Wrest Park

It has been a few months now since I left university and I have missed creating panoramas and stereographic images. So whilst out on a weekend stroll around Wrest Park in Bedfordshire, UK, I decided that I would create some new images.

The shots have been taken “hand held” as I still haven’t had the opportunity to purchase a panoramic head for my tripod. The images I can achieve from “hand held” are of acceptable standard but I know that having a panoramic head will make the stitching process far easier during post production.

Here are the images that I obtained:

Wrest Park
© Richard Brochu-Williams

Wrest Park
© Richard Brochu-Williams

References

English-heritage.org.uk, (2015). Wrest Park | English Heritage. [online] Available at: http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/wrest-park/ [Accessed 12 Jan. 2015].

Finals & Artist Statement

Anthropogenic Impact on the Environment

 

 

For this project I have decided to concentrate on the theme of landscapes, a subject that I am passionate about. Each of the 6 images shows a “stereographical” interpretation of a particular type of landscape.

I have chosen to photograph landscapes that are not conventionally perceived as beautiful and have moulded them with the aid of digital manipulation to make them unapologetically abstract and give the viewer a new take on the landscape that they have been invited to view.

The images show a compacted landscape, an encapsulated environment and I chose to make them spherical to convey a planet. Each image in turn shows man’s influence within each landscape and how as a species we are changing the environment around us to our own advantage and means.

These images are not meant to convey either a positive or a negative message, just an interpretation of how we are shaping the environment around us.

 

Richard Brochu-Williams

Dungeness Power Station, Kent, 2014 © Richard Brochu-Williams

West Cambridge Site, University of Cambridge, 2014 © Richard Brochu-Williams

Sheltered Scheme, Cottenham, Cambridgeshire, 2014 © Richard Brochu-Williams

Rickney’s Quarry, Nr Ware, Hertfordshire, 2014 © Richard Brochu-Williams

Madingley Reservoir (Covered), Cambridgeshire, 2014 © Richard Brochu-Williams

Sizewell A & B, Suffolk, 2014 © Richard Brochu-Williams

 

Kirby Muxloe

I have been taking advantage of the good weather that we have been having and I travelled to Leicestershire to practice some more panoramic shots. This shoot was not the urban landscape that I have been photographing of late but it was a good opportunity for me to practice my technique and to keep myself familiar with the software that I am using. I find that if I do not do this on a regular basis, when I come back to use the software, it takes me twice as long to achieve my desired results because I have forgotten how to do certain things. By regularly practising, I become accustomed to what I am doing and I find that I work more efficiently.

Kirby Muxloe has a wonderful castle and this was the setting for this shoot. I really enjoy visiting castles and I am enticed by the architecture. The sense of history and what has gone on inside these magnificent constructions really draws me in.

The well known British proverb “An Englishman’s home is his castle” meaning: An English person’s home is a place where they may do as they please and from which they may exclude anyone they choose, strikes a chord with me and I think that my castle images work well with the stereographic format, as this provides an environment of it’s own for the castle, suggesting further that not only is the castle a place of privacy but it can be encapsulated in it’s own little world, providing a kind of private retreat.

I am continuing to photograph castles alongside my urban landscapes and I shall be comparing the two, to see which images have produced the best results.

Kirby Muxloe Castle, 360º Equirectangular Panorama, © Richard Brochu-Williams

Kirby Muxloe Castle, Stereographic Projection © Richard Brochu-Williams

I was pleased with the results that I achieved during the weekend at both Kirby Muxloe, Leicestershire & Rickney’s Quarry, Hertfordshire. It was certainly a productive weekend.

References

Oxforddictionaries.com, (2014). an Englishman’s home is his castle: definition of an Englishman’s home is his castle in Oxford dictionary (British & World English). [online] Available at: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/an-englishman’s-home-is-his-castle [Accessed 22 Jul. 2014].

Wee Planets

A couple of years ago whilst researching and trying to decide what to do for my Major Project on my National Diploma (Photography) course, I came across the work of Alexandre Duret-Lutz. These images fascinated me and still do to this day. It has been a while since I have experimented with these images but I would like to experiment with them again as part of my Practice 1 (Media) assignment alongside with other landscape, portraiture ad abstract images. These images would also come under the category of abstract.

Alexandre Duret-Lutz

© Alexandre Duret-Lutz

© Alexandre Duret-Lutz

© Alexandre Duret-Lutz

Flickr. 2013. gadl. [online] Available at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/gadl/ [Accessed: 8 November 2013].

The Telegraph. 2013. Wee Planets by Alexandre Duret-Lutz: 3D stereographic projections of equirectangular panoramas. [online] Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturepicturegalleries/6406636/Wee-Planets-by-Alexandre-Duret-Lutz-3D-stereographic-projections-of-equirectangular-panoramas.html [Accessed: 8 November 2013].

Richard Brochu-Williams

© Richard Brochu-Williams

© Richard Brochu-Williams

© Richard Brochu-Williams