PhightClubCollective Zine Issue 2 by Dawn Evans

Phight Club Photography Collective

Issue 2

Cover image by Dawn Evans

Photographs by Phight Club Collective

You know how some photographs can reach out into your chest and give your heart a squeeze? How the best photographs take us somewhere; somewhere through space, time, emotion? Those are the ones we remember; those paper thin slices of a moment in time that chime with something inside us. So this is what I am always seeking; when walking, waiting, watching. Searching for photographs that are not just of something, but are about something.

Inﬂuences? The more I look at photographers’ work the longer the list of those that I admire becomes; thinking back to those photographs that have stayed with me from the earliest days include Alec Soth, Alex Webb, William Eggleston, more recently Susan Burnstine and Martin Bogren. A major and direct inﬂuence on my work has been Ernesto Bazan who has taught me to look beyond the descriptive image to the metaphor, to that which is timeless and universal. All time favourite body of work? A really tough question; if I have to choose, let’s say Alex Webb’s Hot Light/Half Made Worlds. Favourite, most inspiring place? Cuba 6

Immediate attraction to photographer’s work? Framing and composition are the ﬁrst things I noticed about a photograph; how the frame has been organised and ﬁlled, how the light has been used as a structural element that’s what pulls me in for a closer look, it's what directs my eyes around the photograph.

Inspiring overall development? I’m conscious that I want to build a recognisable body of work, so I’m trying to maintain a consistent approach to the ongoing challenge of capturing those single moments that can tell whole stories. Particular camera that you favour? I’ve got a lot of cameras, my favourite is always the one in my hand. 9

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I’ve attributed the theme of ‘interactions’ to this collection of images although I have to confess that I didn’t set out to capture people interacting with others or with something else. These were taken over the period of a year or so but I might actually go with this idea and take it further. What is the inspiration for the overall development of your work? Trying to capture beauty and simplicity. Always. Even in street photography. I don’t often achieve it

but that is what pushes me and keeps me at it. Are there any speciﬁc techniques you regularly use, or are trying to master? Over the last year or so I have mainly been shooting street photography ‘from the hip’. With my smaller mirrorless camera I rarely bring it up to my eye any more when I have a subject in mind. I’m not usually looking down at the back of the camera either as I don’t want to draw any attention to the fact that I’m taking a photo!

It has resulted in a lot of rejected shots and plenty of disappointment when the shots are so nearly there but not good enough. This is something I want to work on. I am also interested in movement within images, using an ND ﬁlter to slow down the shutter and introducing ICM at the same time. Again, a work in progress! Which photographers have had a particular inﬂuence on your work? Of course, Cartier-Bresson. Also Steve McCurry’s portraits are incredible. Fan Ho’s street images of Hong Kong in the 50s and 60s – simplicity and beauty perfectly captured. David DuChemin for his story telling. And lately a young Chilean photographer Eduardo Asenjo Matus who’s “Sound of Silence” have sparked my interest in ICM in street photography. I keep coming back to the beauty and gracefulness of their work.

What was your early exposure to photography? No early exposure. I was very late to the party. First took an interest when my husband bought a Canon 400D in 2007. I picked it up once when we were in a pub garden and heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d gone to get some drinks. I started taking photos of the children and some sheep and was hooked! It was a bit of an obsession from then on.

Do you have a favourite or most inspiring place? London ﬁrst and foremost. I am never sorry that I bothered to take my camera and always sorry if I don’t! What in particular immediately attracts you to a photographer’s work? Simplicity and light. Is there anything that immediately turns you off? I don’t always ‘get’ some photography. But that’s OK. If I like it enough, I’ll dig deeper. If not, I’ll move on! It’s all good. 15

To paraphrase Proust, the real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes. I'm trying to apply this philosophy to my photography by exploring different approaches. This enables me to grow as an artist and constantly challenge my own preconceptions about what constitutes a rewarding image. Much of my work falls under the umbrella of "street photography", but I dislike the straight-jacket of genre and try not to let it limit my creativity. Overcoming vemรถdalen, that frustration of photographing something when thousands of identical photos already exist, is a constant but remaining true to my values and vision results in meaningful work. These images were taken in Morocco earlier this year.

Are there any specific techniques you regularly use, or are trying to master? I currently enjoy working with high contrast, in both colour and monochrome. Influences? Far too many to mention. I take inspiration from all walks of life, the arts, film, literature, music, family, etc.. Do you have an all time favourite body of work? Raymond Depardon's 'Glasgow' and Tish Murtha's 'Youth Unemployment'. Both are outstanding reportage from the late 70's, early 80's. Is there a particular camera you enjoy working with? If so, what kind and why? Fuji XT1 with a 23mm lens, it's what I own.

To paraphrase Proust, the real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes. I'm trying to apply this philosophy to my photography by exploring different approaches. This enables me to grow as an artist and constantly challenge my own preconceptions about what constitutes a rewarding image. Much of my work falls under the umbrella of "street photography", but I dislike the straightjacket of genre and try not to let it limit my creativity. Overcoming vemรถdalen, that frustration of photographing something when thousands of identical photos already exist, is a constant but remaining true to my values and vision results in meaningful work. These images were taken in Morocco earlier this year.

What current themes are you working on? Black and white, light and shadow, and short depth of ﬁeld. I have a long list of ideas to go through.

What immediately attracts you to a photographer's work? It generally has to grab me in the ﬁrst few moments but sometimes images can grow on me given time.

I am a photographer still exploring and trying to identify my style. I try not to be deﬁned by any particular genre but do have an interest towards more authentic but creative way of seeing the world before me. Whilst the single image can be powerful I enjoy the process of creating a series of images which tell a story.

Inﬂuences? Too many to mention but in particular Ernesto Bazan, Saul Leiter and Trent Parke. I was fortunate to attend a 2018 Easter workshop in Trapani Sicily run by Ernesto Bazan. I must send out a big thank you to Ernesto, for this changed my approach to photography forever. A great mentor, grazie amico mio.

I believe subjects reﬂect the way we see the world through our own eyes. The experiences and emotions we have, together with all the stereotype baggage we carry, has an effect on why we raise the camera and press the shutter. Maybe that's why two photographers standing next to each other see different things and why one takes the image and one chooses not to.

Do you have a favourite camera? I started in my teens with a 35mm ﬁlm format followed by a long pause as family and work commitments took hold. Having now retired, I have taken up photography again in the digital age and excited how the era is developing. I now shoot with a Fuji Xpro2, 23mm and 35mm prime lenses which are light, unobtrusive and ﬁt into a small bag making them very user friendly.

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What are the current themes you are working on? I have several themes ongoing but there are two that I tend to most. Firstly, my 'reduced forms', my blurry images. I’m aiming see how far I can push the distortion that happens when you shoot against the light and out of focus before the human form is reduced to a point where you can still ‘read’ the body language of the ﬁgure. Secondly, images taken on the move using my iPhone and the multiple exposure setting, which results in very abstract and again blurry images. These are sometimes more an exploration of landscape colour.

What is the inspiration for the overall development of your work? Communication and connection with the viewer – doesn’t matter how many people ‘like’ my work or understand it, if just one person connects with one of my images, that spurns me on to do it again and better next time. Are there any speciﬁc techniques you regularly use, or are trying to master? Short focusing and shooting backlit subjects for my Reduced Forms series. Sometimes that reduction becomes extremely abstract but you can still work out what the person is doing and read their mood. Guess I’m 39

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interested in the psychology that some people are better at connecting with the resulting distorted figures better than others ...they have more imaginative minds maybe. I'm also experimenting with multiple exposure and ICM particularly on the iPhone. I’d also like to get better at ‘street’. I know that I need to be bolder! Which photographers have had a particular influence on your work? Photographers I know and have worked with probably have had the most influence on me – I am a bit of a parrot and when I find someone using a particular technique that I haven’t tried 40

before, I want to emulate it to see if I like the results. Sometimes that dip 'into the new' sticks in my visual vocabulary and I believe that all that 'playing' leads me to be the photographer I am today whether I use that particular reference again or not. All experience leaves a legacy. When I research and visit exhibitions, I’m awful at remembering the names but I do remember the images. I don’t stick purely to photography, any creative work inﬂuences me, be it any feast for the eyes (food!), a performance, a view, textiles, old masters’ paintings or being in a garden. What can I say, I am a sponge!

Do you have a favourite or most inspiring place? Invariably somewhere new to me, but mainly outside and by the sea. Why is photography the medium you choose to work with? I think it's the speed and efﬁciency of capturing the moment which you choose over any other way of visual referencing that brings me back to photography every time. However, I also regularly make time-lapse ﬁlms and am starting to dabble with video. There's still lots to learn and regularly, despite good intentions, I end up reverting back to the single image.

I don’t do much digital manipulation to my images. A bit of cropping, straightening up, adding contrast - just a few minutes – the longest part is deciding what the image may need! If I have to be sitting at a desk, I’d rather be compiling a book, printing or researching. Printing is something I ﬁnd I don’t do enough of but wish I did more. For me, with any image, a print of it is a completely different entity to it's digital version. Depth of meaning is lost in digital as they are only swiped across screens. As prints, images take on a lifetime of their own. Well-crafted printed images almost always grow with me. I relish that. 41

My selection of images come from the Vilnius trip in October this year.

Viktorija Sivakova

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‘’We are making photographs to understand what our lives mean to us.’’ said Ralph Hattersley and that’s why photography is so important to me. I choose photography as my language to talk about beautiful, sad, joyful, difﬁcult, amazing and important moments in everyday life. It is a medium that has universal language; it needs no translation. At its best it is able to bring out other physical senses and help remember sounds, smells, tactility and moods that we once experienced. 46

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Most of my work revolves around home, family, friends. Even the most common things and mundane days could be unique and worth photographing. I always feel I have to take pictures of someone or places I know very well and have strong feelings for. Making a photographic family essay is a long term project; I feel it reﬂects not only the

dynamics of the people involved, but it also could act like a litmus paper for a wider community, talking about belonging and representing wider ideas and thoughts. With my pictures I am trying to follow the David Alan Harvey quote “Don’t shoot what it looks like. Shoot what it feels like.” 47

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I began taking pictures at the age of 16, as my father had extensive photo equipment and a home photo development lab at the time. I was very fascinated how the pictures were made and remember the wonder and awe when the picture started to appear when a piece of paper was submerged into what I thought was water. So I got to use my very ﬁrst ﬁlm camera, a Lomo, and everywhere I went with my friends, I made a little collection of portraits and the places we visited. 48

Over the years I had to concentrate on other things and photography was a on and off relationship, especially when I was a student I didn’t have a budget for ﬁlm photography. Things changed for me as the digital cameras appeared. I was able to learn faster, experiment more and see my mistakes and results instantly. I started documenting my children when they were born and I quickly realised the photos were not only portraying their

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moods and everyday activities, but also they became a medium for me to express my own self, to reďŹ&#x201A;ect thoughts and perspectives. At the moment, family documentary is taking most of my time, but I am always drawn to take pictures outside in my hometown or in India, where I go year after year. I have always been very interested in portraits; slowly it extended into observing and capturing peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s everyday lives. I

remember when I used to see people in the street and wonder 'who are they, where are they going?'. I also get a lot of inspiration from art and folktales from all over the world. I almost feel like the camera lens is that magical glass that can stop time and reveal things that are invisible to the naked eye. So I look for images that have meanings and metaphors in them; something beyond literal representation with the ability to connect to the viewer in such a way that it might 49

instantly remind them of places, other people, sounds. It takes you on the journey, maybe even tells you a secret. A lot of my work is in colour and my fascination in pigments comes from painting with oils since an early age. For me, the colour usually is the symbol itself, and it is the tool that helps to communicate emotions and moods. In both my paintings and photographs, the aesthetics and mood are always heavily dependent upon this.

issue 2