street photography – Page 2 – Karen Brindley Photography

The last time I was in London was 6 months ago, when Sidmouth Photographic Club ran a 2 day trip around Greenwich, O2 and Canary Wharf. And thankfully Mike (our club Secretary, who arranged that event), was keen to run another one during the summer – this time, a day trip to Battersea, with a walk along the river back to Waterloo. It felt a bit like a school outing, as 10 of us boarded the train and competed to see who could eat their packed food the quickest…which was probably me, as I’d finished my breakfast before we even set off from Honiton station! These trips are always popular, as they are superbly organised, with loads of photo opportunities and lots of fun to boot.

Once we arrived at Waterloo, we boarded the Northern Line to Battersea Power station. I sat next to a fabulously photogenic guy with calf-high red Doc Martens and colourful tattoos. Looking round the carriage, you could see group members desperately trying to take his photo on their phones, without looking like they were. I managed half a boot and half an arm – not even remotely artistic, so had to concede defeat!

At Battersea we had plenty of time to wander round on our own and what an amazing place it is – the Power Station is now a destination venue, containing high end shops, eateries and outdoor spaces. It had a great vibe, with plenty to keep both street and architectural photographers happy. The harsh sunlight worked in my favour, providing fabulous shadows and silhouettes, which is one of my (many) current fascinations. In preparation for the trip, I had been watching YouTube videos by Siegfried Hansen, a German Street photography, who is attracted to graphical scenes with strong lines, colours and shapes, so my eye was looking for more unusual compositions. And almost from the start I became fixated with legs and feet (yes, yet another of my “obsessions”!), as they took centre stage in my images. At one point, after spotting a lady with wonderful red Adidas trainers, I followed her into a shop and asked if I could take a photo of her feet in the amazing shadows – and even though she clearly thought I was bonkers, she agreed…so it never hurts to ask if you really want that shot!

After lunch we wandered down river to the American Embassy, which is an oasis in the city, with beautiful prairie-like planting and a massive water feature. The building itself is highly photogenic and as usual, we were all trying to find our unique viewpoint…and that’s what I love about photography; even when we are all looking at the same building, every one of our photos will show a different angle / point of view / mood / story. And next door was The Sky Pool; a glass bottomed swimming pool suspended many stories up between 2 buildings. We were in luck as there were 2 people swimming in it, which made for a more interesting shot.

We continued along the river to the Tate Britain for a brief tea and cake stop (admiring some tattooed feet and more Doc Marten boots – sadly, too busy scoffing to photograph), before carrying on up to Trafalgar Square. I have to admit that by this time I was seriously flagging due to the heat, so spent all of my time in the Square trying to get one decent photo of a pigeon next to the Do Not Feed Pigeons sign…and in the end, I have to admit that I blended 2 images together to make it work (never let reality get in the way of a good image)!!

Onwards over Hungerford Bridge to dinner at the Cote Brasserie – and suitably refreshed, we strolled to Waterloo station to catch the last train back home. I have to confess that an abundance of sugar and over tiredness led to my table companions being treated/subjected (delete as applicable) to 3 hours of silliness from myself…in my defence, I was trying to make the journey go quicker for all of us, but it must have felt like being stuck next to an additive fuelled 8 year old!! Hehehe….happy times 😀

A cracking day out – it’s always a real joy to spend time in London, capturing the quirkiness of the city. Already looking forward to the next trip (if I’m allowed back!!)…

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well, in my case, put on about 3kg of weight!! I was lucky enough to have to travel to Naples in April (2023) for work and decided to take an extra couple of days to explore the city and indulge in some street photography. The day I arrived was the Naples versus AC Milan Champions League game at home and the city was full of people making their way to the stadium…and to the hotel next to ours, where the AC Milan team were staying!! There was much taunting (hence the coffin adorned in AC Milan colours) and a considerable Police presence. But unlike the UK, there was no trouble; just genuine fans supporting their club. Sadly, Naples drew the match and lost on aggregate…but they had bigger fish to fry, with the (almost) guaranteed win of “Serie A”, the Italian Premier League. I have never seen so many banners, flags, bunting etc. in my life – all in the blue and white colours of the Naples team, adorning every street and apartment in the city. Never mind the posters of Maradona, revered as the second patron saint of the city. The atmosphere was electric – you could already sense what a party there was going to be at the end of the football season! It was wonderful to wander around just soaking up the atmosphere.

I spent most of my time in the Spanish Quarter, bimbling up and down the narrow streets, dodging mopeds and trying to not look like a tourist! So many great shots to be had. And people were so friendly – I had lots of chats with random strangers…with an impressive level of English…and never once felt concerned about being on my own. I also took the metro to Garibaldi station, which is a photographer’s dream, with the striking architecture and orange panelling, casting amazing shadows onto the concourse below. You can see some of my shots here. I must admit though I gave up trying to negotiate my way around the Old Town, as the streets were so full of tourists….and scurried back to the relative calm of the Spanish Quarter. It’s probably embarrassing to admit that I didn’t step foot in a single museum, art gallery or theatre (nothing cultural basically!), but I still feel that I got a sense of the city and its people. I did, however, step into several cake shops and attempted to sample every chocolate cake/dessert the city had to offer – hence the extra “baggage” I brought home with me!!

I hope that I managed to capture something of the vibrant, chaotic, colourful, animated and truly beguiling city of Napoli…

Ci vediamo la prossima volta!

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