Pandemic Photograph by Ken Spence
Better Photography contributor Ken Spence had a great idea - why not get our readers involved in a little pandemic project?
Writes Ken, "No matter where you live, this pandemic has been a shared experience of isolation. There are the extremes – Melbourne’s lock down total of 250+ days and counting being at one end of the spectrum, with Western Australia’s isolation from the rest of the country at the other.
"More broadly, as Australians we have all shared the common experience of isolation through the ban on international travel. This has changed what we can do and what we can photograph. For the many photographers who define their preferred genre of photography as “travel”, pity about that."
However, as Ken suggests, limitations can be a fuel for creativity, so we have cooked up the idea of providing a stage for Better Photography Magazine subscribers to share their creativity in the context of the pandemic with a larger audience. This may well involve aspects of isolation, but not necessarily.
"See this as an opportunity to document and share your personal experiences of this worldwide catastrophe. Our State and Federal leaders assure us that we will be on the other side in a few months and so we are calling for your contributions before the end of November 2021. Then in our Autumn 2022 edition, we will publish a selection under the heading “Me, My Camera and Our Pandemic” , plus release a web gallery of 100 contributed images."
We are very excited to see what our creative subscribers will share with us - and Ken has started the ball rolling with the photo at the beginning of this post. We know that this will result in a very powerful article that will provide a historic reference to this unique time in all our lives.
So, how do you contribute?
Step 1: Prepare a photo for submission. The subject is up to you. It might be something you edited from a trip taken years ago, or something you photographed around the home - that's up to you. However, the size you send to us should measure no more than 3000 pixels on the longest edge and be saved as a JPG at a moderate setting (e.g. setting 8 or 80%). Name your photo with your own name and a number (so we know whose photo it is): e.g. PeterEastway-01.jpg. If you send more than one, give the next one a higher number (PeterEastway-02.jpg)!
Step 2: Write a caption of no more than 50 words. You can start the caption with the title of the photo if you like. You can write a few words of poetry, you can explain what the subject is, how you photographed it, or relate something of interest you experienced during the pandemic. But no more than 50 words!!!
Step 3: Send the photo and a caption in an email with the heading - Pandemic Project - <Your Name> - Photo 1 (or 2, 3 etc). Use a separate email for each photo you submit. Insert the caption into the body of the email (do not attach a separate file). Insert the photo as an attachment, not in the body of the email (Mac users beware).
Step 4: Email the photo package to Kim Valenti who will do the initial collation -
That's it! You have until the end of November to respond, but you can start sending in your photos whenever you like.