Return to Menu

Photo Assignment
By Gary Ferrington

If you find yourself feeling a little out of practice with your camera it may be time to develop a photo assignment project. That is just what a friend and I did one recent Sunday morning.

Our goal was to visit a local park and establish a limited area within which to spend a couple of hours photographing. At the park, we decided to focus on a playground which of about 140 square feet in size. The photograph below shows the constraints within which we limited our exploration.

I personally like to move in close and isolate objects within the frame. In the photo above you see two wooden benches on the right. In the shot below I've moved in close to capture the rain that had collected on a bench.

I framed the wood slats so that they created a diagonal across the image. A diagonal creates visual tension and perhaps makes this picture more interesting than if I had photographed the slats horizontally.

This children's slide was also of interest to me. Again,I found the diagonal of the slide projecting into the frame made for an active photograph.

When I looked at the children's slide more closely I noticed that rain had collected in various patterns. So, I moved the camera in tighter.

I moved under the slide to capture the reflection of the sand. I wanted to create a continuity of line across the frame and so I matched the edges of the sidewalk with the support under the slide.

This swing seat of reminded me of a horror movie mask.

The playground was empty on this rainy day. These two swing seats seemed to express a feeling of isolation.

Nature is persistent in undoing what humans construct. Here the diagonal of the sidewalk contrasts with the sprouting grass along the sandy edge.

The smallest objects within the sandy playground attracted my eye. This dried weed seemed like something to be found on an ocean beach.

One thing appealing about this playground was the green vegetation that surrounded it

Going out and setting for oneself a specific assignment proved to be a challenge and learning experience.

So, if you feel your photographic skills are slipping, take some time and see what you can discover using the camera as an extension of the eye.