Loch, Stock and Two Soaking Lens Barrels
Published on Sep 3, 2010 - In: General
Over the years I’ve taken my cameras into some pretty precarious positions. Mountain ridges, music festival pits, ropes access shoots, etc. Not once have I gave much thought to what could happen to my kit. However that changed when I went up to Loch Lomond with the guys from theAirbag.net to shoot a wakeboarding session.
When I’m planning a shoot I’ll have an idea of the style of shots I’m after and then think about what kit I’ll need to get them (lenses, speedlights, lightstands, etc). However for this one I wanted to minimise the risk of any equipment getting wet or going moving around the boat during tight turns. In the end I settled for two bodies with a 10.5mm and 70-200mm permanently attached (I don’t mind changing lenses in the snow, but I wasn’t taking any chances out on the water).
Apart from one rouge wave soaking the boat, the shoot went off without any problems. The Loch was still, the banter was good and the light was perfect. There was even enough time for me to suit up and jump in for a few laps, once the light was too bad to shoot in.
Wakeboarding at dusk was amazing!
The nights are fair drawing in
Published on Sep 2, 2010 - In: General
So the last bank holiday of the summer is over, the kids are back at school and nights are drawing in. It all sounds pretty depressing.
However on the plus side it allows me to start doing some low light and nighttime photography at a resonable hour while its still relatively warm. Beats doing it in the middle of January!
East Kilbride Pirates
Published on Aug 15, 2010 - In: General
You’d be forgiven for thinking that this weekend was only the start of the football season, but there was another season drawing to a close. The East Kilbride Pirates hosted the Gateshead Senators at Whitecraigs Rugby Club, need a win to secure the British American Football Association Division 1 North title.
Going into the match with an 8-0 record (8 wins, 0 losses) the difference between the teams soon showed. Even with the baking heat, the Pirates soon racked up a 38-6 win along with the divsional title and a 9-0 record. With only more one game to before the playoffs start they’re on course for a clean sweep in the regular season.
St Peter’s Seminary Shoot
Published on Aug 3, 2010 - In: Derelict|Skateboard
The last few shoots I’ve been on have been a little different for me in terms of their location. This one was no different.
St Peter’s Seminary near Cardross is one of only 42 post-war buildings in Scotland to be listed as Category A and has been described as “a building of world significance”. So you wouldn’t expect to find the building falling down and full of rubble.
Then again, you wouldn’t expect to find the Librance Skate team in their either.
Glasgow Botanic Gardens Station
Published on Jul 22, 2010 - In: Derelict
At the top end of Byres Road hidden away behind a wall in the Botanic Gardens, is an abandoned railway station that formed part of the Glasgow Central Railway. The station closed in 1939 and trains stopped using the line in 1964. The tracks may have gone, but the platform still stands there overgrown and covered in graffiti.
Glastonbury Festival
Published on Jul 22, 2010 - In: Random Photos
In 2005 I decided to go to Glastonbury and see what all the fuss was about. After 9 years of faithfully going along to T in the Park, split between personal and professional visits, I wasn’t expecting many differences apart from the size and the huge journey to get there. I couldn’t have been further for the truth if I’d tried
Since then, I’ve always wanted to take a “real” camera along with me to Glastonbury instead of a cheap digital compact. Well this year I finally got round to it and for 5 days my kit bag never left my side.
Was it worth carrying a camera around 24/7? Totally!
Birkwood and Hartwood Hospital
Published on Jul 22, 2010 - In: Derelict
Although this blog is new, the idea for it has been kicking around my head for a while now. As a result I’ve been trying to think of different things to photograph and take me out of my comfort zone a little.
An invitation to go along to Birkwood Hospital and Hartwood Hospital for the day provided plenty of opportunities to play around with my camera/flashes/etc, while opening my eyes to what happened to thousands of people before the Care in the Community Act was introduced in 1990.
What is this all about then?
Published on Jul 22, 2010 - In: General
Along with launching an updated website, I’ve also decided to start a blog to go along with it. Why? Well there are a few good reasons.
As a photographer it is all about getting the balance right. One of the toughest decisions you need to make is deciding what photos to publish and what ones will never see the light of day. With my new website, the portfolio page will develop over time, with newer images replacing the older ones. However, that process is going to take place over several months or years. Its not something that is going to happen after every photoshoot or event I go along to.
That is where this blog comes in.
It’ll give me somewhere for me to informally publish photos… some good, some bad, some funny (although again, not every single photo will see the light of day).
Hopefully there should be plenty of photos and not too many posts full of words like this… but time will tell.