Fisheye Fun

Travelling back to get the bus home, walked through the City centre with the Nex5 to hand, 16mm plus fisheye lens fitted, and took a few shots.
I like the incredible amount in the frame, and if one has a mind can be corrected to conventional perspective.

A look at newish Cambridge Architecture

I have been waiting for an architecture suitable day, with bright sunshine, to visit Cambridge.
Discovered that there is a Sir Norman Foster designed building at the University's Sidgwick Site. So naturally had to take look at it. Signature style, definitely, and a centrepiece of the Site, with other buildings of various styles around.

The building and bikes, being Cambridge

Front elevation, which I like.

As above, but in monochrome.

Polly Braden's photos of her decade in China - Telegraph

Polly Braden's photos of her decade in China - Telegraph

Super galleries, in colour too !

The marvellous Elliott Erwitt again, with his wry observational humour. A short film with some illustrative images from his new book.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17295728

Heralding the new King's Cross Station

My favourite architecture book people have published a gallery of the construction of the awesome Concourse project here

 http://www.phaidon.com/agenda/architecture/picture-galleries/2011/august/24/station-of-the-cross/?view=thumbs

Ridiculously excited about seeing the finished work later this month, working out how I can get some blurry people shots without a tripod as I think security will lift me bodily from the station if I set up one.

I reckon there will be more photographers than passengers that day !

A word in passing on a new book I have from John Pawson. who is an architecture with a liking for photography, and has published several books.

His new work,  A Visual Inventory is one I like very much, as he, like myself is a self confessed snapshotter. Delightful to browse and read the comments on each image.

http://www.phaidon.com/store/architecture/visual-inventory-9780714863504/

British Journal of Photography for the iPad

   

Don't have one of these yet but with the new iPad 3 release will look for a used iPad to see how I like it, and ift is more useful than my Samsung netbook. Considering it is less than the price of a decent compact, will be a good investment.

Images on the teaser look very interesting, kept pausing to take a closer look.

We are now witnessing a mega change in image making, where the potential of video and stills panelling can be fully explored.
There are a lot of stories out there to be told, would love to be able to do more of my own, naturally.

Still getting work together for my Cambridge Camera Club show next month, which I have to say has energised me to do more editing and printing, with some decent results, in my opinion, which I hope will be shared.

After such a long absence from Club, it will be wonderful to be "Up front" again for an evening.

Amazing, amazing, amazing

This is just awesome


Murmuration from Islands & Rivers on Vimeo.

A Burst Of Colour

I know the world looks white at the moment, so perversely I have been editing a few colour images, partly for my show at Cambridge Camera Club, and for a new wall gallery at home.

Thought of a theme of "Life as Is"  for these three, just with minimal processing and left untidy by architectural standards, actually quite a pleasant change.

Ringing the Changes

One of the amazing things about digital imaging is how easily the same scene can be changed in appearance with the minimum of processing, and was doing that a little today, Not the most amazing photographs,one is a general Welsh landscape taken from the tram that goes up to the Great Orme in Llandudno, and t'other a shot from my walk around Sheffield's woebegone industrial area, somewhere I would like to some more work on.

Initial shot

Combination of 2 layers

Monochrome, weird how this almost looks like snow.

Original Working

Fine Art Border, think I will alter the light a bit more on this

As usual Viveza 2, and Silver Efex provided the tools, I don't think I could do it so easily in Photoshop, though expert Lightroom people could do this and more.

As usual the four "L"s come into play, Learning, knowing how to do something, Location, being in the right spot, Light being right for the photograph you want, and a considerable amount of Luck, being able to have the first 3 hands in play.

Another look back

In some respects I have been quite idle in processing images as soon as they are taken, I think I like the process of visiting new places and taking shots, so I have a big archive. For some reason that I cannot quite figure I used to retain both Jpeg and Raw files, consequently taken up more space and double the work in reviewing. So I have deleted all the old Jpegs, as I always prefer the processing workflow with Raw files, particularly with later versions of the Adobe Converter.

So with that done I will be deleting all the double entry files that are not quite there, and have an easier selection job.  I have invested in the latest version of Nik Silver Efex Pro, and Viveza 2, which are both astounding, so much quicker with the Control Points to treat particular areas. Loads of reviews around so I won't do that, but just say they offer easy and complete control.

Discount code here, saving 15%

http://www.photoshopsupport.com/tools/plugins/nik-silver-efex-pro-discount-coupon-nik-silver-efex-pro.html

I am doing an evening at Cambridge Camera Club in April, and that has given me a reason to get new work together, and get a few prints prepared, as well as the digital projected images. A few of the images are here, always good to see how they look online.

The merging of the old and new here, with the spectacular The Deep building located in the old dockland area.

The Prow of The Deep

Excellent architecture, the observation deck shown here

Care taken in hard landscaping here, with the walkway, and these great benches.

This is the same shot as above, but has had a Silver Efex monochrome conversion.  Interesting how this has a different atmosphere.

A little day breakfast diversion.

My morning web read is the Guardian and in Travel they published some travel videos, such kind people.

This is my favourite


Mindrelic - Manhattan in motion from Mindrelic on Vimeo.

Ready for B'rum

Planned another "Urban Safari" which will take me to Birmingham for 3 days, well 2 travel days, and 1 full day around the city. Dubious weather forecast, but have a few indoor targets. More on that later, as will try a blog record of it.

Couple more fun edits of old stuff. just to see how they work. The first is one from Villefranche, became rather obsessed when I saw it and took a lot of shots,and this is one.

The Old Stairway

This is a Barcelona shot, in my current mode of monochrome. the sharp light is wonderful there.

Above Barcelona

A couple more from the image bank.

A Rainy Day in Nice, France

The Gallery Walk

A bad habit I have is that I don't delete files once they are on the drives, but do delete a lot on the camera preview, so in theory they should all be good, which is half true, as some are always better than others in terms of composition. I habitually take a lot of shots of what I see, just altering angles, portrait and landscape mode, plus varying exposure. This means a  lot of near dupes, but in practice one always stands out. However "street photography" meaning interplay of the people with the environment is a different case, and then I have less to deal with. These I looked at yesterday, and thought it worth doing something with.
I process with the fantastic Nik Silver Efex Pro2, the answer to a monochrome fan's prayers.
The gallery walk I liked as it is seen so many times, a group with only one or two interested.

The Listmaker

I recently bought Elliot Erwitt's book Snaps, with over 500 wonderful photographs, the best street photography I have ever seen, and how he managed to amass such a body of work is amazing. If I ever have a tenth of his work in comparable shots I will be a happy man.
Would recommend it to anyone who likes or wants to try streetwork.
The publisher Phaidon has it on sale for half price at the moment. Snap it up...
http://uk.phaidon.com/store/photography/elliott-erwitt-snaps-9780714843308/

A couple more from the image bank.

A bad habit I have is that I don't delete files once they are on the drives, but do delete a lot on the camera preview, so in theory they should all be good, which is half true, as some are always better than others in terms of composition. I habitually take a lot of shots of what I see, just altering angles, portrait and landscape mode, plus varying exposure. This means a  lot of near dupes, but in practice one always stands out. However "street photography" meaning interplay of the people with the environment is a different case, and then I have less to deal with.
I bought Elliot Erwitt's book Snaps, with over 500 photographs, the best street photography I have ever seen, and how he managed to amass such a body of work is amazing. Would recommend it to anyone who likes or wants to try streetwork.

A Cold & Frosty Morning

Yesterday we had an overnight frost and fog, so took my Canon G12, a camera I have yet to fully like in comparison with the Sony Nex5, but it has a zoom lens and is pocketable, so took it out with me.

I do a daily walk along a public bridleway, as part of my recuperation, lasting an hour or so. Just listen to music normally and think but wanted a few shots of the frost, which I have processed to black and white, and was reasonably happy with a couple.

The Frosty Track - 2

The one with the figure was the only person I saw in over an hour, like having a whole world to yourself, so quiet too. The other I moved off track, glad I did as the grass detail is lovely. I have worked another edit, altering the composition from the origanal one, and it maybe works better.

A little day in London viewing architecture

Had one bright day last week so I scooted, well toddled more like, down to London on the train. I had spotted the new Canada Water Library in the press, and felt it worth a look. Really interesting inverted pyramid, as the space available was limited and the architect Piers Gough of CZWG devised this shape to give more square footage, and provided a memorable public building.

Photographically not that good a day, as the hard landscaping has yet to be completed,which limited the viewpoints a little. The usual railings and yellow jackets there.

Did have a wander around Southwark & Bermondsey and came across this Underground station vent, designed  by Ian Ritchie Architects. The green is actually patinated copper. There are two more somewhere apparently so will go back to have a look for them.

Back to King's Cross and up to King's Place, & impressed by the interior, mix of galleries, hall and offices.

The Sounds of Jazz

Slightly different tack today, looking again at my Nice Jazz Festival folders, and edited a Christian  Scott file, and wondered where he was now, so did the inevitable Googling and found this film, set in Cuba.

Back to Black, Well Almost

Been sorting through the image bank again, it is interesting that this process does give them another look, and discoveries are made. I have been to the Chinese New Year celebrations in London several times, and they always have a great set of stage acts, plus the wonderful parade through Chinatown. Usually packed so a has a great atmosphere.

Fresh Looks

Looking at Ann's Blog today, I commented that her trademark is white space, and it occurred to me that mine has been predominantly black, as Architecture looks so good with high contrast monochrome.
So I thought I would dig out some images which rely on colour to tell their story, just to ring the changes.

Simple abstract from London's St Giles development 

Windblown grain with a single poppy attracted me in this Hertfordshire landscape.

Spring's colours, the yellow of Forsythia against a blue sky. Added a frame action to see the  impact.

Big juicy red, and I liked the way the shadow is so much thicker .

Someone with a liking for yellow here !

Graphic of cladding at the FirstSite Gallery in Colchester.

Just an alley but so full of colour, so had to take the shot, would have liked a chair in there somewhere. 

Rust and red works for me.

Loved the abstract painting look on this building wall. I think I  will do a gallery frame on this !