Shirley Finlay

Bio

I have spent most of my life in South West Scotland, a relatively unspoilt, picturesque part of the world.  I began to take photography more seriously around 15 years ago with the aim of improving my mediocre holiday snaps.  As is often the case one path led to another and eventually my main photographic interests became studio portraiture and interiors.

However, 5 years ago we upped sticks, moved to Edinburgh and are now embracing city life.  This new life style has encouraged a new photography style.  Street photography is now presenting the next challenge.  So far the enjoyment gained is outweighing the frustrations but its a close run thing.

About my photography

I will take pictures of anything anywhere but my main interest is in people, their interactions with each other, their surroundings and the way their emotions manifest themselves through their expressions and body language. At present I am attempting to capture this through street photography which presents some challenges. The photographer has little control over subjects, surroundings or lighting. Street signs, traffic and more often than not, dustbins, have a tendency to get in the way.

My kit is simple. A Sony mirrorless camera with either 60-70mm or 85mm lens. I’m a recent convert to Sony and find it suits this genre of photography well. It also produces good results in low light which is especially useful on concrete sky days.

As well as street photography I like to experiment with long exposure, painting with light and other techniques. This allows more scope for creativity. I tend not to spend too much time editing images and try as far as possible to create the desired effect in camera.

Whichever type of image is made the ultimate aim is to evoke a reaction in the viewer. Good or bad the image should have enough impact to elicit some sort of response as such responses aid the continual learning process. Constructive criticism is welcomed!