This may come as a surprise to you, but I quite like attention. Crazy eh? Who would have thought that an ex performing art school student and stand up comedienne felt that way? That a girl who is constantly writing about herself and asking people to be her fans would like people to listen to her. So it’s not really a shocker that I love having my picture taken. But not in a vain way, I promise. If you have seen me in photos, you’ll know that I often resemble a drunken village idiot. Eyes glazed from gin, massive grin and double chins. It’s okay though as I don’t think photos are about trying to look good they’re about capturing a moment in time. But if I manage to hide the chins and smile with my eyes then it’s an added bonus.
But last week it was time for me to step behind the camera. To be the photographer not the model. After last week’s trampolining photo shoot I was inspired to spend the week enjoying the fad of photography with my friend Lorna Harris. We planned a late night photography session where we could try out some experimental traffic shots. Of course this being England, the weather was not on our side and it rained relentlessly. But in the true British spirit we went on regardless and I donned my ill fitting ski jacket. So I could stand on a bridge, in the dark, in the rain, with a tripod and umbrella, taking pictures of traffic. You can see why Lorna didn’t want to do this photo shoot on her own, as weird shared is weird halfed. Also this may be Canterbury but thieves still exist and tripods are better protected in numbers. Though what I would have done if someone attempted to steal the camera, I don’t know. I’m only confrontational when drunk or just woken up. Also I’m not really a runner, I’m more into my gymnastics and dance classes. And though cartwheeling after a thieve would be impressive it wouldn’t be that effective.
It was on this cold and wet bridge that I learnt how to be a photographer. My first lesson was this: You need a good camera. A professional camera makes a lot of difference; there are certain shots and effects you just can’t get on a basic camera. We wanted to take pictures of traffic so it looked like streams of light instead of cars. Which we achieved by playing with the shutter speed. Yeah! That’s right – I learnt about shutter speed. But now that it’s nearly a week later, 11 o’clock at night and I’m high on sugar from the cupcakes that I just baked. I’m not actually capable of explaining how the shutter speed affects the way a camera takes a picture. I only know that it means you can write letters with your phone light and the camera captures it. How cool?
I also learnt about aperture priority mode (the size of the lense when it opens) and the depth of field. Unfortunaly I’m struggling to explain these photography lessons but if you do want to find out for yourself then I couldn’t recommend a better teacher than Lorna Harris. She was a-mazing, she wrote me a cheat sheet with definitions, she demonstrated how to use the camera, trusted me to use it and more importantly she cooked me sausages and mash for our pre shooot dinner. I really enjoyed the photography session and am really proud of the results. Some of which I’ve uploaded here and the rest you can check out at on Flickr. I’m particularly proud of the boots in the puddle photo that I took. Granted it was Lorna’s camera and Lorna’s idea but I pushed that button. Though I was enjoying my time behind the camera it wasn’t long till the surrounding trees were calling me back in front of it. So I persuaded Lorna to stop taking pictures of puddles and to take pictures of me. Which is how I ended up looking like the green goblin of Dane John Gardens in the featured photo.
My love of photography carried on over the weekend as I played the now infamous party game of ‘Tiger Face’, ‘Lemon Face’. Introduced to me by the legend that is Rachel Tate in a Prague bar. You basically point a camera at someone and ask them to pull a face like a tiger by shouting Tiger Face. Then you ask them to pull a face like you’re sucking a lemon by shouting Lemon Face. Simple but effective. And a great way to meet strangers. Who needs to ask ‘Do you come here often?” when you can shove a camera in their face and ask them to growl like a tiger? My fad for photography continued as I took photos of the London Fashion Week Models from my front row seat. Oh yeah, that’s right - front row at London Fashion Weekend. Granted it was the day for the paying public and I got to sit at the front as I happened to start queuing at the right time. But still, that’s really cool. And as I sat there taking in important life lessons such as, having statement lips and ballerina buns this season. I also managed to take some pictures of the incredibly beautiful models including the picture uploaded here.
Right, I think that’s enough self indulgent showing off for one blog. I don’t think photography is a helpful hobby for me as I’m either showing off that I pushed a button. Drunkenly shouting ‘Tiger Face’ at strangers. Or demanding that others take my photo while I look like a paedo in the woods at night.
I also think that this fad on fads is starting to tire me out a bit. So I’m going to start updating my blog fortnightly. Please do not cry for me fad fans. Though they’ll be a longer wait between blogs the quality will be much improved. I have started at least two sentences with the word ‘and’ in this blog, which I hate doing. But I am very tired and the sugar from my cupcakes has worn off. Also, the next fortnight’s fad is Football and I want to do my ‘Arsenal v Burnley’ blog the justice it deserves.
If you haven’t already please join my Facebook Fan Page 'Shes been fad'
Happy hobbying
Lots of love Mumf xxxxxxxxx
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