Exhibition naming... - Page 17

Pheebs · 29-05-2008, 17:48

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay Pete! Go go go you!

It's AWESOME!

So happy for you, really am! Uber chuffed!

petemc · 29-05-2008, 23:52

Thanky-doodle

BD creatives taking the world by storm

Davey_Pitch · 30-05-2008, 13:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kitten

I want to be there when you do this!!!

Me too. I forsee a mini BD trip into Liverpool to go around the book shops when it's released

Mark · 30-05-2008, 13:52

Impromptu autograph session?

FakeSnake · 30-05-2008, 15:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mark

Impromptu autograph session?

ha, not impromptu
but secretly and covertly organised, to swamp Pete when he turns up to a book shop.. like adoring fans

THAT would get the public looking

edit : PS.. Shhhhhh... dont tell Pete

petemc · 30-05-2008, 15:26

lol! "Which is Pete? Oh he's that bright red guy over there. Damn, that dude is red!"

petemc · 13-06-2008, 01:23

How does this look? It'll be the intro to my book. I'm not sure if its all needed. Hell, I'm not sure what I was meant to write but I figured as its my first book that it would be fitting to say how I got here.

Quote:

I've been around cameras all my life. I remember having one as a toy when I was a kid. When I was 10 I went on a day trip around Birkenhead with a film SLR. It was great fun. We visited the docks, Birkenhead Park and the Priory. After we developed our film in a darkroom. Its the only time I've ever been in a darkroom. Despite being nearly 20 years ago I can still remember it vividly. The way your photo magically faded onto the paper, the red light and the fun task of trying to open the roll of film in a black bag. My favourite photo from the day was a black and white image of Birkenhead docks. I still have it. Its my first real photo. I had already taken photos on family trips but this was the first real one. From start to finish.

After that summer I went to secondary school. I got caught up in the computer age. Hacking the old BBC network, writing my own programs on my C64 and later Amiga 500+ and generally being a bit geeky. When it came to A Level decisions I enquired about A Level Art so I could do some photography. I planned to get back into it but with film costs I had no real drive to pursue it. It turned out that A Level art didn't really focus that much on photography, and since I can't draw I decided to skip it. I went off to John Moores University and continued with computing. Every summer I planned to take up photography and just forgot to. A few years after completing my degree my mate bought a Canon A40. At this time I already had a digital camera, the Kodak DX300, but it would die after 3 photos so I didn't use it. After seeing his photos and being told how good a camera it was I decided to buy a Canon A70. I remember my first photos being truly terrible. The white balance was always wrong and often the photos were blurry. I found the Kodak took better photos but that was because it was fully automatic. After the first few days with the A70 I was going to send it back. I hated it. But I battled on and with the help of some friends I started to learn how to use it. Things I learnt on that photo day trip in Birkenhead came flooding back. Aperture, ISO, shutter speeds, and various other photography terms. I did all the clichés to start with. Random abstracts, flower macros, and so on. The one thing that I always found amazing was what the camera let me do. I could capture the tiny details in flowers, things I had never seen. I could freeze time. I've grown a lot since then but there are still moments when I see a photo I've taken and I'm reminded of those early days with the A70. Its amazing what you can do with a camera.

2 years after getting the A70 and I felt it was time to upgrade. The camera was feeling sluggish. It was a great camera but I had outgrown it. I ordered a Canon 10D Digital SLR. It was over £1,000 and quite a leap from the £150 A70. At 7am one morning it arrived. I unpacked it and instantly I was 10 again. The feel of the camera was just so perfect. I had completely forgotten about looking through the lens rather than a view finder. It felt completely natural. I'll never have that feeling again. Well, maybe when I finally buy a Leica.

The 10D allowed me to do more, to grow as a photographer but still despite this I didn't call myself a photographer. I was just a guy with a camera. I was still working as a web designer when I got the 10D. I was still that geeky person wrapped up in computers. The 10D started to change that. I started exploring Liverpool more. The music scene, the street life. I felt that the larger more camera looking 10D gave me a bit more credibility as a photographer than the compact looking A70 did. It boosted my confidence in street photography and talking to people. Around this time I decided to change my web design portfolio into a photography site, a photoblog. Initial it was just "The photography of Pete Carr." A simple photoblog inspired by David J. Nightingale of Chromasia.com. I liked the idea of having a site I could put pictures on and have an archive that I could flick through. I posted photos whenever I had any but after about 8 months I decided to make the effort to post daily. But still I wasn't a photographer.

I started documenting Liverpool more as I knew that with all the development around some places would be completely different in a few years. I kept posting on my photoblog. I knew I was in a unique position because Liverpool would soon be the Capital of Culture. It opened up so many new photo ops for me. I started hearing about things I'd never heard of before. Street theatre. Dance events, bands, new buildings, streets, and all sorts of hidden areas of Liverpool. By 2007 I decided to rebrand my photoblog. It was by this time that I knew I was a photographer. I could happily tell anyone that its what I do, and its who I was. I had a growing portfolio and I knew what I liked to photograph. People and places.

But throughout all this why am I a photographer? Why am I at the front of crowds trying to get that one good photo? Why am I standing in the middle of the road photographing traffic lights? There are many answers to that. Partly because its there and for some crazy reason I find it interesting. Partly because 30 minutes later the light will have changed and that photo will have been lost. I hate regretting a missed photo op. Sure you can visit the same place the next day but 7pm on July 9th 2007 will never happen again. Its gone. Photography lets me capture that. I am a photographer. I can use my camera to capture those little moments of life in Liverpool. A random girl with balloons on Bold Street. The ferry passing the QE2. They'll all be gone unless I take that photo. So I do. Most of all its simply because there is something about that moment that I find appealing. The rays of light shining through the mist on a cold November morning. The perfect reflection in the docks. Henri Cartier-Bresson can say it better than I.

"Above all, I craved to seize the whole essence, in the confines of one single photograph, of some situation that was in the process of unrolling itself before my eyes. "

"During the work, you have to be sure that you haven't left any holes, that you've captured everything, because afterwards it will be too late. "

I write this in the middle of the Capital of Culture year knowing that I can go out tomorrow and take a good photo of something in Liverpool. Perhaps it will be someone in town. They're always great to photograph. Sure they'll look at me funny but often if I ask they'll be happy to stop for a photo. I could go see a gig and capture some random unsigned musician playing a fantastic song. I could wander round at sunset and capture the best light that you'll get anywhere in the country against that stunning skyline. The photos in this book are a sample, 100 of the best from the past few years of documenting Liverpool. I feel like I've only just started too. I could spend my life documenting the city. Who knows what will happen in 2009. Who knows what will happen in 2029. Good or bad there will always be photos to take here. The city is amazing right now and it can only get better.

Mark · 13-06-2008, 03:40

I gave it a quick scan and I'll read it properly when I'm not tired, but I could get a fair idea from the first paragraph or two. I don't know the intricate details of the book but I'm assuming it's the Amazon one linked above, and thus I suspect that what you've written is probably not what you need.

What you've written is about you. It's very interesting for sure, but generally I think an introduction to a book - (auto)biographies and novels aside - needs to be about the book - what the book is, why it is, and who you are now. The key is to grab the reader's attention and make them want to look at the rest of the book. Try and keep it short (a page or two at the most) and to the point.

If there's scope in the book for going into more detail about yourself, then that would be where the information above would go.

Try and find a book that's similar in style (not necessarily content) to what you're doing, and use that to get you started. Failing that, I suspect the publisher will be only too happy to give some guidance as to what they think it needs.

PS - this is only from experience of looking at books, not creating them.

PPS - no hard feelings I hope. If I've been insensitive then feel free to slap me upside my head with a slightly damp kipper.

petemc · 13-06-2008, 10:07

Don't worry dude. I have no idea what I should be writing

Its going to be 100% photos. I think they'll make the reader want to look at the book more than the intro will. I figured I'd write about how it all came about incase that was interesting to the reader. The photos are part of a larger project, which came about from getting into photography and such.

Davey_Pitch · 13-06-2008, 11:04

I do wonder whether the first section needs to be as long, though I know you want to say how you got where you are now. I love the last paragraph though, no matter what you do please leave that in

29-05-2008, 17:48	#161
Pheebs Deep Throat Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 6,512	Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay Pete! Go go go you! It's AWESOME! So happy for you, really am! Uber chuffed! __________________ http://www.spiffingdesigns.co.uk

29-05-2008, 23:52	#162
petemc Moonshine Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Nr Liverpewl Posts: 4,371	Thanky-doodle BD creatives taking the world by storm __________________ Thats no hamster, its a space station!

30-05-2008, 15:26	#166
petemc Moonshine Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Nr Liverpewl Posts: 4,371	lol! "Which is Pete? Oh he's that bright red guy over there. Damn, that dude is red!" __________________ Thats no hamster, its a space station!

13-06-2008, 03:40	#168
Mark Screaming Orgasm Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Newbury Posts: 15,194	I gave it a quick scan and I'll read it properly when I'm not tired, but I could get a fair idea from the first paragraph or two. I don't know the intricate details of the book but I'm assuming it's the Amazon one linked above, and thus I suspect that what you've written is probably not what you need. What you've written is about you. It's very interesting for sure, but generally I think an introduction to a book - (auto)biographies and novels aside - needs to be about the book - what the book is, why it is, and who you are now. The key is to grab the reader's attention and make them want to look at the rest of the book. Try and keep it short (a page or two at the most) and to the point. If there's scope in the book for going into more detail about yourself, then that would be where the information above would go. Try and find a book that's similar in style (not necessarily content) to what you're doing, and use that to get you started. Failing that, I suspect the publisher will be only too happy to give some guidance as to what they think it needs. PS - this is only from experience of looking at books, not creating them. PPS - no hard feelings I hope. If I've been insensitive then feel free to slap me upside my head with a slightly damp kipper. Last edited by Mark; 13-06-2008 at 04:15.

13-06-2008, 10:07	#169
petemc Moonshine Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Nr Liverpewl Posts: 4,371	Don't worry dude. I have no idea what I should be writing Its going to be 100% photos. I think they'll make the reader want to look at the book more than the intro will. I figured I'd write about how it all came about incase that was interesting to the reader. The photos are part of a larger project, which came about from getting into photography and such. __________________ Thats no hamster, its a space station!

30-05-2008, 13:52	#164
Mark Screaming Orgasm Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Newbury Posts: 15,194	Impromptu autograph session?

13-06-2008, 11:04	#170
Davey_Pitch I iz speshul Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Liverpool Posts: 6,296	I do wonder whether the first section needs to be as long, though I know you want to say how you got where you are now. I love the last paragraph though, no matter what you do please leave that in __________________ Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. It's not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.