52 frames weekly photo challenge – Self-portrait

oh oh oh, people are looking at me!

This weeks challenge was to create a self-portrait, something I was not looking forward to. As a photographer, I am much more comfortable holding a camera than getting my picture taken. The 52Frames website provided a number of links and I recommend a read if you are interested in creating a self-portrait, or using this as a theme for an ongoing project, the links and information were helpful and inspiring.

A google image search for self-portraits was most helpful and inspiring, there I found the work of Vivian Maier, combining street photography with self-portraiture use to catch her own reflection in shop windows, and mirrors. I felt that the self-portraits not only gave us some small insight into her but also daily life and the city in which she lived and worked.

While Vivian Maier used a twin reflex camera, one that you would look down through a mirror to frame your photo. I used both my DLSR and phone camera for this project. Both the phone and DLSR allowed me to frame the image like the twin reflex camera Ms. Maier used, and I found that helpful. It was quite amazing to me how much the angle of the camera, and where it was held changed the final image from what I saw with my own eyes.

Some of the other challenges, finding dark windows, there isn’t much of a reflection when a window has a light behind it. Dirty windows, and the stuff found in the window alway made a difference to the outcome. I also found that there were occasions when the double pane window showed up, almost as a double exposure, and I think the effect was magnified more when the camera was held more at an angle to the window, rather than straight on.

Have a look at results from this week, I would love to hear which image you think was most successful, and why. Have I inspired you to give it a try?

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