Whether with a fellow photographer or alone, photography is such a peaceful pastime. Since receiving a digital camera last Christmas I’ve come to enjoy taking snaps in both countryside and city locations, having being originally inspired by street photographers documenting everyday people and later becoming interested in nature and landscape photography (somewhat involuntarily over lockdown).
I appreciate that my photographs aren’t of professional quality (as I have only been practicing for a few months) however I have compiled a list of some that I am proud of; whether that’s because of their personal meaning to me or for more artistic reasons. I thought I would share today my favourite 10 photographs that I’ve taken as a beginner and a little more about what else I would like to do as I continue to develop this hobby.
All photos were taken with a Canon 2000D DSLR and edited using Adobe Lightroom to resemble developed film photographs. I intend to purchase a film camera at some point in the future, but chose digital to start out with to allow more room for mistakes.
1)
An old woman sat by herself in a café in Leeds city centre (actually a Greggs if you couldn’t tell by the design on the windows) was taken whilst I was out on a trip by myself. I’ve been really inspired in recent years by street photographer and YouTuber Joe Greer. His black-and-white street photography, in particular, is fantastic and I love how he captures the beauty of strangers as they are out on the streets of New York. I like to think of this as my Leeds version. This is the only black-and-white picture that I have included in this: I feel like the lack of colour in this picture really emphasises the woman in the centre of it and gives it a melancholy feel.
2)
Taken on the same trip whilst out in Leeds city centre in February, I quickly took a snap after just passing a woman smoking on her lunch break. I love the mysteriousness of this image and was happy with the fact that only her hand up to the wrist is exposed and the beautiful timing of the smoke cloud, just exhaled, towards the top of the image. This picture along with the previous black-and-white one of the old woman are part of a longer stream of photos taken on the same trip around Leeds. I would love to make some time to do this again when the global situation changes and the city becomes busier again.
3)
Taken very early one Sunday morning in Hyde Park, Leeds, is this picture of the top of the terraced houses and the moon still out at dawn. I don’t know what urged me to get up at around 7am and grab my camera the morning after a trip round the bars but Hyde Park was deserted and bathed in this pale blue light. I adore this picture, partly because it’s so personal and captures one of my favourite places to be. I know I’ll look back on it and remember my time at uni.
4)
Another city centre pic, taken as I was walking past Leeds Town Hall, this snap of the old stone church and one of the newer high rises just behind it really shows the diversity of the city. These buildings are so perfectly positioned next to each other at this angle that they almost looked photoshopped together with an intention to show off the history and modernity of the city in one shot.
5)
A bit of a different style, this picture taken at sunset at Fewston Reservoir was a spontaneous stop off after a trip to Harrogate. This is one of my favourite nature pictures, very different to the previous urban-related snaps. I love the ripples in the water and the reflection of the pink sky and how much texture, colour variety and diversity this simple picture has. I’d love to take more photos of water at sunset to add to my collection.
6)
Taken on a countryside walk in Bury during lockdown, I love this picture that I took of a farmhouse. It really captured the mood of those few months in Spring by looking so isolated. Despite this, I feel that the birds in flight above the house bring the picture to life and the slight lilac hue to the sky makes the shot of this house appear more beautiful than it immediately appears.
7)
This shot of my sister was taken on a walk near Morley in Leeds. I love how it is so easy to find countryside walks in Leeds which is such a busy city. This was late in the evening during golden hour and I love how the sun lights up the edges of her hair, but how you can still see the dusk drawing in by how dark the rest of the picture is. This is one of the very few portraits I have taken since buying a camera and its definitely a style that I want to explore further.
8)
Taken in Leeds Trinity shopping centre on the top floor is this snap of the recently built cinema and a couple stood out front. Contributing to my attempt at documenting the people of Leeds, I loved how expressive this couple was. The photograph doesn’t do much justice to how expressive they were with their hands and face when they were talking to one another, but I feel I captured it a little. I also love the old-fashioned movie title that adorns the front of the cinema complex, giving the photo a vintage-feel. Maybe this photo would also suit being in black-and-white…
9)
As I’m sure has become apparent, I think Leeds is one of the greatest cities in the UK and thoroughly enjoy my time at uni here. I love this photo so much because it’s what everyone sees when travelling North towards Leeds when they first pull off the motorway. Cottingley Towers dominate the skyline in front of this stretch of road leading into the city and as soon as you turn the corner you see the city laid out in front of you after miles and miles of countryside.
10)
Also taken on a walk near Morley is this strangely positioned traffic cone in the middle of a field. I love photographs that make you ask questions like ‘how did this get here?’, ‘who left it here?’ and even ‘was it the result of a drunken night out and was later abandoned when it got too heavy?’. I’d love to explore further the theme of things that are left behind, often in strange places like this cone. I’d done this walk multiple times over lockdown and as far as I know the cone is still there, being slowly hidden by the overgrown grass.
Moving forward there are many aspects of photography that I would like the explore further including portrait photography, more street photography and venturing outside of Leeds and even taking photos abroad in beautiful locations. For now I'm proud of these photos that are part of my experience as a beginner.