As part of the expansion of the website we are starting to do reviews of photo-related items – including books and exhibitions.
To try and promote the work of those contributing we are planning to review Photobooks and magazines produced by the membership – so the first volunteer was Alastair Thompson who volunteered his ‘Leeds 2008‘ book
Promotional copy: An exploration of street photography from a newcomers perspective. Starting with the first stumbling efforts (shop windows and the like), and leading on to more interesting juxtapositions and private moments.
Alastair Thompson’s latest book is the accumulated photos of a year described as ‘a year of change’ in his life as a photographer. It shows chronologically the journey through the year that Alastair took on a new and exciting challenge – street photography.
The book is an eclectic mix of colour and black & white shots taken on the streets of Leeds city centre. As the main theme is ‘Street’ the subject matter is as much about the surroundings as it is about the interaction of the people within the shot.
Throughout the book there are numerous examples of the natural behaviour of people that are so easily missed when you go about your day to day life. All of the people in the shots are relaxed and going about their day not necessarily seeing their surroundings enough to see the view of themselves from the photographer’s point of view. The use of shop windows and their contents have produced some great shots that give a different perspective on the normal.
Flying in the Face of Fashion - Alastair Thompson (click to visit image on Flickr.com)
For me the stand out images are the monochrome images. The nature of some of the subject matter means that there are often many colours distracting the feeling of the shot. I think that in his black and white images Alastairhas managed to capture more feeling from the people in the shots and providing a greater connection with the reader.
This is not to say that the colour images should be black & white, each image should be looked at for its own merits, and the very red image on the rear cover is a great example of this. It gives a great insight into the family life of two brothers with very different views on life, or at least that’s the story I am imagining about the situation.
On the whole the book is captivating and thought provoking, you come away from looking through it wondering what is going on in the lives of the people on the street. I’m not sure that every image should tell a story but all of the ones in this book do.
^ Review by Gavin Forster
Touching! by Alastair Thompson (click to view image on Flickr.com)
What a brilliant book! Not that anyone needs a reminder of the eclectic mix of characters our fair city of Leeds is home to, but it’s great to have a pictorial reference just the same! Anyone who enjoys street photography and its humour will find this book interesting and very amusing! My favourites include ‘statue grabbing a woman’ and ‘the football supporters’. If you enjoy people watching this is a great book – especially for anyone familiar with Leeds.
^ Review by Emma Brown
Leeds 2008 by Alastair Thompson
Published on Blurb.com (from 20.95 + p&p)
A set of images from the book can be viewed on Flickr.com
Do you have a photo book or magazine available to buy/acquire? Tell us about it and we’ll get it reviewed!
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