Layby portraits

Decca

Decca

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382
Name
Helen
Edit My Images
Yes
You do realise that the first guy has killed someone? (the tear tattoo) - other than that, I find them engaging, all three have interesting faces and look like they could tell a story. Nice work Helen.
 
Carlh said:
You do realise that the first guy has killed someone? (the tear tattoo)
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Bit of a serious allegation to make isn't it?
 
Thanks :)

First guy is always very nice to us, but then we have the bacon (and a separate pan for eggs so they are halal) so everyone is always nice to us ("in their own way")

Where we are is in a layby next to a hospital so we get people who's only thing in common is that they want a decent cup of tea and a burger or they just come down for a chat with us and some company. It's like friends but with more taxi drivers and biting wind.
 
Carlh said:
You do realise that the first guy has killed someone? (the tear tattoo) -
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Mostly urban myth. I know plenty with tear tattoos....................................................:muted: :muted:
 
BRASH said:
Mostly urban myth. I know plenty with tear tattoos....................................................:muted: :muted:
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Even if he HAS killed someone... does that detract from the photo? Should he not be photographed because of this? What if he has killed someone... done time, and now leads a completely straight, lawful existence?

@Carlh

Shouldn't be judgemental.
 
Great set of shots, I'm sure it will be a project that will run for some time.
 
as much as I love these portraits, I would also love to know a bit about the people. The 'Humans of New york' series became massive because each portrait had a story, and that story was somehow felt / conveyed through the image.

Aligning the story with the person and capturing that 'story' in the image is a challenge. I reckon your layby series could be superb with their stories intertwined with your images. What a great way to meet random people that you would probably never come into contact with.

Couple of other tips (but im no expert by the way)

Backgrounds. be careful. The cars in the last one are bugging me.
Angle of shot. Depending on the mood you are trying to convey you should angle the shot accordingly. Check out some posing tips on you tube.

Other than that I reckon you have the potential to make a great series of images / stories.

look forward to seeing some more...
 
Great concept - A collection of candid shots capturing the characters who visit layby burger vans (I personally wouldn't touch a burger from a van!*). It will be very interesting to see if a strong theme of people types emerges as the collection builds.

* The only burgers I will taste from vans are Bison burgers from a van parked on a Bison Farm and using their fresh meat on the spot.

I'll stop at a layby van for a cuppa or possibly a bacon sandwich if the van has already been recommended to me.
 
Pookeyhead said:
Even if he HAS killed someone... does that detract from the photo? Should he not be photographed because of this? What if he has killed someone... done time, and now leads a completely straight, lawful existence?

@Carlh

Shouldn't be judgemental.
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I think you are the one being judgemental Dave. If you looked at the rest of my post: " I find them engaging, all three have interesting faces and look like they could tell a story. Nice work Helen." - so you have judged me based on my observation.

People don't get teardrop tattoo's for the "fun of it" or for "fashion". Its a free world, the last time I checked and if I want to make an observation or statement, rightly or wrongly - I can and I will.
 
Thanks for the advice @gpc1 the cars are extremely annoying and I've had to compromise on some of the conversions because of them. I'm usually inside the cabin itself facing out and have been trying out different lens/camera combinations, yesterday I had the olympus OM-D with the 25mm f/1.4 and it was working well.

Stories are a bit hard to add right now, we get told a lot of very very intimate details about people's lives, for example one of the people in my set has a daughter involved in the Rotherham child abuse scandal, and they are told in confidence - it's essentially a free therapy session with each burger at times. For now I'm giving people the names we give them (coming soon "BMW guy") 5 years time I'll add stories.
 
Carlh said:
People don't get teardrop tattoo's for the "fun of it" or for "fashion".
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I would be very surprised if at least some (most) got them for those exact reasons. Or maybe tattooists will only do them if you can provide documentary evidence. ;)
 
Tut! camera's everywhere these days! I'll need to watch where I stop for a burger in future lol :D

I think the first one, tattoo or no tattoo is the most expressive, even though its a dead pan expression, IYSWIM
Nice idea (y)
 
Agree with the general consensus that the first is the best of the bunch regardless of the tear tattoo.

Pookeyhead said:
Even if he HAS killed someone... does that detract from the photo? Should he not be photographed because of this? What if he has killed someone... done time, and now leads a completely straight, lawful existence?

@Carlh

Shouldn't be judgemental.
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Whoa there that's pretty radical views for a forum well known for its hang em and flog attitude.*

*(Disclaimer - Just to state that I'm not implying that your a hang em and flog em kinda guy)
 
Great project. I think it's great you have managed to fit it into your day job too and I'm sure it will be a good ice-breaker for customers and hopefully you get to know a bit more about the repeat customers too.

I think the portraits look great too, the subjects all seem fairly relaxed and natural. Is there a specific reason for the black and white treatment? I know lighting must be difficult to control in these cases but the backgrounds don't look particularly cluttered, so I don't think colour would be too much of a distraction. I just have a strong personal preference for colour with such things so I understand if you prefer the mono look.

The only other crit was my own fault. I misread the title as "Ladyboy" so it was a bit of a shocker when I opened the thread..

Oh and for the record, I think burgers taste better when they come from a van (y)
 
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TimmyG said:
Great project. I think it's great you have managed to fit it into your day job too and I'm sure it will be a good ice-breaker for customers and hopefully you get to know a bit more about the repeat customers too.

I think the portraits look great too, the subjects all seem fairly relaxed and natural. Is there a specific reason for the black and white treatment? I know lighting must be difficult to control in these cases but the backgrounds don't look particularly cluttered, so I don't think colour would be too much of a distraction. I just have a strong personal preference for colour with such things so I understand if you prefer the mono look.

The only other crit was my own fault. I misread the title as "Ladyboy" so it was a bit of a shocker when I opened the thread..

Oh and for the record, I think burgers taste better when they come from a van (y)
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...you read the title as Ladyboy...and STILL opened the thread?? :D
 
This is a fantastic project Helen, so much potential to capture a slice of life around your environment.
I am shooting something similar in a 100 strangers project. I do like to include a little about the strangers whose portraits I take, in fact that has become more important to me than the photography.

Could you not perhaps edit the most intimate details out but still say something about the person?

Good luck with the rest of your project Helen.
 
IMO all of them need a bit more punch...Could be a really nice series though.
 
Thanks everyone. I have more in the set and more to edit this weekend, although I did miss a day of shooting and later on it will be apparent why.

TimmyG said:
Is there a specific reason for the black and white treatment? I know lighting must be difficult to control in these cases but the backgrounds don't look particularly cluttered, so I don't think colour would be too much of a distraction. I just have a strong personal preference for colour with such things so I understand if you prefer the mono look.
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I went for the mono thing mostly because of needing consistency with the backgrounds. The hospital staff are surprisingly flamboyant with their car colour choices, so more often than not we have a bright pink or yellow car opposite us. I may end up going colour a few times but all depends if there are headlight eyelashes behind them :)

I really do appreciator the advice, I have very little experience doing anything like this, I'm a natural light photographer but most of my practice with humans has come from taking pictures of people I know and can manipulate more.
 
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Ulfric M Douglas said:
I would like you to try a wider wide, do you have any version of the 9-18mm?
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Widest I have is the tamron 17-50mm, oddly enough we were talking about this today, Karen wants to have a shot with all the cars snaking round in the background and a wider one of the cabin, I wasn't convinced at the time but now I'll give it a go when the light and pollution isn't horrid.
 
Good stuff. I think the portraits might work better if you are at the subjects eye level (As in the first one) and not looking down at them.

This might interest you - http://roadsidebritain.co.uk/
 
The original f2.8 17mm Olympus is an excellent lens for people pictures, you may find one dirt cheap somewhere.
At 35mm equiv framing it might suit better than a tamron zoom, and it's very good with the light.
 
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