I just posted this on Facebook and wanted to add a bit of 'depth' to the picture and maybe pass on an idea or two.

I suppose the whole idea behind making a picture is getting people to think about what they are seeing; that can mean many things to many people, from a shot of someone dying of starvation in Africa to clown holding a bunch of balloons, most images are there to hold your attention and at least ask yourself a question.

That is where holiday pictures often fall down, three or four great shots of where you have been may make someone think 'wow, that looks like a great place to go' where as 150 of some place you have never seen normally makes you think 'please end this now!'

So back to the Dalek needing the loo, did it make you look for a few moments? Did you smile? Did you ask yourself any questions? I'm hoping for a 'yesy' to at least two of those questions, especially the one about smiling. The shot wasn't staged or planned, I just spotted it and let the image speak for itself really, Dalek needing the loo, what more can you say?

So sometimes it's worth looking around or trying a different angle, a great photographer by the name of Ansel Adams once said  'Once you find the shot you want to take, turn around because the view behind you is probably better.' Mr Adams I totally agree.

Regrets, I've had a few.....

Honestly, a few maybe but that's it and I never dwell on them.

Until yesterday that is! Listening to a Podcast while driving to work I heard an interview with a sports photographer who was working in South Africa at the World Cup (it was an old Podcast!). He was telling stories of the excitment in his job, shooting 2000+ images every game, editing and sending the images to his editor at the same time, 400mm F2.8 lenses and suddenly I felt jealous and a deep sense of regret.

Roll back a few years, 1986 I think, and picture a young 16 year old wearing a new suit off to take an elimination exam in Cardiff of all places. The ultimate reward was enrolment at Sheffield University taking a Photojournalism Course, the ONLY course Fleet Street recognised. The train journey, nervous lunch at Burger King and finally a two hour exam.

The result? Well, I'm writing this aren't I so I don't need to tell you. I managed to find a positive from it all, 12,000 applications for only 26 places, I never really stood a chance and maybe I could have spent more time reading the papers and watching the news leading up to it but the killer question for me was, 'Explain the rules of Basketball to an alien from another planet,' really? Are you serious? What got me was my sport knowledge was good, not perfect (obviously) but I could have done the same for football, rugby, tennis, badminton, F1, MotoGP, snooker, american football, table tennis, athletics etc. the list goes on and on. One sport I had never played or even watched, bloody basketball (and I have never done either since).

So whats my regret? Why the hell didn't I push harder, ask more questions? Why did I give it up there and then? Should my parents have pushed me harder? That's an easy one, yes, but they had their own issues to deal with but I should have done it myself. Youth, wasted on the young!

Instead of shooting top flight football, rugby internationals and cricket tests I got a job in a camera shop, smiling at customers, telling them why they should spend all their hard earned cash on the latest gear and taking in Mrs Jone's holiday films for processing. Bugger.

So there I was 25 years later driving my faithful Landy thinking 'What if?' It hit me hard, harder then anything like that has ever done before but then something had to one day I suppose.

Of course if I had known about Basketball and passed that exam (and passed the other two that followed) and been successful on the course and managed to get a job on a national paper (lots of points to fail there I think!), I wouldn't be here now. I wouldn't have the done the jobs I have done, or met the people I have met or most importantly become a father to my two children. I can hear you all cringe but the parents among you will agree I'm sure.

I don't regret the life I've had or the choices I've made, but it would have been a good life as a sports photographer.

Storage, how safe is yours?

I heard a quote the other day, 'Your Hard Drive is either dead or about to die.'

Ever heard that one? Apparantly HDD are prone to just packing up, I've had one do it and amount of messing around by an IT professional got anything back. That tiny little disc is spinning around thousands of times a minute, is it any wonder it gives up the ghost?

So now I have your attention, how safe are your photographs? Do you back them up? I'm guessing the answer is no from a huge percentage of people, it's just too easy to download them and forget about it because it won't happen to you.

The film days were a bit more forgiving, you had your prints but more importantly, you had your negatives, a tangable piece of back-up that as long as you looked after it, was always there if you needed it. Now we have a whole load of numbers squashed together that make up your picture, one dead HDD and it's gone, forever. Or maybe they are on a laptop that you leave on the train, or gets stolen, or falls on the floor........

So take half an hour (miss some crap on TV maybe?) and back them up on DVD's or another external drive. You can get over 1TB of storage for about £75, that is such a bargin and all your photos will be safe. Drop the drive off at a firend or relatives house and if something terrible happens (fire, flood riot!) then all those pics are tucked up nice and secure somewhere else.

It makes sense, so do it.

After all, it's just memories that you felt were worth recording in the first place....

Two posts in one day?!?

This is a shot from a very recent shoot and I just love it.

The reason for the shoot was working with a MUA (Make Up Artist) to promote her work. She brought along four models who sat patiently while the make-up was applied (and while I drank coffee) and then I took a series of images to show off what she had done.

As a photographic job it's relatively easy, but the hard work comes in trying to create a series of images that are interesting ehough to hold the viewers attention (which can be said about any form of photography to be fair). All the models were just friends with no experience so that's also a challenge but it was well worth it and great fun.

So why the image above as my favourite? I think it shows the make-up well, the model is relaxed and there holds a bit of mystery in the single direction lighting. I used a single light fitted with a beauty dish placed slightly behind and to one side of the model, a white reflector just added a touch of light to lift the other side of the face.

What do you think?



Back again

Well it's been a while, best laid plans and all that never seem to work out do they?

I've recently realised that things do go full circle in the end, from fashion to football the ones at the top will work their way down and back up again.

I mention that as I've been doing more nursery and pre-shoots, which is pretty much where I started many years ago. It's a sobering thought when you realise twenty years have passed and you are still waving a teddy around trying to get a child to at least pay attention!

Of course things have changed dramatically, it was a RB67 I was using back then, a monster of a camera that took 100' of film at a time and took all your strength to get it on a tripod.

How does that rate to today's cameras? Well, it's a damn site easier to find out you have 'got the shot' today, often referred to as 'chimping', I call it checking for customer satisfaction because if little johnny isn't smiling, mummy ain't buying.

It is what it is

So for the first time I've actually included a photo, considering this is a photography blog it's something I just had to rectify asap.

I've chosen an image that isn't technically perfect or particularly innovative or creative but one I particularly like and that's often the essence of photography, do what you enjoy.

The image is from a shoot I did for a local (ish) horse charity, the idea was get some pictures that showed the horses they look after and try to re-home. The day wasn't brilliant to be honest, overcast and windy and even a drop of rain every so often and the horses are all in stables so little chance of finding a good angle, good light etc. Like the blog title says, it is what it is and you have to deal with it, poor light and limited chance to change anything but then that's what it's all about sometimes.

So I got some images I was pleased with and this one stood out, this little pony was very timid and was very wary of the camera to start with but I hung around, popped back a few times and just let him get used to me being there. Eventually he moved around a little and took a few shots, some good, some not so good. What I did notice was the eyes, horses have such expression in their eyes and this one said 'I'm happy but still remember the bad things that happened before.' Rather than go for a cliched close-up of the eye I tried a creative crop which showed some of the horse and it's stable behind. The direct tungsten lighting above gave some real detail to the face and hair and I was pleased.

Like I said, not technically perfect but sometimes your favourite shots aren't.

Not very consistent?

Almost a month since my last post and in beginning to realise this is harder than it looks!

My tardiness in posting is not from a lack of ideas, in fact far from it, but simply a matter of time management which needs some work. Currently trying to keep several 'balls' in the air and although I haven't droppped any yet, it feels like it's only a matter of time.

Work has been coming through at a steady rate, would prefer a torrent but you can't have it all. Will be posting over the next few days a few thoughts on recent jobs and also a few ideas on shooting different subjects.

So here at least is another post, it's going to be more regular if it kills me!!!

Happy shooting.

Never work with kids or animals

That saying has been banded around for many years, I think it started in the theatre or maybe even on TV, anyone old enough to remember the baby elephant on Blue Peter will agree to that, who would try and hold onto a defecating elephant that wanted to leave the studio? Kids are just as bad, I don't recall the program name but it was a Saturday morning show presented by children, the poor girl reading the auto-cue was meant to say 'Prix' (as in Grand Prix) but pronounced it 'Pricks', bless her!

So what's all that got to do with Photography I hear you cry (I don't actually, but what the hey). Well I realised the other day that most of my work centres around those two subjects so am I mad or just desperate?

To be honest, it's neither, if you know what you are doing and you have the desire to get the shot then both are very acceptable subjects, hard work, but very rewarding. There is still a huge amount of skill in taking still life or advertising pictures (I will tell you about the boiling sprouts one day!) but I find nothing more exciting when a parent dumps their little darling in front of my lens and states 'You won't get him to smile, he hates cameras/men/lights/wednesdays (choose any one). What a challenge! The problem isn't with the kid, it's the parent who if he/she is honest, they would love a great picture of their child to show to friends and hang on the wall, the truth is they haven't been able to do it themselves so why not blame the kid for not wanting to participate? We all do it everyday, how many times have you heard 'Stupid car broke down today, it ran out of petrol (or similar)', when in fact we mean 'I forgot to fill the car up and I ended up stranded'. Or perhaps the most frequent one, 'Bloody weather, i'm soaked' as opposed to 'Wish I brought a coat or looked at the weather forecast'.

Ok, i'm going off on a tangent but then why not? So do I have anything worthwhile to say now that i've alienated most of the country? Well yes I do, if you want to take a decent picture of a child or an animal simply stop and think first, try to see what is happening through the eyes of your subject. Is this a good time? Am I doing anything that could make the subject nervous or frightened? Am I helping or hindering the situation? Am I on the same level as the subject (not looking down, very bad!)?

You get the idea, give it some thought and I bet you get the photo. If not, ask someone like me to do it, I bet you won't be disappointed.

Eating my words

I have to say the shoot on Monday went well, really well and I have to take back everything I suggested that could be a problem. Everyone was fine, helpfully and friendly, what a result!

I've realised I'm writing a photography blog without showing any photos so may have to change that sometime soon.

Well that's me done for now, back to work...

Don't shoot!

Just wanted to put a few thoughts down today before I left on an assignment. I'm shooting for a organisation today who have a visitor centre, in the mix today will be children, animals and parents.

The potential for problems is huge, nobody likes photographers at the best of times so what's the reaction going to be when I start pointing my camera in the direction of a group of children playing? Best not think about that now or may never leave!

To try and stave off any shouts of 'pervert' the organisation concerned has posted a series of notices informing visitors of my presence, I have a shirt proclaiming 'official photographer' on the back and I will be carrying authorisation entitling me to take the required pictures. Will this be enough? Only time will tell, I will be happy to talk to anyone who asks and who knows, maybe give out a few business cards in the process.

I'm a parent and I hate to admit I too would feel uncomfortable having a camera trained on my children. Is this a genuine concern or the direct result of media 'scare mongering'?

Of course it may just be we are scared of having our souls stolen.....

Compact cameras make bad photographers?

That's a thought provoking one isn't it?

I'm not putting compacts down or suggesting everyone buys a DSLR (perish the thought) but if you use a compact there are two valuable things to remember, you may be aware of both these but do you do anything about it??

First of all, that ridiculous way of holding the camera at arms length to take a picture, is going to produce a blured image regardless of what you do. An SLR, digital or film, and just about every other type of camera is either designed to be held on a tripod or held close to the eye or body. So it's not rocket science to work out holding it at arms length is not ideal. So what to do? Easy, hold it as close as you can, use the viewfinder if it has one or rest it against something.

Second, is that bloody annoying delay between pressing the shutter release and the damn thing actually taking a picture. There's no getting around this but being aware of this fault is half the battle, try to anticipate and press the shutter before the action happens. Sounds impossible? Try it and see.

It's just a dead tree

I've been looking back through some of my images, it seems I have a 'thing' for dead trees. A few days ago I passed a dead tree on the edge of a field and pointed it out to my wife, 'see that tree there' I said to her as we went past, 'isn't it superb?' To be fair, she at least acknowledged me, most people would have pushed me out the car and grabbed the wheel. 'Imagine a cracking sunset, the dry stone wall in the foreground, superb.'

Now I've put that in writing I'm beginning to doubt myself, I mean really, dead trees???

Ok, I'm messing with you but the point is, anything and everything is a subject, if it has shape, form and texture you can't go wrong. Never trust someone who calls themselves a photographer who says they can't find anything to shoot.

Now I've planted the seed, go and have a look, there is something out there waiting to have a camera pointed at it.

Camera scrap book

I've got an iPhone, my guess is I'm not the only one :)

The advent of the camera phone was a huge leap forward, only problem was they were pretty poor at best, every time I updated my phone I got the one with the best camera but was disappointed every time. Then the iPhone came along and suddenly everyone who had even a passing interest in photography wanted one. Soon after it's release many, many aps were released giving sone real creative edge to what was already a very acceptable camera.

So aside from snapping away during drunken nights out or trying to catch the cat doing something cute, the iPhone camera is a hugely powerful tool. Most photographers are creative types and we are constantly looking at everything from a 'would that make a good shot?' point of view. The problem is, by the time we get to write it down we've forgotten or in my case I can't read my own writing! So now it's simple, take a picture of it on your phone, it's there to look at when you are ready and acts as a virtual 'tear sheet' of ideas.

As with most ideas, the proof of the pudding is in the eating and I can honestly say, this works, give it a go.

Scrap New Year Resolutions!

It's been a while, three months of 'a while' in fact so time I sorted myself out and tried doing this more frequently. The problem was I made a New Year Resolution to write once a day for a month and of course it never happened, I could blame this on the fact I was laid up with a back injury but that isn't completely fair.

So how has the world of Phtotography treated me since I last posted? Not very well if I'm honest, so badly that I now work part time as a Pre-School Assistant! Don't get me wrong, it's a great job and I consider myself privilaged to be able to work with such great children but it's not exactly jetting off to Malta for a shoot in the sun. To be honest (again, twice in one post) I couldn't 'jet' anywhere as my passport is out of date!

But it's not all bad, there are jobs on the horizon, some voluntary work for HorseWorld near Bristol (who wouldn't want to give up their time for such a great cause?) and I have a few 'irons in the fire' which may come out glowing or stone cold, who knows?

So am I still 'Photographer and loving it!'? Yes, without doubt. I love taking pictures, my only problem is not getting myself 'out there' more but as long as that shutter is firing, i'm happy.

Now i'm not a political man, well maybe a bit, but I do avoid the news whenever possible, it's a repeat most days and just seems to frustrate and annoy me. I try not to be too outspoken (those who know me are now laughing) and this is meant to be about photography but I can't miss the opportunity to say a few words.....

Here is the scenario; A riot in London, thousands on the streets demanding a change in the goverment (who could blame them?), suddenly someone fires a gun and fighting breaks out, a building is stormed and suddenly everything goes bad. The rioters (shall we now call them rebels?) begin to organise themselves and plan to gradually take over London and the rest of the country. Aside from being a great photo opportunity, what would 'we' do? That's easy, send in the Army, SAS, Airforce etc and keep shooting at them until the die or give up. Would we expect France, USA or any one of several forgien powers to step in and start attacking us? No, of course not, SO WHY ARE WE DOING IT IN LYBIA?

There we are, 'nuff said.