I have just started Kat Sloma's course 'A Sense of Place'. In this first week Kat has posed the question 'Do you travel to photograph or photograph as you travel?'
Thinking about this question I realise I photograph as I travel. However I try to take my camera with me most days as you never know what unexpected treasure you are going to find, even when you are somewhere you know well.
Both these sets of pictures were taken during an impromptu lunch hour walk last summer.
I derive a lot of pleasure from coming upon things unexpectedly so would not always want to plan my travels around things I have identified that I really want to photograph. I also think taking photos of famous monuments is often very difficult, unless you are able to spend days in preparation. Thus my recent photos of Angkor Wat were not particularly successful whereas I was really pleased with a picture of the captain of our boat on Halong Bay that I couldn't have planned for in the same way.
Similarly my attempts to capture the Temple of Literature in Hanoi weren't crowned with success but I was very happy with the pictures I took of some of the young people I saw there.
When I came to look for photos to illustrate this point, I realised I had already deleted most of the more general views of the Temple of Literature!
It will be interesting to see whether, as I get more deeply involved with photography, my perspective changes on this!
