Words and Images
Reflecting on both and my first year on Substack
Hello, I’m Gill and I write a photography blog inspired by the landscapes of Suffolk and beyond. Please subscribe to read more of my writing and visit my website to view my images.
This week’s post marks my 1 year anniversary on Substack and my 50th post. I am both thrilled and surprised that I have reached this milestone. When I started ‘For the Love of Landscapes’ I didn’t really have any solid plans for the blog. I was just looking for a place where I could record my photographic journey and write about some of the subjects that interested me. If I managed to inspire anyone in the process then I felt that would be a bonus.
Sitting here writing my 50th post I can say that the blog has far exceeded my expectations and I am really proud of what I have achieved - not least because I didn’t really expect to get this far. Writing a weekly post is not easy and there have been many occasions where time has been tight and inspiration has been a bit slow coming. Despite this I have found the whole process to be a positive experience and I am so grateful to each and every one of you who has read my words and felt inspired to comment and join the conversation.
As well as improving my writing the blog has had a big impact on my photography. It has forced me to get out more, to experiment with different genres and ideas (so that I have something interesting to write about) and has been a really useful place to express my thoughts. As a result I feel that my work has improved and some of my ideas have gone on to inspire new personal projects.
I have always written little bits and pieces for myself, and sometime articles for magazines, but I have never done anything on such a regular basis and I have found it to be really beneficial.
For me there is an obvious overlap between writing and photography and I feel that they compliment each other perfectly. I can use both disciplines to bring a story to life and although they are quite different I feel they require similar skills around observation and connection.
There is a school of thought that says a good photo should have enough impact to stand on its own and if this is not the case then maybe it isn’t good enough. But if we look at a photo without words are we seeing exactly what the photographer wanted us to see? Or is looking at an image in isolation akin to watching a silent movie without titles? Without words or titles are we handing over control of our message to the viewer, hoping that they interpret the meaning as we intended?
I feel that there are so many ways in which we can use words to compliment our photographs. We can create titles or descriptions to enhance our images by telling a broader story. We can journal or keep a photographic diary which is a lovely way to record our photographic adventures. Or we can use words for reflection and image critique, all of which I feel is really valuable. We also need words to produce artist statements for exhibitions or portfolio work.
When I was young I was terrible with words and struggled with ‘proper’ writing. But over the years I dabbled with diary entries and journalling and the words began to flow more easily. Then when I discovered photography I found that I was inspired to write about my experiences out in the landscape, recording the wildlife I encountered and my emotional response to what I witnessed. As I have got older the desire to share my love of the natural world has grown and I have been able to do this using a combination of my words and photographs.
This week has been a quiet one photographically. I have only been out once with the camera and I chose a still morning with the promise of mist. These moments in nature, when the world is perfectly still, are some of my favourites and I find them so good for the soul. I usually choose a waterside location when the conditions look calm because I love the mirror like reflections I can capture.
My trip out didn’t yield the best sunrise but the experience was magical and well worth the 4am start. Calm conditions are reflective in more ways than one and I found the peace helped me contemplate the direction of my work.
As as result I decided to pursue an idea I had been mulling over for the first year anniversary of my blog. I have had so much lovely feedback and many requests for a printed version that I have decided to put together 20 articles which I feel are a good representation of my writing to date. Having collated, designed and sent the publication to print I am proud of the results.
For me words and images belong together and there is something special about seeing them both in print.
For the Love of Landscapes - the printed zine is now available from my website.
What do you think about combining words and images? Do you feel that photographs should stand alone or does the addition of words allow a broader story to be told? I would be interested to hear your thoughts so please leave a comment below.
Thank you very much for reading and until next week enjoy your photography.
Gill
Hehe I have been thinking doing the same with my Retroreflection posts. Maybe not to sell as a zine per se, but more for my own; to have something a bit more tangible from this online Substack thing.
Let me start by saying congratulations Gill and that I have always appreciated the writing and how it complements your images. Plus I feel more of a connection with a personal guidance on how you felt before the moment you pressed the shutter button.
I'm really excited to receive my copy of For the love of Landscapes later this month.