Exercise: Capturing the moment...

This moment suggested itself while I was photographing skaters at the Winchester Winter Fair. It was a very mild day and from the beginning of the skating that morning it was clear that there was a problem with water on the skating surface. I reckon that the skaters were moving through water about 3-4 inches deep as you couldn't see the shape of their skates.Amazing that they were allowed to skate in those conditions.When I came back later in the day, the water level had receded a little but was still a problem to the organisers. 

Then in between skating sessions, this Ice Marshall suddenly appeared to clear the water...I took quite a few images. What I wanted to capture here was the effort going into clearing the water .i.e the extent of the problem, position of the body and board; the speed and direction of travel and the amount of water being cleared. I chose the four images below as best reflecting this...

P792: F6.3 @1/100  51mm ISO 1600

The problem and how to tackle it...

P794: F6.3 @ 1/80  61mm  ISO 1600

And the effort below to push the water aside...

P793: F6.3  @ 1/80  73mm ISO 1600

P 795 : F6.3  @ 1/100  51mm  ISO 1600

Exercise: Developing your confidence

Knowing that the timing for this part of my course was not going to be that helpful re interesting outdoor events, since starting the coursework I have been looking ahead to see what might materialise for some of the People Unaware exercises. I realise now from comments on the OCA Weekender E-bulletin that the world and their wife tend to look at market stalls and fairs for photo opportunities etc. so making good use of the Winter Fair in Winchester last December was not that original...

Looking back at the session, the range and sequence of images taken match the comfort level I was experiencing. Initially I was surprised at the lack of crowds... a bit of a blow as to some extent I was relying on there being a busy market..i.e. it's easier to blend in with a camera if there are crowds of people around. And for some reason although it was a weekday before end of term, there seemed to be quite a few young children around which made me feel perhaps more cautious than usual.

So, I made a start by wandering round the market...

P783: F5.6 @ 1/50  26mm ISO 400

P784: F5.6 @ 1/60  37mm  ISO 400

I like the image above... a  stallholder on a slow morning. His expression says it all...

P785: F5.6 @ 1/40  87mm  ISO 200

Using a long focal length for P785 allowed me nearer to this group of teenagers than would probably have been possible otherwise - any closer might have attracted attention disturbing the composition..

P791: F5.6 @ 1/50  73mm   ISO 400

The young man in P785 just turned towards me when I was taking the shot which luckily makes it a little more interesting than it would have been ...again a long focal length.

It became easier when I wandered over to the ice rink as there were more people around,a better mix of ages and I was not the only one with a camera. This helped as I felt more comfortable, didn't feel I had to rush taking shots to avoid notice etc. so had more time to consider shots.


 

P786: F5.6 @ 1/320  26mm  ISO 1600

P787: F5.6 @ 1/30  51mm  ISO 400

P787 is slightly blurred but I like the lady's expression and the blur does give a sense of movement.

 

P788: F5.6 @ 1/80 31mm  ISO 400

P789: F5.6 @ 1/40 51mm ISO 400

 

P790: F4 @ 1/1000  51mm ISO 1600

Well, I guess that this exercise was a little more difficult than I expected. More practice need I think and perhaps, a little more thought as to location and activity or event.