remained

A while ago I wrote about how I went scouting for shooting locations and I shared some pictures from an abandoned army camp in my area. So on my day off, I asked my boyfriend to go there with me so I could shoot. I didn’t want to go alone because it can be a really creepy place. It was an overcast day which means great light for me. This was actually the first time I shot in the open like this, in a place where anyone could appear in any given moment. So this made me a little nervous. I looked around for a while trying to find the right spot and then I set up my tripod and my camera and took some shots. Luckily we weren’t bothered by anyone, but there were some people lurking around the area, so we decided to go and I didn’t have the time to do a second shoot. The safety issue is bothering me a lot though. I love old or abandoned locations but it is too scary going there alone, let alone going there with expensive equipment. I ‘d love some tips about how to overcome that!

 

 

When I was shooting this, I didn’t have an exact concept in mind, but there was a particular feeling I wanted to portray. It was during editing that I dicovered what the meaning of this image is, for me anyway.  It is about choosing to stay somewhere, although you could leave. Maybe you stay because you like where you are, or maybe you are too scared to move on. I hadn’t planned on including the bird at first (it is a pica), but while I was going through my stock pictures of birds, I thought that this one fit this concept completely. A bird that chooses not to fly. Both subjects in this image have decided to remain where they are, at least for the time being.

I am not sure whether it’s a bad thing not to have an exact concept in mind while shooting. This time I think it worked for me, but I think that knowing what you want can be a great help when you make a picture. It can also be a great help  when you are searching for a title, which proved to be quite challenging for me this time!

I should also mention that this was the first time I used frame expansion for one of my pictures! It was tricky, but I learned a lot for the next pictures I will take.

Thank you for taking the time to read and I wish you all a great new year!