Picture-a-Week (PAW) Journal
The stories behind the pictures, 2003.
Week 1: January 1-7
Week 2: January 8-14
Week 3: January 15-21
Week 4: January 22-28
Week 5: Jan.29-Feb.4
Week 6: February 5-11
Week 7: February 12-18
Week 8: February 19-25
Week 9: Feb.26-Mar.4
Week 10: March 5-11
Week 11: March 12-18
Week 12: March 19-25
Week 13: Mar.26-Apr.1
Week 14: April 2-8
Week 15: April 9-15
Week 16: April 16-22
Week 17: April 23-29
Week 18: Apr.30-May 6
Week 19: May 7-13
Week 20: May 14-20
Again it was the end of the PAW week and I didn't have anything to show for it. While visiting my parents for dinner, I borrowed their compact cameras and finished off both the films. This is my father in the middle of a phone conversation with my brother Donald.
Canon Sure Shot 38-76 zoom, Fuji Superia 400.
Week 20 alternate : Reading
The day of my visit was Mum's birthday. Here she is checking out one of her birthday presents. As these were candids rather than set-up studio portraits, it was difficult to get a good background. Both the original shots were in colour, cropped and converted to grayscale in Photoshop, which I think has simplified and improved them considerably.
Canon Sure Shot 38-76 zoom, Fuji Superia 400.
Late on Tuesday afternoon I made a visit to the railway bridge at the end of town. :-) Here I found some interesting foregrounds for wide-angle shots, and also several varieties of birdlife. Unfortunately the sky was overcast and the light flat... I had fun anyway.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 400.
Week 18 alternate : Seagull
Here's one of the birds that visited while I was photographing the railway bridge and shoreline. This one was bold (typical of the species) and came quite close to pose for me.
Pentax K1000, probably 80-200/4.5, Fuji Superia 400.
As an early 'birthday treat' for my father, we drove down the coast to Whakatane and Edgecumbe, where I knew there were some interesting collections of old machinery. The weather couldn't have been better. Dad was a bit disappointed to see machinery he had known in his farming days laying rusting in a paddock, rather than lovingly restored - however I had a lot of fun photographing it. This grader provided plenty of opportunities for interesting close-ups and abstracts, as well as the general view here.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 200.
Week 17 alternate : Truck Grill
A view of an abandoned truck, same place as above.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 100.
I had good intentions this week of taking lots of candid 'street' photos at the Jazz festival, held in Tauranga over Easter weekend. Well I did take lots, but discovered that the C41 B&W film I was using in my Voigtlander Vito had not wound on correctly, so I had very little to show for the weekend!! To give myself something else to choose from for my PAW, I took a few shots of sunset over the estuary not far from home.
Pentax K1000, 80-200/4.5, Fuji Superia 400.
Week 16 alternate 1: Estuary Sunset #1
This was one of the earlier shots I took of the estuary (same day as the main). It's the only one where there is still a little light on the boats.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 400.
Week 15 : Synchronised Inflation
Wednesday 4.30 a.m. and the first day of the 'Balloons Over Waikato' hot air balloon festival 2003. I set my alarm really early so I could travel over to Hamilton for the day - I wanted to be there in time to see the balloons start to inflate at about 6.30 a.m. There was a brilliant view as I reached the top of the Kaimai range - like a sea of pale blue fog (the sun was not up yet) with Mt Pirongia appearing above it like an island on the far horizon. I was running just a little late but thankfully it was a lovely foggy Waikato morning, and I knew the balloonists wouldn't get serious about inflating until the visibility improved. As the sun came above the horizon the warm early morning light was gorgeous and the sky a clear blue where the fog was clearing. This is the third year I've gone over to see the festival, and it turned out to be the best weather for an opening day so far. There were quite a few people out and about with cameras so I felt quite at home, and had no difficulty running off several colour print, slide and B&W films over the day. It was really hard to choose just one or two for my PAW! This is one of my favourite 'photojournalism-style' shots of the day, where I managed to capture three balloons inflating in sync with each other, and the people walking past gave a sense of scale.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia.
Week 15 alternate: Aloft
The hot air balloons went up again in the late afternoon (same day as above). There was so much action going on around me with up to twenty balloons inflating and taking off, and I didn't want to miss any of it! As a result I have quite a few similar shots of individual balloons in the sky, having just lifted off. This one was just a bit different, as the balloon floated directly above me.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 200.
To finish off the film in Dad's Protax camera, I called in at the Compass Community Village early on Saturday morning. I had time to wander around the village and discover some new things, before the Farmers Market started at 8 a.m. The early morning sunshine was really nice on some of the buildings, and I liked the blue / yellow combination in this shot. A little later the sky clouded over, by which time I'd swapped to B&W film to take some candid people shots. By about 9 a.m. I was finding it hard to concentrate and keep awake as I'd just finished a night shift, so headed home.
Protax, Fuji Superia 200.
Week 14 alternate : Village #2
Same time, same place as the main - another building in early morning light. Here I also liked the colour contrasts, and the spikiness of the plant and it's container. For an explanation of the Protax and more photos see the Protax page.
Protax, Fuji Superia 200.
Week 12: Stallholder, Farmers Market
From memory this was a quiet week photographically - I didn't feel very energetic or inspired after a busy time at work the previous week, and helping organise a field trip to Waikaremoana for my camera club at the weekend (four hours drive from where I live). However I needed to take some photos of something, somewhere for my PAW. The local paper (delivered free) has a very good 'What's On' column and I saw there was a Farmers Market being held weekly on Saturday morning, with home-grown produce, plants and crafts for sale. Aha, I thought, should be a good source of candid people photography, I need more practice at that... so off I went. After a slow start I felt more confident and started making conversation with some of the stallholders, who were curious to know why I was photographing - perhaps I was from the paper? It's amazing how a couple of SLR's can make you look 'professional'. Occasionally I asked permission, if I caught the person's eye - some laughed or pulled a face but no-one refused. After about half an hour I had a brief conversation with this lady who was selling artwork and plants, particularly cacti and succulents. I asked if I could photograph her and this was the second of two shots I took. More light in her eyes would have improved this, but I didn't have a reflector with me and I doubt I would have felt comfortable using one in this situation anyway. I wasn't happy with many of the other people shots I took at the market, I need to be bolder and get closer! A faster, quieter camera would also help - the K1000 has manual focus and a very noisy shutter which makes it hard to be inconspicuous.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 200.
Week 12 alternate : Carnations for Sale
As the stallholders at the Farmers Market were packing up, this bucket of carnations caught my eye - I liked the way the colours seemed to glow against the grey paving. When I looked at the photo afterwards though, I felt as though I was falling down to the right! - maybe a visual trick due to the diagonal lines of the paving and use of a wide-angle lens. It seemed better after I rotated it a few degrees anticlockwise in Photoshop (maybe it needs more).
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 200.
Week 11: Sunset, Lake Waikaremoana
During my camera club field trip to Waikaremoana, two of us were driving back to the Motor Camp at the end of a day's photographing, when we saw these lovely cloud formations over the lake. We leapt out of the car to capture the moment before the sun set. My companion was going into raptures about the colours of the scene (golden light on the water), while I was shooting in monochrome, just as excited as I watched the changing light and cloud formations. I took several shots and like the resulting 5x7" prints, but had difficulty scanning them without burning out the highlights in the sky. Also there isn't the depth of field or detail on the water I would have liked. (I'm comparing with some lovely B&W shots someone posted to the PAW list a while ago). I didn't make notes of my camera settings at the time, so I don't know whether I needed to use a smaller aperture, or whether the aperture was okay but I used a relatively slow shutter speed which resulted in some blurring of the water as it rippled in the wind. (?) Something to keep in mind for the future - take notes!
Pentax K1000, probably 28-70/3.5, Kodak Tri-X 400.
Week 11 alternate : Plant, Waikareiti
This was taken beside the lake,
on the island, in the lake (Waikareiti). :-) Overcast light made for nice soft
colours. At least one of my companions took a photo nearly identical to this,
but it's still my favourite colour shot of the week - and anyway I found it
first! :-D
Shirley from my camera club has since identified this as a Dracophyllum
(probably D. recurvum).
Pentax K1000, 80-200/4.5, Fuji Superia 400.
My parents sold their farm about five years ago, except for the house and section where they were living at the time (originally known as the 'Keith Hay house'). Subsequently they moved to the Bay of Plenty, but still visited regularly to maintain the section, including a vege garden planted for the benefit of other family members who lived there from time to time. Now those other family members are settled elsewhere and this last part of the farm has been sold. I took the opportunity to visit and photograph before the new owners moved in. While Mum & Dad were packing up the last few items, I set up the tripod and photographed mostly empty rooms, using a wide angle lens (28mm) and quite long exposures (1/4 - 1 sec). The colours and patterns of the paintwork, curtains, carpet and lino were interesting and very 'seventies'. I was attracted by the contrast between the cool green walls of the back porch and the bright colours of the raincoat, umbrella, fire extinguisher etc. The only thing I moved were Mum's slippers, in order to include them in the frame, otherwise this is how I found it. In the past this porch area has held a lot more, including a large freezer, a clothes drier, garden tools, cat food dishes and several more pairs of gumboots, work boots etc. For more photos see the Current Project Gallery 'Farewell TK'.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 100.
Week 10 alternate : Windows
While I was visiting my parents the week before their house was sold, Dad & I had opportunity for a walk over to the old house and cowshed, and around part of the farm. I didn't want to disturb the tenants, so this was the only photo I took while walking down the driveway. These windows in the old garage seem unchanged since I was a child, dark and mysterious and covered with cobwebs. From memory the garage itself is very dark inside, with wooden walls and a hard earth floor.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 100.
While taking a different route home one afternoon I saw a group of brightly-coloured trucks and caravans in the park, so I went to investigate. A circus had just arrived in town for the week, and was beginning to unpack. Many of their vehicles were painted in the same red-and-yellow colour scheme, which went really nicely with the soft green of the park. Later in the week (after working several night shifts) I was able to go back. I asked if it was okay for me to take photos, and was eventually pointed in the direction of the second-in-command, as the boss was apparently out for dinner. He gave me permission, but I was warned of dire consequences if the photos were published - I hope this doesn't count! Unfortunately it had rained steadily all week so no shows had taken place - the big top had not even been erected. I was able to wander around and take photos to my heart's content (except I was warned not to go too close to the lion's trailer!). The circus people were friendly and I spoke briefly with several, but didn't take any people shots. Again there was lovely soft overcast light and I was pleased with the vivid colours of the resulting prints. This is my favourite for the week - merry-go-round horses waiting to be set up.
Pentax K1000, probably 80-200/4.5, Fuji Superia 400.
Week 9 alternate : Jumbo
While wandering amongst the circus vehicles and paraphernalia, I heard crashing noises from inside a large trailer. The occupant was Jumbo the elephant. Her keeper seemed happy to chat when he saw me taking photos. He told me she was misbehaving (bored, I wondered?) and gave her some more hay with molasses poured on it - I noticed he didn't take his eyes off her when he was close, even though she was chained. She looked young to me - he said she was 28, which is equivalent to human years. My favourite 'zoo' animals are giraffes but I enjoyed this encounter. There were very few people around, but I did meet two ladies and an embarrassed teenager who'd come to collect elephant droppings for their garden!
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 200.
The camera club I belong to organised a field-trip to the Waterlily Gardens at Waihi, an hour's drive from where I live. About ten people came. It was late afternoon/ early evening (the gardens were open late just for our group) so there was nice warm light, and the gardens were very peaceful. As light levels dropped the flowers began closing though. There were some beautiful colours and shapes. Composition was a challenge as I don't have macro equipment, so couldn't fill the frame with a single flower. This shot is my favourite.
Pentax K1000, probably 80-200/4.5, Fuji Superia.
Week 8 alternate 1: Waterlily #2
This was also taken at the Waterlily Gardens. The colours on the water were lovely but I'm not sure my scanner has done justice to this shot, and I tried several crops before deciding on this. Besides lots of flower shots I also managed to capture some candids of other club members 'doing their thing' while at the gardens. :-)
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia.
I went for a wander down one of Tauranga's shopping streets in the early evening. The shops were shut and most people had gone home for the day. However, I'm beginning to understand 'street photography' as a broad term that covers the urban environment itself, not just the people in it, so I gave myself permission to take photos without people! I was looking for interesting colours and abstracts - this shop was having a closing-down sale.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia.
Week 7 alternate : Zone
An alleyway caught my eye, its wall covered with peeling posters. As I looked for different angles, two older ladies passed by walking their dog, and asked me in a tone that was almost sarcastic if I found this (wall) intriguing. My answer was a challenge to them and a reassurance to myself - yeah, why not?! This was one of the shots I took of the wall. It's a pity I wasn't brave enough to capture the ladies on film as well !
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia.
I had to return to the garage to pay my bill from last week, then to the Vehicle Testing Station to obtain a Warrant of Fitness for the car. (Later found out it would have been much cheaper to obtain the WOF from the garage, but that's another story.) Combining the idea of carrying a camera with me all the time and taking photos of 'ordinary' things and everyday life, and wanting to obtaining images for the SP Salon 'Gendered Streets', I asked permission to take photos at both garage and Testing Station. Neither of these are places where I would normally feel comfortable, and certainly hadn't considered photographing them before. People were surprisingly receptive, though puzzled as to what I would want to photograph! At first I found this a difficult exercise as I couldn't see any potential either, then began to get over my self-consciousness and see interesting objects, shapes/textures, and also colour abstracts. As I had B&W film in the camera at the time, the mechanic encouraged me to come back and take more photos anytime I wanted. The one above is from the Testing Station - I was one of the last customers for the day and they closed the roller doors behind us.
Pentax K1000, 80-200/4.5, Kodak Tri-X 400.
Week 6 alternate : 'Around Alone' yachts
The yachts from the 'Around Alone' race have been in the Tauranga Marina for about a month. I hadn't been following the race, although had seen it mentioned a number of times in the local papers as the individual yachts arrived in Tauranga. This week was my last opportunity to see them before they left on the next leg of the race - to Salvador, Brazil. I was working night shifts but found the energy to visit after work, early on Sunday morning. The early morning light was very nice and there were lots of reflections in the almost-still water. I asked myself why I didn't get up at this time more often! There were a few people around, mostly crew, their families and supporters I guess, but I was able to get close to all the boats and take lots of photos while they were being rigged, stores brought on board etc. After I'd been there about an hour, the public were starting to arrive - at that stage I headed home to bed, thus missing the official race start and farewell from Tauranga. Later I found the Around Alone website so I could learn a bit more about the race and follow progress.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 400.
Lots of pictures to choose from this week. I attended the Katikati A&P (Agricultural & Pastoral) Show and found plenty to photograph, using both B&W and colour film. There was a hand-milking competition, to see who could get the most milk from a very patient Friesian cow in a set time (about a minute). Both men and women competed and the winner obtained over 600ml. After the winners were announced, the crowd drifted away to other displays and this group were left holding a conversation.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Kodak T400CN.
Week 5 alternate : Summer Grass
I needed to take my
car into the local garage, and decided to walk home part of the way,
photographing as I went. I drive down these streets nearly every day, but this is
the first time I have taken the time to explore and photograph. Some land has
been set aside here as a 'railway reserve' (it runs alongside the railway line) and I
found these wild grasses beside the tracks. There were some roses growing there
too, past their best now, and several people came to walk their dogs in the
reserve while I was there. It was about 9.30 am and promised to be another
hot day.
I'm considering making a collection of photos with the theme 'The Street Where I
Live' as suggested on the Street Photography forum a few weeks ago. It's a
challenge to 'see' & capture interesting photographs in my immediate
neighbourhood, instead of thinking I have to travel somewhere special.
Pentax K1000, 80-200/4.5, Ilford FP4+.
Dad has been enjoying jigsaw puzzles lately, so I gave him a large one for Christmas. He said, I must think he needs something to fill in his days (he doesn't). It's been quite a challenge, and this week I took some photos of him completing it.
Pentax K1000, 50/1.7, Ilford FP4+.
Week 4 alternate : Leaf
While exploring my overgrown garden for photographic subjects, this leaf caught my eye. When I find out what it is, I'll give it a name. :-)
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Ilford FP4+.
I persuaded my parents to come with me to McLarens Falls Park, about 10 minutes drive from where they live. It was late afternoon and I didn't have as much time there as I had hoped, but we walked a bush track to a lovely little waterfall. I climbed up the bank from the track to get this shot, and tourists who were passing asked if I was photographing a particular botanical specimen. (Well, yes, in a way I was - New Zealand native tree ferns!). I want to go back and get some more shots of the bush and stream when I have more time and the appropriate film with me - the light was quite low amongst the trees. We all enjoyed the walk, especially Dad who hadn't been in the bush for a while.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 200.
Week 3 alternate : Dandelion
Parts of my garden are growing wild, and this week the lawn also looked uncared for as it was covered with dandelions. However instead of feeling guilty about it, I decided to look with new eyes and take some photographs, finding some interest (or even beauty!) in the weeds. The following day we mowed the lawn and the dandelions haven't returned - yet.
Pentax K1000, 80-200/4.5, Fuji Superia 200.
The hibiscus shrub growing in my back yard stopped flowering for a short time in the winter, otherwise has bloomed all year - obviously the climate here suits it. I'd like to take better photos of flowers while they are still in their natural environments - I'm sure some would advise that the background is too cluttered and I should have just cut the flower, taken it inside and photographed it with a controlled (artificial) background - but I prefer it this way. The photography club I belong to usually has 'Flowers' as a set subject sometime during the year, so I'm getting in some practice.
Pentax K1000, 80-200/4.5, Fuji Superia 400.
Week 2 alternate : Hibiscus
Another hibiscus shot. I love the way these orange flowers have deep pink in the centre. They also have an interesting stamen (?) which I have yet to photograph successfully. This photo is an attempt to show a different 'side' of the flower.
Pentax K1000, 80-200/4.5, Fuji Superia 400.
Decided to have a go at doing a PAW this year after joining the Street Photography and PAW lists a few weeks ago. Not really in the mood for taking photos this week but made myself pick up the camera anyway and look close to home. 'Sunset Silhouette' was taken from the bedroom window. I think the tree is a jacaranda but it seems to have been bare for a long time and I wondered if it had died. Usually they flower and then get leaves on them at this time of year. I have a photo from sometime last year that shows it in leaf. Maybe one day I'll wander down the road, find out whose section it's growing on and have a close look at it. The skyline in that direction is a bit cluttered with trees, house roofs, television aerials etc. but I have taken several photos of it because that's where the sun sets.
Pentax K1000, 80-200/4.5 (handheld), Fuji Superia 200 colour neg.
Week 1 alternate : Lace Abstract
It's summer here and has been very hot. At this time of year, the sun comes around far enough to shine into the kitchen and bedroom windows in the late afternoon. Still very close to home, this photo is of the kitchen cupboards shadowed by the lace curtain at the window. I took several shots trying different compositions, some more abstract than others - this was my favourite. The cupboards are pale green but I thought it would look better as a B&W.
Pentax K1000, 28-70/3.5, Fuji Superia 200, changed to grayscale in Photoshop.