This week I had the pleasure of photographing one of Britain’s best known and most respected gardeners, Beth Chatto. At the age 87, most people would be taking it easy, but not Mrs Chatto. She spent two hours being interviewed and photographed, before carrying out what is apparently normal routine in her garden – putting in new plants and doing general maintenance! I photographed her once before, for my ‘Gardeners’ Hands’ project. On that occasion, I was in a queue behind a Japanese film crew, who were working with her before my appointment. Keeping busy must be her secret! The […]
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Whenever I speak to my mother on the phone, the conversation always drifts towards the perils of the weather, and the effects it has on photography. I think she still worries about me wearing a hat or that I remembered to take a flask of hot coffee with me. Unless it is sunny. Then the comment is, “It must have been a great day for photography.” Whether I’m shooting gardens, flowers or cars, fierce, bright sun and a cloudless blue sky is nearly always a nightmare. Finding natural shade at the top of a mountain pass to park a sports […]
I have collected cameras for many years, and the display cabinets in my office have long been full of photographic detritus. Subject to many clear outs, the remaining equipment is an eclectic mix of stuff I have used over the years, or antiques I’ve taken a shying to. My favourite by far is the Baby Rolleiflex I bought on Ebay. Made in the early 1960’s, it is an example of great engineering. With precision wind on and a shutter that has a satisfying click, it is a world away from the clunk most SLR’s (digi or film) seem to […]
For the last two years I have run various workshops on garden and flower photography, for both groups and individuals. On Sunday 2nd May this year, I teamed up with fellow Gardeners’ World photographer Jason Ingram, to host a course at the Royal Photographic Society in Bath. We wanted a friendly atmosphere, so kept the whole day very informal. We discussed the equipment we use, as well as sharing some of the tips and tricks used by garden photographers. In the afternoon we ran a practical session, using a still life, to demonstrate the maxim, “Keep it simple.” With just […]
“Clause 43 was dropped from the Bill yesterday. Following further reflection, the Government will aim to reintroduce measures along similar lines when an opportunity arises in the new Parliament.” – Stephen Timms, then Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills; Financial Secretary, HM Treasury – [from a letter dated 8th April 2010] A short update – the controversial clause 43 has been removed from the Digital Economy Bill described in the previous post. The problem has not gone though, so pressure still needs to be maintained. When a new Government is formed it could reappear. For more information, see www.stop43.org.uk
The Digital Economy Bill is on the verge of being rushed through to the statute books before the general election later this year. It is a wide ranging bill, obviously aimed at regulating the digital economy – which is not necessarily a bad thing. But it has a big flaw. Clause 43 would allow the use of “Orphan Works” – photographs, illustrations and other artworks whose owners cannot be found. Originally intended to allow non-profit organizations to make use old archives, many corporate bodies have realized that with clause 43, there is a huge amount of money to […]
A printing technique that has long fascinated me is photogravure, a black and white process developed in the late 19th century. Frequently seen in old books, the texture and tonality is beautiful, and very different to that you would achieve with silver gelatin printing. Often purposely dark and with lower contrast, the images may not suit everybody, but I was intrigued enough to attend a workshop recently. With photogravure, an image is etched into a sensitized metal plate, which has been exposed to a large contact negative. The plate is inked and drawn through a press in contact with paper. […]
Just before Christmas I started editing the hundreds of car photographs I took between 1989 and 1997 for a series of books. All classic cars, ranging from Austin 7 ‘Chummys’ through to rare Ferraris, it was interesting to see them again after they had been confined to a filing cabinet for many years. During the process, I found images of my all time favourite car, the Citroën DS. One particular model was a 1964 Citroën ID 19 Safari, captured in Yorkshire on a hillside, with a rainbow in the background. It had taken me 11 years to get this shot! Spending […]
At the same time I was taking the Pinhole Impressions monochrome series (see previous post), I was also photographing the dramatic coastline near Cape Trafalgar, Andalucia, in Southern Spain. This time vivid colour images were produced, using the same pinhole camera. Around 12 images from this set will be exhibited at Los Balcones del Califa, in the hilltop town of Vejer de la Frontera, Cádiz. The gallery is situated only a few kilometres from the beautiful Cape Trafalgar and the town of Conil, where the photographs were taken. There will also be a limited edition book produced to illustrate the exhibition. This […]
In November 2007 I started experimenting with film again, after a break of several years. More specifically, I was testing a pinhole camera. Digital had become very much the norm for commercial work and I just had a hunch about the effects that I could achieve using really simple equipment. The black and white photographs I took at RHS Wisley through the winter of 2007 and 2008 evolved into a project I called ‘Pinhole Impressions’. They illustrate trees and the effect of wind as the leaves begin to fall. This series of images has just gone on show at Will’s […]