FMP

Final major project.

Aims

*To produce a series of images that show the differences in playing grounds of the various football leagues.
*To research the correct grounds for each league.
*To produce a varied set of images showing clearly the difference in money and how that effects the feel of the grounds.
*To see if as the clubs become richer they feel more distant
*To avoid any human presence in the images. So as not to distract from the grounds themselves. (Cars may be unavoidable)

Written Brief for FMP.

Football in the North West.

For this series of images I have looked at football in the North West of England. More specifically the grounds that teams from Sunday league up to the Premier League play at. I chose one photograph from a Sunday league team Summerseat, a Conference team Radcliffe Borough, League two team Rochdale (Spotland), League one team Bury (Gigg Lane), Championship team Bolton (Reebok) and Premier league team Manchester United (Old Trafford). These league positions were taken from the end of 11/12 season.  

I wanted to show how close you can feel to the lower league teams because of the lack of finances meaning that grounds are always local, quite modest in size and often just one or two shed stands or very simple in design. To show this the images are a lot physically closer to the ground, with often this being the only option as many grounds are in the middle of housing estates rather than surrounded by massive car parks and retail parks like at the Reebok stadium and Old Trafford. The much larger stadiums although much more impressive are also a great deal more corporate orientated with large areas for sponsors, special guests and directors to enter separate from the paying fans. While the local clubs will often only have small areas for them and most of the stadium will be dedicated to fans. I wanted to show how far removed you can sometimes feel from the larger grounds so with each image (from top left to bottom right) the distance from the grounds increases as well as time of day passing, from early morning sunrise to sunset and finally night. I wanted the images to be a simple as possible showing the differences in the leagues football grounds and how this can tell you as much about the team as anything else could.

Ansel Adams


February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984 was an American born photographer and environmentalist. He is famous for his pictures of Yellowstone nation park in the USA. 

These pictures would fit into the section of wilderness images. They show how wild and unforgiving places can be. He shot on 5x4 large format and his images are always highly detailed. He takes great time composing his images for maximum visual impact. They always have a sense of power and putting you in your place in the grand scheme of things. 

Fay Godwin

17 February 1931 – 27 May 2005 was a British landscape photographer who was president of the British Ramblers association. She took many images of the English landscape. 

These images show how our own countries landscape. They show the beauty in the barrenness of the landscape. She used light to great effect to add a dramatic effect to the images, these shafts of light give a sense of scope to the images showing how vast the landscape is and how little we are in the grand scheme of things.

Luke Powell

Luke is a Canadian landscape photographer who has traveled to many of the hardest to reach places in the world. Places that today are war zones and the most hostile places on the planet. He went to capture images no one else has taken, showing that even the most foreign environments are beautiful.  

These images show that the hardest to reach places often have some of the most breathtaking views of all. Today however these areas of Afganistan and Pakistan are warzones, the mountains pictured are home to religious fanatics who's only goal is to rid the world of any who dont follow the same religion as they do. However these images show the true awe inspiring beauty of these places, making it hard to believe it is perhaps the most dangerous place to be on the planet.  

Doug Anderson

Doug Anderson is a cameraman and has worked on every BBC series of 'The Blue Planet', 'Planet Earth' and 'Life'. He is currently working on 'The frozen planet' for the BBC. His work takes him to the most inhospitable places on the planet where he captures the areas breathtaking beauty. 

These images which include a under water shot, have to have been some of the most difficult images to capture do to the remoteness of the location and the specialist skills required for the under water shot. The panoramas give a sense of scale, it gives the effect of making you fell very small.

Edward Weston

1986 - 1958 is a American photographer often thought of as one of the most innovative and influential of all time. He felt he brought his 'Americanism' to photography. 

These images show the vastness of the world around us. They show that sometimes there is repetition and symmetry in the world around us. And then even over great distances there is always something bigger or more interesting just around the next corner or over the next mountain. 

Andre Kertesz 

1894 - 1985 is a Hungarian Born photographer best known for his groundbreaking contributions to composition and photoessay. 

These images show that there does not have to be a conventional way of composing images. And that the best images are the ones taken from places no one else would go to or think of going to. These images make an everyday sight much more unique and interesting. Even reflections can be used to create a great urban landscape photograph. 

Eugene Atget 

1857 - 1927 Is a French photographer best known for documenting the streets of Paris. 

These images again are a example of how a unusual composition can make a great photograph. While these images document what people see every day, it is the composition which plays a important role. If it is a perspective that is different, if only slightly then it can create a whole new feel to a place. Often as well images from the same view as they are seen every day can cause people to see details they overlook. 

Paul Strand

1890 - 1975 Is a American Photographer and filmaker who helped establish photography as a art form in the 20th century. 

These images are highly abstract and show a gritty, mundane aspect to city living. They feel very dirty and cold. They have a depressing feel to them. It feels like just another average day, with everything going as it usually does. There is nothing particularly unique about that situation, but the moment in time is captured. And with it the feel of the city itself. 

AMA - Sports Photo agency

These are some excellent images taken in low light, under floodlight with a wide angle lens. Like the one i intend to use. They show the grand nature of the stadiums, which contrasts against the boys in the top picture who have to make do with a flooded pitch with no nets. From grassroots right the way to the top.

James Cannon

James is a editorial and features photographer. He shoots for football club magazines and websites. 

These pictures are typical match day pictures. They show the grand scale of the events he is photographing and the places he is photographing. Not only do they show the scale they also show the feel and good nature of the events. 

Painter research.

Laurence Stephen Lowry (1 November 1887 – 23 February 1976) was an English artist born in Stretford, Lancashire. Many of his drawings and paintings depict nearby Salford and surrounding areas, including Pendlebury, where he lived and worked for over 40 years.

Lowry is famous for painting scenes of life in the industrial districts of Northern England during the early 20th century. He had a distinctive style of painting and is best known for urban landscapes peopled with human figures often referred to as "matchstick men". He also painted mysterious unpopulated landscapes, brooding portraits, and the unpublished "marionette" works, which were only found after his death.

Because of his use of stylised figures and the lack of weather effects in many of his landscapes he is sometimes characterised as a naïve 'Sunday painter' although this is not the position of the galleries that have organised retrospectives of his works.

A large collection of Lowry's work is on permanent public display in a purpose-built art gallery on Salford Quays, appropriately named the Lowry.

Football club research

Summerseat 

Sunday league club

Radcliffe Borough 

Rochdale AFC

Bury FC

Bolton FC

Manchester United FC

Shots

I decided that the stadium photographs should avoid as much as possible including any people. I wanted this to be purely a look at the types of stadiums teams play in a what that can tell you about those particular grounds. I did however decided that the time of day should progress slightly with each photograph. With the first being taken at just after first light in the morning and the last being taken just after sunset. I also decided that the distance from the stadium would increase with each shot to give a greater sense of scale and distance from the larger grounds, given they often encompass much larger areas of ground. 

Final print selection 

This was a very simple shot but i wanted it to be a simple as possible given that it is a field in quite nice surroundings. Ideally there would have been goal posts up however given it was the end of the footballing season they had been taken down. I feel this actually worked to my benefit in the end as it shows real grassroots football. 

This was a conference side ground. It was basically a ca park with a grass pitch and one stand next to it.  However the early morning sky does add to the feel of the image it makes it feel quite bleak. It feels run down and poor and this was exactly what i was aiming for,

I feel this image works quite well with the flood lights being included it give a lot fo space at the top for some veyr interesting clouds, which when printed on the metallic paper are really quite striking. 

Gigg lane was a difficult ground to shoot. It is a single stand to the front of the ground. With no outstanding features to speak of bar a small car park out front. Given this was shot so it was midday the sun was high in the sky and it was a cloudless day this feels a little flat. However i feel that it works well as the set of images as a whole and shows a good level of progression between the grounds.

This is the sunset image in my set, i particularly like the pinks in the sky with the slight hint of cloud. It was a difficult shot to compose as the stadium is surrounded by retail parks and veyr bust roads. So it was unavoidable to get some motion blur from passing cars. I feel this doesn't detract too much from the overall image and doesn't really add a human factor to the images either. 

For this shot a long exposure was used with an aperture of f22. This allowed for the great streaks of light on the water. There is a slight blur to the top left of the stand caused by the length of the exposure. But overall i feel this image came out quite well. It has a dark impressive kind of feel to it.

Costing

Print Type.


For the printing i decided upon Kodak Metallic paper, it has a highly reflective surface but gives a metallic shine to certain colours which i felt would complement the often very metallic nature of football stadiums. 

My print with frame

Frame 

For my frame i decided i wanted an aluminum frame again to follow on with the theme of metallic structures, metallic prints and then a metallic frame. I felt the continuity would add to the quality of the display. I elected to remove the glass from the front of the frame as the reflective surface was too distracting and you ended up viewing your own reflection. 

Lights & miscellaneous costs and final display set up

Lights £7

Table cloth £2

Wood baton £5

Total cost = £239.83