Tuesday 11th April 2023
This week saw our end of season talk by the very inspirational Glenys Garnett. Glenys started her own business in 2011 after obtaining a First Class BA (Tons) Degree in Graphic Communication at Leeds Metropolitan University and Batley School of Art & Design. She lives and works in Wakefield, West Yorkshire as a full time freelance Photographer, Artist and Graphic Designer, and works mostly in the digital medium. Her interests include landscape and nature, and particularly floral photography. She enjoys creating abstract images mostly captured ‘in camera’, some using 3rd party lenses, with results creating an impression that is structure, shape, and form rather than a record shot. Glenys quoted Cartier-Bresson ‘Think about the photo before and after, never during’. Being creative is all about seeing, exploring and discovering ways of expressing yourself in your photography, and conveying ‘what am I trying to say or show’. You must express yourself, experiment and play, and develop ideas and visions.
The evening was held in two sessions, firstly about how Glenys works ‘in-camera’. She showed examples of multiple exposures and Intentional Camera Movement – (ICM), soft focus flower photography, shallow depth of field, use of filters, and the use of natural light. She explained how to ensure the correct part of the image is in focus, and to concentrate on the background to obtain the desired effect. Another example was ‘shoot through’ images. These are taken with some foliage very close to the lens, and you shoot through them to photograph the actual subject. This gave a very calming and beautiful effect. You don’t always have to garden!
The second session concentrated on creative photography and, as well as nature, included architecture and the use of layers and how to use the bright/dark modes with buildings and overlays. Glenys explained how she moves the camera 90 or 180 degrees to obtain her abstract designs, and sometimes it is just a matter of trial and error, which can produce some amazing results.
Throughout the evening Glenys showed some of her camera lenses and filters, and how they are used. She uses Fuji X Series and Canon cameras and lenses, as well as photo editing software Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop, although you can obtain the same results with other post processing software. She firmly believes you don’t need the most expensive ‘kit’ to take good photographs, in fact it’s a good idea to get to know your camera, and experiment with what it can do. The most important factor is composition, and what an image means to you.
This review barely highlights all that Glenys presented, as well as the information and inspiration she offered, and does not do justice to her enthusiasm for such a wonderful hobby. Our members will certainly have a lot to practice and experiment, and bring out their own creative abilities.
Very grateful thanks go Glenys for sharing her knowledge, beautiful images, and inspiration. Also to Kathie for organising the evening and to Mike for hosting the zoom session.
The Committee