Finally I made it! Prague, the fabled city with its rich history, stunning gothic architecture (including the iconic Charles Bridge) and immensely photogenic transport system. Relatively cheap, too. (No wonder it’s the home of countless stag-dos.) I had wanted to visit for years. Fortunately my three-day visit there last month was not an anti-climax. I was especially looking forward to taking to the streets with my camera. Having attended an extremely helpful street photography workshop with Brian Lloyd-Duckett back in January, and read his useful guide to taking photographs in Prague, I was confident of getting one or two nice shots. It’s only as I’ve looked back on what I took that I have realised that it includes many photographs that I probably wouldn’t have taken a year ago. Whilst I still have a long way to go, I can certainly see that I am growing in the skill, and this gives me encouragement to keep taking to the streets and try things out. Below is the pick of the bunch. Photos of Vienna, where I visited after Prague, will follow shortly.
Prague
Sunny Oxford
I don’t know about you, but an empty bank holiday fills me with mild dread. Sure, it’s good to have the day off, but when Sunday arrives and there is nothing in the diary to fill the following day, I panic. I have to do something. SOMETHING! And when the sun is due a resplendent appearance, all the more so.
Welcome to my mind last weekend, where Easter Monday arrived longing to be filled. Oxford felt particularly appealing so I grabbed my little Fujifilmx70 and headed to the famed city. It was a glorious day for taking photographs and have a wander. Here’s a small selection…
The West End, Soho and Chinatown
Scrolling through The Guardian’s homepage one afternoon I stumbled across an article on street photography by Anita Chaudhuri. It was part of the paper’s ‘Get Better for 2019’ series. Anita explains in the piece how she went on a workshop with Valerie Jardin in Paris to help her become a better street photographer. Needless to say I was inspired. My interest in street photography has grown in recent years. I love the way it can capture the beauty, routine and vulnerability of everyday life. On occasion I’ve enjoyed taking to streets with my Fujifilm x70 but I’ve never had opportunity to learn more about the art and receive feedback on my shots.
So a couple days later after reading the article I hit the internet to search for nearby workshops (Paris is slightly beyond my budget). I immediately found StreetSnappers, run by Brian Lloyd Duckett, and he runs workshops in places such as Lisbon, Liverpool and — to my delight — London. His photos are ace and the reviews of the workshop are very positive. So I booked up and last Saturday I headed to London. There were six of us in total on the workshop. It was a great day. I learned a lot and came away suitably inspired to get onto the streets more often and with purpose. Even the rain provided opportunity to be more creative with our photos! A selection of photographs from the day are below. Enjoy!
Bath Christmas Market
One of the perks of living in Royal Wootton Bassett is its proximity to many cool places. The Cotsworlds are on my doorstep. Bristol is near, with Cardiff just a stretch beyond. London and Birmingham aren’t crazily far, either. And then there is Bath, a city of architectural charm, soothing spas and exquisite coffee shops. The city also hosts an annual Christmas market. Last Thursday after work I stopped by for a visit with my Fujifilm x70. I am still getting familiar with both the camera and the art of street photography. One aspect I’ve often struggled with is taking night shots. Getting the settings such that enough light gets in without the subject blurring (or at least not too much) can be a pesky task to navigate. So it was fun to experiment further in Bath — an adventure made all the more pleasant with the smell of mulled wine and roasted hog for company (do visit if you get a chance). As for the photos, many ended up in the trash. A few made the final cut. Here are some of them. Enjoy!
Ghent
When organising a small trip to the continent last Autumn I was keen to squeeze in a trip to Ghent (or Gent, I still don’t know which is officially correct). Thankfully I managed to make it work by booking a late crossing from Dunkirk to Dover. And so at 8am I took to the road from Nuenen, near Eindhoven in Holland, where I had been staying with family, and arrived in Ghent around 10.30am. I was able to spend a good six hours or so in the city, walking and wandering, soaking in the Ghenten vibe. And it’s a good vibe — even if it did have a post-summer, Monday feel to it with its sparse streets and quiet tourist spots. A few things struck me, though: Ghent’s architecture is stunning, particularly the many crow-stepped gable buildings that reinforce the city’s gothic feel; the city’s uncomplicated layout makes it a great place for walking without getting lost (well, not too lost); and terrific views are on offer at the top of St Bavo’s Cathedral. Oh, and there is the busker who plays guitar in Sint-Baafsplein Square who is just a delight to listen to (very accommodating, too, as he allowed me to take a lot of photos of him). Here are a few snaps, mono-style…
