OCA – People and
Place
Assignment 4: People
and Place – A Sense of Place
The objective
of this assignment was to draw together some of the strands
explored so far,
including camera handling, observation and reaction. You
had to imagine that
you were on an assignment for an intelligent, thoughtful
travel publication
(not tourism promotion) that is demanding a considered,
in-depth treatment.
The aim was to produce twelve
images overall, which were thought
publishable, with a final six as the chosen
images for the publication.
I approached this with some
worries, as finding a sense of place could be
more difficult as I have moved
around a fair amount in the UK, and my
current work commitments could limit my
travelling options. Due to this,
I chose Peterborough as my ‘sense of place’
location, although I
was adamant that the term ‘Peterborough’ was too generic.
I spent a couple
of weeks thinking about this, spending time travelling around
the area
and finally decided to use ‘Peterborough City Centre’ as my ‘sense of
place’.
Peterborough is a fairly new city and other than a few tourist
locations for
the ‘Nene Valley Railway’ and ‘Flag Fen’, the majority of
visitors go to the
city centre.
This provided me with an idea of
travelling to Peterborough on the train,
returning home the same way. The
station within Peterborough is on the edge
of the city centre and is on the
main East Coast railway line, so it is an ideal
way to travel to the city. Then
after leaving the station quarters, you walk
towards the city centre square,
which is very near and well signposted.
This also incorporates my criteria of
keeping within the one mile square
radius of the city centre. This provides a travel publication article of
Peterborough city centre, its landmarks and people within the one mile
city
centre radius.
I spent a few weeks visiting the
city centre and planning out some of the places
to take photographs from, also
some locations that could be suitable to show
people moving around and visiting
the city centre. One of these was the
main shopping centre, ‘Queensgate Shopping Centre’. I had to receive
permission
and a permit to photograph within the centre, which was successful.
As my idea is based around a travel
visit to Peterborough, I have listed the
images as they were taken in the order
of my visit for the travel publication.
This starts from my arrival at
Peterborough Station, walking towards the
city centre, then the shopping
centre, cathedral, river and nearby park.
Each image will be highlighted if
it made the final six for publication.
The
following equipment was used during this assignment:
§
Nikon D800 camera
§
Nikon 16mm-35mm lens
§
Nikon 70mm-200mm lens
Photograph 1 – Peterborough Station (one of six final images)
Peterborough station is currently
going through a multi million pound redevelopment
to increase the number of
platforms, improve the stations facilities and increase
the number of
passengers using the station. It has to provide an uplifting first
impression
to the people visiting Peterborough, the station was long overdue an
improvement. This is the new main frontage to the station, and I think the
redevelopment has achieved its aim.
The photograph was taken during
the morning, using ISO 400 and a 20mm focal length.
Photograph 2 – Leaving the Station, off to City Centre
At present there is only one
means of travelling directly to the city centre on foot,
which is via this
pedestrian footbridge. You can see the people in the background
rushing to get
in to town after leaving the station. The sign in the background
shows that the
lift and stairs are out of use, the attached multi storey car parks
are all
going through redevelopments. This image portrays the improvements
being made
in the city centre, although it’s a start, you can see the light at the
end of
the tunnel! ISO was increased to 800 for this photograph.
Photograph 3 – Cowgate
This is ‘Cowgate’, it is one of the main streets in to the
city centre area and has
just gone through a major facelift, including new
paved roads, pavements,
bollards and bins. The overall feel is for local
businesses, although it has a
fair amount of estate agents at present. I like the
new painted zebra crossing
and the image looked better in portrait style. This
road leads off to
the shopping area and Peterborough Cathedral.
Photograph 4 – St John’s Church (two of six final images)
The redevelopment of Peterborough’s city centre concentrated
on the town
city square around St John’s Church. This area has been re-paved,
has new
benches and is more inviting for visitors to spend some time relaxing.
This lady
was waiting for a lift to work, but she could have been a visitor who
stayed over for business, enjoying the new centre and its facilities.
Photograph 5 – Guildhall (three of six final images)
This photograph shows the new city
centre in Peterborough, with the Guildhall
(an old market cross, indicating a
market place) taking pride of place on the
opposite side of the square to St
John’s Church. The ladies in the foreground
are using the space to catch up on
news, next to the new seating, which is now
in place.
Photograph 6 – Queensgate Shopping Centre (four of six final images)
Like many modern cities,
Peterborough has a large indoor shopping centre
at its heart. The Queensgate
Shopping Centre has been a magnet for
shoppers to travel to Peterborough from
the surrounding area and even
further afield. This photograph shows a typical
days shopping in the centre,
with an open area for additional activities, this
time a local car dealership.
The centre has also gone through some recent
changes and improvements,
including an extension and a new ‘Primark’ store.
I had to gain permission for this
photograph from the shopping centre, which
was in the form of a permit for a
short period of time. The image was
taken
at ISO 640, 16mm and 1/250th sec at f4.
Photograph 7 – Barratts
Like many city centres you can
travel to, the latest recession has had its affects.
This is no exception in
Peterborough; with a number of retail units empty, or as
is this case here, a
national company going in to administration. This gentleman
caught my eye, as
perhaps a local who knows the centre well.
I can only assume
that he was either resting for awhile or waiting for
someone, as both shop units
near his direction of travel are empty.
Photograph 8 – The Big Issue
Outside one of the many exits to the shopping centre, there is
the all too common
site for most city centres - a ‘Big Issue’ seller. There are
a few Big Issue sellers
in Peterborough - this one has a great pitch, it’s one
of the busiest ways in
and out of the centre directly to the outside square.
The stairs to the Guildhall can be seen and I choose to take
this at f2.8 for the
effect I wanted.
Photograph 9 – Family Break
This photograph shows a family taking a break on one of the
new seats
within the redeveloped square.
There are market traders setting up in the background and in
the distance you
can see the historic Peterborough Cathedral.
Photograph 10 – River Nene Embankment
After a short walk from the city centre, you pass a few
shops and cross the
inner ring road to the River Nene.
This area is another area where the local Council has
invested money in
redevelopment. Here
they are using the natural beauty of the river as a positive
for the city.
In the background you can see the old industrial area that
is still to be redeveloped,
a morning dog walker who is enjoying a morning walk
along the river, and in the
foreground the old information sign has been
neglected.
Photograph 11 – Peterborough Lido (five of six final images)
When you leave the River Nene,
you walk past ‘the Lido’, as you start your walk
back through the city centre
to the station. The Lido was built in 1936 and has
been upgraded over time.
It’s an important landmark within the city centre and
is used extensively
during the summer months. The Art Deco design and the
garden layout were ideal
for a composed balanced composition. The lady walking
across the scene adds
interest to the image.
Photograph 12 – Peterborough Cathedral (six of six final images)
The walk back can take you
directly through the grounds of Peterborough Cathedral,
which was mainly
rebuilt in the 12th century by the Normans. The cathedral is one
of
the three most important Norman Cathedral’s in the UK (with Ely and Durham).
This is a must see visit for any traveller to the city centre and the jewel in
Peterborough’s
crown. The ISO level was increased to 800 and an aperture of f4
was used to gain the
image. There is a member of the public in the far right
background, the Cathedral was
very quiet!
If I had approached the assignment differently, just
concentrating on the photographs with no end-result in mind, I would of
selected better days
Conclusion
I set out to achieve a specific
visit to Peterborough City Centre by train, allowing the reader to experience
the centre by walking to each destination to see the local retail shops, the
people, historic monuments and recreational facilities as per the travel
publication brief. The final selection of six images from the twelve, are in my
opinion the best images that fit the required brief, they show meaningful
landmarks, the people within the city centre and technically I am happy with
them.
If I decided to select my
personal favourites, then the selection would be slightly different,
incorporating ‘Leaving the station’ and ‘River Nene Embankment’, although I do
understand that these photographs are not the correct ones to fit the brief
correctly. I like ‘Leaving the station’ as it’s showing the redevelopment in
process, people moving around the city and is the start of you entering the
city centre.
The assignment notes asked the
question, ‘a description of how you see the essential character of the place’. I am not sure Peterborough really has a
character, it’s a fairly modern city that is constantly changing and trying to
improve its surroundings, which in my opinion is a good thing. It has
historical landmarks, a large retail district, offices and restaurants, but is
lacking that certain vibe and anything ‘Art’ based. This is unlike local cities
like Cambridge, although I feel that when Peterborough’s University becomes
more established, the student population will increase and they will require
new and different things from the city.
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