I picked him because he had a poetic way of showing relationships and loneliness. His work helped me think about how even small moments between people can have strong emotional impact.

That’s something I tried to do in my project to show love, care, and the little moments that bring people together.

One of the most important things I learned was developing film from scratch. Before this module, I didn’t know how the process worked. At first, it was a little bit challenging measuring the chemicals, loading the film into the tank in complete darkness, and timing everything correctly. But after doing it several times (around four), it became much more natural to me. I now feel comfortable with the process and confident that I can develop a roll of film properly on my own.

After developing the film, we moved on to printing in the darkroom, another area I had limited experience with. In the beginning, I found it a bit overwhelming especially adjusting the light, exposure times, and understanding how different grades affect the contrast. However, our tutor explained everything clearly, which really helped me understand the technical side of the printing process. I enjoyed experimenting with different timings and seeing how small changes could completely change the final print.

One thing that made the process easier was using a machine to develop the prints, instead of doing it manually with chemicals. It saved time and reduced the risk of making mistakes, especially when we had to produce several prints in one session. Learning how to operate that machine was very useful and something I’ll carry forward into future darkroom work.

Another skill I learned for the first time during this module was mounting. I had never mounted my work before, so this was a completely new experience for me. They show us the importance of clean edges, positioning, and using the right materials. I found this workshop extremely useful, especially in terms of presenting my work professionally whether for an exhibition, a portfolio, or an assessment. I mounted all of my final prints myself, and I now feel very confident in this skill.

the technical part of this module has been one of the most rewarding. I’ve gained practical skills that I didn’t have before, and I now feel much more confident working with film, printing in the darkroom, and preparing my work for presentation.

Each time I worked in the darkroom, I treated every image as a new process. For every photo, I started with a test print, usually trying different light settings to see what worked best. I experimented a lot with exposure times and filters, especially to adjust the contrast and tone. Getting the right lighting wasn’t easy, and often had to repeat the test print several times before even getting close to a good result.

In some cases, I used up to 10 sheets of paper just for one final image. That might sound like a lot, but every small change from light intensity to exposure time to filter settings made a huge difference. I learned that printing in the darkroom isn’t just about developing a photo it’s about shaping the mood and emotion of the image.

I’m also including some of the unsuccessful prints . These weren’t necessarily bad photos, but they didn’t capture the feeling I wanted, or I couldn’t get the print exactly right after multiple tries. Still, I think showing them is important, because they were part of the learning process. They helped me see what didn’t work and pushed me to try different approaches.

But as I continued with the project and started shooting more rolls, I realised that idea didn’t fully connect with me emotionally. I found myself more drawn to moments between people the way someone looked at their child, or how two friends were laughing together. That’s when I started shifting my idea. I began focusing more on care and love in public spaces moments that show real, human connection.

By the time I got to my third and final roll, I thought maybe I should focus only on couples people holding hands, walking close together, or sharing a quiet moment. I liked the idea of showing romantic love in everyday life. But when it came time to review and select my final images, I noticed that I had some strong photos of family relationships too like a mother and son, or siblings that really fit the feeling I was trying to capture.

So in the end, I decided to keep the idea more open and general: not just couples, but love and caring in all forms. That includes families, friends, children anyone showing affection or connection in a natural way. The idea of the project changed a lot through the semester, but I think that’s part of the process. It took time and experimentation to discover what I really wanted to focus on. I’m happy with where I ended up using street photography to show moments of love, care, and connection in public life.