In my brief I decided to cover the theme of Light. Before I was more interested in doing portraiture as it was something I hadn't really covered before in my personal work and it was something I had enjoyed when doing it in class. I felt that it would be beneficial for my personal skills and portfolio for me to experiment with more portraits, which I did. However after looking through some of the photos I had, I was unhappy with the way they had come out. I was being urged to photoshop some of them to show my skill in photoshop as well as with the camera itself. However after photoshopping some images I grew unhappy with the photos I had taken. And one strict rule I follow myself is that nobody's opinion matters more than your own. So I decided to drop portraiture and do something I was more used to: club photography. I felt it would be perfect to do club photography as my final project as it is something I'm comfortable with, and something I do regularly. Something I like particularly with club photography is the vibrance and passion that is on some people's faces that I don't think I would be able to replicate by asking a model to show those emotions, even if I tried. There's something quite amazing about the love drugged intoxicated teens and adults dancing under a light flooded dance floor, enjoying the music and showing their passion through physical displays. I notice, when shooting club nights, there are often people hugging one another for no apparent reason and people kissing those they have just met. There is nothing more interesting, photographically, than sudden urges of emotion that along side slow shutter speed light trails can create powerful emotion filled photographs. The faces are also some things I love the most. You get some brilliant expressions on people's faces, whether it be because of genuine happiness or delirious daze induced by the alcohol consumed. I felt myself lucky having covered light photographers such as Patrick Rochon who focused all of their work around long exposure light trails, creating passionate explosions of colour and vibrance. This is something I always try to recreate when shooting in a club. The strobes and lighting systems can create strong beams of light that storm into frame and when using low ISOs and a flash gun, create light trails rather than filling the whole photo with a solid colour. I also attempt to use aspects of photographers such as Jesse Olu, Laurence Howe and Tom Horton's work to find my own style. However after finding a style I am happy with, I feel that my work is different to all three's, and in itself is unique. I feel that there's always ways, however, to improve my final outcomes when working at clubs. I always come away liking my photos, however I also always think there's something I wish I could have done to improve. The photos I have submitted for my final outcome were used with my 50mm F1.8G. This lens is relatively fast and good for it's manual override drive focus, but it is totally terrible for club work. It's just too tight. Sometimes I feel it can be good for getting a busy vibe, by making it look like there's no room to take photos, because there are too many people, but on the whole it can be a nuisance to use it in a club where large groups of people want photos, and 50mm just can't hack it. I recently shot Trolley Snatcha, Zomboy, Coki and True Tiger at Cable Nightclub for an album launch night, and I used my kit lens: the 18-55mm f3.5-5.6 VR. This lens is very slow and has no manual override. However when using it with auto focus assist light at 18mm, it is useable and I can't deny it. However it isn't sharp, even when shooting in RAW. Other than perhaps buying a new, faster and sharper lens, I can't think of anything that I would change about my work. I am very happy with my current style and I feel that my outcome reflects it. I just need to carry on with my work, shoot as many events as I can and enjoy myself. I believe that the photos that I have chosen show that I enjoy the work that I do and that I can capture the emotion that I desire to capture, with stunning colour and contrast.
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