Exercise: Developing your confidence.

Outline: Photograph an outdoor situation where you will feel comfortable using a camera. Take lots of photos , review them and recall the comfort level you felt at the time. 

One of the main limitations I am finding with this course so far is the time scale. Due to my funding, I am needing to complete these assignments pretty quickly and in this situation, especially at this time of year, I am finding there aren't many opportunities to go out photographing crowds of people. Added with the fact of working and being a parent, the time constraints are challenging and I am finding that I am needing to revert to my photo library to use photographs of events I have taken previously to undertake some of the exercises.

For this exercise,I decided to use my photographs of 'Cardiff Harbour Festival' from 2011, as this was the first time I've been to an event and taken 'street photography' at the time and so I remember it well.

Selection of many photos taken at Cardiff Harbour Festival 2011

I took many photographs that day, just wandering around with my camera trying to capture the atmosphere of the event. I found it rather nerve-wracking at first, wondering if people would object to me photographing them, but as I started taking the photos I settled into it and felt more at ease with the situation. It helped that it was a rather large event with lots of people in attendance so therefore, a person taking photos wasn't an unusual sight. It also helped that the festival takes place at Mermaid Quay in Cardiff Bay which is the location of the Welsh Assembly Building and Wales Millennium Centre, which on a regular day are tourist hotspots themselves.
I was using my trusty 28 - 90mm lens for more wide angle shots but also had my 70 - 200mm lens to be able to get some close up shots without being in the faces of those I was photographing. Most of the shots were taken with the wide angle to be able to capture more information in a single shot.

Cardiff Harbour Festival 2011

However, It was good to have the option of using a telephoto lens to be able to get a bit closer without being invasive to the subject.

Sand artist at Cardiff Harbour Festival 2011

Conclusion:I felt comfortable and noninvasive shooting around the site. This was possibly also due to the fact that most people seemed unaware of me photographing them anyway. People were pre occupied with the many stalls and entertainment on offer to notice me taking photos in their direction and I think this helped not only my personal comfort level but also the ability for me to be able to capture the mood and feel of the festival itself.