Category Archives: Photography

Kimona’s Black & White Challenge

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Guest Blog by Kimona Wickham

I’m not sure who started the black and white photo challenge but, like anything on the internet, it is how you contribute that makes the game bigger than before. A friend of mine received the challenge, who in turn also gave me the challenge, where I as well gave it to others and, as you guessed it, it expanded soon after that. The challenge is simple enough, you get five days to show black and white photographs. Whether original or appreciative pieces, you are restricted to one photo per day.

Day 1 Subject

Day 1 Subject

For each photo you show, you must tag a new friend to continue the challenge. Since the rules are that simple, interpretation can be more than complex. I can’t tell you if you’re allowed photos only taken on the day, month or year or you’re allowed time to conceptualize your idea and simply share these photos base on the timeline. My rule of thumb, at the end of the day, is be original and use the best method that shows that.

The beginning
So I chose the latter of the two. I’m definitely a person that needs to plan ideas ahead. Though to be perfectly honest, it’s always in good practice to strategize your idea before time, even if the idea seems minuscule at first. This practice saves you time from resolving issues on your shoot day and allowing you more opportune time to experiment with the elements around you.
I knew the challenge could be anything I put my mind to and I wanted it to be meaningful, especially for the person that gave me the challenge. Most of my ideas came to fruit because someone was by me as a driving force. That too is an element that can drive my shoots, the motivation to do more than just for myself.

The concept

The main focus for my photos had been to show plants in the closest and most intimate light. To see if the curves of a plant could recreate the swells of a human body. I may have the artist’s curse and view a few my photos as not quite reaching the same concept I had in mind, but by doing all my photos in black and white I was able to show detail in all the subjects themselves. Colour photographs are immediately pleasing to the eyes, but black and whites can bring the most honest of stories.

Day 2

Day 2

Day 3

Day 3

As I snapped each photograph, I saw the importance of getting physically closer to show detail. I found that the closer I got, the more implied the curves of a leaf could be; that features such as details and angles are just as important as focus and framing. At the end of everything, I had batches of photographs of plants in my garden, with one more idea to bridge the gap between plants and body.

 

Conclusion

I hope at the end the concept takes shape in the eyes of the viewer, but if not this challenge sparks interest in others to go and shoot. Just get out and bring your vision to life.

 

Day 4

Day 4

Day 5

Day 5

Kimona Wickham is a visual communicator with a BA. in Communication Arts and Technology from the University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech). A creative with a passion for changing the way people “see”, Kimona applies the skills she earned at the Edna Manley College for the Visual and Performing Arts (EMCVPA) and sharpened during her time at UTech with voracity.

Follow her: @WickKim

Papine – Past, Present and Future

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Papine in eastern St. Andrew is the last settlement that you will pass through when you leave Kingston and head into the foothills of the Blue Mountains. It is a historical community, being the location of the Papine sugar estate that was founded in the mid eighteenth century. The main remnant from this era is the aqueduct which carried water from the Hope River to irrigate the Hope, Papine and Mona sugar estates. Now, most people think of Papine as either the bus terminus or as the location of the Papine market. As such, it is a hub of activity – of pedestrians, vehicles and vendors.

One of my photojournalism students in Papine market.

One of my photojournalism students in Papine market.

Papine is also being touted as a potential “university town”, due to its history and close proximity of both UTech and the University of the West Indies (UWI) Mona campus. For this to happen, a lot of work needs to take place. For example, UTech students confirm that while they do have lunch at the various eating places, student-friendly hang-out spots are absent.

School children waiting in the rain

School children waiting in the rain

Father and son in the Papine market

Father and son in the Papine market

My most indelible memories of Papine are as a high school student walking from Jamaica College to catch a bus. Ideally, we could have just waited by the bus stop outside the school, but most of the buses sped past, refusing to stop for the “Boys in Blue”. And honestly, sometimes we just felt like walking. Decades later and now I work in Papine at the University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech). I find it is a great location to take my photojournalism students for them to be experienced and comfortable with street photography, approaching and photographing strangers and general documentation of locations. While overseeing my students I occasionally manage to grab a few shots myself, of which here are a few. And as you can see the boys in blue still stand out from the crowd when they are catching the buses in in Papine.

School children boarding a bus.

School children boarding a bus

 

Immersion at the Inaugural River Breeze Workshop

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A spirit of camaraderie characterised the three-day River Breeze Photography workshop held last weekend in the Buff Bay Valley of Jamaica’s Blue Mountains. Based at River Breeze cottage at Cascade, the three participants immersed themselves (at times literally) in all of the activities. Friday morning saw sessions that focused on DSLR camera familiarisation, creative composition and light interpretation and included a short climb to the nearby One Drop Waterfall. The day ended with a night photography session on the grounds of the cottage.  [slideshow id=8]It was an early wake-up the next morning to catch sunrise at the upper Buff Bay Valley followed by a critique session. After lunch we made our way to the Maroon village of Charles Town where the students were exposed to an integral part of Jamaica’s history and culture. That night ended in the coastal town of Buff Bay, formerly the capital of the defunct parish of St. George.  Sunday was a full day, with some of the stops including Fish Dun waterfall, Birnamwood Anglican Church and Avocat. At the end of the weekend, the portfolios were presented and all of the students had very strong work that highlighted their creativity and drive as well and also illustrated the Buff Bay valley. Here is a link to two of the students’ work and above are the students in action.