Cameron in training, running on the track, at Gateshead College Academy for Sport
Great Britain Runner, Cameron Ross Boyek, poses for a photograph in his GB team kit
Cameron with his medal from the 2017 European Cross Country Championships, which was held in Šamorín, Slovakia
Cameron doing pre-running stretching excercises
Great Britain Runner, Cameron Ross Boyek, lit by dramatic light at Gateshead College Academy for Sport, in his GB team kit
Cameron preparing for training at Gateshead College Academy for Sport
Cameron in training, running on the track, at Gateshead College Academy for Sport
This is my editorial photography update from a few months back. This time I was commissioned to photograph GB runner Cameron Ross Boyek, from Durham, for Tesco T magazine (Tesco T is an in house print publication for Tesco colleagues).
It never ceases to amaze me how so many organisations have such polished print publications. I started my career working for daily newspapers, then onto national newspapers and magazines, and it was always nice to see photographs used well and in print. With the newspaper industry not as it was, it seems business publications have started to take over, realising the value of quality photography and articles for their staff and customers.
This shoot was to be held at Gateshead International Stadium. As with many shoots, it didn’t quite go to plan, when I arrived the road was covered in ice and snow, and there was thick snow on the track where we were to get our training photographs. Fortunately, a quick enquiry by Ross, and Gateshead College Academy for Sport next helped us out by providing their fantastic indoor running track and facilities for the photo shoot.
Thanks to Cameron, who was very accommodating on the shoot, repeating numerous running drills so I could capture motion, fettle with the lighting, and generally make sure the photo shoot went well; capturing the best photography for the publication/photo-brief.
Cineworld at White Rose Shopping Centre, Leeds, unveiling the revolutionary new ScreenX (a 270 degree cinema screen – giving viewers a more immersive cinema experience)
Screen X branding at Cinewold Leeds
Dramatic neon lighting at Cinewolrd Leeds
Viewers watching the new ScreenX at Cineworld Leeds
Visitors to Cineworld cinema Leeds
A little update, with some photography for Cineworld here in the UK, at the unveiling of their new Screen X at White Rose Shopping Centre, Leeds.
I was asked by Cineworld to photograph their launch back in September.
Screen X is a Korean technology designed to give a more immersive cinema experience. It uses 5 projectors, with moving images projected onto the side walls of the cinema. This is designed to include your peripheral vision in the viewing experience.
It was not without its challenges to photograph, as the screen is pretty wide, and cinemas are quite atmospherically lit. It was also, a rare chance for using my tripod on a shoot… because I’m usually too busy with different ideas to be bogged down with that bloody nonsense.
I think it turned out pretty well. The people in the photograph could photograph some of the experience for their followers on social media, press and other media outlets.
Page 1 of the Teachers’ Guide – Museum Photography (and other Visitors Attractions)
Museum Photography at Eureka! The National Children’s Museum. The museum has always been a superb place to photograph. It is based in Halifax, West Yorkshire. The museum was set up over 25 years ago and continues to inspire and educate kids to this day.
From 8th July 2017 to 15th April 2018 the museum has hosted a touring exhibition called digiPlaceSpace. It is an immersive art experience for kids (and adults too). In my less than eloquent tone: it’s a place for kids to learn and play with creative technology, to inspire and educate.
The touring exhibition is packed full of interactive digital art, created by artists from around the globe. It was originally put together by Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), Canada, 2012
The exhibition is wonderful to photograph. Though not without its challenges. Capturing the effect of dramatic lighting (and fast-moving kids) can be a technical challenge (a pretty tricky combination for commercial/reportage-type photography).
I’m often called in for my museum photography (as well as for other visitor attractions). The way images are used is often pretty diverse. Photo uses range from social media, to printed literature and websites (including this Teachers’ Guide).
With this sort of photography, an experienced photographer is a must. For the sake of quality and reproducibility. I’ll be the first to say that anyone can take a good photograph. But. To do that time and time again. In a way that creates high quality and versatile imagery. Within a limited timeframe. It all takes expertise.
If I remember correctly. The images above (and below) were all shot in a day…. there were hundreds/if not thousands of images to go through. Almost two hundred images delivered afterwards, with hours of post-production editing time.
It was a tiring day, mixed with carting around lighting to ‘lift’ some of the images for print to arranging ‘set-ups’ so the exhibits can photographed whilst the kids play in as natural and relaxed way as possible. Plus, I had to fold my 6’9″ frame into a lot of tricky corners to try to photograph the kids, mostly without them noticing too much. To avoid giving them the chance for fixed cheesy grins/grimaces!
Page 2 of the Teachers’ Guide – Museum Photography (and other Visitors Attractions)
Page 3 of the Teachers’ Guide – Museum Photography (and other Visitors Attractions)
Page 9 of the Teachers’ Guide – Museum Photography (and other Visitors Attractions)
Page 8 of the Teachers’ Guide – Museum Photography (and other Visitors Attractions)
Soon, Eureka is looking to open another museum on the Mersey waterfront, in the Wirral (Liverpool City Region).
Country Life – Country Houses Foundation article by John Goodall – Photos of Jake Duncombe by Nelson Gate, the Ionic Temple and Tuscan Temple at Duncombe Park, North Yorkshire
Country Life – Country Houses Foundation article by John Goodall/Photos by Jonathan Pow – Featuring Lucinda and Richard Compton at the orangery, Newby Hall, North Yorkshire and Claire Birch with the tapestry restoration at Doddington Hall, Lincolnshire
Editorial feature for Country Life magazine on the Country Houses Foundation (written by John Goodall/photography by Jonathan Pow).
Featuring
Jake Duncombe of Duncombe Park, North Yorkshire (with Nelson Gate, the Ionic Temple and Tuscan Temple.
Lucinda and Richard Compton at the orangery, Newby Hall, North Yorkshire
and
Claire birch with the tapestry restoration in progress at Doddington Hall, Lincolnshire
The shoot
This was an interesting magazine shoot, for Country Life, involving travelling to various country houses. Photographing the amazing restoration work done with the help of the Country Hoses Foundation. The aim of the organisation is to give grants for the preservation of historic buildings and their grounds. The organisation has given more than £9 million to help restore and preserve more than 170 buildings. This money has gone to private owners, councils and the National Trust and Landmark Trust.
The stone work on the Tuscan Temple at Duncombe Park was incredible, restoring huge structural pillars using traditional techniques (and if I remember correctly, only two men). The sarking and metal rafters at in the 1770s Robert Adam Orangery were beautiful (with the woodwork looking very warm under the spotlights). And the tapestry work at Doddington Hall was immensely painstaking, and, as a bonus, can be seen first-hand by visitors to the hall.
Photo business post, warning – no pretty pictures, just time-saving geekery and Google Apps Scripts…
Cats – famously hate paperwork
I like to think of myself as a creative person. Good at creativity, shite at paperwork (are they innately linked?). Unfortunately, being a freelance photographer (the operative word being freelance), paperwork is sadly necessary to run a business.
At least sometimes… because I like to find anything that helps me cheat.
One little cheat I have found recently is more helps when saving email expenses and invoices (nope, not exciting, but bloody useful).
In the past I have used to save invoices as PDFs and emailed to a company called ExpenseMagic (now they’re https://expentory.com), where they’d automagically enter it up to my FreeAgent accounting software. Once I got through the bulk I found I could drop ExpenseMagic and simply save my invoices to a Google Drive folder and enter them up using Freeagent (http://fre.ag/430sdjdw – that’s a referral link, which would be bloody good if you used, because both you and I get a 10% discount out of it!).
This all went to shit when I dropped my phone in the sea. On my last phone I could easily save PDFs and the new one can’t do that easily (basically because Apple don’t like PDFs much, so think we should all have a similar disdain for them).
As a result of the phone/sea incident my backlog has reached epic proportions. With doing up our house, investing in some new gear and lots of other crap my email is (or was) full to the brim with invoices and receipts. Which is a pain in the arse to say the least.
I’ve just bought the ‘premium version’ and overnight it has saved masses of emails as PDFs to my Google Drive! Bloody useful and a great time saver. Especially now I won’t have to load and ‘print to PDF’ and download hundreds of emails and attachments.
Setup (I’ve skipped some of the setup, look at the Labnol link above for that) – confusingly it creates a Google Sheets file (confusing for those who haven’t seen them before, but this is essentially the backbone of Gmail scripts, when you install to your Gmail make sure you bookmark the sheet to get access to the settings easily later):
Screen shot of my ‘Save Emails and Attachments’ settings
Once the script is installed I created a folder on my Google drive called ‘SAVE EMAILS & ATTACHMENTS‘, it’s a bit of a processing folder, where I can files to other folders for my accounts.
On the Gmail side, I label (this is a built-in Gmail function, the shortcut key is ‘L’, then start typing the label name and hit return when it is selected) emails I’d like converted, then every hour (or manually) they’re saved (along with their attachments) to the above folder.
The label I use is ‘Save Emails and Attachments‘
Once the emails and attached PDF files are saved to Google Drive, the emails are automatically labeled ‘Saved’ in Gmail, this prevents further processing whilst also allowing them to be easily deleted in bulk from Gmail (once you’ve checked they’ve actually been saved).
My inbox is clearer, as too is my mind, and they’re ready to be entered up to my accounts (which is still a bind – does anyone want to help?). Also, you can label them from the Gmail app on the iPhone or Android (which is useful for people like me, who like to work when they’re on the go and have nothing better to do), and they’re processed every hour.
Also check out FreeAgent http://fre.ag/430sdjdw (opens in new tab – link gives a 10% discount code for you and me!) it’s accounting software designed for people who hate accounting software, and I’ll be honest, if I can use it, anyone can (plus you can file VAT returns and accounts in the UK, directly from the software).
(One thing I’d like, if you’re listening Amit(?), is the ability to rename files with the format ‘YYYYMMDD – Subject (Sender)’. I’m not a bit fan of sub folders and this would mean I could process all the files in one place (the current filenames are coming out a bit wordy).
Weather – Ducks struggling on an ice covered pond in Ferrensby (near Knaresborough), North Yorkshire
Photograph of Ducks on Icy Pond in The Times
It’s been some time since a photographer’s update. The reason: My wife and I bought a house. And, in between photographic commissions, pulling our new money pit apart and trying to put it back together again there hasn’t been much time for updates.
Probably something many are cursed with, you don’t realise how much can possibly need doing in a house until you get one of your own. Then one day you sit, listening to the late great David Bowie, surrounded by insulation boards, flooring, tiles and tools you’ve never heard of before, and think: “Shit, there’s a lot to do!”.
Working mainly on photographic commissions of late, a celebratory image (which admittedly, is photographed quite close to us!) of ducks dancing on ice in The Times (of London, don’t you know) today. It’s the first thing I’ve shot for the papers since moving back to Yorkshire (actually it might not be, but it is cute, so for the sake of argument, it is).
Welcome to 2016, belated Happy New Year, Merry Christmas and anything else I may have forgotten. If anyone wants to give me an excuse to get out the hell of DIY, bloody go for it!
For the past 10 years I've been a professional photographer. Working for high end clients: from bespoke manufacturers, to clothing designers, national newspapers and international publications.
I'm obsessive about photography. Getting things aesthetically pleasing as well as capturing the right moment. It's that combination that can often make the world of visual difference.
