This year for the Birmingham 4am Project event I joined forces withMarie Foulstom from Project Brutal and hosted a photo walk in Birmimgham’s Central Library. The library had been on my to-do list for a 4am event before it’s proposed demolition, so it was great timing when Marie got in touch!
At this point I’ve got to say a BIG thank you to the staff at Birmingham Library for accommodating us! This includes Lee, Teresa, Keith, Arthur, Danny, Brian and Barry, who were all so well organised and made the event go without a hitch.
And not forgetting all the 4am photographers too! Thank you to everyone who gave up their sleep to attend the event. I’ve had so much great feedback about the event (thank you), and some have said that this was the best 4am Project event yet!
I will sure have to aim high for the next Birmingham event now! I have something in mind already which I think you will all love (I just need to get permission lol).
But enough from me. Have a look at all the wonderful photographs that came out of the event. And not ONLY images, but video and SOUNDS too! With access to some parts of the library not open to the public, such as the roof top, the Shakespeare Room (which will be dismantled and transported to the new library) and the basement/book store…Anyway, take a look and a listen!
Steve Cooper took a video of the basement area. As you can see, this area is huge! Every shelf is stacked high with books, documents, files, photos….. You could spend a year in there and still not see everything!
And the very clever Mister Underwood collected some amazing sounds from the library. Head over to his blog post, Sounds Of A Dying Library, to hear them all. Definitely worth a listen!
Thank you to Marie for being such a great collaborator! And thank you to Six Eight Kafe who kindly opened their doors at 5.30am to provide us with coffee, cakes and toast!
I’ll be updating the 4am Project blog soon, and also blogging about organising the event with some ‘behind the scenes’ photos/videos on my personal blog, so keep an eye on those too.
The next global 4am Project date will be this Autumn. Thanks again everyone! See you next time
It’s fast approaching the 4am Project time of year! It’s all systems go behind the scenes here and I will be making an announcement very soon, so watch this space!
I talk about how the 4am Project began, how I started in photography, what I like about taking photographs at 4am, and how running the 4am Project has changed my life!
I am organising a VERY special event in my home city of Birmingham. I can say no more at the moment – I wish I could – but you won’t be disappointed with that I have lined up for this event!
A few weeks ago I was contacted by Claire Latham who asked if she could interview me about the 4am Project for Creative Boom, an online magazine focused on creative industries in the UK. Claire is in her last year as a student studying BA Hons Media and Communication and will soon be set to enter the exciting world of PR.
Here is Claire’s final article.
Karen Strunks – The 4am Project
“There’s condensation slowly taking hold of my window panes like Jack Frost suddenly wants the world to know that winter is upon us, fog covers my entire street so all that is visible is a trickling of lights, an image not unlike those which Karen Strunks, founder, enthusiast and global director of the 4am project enjoys capturing in the small hours of the night.
The sound of the central heating purrs patiently in the background as I sit down to talk to Karen Strunks. The 4am project she explains is a global collaborative photography project that began in the heart of Birmingham with just a compact camera and a night owl.
Karen was first inspired to launch the 4am Project by going out an experiencing that wonderfully dark and unknown hour of the night by herself, she enjoyed what she was doing so much she began posting her photographs online, in no time at all the photos had captured the imagination of others, both here and across the world. The project rapidly expanded with people voting on polls deciding which location they would like to see photo’s of during the wonderfully endearing hour of 4am. It wasn’t long before the project, was dragged from its humble roots around the streets of Birmingham with Karen and her camera, that the project had received global appraise and the 4am Project was born. The Project now reaches the far corners of the globe with people from all backgrounds and cultures venturing out at 4am where they capture the images that we normally never lay eyes on.
Karen’s love for photography all began with the unassuming lure of the compact camera, sitting on the sideboard waiting to unleash its capabilities. Once Karen began snapping away she was hit by the ‘photography bug’ and there was no looking back on the tedious 9-5 job that had once filled her days. She soon embarked on a photography course where she learned the technical ropes and it wasn’t long before she was immersed in the charming world of memories and moments that photography brings.
Karen talks of ‘Capturing the moment’ describing the shots she loves to get – beautiful, unique and worldly images that may pass us by if it wasn’t for the use of a camera. She talks fondly of the candid moments the camera can capture whilst just strolling down the street, shots that unless illustrated could never be appreciated, not even by those that feature in the photographs. It’s a joy and novelty she says to have ‘Birmingham City Centre to myself at 4am as it is rarely seen without the buzz of commuters and life which it encompasses during the day’.
In five years time Karen wants to be combining her great love of photography and social media with her passion for travelling the world, Karen has just recently returned from New York City and you can see some of that journey as well as some of the amazing photos she took whilst there at http://bigappleunpeeled.blogspot.com/. Also check out http://4amproject.org/ for more on the 4am Project.”
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