Thursday 30 June 2011

Week 105: Comedic II.

I feel almost exactly the same this week, nothing has changed. So I shall keep it short. I feel on top of world and I think this feeling will last.

Dan.



From the same shoot, a specific photograph for Phil's website. His "contact" section to be precise. There's not much to this style of commercial portraiture. I like to keep the concepts quite simple and down to earth. This was in fact his idea, I will always take into account the ideas of clients. There really isn't much else to report this week.

Song listening to right now: Heads or Tails? Real or Not - Emarosa

Tuesday 28 June 2011

Week 104: Comedic.

I feel a great flow of happiness in my soul at the moment. The utter shock of realising the greatness of friends and family has lead me to laugh, to laugh at all the sorrow that has been posted in this blog. I am so happy with the way my life is going right now, I have no idea were this journey will lead me but thinking about it just makes me smile, and I'd like to think that there is nothing wrong with that. When you laugh at something that is joyous rather than funny, that's a different type of comedy. It's a comedy that soothes the soul instead of tickling it.

Thanks for reading this week.
Daniel.



The way I feel this week has coincidently lead me to do a shoot for up and coming comedian Phil Boothman. Phil has been a close friend of mine for years now and has always managed to help me out by cheering me up with his witty, satirical, dark and almost cynical sense of humour. He's made it his profession and is now making audience's cackle all around the country. If you ever get a chance to see him, I'd seriously recommend it. I thought I'd help Phil out with a shoot since he has helped me out for most of my adolescent life, making me laugh at things that most other friends would not point out. He tells it how it is, and IT is funny.

Song listening to right now: Get Inside - Stone Sour

Thursday 23 June 2011

Week 103: Uncaged.

I feel free, for once in my life. I feel completely free. It won't last and I know it. However, I will feel a little less caged by the fear of myself. I have people who are close to me and I have one person is a lot closer than the rest. It's their attention that keeps me uncaged.

D.



This photograph was taken on the spur of the moment, a "free" photograph. No preconceptions of what it will look like, no conformities and no cages to categorize it in. This is also how I view my friend Marty.

Song listening to right now: Snakecharmer - Rage Against The Machine

Saturday 18 June 2011

Week 102: Still.

There really isn't too much to say this week apart from I am content with nothing happening. Things are still for the time being, things will get moving next week and I can't wait to see the people I adore. They keep me moving.

D.



This was taken at Cemetery Junction in Reading. This is what kept one of the homeless men from being still. If we look back to Week 66 (http://ablogpaintsathousandpictures.blogspot.com/2010/09/week-66-discover-ii.html) then we can see Chewie seeming quite still after smoking some of the substance in the photograph above, however this is not what he would deem as still, his brain is moving, it keeps him going. Without it his life would be still. He has got to the point where smoking marijuana has to happen, it works as a fuel for his life. His life is moving very slowly but it is moving none the less. It is a slow tragedy.

Song listening to right now: Reinventing Your Exit - Underoath

Friday 10 June 2011

Week 101: Caged.

What do you fear?

"A cage. To stay behind bars until use and old age accept them and all chance of valour has gone beyond recall or desire."

A quote from a pretty famous trilogy of films that made me question my desires in life. When I was younger I wanted everything, I wanted to own everything. Now all I want is to own one thing. Freedom. I don't want to feel trapped for the rest of my life. As long as I have enough money to get by, and I'm doing something I enjoy, surrounded by people I love, then that is all that matters. I can't control my future but I can control my path through it. I want to do something worthwhile, worth my while.

Dan.



This was taken on 5x4 once again, and was part of the constructing project I focused on about a year or so ago. It's not as natural as you may think. It is a construction of true happiness within friendships and social gatherings.

Song listening to right now: Her Advice Cost Us A Life - Emarosa

Sunday 5 June 2011

Week 100: Centurion.

So this is my centurion post, let's make it a good one. One hundred weeks is a long time, and considering I have to do ten times this much, I guess I should not be celebrating too much. So what is the whole purpose of this blog? To show off my work? To ramble on about my recent activities, emotions and the life I have experienced so far? Well, I guess it's a big hybrid of everything really. I'd like to think that it's main purpose is to act as an archive of photographs accompanied by reminders of why I took them and an explanation as to how I was feeling at the time when I decided to refer back to the pictures.

One of the main things this diary achieves is an expression of both my qualities and my flaws. I am aware of most of my imperfections in many different areas. However, this week I have been thinking about the way I've acted over my lifetime; the ways I have treated others. If I look back and ponder over my teenage years, I know that I was not the nicest guy in the world. There were some things I said and did that I wish had not come from me. I wish that they had not happened but that does not mean I regret them. They have made me who I am and I have learnt from it. I have steered away from acting like that, only because I acted like that in the first place. Some people still have their "bad guy" moment to come, and because they are older they will find it a lot harder to deal with. It's very similar to the Chickenpox I guess. Some people will never have a bad guy period and others will ignore it when it comes a long. Much like the Chickenpox, if it is ignored it won't affect the individual, but if it is noticed it will cut deep and scar. The scar does not heal but it teaches you not to scratch.

Being a bad guy is also pretty contagious, people will take sides and take on opinions they may not agree with just because it has to be done. For example, when looking at an argument between two of my close friends. I now know which side I should take, but I also know which side I have to take. By this I mean, I will agree with one thing but I may need to stick to my loyalty as a friend and pretend I agree with something I don't. However, I now understand that it is all fake. Back when I was young, naive and a little bit nasty, I was completely biased and lied to myself that I believed in something I didn't.

Everything depends on which guns you stick to; your morals or your loyalties. If the answer is both then good for you, you were lucky this time round. If your morals do lie in the same bed as your loyalties then beware. Sometimes the ones that you are loyal to will change their morals. This may look like a complex train of thought, but it really isn't. It's just the simple ramblings of a male photographer who thinks he has experienced his life when in fact, he hasn't even started yet.

Thanks for keeping up with the 100 out of 1000 blog entries so far, if you've only just started reading, please look back over previous posts and have a gander at some of my work.

Thanks

Daniel.




There is a photograph very similar that was posted a few weeks back. This one however, was taken on a different film. The other was 5x4 colour transparency, this was 5x4 HP5 Black and White. The photograph is completely different. The colour photograph seems a bit more about the girl. This one adds purpose to the girl's environment. She is surrounded by rocks, she is alone but she doesn't seem frightened. The reason I chose this photograph is because I feel that I am surrounded by stone walls and in isolation when recalling the memories of my adolescence. Although I feel trapped, I am still calm because I know that I am different now and therefore nowhere near as vulnerable to certain forces such as regret.

Song listening to right now: Got To Give It Up - Marvin Gaye