12/12: Shops and shoppers

Note: These photos were taken in December 2019 as part of my Project 12 photography project. However, it is only a year later that I am posting them to this blog.

It's Christmas time! A time of joy and of gift-giving. And it happens on the month of December. You find lots of people rushing to the shopping malls to buy gifts for their loved ones.

Shops are competing for customers with beautiful decorations and enticing discounts. Even the mall in our city is festooned with lavish displays of lights and bright decors to inspire their shoppers while busy buying presents.

I took these photos on New Year's Eve, where shoppers went to the city mall to snatch up discounted items post-Christmas day. I didn't have the chance to take photographs at the height of Christmas shopping.

For my monthly photo project I chose the subject shops and shoppers for the month of December.

All photos were taken with an Android smartphone (https://amzn.to/38MZmhi)

11/12: Fallen leaves

Note: These photos were taken in November 2019 as part of my Project 12 photography project. However, it is only now that I am posting them to this blog.

Alas, some good things never last!

In this case, after weeks of wowing us with their amazing display of colours, the beautiful autumn foliage in our neighbourhood have started falling down leaving the trees to become like skeletons.

However, the stunning kaleidoscopic display of the autumn leaves continue to entertain us even in its fallen state for weeks before it becomes dull brown and wither away.

So, for my monthly photo project I chose the subject fallen leaves for the month of November as a logical follow through to October's colours of autumn theme.

All photos were taken with an Android smartphone (https://amzn.to/38MZmhi)

10/12: Colours of Autumn

Autumn leaf color is a phenomenon that affects the normal green leaves of many deciduous trees and shrubs by which they take on, during a few weeks in the autumn season, various shades of red, yellow, purple, black, blue, orange, magenta, and brown. (Source: Wikipedia)

Autumn is one of my favourite season of the year together with spring. In this season, nature provides us with a stunning display of leaves of different colours like red, orange and yellow. They are best observed in leafy country parks and other protected areas like nature reserves and national parks where there are huge swathes of woodland areas.

So, for the month of October I chose the subject 'Colours of autumn' for my monthly photography project. I planned to go to Ferry Meadows and nearby parts of Nene Park in order to get beautiful shots of trees with different coloured foliage. But the weather did not cooperate and my weekends were not free this month so I opted to get my photos in my neighbourhood instead.

The change in the leaves' colours are late this year, at least in the usual places that I go to in our neighbourhood. The best time to observe the coloured leaves is usually in November so I guess it was too early for this theme. However, I still managed to get images that capture the colours of autumn in our neighbourhood.

All photos were taken with an Android smartphone (https://amzn.to/31RLgqV) and a micro four thirds camera (https://amzn.to/2WicYMa) attached with a standard kit lens (https://amzn.to/2MPZMen).

9/12: Heritage architecture

Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Andrew, whose statues look down from the three high gables of the famous West Front. Although it was founded in the Anglo-Saxon period, its architecture is mainly Norman, following a rebuilding in the 12th century. With Durham and Ely cathedrals, it is one of the most important 12th-century buildings in England to have remained largely intact, despite extensions and restoration. (Source: Wikipedia)

For the month of September I chose the subject Heritage Architecture for my monthly photography project. A young city with thousands of years of history, Peterborough has lots of historical buildings in and around the city centre. The most famous of them all is Peterborough Cathedral, which celebrated its 900 years of existence just a year ago.

Peterborough Cathedral is where we bring our first time visitors as it is synonymous with Peterborough. Although an Anglican Church, it has hosted a few One Mass activities of the local Roman Catholic Church in the past. I must have been to Peterborough Cathedral dozens of times now.

All photos were taken with a micro four thirds camera (https://amzn.to/2K8BUl6) attached with a telephoto zoom lens (https://amzn.to/2YvqiMJ).

8/12: On the beach

The beach - sun, sea, and golden sands - sums up many people's idea of a perfect holiday destination. (Tom Ang's book on photography)

Ang's words were definitely on the minds of the hundreds of people, including 15 of us from Peterborough, as they flocked to Skegness Beach on a hot and sunny Sunday, a day before the Summer Bank Holiday.

All photos were taken with a micro four thirds camera (https://amzn.to/2Ui1uY3) attached with a telephoto zoom lens (https://amzn.to/2ZsjEwf).

7/12: Silhouettes

For the midsummer month of July I chose the theme Silhouettes for my monthly photography project. I wanted to do something creative and the dramatic skies we have during July was perfect for some strikingly dramatic photographs.

Technique-wise, I did some research before the shoot but already know the basics but just wanted to make sure I got it right. The method in shooting silhouette photography is simple - place the subject in front of a bright background which is also where you base your exposure. However, composition is the tricky part and is where I struggle during this photoshoot.

All photos were taken with a micro four thirds camera (https://amzn.to/2YAif1s) attached with a telephoto zoom lens (https://amzn.to/2OtnkIP).

6/12: Peterborough Arch

Half-way into my personal monthly photography project I chose a theme that does not evoke the seasonal weather. Instead, I chose a physical structure just like February's theme on city bridges. For the June segment of Project 12 I chose public sculpture. The city of Peterborough has many public sculptures and many can be found in Peterborough Sculpture Park in Thorpe Meadows.

So, one early Sunday morning I drove down to Thorpe Meadows to scope out the many sculptures in the park. I photographed the Peterborough Arch by sculptor Lee Grandjean for this monthly project. From afar and up close, Peterborough Arch is a magnificent sight. Located near Longthorpe Parkway close to another sculpture, it was quite a long walk to the sculpture from the carpark.

All photos were taken with a micro four thirds camera (https://amzn.to/32xVLB8) attached with a telephoto zoom lens (https://amzn.to/32vyos2).

5/12: Lush greenery

It is the merry month of May and the landscape in our neighbourhood had turn mostly green. Spring is ready to turn over to summer signalled by plants and trees turn to bright and lush green. I did not need to go far to capture this scenery as it can be seen and experienced right at our doorstep.

The images I captured for this month's photography theme of Lush Greenery were all taken in my neighbourhood. These scenes are very familiar in our everyday lives as they are from a well-trodden path we take evoking lots of memories. Picture myself as I walk with my children to primary school or going grocery shopping in the nearby neighbourhood shopping centre.

All images were taken with my current smartphone (https://amzn.to/2K7uCOm).

4/12: Changing skies

It is the middle of spring where the skies are at its most changeable, from light to dark or stormy to calm in successive moments. I was hoping to catch a stormy sky. Alas, April had almost ended and I have not had that opportunity. I opted for a less dramatic cloudy sky instead.

The theme for the April segment of Project 12 is changing skies and the photos I took were from my back garden taken in a very short period. I took more than 10 photos but only these three in this post are the best of the lot. The camera I mainly used was the Olympus OMD E-M5 II mounted with the Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 14-150mm II f/4.0-5.6 telephoto lens. But I wanted to take a wider shot of the skies so I quickly got my old Olympus PEN E-PM1 camera mounted with the Olympus 9mm f/8 fisheye body cap lens to capture some images.

Young leaves

Project 12

 

3/12: New growth welcomes spring

The month of March ushers in spring with new plant growth transforming the landscape. Dull grey and brown surroundings changed to fresh green and other bright colours. Hope springs eternal as life begins again.

New growth is the subject I chose for this monthly project. I did not need to go far as my own neighbourhood was a great source of new plant growth. And with this subject, I get to practice macro or close-up photography again.

All photos were taken with an Olympus OMD E-M5 II micro four thirds camera attached with the Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-50 mm f/3.5-6.3 standard kit lens (incl macro mode).

Footbridge

Project 12



2/12: Queensgate footbridge

Queensgate Footbridge links the city centre (via Queensgate Shopping Centre) to the railway station of Peterborough. Underneath the bridge is the A15 Bourges Boulevard. Both the footbridge and the boulevard underwent modern refurbishment in recent years. This makes the rail station more accessible with the addition of a pedestrian crossing near the footbridge.

I used to go to the rail station through this bridge when I had regular work-related travels outside of Peterborough. I still do but work travels are very rare these days. Instead, I use the footbridge on my way to work although there are better routes to use as well.

All photos were taken with a micro four thirds camera (https://amzn.to/2yCGTUF) attached with a standard kit lens (https://amzn.to/2YdMdg8).

Frost

Project 12





Project 12

In an earlier post, I pledged to do photography projects this year in order to re-ignite my interest in photography. The main project I want to do is called Project 12, where I will take photos every month based on one or more ideas that describes that particular month. I plan to do this project through photowalks in and around my neighbourhood and Peterborough, in general. And whenever I have the chance, I will plan it around our family travels, too.

Why Project 12?

I have been neglecting my photography hobby for quite a while now, only taking photos to document our family travels. I would say that my initial enthusiasm to pursue this hobby has been exhausted. So, to re-ignite it I need to do it slowly and deliberately and think of it as learning how to photograph again. Besides, I tried to do a weekly photography project for a year (Project 52) a couple of years back and it was a failure. I stopped after a few weeks as it proved difficult fitting it around our family life.

1/12: A frosty morning

I started off my Project 12 photography project in the mid-winter month of January. It almost never happened as I started quite late. I was hoping to capture a moment that best describes January to me - frosty mornings. When I started in the late half of the month, it was still not cold enough to have frost in the mornings.

It did happen one Wednesday morning so I made two photography runs, three actually. The first one was using my Huawei P10 Android smartphone after I drove my wife to the hospital where she worked. It was early morning and still a bit dark. I only took photos of the frost in my car's roof. And they were awful.

All photos were taken with an Olympus OMD E-M5 II micro four thirds camera attached with the Olympus M.Zuiko Digital ED 12-50 mm f/3.5-6.3 standard kit lens (in macro mode).