A Case Study

The Composition

I met Liam who runs the KBowl purely by accident one day. He was looking for some images for his new website. What started out as a simple....

"We just need a few shots of the bowling alley"

...turned into a much more substantial project. They had invited a group of children into the Bowling Centre for an hour of fun in the play area followed by a party in the dedicated studio upstairs. As I was brought around the centre, it was clear that Liam wanted or perhaps, needed far more than just a few images of bowling alley.

The mural that Liam & Ann-Marie are so proud of that will keep the children entertained

The Photography Shoot

It's a common misconception, held by many, that all a photographer has to do is turn up with his camera, press the shutter a few times and produce these amazing images that will wow the crowd. In reality, it takes a lot more planning, and strategic thought to get to that point. As good as I am, being introduced into a room of children who've never met me before and expect them to smile and warm to me from the off was always going to be a challenge. After a few minutes it was clear I needed to think on my feet...or off my feet in this case. I started climbing the apparatus, squeezing myself into holes that no adult had any business trying to negotiate. I might have looked like an idiot but the kids loved it and started laughing at me. Just the reaction I needed and I managed to get the images I needed as a result.

The party upstairs was now a doddle as all the children felt far more comfortable in front of the camera. I had a short window of opportunity to capture the candid shots of the kids enjoying themselves before scouring the rest of the facility for the other images that Liam needed. It was apparent that he was very proud of the centre and wanted as much of it captured as possible. As clients had started to come in to use the bowling alley's, I had to be a little creative in getting images without identifying the people

Despite getting a lot of brand images during the time I was there, the whole thing felt a bit rushed and I felt as if a lot of the detail had been missed so I arranged to come back another day, before the centre opened so I could capture images of the laneways and the diner without distraction.

Results from the Darkroom

All twelve lanes captured in a wide-angle shot

Once the sun goes down the Neon lights come up and the lanes take on a whole different look

Some of the images of the children and mascot in the KBowl

Just two of the amazing gaming machines on offer at KBowl

The Diner at the KBowl