What Makes a Photo Nostalgic? - Seascapes and Street Photography on the Kent Coast
Introduction
“I'd trade all my tomorrows for one single yesterday.”
― Kris Kristofferson
Holiday memories - Just thinking about those two words causes the brain to start creaking and dusting itself off. The hippocampus yawns and wakes up. All of a sudden, nostalgic flickers of family outings -crying to my Mother on a beach as a child and shouting at a staring sunbather, getting trapped in a toilet on a ship to Denmark, standing in the middle of a frozen lake in the Rocky Mountains. Memories. Nostalgia. Moments in time.
Some of them, never captured and simply slip away in time. But with a camera, many moments are recorded.
Seaside pics - Seascapes. People on the beach, by the harbour, or on the promenade - Street Photography. These two genres hold moments with subjects, details, light and tones that can be evocative of a place and time for the viewer.
What makes a Photo nostalgic?
There are a number of details intrinsic to a photograph that can make it nostalgic to the viewer. Let's take a look at them.
The subjects - A street photograph in a specific location can conjure up memories of that place that you may have visited. Seaside locations are especially emotive as holidays are generally memorable, simply because they happen outside the monotony of everyday life.
People in photos can remind the viewer of somebody that they know or once knew. Even an article of clothing, i.e. a hat, a t-shirt, a walking stick, can offer a relational memory connection.
The lighting and weather in a photo. From a dreary, cloudy seascape to a warm and sunny street photo of Times Square, can conjure nostalgic memories. 'A Rainy Night in Georgia' can take the viewer back to that very similar evening.
The colours, the treatment and/or the film used to process an image. A photo edited with pale pinks, browns, sepia or other warm colours can cause feelings in the viewer. Similarly, light leaks that can be added with software, grain and colour casts hark back to the days of the Polaroid instant Camera that your mum and dad might have taken on your annual vacations. Some of the Kodak 35mm film stocks, such as the Gold 200 and the Gold 400 have rich saturation and grains that give your photos a vintage vibe.
Seascapes and Street Photography on the Kent Seaside
I have been on numerous expeditions to the Kent coastline. Broadstairs, Whitstable, Margate, these places are fantastic as they each have very diverse coastlines and seafronts.
As you probably know, I am a lover of Street Photography and Seascapes and when I can combine the two as a Streetscape, then I am in photography heaven.
The easiest route to success when shooting Streetscapes is learning and using compositional elements for when you are on a photoshoot.
Leading Lines, Contrast, Light, Figure to Ground, and foreground elements, all serve to help produce creative and interesting images.
But I do not deliberately create nostalgic images. That really is for the viewer to decide by use of their feelings and thoughts, whether an image is nostalgic.
However, in this Kent coast project, I have sought to emphasise atmosphere, through the editing process, by using colour, increasing highlights and shadows and maybe adding a light leak or a colour cast.
Examples
One of the greatest compliments for this image, from Instagram, is from fellow Street Photographer and blogger Babycakesromero which encapsulates the nostalgia theme of this post.
'love the colour palette, so evocative of those old postcards I used to stare at endlessly when I was a kid 🤓'
It was a sunny day and a wanted to emphasise the lounging in the sun aspect of the tourist/daytrippers in this Street Photo.
Oysters Sold Here
I shot this image with the expanse and quietness of Broadstairs beach, in mind. The discarded boats in the centre-foreground, work as an anchor to pull the eye into the image
Tidal Break
'Meeting a friend', those three words are universal. I captured this image by chance. The subjects talking, the pub and the sea are all evocative elements as is the vintage film colour cast I have used. Please see the video for the explanation.
Meeting at Old Neptune