Reflection Diary

1. Reflection Diary
FMP

2. February 9-11th
This was the first week to start working on our FMP so this is a run down of what happened
Wednesday- Finding out our aims and what our task ahead was then to start finding 3 (or more) people who fit
into our chosen format for our FMP. For me this is photography so I started looking into famous photographers.
Thursday- Move onto the second person and begin researching them and finding out about their work and
their life before and after their career.
Maybe even moving on to the third person and doing the same for them
Friday- Continue working on the 3rd person then maybe look into a 4th or 5th depending on time and also make
sure to create a reflection journal to keep track of how the weeks work went.

3. Wednesday 9th (February)
First day working on the FMP..
So my chosen format is photography so I set about researching famous photographers from the past and today but ones who’s work can relate to
something that I can use in my own work so obviously travel is out the question so I had to make sure I was looking at what type of pictures they took,
the style they used and where they shot their most famous pictures.
My first photographer I picked was Annie Leibovitz an American portrait photographer who is most famous for her work with celebrities and her intimate
type of poses and photography. She is also well known to be the last proper photographer to capture a picture of the great John Lennon as she while
working to get a cover for an addition of The Rolling Stone magazine which she had promised Lennon would feature as the cover she did his final ever
photoshoot just 5 hours before he was tragically shot and killed in 1980. She is also famous for having a photoshoot with the Queen and asking her to
remove her tiara to which her majesty didn’t like.
What went well?
I think the whole opening day went well because I have always with my projects used something that is close to heart mainly using the National Football
League (NFL) and I felt this project seen as it’s my last one would be the time to step out of my comfort and try show I can work on a different subject and
even try to show my work can be better using something different.
I think using Leibovitz’s work was a good starting point because her most famous work is mainly dominated by people in the music industry and that
remains a big part of life today but I also feel using her work is a good point because her style is based on people and the expressions they present
instead of being something that is just all landscaped based or nature based. This type of style is easy to see been able to work into my own work when
production comes around because creating a picture that suggest intimate can be done via facial expressions or body language so these are two things I
feel confident about managing to incorporate into my work.
What didn’t go so well?
I feel like there wasn’t that much information from others on Leibovitz’s work like from other photographers so it was mainly finding out about her, her
famous work, the controversy that seemingly followed her a fair bit in the past with Queen Elizabeth and the tiara, then using LeBron James on a Vogue
cover which at the time was the first time a black male had featured on the cover of the world famous magazine then a huge story in 2008 with a then 15
year old Miley Cyrus and a photoshoot that seemed to have the minor nude but in truth Leibovitz had gone for the style of using cloth as her cover but it
was viewed the wrong way causing an apology from the photographer.
How to build on this in the future?
Just always make sure I’m looking on social media, the magazines and companies the person has worked for because you don’t actually never know what
you can find during this type of research and never know what you will actually discover.

4. Pictures of Wednesday

5. Thursday 10th (February)
Began looking into my second chosen photographer and began researching into them.
My chosen photographer was Steve McCurry an American photographer and photojournalist. McCurry is extremely famous for the
photo Afghan girl and his work taking photos in war zones and using that to really find an emotional style of picture. McCurry has also
come close to losing his life twice within a week of each other while fulfilling a dream of photographing the Indian monsoon’s.
What went well?
I think much like Leibovitz, McCurry’s work can be used easily by myself when it comes to my project because the emotional side of
his pictures. Looking at Afghan girl and just how terrified she looks and also the kind of shock but it also allowed the world to see just
how bad the satiations in countries was becoming because of the Soviet Invasion and then later Wars. McCurry has also written books
about his experiences so that allowed me to find his own words on his experiences about his travels and behind the scenes of it all.
He also appeared on Tedtalks so watching his interview and just how humble he is when he talks about how privileged he has been to
be in these situations where he could see what we don’t here back home, see the impacts on these awful wars and really be able to
show the emotional side to his work.
What didn’t go well?
McCurry’s work is all pretty much done across the world and shows the impact of these middle eastern wars or the impact of
invasion. His famous Afghan picture came when he dressed in Afghan clothes in order to enter Pakistan just before the Soviet invasion
and one day despite the mass destruction he randomly heard children’s laughter and found a school of just girls and found the girl
with piercing green eyes. This type of work I can’t really use because I can’t travel out to Afghanistan, Pakistan or anywhere in the
middle east but also the experiences McCurry went through was back when the middle east was at a point of civil wars so that level
of emotion and destruction I physically cannot repeat for my work.

7. Week 2- February 16-18th
Wednesday 16th
Make sure all research is complete on chosen people in your chosen area
Making sure you have one final bibliography at the end
Thursday 17th
Start writing your Task 2 statement explaining your ideas and inspirations into picking your chosen route for the
FMP
Friday 18th
Make sure statement is complete and then begin and get the proposal done

8. Wednesday 16th
Last week I had completed the majority of my research into the chosen people I picked for my format of choice
(photography).
The main job I had was finishing the research into my 4th pick David Noton and about his books and his work
because looking into my selections it is most likely that his work will be the style I use for my photoshoots
because Annie Leibovitz uses celebrities posing in a rather intimate fashion, Steve McCurry’s work was mainly
in 3rd world countries capturing the destruction caused by wars or invasion and Tim Laman is a wildlife
photographer so again living in England I can’t really go film or capture images of reefs or endangered animals
such as the Orangutan.
Once that final piece of research had been complete I could move onto creating the final bibliography on all of
the chosen photographers so instead of having 4 mini ones I had one giant one.

9. Wed 16th pictures

10. Thursday 17th
After finishing all the research and having completed the bibliography it was time to move on and start looking
at task 2 of the FMP.. The contextual statement.
This statement is our chance to explain our ideas, inspirations and why we want to create the project we are
aiming to achieve. The statement didn’t have a word count so it was basically allowing you to write out as
much as you wanted before coming to the proposal which does have a word count you need to follow and stick
too.
For me the main things I wanted to put into the statement was where my ideas came from, my inspirations into
why I wanted to try create this project or go down the line of this style, the hidden passion I have for
photography and where it came from. Having the statement checked for errors or pieces that are maybe
repeated was extremely helpful because it keeps the statement snappy and following instead of getting
repetitive.
Once the statement was finished and filled your reasons into your ideas and inspirations you could start having
a look into the proposal..

11. March 9-11th
Wednesday 9
Start topic research- Landscape photograph tips and how to make your work better
Thursday 10
Continue Topic Research
Friday 11
Finish any topic research and be ready to move on

12. Wednesday 9th
After finishing the audience and market research it was time to move on and start the topic and production research.
I began with the topic research and my starting place was trying to find how landscape photography was created and the little tips
and tricks that are recommended to help improve your work. My first place was looking at National Geographic’s landscape
photography tips and reading through the tips they list and then making notes on them all and the parts that I didn’t understand or
know about then adding depth to my research by explaining what they are and how they work.
My main research was on ISO numbers and the exposure triangle as they were the two things that appeared in the most lists I had
seen during the research while finding the best website to use. I didn’t have a clue about ISO numbers so I made a whole slide
explaining on how it works in photography, what it does and what the pros and cons are when using it. I found out all the key vital
information that helps me but also if when production comes and I use ISO numbers and just explained I used them this research
shows I did understand what I was using because I had done the research prior going into production. This research was helpful
because it allowed me to find out some little details and new techniques that can benefit you but also you can see the cons as well
because using too high of ISO can make your images come out blurry or grainy as a result of it. I also found that most camera are
already set up to be on there highest ISO setting meaning it shouldn't be changed because the current setting is the setting that
provides you with the best possible final images.
The Exposure Triangle was the second piece of research I conducted. Again I really didn’t know about it so I needed to make sure I
built my research from the very bottom and work my way up. So find the basics of what it is, how it works, what it entitles, the
equation (if there is one), pros and cons. Then finding a diagram of the triangle and including that so it is clear to see how it was
and the 3 different parts to it. This research allowed me to understand the meaning of the exposure triangle (the relationship
between ISO, Aperture and the Shutter Speed)
I also found out how you work out Aperture as you need to find the equation used
f-stop= focal length/diameter
Diameter= focal length/f-stop

13. Thursday 10th
After the research into the exposure triangle and ISO numbers I continued to read different lists which gave me tips and tricks that many photographers
suggest can help with your landscape photography and many of them said about shooting during the ‘Golden Hour’
The Golden Hour is a time period before and after the sunrise and sunset which create the most beautiful skies and reflections if your shooting with
water. It also creates a softer mood for your pictures. The Golden hour is a good suggestion because to aid my work I should have a theme which is
constantly used during the 3 photoshoots which will be done during the production time and currently I am thinking of picking the theme of Sunrise and
Sunset because I feel this is my best photography when I look back through pictures from holidays or days out or just the normal day when the sky is a
beautiful mix of colour and the sun is reddish as it slowly descends over the horizon. Researching more into the golden hour really helped me drive
toward my idea of the theme of sunrise and sunsets because it gave you the timing that the ‘hour’ normally lasts and when it occurs, what can effect the
timing of the ‘hour’ so the season your currently in, the weather during that morning or evening and the location you are taking your photography in.
The second part of research I conducted was on the comparison between shooting images in the Raw format or in the normal Jpeg format. Many
websites and tips suggest you should shoot in Raw to give you a more natural and overall better image but it does come with time taking processes. So
my research I needed to find out the key pros about Raw images and that style so I could list those down then I had to list the cons of using that format
as well. This was helpful for me because it allowed me to understand this different format and see that is does provide you a more natural image but you
do need the time in order to go through the processing time in order to be able to use and print the image. The Raw format also gives you a more deep
colour selection and thinking about my theme of sunsets and sunrises that could really come in helpful because the depth of colour the format gives you
and the amount of colours you can see in those golden, reddish, pinkish moments. But the cons are some big ones as well using Raw takes away chances
of finding compatibility, you MUST process the images yourself before use and they do take up larger amounts of time and space.
Whereas Jpeg doesn’t provide you that depth in colour or give you that real natural look they do come out always processed meaning its easier to use
straight away sometimes meaning your production can start quicker, they allow more compatibility to other images, they use little space and time but if
you lose the images the recovery is very limited.
It looked overall that Raw looks like the better of the two but it does require those extra steps and time. So Jpeg does seem the better option for me
because they are processed quickly, they are instantly ready for use meaning during production I can have them all processed already and then work
through finding the ones that look the best and can be used to really help me create a strong overall product.
Raw did in the beginning appeal to me the most because looking at pictures I have of sunsets and sunrises in New York, or even just on a summer clear
night from my bedroom window and seeing the golden sun surrounded by a colourful mix of reds, oranges, yellows, purples and pinks and knowing Raw
provides that deeper colour range really made me think it could even with the more time consuming things would work well meaning the pictures would
look natural but also have the colour really standing out and almost popping off the image.

14. Friday 11th
Try to make sure that this element of the research it complete and I am therefore ready to move on.
So finding any more tips and tricks I find that could be helpful going forward with my work and the ones I think could help me
the most. So maybe look into the best suggested locations and think about what I have around York and North Yorkshire to
really help me capture the breath-taking landscape photography I'm aiming for.
Then apply the location research and think about how I can incorporate my chosen theme with that location and also how
my previous research can be involved at this location.
Also making sure I manage to get some production research in and explain how I am going to make the product, what
techniques I want to use and the new ones I think I may use. Also find out more about my cameras which mostly likely be the
ones I’ll be using during the production

15. March 16-19th

16. Wednesday 16th
Starting Experiments
Prior to coming into college on Wednesday I used the Monday and Tuesday to head out to different locations with the Canon SX740 and Nikon
D3400 and test them out on a basic level so I would have something practical to work with after the written work.
The first stage was looking into the Practical, Technical and Theoretical problems that you could face before production and then during
production. The practical and technical problems are problems you could face before your production begins so you need to look into your
equipment, the techniques of using that equipment, your ability and the potential ability and other things that storage and how you’ll back your
work up so it’s safe. I started looking into the equipment and this meant looking into the two cameras I have and explaining the process of going
out with them both and testing them both out before production so when it comes I have my preferred choice of camera ready to go. Also looking
into tripods and thinking about having access to one and the best one to fit my camera of choice. These both help me going forward because I
don’t want to be messing about with two cameras during production or realising late I need a certain piece of equipment and having to worry
about finding it in time so I don’t lose much time when it comes to production.
Techniques was the next thing I started thinking about because during my research I looked at how you can make landscape photography better
using things like ISO numbers, The Exposure Triangle, Depth of Field and so on so learning how to find these settings on my own cameras and then
been able to put pen to paper and manage to take pictures using those techniques and really been able to notice that using that or changing a
certain setting has made the final outcome stronger and gives off a more visual pleasing feeling. This is important to know before production
because I want to make sure I’m using everything single piece of time to the best and knowing how to set the camera up and how to use those
techniques mean I can easily get set up and start taking pictures.
I then began looking into storage and backup and how I could make sure I don’t lose any important work. The main solution was getting a
secondary source to the computer such as a memory stick that you can have store everything onto as well as the normal backup of saving onto the
computer. Obviously the more picture I take the more storage I am going to need so ensuring that secondary source has a large amount of storage
meaning you don’t have to worry about clearing space and losing time. This is important to think about because you don’t want to be going along
then save everything and come back the next day and your work or your pictures are missing and you have no way of recovering them meaning
when production would come around you’d be in trouble.
The last practical and technical problem I looked into was ability and thinking about how I could go about making sure my work was shown at the
highest level and it shows the ability of myself despite not been a professional and not having the endless skill of the photographers you see work
of daily and in magazines or newspapers.

17. Thursday 17th
Looking into Theoretical Problems- these are problems that could appear DURING production
The first potential problem I looked into was location. The location plays a big role especially for me when I’m going to be using photography and so
much depends on the location been the best place for me but I needed to think about the potential issues that could surface.. Things like the
weather damaging the ground or just completely waterlogging it, if it’s a park somewhere that is going to have a closing time and it will have certain
hours where there will be a large number of people can could slow things down and affect you.
Tying into looking at location I looked into transport because the location plays a big role in thinking about transport and also cost. If your location is
close you can use your legs to walk or cycle meaning your cost is nothing, if you can’t drive then you need to ask for lifts and so on which means you
could maybe pay fuel cost to cover the fuel burned during that journey too and from. If the location is at a long distance then you might need to
think about public transport such as buses or trains and again that plays a role in the cost section but you again need to think that public transport
run on certain timetable meaning you’ll have a certain final time in mind meaning you could miss out on potential pictures because you need to
catch that last bus or train.
Another problem which again links into the chosen location is refreshments and having a toilet situation.. Now if your using a town or city to take
pictures in your obviously going to have toilets around and shops to pop in to grab some lunch, a drink or some snacks but if your more in the
outdoors you’d have to think more along the lines of having a backpack and taking food and drink with you so your keeping hydrated and fed. The
toilets in the outdoors can really be anywhere if your hidden and you feel comfortable but it isn’t the most hygienic and can be risky if you need a
larger toilet break.
Then I looked into the problems that could affect the actual stage of production and taking the photographs. So looking at the potential things that
are out of human control so like how you can’t really plan I’m going to go on this day and you then buy the tickets if using public transport only for
that day to be a complete disaster and the weather is awful and your left soaking wet, cold and without top images to use later on. But this does
also need to compared with the chosen theme I select because if I pick a theme where darker days with the rain falling those types of days could be
extremely helpful and help me achieve something new and different while following my theme and getting the best possible pictures. The
temperature and natural lighting also to me play a big role meaning I needed to think of a plan for when and if something was to occur during
production meaning I could be affected. The temperature you cant control but I think if your well prepared (depending on your chosen transport
and location) with a big coat, gloves, hat you can combat the weather with general common sense. Natural light can depend on the time of day so I
made sure to include the fact id need to make sure I knew the times of sunrise and sunset and when the sun would be at its brightest and the rays
could start to trouble the camera.

18. March 23-25th

19. Wednesday 23rd
Wednesday began with going back and finalising the work on experiments and on filling in any gaps across any
of the work.
The main gap I found was in finding out the ISO range was across both cameras and writing out the different
numbers and writing out how to find your way to that settings menu and how you select each different setting.
After looking into both the Canon SX730 HS and Nikon D3400 and finding their ISO range and making a note on
what range both had I started playing around with the Canon which I had brought into college with me and I
began messing about with the ISO settings ranging it from ISO 80- ISO 3200 the differences were clear and this
made me realise that when it would come to actually taking pictures I knew which setting was the most
preferred one. After testing out the cameras in York and Leeds I had a change of heart about the location and
my overall ideas and I feel learning more about the ISO settings on both cameras has helped me understand
the overall advantages and disadvantages of using ISO numbers.
I also made a little instruction guide on how to find your way to the settings because I felt this was a key step in
showing I learnt about them and I also put in the effort to find them straight away instead of sitting around just
waiting for production and completely forgetting what I’d learnt and then having to just work with the standard
camera settings which will just give me the same results over and over when I want to have a range of different
pictures to expand my work and push me further.

20. Thursday 24th
After finishing the experiments and problem solving it was time to move onto pre production.
The first part of pre production I began looking into was the location and how my plans had changed from the original
one. The original plan was to use the North Yorkshire Moors but I looked into the bigger picture surrounding the
ongoing issues in UK and thinking that in truth this is a problem that I should take action and try use the things closer
then having to travel and then if the weather turns out badly having to pack up and come home whereas the change
allows me to stay closer to home meaning I can easily access resources that I may find I need during the production.
After looking further into location and the plan moving forward and I began looking into the next part of pre
production which was more centred on looking at equipment and creating a list as to what I’d need. So this obviously
included the two cameras, the larger lens for the Nikon, the shade for either Nikon Lens and a potential tripod.
I feel the equipment stage is a strong part for me because I have all the equipment and resources I need to help me
move forward into production and it allows means I don’t need to worry about losing time because its not possible to
have a certain piece of equipment from college because another student has it and you don’t wish to try
experimenting with new different equipment during the biggest part in your work. This stage was also given a boost
by my change in plans for location because it means if I suddenly realise I’m in need of a tripod I can nip home and
head straight back instead of having to drive around an hour back then an hour back after getting the tripod.

21. Easter Break (Two Weeks)
Week 1- Picture Taking
After the pre production and planning stage before the break and knowing the locations and days I was available after
confirming the overtime hours I had been given at work I set out to begin the actual production process.
On Wednesday April 13th I headed out for the first time and began taking pictures, I was given good weather meaning I
could stay out for a extended amount of time. My aims of this first experience was to mainly get an understanding of how to
access the different settings and actually see the results they provided. So I tried to keep the first few locations rather
simple so I headed into town and sat outside the front of York Minster and began taking pictures from different angles,
trying to use the sunlight and reflections to my advantage.
The 15th I again headed into town but this was more to scout the locations I had thought of and begin making a mental note
of the better angles, best time to be there, how busy that location can become, what potential it offers.
So I scouted out the Minster, York Station, Down by the River Ouse (from Rawcliffe into York)
Week 2- Picture Taking
I again during the second week had to balance extra hours working with trying to find some time during the week to go out
and use the locations scouted the week before and see where things would lead me.
The main full day was Good Friday (April 18th) and I used this to full effect and it just so happened that the weather was
incredible and this instantly filled me with confidence that this first proper shoot was going to be great. I meant a good 25-
25 minutes in York Station watching different trains come and go along with trying to capture the cool design of the Stations
roof and how the station slowly filled with people coming and going as I sat for longer.

22. April 27th Today, was the first day of production and the start of the final push of the FMP.
So my first step was to look through the pictures I had taken during the Easter
break and this was to sorely make sure that they had all turned out good and
they were all ready to go through the processing stage. Of course not every
picture is going to be used to having so many options allows me to mix and
match my approach. The first image I wanted to work on was the picture sitting
bottom right.. This picture spoke to me because I wanted to show off the
dominance of man against Nature but this image captures both for. You have the
station and car which do fit into the man side but then you have the beautiful
flowers, the tree and smaller tree in the bottom left that all contribute toward
making this one of my early favourites. I have never been the greatest with
photoshop but after a little research and some small helpful guide I began
finding the situation getting easier and more calming.
The techniques of managing to bring the colours to a more vibrant and classy
look was actually a lot more fun and enjoyable as I had thought at first thought.

23. April 28th Today, was again processing more pictures. The process I again found fun and easy and after having some
advice on some certain techniques and how I could make certain pieces fit together better everything started
becoming enjoyable and I was able to piece by piece change the brightness, the shadows or even make it
black and white.
The picture of York minster (top left) was a boring picture that looked really plain and the colour wasn’t really
popping like I would have like so I changed the contrast and brightness after checking the levels of how much
white and black was included in the image. This then allowed me to edit and change the midtones therefore
creating that blue sky and the stone of the minster looking cleaner and brighter.
All the pictures have started in the same manor after leaving how to check the levels. The next two pictures I
began processing you can see (bottom left and bottom right, I wanted to try create two different scenes
showing the complete other end of the spectrum. The black and white filter is easy enough to find and put
onto the picture running along the Bar Walls.
The positives again was how much progress I have managed to achieve and the standards I am sticking to in
order to make this the best derby/Match. Another big thing was knowing when enough was enough or when
a certain filter or colour just didn’t work.
Overall I feel the first two days of processing have both been stress free and that is allowing me to put my full
focus into the final product.

24. April 29th Final day of the first week of production.
Today, was again processing some more pictures to slowly help me build up a collection
and then this allows me to have a selection of different styles, different outcomes and just
a big range that can allow me to move in any direction with the final product I want to
piece together. Of course not every picture can/will be used but having maybe 25-30
processed and looking good and I’m happy with there outcomes it gives me an easier
decision when it comes to the final product. Another thing I have been looking into is how
the final piece will all come together, Can I just show a big range of pictures? How many
pictures will I need to process? How will I make the final product? Will people enjoy the
choice? All these provide me with a challenge so getting started early means I can then
think about styling up different layouts and so I can then get a first impression of how the
pictures will look on a page and how everything will look after everything is said and done.
Overall, I feel the first week has gone really well I’ve learnt a lot about my photography,
learnt some more skills on photoshop to help my work, the pictures processed so far have
been strong and I truly feel if I can keep moving with that type of work ethic and quality I
can end up with a good solid product that will receive strong feedback and pair it with my
work through hopefully I can achieve something of a good level.
Biggest Learning Point of Week 1
Before processing the image by
adding in effects and changing it there
and then, check the levels. This shows
how much black to white there is in
the image. The middle section is a
midtone. You can mess about with all
3 but when changing the black and
white you must be careful you don’t
go too far and end up making your
image look silly and unreal (not the
good unreal)
Plan for Week 2
During the weekend maybe go out and grab some more pictures to bulk up my overall amount
and help me have a greater range moving forward.
Start thinking of some ideas for the overall final product. So how many pages? How many
pictures per page?
Process more pictures and continue the final push

25. May 4th Today I,

26. May 5th Today,
This is,

27. May 6th Today,

28. May 11th Today, I began my first attempts at creating the booklet form of my exhibition and
looking into pricing for if I was to later print the pictures, frame them and present
them in a proper exhibition style. My first move was to take the finished pictures
created so far and put them into a PowerPoint so I could get a first look into how a
booklet could look and if the pictures looked good and also provided me with the
ideas of should it be two pictures per page or just the single image. After getting
the first look I began looking at how much it could cost if I wanted to create a
booklet and have it created so you could have a hard copy and a virtual copy
instead of only having the one method. Prices varied across the different sites
depending on sizes, how many pages. The cheapest site I found was MyFujiFilm and
this allowed me to create a simple 10 page booklet using a 8X6 Landscape format
and this came to around £6.48. More sites that created higher quality items were
charging around £25-38. One site I found did actually put your picture straight into
a frame and for me that was an idea if I did go ahead and actually run an exhibition.

29. May 12th Today, I carried on searching into more different websites and places where I could create a
booklet of my photography. After searching many different sites I came across SnapFish and this
site allows you to create any sort of product you like the thought of. I like this site because it
allowed me to have so many options and allowed to me thin what would be most suited for my
product but also making sure it all fitted together. SnapFish does have a page limit to begin
with and that is 20 (no less than) but it meant you could pay to add extras. I again started laying
out my images into different style and what building were similar, same location or just
completely random.
Using SnapFish I was actually able to create a full 20 page book that if purchased would have a
hard back. I found SnapFish easy to use but also the final piece that would be my final product if
I wanted to pay £36.99 and have a hard backed book of my book.
During this process I had decided the layout would be better if I had pictures of the minster all
together (like image in the top left) this for me created a theme across a double page spread
and it means the final product would be more tidy with all the pictures of a certain historical
venues like the minster.

30. May 13th Today, I made any final changes and adjustments to any of my pictures
that I had put into the conversation of been used for this project. I mainly
wanted to iron out any last details to either add different features t the
picture or just making it look neater and more tidy. I also went back
through my drafts of what I printed book could look like and any pictures
or pages that could have changes made in order to grab the eyes but
making sure everything is looked at during the viewing.