I spent some time after Laura came and spoke to our class at university, looking at the aesthetics of her wok. Especially her work 'saving the cursed children of Ghana', 'home' and 'Don Bosco'. I really started to notice that her work is a mix of posed images and documentary photographs. I felt like because it is similar to what I hope to do in The Gambia, I should ask her how she achieved the different photographs and the things she maybe struggled with.
So I sent her an email. Her response included this:
"Translation will be imperative
I directed people as well as documented. I dont really have a rule when taking images . you will do fab as half the fun is not knowing how you are going to take your picture until you arrive. Keep your eyes opn, look for things that define your subjects life and character and don't rush"
So.. for me going out to The Gambia I feel that her response was exactly what I needed.
I am not going out with a plan of what my images are going to look like exactly, so half the fun is not knowing how you are going to take your picture until you arrive speaks directly into my project right now. I am excited and scared at the same time as to how these images are going to turn out. But as Laura says.. don't rush! I need to take my time, really think about composition. I don't to come back with thousands of snap shots, I want to take considered meaningful images that I will successfully be able to use for university work and exhibition.
I want to represent the subjects and people in my images well, I do not want to portray them in a way that is not true to them. So I really need to take my time, be aware of surroundings and get to know the people that I am photographing before subjecting my own opinions and views onto them within the photograph.
