Schools Photography Workshops

Yesterday was the first of a series of school photography workshops I have planned with Chichester Harbour Conservancy. Conservancy are running A Year of Photos photography project asking members of the public to submit their photos of Chichester Harbour hoping to document every day of the year. As part of this project Conservancy and Friends of Chichester Harbour asked me to come in and lead photography workshops for different schools in both Hampshire and Sussex with pupils of all different ages.

Yesterday’s workshop was with GCSE pupils and was based in Dell Quay, one of my favourite Chichester Harbour locations, and we were lucky with the weather in the morning with a long walk along the shoreline and woodland. The photographic theme for this walk was Erosion & Texture. Sadly it rained in the afternoon so we took still life photos of some of the interesting artefacts in the education room and also landscape photos from a covered doorway. The pupils were all really creative and it was great to be able to teach and mentor them. I’m looking forward to the next workshop already.

I took a few photos over the day myself, a few examples are below:

Interview in the New Télégramme Magazine

I was recently asked by Télégramme Magazine to do a short interview for their new issue (#3) which has just been released. Télégramme Magazine is an amazing online magazine focusing on different photographic themes and also packed with amazing photography, much of it analogue.

You can view the new issue HERE and you can also find out more about Télégramme Magazine HERE.

New Dawn Observation #3

I recently bought my own digital SLR plus some equipment for filming, including a slider track, but up until the weekend just gone have been too busy to be able to use it (hate it when that happens). Despite the predictions of rain on Saturday when I left the house at 7am it was still dry, just, so I visited a local wreak on the Langstone Harbour shoreline out in Milton hoping to beat the rainfall. I managed only about 20-30 minutes before the rain fell but I did manage to film just about enough footage to put together this new dawn observations edit.

Photography Guide for Chichester Harbour Conservancy

Chichester Harbour is one of my all time favourite places and over the last couple of years I’ve explored the harbour and been lucky enough to work with Chichester Harbour Conservancy who carefully manage and maintain the harbour. I was recently asked by Chichester Harbour Conservancy to create a photography guide that would be placed on their website. The new 10 page guide and suggested exercises went online the other day and can be viewed and downloaded as a PDF.

www.conservancy.co.uk/page/Art-Photography/430/#photo

I’m working with Chichester Harbour Conservancy on a couple of other photography projects in the coming months, more details soon.

Lynda’s Headshot Portraits

My good friend and actress Lynda recently moved to Australia and before she left wanted some headshots, a requirement when auditioning for roles. I spent 20 minutes or so in a friend’s studio with Lynda taking the portraits and it was really fun, I always like taking portraits as it isn’t my normal photography. The headshots normally have to be B&W but I thought I would put up a couple of the colour photos as I like them more personally.

Weathered Memories

Over a year ago I began a 12 month long experiment where I placed a random selection of photo prints in my garden, hoping to observe and record how those prints decayed over a one year period. The project ended in the summer and the project is now on Quiet Corners and can be viewed via the link below:

www.quietcorners.com/home/weathered-and-forgotten

Spotted: Dan Kircher

I was watching the new Pass Port edit from Australia (and New Zealand) and was stoked to spot film maker, photographer and friend Dan Kircher in there with a guest line in Glenn Wignall’s part. Have a watch of the edit, amazing skateboarding and beautifully shot and edited.

Dan with an ollie in London, taken when he was over and we were out street skating in the evening.

Little Bikes

I know it’s rude but when walking around I have a bad habit of looking in people’s windows (particularly if it is an old house). It isn’t done consciously, just a little enthusiastic curiosity. I do love what people put on their front windows though, it’s like a little piece of the owner’s personality on display.

I particularly loved these little, colourful bikes.

PRIMARY Phoneography Competition

As part of Strong Island I’m helping to put together PRIMARY, a Portsmouth based Phoneography photography competition and exhibition focusing on the city, particular primary colours and the use of mobile phone cameras.

You can find out more HERE.

The photo on the poster is one of mine, it is HMS Invincible leaving Portsmouth recently for the last time.

New Camera – Zenit TTL

Recently it seems that finding quality film cameras in charity shops has been harder and harder as, I guess, we are now seeing the end of the fallout of people’s move to digital. Be that on a semi-professional level (you see the odd full camera kit here and there) or the general use camera. Saying that though, you might have to hunt around more and some months might go by but sooner or later something good will pop up, like it did the other day.

Lurking in the back of a glass cabinet in the back room of my local charity shop was a 1970s Russian gem, a Zenit TTL. It’s rugged, sturdy and heavy, has a wide aperture lens and the shutter noise is reassuringly strong. I’ve already been out to take my first couple of rolls of film this weekend, I’m looking forward to seeing the results.

Feed Me Weird Things

I spent my most formative years in and around Chelmsford in Essex and one of the town’s landmarks (at least to my generation) is the gasometer near the old gasworks. Not really something the council would promote or much of the town’s population would be proud of but for me it makes me think of being young and being completely absorbed with skateboarding, friends and music. In the early 90s the town had a really strong music scene with all sorts of genre’s being tapped in to. I started to collect records and tapes at the time and was lucky enough to be given Tom Jenkinson’s Stereotype EP by a mutual friend. Tom Jenkinson went on to be Squarepusher one year later.

Despite being a mocked county and by association county town there was something about Chelmsford and the scene at the time that instilled a sense of pride and I was really stoked to see the artwork for the first Squarepusher album featuring a Chelmsford skyline landmark, the gasometer. Not only that but the old viaduct arch graffiti on the back cover will be recognisable by everyone who was young at that time. That graffiti was there for many, many years too, a constant reminder.

Earlier this year I spent a few hours pottering around that part of Chelmsford again for the first time in ages, the old gasometer triggered so many good memories.

RIP The Army & Navy pub.

Dawn Observations #002 – The Spur Redoubt

I filmed and edited the first Dawn Observations (about South Parade Pier) last year and was meaning to work on it with regular updates but you know how it is, time and life goes by and before you know it a year has passed. This new episode was filmed just after dawn in Old Portsmouth where I retraced the final steps of Lord Nelson on land. Nelson left Old Portsmouth and travelled down through the battlements, via a tunnel, then across the moat to The Spur Redoubt, a fortified point of the defences and also his departure point. From here Nelson joined The Victory as it left for the Battle of Trafalgar.

With the film and the music I was hoping to capture some sense of destiny in those final steps and in the exploration of the remains of the redoubt. The birds seemed curious and friendly.

Circling the Hill

Last year I took photos at a wedding at St. Hubert’s church in Idworth but intentionally arrived very early so I had some time to explore and photograph the church and hill myself. It was at about this time last year and back then the weather was surprisingly good just like the last few days. Sunshine and blackberries.

WLDWLVS Must Follow on Instagram

Last week I was super stoked to be featured on the design/skate/photography blog WLDWLVES as one of thier must follow people on Instagram, with such luminaries as Hold Tight Henry, Lucas Puig, Arto Saari, Ben Powell, Rick McCrank!

Check out WLDWLVS and check the article HERE.

Little Randoms

Something I really like about getting loads of films developed at once is all of the random photos taken normally to use up a roll of film before loading a fresh one for a trip, etc. These little glimpses tend to be of moments quickly forgotten. The photos below are a few from early in the summer.