ShepherdPics, Shepherdpics ~ The Blog

Christening Photo Fun

Over the weekend I did some shots of the christening of my friends beautiful baby girl. Now regular readers will know that I don't do a lot of people photography and I rarely use flash so it was a real challenge.

Alexa and Gran
(Click to view large)

I shot the whole thing on my 5D using the 580ex flash unit on camera. After a bit of experimentation before the event I opted to use bounce flash with the little white thingy popped up to add catchlights. Personally I am quite happy with the results but I am sure all the wedding & portrait togs who read my ramblings will be happy to tell me where I have gone wrong.

In Mums Arms
(Click to view large)

All the pictures are on my photobox pro gallery, why not take a look.

Labels: Taking Pictures

The Bells, The (blue) Bells

Sorry to those of you who got half this post by email - I pressed the wrong button!

It's May and that means only one thing...Bluebells!

Bluebells
(click to view large)

These delicate little flowers can be found in many forests and shaded areas at this time of year. And can often be found accompanied by a photographer grovelling on the ground and scratching their head as they attempt to find a composition that hasn't been done to death before.

Bluebell Stripes
(click to view large)

Personally my very favourite place for bluebells is Ashridge Forest, it is run by the National Trust and every year they manage it to produce a fantastic carpet of bluebells. It can get busy near the carparks but walk away from the popular areas and into the depths and you can have an entire carpet of bluebells to yourself.

Ashridge
(click to view large)

Anyway - I thought I would share some of my shots from Ashridge - hope you like them.

Two in the Blue
(click to view large)

Labels: plants Bluebells, Taking Pictures

Killer Cows

After yesterdays post I was asked why I had spoilt such a nice sunset by sticking that big ugly blob in front of it. Well there is a reason for that..

Temple field has been a bit of a muse of mine for the last few months. I am convinced that there should be a really good picture there but so far the best I have managed is this:

Tree and Temple
(Click to view large)

So on Sunday I decided to head back there and get some shots, but I was faced with the killer cows of Temple Field. I know what your thinking: "You great big jessie, their only cows". Well my last encounter with them four years ago left me a little bit wary of these beasties, here is the story:

As I entered the field I noticed a sign saying Bull in Field. Luckily, I had left my assistant, Boysie the tripod carrying cocker spaniel, at home so I thought I should be alright if I kept my distance from the cows or bull.

There was no sign of the cows in the field anyway, so I headed down the hill and up the other side to the small round temple at the top. As I got to the top and placed my tripod in front of the temple, suddenly cows appeared over the hill round both sides of the temple.

I figured I wouldn't want to take pictures in amongst the cows so I started to move away down the hill. Almost immediately I heard a movement behind me. I turned round quickly and 2 of the cows were now a lot closer than they were before. I spoke to them loudly and clearly, telling them not to be so silly (like most landscape photographers I speak fluent Friesian with a slight Guernsey accent - OK I just babbled incoherently but you get my drift). I then turned and started to walk away.

Temple Dawn
(Click to view large)

I had taken no more than a few steps when I heard a rumble behind me and there was this cow charging towards me head down. Faced with the prospect of being flattened by 2 ton of sirloin, I opted for the only thing I could think of, which was my best stern school teacher voice. I stood still, raised a hand and shouted, "Just stop that now" to my surprise it worked! The only problem was that I was now staring this cow/bull in the eyes and it was little more than 5 foot away from me. I think it was probably a cow rather than a bull but I wasn't going to break eye contact to check.

So there I was now in a staring competition with this cow/bull thing. I didn't dare look away or show any signs of fear as I figured that as soon as I looked away I would have been steam rolled by Aberdeen Angus. Eventually after a few hours of staring (well it seemed like hours, I doubt if it was more than a couple of minutes in real time), a cow behind mooed and the bull/cow dropped its head and backed away. I figure that the moo was the cow equivalent of "leave him Terry he's not worth it".

I carefully made my off the hill and out of the field - keeping a constant watch over my shoulder for the wayward cow and his head-but of death.

So now do you blame me for not wanting to join the cows in Temple Field?

Labels: Cows, Humour, Taking Pictures

When Swans Attack!!

So there I was at Roydon Mill on Sunday evening taking a few shots checking out the potential of the place as location. I had setup my tripod and pretty much had the place to myself, apart from the local swan who came over to see what I was doing. Having decide I wasn't of much interest the swan moved to the other side of the river & left me to my own devices.

A short while later three lads came down the river in an open canoe, enjoying a journey in the evening sunshine. I immediately noticed that the swan had adopted a pose that looked to the untrained eye as if it was saying "Right I'm aving you". It's wings came up and it headed at full pelt towards the canoe.

The Attack Begins

The chaps in the canoe first tried paddling faster to get away, but there was no way this swan was going to let them escape. They tried to scare it by splashing the paddles but it just kept coming. The river goes under a bridge at this point and out of my view, so I grabbed my camera & tripod and legged it up to where I could see down the river. Just as I reached that point the swan managed to turn over the Canoe! Three chaps,bags, bottles, cans and paddles were dumped into the canal.

I went down to the side and helped them haul themselves and their boat out of the water. A chap from a narrow boat came out to offer a hand and said "That bloody swan had a couple in a rowing boat over last week".

So now the lads decide that they needed to collect up all the rubbish that had come out of their boat (very public spirited) and retrieve one of their paddles. But the swan was smart and circled the floating paddle waiting for the next encounter.

The Swan Circles The Paddle

A narrow boater threw some food for the swan and it headed down the river, so an intrepid two set sail to retrieve their gear.

The Intrepid Two

But the swan wasn't to be so easily beaten, it came hurtling back towards them with its wings up in a very aggressive posture, determined to deal with these interlopers. the canoeists soon adopted a technique of "paddle a bit throw something at the swan, grab something out of the water..repeat".

Don't laugh now there is a swan coming

In the middle of all this someone stopped on the bridge in a car, wound down their windows and shouted "Oi don't throw stuff at that swan". People tried to explain what was going on but they would have none of it. They drove off with a shout of "I'm going in to the office and calling the police". Just as the narrow boater standing next to me said "Fecking Idiots".

Incoming Swan

Having collected their stuff the canoeists headed off with the swan chasing, finally a well aimed bottle on the beak caused the swan to give up the chase!

Battle Over

I think I might visit Roydon Mill again.

Labels: Humour, Killer Swans, Taking Pictures

G20 Protests round two

After the excitement of yesterday things were expected to be much calmer today. I decided to head down to bank and check out the damage. Things weren't too badly damaged, but a lot of graffiti had appeared.

My Banker

As far as I can work out the protesters were against the war, against the bank bail-outs and in favour of West Ham United!

Graffiti on The Bank

The Duke of Boots in front of The Royal Exchange bore the brunt of some unusual graphic abuse too.

Mine

Message for the fallen

Yesterday a protester died of a heart attack and at lunchtime a small group walked into the Bank square to lay flowers and leave messages for the unknown protester.

I think you may have...

As more people arrived scuffles broke out, arrest were made and the square closed down to prevent more protesters joining the fray.

Questions

Foot and Flowers

Labels: G2, London, News, Protests, Taking Pictures

G20 Protests in London

CLICK ON ANY IMAGE TO VIEW LARGE

Today seems to be National Get It Off Your Chest Day, thousands of protesters descended on the city of London to protest about Capitalism, bank bail outs, the war in Iraq, the war in Afghanistan, climate change, pensions and squirrel abuse.

Policing the Freedom Bus

Looking at the Law

Yes, today was the day of the much feared and hyped G20 protests. As we walked from Liverpool Street station it was clear that the city was undecided on what it's response should be to the threat.
Some banks had taken down any identifying symbols, closed the front doors and were pretending no one was home. Other buildings were completely boarded up.

On the steps of The Royal Exchange

Five marches converged on Bank junction from all directions. As they marched through the city they were watched from the sidelines by thousands of city workers dressed down in jeans & casuals.

Bank Junction

As soon as the last of the marches had arrived at the Royal Exchange it became clear that the police were implementing a strategy of containment.

No Entry

Press Pile

Slowly chains of policemen were formed preventing the protesters getting out. The lines were doubled up and vehicles were inserted blocking the roads completely.

Holding the Line

I moved round the area attempting to get closer to the action but being trapped inside the Police cordon didn't seem like a good idea. As it certainly seemed that although the vast majority of people were not up for trouble, a few seemed like they might be.

agent provocateur

Masked Man

Wandering round the area I came across Russel Brand and attempted to do a bit of papping. Walking backwards taking a shot of a celebrity and not bumping into the other photographers is harder than it looks - well that's my excuse for the shot not being sharp!

Russel Brand

Billy No Mates

Round by Mansion House I came across an American journalist doing a piece to camera. I listened as he told his viewers that the police were clearing the square. Actually they were doing the complete opposite!

Talking Tosh

An hour later and things got a bit tense as a group of demonstators broke through the police line and trashed a branch of RBS. The riot police went in and it was all soon over. The police lines were restored.

After the Riot

Police Lines

From there I found a tiny group of proestors blockading Tescos..no idea why though.

Your More

Over in Bishopsgate the entire road had been turned into a climate camp, things were extremly good natured and rather fun.

Nature...

Policimg the Climate Camp

The day went well with almost everyone getting to demonstrate peacefully and things went off much better than predicted.

But the main impression I came away with was how amazingly polite and professional every policeman I met was. They dealt with a difficult situation with tact and humour - makes you proud to be British.

The Bobby is back

Labels: London, News, Taking Pictures

A Snow Day

I have said it before and I will probably will say it again: I really do like snow. Last Monday the south of England ground to a complete halt when snow hit in a big way.

We don't get snow very often and snow that settles is an even rarer beast, so road and rail chaos ensued. The schools were closed as the teachers couldn't get in. Millions of people couldn't get to work, so instead they had to stay home and build snowmen or go tobogganing with their kids. Where is the bad in that - snow really is brilliant stuff.

Fun with Mum
(Click to view large)

Being the intrepid and hard-working photographer I am, I had already made a note of the weather forecast and had my bags packed just in case the weather men were right. Being unable to drive anywhere the only option was to take my gear & get out there and walk.

First I headed to Roding Valley Meadows, as per usual I found it difficult to avoid a shot of my very favourite tree when it is covered in snow.

Snow at the Gate
(Click to view large)

After that it was back home for a snack and then a long walk through Epping Forest. I started at Baldwins Hill by The Foresters pub where a big hill leads down in to the forest. Hundreds of people had turned up to go sledging and were throwing themselves down the hill on sledges, plastic bags, barbecue lids and even the top part of a wheelbarrow.

Weeeee!!!
(Click to view large)

I stayed there for ages, enjoying capturing the action and the sheer sense of fun with everyone smiling and having a great time.

Hanging on
(Click to view large)

From there I headed across the forest to the Iron Age hill fort of Loughton Camp high in the forest. It snowed all the time I was walking and it was a constant battle to keep the camera lens and my glasses free of snow. Then a strange thing happened...I got lost!

Normally I have no trouble finding my way around the forest. I know where the tracks go and if I follow a new track I have a pretty good idea where it will go to. This is all well and good if you can see the tracks, but the heavy snowfall had covered them all and I was walking where the only footprints were mine and those of some passing deer.

Aat times like this I can usually orientate myself by the noise of the traffic on forest roads, but the snow had bought traffic to a halt. So I worked myway into a valley where I found a stream and followed it downhill to where it met a second stream but I still didn't recognise the area at all. I spent ages racking my brains but couldn't work out where I was as I was expecting to see the juction of 3 paths with 2 bridges over the streams. I finally realised that the streams & bridges were almost invisible under the amount of snow on them, so with much relief I infereed the path I wanted from some flat areas in the snow and headed for home.

I made it home after 5 hours of wandering in the snow with my camera. All in all a great day...I love snow.

Labels: Fun, Taking Pictures

Well that works then!

I, like many photographers using Canon kit have been eagerly anticipating the replacement camera for the Canon 5D. The 5d had been around for a lot longer than most cameras for two main reasons: it was a good design and it had little competition. I wanted one but it hardly seemed worth buying one if Canon were going to bring out a replacement model as soon as I bought it. Finally Canon announced and released before Christmas the cunningly named Canon 5DmkII.

Dragging the Chains
(Click to view Large)

The main attractions of the new camera for me was 21 mega-pixies*, integrated cleaning system and most of all full-frame. Live view is an added bonus as it is something I really miss from my days of using a Fuji S602, I don't often shoot using the back as a viewfinder but it can be really handy when setting up a tripod in awkward positions. Apparently it also can shoot HD movies but I doubt I will be using that.

Frost on the Beach
(Click to view Large)

Well it arrived on Friday; I had a quick play after it arrived, then a few shots on a dull Saturday. Sunday morning I had agreed to meet up with with two fellow Essex photographers, Kevin Goodchild & Clive Burrow. Kevin had recommended Thorpe Bay in Southend, we got there well before the dawn and the light was fantastic.

Thorpe Bay lasso
(Click to view Large)

So what is the verdict on the 5D?
The big viewfinder is great, it is bright and clear, I actually feel like I can see what the picture will be. The 20D viewfinder seems a bit dark and vague in comparison!
The other unexpected feature I like is that when you press the focus selector button twice the back displays all the shooting info: mode, exposure, bracketing, wb, ISO. Even better you can change them there too. Hopefully that should save me mornings of shooting at ISO3200 with a florescent white balance.

The only downside so far is that I have had to change to 8bit tiffs as the file sizes for 16bit tiffs were so huge that Photoshop and Capture One ground my PC to a halt. Though with 8bits everything seems back to speed.

Light and Lock
(Click to view Large)

* Mega-pixies are the small creatures who live in the camera. When you open the shutter they quickly view the scene and make a sketch of it. Obviously the more pixies you have the less sketching each needs to do - giving them more time to make a better job of it.

Labels: Equipment, News, Taking Pictures

New Year in Devon

Well I'm back now from spending a lovely refreshing break in Devon for the New Year. We had a cottage right on the beach at North Hallsands.

The weather was fun with no rain, but the storms lashed the beach making it easy to see why there is only North Hallsands - South Hallsands disappeared in a storm in 1917.

Storm over Beesands
(Click to view large)

The whole area of The South Hams is very beautiful and it's so tranquil at this time of year it is hard to believe that Start Bay was once the location for thousands of American Soldiers and Sailors to practice the D-Day landing. Unfortunately many perished off Slapton Sands in Operation Tiger and the memorial to them (a recovered Sherman DD tank) is rather moving.

Start Bay ends in Start Point with its own delightful Lighthouse. I was there very early and when I got out the car a fox was sitting looking at me, it's always good to have company on a shoot. I found my way down the rocky outcrop overlooking the light house and I'm rather pleased with the resulting shot.

Start Point
(click to view Large)

All in all a good weeks break and a great start to the new year.

Labels: Photographic Locations, Taking Pictures

Some Days you just have to give up

Well the plan for this morning was quite simple, head down to my nearest bit of coast (Leigh-on-Sea) and take a few photos as the sun comes up. Sometimes the best laid plans, just don't work out.

It all started well, as the night before I dropped my camera into the camera bag I hadn't bothered to unpack from my last coast trip. As I had only taken the camera out of the bag - if I put it back in I should have everything I need. Wellies & tripod were left by the door ready for an early start...so what could possibly go wrong.

Well, first of all the central heating went completely mad, so instead of a good nights sleep I ended up getting about an hours hot & fitful sleep. Undeterred I was up at six and chucked all my gear in the car and headed for the coast.

On arrival at Leigh, I headed down to Two Tree Island and got the gear out of the car. As I started to set up I realised I didn't have a tripod quick release plate anywhere in the bag. I turned the bag upside down but it was nowhere to be seen. I now have no way of mounting the camera on the tripod. After a bit of tinkering I worked out a way to use my super stretch camera strap to lash the camera to the tripod.

So undeterred I set my camera up & I start to wait for the sun to come up. Immediately the sky became completely obscured by thick cloud. I Decided I could still work with the strong wind which would cause some nice motion in the sky.

Leigh-on-Sea (on a better day)
(Click to view large)

No sooner had I set up my shot than the carpark behind me filled with cars. As hundreds of fishermen descend on the place for a fishing competition. My carefully composed scene of peace and tranquillity was suddenly filled with fisherman moving boats about and wading through the mud. Time to try another spot I think!

I headed back to try the view from the bridge over Leigh creek. I had to prepare my shot (with the camera still precariously balanced on the tripod), whilst avoiding being run over by the stream of fisherman's cars crossing the bridge. I position the camera carefully, when there was a sudden "ping" and the Lee filter holder and filters dropped off the front of my camera into the creek below. Luckily the tide was on its way out so the filters embedded themselves deep in the mud. I struggled down the bank and waded into the mud to retrieve the filters.

I finally decided to give up and head home in a huff - unfortunately a huff wasn't available so I used the car instead*. Arriving home I searched the house top to bottom and couldn't find the missing Tripod QR plate. After searching for 3 hours, I finally found it...attached to a telephoto lens - in my camera bag.

What a day!

*Sightings of this joke date back to 1933

Labels: Essex, Humour, Taking Pictures

The moment it Clicks

I have just finished reading Joe McNally's book The Moment It Clicks.

And a very enjoyable read it has been too. It bills it's self as "one foot on the coffee table & one foot in the classroom", so does it manage to please both audiences?

I think I would say that it does a pretty good job of doing both, the images are of stunning quality. Each presented with a story and then some text on how the image was created for me the most moving image was of Phan Thị Kim Phúc (The Napalm Girl) holding her baby:

Phan Thị Kim Phúc
by Joe McNally

For each scene he offers some words of advice about how he took them - mainly how they were lit. The use of strobes and diffusers (like a white sheet nailed over a door) have really fired my imagination. Perhaps the odd- diagram of how the shot was set-up would help but that is a bit nit-picky.

The advice in the book has made me resolve to learn about (and use a lot more) flash next year and try some people shots. This may be come essential as having pretty much said I would never shoot a friends wedding - I have volunteered to just that!

Highly Recommended.

Labels: Books, Gifts, Photographers, Taking Pictures

Stop Playing with Yourself

Landscape photography has always been a bit of a solo hobby. Getting up before the dawn, traipsing round the countryside in the dark and standing motionless in the cold by a tripod has never been much of a spectator sport.

But that has all changed...

No we have the forum, email and even websites with dedicated meeting calendars, there is really no need be a lonesome shooter. It's a great learning experience, you can find new locations, new ways to approach familiar subjects and new techniques just by observing how others approach things.

So I was really glad to meet up with some of the greatest Photoluminists* in Essex on Sunday.

Shelling Out
(Click to view large)

The plan was to meet at Frinton for a morning shooting the sunrise. Unfortunately the light decided not to turn up! Still I got a chance to play with some close ups laying on the freezing beach. And, as ever it, was a real joy to chat with other photographers over a big fried breakfast.

Why not try meeting up with fellow photographers - you never know where it might end up.

*The expression Photoluminist is ©Copyright Ian Flindt 2008

Labels: Photographers, Taking Pictures

Camera Simulators

Just getting to grips with your camera? Not sure about the relationship between f/Stops and shutter speed? Want to know more about ISO speeds and camera shake?

Well why not try a camera simulator. We have had flight simulators for years, so a camera simulator was an idea waiting to happen. I have recently come across 2 rather good simulators that may be of interest.

Camera Simulator by Paul Cheney
The SimCam by Photonhead

For a full understanding of what these simulators are teaching you, I recommend a good read of Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson or even my exposure cheat sheet.

Labels: Learning, Taking Pictures

What a difference a photographer makes (part 2)

In part one I discussed an evenings photography I had enjoyed with Ian Flindt and Kevin Goodchild. There I discussed the difference in our approaches to creating an image of Tower Bridge.

This time, I'd like to show the images we produced when left completely to our own devices in Central London.

Click on the images to view them large.

As the clouds came over and the more interesting light was lost, Kevin made use of his excellent observational skills. This image of a contemplative figure sat lost in thought, with the financial centre of Canary Wharf behind him really sums up the day for me. When you know that this was taken on the day that a couple of banks collapsed and the financial markets were in turmoil, it makes you wonder what the person in the shot is thinking.

Contemplation
by Kevin Goodchild

Ian managed to arrive well before Kevin and I and (quite characteristically) seemed to magic up some fantastic light. He then managed to wait till the people were in exactly the right positions to achieve this interesting and very beautiful composition. Shortly afterwards I arrived bringing my own personal rain-cloud with me!

City Hall, London
by Ian Flindt

As the sky clouded over the saturation of certain colours increased quite dramatically, and I found interest in a fountain right near tower bridge. The rust on this figure emerging from the water produced some great colours and helped me produce my very first nude abstract.

The Back Side
by Chris Shepherd

I find it fascinating that we were all using similar equipment and spent most of the evening quite close to one another yet we produced such different images. It really shows that it is the photographers eye, not their equipment that makes the picture.

Labels: London, Photographers, Taking Pictures

What a difference a photographer makes (part 1)

I always really enjoy getting out and taking pictures with other photographers. Recently I had the pleasure of getting out with two excellent photographers, Ian Flindt & Kevin Goodchild.

We decide to spend an evening around the Tower Bridge area of Central London. I thought it would be interesting to show how different photographers can interpret the same themes. This is a two part post. In this first part, I'd like to show how the three of us interpreted the same scene within a few minutes of each other.

Please click each image to view a larger version

Kevin produced a beautifully constructed image which uses the dolphin fountain to full effect. The eye is lead round the curve of the fountain, past some lovely reflected light, up to the bridge itself and then you finally notice that huddle of 3 figures, which add an element of scale and interest that would otherwise be missing.

Tower Bridge
by Kevin Goodchild

In characteristic style Ian elected to show as much of the context of the bridge as possible. He was able to find a new viewpoint and use wide angle to maximum effect, to bring the gates of St.Katherines Dock into the composition. The Gate, river wall and bridge work to create a dynamic zig-zag through the image.

Tower Bridge
by Ian Flindt

My images tend to have as little in them as possible and I felt I would be happier if I could get a clear view of the bridge. I found my way (through a gate that is normally locked at this time of night) down on to the lower pier. This gave me a chance to take the shot from river level with tower bridge towering over me.

Tower Bridge
by Chris Shepherd

In part 2 I'll look at what we produced when given a completely free reign.

Labels: London, Photographers, Taking Pictures

Visions of Britain - Photographic Workshops in Southwest England

Two of my favourite landscape photographers, Jon Gibs and Adam Burton have got together to create a new company - Visions of Britain. They are specialising in photographic workshop breaks in the South West of England.

The workshops are dedicated to landscape photographers and take place in a wide range of spectacular locations throughout Cornwall, Devon and Somerset.

Coastal Devon
by Adam Burton

These two brilliant photographers will guide and assist you to photograph the rugged coastlines of North Cornwall and South Devon, as well as the beautiful Exmoor and rugged Dartmoor National Parks.

Labels: Courses, Photographers, Taking Pictures

What a rubbish summer

In these days of climate change, it seems that I hardly ever seem to hear a weather forecast without them using the words "since records began". It's always the wettest, hottest, coldest month since records began. This year it was the turn of August to be the most rubbish since records began.

August in the UK usually has a few days of blue sky and sometimes the sun even pops out, If the sun appears for 3 days in a row it is traditional for The Sun to run the headline "Phew What A Scorcher". This year was different, a blanket of cloud seemed to cover the entire UK and didn't shift for the entire month.

Leigh Creek
(Click to view large)

So it was a triumph of optimism over experience when I headed down to Leigh-on-Sea for Dawn on Bank Holiday Monday morning. Even though metcheck said it wouldn't be cloudy, I was convinced I wouldn't see the sun as I got up at 4:00am that morning. So I was absolutely amazed as the sun came up and there was no cloud cover. I got plenty of shots as this little fishing port came alive due to high tide coinciding with dawn.

tttl
(Click to view large)

As I drove away the cloud cover came back & we reverted to "Claggy August". I was lucky to get these shots, but sometimes you make your own luck!

Labels: Photographic Locations, Taking Pictures

Photographing your own kids makes you a pervert

Yet again the "Big Camera = Big Pervert" meme hits town. This time a man taking shots of his own, fully clothed, children is accused of being a paedophile.

Oh dear.

Labels: News, Taking Pictures, War on Phtotgraphy

Luck and the Landscape photographer

I was talking to another photographer the other day about Jon Gibbs winning shot in The Landscape Photographer of the year competition. And they were of the opinion that he was just "lucky to be there when the lightning struck".

Storm over Scroby Sands wind farm, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England
by Jon Gibbs

Well to an extent it was true had he just happened to be there at the right time. A landscape photographer has no control overt the lighting or the weather, so it must be down to blind luck....

...or is it? How many times was Jon out on the shores of Norfolk when the lightning didn't turn up? How many times did he walk away with no images worth printing? In landscape photography there really is no substitute for perseverance. As someone once said - "The more I practice the luckier I get".

The Landscape Photographer of the Year 2008 competition is now open to entries, so its well worth seeing if you too can be lucky by being in the right place at the right time.

Labels: philosophy, Taking Pictures

Are you talented?

Talent is a strange concept really, is it "god given" (pick your own god) or is it just the result of hard-work and dedication?

People seem to use the word talented as though there is no effort involved "she's a talented singer" seems to mean that the person in question was born able to sing anything put in front of them instead of having spent years of dedication, determination and practice to get to the stage she is at.

At exhibitions I have been called talented (yeah I know..go figure) and it always throws me to know what to say about in response. I mean it's easy enough to get similar pictures: learn how to use your camera, learn what images work, take an interest in your subject, practice, get to the right location at the right time with the right weather, compose the image, take the picture, learn how to PP and print it....simple - if you are motivated to do it.

Ginger Smiles

No one is born knowing the relationship of aperture to shutter speed, the first time you use a macro lens or a wide angle a new world is opened up to you that you had never seen or imagined before.

If you are interested in a subject and you really want to get better and you are prepared to work hard and practice - you will get better. Natural talent doesn't really enter into the equation. Craig M. Tanner sums this up far more eloquently than I do (well he is a naturally talented writer) in this article entitled The Myth of Talent (click on the pdf link on the right - of course those who are naturally talented with web pages will have worked that out).

Since I took up photography I notice so much more in the world from butterflies to gingerbread men. Are my eyes talented or have they just been trained?

Labels: London, philosophy, Taking Pictures

Despondency and Depression

One of my favourite things is just chatting to other photographers about life and image making. it's always interesting to share views and news from the world behind the lens.

One thing that seems to come up from time to time, is a crisis of self confidence. It's often surprising to hear photographers ,who's work you really admire, to tear their latest creations apart or listen to them despair that nothing they have taken lately is any good. This is often followed by talking about giving up completely or deleting their websites and portfolios.

I think this is an inevitable side effect of striving for perfection. If you are lucky enough to create an image you are completely happy with then your own personal standards go up in accordance with it. This new standard becomes your new target for every image. Landscape and outdoor photography can be particularly harsh in this respect as one day you can have fantastic lighting and every shot is a winner.Then a whole week of drab grey skies can appear to completely destroy your mojo.

Landscape photography is the supreme test of the photographer - and often the supreme disappointment.

Ansel Adams

Sunset at Strawberry Hill Ponds, Epping Forest
(Click to view large)

Unfortunately real life intervenes and most of us don't have the luxury of waiting a whole week at a location till it all comes right like David Noton or Joe Cornish seem to. As an aside I visited David Notons stunning exhibition a while back with a friend and decided that he must be one of the most unlucky photographers in the world. Every image seemed to have a description of how he had waited days for the light to be right or trekked for miles to get to the location - by the end of it you willed him to say "I opened my hotel window…to be greeted by this scene". Still his dedication has been duly rewarded by some amazing images.

So if you are despairing of your images at the moment it is important to recognise the reasons for this:

Your standards are high
Your previous images were good
You are striving for perfection

I think these are all good things so there is really no need to be so down in the mouth - just get out there and take some more pictures.

Labels: Epping Forest, philosophy, Taking Pictures

Photographing Shops is Illegal...

...apparently! Yet another case of security guards harassing photographers.

Whilst we are on the subject, check out photographersrights.org.uk it's a new website created by John Stolz to provide a hub of information about our rights in, what used to be, a free country. Please give it all the support you can

Labels: Candid Photography, law, Taking Pictures

London Terror Posters - The Remix

Yesterday I blogged about the new London anti terror posters. Now its time to see the reaction on the web.

Here are some good ones, some more here though this is my favourite:

by illegalphotos on Flickr

This is a great little video that summarises our rights on the matter.

Labels: Candid Photography, law, London, Taking Pictures

Eeek! I'm a potential terrorist now

I see that the Metropolitan Police Service - Counter-terrorism advertising campaign asks:

Thousands of people take photographs every day, what if one of them seems odd?

Ho hum, I wonder how they define odd? I should think taking a picture of a handrail would look pretty odd to most people:

Handrail
(Click to view large)

I look forward to a trip to Guantanimo Bay real soon.

Labels: Candid Photography, law, London, Taking Pictures

Friends Weddings 3 - Some Experience

Hi I'm Nisha - Chris asked me to write up my experiences of shooting a friends wedding.

Really it is a good idea to get a professional to do it!

Preparation

I charged an extra battery and packed 2 spare memory cards (just incase) the night before the wedding and also formatted each memory card in the camera, as I had heard that sometimes they can get corrupted and I didn’t really want anyone’s hands around my neck!

Before the Wedding

I got to the brides house an hour before she was due to leave for the venue to get pictures of her getting ready and her family. This actually proved to be quite useful, because I now have a start to the ‘story’ and some really good shots of the bride when she is looking fresh. I should however have planned my time a bit better and gone to the grooms house as well, just to get a shot of him putting his tie on, or something of the sort. This was also a good time to get pictures of the 'details' such as the brides outfit, bouquet and accessories.

There was no way that I could have taken the pictures without a flash at the brides house as my lens's min aperture is f4.5 on a 70mm focal length and because I wanted those candid shots of her getting ready, I couldn’t use a tripod. Also shooting in RAW, with continuous mode and flash on was a little slow as I guess the flash needs a bit more time to recycle.

The Bride - by Nisha Patel

The Wedding

When I got to the venue, I found out how much time we had in the venue and the grounds after the ceremony was finished, so I could plan where to take the various family group and couple shots. It turned out to be a pretty wet and windy day, so having checked the forecast, I brought large black umbrellas with me, but they never got put to use and no-one wanted to go outside to get their hair messed up. This meant I had to find spots inside the venue to take family pictures and ended up using two different locations, but having looked through the photos, wish I had picked at least two more locations inside, so that there is some variation in the backgrounds. This isn’t so much of a problem when looking through the photos on the computer, but I’m making a photo album and the same background starts to get boring after a while!

I was shooting in Program mode with flash indoors, and cranked up the ISO to 400 as I didn't have an external flash, which is definitely something to invest in!

I didn't get much of a chance to shoot outdoors and when I did, it was pitch black and this was for the couples shots so I had to push up the ISO again! I had compiled a list of shots that I wanted from the couple so got these out of the way first and then just let them be natural around each other and 'do their thing'!!

What I Learnt

For a complete beginner like myself, who got thrown in the deep end, the first thing I would say is RELAX! When taking the group shots, people aren't always smiling, relaxed or comfortable (sometimes having to stand close to other people!) so you have to interact with them and make them smile. I kept an eye out for the couple giving each other 'looks' and just general candid shots of the guests enjoying themselves. Having looked through my shots, I have to say that I did focus mainly on the bride, so should have also got more close up candid shots of the wedding party in general.

Part 2 - Some Hints and Tips

Labels: Taking Pictures, Weddings

Friends Weddings 2 - Some hints and tips

OK so we have established that wedings are tricky and best avoided, but recently I was approached by my good friend Nisha as to what advice I could give her as she had been asked to do her friends wedding. For what it is worth - here is the advice I gave her

Get a professional to do it.
No seriously, get a professional to do it.
Can't you feign some sort of illness?
Oh O.K. well if you must.

Before you start:
Create a Packing List of everything you will need for the day and use it to pack the night before.
Make sure you have a spare battery and that all your batteries are charged.
Format all your cards and pack them somewhere you can get to them quickly
Check the camera settings: White Balance, exposure, metering - you really don't want to be shooting the whole day on the wrong white balance
Set the camera to raw as this will give you a bit more lee-way with the exposure.
Or you could ring round see if there are any professionals who have had a cancellation.

The Bride
(by Nisha Patel)

Create a Shooting list:
Work with the bride& groom before hand to get a list of all the groups they want shots of.
Add a shot of the rings, the signing the registrar, and the bouquet.
Keep this list with you and check each shot off on the day.

On the day:
If shooting indoors watch for flash shadow if people are too close to the wall behind.
Check your backgrounds, you don't want Aunty to have a telegraph post popping out of her head, or have to spend hours cloaning an ashtray out of each shot as I f did.

Be confident in moving people and stuff about to get the shots you want, much better to ask everyone to move across the room than produce a load of images you need to Photoshop the life out of.

In group shots tell everyone to smile, and take multiple shots as someone will always have their eyes closed when the shutter goes off. Take lots of shots plenty of candid ones will help to document the day.

Final Advice:
Are you sure you can't get a professional to do it?

Friends Weddings 1 - "Your pretty handy with a camera - can you do my wedding?"
In Part 3, Nisha tells us what she learnt when she did her friends wedding (apart from no t to do them)!

Labels: Taking Pictures, Weddings

Friends Weddings 1 - "Your pretty handy with a camera - can you do my wedding?"

"We would like you to photograph our wedding?" - Is just the most terrifying thing a friend can ask you, if your a photographer who doesn't really do people shots. There is no expression like it for putting the wind up your average landscape photographer -my advice is "just say no".

Ever wondered why professional wedding photographers charge such a lot of money for taking a few snaps? Do a wedding yourself and their charges will seem entirely reasonable! It is a job that requires a special blend of skills:

First you have the technical challenges like a bride wearing white and a groom in a dark suite, this is usually combined with a bright sunny day that can make for an exposure nightmare. Alternatively if the weather is grim you need to be able to shoot indoors and have sufficient lights/flash to cover the groups you need.

Then you need to be able to deal with a wide variety of people, from precocious small children to boisterous grannies. Coral them into various groups before they disappear into the bar.
Satisfy the mother-in-law who wants lots of formal group shots with all the family in, whilst producing the relaxed reportage images the couple want.

The most important issue with weddings is you only get one chance, mess it up and the day is gone.

The Bridal Chest
(what happens when you let me loose at a wedding)

You need to do all this without upsetting anyone and ensuring the wedding doesn't end up as one long photo shoot.

I have only ever done one wedding and I have to say its not something I would be rushing to do again! In short - get someone else to do it.

In Part two I give some advise for those of you who feel it might be a good idea to shoot a friend's wedding.

Labels: Taking Pictures, Weddings

Considering Composition

Lately I have got round to reading one of my Christmas presents. The Photographer's Eye: Composition and Design for Better Digital Photos is an interesting book that deals solely with composition and has already given me plenty to consider when creating photos.

Somerset House
(Click to view large)

The curving stones provide a lead-in to the main building with the figure on the thirds to add interest.

Many photography books cover composition but this goes into much more depth than many of the more general books. The information here is not just the dreaded "rule of thirds" or "stick a rock in the foreground of your wide angle landscape shots", its much more detailed than that.

It covers using shapes and contrasts, the effect of colours and intent, plus a whole host more.

I would recommend reading it in one pass to get a feel for it. Then going back and studying a small section and attempt to use it in making your pictures.

Gas Light

A rusty gasometer lit by a setting sun makes for an interesting abstract. Tilting the camera utilises the rectangular frame to gives a composition made almost entirely of simple geometric shapes.

All in all a highly recommended book.

U.S.A. Photographers Rights Guide

Photographers rights are a recurring theme on this blog, but being from the UK almost all of the information has been about UK law.

I have noticed that Attorney At Law Bert P. Krages II has an excellent one page downloadable PDF about photographers rights which should be of use to my American Friends.

Labels: Candid Photography, law, Taking Pictures

Microsoft adapts Outlook for photographers

I don't know you come up with a simple idea like an equipment checklist for photographers and what happens your idea gets pinched by Microsoft. What don't tell me I wasn't the only person to have that idea, I knew I should have patented it!

Don't Forget your Keys
(Click to View Large)

Well anyway Microsoft have adapted Outlook for photographers:

"Microsoft has released a free Outlook plug-in to help photographers remember which equipment to bring to photo shoots they've scheduled with the calendar and contacts software."

Labels: Equipment, Taking Pictures

Do you suffer from TAM?

Territorial Artistic Myopia (or TAM) for short. Is a terrible disease that can affect the photographer when he/she leasts expects it. This informative article by Harry Nowell allows you to identify the symptoms and administer the treatment to stop TAM blighting your life.

Personally I have found that my Friday Lunchtime Project has gone a long way to alleviating the symptoms of TAM. Here is the result of last Fridays trip and a strange attraction to air conditioning vents:

Going Up
(Click to view large)

Keep looking at the world anew and you should be able to banish TAM from your life.

Labels: News, Taking Pictures

Take a few snaps on the journey

What is this life, full of care, we have no time to stop and stare

William Henry Davies

Get the best shots you can, but don't forget to take a few snapshots on the way

Chris Shepherd

Just a reminder to all you photographers out there who obsess about exposure, filters, getting the right light, raw, lightroom, HDR, photoshop, equipment, etc, etc. That its always worth remembering to take some snapshots of those you love and events that happen as you move through life.

It's great to sell fine-art photos to the public, but in 10 years time you are going to spend a lot more time looking at snapshots that aren't technically perfect than any of your "greatest hits", just because they have the power to remind you of your life and those you love.

There is no real excuse not to snap away with digital as the cost of a few extra shots is not even noticeable. By all means use your skills to produce a good image, but almost any image is better than no image when you look back at your snaps.

So in the spirit of taking snapshots I would like to introduce you to Bernie (now renamed Harvey). He was left at our local RSPCA rescue centre on Saturday morning, he is only 14 weeks old, but some friends of ours have given him a loving new home.

I thought I would try to get some snaps of him...but he was quite keen on playing tug with the camera! Still at least they will have a reminder of his first day with them.

Camera Tug
(Click to View Large)

Labels: Dogs, Taking Pictures

Strictly No Photography

Ahh, the lure of the forbidden.

Last week I was out photographing in Canary Wharf with my good friend Steve, when a security guard informed us (well Steve...I don't look like a villain apparently) that we can't take pictures of the buildings. I wonder if they think it will wear the buildings out if too many pictures are taken of them?

I didn't even want a picture of the building, but now I had been told it was forbidden...I couldn't resist! It seems I am not alone in this rebel tendency as there is now a whole website devoted to like minded people/anarchists/criminals/libertarians/trouble makers/ne'er-do-wells* called strictlynophotography.com.

No Cameras (Kensington Gardens)
by 19 Pearls - via StrictlyNoPhotography.com

Their mission statement makes for an appetising read:

Strictly no photography is a photo-sharing site for photographs taken where you are not allowed to take them. From the inside of the Kremlin to Kensington palace, from art galleries to war zones. Here you can see everything you've ever wanted to see that you're not supposed to. There are pictures that range from the ordinary to the profound. Whatever the content or the quality though we think that each one stands as a little piece of art in itself, as a little expression of personal liberty.

* Delete as applicable

Labels: Candid Photography, law, Taking Pictures

UK Landscape Photography Location Guides

One of the greatest skills a Landscape photographer can develop is the ability to read a map and find new locations that may just bear fruit.

But this is the 21st century and the web allows us to share our favourite locations, so If you are looking for a location for landscape photography in the UK then here are a few really useful resources I have found that should help point you in the right direction.

Sunrise over Northey
(Click to view large)

Chris Maddock has produced The Lazy Photographers Guides which cover many great locations less than half a mile from road access.

If you are looking for a location Wales then take a look at the guides on LandscapePhotographyUK. Simon Kitchen has done a great job by creating a whole series of Location guides to North Wales and Anglesey.

I should also mention the ePhotozine locations section that is edited by yours truly. This has guides to many locations in the UK and the rest of the world.

Are there any other Photo location guides out on the web. If you know of one then please add a comment and let me know.

Labels: Photographic Locations, Taking Pictures

Photography in Public Places wallet card

In a discussion on the Ephotozine forums about Phil Smith being stopped by Ipswich police and requested to delete his images, one site member, Dave (going by the pseudonym of Mad-Dog's) detailed a card he carries summarising the law concerning photography in the UK.

I have created my own version of the card and you can download it as a jpg from here.

Click for large version

Printed at 300dpi this should produce a credit card sized document that you can easily carry with you and may help you challenge any over-zealous police officers you may meet.

Labels: Candid Photography, law, Taking Pictures

Check your Gear..even if you think you don't need to

Sunday morning I got up early (4:30am) and headed down to Heybridge Basin to see if I could get some dawn shots. Heybridge basin is where a canal (the Chelmer Navigation) meets the tidal estuary of the river Blackwater. A sea-lock connects the two, when there is a high tide.

The river itself is surrounded by high sea walls and for most of the time the tide is out. So it is not an easy location to shoot, but I had planned my shoot for a time when high tide coincided with dawn.

The night before was the Saturday nearest to Guy Fawkes Night, which means an awful lot of fireworks. I'm sure this is a lot of fun for a lot of people but for us it's a pretty retched time as you try to comfort two terrified dogs, who get really stressed out by the bangs and occasionally throw up with the stress...which is nice. In the middle of this mayhem I was trying to pack my gear for the following morning.

I packed carefully, following my checklist, but when it came to the point of checking if the batteries were fully charged I looked at the camera and it said 3/4 full plus I knew I had a spare battery in my kit so, with all the rest of the hassle that night, I didn't bother....big mistake!

Things started off well with me perching on the edge of the lock to get an image as the sun started to rise over Northey Island.

Heybridge Dawn
(Click to view large)

Then the most remarkable thing happened, as the tide started to rise the place burst into life, the lock keepers appeared & started to open the lock, boats started to move and even the pub opened..all at 7 o'clock in the morning!

Obviously high-tide is the only time that boats can get in and out of the basin and so people have to build their activities around it. Realising that it wouldn't be long before a boat made it's way towards the lock I positioned myself on top of the rear lock gates and waited till the boat came in to the exact position I needed it to make the composition I had set up complete.

Waiting to Lock
(click to view large)
If you look carefully you can see a lock keeper on either side of the image, helpfully balancing the composition

Now all I needed to do was wait for the boat to come in to the lock and I would get a nice series of pictures of the boat locking in fantastic light. At precisely the wrong moment my battery ran out. So I quickly opened my pack and got the spare out...which was flat too!

I had no choice but to pack up and walk away, muttering to myself about the one that got away. Lesson learned - always check your spare battery has charge. I hope you can learn from this and don't suffer a similar fate yourself.

Labels: Equipment, Taking Pictures

The Friday Project - Another Update

Autumn in the City (Southwark Cathedral)

Being a successful blogger is all about giving your readers what they want. Hardly a day goes by with out an email arriving asking how my Friday Project is going. So for all of you who need to know here is an update.

Wood and Glass (Near City Hall)

I'm no longer heading out into the city on my own as I am now often joined by my friend Steve. Steve is new to photography and it's great to go shooting with someone for whom it's all new. Also Steve is a security guard magnet so whilst he is explaining to the security guard that he is not a professional/terrorist/pervert I can get on with the business of taking pictures.

Ropework (St.Katherines Dock)

The exercise of creating images in harsh lighting with limited time is still very stretching and pushes my creativity much further than turning up somewhere that is very photogenic and having all day to shoot it.

Instrumental (Royal Festival Hall)

Labels: Abstract Photography, Architecture, News, Taking Pictures

Public Photography and the Law

Chapter Thirteen is becoming a real "must read" site for any UK photographer (that's why it is up there on the top left under recommended blogs). David Toyne is producing a set of articles on the legal aspects of photography and like everything David does it is well crafted and extensively researched.

Part 1 deals with Covert Photography
Part 2 deals with Stop and Search

both are very illuminating and go a long way to dispel some of the myths surrounding the law in the UK. I'm looking forward to reading a few more in the series.

Was it legal for me to take this picture - read the articles to find out.

On the same subject there is a pdf guide to UK photographers rights available here though it is now three years old so some of the information may be out of date.

Labels: Candid Photography, law, Taking Pictures

Technology Obsession

Whilst away last week I had a revelation*, it occurred to me that I had been spending far too much time concentrating on post production whilst playing with Lightroom and Capture One v4.

I spent a day walking and enjoying the beautiful countryside of the dales. It shouldn't be too hard to create beautiful images in such a lovely environment, yet I found that every time I was taking an image I was looking through the viewfinder thinking things like:
"I'll crop that out"
"I'll clone that"
"I should be able to recover that highlight or shadow detail"
"If I increase the saturation on this, It'll look great"

Once I got a chance to review the images that even I can say quite categorically that everyone of them was irredeemably shite! It dawned on me that instead of working out why I was taking the picture and what it was I wanted to show I had instead become obsessed with the process.

After this I decided to slow down and consider each image as though pressing the shutter release was the absolute final moment of the process. The quality of my images improved dramatically.

West Burton Falls (what happens when you forget about the technology)
(Click to view large)

Maybe it's a good idea to forget about the technology and just concentrate on the stories you wish to tell with the images you create.
*that's when an idea comes to you, as opposed to a revelsation which is what happens when you put a choccy in your mouth and discover it has a coffee centre not peanut.

Labels: Equipment, Taking Pictures

Stile Style

We had a great a week in the Yorkshire Dales. Every day we did a walk around a different part of the Dales. It was great to be out in such beautiful country just us, our two dogs, the views and the weather...lovely

The only downside on our walks was the local farmers obsession with making complicated stiles. The British Standard Stile was nowhere to be seen and were replaced with simple slots in the dry stone walls. Having decide that these were far too functional and hardly made things complicated at all, the farmers seemed to be in competition to add extra complications: A gate, 2 gates, steps, missing steps, extra powerful springs on the gates. The variety was amazing.

At one point we hit 6 different stiles in a little under three hundred yards. This really slowed down our walks because the stiles are designed to keep out sheep but let people through. Our two cocker spaniels are pretty much sheep sized so lifting them through the gaps added a "full body workout" to a simple walk...still it helps keep you fit I suppose.

Rock & Rust
(Click to view large)

In Arkengarthdale we came across the ultimate of the breed; a tall narrow stile that was guarded by a sheet of corrugated iron. Travelling through the wall involved throwing 2 walking poles, 2 rucksacks & 2 dogs over it first! Whilst waiting my chance to squeeze through I became fascinated with the colours in the rusty corrugated iron and its juxtaposition against the rock.

When you are in the right mood inspiration can strike anywhere.

Labels: Humour, Taking Pictures

What's Important?

I was talking to another photographer about their workflow the other day and they said something like "I use raw for important stuff and jpg for everything else". I replied with 2 questions - "Why? and how do you know which is which?".

For me the best thing to do is to stick to one workflow and treat everything as important...

Take 2 workflows into the shower?...I just want to raw and go!

The important part about setting up a workflow is that it should become automatic for you. Once you have taken the time to work out what you do at each point, and made sure you have each part of the process protected from failures, the hard work is done. The workflow should automate as much as possible so you can concentrate on creating fantastic images and not worry about filenames/directory locations/backups/etc.

If you have two workflows, each will be slightly different and you have to think what you are doing - and that's not good. It also adds an extra stage when you come to access the images at a later date as the first thing you need to decide is "did I think these were important?" before you attempt to retrieve them.

So what's important to you?

The thing to note is that the importance of an image changes over time.

Many pictures simply have value through their age - take a look at any of the shops selling old photos of street scenes. At the time they were taken most of the photos were as dull as ditchwater, but now they have a value just due to them representing the time they were taken.

In The Meadow
(Click to View Large)

Pull out an old photo album and shots that had little importance then, seem to have a magic all of their own as you discover long-lost events and friends smiling back at you from the page.

I have misjudged the importance of an image too many times:

A simple snap of a friend became very important when that friend died a few days after.
Some snaps of dogs playing on a beach weren't important to me but one of the owners loved it and wanted a large print.
Whilst staying at a farm/nature reserve - I just took some shots of the wildflowers to get to grips with a new lens, not important top me, yet the farm has asked if they can use them as 6 foot high posters in their new education centre.

A snap today could be an important historical record today.

In Praise of the snap
Workflow

Labels: Taking Pictures, Workflow

Sometimes a shot just works

Things are looking up:

I finally got my camera back from the menders, I'm a £170 lighter! Lucky it was only minor damage. And I have sorted out my laptop colour matching problems....I uninstalled all the colourPlus software and gave up!

In the mean time I have had a chance to play with some pictures, I revisited this picture:

Light after Death
(Click to view large)

and decided to convert it to black and White. I used The Lights Right Studio B&W conversion actions to convert it to B&W. The thing I like about these actions is they are based on representations of different coloured filters, they also have the option to put all the filters on the image then switch between them.

I ended up with this image:

Death in Black
(Click to view Large)

I feel both images work, the first emphasises the lovely warm evening light, whilst the second is more about the shape of that lovely tree. Which do you prefer?

Labels: Photoshop, Taking Pictures

What a fun Holiday Cottage.

I'm still without camera as it is being carefully repaired due to me throwing it roughly to the floor. So I though I would just show you something that I rather enjoyed. A few weeks back we went to the lake district and stayed in a lovely cottage in Coniston.

What made this cottage special was not it's central - yet quite location, nor its table tennis room, or its pool table room or even the fact that the garden was crammed full of wildlife that you could happily spend all day in with a big lens.

Cute Rabbits on the lawn

No the thing about this cottage was it's garden..it had a miniature village in it! Here are a few snaps of it:

Smudge and the Castle

Another Castle

Robin on the church

The Cottage and a model of itself.

The cottage had once belonged to John Usher who created his own miniature village in the garden, after his death most of his village was moved to the ruskin museum but a few of the bigger buildings still remain where they were built. How much fun is that :)

The Rest of the village in the museum

Life round Lloyds

Judging from the constant barrage of emails I receive, for many of you hardly a day goes by without you wondering how I am doing with my new years resolution. Well here is another instalment.

Last week I visited the area around Lloyds of London to get myself a few shots of the new Willis Building. Unfortunately its still surrounded by hoardings at the ground floor level, so I had to content myself with what shots I could get giving the beautiful sweep of this building.

The Willis Building
(Click to view large)

After that I decide to try an abstract of a nearby tower.

Pyramid
(Click to view large)

and then tried to capture the hustle and bustle of the city.

Steps
(Click to view Large)

Labels: Abstract Photography, Architecture, News, Taking Pictures

Full frame and Cropping

I have been thinking about Paul Indigos interesting article on the almost lost art of composing Full Frame. If you haven't already read it, why not pop over and read it now - its OK I'll wait.

A couple of points strike me about the article that I feel is quite interesting. Paul says:

"Cropping both the longest and shortest sides of the frame is in my book almost sacrilege and to be avoided at all costs."

I have been trying this for a while and have noticed that the viewfinder on my camera actually doesn't show me all of the image that is actually recorded. Sometimes a little all-round crop is needed to get what I actually saw through the viewfinder rather than something with the corner of a leaf poking in.

High Dam - Composed full frame but a leaf on the right cropped out.
(Click to view large)

It seems to me that a lot of photographers are looking for a set of rules to use in taking photos: Subject must be on the thirds, horizons must be straight, no work should be done in photoshop, you should compose full frame, etc, etc. Personally I feel it is quite a sterile idea to tie yourself to a set of arbitry constraints that are dictated by photography magazines and books in the hope of producing a shot that is "perfect".

Instead these disciplines should be looked upon as ways to fire your creativity. Composing full-frame forces you to think more about the image you are producing and exactly what elements you want in the picture. In the same way working with a prime lens increases the amount of thinking you have to do when you are trying to get the picture compared to a zoom. Work full-frame with a prime and you have a challenging yet enriching experience.

I have always been surprised that I often produce my best images when I have the "wrong" lens on the camera as it forces me to go for shots that arn't the obvious, clichéd shots...that's why the 100mm macro is my favourite "walkabout" lens...it just makes getting the shot a bit harder than a zoom would.

I was interested to hear at a talk by on of the Magnum photographers (sorry the name escapes me at the moment) that he found having the wrong lens on spurred him towards more creative images too. In fact he was taking it further; for a recent series of images, rather than lug a whole lighting rig with him he took just a single light and all shots were taken within a flex length of a plug socket. The constraint forced creativity or as they say these days - less is more.

As an antidote to all this prime lens/full frame/hair shirtism, don't forget that you can always give yourself permission to crop - there are really no rules, just what works for you.

Labels: Photographers, Taking Pictures

Cloaning and the search for perfection

Yesterday I posted this shot on ephotozine and received the comment that, on the lower landing the floor appears a bit messy and would be improved by a bit of cloning.

Nelson's Apples ~ Somerset House
(Click to view large)

I agree entirely that as an image, the shabbiness of the landing rather distracts from the repeats and curves. But should I get out the clone tool and produce perfection?

The subject of the picture is the Nelson Stairs in Somerset House. The stairs are a very fine piece of architecture, but when I visited them they had quite a worn look and it was really rather difficult to see any part of it that didn't have a bit of damage to them. I composed this shot very carefully to avoid bringing in any of the distracting modern elements - electric lights, fire exit signs and people using the stair case.

But I still could see some of the damage to the staircase in my shot and for me this is the deciding factor on whether to clone out elements of a picture or not. If the image represents what I saw or felt about the image at the time I took the shot then I am happy to leave it as it is. If I take a landscape shot and on examining it later, I notice a coke can in the corner of the shot I am happy to clone it out as it doesn't represent what I saw at the time. For me photography is about capturing a specific moment or feeling and not creating something in the computer afterwards - though if that is what people enjoy doing I have no problem with that.

As another example here is a shot by the great portrait photographer Martin Jordan:

Sanam by Martin Jordan
(Click to view large)

OK, it's a prepared studio shot with a model but to me the fact that there is one stray hair on the side of her face destroys our perception of this being a "perfect shot" yet at the same time roots the shot in reality rather than simply being a "painted mask of ugly perfection"*.

It is so easy to produce a photoshopped version of reality that many photographers become seduced by it but I urge you to think before you reach for the clone tool next time.
What is your personal limit when it comes to manipulation? I'd love to hear some other opinions on this - please use the comments option to add your take on the nature of photoshop & reality.

*Crass - Berkertex Bribe

A New Years Resolution

Labels: Black and White, London, Photoshop, Taking Pictures

The Friday Project - Update

I know that for many of my regular readers, hardly a week goes by with out them thinking to themselves "I wonder if Chris is sticking to his new years resolution ?". So I thought it was about time for an update.

Well it has been a mixed bag: Friday was not the best day to choose, because its not unusual to have to sort out something in preparation for the weekend, so some days got missed. Combining that with loosing so much time to sickness in May, I don't have anywhere near as many shots as I would hope for so I am going to attack the project again with renewed vigour. On the plus side it really forces me to take pictures that I would otherwise not even thought about taking.

Looking at Legs
(click to view large)

Last week I popped over to the South Bank to investigate the Anthony Gormley statues that have invaded the place. I must say that I really enjoyed the sculptures, its great to spend some time looking round for them trying to spot each one. Whilst I was there I observed many people being delighted & surprised as they discovered more and more of the sculptures.

Quite often there were 3 or 4 of the sculptures in view at anyone time which provides a whole new dimension to the cityscape, adding a human dimension to a view that can sometimes seem vast and soulless.

Gormley Towers
(Click to view large)

I'm not sure how long they will be staying on The South Bank but I hope that they stay for a long time.

Labels: London, Taking Pictures

Exposure Cheat Sheet

Just lately I have been doing an awful lot of training with people and I have often emailed them a quick summary (a cheat sheet) of what they have learnt. I thought I would stick it here so I can get to it when I need it and it might help folks.

Depth of field.

Definition - "the amount of an image that is acceptably sharp"

Increasing the f number (decreasing the size of the aperture) increases dof.
Reducing the distance to the thing you are focusing on reduces dof
The longer the focal length of your lens the less dof you have.

Aperture

The size of the hole you are taking the picture through - the bigger the hole the shorter the shutter speed.
Its a fraction so the higher the number the smaller the hole.
When you look through the viewfinder you see it wide open (lowest f number).
Dof preview shows you the effect of aperture.

Shutter Speed

Increasing the f number in a given situation increase the shutter speed.
The rule of thumb for hand-holding is that you can hold at a shutter speed of 1/the focal length.
So a 100mm lens can be held at 1/100th of a second or faster - i.e. the number at the bottom of the display should be 100 or greater.
Shutter speeds followed by “ are in seconds - you ain’t going to handhold those whatever lens you have on!

Iso

Increasing the iso increases the sensitivity of the sensor (film) and so means the exposure takes less time.
ISO 100,200 & 400 are virtually noiseless. After this noise starts to increase.

Histogram
Shows the distribution of light in your image from black on the left to white on the right. An evenly distributed graph is generally ideal. Peaks at the extreme left indicate blocking up of the shadows, peaks to the extreme right (and flashing highlights indicate burnt out highlights.

You can either recompose or use exposure compensation to correct.

Book Recommendation: Understanding Exposure

Labels: Taking Pictures

Wham bam thank you mam

Ok so there you are quietly photographing a solitary swallow when suddenly from nowhere another appears. I'll let the pictures tell their own story - but I thought he could have at least bought her a drink first.

Slipping the Eel

Labels: Humour, Taking Pictures, wildlife

Improve your photography - the 3 Rs

As here in the UK we head towards a long bank holiday, why not take some time to try and improve your photography using what I call the three Rs:

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

"What are you on about Chris, that's something to do with rubbish isn't it?" I hear you say. Well not necessarily!

Reduce
Next time you go to take a picture consider every element within the frame and does it need to be there. If in doubt - leave it out.
Also let your eye flick round the edge of the viewfinder looking for elements that are intruding at the very edges, a stray branch could mean the difference between the mediocre and the masterpiece.

Over the Stream
"Reduce" in action

Reuse
Pay a visit to locations/subjects you have photographed before. Force yourself to find new ways of photographing the scene, different lighting, lenses and time of day can all make a difference. Force yourself to really look for a picture - try to go "beyond the obvious".

Recycle
Recycle someone else's ideas and make them your own.
Spend some time looking at other peoples shots, consider how you would improve things: How would you do things differently? Would you have taken the shot in the first place? What do you feel about the shot?
Then use what you learn in your own photography.

What ever you learn from the three Rs - Have Fun.

Labels: Taking Pictures

Hay you, hope you are well

Well May has been an absolutely rubbish month for me. At the beginning of the month I was hit by the flu from hell, weeks of feeling completely lethargic meant that updating my blog or playing around with Lightroom just seemed too much like hard work. I'm better now, so I will try to resume normal service and catch up with all the things I promised people I would do.

So here is a quick update on what has been happening in my world:

My confinment left me with a laptop as a companion and I spent most of the time on Ephotozine. In April Ephotozine (Epz) had a major make-over with a new codebase and look, the changeover to the new system was quite a rough ride and to help guide users round the system and deal with the problems raised I was elevated from Photo Locations Editor to the status of moderator...a bit of a poacher turned game-keeper thing I think. If you are not a regular visitor to Epz why not pop over and have a look round the refurbished pad.

Many mails have been flying back and forth between the members of the Painting With Light Society and some very exciting developments are afoot. I can't tell you much at the moment but when we have something to announce you will be sure to see it here.

Over at Chapter Thirteen a group of talented photographers have put together what is starting to become a very exciting and useful site. Why not check it out.

Finally I felt so miserable over the month that only one thing could cheer me up - a new lens! I treated myself to a 300mm f/4 L EF and the x1.4 converter. I only got to use it for the first time on the 22nd May but I am already impressed with the results. It's dead sharp and produces beautiful bokeh and it's white and very long...what more could one want?

Here is one of my first attempts with my new toy:

Smudge 14 Months On - 20D, 300mm f/4 L EF and x1.4 converter
(Click to view large)

Labels: Dogs, News, Site Updates, Taking Pictures

Bottle of Beer?

For quite a while now I have been a fan of Magda Indigo's work. I just love her latest posting on URBAN ART rather than ANGER?. It certainly goes "beyond the obvious".

Urban Art
(by Magda Indigo)

As good photography should - it makes you confront your pre-conceptions. Highly recommended.

Labels: Photographers, Taking Pictures

Compositon

Keith Henson of Northscape has produced a very interesting article on composition worth of a read by beginners and experienced photographers alike.

Also of interest is Paul Indigos series on Design in photography - Part1 & Part 2. Hopefully Paul will get round to writing the other parts soon.

Spring Gold - Which compositon rules have I use/broken here?
(Click to view large)

Labels: Taking Pictures

Location, Location, Locatrion

Apart from maintaining this fine blog-thingy, I am also the Photo Locations Editor for Ephotozine. The idea of the Locations Section is for people to share their favourite photographic location with other photographers, whether it is ideal for Landscapes, Architecture, Wildlife or anything else.

I have just posted up a report for Durdle Door which is a very beautiful part of the world and a great place to be early in the morning.

Durdle Door
(Click to view large)

Previous location reports I have written are:

Labels: Ephotozine, Photographic Locations, Taking Pictures

In praise of the snap

It's so easy for the keen photographer to fall into the trap of only taking "important" photographs.

We get up at stupid times, drive for miles and wait patiently for the light to be right for that important shot, we then spend ages converting and managing our images to produce the result we want. But, in 10 years time, will these shots be close to our hearts? I doubt it.

We spend hours setting up home studios, to get stunning images of a model we don't really know or a beautiful still life that looks good on the wall. Will we ever clutch these images to ourselves and smile? I don't think so.

We grab the camera and take a snap of a loved one, who is just being themselves. The lighting is rubbish, the background cluttered and you didn't even hold the camera straight. Is this an important picture? You betcha.

The shots that really mean a lot to us will be the snaps of those we love, or a few grabbed shots of a happy time. Holiday snaps act as a postcard to our future selves, sending us messages of great times and golden memories. A single snap of a lost loved one can mean so much more than a hundred "fine-art" prints.

There is nothing wrong with striving to produce the finest shots you can, but don't forget to take a few snaps while your there...you won't regret it.

To be honest, I had real trouble finding images to illustrate this article. I had plenty of snapshots that are important to me but most of them were so personal that I didn't feel happy about sharing them on the web. So here is a snap that is important to me:

It is a picture of the day we picked up our rescue dog "Smudge" from her foster home. We often look at it to remind ourselves of the state she was in when we got her and how much she has progressed and changed. It will never win any awards or competitions... but it is very important to us.

Labels: Taking Pictures

Landscape photography pre-flight checklist.

The thing with landscape photography is that you have to get up early, real early. Ideally I like to arrive at the location around 45 minutes before dawn or "blimey its early" as its known to its friends! To arrive at that time it’s best to leave the house at "stupid o’clock", having woken up at "no the clock can't be right".

Southwold Sunrise
(Click to view large)

In order to get some sleep its best to pack your gear the night before as you don't want to be running around looking for memory cards at 3 o'clock in the morning. Another thing I find worth doing is making sure the settings on the camera are setup for the following morning as when you are half asleep its easy to forget that you left the ISO set to 1600 and the white balance to fluorescent.

Too many times have I arrived at a location to discover that some vital piece of equipment is sitting at home in my other camera bag, so to make life easy for myself I created a "Pre-flight checklist". I have this on a small printed and laminated card that I keep in my camera bag. Hopefully you will find it of use, and save someone else sitting on a beach at 5:00 in the morning looking for a filter ring that is actually a 100 miles away!

Pre-flight checklist

Battery fully charged ?
Lenses clean ?
Lens filter rings fitted
Filters Clean ?
Camera Settings: ISO, Drive, WB, Metering

Packing:

Camera
- Card
- Battery
Lenses
Filter holder
Filters
Remote release
Memory Cards
Spare battery
Cleaning cloth
Spirit level
Tripod
Hat
Gloves
Drink/snacks
Head torch
Mobile Phone
Camera rain cover (carrier bag)
GPS/Map/compass/Location Details
Tidetimes/weather forecast
Appropriate Clothing

Update 27 March 2007

Bill Speaks has a much more detailed packing & to do list list on his site which should give you a few more ideas of what you require. Ohh...and some very nice shots in his gallerys too!

Labels: Equipment, Taking Pictures

Landscapers - get up even earlier!!

I have often seen the advice in photo mags and books that for the best light you need to be in place half an hour before sunrise. Well I am coming to the conclusion that this is tosh!

I recon you actually need to be there at least 45minutes and ideally an hour before sunrise. Now I know what your thinking..."blimey that's an even earlier getting up time". Well yes it is, but there is not much difference between getting up at 2:30am and getting up at 2:00am really, both are pretty nasty!

The thing I have noticed is that quite often the spectacular sunrise colours happen up to 45 minutes before sunrise.

Southwold Sunrise (45 minutes before sunrise)
(click to view large)

But every time it's different. Some mornings the sunrise just doesn't happen, so have you wasted an extra half hour in bed?

Why not use the time to practice night shots or painting with light? I often take a torch or flash gun with me for this very eventuality.

Southwold Blues (1 hour before a sunrise that didn't happen)
(Click to view large)

So next time you are planning a landscape trip, why not set that alarm clock half an hour earlier?

Labels: Taking Pictures

Puddle Paradise

Continuing on with The Friday Lunchtime Project, I popped over to The South Bank and The London Eye last Friday.

Now, the London Eye is one of the most photographed locations in London. So it's almost impossible to find a new view of it. When faced with something that is photographed so frequently I like to adopt Liddell heart's doctrine of the indirect approach*.

As it was raining it was raining I decided to utilise the many puddles and get a reflection of the wheel in it.

Click to view large

Whilst it looks like I have run half a dozen Photoshop filters on this, it is in fact virtually straight out of Capture 1. I simply increased the contrast and reduced the saturation and it resulted in this rather fun noisy monochrome effect.

*Bet you weren't expecting a reference to 20th century armoured warfare strategy!

Labels: Taking Pictures

In Search of a Title

This is another shot I took last Thursday, but I am not really happy with the title at all, so if you would like to suggest a different one, then please do. I'm at a loss for anything better.

Why not use the comments option at the bottom of this post to suggest something better? You know you want to.

Snow and Gate (unless you have a better suggestion)
(Click to view large)

P.S. By the way all the snow shots I have shown so far were taken within about 50 yards of each other.

P.P.S. Did I mention I think snow is brilliant.

Labels: Taking Pictures

Ain't Snow Brilliant.

I love snow me.

It never ceases to amaze me, the capacity that some people chose to be grumpy about such a wonderful thing as snow. I can understand it if you live somewhere where it snows for months on end but, if we are really lucky, we get around one snow fall per winter where I live. Yet still you hear people who moan that the transport isn't working or that "it looks all right now, but it will look horrible when it goes all slushy".

These people simply have no soul; a big dump of snow transforms the ordinary and mundane sogginess of winter into a magical and fresh vista. Just for a few special hours, everything is transformed into an amazing beauty.

Green Lane (Roding Valley Meadows)
(Click to view large)

Last Thursday was a fantastic day, as I went to bed the forecasters had already predicted a lot of snow over night. I had already packed my rucksack and checked that everything was ready to go.

6:00am I was woken by one of my dogs who, it seems, was just as keen to get out and see the snow as I was. The first sight that greeted me when I looked out the windows was about four inches of snow on the window sill..... BRILLIANT!

20 Minutes later I was out the front door and heading for the local nature reserve, Roding Valley Meadows. I love this place; I continually find inspiration in its ever-changing moods, but Thursday surpassed all expectations.

As I crossed over the bridge, I could see that I was the first person to walk into the reserve since the snow had fallen. Perfect!

I did my best to capture the stillness and beauty the snow had created.

Stick in Snow
(Click to view large)

The sun didn't actually come up that morning, the white sky just got progressively brighter. So I didn’t need any filters to compensate for a sky that was just as white as the ground.

The first person I met on the reserve was an elderly chap who said to me "As soon as I saw it had snowed I had to get out here and enjoy it". I hope that I am doing the same thing when I am his age, that is if global warming hasn't put an end to snowfall in Southern England!

Later the dogs got their chance to play in the snow:

Spaniels in Snow (one for the family album)
(Click to view large)

Oh, Did I mention that I think Snow is brilliant!

Labels: Taking Pictures

Different photographers different results

If you exhibit your photographic work in public there are a few comments/questions you get asked more than any others:

1. "What camera do you have?" or "You must have a really good camera."
2. "Is this manipulated?" or more specifically "Did you do something to this in photoshop?"
3. "Did you use filters on this?"

In the modern world of digital technology, question 3 has given way to question 2. I intend to talk about this question in a later blog so I won't go into it just now.

The first one really annoys some photographers, as its a bit like saying to a chef "That was a fantastic meal, What pans do you use?". Me I'm happy to answer it, as it really is a backhanded complement, because the person can't imagine they will ever get results like that with their own camera and you must have some special magic.

One of the best examples of why it is quite a silly question, has just been posted by David Toyne in his article In The Eye of the Beholder? Here he shows what happens when a group of photographers are all given the same scene to shoot. The difference in the images is stunning and goes a long way to prove that the most important it of equipment a photographer has is his/her own unique view of the world.

This was driven home to me after looking at the images from fellow photographers taken at Happisburgh one morning. Most other photographers produced beautiful interpretaions of the entire scene in front of them.

Me I just liked this piece of the shattered sea defences:

Forgotten Guardian
(Click to view large)

Labels: Taking Pictures

"Jobsworths" and "not-so-jobsworths"

Hardly a week goes buy on the photography forums without someone telling the story of being prevented taking pictures by some security guard jobsworth type. It seems that you are usually OK if you use the camera hand held but set up your tripod and its like a red rag to a bull for the average security guard.

Prime spots in London to meet this sort of thing are Canary Wharf and the London Eye, the later I find particularly amusing as they did once run a London Eye photography competition, but to add that extra element of challenge they still had their security guards stopping you using a tripod.

I once experienced it myself at the Lloyds building, I was trying to take a picture of some feet walking down the steps similar to my Treads photograph. I was composing the shot, waiting for the right moment, when I was tapped on the shoulder by a security guard and the conversation went like this:

Guard: "Do you have permission to be doing that ?"
Me: "No, do I need it?"
Guard: "Well I would rather you stopped"
me: "Why?"
Guard: "Well its not very nice to take pictures of peoples feet without their permission"

At that point I decided to leave, heaven knows what nefarious activities he thought I would get up to with a load of telephoto feet shots!

At other times people can be so obliging it is hard to believe. on Friday I was down at Limehouse Basin and a chap who owned a boat in the middle of the dock wandered up and asked me if I wanted to get on to the jetty, as I could "get some good shots from there". He was happy to let me in through the security gates even though he had never met me before.

A few years back I was standing on a jetty at Coniston Sailing Club setting up to take this picture:

Looking North
(Click to view large)

Now I knew had walked through a gate marked private to take the shot, so I was a little bit nervous when one of the club members approached me. I shouldn't have worried though as it turns out he was an ex-professional photographer and we proceeded to chat for about an hour or so as the sun went down. At the end of the conversation his parting words were "by the way, I suppose you know your trespassing?". To which I could only reply "err yes", then he left with a smile and a wave.

The latest incident happened on Saturday evening as I was standing waiting for the light to be right on this shot:

Light after Death
(Click to view large)

I have been waiting for a while, when a bloke comes out of the house nearest the field and starts walking the 100 or so yards towards me. Figuring I'm about to chucked off what is private land, I fire off a few shots and then await the inevitable confrontation:

Him: "Do you have permission to be here?"
Me: "Err no, I didn't know who owned the field"
Him: "Well if anyone asks, I said it's OK"
Me: "Thanks"

With that he wanders back to his house....and in case you are wondering, no one asked!

Labels: Humour, Taking Pictures

A spot of charity work

Every now and then I pop down to the local RSPCA kennels to take some shots of the dogs that have been awaiting re-homing for more than a few months. These shots are used on websites and posters by the local RSPCA.

Now this is not the easiest gig in the world. There are few choices of where to take the shots. Inside their kennels is way too dark, so the only choices are in the paddock where the dogs are exercised or out in the corridor between the kennels.

From a photographic point of view, the natural light of the paddock is better but it has huge problems. The dogs are locked up for a lot of the day so any chance they get to run around has them bouncing around like mad things. Add to this the fact that kneeling down isn't an option as there is an awful lot of doggy-doings about and you have a recipe for an interesting challenge.
It really is like motor sports photography as I try to track the dog bouncing off the walls.

A shot zoom (17-85 EFS) motor drive and shooting raw are my preferred options to ensure I actually get a usable shot. Raw helps with the fast changing exposure as most dogs seem to come in black or white, which makes not burning out the highlights quite tricky when the sun suddenly comes out.

Some of the puppies who were born in kennels are not yet confident enough to go outside, so there is no choice but to take the shots indoors in the corridor. For this I used a 580EX flash bounced off the ceiling to provide a reasonably natural light.

Not the sort of thing I normally shoot but a very interesting challenge none the less.

Labels: Taking Pictures

Permission to Crop

Michael Reichmann has recently produced an excellent article on cropping. It has always seemed strange to me that many photographers would not be seen dead using the automatic modes on their cameras yet somehow see it as cheating to break away from the aspect ratio that their camera manufacturer provides.

Cropping is all about finding the shape an image wants/needs to be. As an example lets look at an image I took on Friday at Limehouse Basin in Docklands. Looking at the image as it came off the camera the first thing I did was to use a LAB move to boost the colours and increase the contrast:

20D & 100mm f/2.8 Macro un-cropped image
(Click to view large)

I was trying to convey the feel of the area with the boats surrounded by the very expensive flats, all of which is over shadowed by the giant towers of Canary Wharf. Yet the sheer quantity of things in the image disrupts the message I was aiming for, so I decided on a narrow crop to give the tight vertical feel of a Japanese wall hanging:

final cropped image
(Click to view large)

I still feel its too cluttered and that colour doesn't actually add to the image at all. So the final version ended up as a black & white:

As an image maker it is important to give yourself "permission to crop" and develop a feel for the shape an image should be.

Labels: London, Photoshop, Taking Pictures

Understanding the Abstract

Abstract images are an area that I find an increasing attraction to, photography has always been a combination of art and craft and whilst I find the craft side interesting I find the real driver for me to be the artistic side and abstract work is the very epitome of this.

The whole idea of abstract photography is a bit strange really, as according to Wikkipedia: "Abstract art is now generally understood to mean art that does not depict objects in the natural world". How can a "straight" photograph ever depict objects that are not in the natural world?

Yes we can manipulate our images using digital (or traditional) techniques to render something different to what the film/sensor captured, but is producing the abstract possible with a camera alone? To be honest probably not!

Sometimes I like to use the term extract as I really can't put it better than Ansel Adams when he said:

I prefer the term extract over abstract, since I cannot change the optical realities but only manage them

Though when does a extract become an abstract image? Well my own personal definition of abstract is when you show an image to someone and the reaction you get is something along the lines of "I like that...what is it" or when you feel an overwhelming urge to put some explanation saying what it is when you display the picture.

The problem with abstract art/photography for a lot of viewers is in simply understanding it. Landscapes are easier on the viewer as they can appreciate the capture of a sense of place and time. Viewing a good landscape is essentially a passive activity and the same applies for most other areas of photography.

The abstract, however, makes demands on the viewer.."what is it?" or "do I like this?" and these demands can often put a lot of viewers off as they feel they don't understand the image or they are not sure how they are supposed to react to the image.

The trick with taking and understanding abstract work is to ask yourself "how do I feel about this?". Do the shapes and textures remind you of something? stir emotions? upset or even just amuse you. The same applies to taking them in the first place, as you look through the viewfinder what does the scene say to you?

If you find yourself just taking pictures "by the numbers" and not engaging with your subject then that is the time to ask yourself why you are taking the shot in the first place. But if you feel an emotion when you press the shutter release you are at least halfway to transmitting the emotion to the final print.

Belief; Canon 20D 17-85EFS
(Click to view large)

As an example I give you this image taken last Friday whilst sticking to my new years resolution. this is a small detail from the Salvation Army headquarters between St.Paul's and the millennium bridge. its an interesting building and I have photographed it many times yet never been happy with the results.

This time whilst looking for detail I noticed this cross embedded in a canopy over the door-way. A small detail that I doubt anyone but me and the architect would know is there. I'm not religious but I do have a lot of time for the Salvation Army and as I viewed the simple symbol of the cross it seemed to me to sum up the power of a belief that had built the very building I was trying to capture.

Does it work as an image? Well that is up to you, the viewer, to decide.

Labels: Abstract Photography, Taking Pictures

Shadows and Highlights

Its funny how some commonly used terms are so rarely actually defined. For a forthcoming blog, I was trying to find a link on the new-fangled world wide web thingy to explain the term "Shadow Detail". Well I couldn't find a definition of the term anywhere, so I decided to write one myself!

It may not be exactly right, for all I know, but it's the definition I use:

One of the things photographers are always banging on about is "shadows" and "highlights". Now I may be a bit dim but when I started photography I couldn't work out how you knew which bits were the shadows, if you couldn't see the light source & direction.

Well it turns out that by "shadows" & "highlights" they are referring to the dark stuff & the light stuff. In a black and white photo the ultimate shadow is pure black and the ultimate highlight pure white. The area between is cunningly known as the "mid-tones".

With A brightly lit piece of coal on a sheet of white paper, the coal is the shadows, the paper is the highlights and if the light casts a grey shadow onto paper then that could be a mid-tone. How dark a highlight has to be before it becomes a mid-tone, and how dark a mid-tone has to be before it becomes a shadow...who knows!

The middle right-hand side contains the shadows,
the chrome is a highlight and some of the wood is a mid-tone.
(Click to view large)

Shadow Detail

Now one of the things photographers like to go on about a lot is "shadow detail", this is where you can see details in the darkest areas of your photograph, as opposed to the area just appearing as pure black. Generally, shadow detail is a good thing as it adds realism and depth to the image.

It is often possible to recover lost shadow detail in Photoshop though it is usually best to avoid losing it in the first place by correctly exposing the image.

Highlights

At the other extreme are the highlights, these are the brightest areas of your picture. At the extreme end you have pure white, which is fine if you wanted bright white, if not these are "burnt out" highlights. The problem with burnt out highlights is that they contain no information,at all and no amount of tweaking and adjustment in Photoshop will get them back.

ND Grad filters are often used to avoid burning out the sky in landscape photography, alternatives involve blending bracketed exposures in photoshop or another package.

Getting the exposure of a shot right is often a balance between blocking up the shadows and burning out the highlights. Generally its best to err on the side of blocking up the shadows rather than over-cooking the highlights.

Why not checkout my crash guide to exposure or this highly recommended book.

If you have a better definition of these terms, I would love to hear them. Please comment or drop me an email.

Labels: Taking Pictures

In the City

So I know you are all wondering if I am sticking to my new years resolution. Well so far I am two weeks in and I haven't fallen off the wagon.

The first Friday was a baptism of fire, well a baptism of overcast skies and rain really. A miserable grey day led to me wandering around The Barbican studying the patterns and shapes in the grey concrete blocks. Eventually I wandered over to The Citypoint building which I never fail to find interesting with its roller-coaster curves and unusual shapes.

This shot is an attempt to capture some of the feel of the building in an abstract way.

Canon 20D & 17-85 EFS
(Click to view large)

A week later and things had brightened up a bit so I headed for Canary Wharf and its brutally modern landscape of tower blocks and under-used docks.

The environs of Canary Wharf have been photographed so many times that everywhere you look is a photographic cliché. So I elected to use my lensbaby2 which never fails to give an unusual view of a scene. The lensbabies manual focusing and sweet spot you can move around the frame make for a very rich and involving way of making pictures.

I ended up at the base of One Canada Square, by the clocks that were really only placed there to give photographers something to shoot. Yet still the magic of the lensbaby provided a new interpretation of the scene.

Canon 20D & LensBaby 2

(Click to view large)

The thing I like about this shot is that I would never have thought of this as a shot I took. Its so far removed from my usual style that it surprises even me.

So, so far I am keeping to my resolution and stretching the boundaries of my work and making pictures that I like. So I reckon it's working.

Labels: London, Taking Pictures

A new years resolution

OK, I know I'm a little late with this one, but I always think a promise made in the cold light of day is always so much better than one made after a lot of bevies on a new years eve followed by hugging a lamppost telling it that it's your best mate.

Well my photographic resolution is to work harder at my London Light/London Life Project specifically I will get out and take pictures every Friday that I am in Central London.

The reason is, quite simply that I find Central London really difficult to photograph, its busy,cluttered and not really the sort of place that appeals to me at all visually. But that's the point, it's only by stretching ourselves that we find new ways of interpreting the world around us in our photographs.

We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills.
JFK

Wish me luck with my resolution, it may be one small step for me but it might be a giant leap in my photography.

Treads
Taken on a dull day on The Southbank, London

Labels: London, Taking Pictures

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Thursday, 4 June 2009 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2009/06/christening-photo-fun.html';

Christening Photo Fun

Tuesday, 12 May 2009 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2009/05/bells-blue-bells_12.html';

The Bells, The (blue) Bells

Wednesday, 29 April 2009 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2009/04/killer-cows.html';

Killer Cows

Monday, 27 April 2009 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2009/04/when-swans-attack.html';

When Swans Attack!!

Thursday, 2 April 2009 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2009/04/g20-protests-round-two.html';

G20 Protests round two

Wednesday, 1 April 2009 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2009/04/g20-protests-in-london.html';

G20 Protests in London

Wednesday, 11 February 2009 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2009/02/snow-day.html';

A Snow Day

Wednesday, 14 January 2009 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2009/01/well-that-works-then.html';

Well that works then!

Tuesday, 6 January 2009 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2009/01/new-year-in-devon.html';

New Year in Devon

Sunday, 21 December 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/12/some-days-you-just-have-to-give-up.html';

Some Days you just have to give up

Monday, 15 December 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/12/moment-it-clicks.html';

The moment it Clicks

Wednesday, 3 December 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/12/stop-playing-with-yourself.html';

Stop Playing with Yourself

Thursday, 20 November 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/11/camera-simulators.html';

Camera Simulators

Wednesday, 12 November 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/11/what-difference-photographer-makes-part.html';

What a difference a photographer makes (part 2)

Saturday, 8 November 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/10/what-difference-photographer-makes-part.html';

What a difference a photographer makes (part 1)

Friday, 12 September 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/09/visions-of-britain-photographic.html';

Visions of Britain - Photographic Workshops in Southwest England

Sunday, 7 September 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/09/what-rubbish-summer.html';

What a rubbish summer

Tuesday, 15 July 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/07/photographing-your-own-kids-makes-you.html';

Photographing your own kids makes you a pervert

Monday, 9 June 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/06/luck-and-landscape-photographer.html';

Luck and the Landscape photographer

Tuesday, 3 June 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/06/are-you-talented.html';

Are you talented?

Wednesday, 28 May 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/05/despondency-and-depression.html';

Despondency and Depression

Wednesday, 23 April 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/04/photographing-shops-is-illegal.html';

Photographing Shops is Illegal...

Friday, 7 March 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/03/london-terror-posters-remix.html';

London Terror Posters - The Remix

Thursday, 6 March 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/03/eeek-im-potential-terrorist-now.html';

Eeek! I'm a potential terrorist now

Thursday, 28 February 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/02/friends-weddings-3-some-experience.html';

Friends Weddings 3 - Some Experience

Wednesday, 27 February 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/02/friends-weddings-2-some-hints-and-tips.html';

Friends Weddings 2 - Some hints and tips

Tuesday, 26 February 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/01/friends-weddings-1-your-pretty-handy.html';

Friends Weddings 1 - "Your pretty handy with a camera - can you do my wedding?"

Tuesday, 12 February 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/02/considering-composition.html';

Considering Composition

Tuesday, 15 January 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/01/usa-photographers-rights-guide.html';

U.S.A. Photographers Rights Guide

Thursday, 10 January 2008 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2008/01/microsoft-adapts-outlook-for.html';

Microsoft adapts Outlook for photographers

Thursday, 13 December 2007 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2007/12/do-you-suffer-from-tam.html';

Do you suffer from TAM?

Monday, 10 December 2007 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2007/12/take-few-snaps-on-journey.html';

Take a few snaps on the journey

Wednesday, 5 December 2007 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2007/12/strictly-no-photography.html';

Strictly No Photography

Tuesday, 4 December 2007 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2007/12/uk-landscape-photography-location.html';

UK Landscape Photography Location Guides

Tuesday, 27 November 2007 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2007/11/photography-in-public-places-wallet.html';

Photography in Public Places wallet card

Thursday, 8 November 2007 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2007/11/check-your-gearevn-if-you-think-you.html';

Check your Gear..even if you think you don't need to

Monday, 22 October 2007 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2007/10/friday-project-another-update.html';

The Friday Project - Another Update

Wednesday, 17 October 2007 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2007/10/public-photography-and-law.html';

Public Photography and the Law

Thursday, 27 September 2007 submit_url = 'http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/2007/09/technology-obsession.html';

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