A public space

During my visit to Brighton, I took the usual walk with my family into town past the skate park. Always a busy and active place, I knew it would provide a lot of interest for this exercise. My one hope was that I would have the chance to capture more than just a lot of men doing tricks, impressive as they are, I was looking for more.

On arrival, I was pleased to see that the bank holiday had brought out quite a variety of people, from children on scooters to older spectators. 

There were even people who appeared to have no interest in skateboarding, just relaxing and enjoying the space.

I got a slight feeling that some of the skateboarders would rather not be photographed so I spent a while just watching until I felt more comfortable and they started to ignore me and my camera. 

I noticed a couple of men on skateboards with cameras, shooting their friends as they performed tricks. I wasn't sure whether to be worries about their cameras or impressed by the ability to shoot and skate at the same time.

As I became more comfortable, I moved around the perimeter of the skate park, in order to provide differing perspectives. One thing I noticed during the morning was how intently the skaters watch each other. I suppose it's how they learn new tricks and to improve those they are already trying to master. If it weren't for this assignment, I might not have noticed that.

I have found that this course has started to open my eyes to a new level of photography which really pleases me. Rather than starting each project by thinking about what images will look good, my first though now is what I am trying to portray, what message do I want to be heard through my images. I'm feeling inspired! :-)