This week I followed up the idea by meeting with the Chair of The History of Tetbury Society. As a result of our meeting I agreed to retake a small number of photographs as a starting point. I decided to produce them in monochrome and colour alongside the original photograph. A couple of the images are interesting to me as they feature the street where I live and the valley my house overlooks.
Today I have done some test images to try out my technique, identify issues and see how feasible the project might be. It has been interesting walking around the town and comparing bygone times with the town today. In doing so, I have generated some interest from shopkeepers and locals wanting to know what I am doing. These are the original images and my colour version. They are not intended to be the final images but serve to test the methodology and identify issues and questions that need to be answered and/or resolved.
Image 1 – The Cutwell Valley
Image 2 – West Street, Tetbury
Image 3 – The Market Place, Tetbury (provided by Gloucester Records Office)
Questions and issues for my Rephotography project
- Should I replicate as faithfully as I can, with the lenses I have, the perspective and framing of the original image?
- Should I try to replicate the season and time of day when the original image was taken?
- Should I include the inevitable large number of cars and people in my images or do I seek to remove them by photographing for example on a Sunday?
- Should I just make a modern day take on the original image?
- Should I choose monochrome or colour for the retake?
- Should I replicate shortcomings with the original image – for example in the image of West Street the church spire is cut off?
- Should I wait until the leaves have fallen to attempt to take similar images to the original – for example in the view of the Cutwell Valley the church is completely obscured by a tree which had not even been planed in the old image.
- Should I remove distractors like power lines or do I leave them in as a true representation of current everyday life?
- May need to use a step ladder to minimise converging verticals
- How might the work be presented – should it be like the original version in a photograph album or should it be viewable on-line?
This is an interesting exercise. I think I would like to do this in my own village.
What would be interesting for me is a three way comparision.
1. Replicate the original image in all its apsects – mono, field of view, framing etc. – The Old
2. Reproduce the scene in colour (with small framing adjustments if necessary to improve the composition) – The Modern
3. A creative approach – new viewing angle/height/diferent mono/colour reproduction. – The New
Such might work in a Triptych!
The streets look a lot bigger in days of old without all the modern day clutter. Love the people in West Street all posing for the camera. I doubt if even any are still alive, but maybe their off-spring are still in Tetbury.
I love that image because it is the street where I live. I am sure the off-spring of those in the photograph will still be in Tetbury.
Is this project for you or the Historical Society. If the former, please yourself; if the latter then the Chair should give a precise brief
I agree. It is in the early stages and probably spans my personal interest and doing something of use to HOTS. I take your point about having a clear brief though!