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SeaSwept

Beautiful photography from 14 Canadian photographers and the images from the UK that inspired them

By Tineke Ziemer

February 19^th, 2022

Coming to you from Scotland

I just spent the past month leading a group of Canadian photographers through a fun photography challenge. I've run many challenges before, but it was extra exciting to host it from Scotland where I've been staying for the past several months.

Every three days, I sent the group a new assignment inspired by my experiences in Scotland. I shared stories and photos that got their creative juices flowing.

This blog post will highlight some of the fabulous images that were created by the group, as well as some of my photography from Scotland. Enjoy!

#1 - Ruins

I love a good castle ruins! I took these images on the east coast of Scotland at Slains Castle near Cruden Bay.

The students created their own ruins-inspired images:

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"Concrete Skeleton" by Elissa Landy
"Factory Reset" by Kathy Harms (an in-camera multiple exposure)
"It has been the ruin of many a poor boy and lord I know I'm one" by Juanita Curtis
"When Trust is Broken" by Janet Clark
"Ruins of a Pre-Pandemic Life" by Carissa Margaret

#2 - Intentional Overexposure

I captured this image in Bristol at The Christmas Steps. I overexposed the highlights intentionally to get the look I wanted.

Here are some of the student's intentionally overexposed images:

(L to R, T to B)

"Maggie's Ball" by Michelle Taylor
"Collapsed" by Sherry White
"In Nature" by Kathy Philbrook
"Floating" by Laurie Bare

#3 - Caption This!

For this challenge, I shared an image I took of this charismatic dairy cow on the Isle of Arran. I asked the students to caption it and I chose this one:

"Does this ring make my nose look big?" (caption by Kathy Harms)

The students shared their funny photos and the rest of the group competed to come up with the best captions. Here are the ones chosen:

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"Guys, I am telling you, the alleged sightings of humans are just fake news!" by Kathy Harms
"Feelin' Cute, Might Delete Later" by Carissa Boyd
"I dreamt I was a rabbit. Oh no, WTF" by Sherrylynn Gosselin
"Lesser known spice girl" by Michelle Taylor

#4 - Waves

The students were inspired by a video I sent of the waves crashing along the rocks in Troon, South Ayrshire. I challenged them to create their own interpretation, whether literal or symbolic.

(L to R, T to B)

"Darkness is merely the absence of light..." Marianne Williamson - by Ruth Elizabeth
“I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples. ~ Mother Theresa - by Donna Davis
"Making Waves" by Michal Fedeles
"Waves of Emotion" by Kayla O'Flynn

#5 - Michael-Inspired

Here in Scotland, I've made friends with a fellow photography lover named Michael. His street photography is vibrant, colourful, and eclectic. Michael was kind enough to do an interview with me to present to my students and then they were tasked to create images inspired by his style. Here are a few of mine that I captured in Bristol (England) and Perth (Scotland) with Michael's esthetic.

It was definitely a challenge for the students to pull this off in winter in Canada, but they did not disappoint with their colourful, eye-catching collection. Here are a few favs.

(L to R, T to B)

"Citrus" by Elissa Landry
“Signs of Spring" by Sherrylynn Gosselin
"A Country of Love and Colour" by Juanita Curtis
"Zsa Zsa Says I'm Daahling!" by Kathy Harms (in-camera double exposure)
"Does life imitate art, or is art imitating life?" by Donna Davis

#6 - A Thousand Words More

I've found a lot of healing through writing poetry this past year, especially here in Scotland where I'm a zillion miles away from my closest friends and family. Poetry has become my therapist. Here is one that I wrote when I was on the stunning the Isle of Arran.

For this challenge, I asked the students to find or write a poem and create a photo to accompany it. The students rose to the occasion, creating beautiful images for their poems.

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"Untitled" by Sherrylynn Gosselin
“Out of Time" by Michal Fedeles
"Plants are Life" by Laurie Bare
"Life in Blooms" by Ruth Elizabeth
"A Forest Walk" by Elissa Landry

#7 - What's on Tap?

This challenge was inspired by the drinking culture in Scotland, which I admit was very unfamiliar territory to me! haha. The students were inspired by a video that shared stories and footage of my experiences here at pubs and events where the beer is always flowing and the laughter and singing is contagious. Here are some shots my students created of their favourite drinks.

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"Cappuccino is My Love" by Sherrylynn Gosselin
“Lemon Water" by Kathy Philbrook
"My Heaven & My Hell" by Kayla O'Flynn
"Day Drinking" by Carissa Margaret
"Smoked" by Michal Fedeles

#8 - Connection

I shared several images with my students that showed a connection being made. This one below is of the Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol, England.

Here are some of the images created by the group showing connections, whether literal or metaphorical:

(L to R, T to B)

"Hidden Connections" by Donna Davis (depicting the network of underground systems that connect trees)
“Sever & Frayed" by Michelle Taylor
"So Mote It Be" by Janet Clark
"Direct hit, well kind of" by Laurie Bare

#9 - Balance

This six month escape to Scotland has helped me to find balance for my emotions, coping mechanisms and beliefs. It's still a work in progress, but I'm on my way. Below are some of my images from Scotland depicting balance.

The students had a wide variety of interpretations for this theme. Here are some favourites. I love their imaginations.

(L to R, T to B)

"On the Tip" by Kathy Philbrook
“Untitled" by Janet Clark
"Both are Okay" by Laurie Bare
"Calm Amongst the Chaos" by Kayla O'Flynn
"Imperfections" by Juanita Curtis

#10 - Culture Shock

For our final challenge, I told the students some of the ways I experienced culture shock upon arriving in Scotland, including some hilarious examples of Sco-ish slang that I had to get used to.

This image was created in Gourdon, on the east coast, as a fisherman got ready for the day.

I asked the group to create a photo depicting their own culture or a time they experienced culture-shock and here is what they came up with:

(L to R, T to B)

"Laundry Day" by Michal Fedeles
“Canada Eh" by Michelle Taylor
"Memories and Momentos" by Ruth Elizabeth
"The Commercial Drive Vibe" by Kathy Harms

Our Special Guest

We once again had a special guest from Slovakia join us for the challenge. Fourteen year old Petra did a wonderful job creating images and expressing creativity with her cellphone. Here is one of her best, titled:

"Swimming in the Waves of Light" by Petra

It's an honour to witness the growth and passion in such a young artist! Thank you for joining us, Petra!

Thank you!

Congrats and thank you to all of the photographers who joined in this challenge and to our valuable viewers without whom our images would remain unseen. THANK YOU!