Whoosh!
 

Hi,

Taking my cue from one A.R. Teague, I've been experimenting with black-and-white photography recently.

A wonderful photo of George Swan ('Whoosh!'), provided by my friend Tina-louise Ingram, is here (Tina-louise runs Swan Watch in Pittville).

I also have a couple of other tries on my Flickr landing page:

1. Trio, here (colour) and here (b/w).
2. Family, here (colour) and here (b/w).

Best wishes,
Fliss

F F Teague - Photos of George
 

Fliss!

Wonderful photos and that first one by your friend, WOW. Is that George?
He's humble and handsome, then!

Yay!
~mignon

mignon!

Thanks very much for taking a look at these. Yes, that is indeed Mr George Swan, looking mighty impressive as usual. I'm hoping to see him soon :>)

Yay indeedy!
Fliss

I like your swans. It’s hard to write about seemingly everyday things (although nice swans are rare, really) well, and without seeming sentimental, but you manage it. I like how your work is gentle, and rooted in nature without being a protest poem (although this isn’t me dissing eco poetry, I think that’s important too & I love some ecopoetry - but yours is quiet, full of craft, and effective in a way that is uniquely of its own).

Anyway, cool swans.

A codicil - I know nothing about photography. I work with photographers, I admire their work, and they could be talking Greek for all I understand. So this is very subjective feedback.

I like your swans and houses, and I like that image not just because of the swans, but because of the juxtaposition with the backs of the houses (important that it’s the back of houses, not their facades).
I love the colours in the colour version, and prefer that to the black and white. You could, if you wanted to, experiment with using something like colour splash - - but I think it would look gimmicky and wouldn’t do the subject justice. But it is the colour version of that image that is my favourite of all those posted.

The green tones in the ‘trio’ are lovely, and it’s as if the swans have posed for you! It ‘feels’ to me like the image has been digitally retouched in some way (I could very well be wrong) but again, the colours are gorgeous.

I think this bodes so well for your blog. I am (of course) not sure, but I hope you put these together with your swan poetry to illustrate/amplify/dialogue with the words. And also to promote on social media if you are going to do that. The latest WordPress template is quite nice, btw. I’ve been experimenting with it. It might be worth having a play with it (if you can ever find the time) and upload some of your images - that way you can also put them inline in your eratosphere posts if you want to (I can show you how to do that if it helps- I’m getting less busy at work now).

I’ll come back to look again at the swans/houses image. Have you read Berger’s ‘Ways of Seeing’? It’s old but I still love it. And there's an interview with Berger on youtube which talks through the ideas, too.

I like how your ways of seeing the swans relates them, and their familial circle, as central, the houses relegated to a watching distance. I like how it presents a picture of an urban environment that isn’t all brutalist architecture.

Sarah-Jane

Thanks, Sarah-Jane :-) :>)

I appreciate your words on my nature poetry; yes, it is gentle. I'm intrigued by eco-poetry, though, and I think I could try that too, as 'Fliss Twist', my rapper persona, lol (that particular FT might be too fierce for the 'sphere).

Please don't worry about knowing nothing about photography. I don't really know anything either; I'm just coming at it aesthetically. My camera is a simple point-and-shoot thing.

Thanks for loving the swans and houses; I was hoping someone might pick up on the juxtaposition (that was the exact word I had in mind!). Yes, the backs; I love the character of these houses. They're in the St Paul's area of Cheltenham, whereas I live in the far reaches of Pittville but still on the same street as dear George. I prefer the colour version too, but I'll have a look at colour splash. It's amazing what one can do nowadays with photos online.

Yes, 'Trio' was one of my lucky shots. I passed it to my friend Claire for suggestions and I think she sharpened it as my hands wobble sometimes. She might have 'whoomphed' up the colour too; I'll have to look at the original. My favourite thing about that photo is the similar shapes of the leaves and the feet :-)

I don't know where I'm going with the blog at the moment, tbh. I have a Facebook page now (agent's suggestion) and I'm linking to Google Blogger pages from there, but it's hard to keep up with everything. Part of me wonders whether it might be better to set up something on WordPress, a portfolio, but FB can be useful for engagement. I just need the time.

Do come back, if you wish. I don't know Ways of Seeing, so I'll take a look at that; and at the interview too.

Yes, the centrality of the swans and their circle is important to me. I'm also interested in finding beauty in rundown places. Somewhere I have an album of photos from the rather ramshackle Rodmarton Hall (near Cirencester) that might be worth a look 8-)

Best wishes,
Fliss

Those are really lovely pictures, Fliss. A couple of days ago I took a look, but the website wasn't showing anything at the time. But I was able to see them just now and they are very nice.

Thanks, Martin :-)

Someone else had trouble seeing them too; not sure why. Anyway, happy you like them. I take photos of the swan family every time I go to the park, and they really are excellent subjects :>)

Best wishes,
Fliss