Pinhole photography

Concept...
Walk past the Nanyang track and one would surely see several students training their stamina for upcoming competitions. And every time I am running on the track, I would push myself, " one more round, just one more". Just like how Nanyang pushes us to our limits and unleashes our fullest potential.

But Nanyang does not just 'throw' us tasks and leave us clueless. Instead, through lessons, discussions and assignments, we are guided by our teachers and peers, who do not hesitate to help us in whatever task is given. This spirit is portrayed in the photograph by the Nanyang clock tower, which overlooks the track giving a sense of security and ease.

With the help of teachers and peers, we are then able to work towards the goal---the goal of "Every Nanyang girl a respected member of society". Four years in Nanyang leave us better prepared for the challenges ahead. though I have yet to complete these four years, it can be proved by the achievements by our senior, who have already left Nanyang's 'walls of protection' and stepped into the much feared society with confidence.

Improvements...
If I were to retake this scene, I would use a larger pin-hole camera and a bigger piece of paper. This is so that not too many details are being cut off; such includes the Nanyang clock tower and part of the track. Being the main objects in the photograph, they should have been fully captured and not cropped.


More works...

taken after a heavy downpour. The floor of the quadrangle is thoroughly wet, and thus acts as a great 'mirror', showing the reflections of the buildings.

More detailed photograph. Probably due to less shaky hands when handling the pinhole camera. But not very well composed: the trees, bushes and buildings took up most of the photo.

Taken outside the general office. it was much brightly lit as compared to the natural lighting outside, thus the strong negative contrast in the foreground as compared to the background.

 photo of the classroom taken from the 'ant's perspective'.

Failed Tryouts...

Lessons learnt...
One thing that I have taken away is to estimate rather accurately. For instance, the position that the camera should be placed such that the composition would be just right. Many times I have captured a scene which is rather different from what I had in mind and ended up retaking the scene. I also had to estimate the number of seconds to expose the paper, because most of the time, the EV calculator 'disappears' Therefore, I had to estimate based on trial and error, as well as by comparing the brightness of the current scene to the previous scene.

Another important take away is that one must have patience. More often than not, the photograph turns out to be either overexposed or underexposed. In other words, it is very difficult to find the perfect exposure time especially without the EV calculator. Thus, one must be patient enough to try repeatedly the various timings in order to get the exact exposure time.