Yep; spot on mate, the 100s of little photos inside the often boring big picture ---- camera/lens quality doesn't matter ---- phones are great maybe I need to get a little closer myself 🤔
I enjoyed the beach with so little people ! For photography, the less people the more one can concentrate. I liked the abstract photos, thank you ! 👍🏽⛵
I'm a new subscriber. Thanks for reminding me about the sailboats I've been trying to make a decent photo of. I need to take photos about those sailboats, not of them.
Hi Andrew. Kind of unrelated to this video, but I've only discovered your channel a few weeks ago and have been ploughing through your videos and found them very inspirational. You did a shot of a chain hanging from a boat which struck a chord with me. I took a shot based on that, of a chain around a gate next to a canal where I live in Lancashire. I submitted it to a Rob Trek live stream from 23/07 where he edits photos, and on re-watching it, I noticed you were in the chat! So, thanks for the inspiration and keep up the good work.
Hi, Joanne , yes, I remember your chain shot. Find more things like that and get closer. Get your photo to talk ABOUT the objects rather than being just an image of the object. That mindset is the key to improving this kind of shot. I just went back and watched that again and if you can go back and get more shots, try getting more level with the chain, focus on a close link, open the aperture wide to get a shallow depth of field and probably try in less harsh light or shade it somehow so the background isn't bright - get all the attention on the chain. Hope that helps
"Looking around" is an underrated superpower. I actually go around twisting my head all around like an owl and it really helps to "see" things" (yet another reason my wife is nervous when I'm driving).
I am sure your good lady doesn't need any more reasons to be nervous around you - I can imagine you driving, with a running chainsaw, bricks strapped to your feet for the controls and leaning out of the window "hedge trimming". And if you don't, I am sure I have given you another idea for a video. For anyone else reading this nonsense, watch this: www.youtube.com/@EncouragementFactory-vg4sd
Andy, another fantastic insightful, well thought out sharing of your thought on abstract subject matter, I am loving your work...I too have been affected by mental health and you have helped me regain a love for photography that had ebbed away... you given me the impetus to get up and get outside taking images close to home!!
Andy... I appreciate your content so much. The first video of yours I watched was about mental health and photography. After returning to photography after 20 years, it really resonated with me. I was searching for something to pull me back from my detours into nihilism. Finding "something" out of nothing is my new passion. The beauty is that I know it's there. I just have to find it.
I just got recommended this video and I must say, this is exactly what I needed. I used to take pictures like these years ago, but stopped for some reason and now struggle capturing things on some trips. I'll be trying this again soon, thanks for the inspiration Andrew!
Hi, Andy. Gorgeous photos and invaluable insights. I've been watching a lot of your videos every day for the past weeks and today I thought it's only fair to give you something back and I bought you a coffee and subscribed to the payed channel. Thank you for all. Cheers!
The first picture of ropes I like the most. off cause many other also was good. But there was something with all the layers I appreciate the most. Take care Göran in Latvia
It is absolutely about training (retraining) the eye to see. I also recommend training the ear to hear - being present allows you to notice what others only notice subconsciously and your photos will connect to their deeper experience of the world around us.
I spent an hour with a rusty 7 foot culvert spilling water from a weir controlling a slough yesterday. The light was magic. Passers by must have thought I was special, crawling around on my hands and knees looking at bolts, nuts, and rusty corrugation. Post, like the dark room, is where more magic can occur.
I think we're all a bit "spechul"... The devil is always in the detail and sometimes you just need to crawl about to find its best side. Hope you got some amazing images.
Hello Andy. Taking a good abstract photo is not easy. Some people think I'm just going to photograph some rust and I'll have an abstract. I know for myself that it's not as easy as it seems. You've now started working with flat subjects. But you could also have taken abstract photos of the engine block or the bolts that hold the wheels in place. The photos you showed look very good. Especially the ones with the colors in them. Brown rust and a yellow-orange surface are very well seen especially the color combination. What you say about the manhole cover I don't entirely agree with. Taking a photo at a certain angle and playing with the shadow can produce a great photo. It's abstract so it doesn't have to be exactly straight. I hope you understand what I mean. What you did with that rope is what I meant when I said you were working with flat subjects. I like to do this kind of work.
No, It's not just that simple as all those shots I didn't put in this video prove! I would personally really struggle finding good abstracts of the engine and the ancillaries. Maybe getting creative with an inline injection pump looking down the injector pipe unions would work, but these tractors aren't for getting up close to without overalls! My point about the man hole is more about being perpendicular as I would prefer not to have to worry about depth of field or lines that lead into the "wrong" place, but there are no rules I guess - just a case of getting out there and trying things. But, yes, I fully understand what you are getting at. Hope you are well, Antoine. Take care. Andy
What I take away from this (and other videos of you) is that there's beauty in everything if you look close enough and at details. Too often I take pictures at a distance to bring out the view, but when showing too much, you don´t show anything and the photo isn't that interesting. Thanks for bringing this up and we can go out and experiment!
I really think that wide shots are the most difficult to make work if you're working with vistas and such. Too much detail and it becomes complicated. Start looking for the smaller pictures and you'll be amazed at the results.
The abstract is only really in the mind of the photographer I guess. And possibly in the viewer if they see and appreciate it. It doesn’t exist in reality as you said. 👍📸
Hi Andy,great video,I think some of the abstract photos would work well as a layer on some of your pictures,maybe ICM,landscape etc,I think some of the affects would look amazing,cheers Pete.
Let me just say, unexpectedly perhaps: nice trousers! Yeah - my view of the thing you thought was 'quite special'? i concur... and very kinda filmic too. Next: what an extraordinary experience for those nice people passing by - this doubled-over character talking to himself while patting old bits of string. Even the spaniel looked astonished. And finally - enjoyed that thoughtful and playful excursion very much... does take me back to the early years we spent at Daycare together. Liked the pics too - learnt something as well. Bravo and t'ra - i'm off to take my meds.
At least the passers by only got to see my balding bonce rather than my widening opposite end. That one with the cycle might have thought he'd found a secure parking spot for it - if it were not for the baggy trousers. Got any meds spare?
@@AndyBanner Sorry mate, the cat just got them. But yeah... t'was a very good video. I like the 'abstract' thing a lot - taking the familiar but generally overlooked and putting a spin on it. What particularly got me is you were doing it with 'made' things, which I don' usually think about because I'm rarely straying from my Paleolithic bolt-hole. I guess I do it when I go to some industrial hell-hole, but that's a rare treat. Particularly like that image through the mesh - think you put it on IG too. Very Space 1999! Have a good 'un. Cheers.
That mesh image is looking at the horn on that blue tractor. It's a double-exposure in post (dxo analog efex - affiliate links below) to create the extra layer
It's all about training your "eye", Barney. Besides, if we were all great at the same things, life would be less interesting. The biggest problem with people not "seeing" is more that they aren't open-minded enough to question things. Suddenly, I am not necessarily talking about photography. Thanks for watching.
Yep; spot on mate, the 100s of little photos inside the often boring big picture ---- camera/lens quality doesn't matter ---- phones are great
maybe I need to get a little closer myself 🤔
I enjoyed the beach with so little people ! For photography, the less people the more one can concentrate. I liked the abstract photos, thank you ! 👍🏽⛵
Cheers. I always manage to garner some strange looks when out just talking to a camera though. Or I get shat upon...
@@AndyBanner It takes a lot of courage to do the videos alone, talking to the camera ! 🙏🏽👍🏽💪🏽 Bravo !
Great work Andrew. We can all find abstract images wherever we are you just have to be able to see them. Keep them coming.
Thanks
Really wasn't very inspired today but after watching your video I've planned a location for tomorrow. Thanks for the inspiration Andrew!
Another very good video thanku .....some really striking shots
Thanks 👍
I'm a new subscriber. Thanks for reminding me about the sailboats I've been trying to make a decent photo of. I need to take photos about those sailboats, not of them.
Thanks for the sub! Yes, About - not of
Hi Andrew. Kind of unrelated to this video, but I've only discovered your channel a few weeks ago and have been ploughing through your videos and found them very inspirational. You did a shot of a chain hanging from a boat which struck a chord with me. I took a shot based on that, of a chain around a gate next to a canal where I live in Lancashire. I submitted it to a Rob Trek live stream from 23/07 where he edits photos, and on re-watching it, I noticed you were in the chat!
So, thanks for the inspiration and keep up the good work.
Hi, Joanne , yes, I remember your chain shot. Find more things like that and get closer. Get your photo to talk ABOUT the objects rather than being just an image of the object. That mindset is the key to improving this kind of shot. I just went back and watched that again and if you can go back and get more shots, try getting more level with the chain, focus on a close link, open the aperture wide to get a shallow depth of field and probably try in less harsh light or shade it somehow so the background isn't bright - get all the attention on the chain.
Hope that helps
That helps a lot and makes sense. Thank you for taking the time to reply - much appreciated.
"Looking around" is an underrated superpower. I actually go around twisting my head all around like an owl and it really helps to "see" things" (yet another reason my wife is nervous when I'm driving).
I am sure your good lady doesn't need any more reasons to be nervous around you - I can imagine you driving, with a running chainsaw, bricks strapped to your feet for the controls and leaning out of the window "hedge trimming". And if you don't, I am sure I have given you another idea for a video. For anyone else reading this nonsense, watch this: www.youtube.com/@EncouragementFactory-vg4sd
"Take away it's context.." best phrase ever, answers every question I had.
Really enjoying your videos !!
Awesome, thank you, Robert.
Andy, another fantastic insightful, well thought out sharing of your thought on abstract subject matter, I am loving your work...I too have been affected by mental health and you have helped me regain a love for photography that had ebbed away... you given me the impetus to get up and get outside taking images close to home!!
I really hope you get more than just short-term relief from your time with the camera.
Another fantastic video, thank you- really inspiring.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks
Enjoyed the video, Andy. Loved your images, especially the monochrome shot of the rope.
Thanks, Morris
Great video and stunning photos x
amazing shots !!! Thanks for sharing
Thanks for watching!
Andy... I appreciate your content so much. The first video of yours I watched was about mental health and photography. After returning to photography after 20 years, it really resonated with me. I was searching for something to pull me back from my detours into nihilism. Finding "something" out of nothing is my new passion. The beauty is that I know it's there. I just have to find it.
I suffer regularly from short breaks to nihilism and worse. My MH problems aren't really improving. Hope yours are.
I just got recommended this video and I must say, this is exactly what I needed. I used to take pictures like these years ago, but stopped for some reason and now struggle capturing things on some trips. I'll be trying this again soon, thanks for the inspiration Andrew!
Thank you for your support, Chris.
Nice ideas and some great abstract images
Thank you.
Hi, Andy. Gorgeous photos and invaluable insights. I've been watching a lot of your videos every day for the past weeks and today I thought it's only fair to give you something back and I bought you a coffee and subscribed to the payed channel. Thank you for all. Cheers!
Wow, thanks. Much appreciated.
'Of course I'm going to bloody shoot it!' Love your work. . I can see it now.Thank you.
Never miss an opportunity...
you have a good eye ........ this is MIksang photography
I am not familiar with Miksang. I will investigate. Thank you.
The first picture of ropes I like the most. off cause many other also was good. But there was something with all the layers I appreciate the most. Take care Göran in Latvia
Your regular support is much appreciated, Göran
It is absolutely about training (retraining) the eye to see. I also recommend training the ear to hear - being present allows you to notice what others only notice subconsciously and your photos will connect to their deeper experience of the world around us.
Some very nice abstracts. My abstracts only come off about one out of ten!
You haven't seen how many I discarded!
Another excellent video, as always you give inspiration to others
Thanks, John.
Love the last blues ones ...
Thank you.
You are an inspiration 👍🏻
Very kind. Thank you.
Always great thanks for another excellent video
Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks, Robert
I spent an hour with a rusty 7 foot culvert spilling water from a weir controlling a slough yesterday. The light was magic. Passers by must have thought I was special, crawling around on my hands and knees looking at bolts, nuts, and rusty corrugation. Post, like the dark room, is where more magic can occur.
I think we're all a bit "spechul"...
The devil is always in the detail and sometimes you just need to crawl about to find its best side. Hope you got some amazing images.
Great video as always! And congratulations on reaching over 5K subscribers!
Thanks. Yes, the recent uptick in subs is encouraging. Was just 3,400 at the beginning of July.
@@AndyBanner Nice! Hope you'll reach 10K soon!
It's slowing a bit now, but still faster than 2 months ago. 10K *might* happen around new year at this pace.
Enjoyed the video, Andy. Hope all is well~
Thanks. Up and down as per usual. Hope you're OK?
Excellent work. Many thanks.
Thank you too!
Hello Andy.
Taking a good abstract photo is not easy.
Some people think I'm just going to photograph some rust and I'll have an abstract.
I know for myself that it's not as easy as it seems.
You've now started working with flat subjects.
But you could also have taken abstract photos of the engine block or the bolts that hold the wheels in place.
The photos you showed look very good.
Especially the ones with the colors in them.
Brown rust and a yellow-orange surface are very well seen especially the color combination. What you say about the manhole cover I don't entirely agree with. Taking a photo at a certain angle and playing with the shadow can produce a great photo.
It's abstract so it doesn't have to be exactly straight. I hope you understand what I mean. What you did with that rope is what I meant when I said you were working with flat subjects. I like to do this kind of work.
No, It's not just that simple as all those shots I didn't put in this video prove!
I would personally really struggle finding good abstracts of the engine and the ancillaries. Maybe getting creative with an inline injection pump looking down the injector pipe unions would work, but these tractors aren't for getting up close to without overalls!
My point about the man hole is more about being perpendicular as I would prefer not to have to worry about depth of field or lines that lead into the "wrong" place, but there are no rules I guess - just a case of getting out there and trying things. But, yes, I fully understand what you are getting at.
Hope you are well, Antoine.
Take care.
Andy
Great inspiration. Thanks a lot.
Thank you.
What I take away from this (and other videos of you) is that there's beauty in everything if you look close enough and at details. Too often I take pictures at a distance to bring out the view, but when showing too much, you don´t show anything and the photo isn't that interesting. Thanks for bringing this up and we can go out and experiment!
I really think that wide shots are the most difficult to make work if you're working with vistas and such. Too much detail and it becomes complicated. Start looking for the smaller pictures and you'll be amazed at the results.
Imagination is a wonderful thing, thanks Andrew!
A bit of pre-visualisation never hurt a photographer or artist of any kind.
The abstract is only really in the mind of the photographer I guess. And possibly in the viewer if they see and appreciate it. It doesn’t exist in reality as you said. 👍📸
Yes, it's a bit strange isn't it. I think, at the very least, an abstract needs a frame or a hard border - a start and an end.
Hi Andy,great video,I think some of the abstract photos would work well as a layer on some of your pictures,maybe ICM,landscape etc,I think some of the affects would look amazing,cheers Pete.
not a bad idea. Two of them are double exposures (after the fact) and they do work well.
8:39 That rust pattern above the “NH” looks like a woman’s face and head with hair! By the way, the shot you asked about is working!
I hadn't seen that, Victor. Thanks.
Let me just say, unexpectedly perhaps: nice trousers! Yeah - my view of the thing you thought was 'quite special'? i concur... and very kinda filmic too. Next: what an extraordinary experience for those nice people passing by - this doubled-over character talking to himself while patting old bits of string. Even the spaniel looked astonished. And finally - enjoyed that thoughtful and playful excursion very much... does take me back to the early years we spent at Daycare together. Liked the pics too - learnt something as well. Bravo and t'ra - i'm off to take my meds.
At least the passers by only got to see my balding bonce rather than my widening opposite end. That one with the cycle might have thought he'd found a secure parking spot for it - if it were not for the baggy trousers.
Got any meds spare?
@@AndyBanner Sorry mate, the cat just got them. But yeah... t'was a very good video. I like the 'abstract' thing a lot - taking the familiar but generally overlooked and putting a spin on it. What particularly got me is you were doing it with 'made' things, which I don' usually think about because I'm rarely straying from my Paleolithic bolt-hole. I guess I do it when I go to some industrial hell-hole, but that's a rare treat. Particularly like that image through the mesh - think you put it on IG too. Very Space 1999! Have a good 'un. Cheers.
That mesh image is looking at the horn on that blue tractor. It's a double-exposure in post (dxo analog efex - affiliate links below) to create the extra layer
@@AndyBanner That's fascinating - thanks for sharing your deviousness with me! Have a good one, Andy.
Pity some folk never see the beauty of all things past their nose
It's all about training your "eye", Barney. Besides, if we were all great at the same things, life would be less interesting.
The biggest problem with people not "seeing" is more that they aren't open-minded enough to question things. Suddenly, I am not necessarily talking about photography.
Thanks for watching.
@@AndyBannerexactly
As usual you provoke photographers to look think and shoot to produce alternative images 😊