Hands Project by Susie.

Much better in my opinion.
 
susiejb said:
Taken on my phone again, this is Tony, he is 70 years of age. Born in London he moved to the USA in the sixties hoping to make it as a golf pro, but competition was fierce, he was offered the chance of overseeing early tourism in the Dominican Republic and spend many happy, exciting, and fulfilling years both there and in the Bahamas before returning to Britain. Tony has always been an active fun loving chap but four years ago his health took a turn for the worst and he now has kidney dialysis three times a week. Visiting him in the dialysis unit and seeing so many people of all ages hooked up to machines made me personally realise afresh the importance of organ donation and how precious our health is.

Hands Six ...Tony

Hands 6 by susiejb2, on Flickr
Click to expand...


Another great shot for you project Susie, and once again a great write up.(y)

George.
 
Hi Susie, great to see you continuing with your project (y)
A question if you don't mind?
How are you sourcing your models/subjects?
Are these people you come across in the course of your day and you have your camera with you? Or do you have subjects in mind beforehand and ask them if they will pose for you?
 
blakester said:
Hi Susie, great to see you continuing with your project (y)
A question if you don't mind?
How are you sourcing your models/subjects?
Are these people you come across in the course of your day and you have your camera with you? Or do you have subjects in mind beforehand and ask them if they will pose for you?
Click to expand...


Hi Ian @blakester ... it's a bit of both really ....some are people that I know, some I just took quickly on my phone as I seemed to be in the right place at the right time. My intention is to become more confident with the asking and hopefully get some background info for each photo. As I'm sure you've discovered, people are amazingly interesting and everyone has a story to tell. I'm considering seeking some specific people out and have quite a few ideas to pursue throughout the summer. I'm off on holiday soon and I'm really hoping I can seek out a few good ones while I'm away too.
I'm really pleased I took the project on, I find myself really looking forward to my next 'find'.
 
I've sadly neglected this project but it has been on my mind.

Traveling home from Wales yesterday we popped into a National Trust property and I met Andrew who was taking photos of tiny fragments of paper and plaster. I felt this was an ideal subject for my project and he kindly agreed to let me take a photo.

The property is in the course of restoration and he had uncovered some original wallpaper under thick coats of emulsion. Carefully excavating some crumbling plaster on another wall he had managed to get some fragments to send away (presumably to a laboratory for date testing) this will then decide whether the walls are meticulously stripped back to the original wallpaper. Apparently this highly skilled occupation involves all kinds of paper, paintings etc. giving us a fascinating glimpse of everyday life hundreds of years ago.

Top marks the National Trust as all the staff there were very helpful and informative, but especially to Andrew for allowing me to take this photo. As requested I'm sending him a link, I'm sure I've oversimplified your job Andrew but thank you for letting me take a snapshot of your work.

Andrew ... National Trust Paper Conservation Adviser.

Hands project TP15 by Susiejb, on Flickr
 
Last edited:
Just caught your thread and not only enjoyed the photographs but loved the narrative. Excellent idea.
 
As hands go, they're good: knobbly gnarled dexterity

plus the "Please Do Not Touch" sign. (y)

Thanks Andrew.
 
d00d said:
As hands go, they're good: knobbly gnarled dexterity

plus the "Please Do Not Touch" sign. (y)

Thanks Andrew.
Click to expand...

Thanks d00d ....yes, I watched Andrew taking tiny scrapings from the wallpaper, you certainly can't be heavy handed in his job.

I had a very nice email back from him, he liked the photo and was really pleased I was interested in his job, so I guess that one worked both ways ....such nice people about aren't there :)
 
Hi Susie, good to see you are still continuing with your project.
Such an interesting backstory to your latest image. I feel that it's this story which makes a project come to life as much as the photography itself.

The photograph tells a story in itself I think, the viewer can get the gist of it by viewing.
Good work Susie!
 
blakester said:
Hi Susie, good to see you are still continuing with your project.
Such an interesting backstory to your latest image. I feel that it's this story which makes a project come to life as much as the photography itself.

The photograph tells a story in itself I think, the viewer can get the gist of it by viewing.
Good work Susie!
Click to expand...

Thanks Iain, much appreciate your comment ....hopefully now I've kick started this again I can get back into it, it sort of fell by the wayside.
 
It's the "Do Not Touch" sign that does it for me. "I can't touch so I'm taking a photo." Kudos to the NT too. In my experience they don't like cameras that much.

I think a good project takes time too. There's no rush. Better to get 20 shots in a year than 20 in a day. You have time to revise, think and improve.

Keep it up!
 
Harlequin565 said:
It's the "Do Not Touch" sign that does it for me. "I can't touch so I'm taking a photo." Kudos to the NT too. In my experience they don't like cameras that much.

I think a good project takes time too. There's no rush. Better to get 20 shots in a year than 20 in a day. You have time to revise, think and improve.

Keep it up!
Click to expand...

Thanks for looking Ian ....yes the NT people were really excellent. I'm away in Devon this weekend so I'll be looking out for that special someone. I agree about not rushing....I could take a photo of everyone I meet, everyone has a story after all, but I just want to capture ones that are that bit different.
 
Hi, Susie, very interesting project. Hands are so different and different contexts really work well. The chap in the bed (cropped) is a very inserting photograph. Really tells a story and interesting narrative.

Cheers.
 
I think all projects take time to work through. That really helps when looking at the results of a day out shooting. Even if it's just one really good image. The more you shoot, the more you will start to explore the subject, the deeper you get into it, and subsequently the better the results get. The Shoot > Review > Reshoot model works very well in that regard.

Interesting book though - thanks for the tag.
 
I just happened to see this chap today with a small display of his model boats...I only had my iphone so it was just a quick shot but I felt John's story was worthy of a place in my project.

John was raised in a children's home which he left when he was just fourteen ...he has had eighty three jobs in his lifetime !
When he was seventeen he joined the Merchant Navy, unfortunately at the age of twenty one he was exposed to asbestos dust while working in Falmouth Docks, this has had a dramatic effect on his health. When he was no longer able to work John started making his model boats and has a large collection that he's won may prizes and awards for.
John was a really nice knowledgeable chap and an absolute pleasure to talk to.

John ...The Boat Builder

Hands project TP15 by Susiejb, on Flickr
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top