A unique commercial photography commission steeped in Welsh legend
A finne’n ffotograffydd masnachol proffesiynol, dwi’n cael cyfle i dynnu lluniau o bob math o ddigwyddiadau, ac i weithio mewn gwahanol leoliadau.
Ar ôl bod yn gaeth i’r cartre’ am mor hir dros y gaeaf 2020 achos cyfyngiadau Covid, o’n i wir ishe mynd ma’s i dynnu lluniau o fywyd unwaith eto. Felly, ’nôl ym mis Ebrill y llynedd, o’n i mor falch o gael comisiwn gan Menter a Busnes. Mae Menter a Busnes yn fudiad sy’n cefnogi busnesau yng Nghymru. Comisiwn ffotograffiaeth fasnachol ddifyr ma’s yn yr awyr agored oedd hwn – un o’dd yn frith o chwedlau! Darllenwch ragor i glywed mwy amdano.
As a professional commercial photographer, I get to capture all kinds of events and go to a variety of different locations to shoot. After being locked in for so long over the winter of 2020, due to Covid restrictons, I was so longing to be able to go out and about capturing life again. So, I was thrilled when back in May, I was hired by Menter a Busnes – an organisaton that supports businesses in Wales. They had in mind a fascinating outdoor commercial photography commission. One that was steeped in Welsh legend! Keep reading to find out more about it.
Roedd angen i fi deithio o gwmpas Cwm Dyfi ar gyfer y prosiect, a thynnu lluniau o dirnodau a mannau o ddiddordeb o amgylch y cwm. Fe ofynnwyd i fi yn benodol i dynnu lluniau haniaethol/abstract ac artistig o’r tirnodau, gan eu bod ishe eu defnyddio nhw yn rhan o brosiect ieuenctid. Eu nod yn y pendraw oedd denu diddordeb pobl ifanc i gymryd rhan mewn gweithdy a fyddai’n dangos Biosffer Dyfi a’r cyfleoedd entrepreneuraidd sydd yno. Mae ymgyrch cyfryngau cymdeithasol a ffilm wedi’i chynllunio- Prosiect Ti Bia'r Biosffer. Fe fydd yn gyfres o ffilmiau byrion, yn dangos entrepreneuriaeth yn y dalgylch o gwmpas yr afon Dyfi. Dros ddeng mlynedd yn ôl, dynodwyd yr ardal hon i fod yn ardal Biosffer UNESCO - un o 7 yn unig yn y DU, a’r unig un yng Nghymru.
The project required me to travel around the Dyfi Valley and take images of landmarks and points of interest around the valley. I was specifically tasked with taking artistic and abstract shots of the landmarks as they wanted to use them as a part of a youth project. Their overall aim was to get young people interested in participating in a workshop to showcase the Dyfi Biosphere and its entrepreneurial opportunities. A social media and film campaign – the Ti Bia'r Biosffer project – is planned. It will be a series of short films showcasing entrepreneurism within the catchment surrounding the river Dyfi. More than ten years ago, this place was designated as a UNESCO Biosphere area - one of only seven in the UK, and the only one in Wales.
Ar gyfer y comisiwn ffotograffiaeth fasnachol yma, ges i gyfle deithio i ganolbarth Cymru a phrofi gwahanol leoliadau, yn cynnwys sawl lle nag o’n i wedi ymweld â nhw o’r blaen. Ges i gyfle hefyd i weithio bach yn wahanol, a thynnu lluniau a’u golygu mewn ffordd fwy arbrofol. Nes i joio ma’s draw yn tynnu lluniau o’r holl leoliadau, a mwynhau cymryd fy amser wrth dynnu lluniau’r gwahanol dirweddau enwog.
Dyma rai o uchafbwyntiau’r daith i fi:
For this commercial photography commission, I got to travel to mid-Wales and experience different locatons including many places that I’d never been to before. I also had a chance to work slightly differently, and to capture and edit images in a more experimental way. I thoroughly enjoyed photographing all the locations and having the luxury of time to capture the various landmarks. Below are my personal highlights of the road trip:
Yn ystod misoedd y gaeaf rhwng Ynyslas ac Aberdyfi, ar draws aber y Ddyfi, gallwch ymweld â’r Goedwig Hynafol.
Pan ofynnwyd i fi fynd yno i ddechre' o’n i’n edrych ’mlaen gymaint achos mai chwedl Cantre’r Gwaelod yw fy hoff chwedl Gymraeg. O’n i wir ishe tynnu lluniau o’r goedwig gudd. Y gaeaf yw’r adeg orau i weld y goedwig hynafol pan fydd y llanw cryf wedi golchi’r tywod i ffwrdd. Yn anffodus, achos nes i ymweld ym mis Ebrill, doedd dim gobaith gweld y goedwig! Roedd hi’n ddiwrnod stormus. Roedd hi’n wyntog ac yn bwrw glaw mân.
Yn benderfynol o gael llun, dyma fi’n tynnu llun o rywbeth a oedd yn awgrymu’r chwedl, gan wneud hyn drwy ddarlunio bod y gât ar agor.
During the winter months between Ynyslas and Aberdyfi, across the Dyfi Estuary, you can visit the Petrified Forest. When I was first asked to go there, I was so excited as the legend of Cantre’r Gwaelod is my favourite of the Welsh Legends. I was so hoping I could capture the sunken forest. The petrified forest is best seen in winter when the strong tides wash away the sand. Sadly, because it was the month of April when I visited, there was no chance of seeing the forest! It was a stormy day. The wind was blowing and the rain was drizzly. Undeterred, I decided to capture a hint of the legend and did this by illustra:ng that the gate was open.
Borth
Darllenwch ragor am y chwedl ddifyr fan hyn.
Read more about this fascinatng legend here.
Tref Aberdyfi oedd y lleoliad nesa’. Gofynnwyd i fi dynnu lluniau o dai lliwgar Aberdyfi.
Yn ddelfrydol, byddech chi’n meddwl y bydden i ishe tynnu eu llun nhw ar ddiwrnod heulog braf, ond roedd hwn yn ddiwrnod reit stormus. Roedd hyn yn siwtio’r prosiect i’r dim, achos do’n i ddim ishe i’r llun bortreadu’r tai yn rhy amlwg.
Yn lle tynnu lluniau cwbl glir, penderfynes gau drws y fan a defnyddio diferion y glaw i guddio’r tai. Roedd hefyd cyfle i arbrofi drwy dynnu lluniau ma’s o ffocws ar gyfer rhan yma’r prosiect.
The next location was Aberdyfi town. My brief had been to capture the colourful houses of Aberdyfi.
Ideally, you would think that I wanted to photograph them on a nice sunny day, but this day was quite stormy weather. This actually suited this project nicely as I didn’t want the picture to illustrate the houses too obviously.
Instead of taking nice crystal clear shots, I decided to close the window of my van and use the rain droplets to mask to houses. I also got to experiment with taking out of focus shots for this part of the project.
Tai Lliwgar Aberdyfi
Ar fy ffordd nôl o Aberdyfi, galwais draw i bentre’ Pennal i dynnu llun o gerflun Owain Glyndŵr, sydd yn Eglwys Pennal. Ro’n i’n chwilio o gwmpas y pentre’ am ddelw fawr ma’s o garreg, ac yn methu dod o hyd iddo i ddechre’. Yna, dyma fi’n ei weld wrth gerdded tuag at yr eglwys. Odd e’n llai nag o’n i’n ei ddisgwyl. Penderfynes i dynnu llun o’r cerflun o bell, gan ddefnyddio’r clawdd o’m mlaen i gyfleu gwyrddni dros y cerflun. Es i mewn i’r fynwent i edrych yn agosach ar y darn o gelf anhygoel hwn, ac i gofio am y Cymro y mae’n ei goffáu – Tywysog Cymru.
On my way back from Aberdyfi, I called in at a village called Pennal to photograph the statue of Owain Glyn Dwr, which is located in Pennals Church. I was looking out for a large statue around the village but couldn’t spot it at first. And then I saw it as I was walking towards the Church. It was smaller than I expected. I decided to photograph the statue at a distance using the hedge in the foreground to create a green mask of colour over the statue. I went into the graveyard to take a closer look at this wonderful piece of art and to remember the Welshman it commemorates, the Prince of Wales.
Owain Glyn Dwr - Bronze statue, Pennal Church
Pan fyddwch chi’n meddwl am dref Machynlleth, falle mai’r cloc yw’r peth cynta’ sy’n dod i’r meddwl. Mae’n dirnod enwog reit ynghanol y dre’.
Pan nes i ymweld, o’n i’n falch fod y tywydd yn wael y diwrnod hwnnw a finne’n sownd mewn goleuadau coch! Rhoddodd hyn gyfle i fi dynnu llun atmosfferig o’r tŵr cloc enwog yn y glaw.
When you imagine Machynlleth town, the clock is likely to be the first thing that pops into your head. It’s a well-known landmark and is located smack-bang in the centre of the town. On the day I visited, I was thankful for bad weather and being stuck in red traffic lights! It allowed me to capture this atmospheric image of the infamous clock tower in the rain.
Dyma ragor o luniau o’r comisiwn ffotograffiaeth ar gyfer Menter a Busnes.
Allwch chi ddyfalu ble y tynnwyd y lluniau hyn, a beth yw’r tirnodau? Rhowch sylw isod a rhannwch eich cynigion gyda fi!
Here are further images from the photography commission for Menter a Busnes. Can you recognise where these were taken and the landmarks they capture? Comment below to share your guesses with me!
Dwi’n gobeithio eich bod wedi joio darllen am y comisiwn ffotograffiaeth fasnachol yma.
Os ydych chi’n meddwl am wneud prosiect a’ch bod yn chwilio am ffotograffydd masnachol yng Nghymru, cysylltwch â fi. Dwi wrth fy modd yn gweithio ar brosiectau o bob math.
Gallwch weld mwy o fy ffotograffiaeth fasnachol yma ar y wefan ac yn y blog.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about this commercial photography commission. If you have a project in mind and are looking for a commercial photographer in Wales, do get in touch. I love working on a variety of projects. You can view more of my commercial photography work here on the website and featured in the blog.
