One of the things I took from my first outing was to not give up. It was going to be a steep learning curve—one that will never truly end—so, all in all, it hasn’t gone too badly. The next opportunity for a dedicated camera session wasn’t in the calendar, and work was getting busy. However, one of my meetings was up in Leeds near the dock, and I decided to take the camera just in case I got an opportunity to use it.

The opportunity didn’t come up on the first day or evening, but on my way back to the car park on the second day, I managed to take half an hour to get the camera out and have a go. Conditions were overcast and a little drizzly, but it was mid-afternoon, and there was enough light to play with, even if it wasn’t particularly interesting.

I didn’t spend long—literally just a walk up the dock towards the car park—but I felt more confident that I was going to be able to get something I liked. Sticking with the limited choice of lens, the Sony FE 50mm f/1.4 ZA Zeiss Planar T*, I felt I would be able to maximise the open aperture for the lower light and isolation.

The first few shots were trash. I forgot to adjust the settings from the last time I used the camera—there’s a lesson to be learned there, I think! However, once I realised this, I started to take advantage of the available light (compared to last time) and managed to compose and shoot a few shots that I’m pretty proud of. The lighting was dull and blue, and while I wanted to capture a little of that, I introduced some warmth to the colours too, just for a little pop. Also, I don’t seem to be able to let an image go without adding a little vignette. I believe my style will develop over time, and my taste will change somewhat, but for now, warmer, more vibrant tones, slightly moody/deeper shadows, and a vignette seem to be the way to go.

Leeds Dock

Tower Bridge to London Bridge

Post Production and Sharing