Critical Research Journal

This week looked at how to define yourself as a photographer by looking back at work made before and then looking forward creating a marketing plan.

When I first started out as a photographer in the RAF I had just completed 8 months intensive training on photography, work produced was always highly critiqued. I hated showing my work as I was always worried that it wouldn’t be right. That’s pretty much how I went through my career worrying that my work wouldn’t be right. Photography is subjective, though? the customer was always happy with my out put so I don’t know why I worried. The images I captured especially through my early career, were focused on complying with the ‘rules’ of photography, composition, exposure, focussed. It knocked my confidence a bit but this course has helped me progress through that. It’s just unfortunate at the moment I don’t take a lot of photos for my work and tend to process wet film instead. The only thing that I can see in my early work that I still look for today is natural light, I think it can make the image more authentic and draws the viewer in by the naturally highlighted subject.

MOD Crown copyright

Marketing Plan

As I’m currently employed MOD photographer I can’t write a marketing plan for my business but instead it will focus on my practice and project.

Objectives

The next coming weeks I intend to continue networking with researchers and communities on WW1&WW2 commemoration, meet new faces in order to develop my project. I will need to continue to recce and capture new sites even if my motivation isn’t there, this will give me clear direction if I’m able to achieve in capturing all 29 sites. I need to consider what research and context I will be including within this project, have this ready to present for potential clients even if it’s just rough ideas. I am happy with how my project looks visually but I must continue to explore no ideas, develop skills and knowledge within landscape photography.

Strategy

I have a conference to attend with Living Legacies, ‘The Second World War Legacies around the Lough’ there are quite a few historians who will be giving the presentations. I hope to speak to them personally about my work, I will bring some smaller photos of current work. I need to email Living Legacies if they would consider working with my project, they put on many events and would be great if I could be a part of one. I will set targets for the capture of sites or to recce them (if the weather isn’t good).