Talking Photos

TALKING PHOTOS: WHITECHAPEL REFRAMED

TAKING A CLOSER LOOK AT WHITECHAPEL When dashing about day to day, it’s easy to miss the many interesting sights close to home. On the six-week ‘Talking Photos’ course a group of 25 local residents ventured out together – cameras in hand – intent on taking a closer look at Whitechapel.

Our mission was to photograph the local street life, shopkeepers, architecture, and landmarks – and in so doing to capture stories and insights into the area, past and present. Some of us were ﬁrst-time photographers, others were more experienced. We were a diverse group – spanning 12 nationalities – and as we walked and photographed we also practised and extended our spoken English.

Talking Photos: Whitechapel Reframed brings together 40 story-telling images, chosen to reflect and interpret these five themes: Curiosities • Encounters • Journeys • Landscapes • Moments The exhibition represents only a fraction of the 7,000 or so photos taken during the project. But we hope it captures the essence of E1, and the diverse and vibrant community living here. We extend our warmest thanks to the Whitechapel residents, shopkeepers and community workers who supported and encouraged us along the way. Thanks also to Andrew Welsby at Faith Action, the Creative English Innovation Fund, and Jasmine Hossain and the team at Whitechapel Idea Store for hosting us. We’d love to hear what you thought of the exhibition – please get in touch at graham@walkeast.org. And over the coming months be sure to explore the streets, market, community centres and landmarks of Whitechapel yourself; slow down, open your eyes and see first hand what a remarkable place it is. Graham Barker and Natalie Clarke Project coordinators

Curiosities

Encounters

Journeys

Landscapes

Moments

With thanks to our walking photographers Sadia Afrin, Farideh Amirinia, Valentina Bertolini, Shamina Dyer, Fabiana Franchini, Nazrul Islam, Ivetta Jakab, Amaal Jama, Mehrunnissa Jumani, Anca Lungu, Muhammad Turan Miah, Jamila Mushtaq, Anna Pancikova, Laura Patrini, Arianna Ragnoli, Karla Rodrigues, Aija Rozenberga, Sacdiyo Salax, Deeq Somater, Elena Tahmasebi and Kana Yamada.

Talking Photos...

Learning and practising camera skills

Zooming in on interesting architecture

Hunting for an A-Z on Brick Lane

Capturing local street scenes

Visiting the East London Mosque

Taking a break by SpitalďŹ elds City Farm

...Step by Step

Taking portraits of one another

Photographing local shopkeepers

Discussing our photo challenges

Using photos to extend our vocabulary

Reviewing our photos over coffee

Curating our exhibition

Talking Photos: reﬂections The six-week ‘Talking Photos’ project was designed for local residents who wanted to practise and extend their spoken English, whilst trying their hand at photography. Participants came from a wide range of backgrounds, spanning 12 countries – including Bangladesh, Somalia, Pakistan, Iran, Italy and Hungary. Each week we ventured out to photograph something new, such as street life at the local market, animals at the city farm, historic buildings, or colourful street art. We then worked together to create a collection of Whitechapel photos – to share in this exhibition, and for local ESOL groups to use in their lessons. During our tuition stops we learnt about different photography techniques – such as the rule of thirds, macro, and panning – and the participants tried out their new skills on a series of mini challenges. Throughout, there was plenty of discussion about what we were photographing, the places we visited, and the photography techniques we were using. As one participant said, “The Talking Photos project has been a kind of therapy for me; for three hours each week it has taken my mind off my recent health problems. I’ve really enjoyed meeting new people, trying out various photography techniques, and talking about our photos together.”

The ‘Talking Photos’ project was devised by Natalie Clarke and Graham Barker, in conjunction with Fatima Ali and Julie Begum. To ﬁnd out more about the project, please contact Graham Barker on graham@walkeast.org or 0791 922 1806. © Walk East, 2015

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