Two Weeks, Two Skodas.
As I alluded to in my recent 2013 round up, I’ve become determined to carry out more personal work in the coming months. When you’re working week in and week out photographing all sorts, you can easily go into autopilot mode, doing whatever it takes to get things done. This can lead to staleness in the workflow, as you go through the motions to make sure deadlines are met. These situations can become a sort of vicious cycle, which can drain you of creativity and motivation. A dangerous combination. This thought has been nagging away at me for quite some time. Last month, I got in touch with the very nice people at Skoda Ireland who rather kindly donated two cars for me to photograph at my leisure. With no deadlines, no brief and most importantly, no pressure, I set about shooting each car over the course of two weeks during whatever spare time I could free up. With Ireland in the winter being Ireland in the winter, it was a challenge in shooting outdoors at the best of times. One second it would be wet, overcast and windy whilst the next the sun would be parting the clouds casting some much deserved sunshine on our little green island. My aim for both shoots was to create something a little more polished than I usually would. Maybe not quite commercial quality, but something approaching it. Quality over quantity as the saying goes. First up was the Octavia Combi Elegance 4×4 TDI. Skoda’s reputation of old is long since gone. However, it’s one thing to acknowledge this fact and quite another to experience it. The vehicle’s specification was overflowing with more than enough gadgets to keep me entertained during my week of ownership. In particular what I liked (and was fitted to both […]
2013 – A Year In Review
It’s been a funny sort of year two thousand and thirteen. My immediate thoughts on the year are not particularly positive, and when looking back through what I’ve shot, I should be feeling much happier. But I’m not. Instead, and like previous years, I’ve again come away feeling frustrated and knowing that I should have done better with the opportunities which presented themselves. I’m not saying that the work is shit, but it always feels like I’m missing that certain little something to bring my work to the next level. I’ve made quite a lot of changes in how I approach a shoot and have been working on my processing but I still feel like I’ve a long, long way to go. One promise that I’ve made to myself is to undertake more personal work in the coming weeks and months. Without the pressure of deadlines or strict briefs, I can experiment with different techniques and shoot things that I normally would have no outlet for. It also re-introduces fun and enjoyment back into my photography, something which I feel has been missing for quite some time. The collection of images below may not necessarily represent my absolute best of photographs of 2013, but they do evoke the best memories. Some may have been seen before and some may not. None of these photographs would have been possible without the help and kindness of so many people. In no particular order I would like to thank the following for their support and contribution, no matter how big or small: My parents Gerry & Sheila, my girlfriend Laura, Derek & Philomena Troy, Martin Ffrench, Larry Kehoe, Ben Chandler, Neil Sheehan, Rod Chong, Rob Bullough, Bryn Musselwhite, Annika Goksu, Jonathan Moore, Suzy Wallace, Sean Klingelhoefer, Larry Chen, Keith Charvonia, Dino Dalle Carbonare, […]
