Lucy And The Lens

Tag: #photography

  • 10 Years Since My Undergrad

    Ten years ago today, I graduated with a BA in Media from Leeds Trinity University. Now, I’d like to reflect on what I’ve accomplished in the past decade. Here are some of my achievements and highlights.

    During my studies, I developed a keen interest in photography, particularly fashion photography, which became the focus of my final project. This passion led me to enroll in a ten-week introductory photography course in 2015, after acquiring my first DSLR. I transitioned to mirrorless photography in 2021.

    In June 2015, I joined the Preston Photographic Society, which significantly advanced my portrait photography skills and introduced me to various photography styles.

    In 2016, I launched my photography website, www.lucyandthelens.com, and my Instagram account, @lucyandthelens, to showcase my work. While I only started creating Instagram reels in 2022, I strive to post new content weekly.

    Joining the Preston Photographic Society encouraged me to participate in competitions and exhibitions. One notable exhibition was at the Harris Museum, where some of my photos were displayed digitally. I also have been part of the ongoing exhibits at Winckley Street Ale House, the lockdown exhibit and an exhibit we were asked to do by the council about a Victorian fair.

    Here are a few of my photos that have been exhibited or placed in the top three in competitions:

    In 2018, I returned to academia to pursue a master’s degree in photography at the University of Central Lancashire, which I completed in 2019. During my master’s program, we held exhibitions, including one focused on the Anthropocene and another final exhibition where I displayed three pieces of Sophie and a photo book on identity and performativity.

    How Can We Capture Someone’s Performance Identity Through Photography?

    Over the past decade, I have been published in two magazines. My photo of Anna, titled “Ice Queen,” appeared in the Christmas issue of Through the Lens Magazine and remains one of my favorite shoots. I also had a set of photos of Katie published in Beautica Magazine, taken at a Lensor Creative event.

    During the two years of lockdown, I found myself at my most creative. I revisited familiar places, capturing them in different seasons, and engaged in numerous Photoshop projects and FaceTime photo shoots. This period also saw my highest social media engagement.

    One of my proudest moments came in 2019 when I was invited to photograph Cheshire Fashion Week through Instagram. I enjoy returning each year to work with both new and familiar models.

    Another significant achievement was being invited to photograph the Mayor’s Ball in Preston in 2023, an opportunity extended to me by the then-mayor. For those who may not know, the mayoral office changes hands every 12 months.

    A highlight of my career has been undertaking creative shoots for clients, such as EP covers for Sophie. These projects allow me to explore and push creative boundaries.

    Fairytales Ep Cover

    Reflecting on these past ten years, I am excited to see what the next decade holds.

  • Content Creation Girlies

    If your a creative. You need to find yourself a group of people to connect and create content with just like I did with Content Creation Girlies back in January.

    Here’s what we got up to in the video below:

  • Capturing Emotion In Photography

    Today I’m going to talk about the concept of capturing emotion in photography.

    Emotion is a difficult concept to capture in any art form, but particularly in photography. Images are two-dimensional and can often seem flat and lifeless. Yet, a good photographer knows how to use light, composition and timing to create images that evoke feelings in the viewer.

    One way to capture emotion in photography is through the use of light. Bright, natural light can create a feeling of happiness and vitality, while shadow and darkness can convey a sense of mystery or foreboding. The way light falls on a subject can also create a sense of drama or enhance the feeling of a particular moment.

    Composition is another important tool for evoke emotion in photography. A well-composed image can create a sense of balance and calm, while a more chaotic image can convey a feeling of energy and excitement. Framing a subject in a particular way can also help to emphasize certain emotions – for example, isolating a subject can create a feeling of loneliness or desperation, while including a lot of negative space can convey a sense of peace and solitude.

    Timing is also crucial when trying to capture emotion in photography. Capturing a moment just before or just after a key event can help to convey the feeling of that event, for example, a photograph of a child just before they blow out their birthday candles can convey anticipation and excitement, while a photograph of a couple just after they kiss can convey love and tenderness.

    Help us capture emotion in photography! Like and comment if you think light, composition and timing are key!

  • Work, Life, Balance

    This week I’m going to talk about what I do to create and maintain a good work, Life, Balance.

    The main thing you need to do if your self employed/ freelance is work out how long you can focus for before you take a break.

    I find that reading for a bit, going for a walk or going to the gym are good ways for me to take a break as I spend a lot of time staring at a screen while I’m working.

    It can be difficult to achieve a work life balance, but it’s important to try. By taking breaks, taking time off, and finding a career we love, we can make strides towards a more balance life.

    Of course, achieving a good work-life balance is easier said than done. But with a bit of effort and planning, it is possible to strike a balance that works for you.

    Here are a few tips to get you started:

    1. Set clear boundaries between work and home.
    2. Make time for yourself and your loved ones.
    3. Don’t let work consume your life.
    4. Plan and prioritize your time.
    5. Learn to say NO.

    So what are some ways you achieve a work life balance? Let us know in the comments!

  • Photo Challenge Friday Week 31: Chair and Week 32: Line From A Song

    Hi I’m Back with my photo challenge Friday Segment. A couple of weeks ago I decided to start doing 52 frames again so I will be participating in their challenges and sharing, what I have created here. The theme for this week is Chair. You can photograph any type of chair. It can be a sofa, a dining chair, a plastic chair a wooden chair or any kind of chair. I have chosen to photograph my reading chair just plain and simple with a blue toned ring light setting to highlight the colour of the chair. Here is the Image I chose for the challenge:

    Here is the rest of the images I took as part of the Challenge but i didn’t choose:

    The Challenge for week 32 is Line from a song so i picked I feel a lavender haze creeping up on me from Lavender Haze by Taylor Swift. Here is the image I chose:

    Here are a few more of the images I took for this challenge:

    If you enjoyed Week 31: Chair and Week 32:Line From A Song stay tuned for week 33: High Noon and week 34: Music If you like what I’ve done here why not Join in with me next week.

  • 8 Tips To Get You Out Of A Creative Rut

    Today I’m going to be dispelling the myth that if you’re in a creative rut you need to go to an exotic location.

    Here are eight things you can do to get out of a creative rut.

    Create an Assignment

    You may find that if you give yourself an assignment. for example, a photo a day for a month or a year it instils some newfound creativity within you. I personally set myself a new photo challenge every Friday which I have a full week to do and this helps me think out of the box.

    Here is a link to my latest Friday Challenge Post and some other related posts:

    Create A Theme for A Photo walk

    Another way to get out of this rut is to create a theme for a photo walk and then it becomes more like a treasure hunt and helps to provide you with ideas.

    Do Something Different

    Have a day where you go out and do something other than photography or whatever your profession is as sometimes you need to get away from it to end the rut. You can also try and learn something new that’s completely unrelated to your niche. (unique area of expertise)

    Humans of Your City

    How about creating your own humans of New York style project in your city looking for interesting characters wherever you go?

    Take Inspiration from The Everyday

    Another great way of getting out of a creative rut is to take inspiration from the everyday. How about picking up a book from your shelf and recreating the cover in one photo, a painting, drawing or anything else it inspires you to do. Find some other objects you have in your house and use them as your inspiration.

    See What Other People Are Doing in Your Niche

    How about browsing on your computer looking at what other people are doing in your niche.

    Create A Mood Board

    One of my favourite things to do when I’m stuck in a rut is to go on Pinterest. See what I can find and design my own mood board based on that.

    Get Out of Your Comfort Zone

    Try doing something you wouldn’t normally do, something as simple as changing the way you take your morning coffee.

    Just simply take your mind away from work.

    I hope you enjoyed this post if so, stay tuned for more.

  • Photocrafty by Sue Venables : A Review

    Last Week I spent lots of time reading Photocrafty: 75 Challenges for you and your DSLR. The reason I chose this book to read at this point was because most of the population are self-isolating at home due to the Corona Virus Pandemic. I was hoping to find some challenges that you can do at home and luckily there are some exciting ones.

    Sue Venables is a Lecturer in video and photography at city of Westminster college. Sue says “we should look for magic moments everyday” which is an analogy I really resonate with because I feel as a photographer you should always be looking for an image and these moments will jump out at you when you don’t expect it. Take your camera everywhere and just snap what you see and capture those moments. Remember “The best camera is always the one you have with you” don’t think you need to have all the expensive kit.

    Hope you’re ready as Sue has set 75 challenges for us to do in Photocrafty. I will be doing these challenges on Fridays on my Photo Challenge Friday posts and ticking them off when I’ve done them. You can also join in if you’re interested as I post the next challenge on my blog the week before.

    The book starts off with the very simple techniques in the challenges and as you go through the book the challenges get more and more complex. In fact, some might require me to rope in a glamourous assistant like they do in magic shows.

    I thought I’d discuss the top 5 challenges that intrigue me most in this book rather than listing all 75. So, here are my top 5:

    • Photo Message

    I chose this challenge because I feel that this is one most of us need right now to keep each other in a creative mindset and to encourage each other in this difficult time. For me this one will work best for Instagram and should be next week’s challenge to start on Saturday using a whiteboard or pieces of white card.

    • Shoot 50 Shots

    I absolutely love the idea of this challenge in that you simply pick one subject and photograph it in 50 ways. I’d hope this one helps me think more creatively and out of the box.

    • Photojourno

    Taking photos and capturing a story through image and text is something I love, and I can’t wait to do this on the street again when I’m able to spend time doing street photography. Id love to photograph and make notes on the story.

    • Your Bubble

    In my opinion this is the coolest one, you go out photographing with a glass dome or Crystal Ball. The idea is about how we all exist in our own little world (Our Bubble). I’ve done this before here’s a link to my related post: Crystal Ball Photography

    • Bring History Alive

    The Idea is to take an old photo you already have or from the internet and go back to the same place and photograph what’s there now or recreate an old photo. During My MA I did this for my how do we use public space project as I was showing how the space had changed over time. What we used to use it for and what it used for now.

    To conclude my review, I found this book to be extremely informative on each challenge and I’m so excited to try them out. Sue mentions what some challenges mean in their original languages., she gives us a deep insight into what settings you should use for some of their challenges and gives a list of kit you might need.

    I hope you enjoyed this review stay tuned for more blog posts and reviews.

  • Share Your Best Ever Shot

    Calling all photographers today I am inviting you to share your best ever shot.

    • What makes it your best ever ?
    • Is there a story behind it?
    • What camera and settings did you use?
    • How did you light your shot?

    At the end of the week I will share these all on another post with full credits.

    Comment with your photo and the Information on my facebook page: www.facebook.com/lucyandthelensphotography, or email me at lucy@lucyandthelens.com to be included.

  • 5 Tips to Name your Photography business

    1. Brainstorm some ideas by creating a mind map and asking other people for inspiration.
    2. Check no-one else is using the name you want.
    3. Do you have a unique first name or surname. If you do try and include it into the business name.
    4. Make a list of photographic terms and see if one jumps out at you.
    5. Don’t Do what everybody else is doing. Try to make your name stand out.

    When choosing my name Lucy and the Lens step 1 and 4 were the ones I used the most then I got a logo and cartoon me designed by @emiliaclarecreates check out her Instagram.