportune shots that you would have missed.
  2. I am certainly more conscious of looking for images that interest me.
  3. The X100 is a great camera for a Project like this.
  4. I have 51 weeks to go and I am very interested to see what happens on the journey.

Ok, below we have an image of Sakil. "Please step forward the real Sakil."

Have you guessed which is the real Sakil and why?

Sakil

Sakil

The image of the left is the real Sakil.  With the image on the right I have used the right hand side (as you look at the image) of his face and flipped it to create the left hand side of his face.  Then there was a bit of Photoshop magic to take a few years off.

I initially took the image of the left as I feel Sakil has an interesting face. Great eyes and a kind smile, and this certainly represents his personality as well.  Very polite and a nice all round guy.

So why did I take the image on the left?

I am trying hard to stretch my creative thinking, and I had never tried this technique, and I think the result is pretty good, not perfect, but hey none of our faces are perfect.  I am sure there is little things that we would all like to change.

Moral Alert! But we all know it what's on the inside that counts, right?

Until tomorrow

Day 6 - The Wall

The obvious thought the came into my head today for the Project365 image is that you photograph what's around you, told you its is obvious.

You also need to 'see' what's around you, so you need look for images. I feel this has to be is a conscious effort.  The image is not going to yell out "Hey, OVER HERE!!!!". You need to be asking, "What is taking my interest", and explore, take plenty of images from different angles and then make a decision when you download the images.

'The Wall' is being built about 3 meters from the front door of my PAB room. But today, a small scaffold had been built for the workers to access higher points. With the scaffold in place The Wall took on an extra interest.

The Wall

The Wall

I had liked the texture, colour and rustic industrial feel, and now with the scaffold in place I had a natural frame to help draw in the eye.

I also made the conscious decision to crop the image with the 617 crop format. I feel that this decision right from the start, for me anyway made the image strong from the start. Must be something magic about the ratio.

I hope you like it. So far I feel this is my favourite image. Why? Because as I said above, it is saying what I wanted to convey to you, "I had liked the texture, colour and rustic industrial feel."

If you like the image, with your mouse, hover over the image and click Pin It, thanks.

Until tomorrow

 

Day 5 - PAB

After I completed my Cadetship at the North Mine in Broken Hill as an Underground Mine Surveyor I moved to Kambalda Western Australia to work for Western Mining Corporation (WMC) and lived at the Single Mans Quarters (SMQ) later to become the Single Persons Quarters (SPQ) to be more political correct.  It was a great life, work, gym, eat and sleep. That was was in 1982 OMG, I was 23 years old.

Well 31 years later here I am in a PAB (Personal Accommodation Block).

PAB, Bibiyana, Bangladesh

PAB, Bibiyana, Bangladesh

Life is good in the PAB, comfortable rooms, food that is too good and a choice of two gyms.

There is no deep meaning behind the image, I just liked the symmerty, while not perfect I'll take what I can get.

Until tomorrow.

 

Day 4 - It's my tail ...self help!

One of the great benefits of having your camera with you all the time is that you get to capture life's important moments.

It's my tail ... self help is well, you can work it out, no tricks here.

It's my tail ... self help.

It's my tail ... self help.

I did have bit of fun with the image in Photoshop. No manipulation, only adjustments in light and colour to highlight all the 'action'.

What do you think of the frame?

Until tomorrow.

Day 3 - Bangladesh Bus

It's only day three and my brain is already looking for things to photography all the time.

A little bit less serious today.

So if you have ever been to Bangladesh two things will be obvious.

  1. It has a major wet season that usually causes major flooding, and
  2. The traffic rules are not what you are used to if you come from say the UK, Australia, USA or New Zealand etc. I trust you understand what I mean.

So the thought process behind this image captured two of the major differences I noticed when I came to Bangladesh.  The third is the standard of living which I am sure will end up as an image in the next 27 days.

Until tomorrow.


Bangladesh truck

Bangladesh truck