Creative through Covid-19
Stay connected and share your creativity
During the UK Coronavirus lockdown, we have been blown away by the amazing and uplifting images our community have already captured! You have been finding inspiration in your homes, when you open your windows, potter around your gardens, carry out essential tasks, or exercise within your local area. You have also been trying new photography styles and techniques, such as light painting, doorstep portraits, or macro photography.
In response to this, we have decided to launch our Community Lockdown Project - Creative through Covid-19 with a view to capturing your creative images and experiences of self-isolation, social distancing, and the UK lockdown in Coventry and Warwickshire.
Igers C&W Community Lockdown Project
Creative through Covid-19
If you would like to contribute to our Community Lockdown Project, please share your images from Coventry & Warwickshire with us on Instagram or Twitter using:
#igcw_ctc19 and @igerscoventry
Get involved - if you capture something that catches your eye or makes you smile, tag us and tell us why.
Igers C&W’s Community Leaders will choose some of our favourite shots to feature in a Creative through Covid-19 gallery blog on our website.
If you have already shared images on Instagram or Twitter and would like these to be considered. Simply tag us @igerscoventry and add our hashtag #igcw_ctc19 in the caption or comments. We will only consider submissions from the start of the UK lockdown on 23 March 2020.
We will also accept submissions for consideration via email, maximum of 5 images per person. Please send these to igerscoventry@gmail.com and confirm your name, and state where the image was taken and give a brief overview.
If you are under the age of 16, you must obtain permission from a parent or guardian prior to submitting any images. If your work is selected for the Creative through Covid-19 gallery blog, you will be asked to provide consent from a parent or guardian.
All images submitted must be your own work. You must own the copyright and it is your responsibility to ensure that these you don’t infringe the copyright of any third party or any other laws.
Igers C&W Community Leaders will seek sponsorship and collaborations with local partners for the purpose of organising a future exhibition. If you think that you could sponsor or collaborate with us, or you know someone who could, please contact us.
If your images are selected, we will notify you via DM or email to obtain permission to share your work in the Creativity through Covid-19 gallery blog, via our social media channels, and potentially in future digital or print gallery exhibition.
Please #staysafe and be mindful of social distancing measures when taking part in this Community Lockdown Project.
Keep up to date with government guidelines on Covd-19, whilst also ensuring that you look after your health and well-being.
Do you need some creative photography ideas?
Here are a few of the photographers from our community who have helped inspire us to launch our Community Lockdown Project - Creative through Covid-19.
Creative Photography by Becki Suree
“Being creative and using my camera is important to me, it keeps me going. I'm not used to being inside. I love the outdoors and the fresh air. So, on our hourly walks, I like to take my camera, phone, or drone with me. We have been lucky enough to have some great weather which in turn means beautiful and vibrant colours from flowers such as bluebells or being able to appreciate golden sunsets in the evening.
I have also been experimenting with household items such as kitchen foil to create texture and trying to shoot images in a different way from my normal landscape or portrait style. There has been a lot of appreciation of where we live in Coventry and how beautiful it is, and I love that this can be shared through our photos with others in the city and even further afield.”
- Becki Suree @travel_shotsbybex
Doorstep Photoshoots by Michael White
Photography Assistant Zach captured Michael White Photography
“Even before I started this project, I was not expecting it to have such a positive impact in so many ways. Initially, I was very sceptical on whether doing these doorstep photoshoots was the right thing to do. I had noticed that photographers who had already done a few days shooting mostly received very positive feedback, but after a weeks discussion with a couple of photography groups via Facebook, I didn't think it was worth any possible negativity.
Then, I received three messages from my local Facebook group in Eastern Green asking if I could do some of these doorstep shoots. So, I thought I'd do those and then test the water.
So, I got on my bike, packed my camera, put my son in the trailer and here we are. I set some strict rules from the beginning to make sure that safety is a top priority. For example, I never set foot on people's property. I have never knocked on a door. I had my 70-200mm lens, which meant I could stand as far away as possible. This was usually the other side of the road, I only stayed at each house for 2-5 minutes, and everyone kept within these rules.
Many families and small businesses are being hit hard financially during these times as well as myself, so I've been asking for voluntary donations, but I'm also giving 25% to a NHS charity. Everyone I've shot for so far has made a donation and mentioned how they also want to help a local business. I've met some lovely people along the way. NHS workers, parents who just came out of a work meeting, people who got dressed up for the first time since lockdown began, some very cute pets and it's been such an honour to meet teeny newborns from just 2 weeks old!
All these people I've met are missing their family and friends for so many reasons, so seeing them come out altogether as a family has been such a delight.
I've also had an assistant with me - my nearly 4-year-old son Zach. Thankfully Zach has been coping brilliantly through all this, but we've definitely seen how much of a positive impact the doorstep photography has had on him. He loves traveling around in the trailer and has a fab set up in there - books, toy cars, snacks and a drink!
He also loves interacting with different people again, even if it is from a long way away. Zach has only seen his cousins and some friends through Facetime, but you can really see the difference with him talking (loudly) to people and seeing them in person - and he LOVES going fast in the trailer!
I was hoping to arrange some photos for the generation who aren't so tech-savvy as I'm sure some people would love to get some photos of their parents/grandparents, but with the higher risk aspect and technical difficulties, I'm not trying to push it.
As you can see, this little project has turned into something so much more than just taking photos and I'm thankful I could make it happen without putting anyone at risk.
We are currently living in historical times and capturing life memories to document such times is exactly what I do!”
- Michael White @michaelwhite_lifephotography
Creative photography by Rachel Bowes
“One of my challenges at the moment of lockdown life has been the limited opportunities to get outside with social distancing (and adjusting to working from home). I’m a landscape photography lover, however with the current situation it is difficult to find locations within walking distance of my house. Therefore I have been using this time to try out new photography techniques and let the creative juices flowing. It’s really amazing what you can produce from items around the house.
“My inspiration for the sunset image came from a video I watched from Lynn Luxton Jones, and therefore one night I quickly pulled together a mirror, found a sunset image on my iPad and went through my toolbox and stapler!
Lockdown sunset skyline - Photo by Rachel Bowes @rachelibowes
Other styles of photography that I have tried out since the start of the lockdown are macro photography, using some recently acquired extension tubes, getting out into the garden, and lego photography, whereby I have been trying to create scenes using lego characters. One involving a baking tray, foil, cornflour, a plastic bag, shoe box paper and a blue light.” ”
- Rachel Bowes @rachelibowes
Doorstep Portraits by Gillian Taylor
“The idea came about when someone posted on our village Facebook page. They explained that Doorstep Portraits were taking place in her grandma’s hometown of Shrewsbury, and asked if anyone would like to give it a go in Brinklow. My name got mentioned a few times, so I agreed.
I use my one hour a day dog walk to arrange to take the photos. I take a notepad with me so I can document a few words from them. I upload images to my own photography page on Facebook gilly_t_photography, then share these to our village Facebook page.
It’s been great, everyone is so chatty. I get exposure and experience for my photography, have made new friends, and gained some more Facebook page followers. We follow social distancing when taking the photos, and everyone has agreed for them to be used on social media.
Future thoughts are that I may put them into some kind of scrapbook/program for people to buy. Everyone agrees it’s a great way of documenting this year!”
- Gillian Taylor @gilly_t_photography
Light painting by Tara Rutledge
“A few weeks into lockdown I found myself running out of things to photograph, and soon realised this was less to do with my surroundings and more to do with me.
I’d lost some of my photography spark and I needed to do something to ignite it again. I started looking back at some of the work I’d done at college and the different photography techniques we’d tried out, from multiple flash exposures to glitch editing and even making our own pin hole cameras from empty beer cans.
I’d forgotten how much fun all these experiments had been so decided to see if I could recreate any of the techniques using items I had around the house”.
- Tara Rutledge @lajeteeproductions