Garage MK, Knight racer.

I have recently taken some images for the guys over at Garage MK and Knight racer.

I was very impressed with some of the services that they offer, one which certainly does appeal.

If you are having work done on your car, from a service to a personalisation body kit or modification, they guys will come and pick up your car if you are in the Milton Keynes area from your home or work. So no hassle or inconvenience.

Garage MK and Knight Racer, also sponsor SSDA drift team and are at the drifting meets and competitions.

facebook page

website. 

Jay picking up a car from a customers work place.

Facebook pages for

Knight-racer

and

The Garage MK.

and

website

for Knight-racer.

The Art of Photography Podcast meet up

As a regular viewer of Ted Forbes "

the art of photography

" podcast and a fan, i was excited to see that Ted and his good lady were coming over to London for a meet up/ photo walk.

We met up some great photographers, some of who had travelled a great distance to partake. 

Here are some of my favourite images that i took from the day. 

Camera's and beer... A quality afternoon if you ask me :0) 

Night Photography.

Friday evening, myself and Phil Richardson of

YellowMelen Studio

 headed out upto Dunstable Downs for a play with some night photography.

What good fun. Setting up a camera for 2 minute + exposures and running around with torches and setting off speed lights and awaiting to see the result was something very new and interesting. 

This image is hard to believe that it was taken in total darkness. 

4 minute Exposure. 

Think Tank Retrospective 30.

I have recently purchased the ThinkTank Retrospective 30 shoulder camera bag and im very impressed.

So i thought that i would share my thoughts.

As any photographer will tell you once you have a camera bag the buying will never stop.

I have numerous bags now... obviously for different jobs and not for collectomaniac reasons 

With the recent purchase of a couple of larger zoom lenses, i was after a larger shoulder bag.

Im a BIG fan of Think Tank, their products are bomb proof and look great.

I am a big fan of bags that do not shout out, that this is a camera bag full of expensive kit, and so the subtle styling of the Retrospective range is right up my street. There isn't even a large Think Tank label.

This is a nice feature, The large opening flap is velcro fastened. There is an option to cover the velcro to silence you opening the bag. This will be great at weddings and other events where you are trying to remain inconspicuous. 

Large space, with moveable inserts allowing you to customise for your equipment. 

Stylish, inconspicuous design.

Large enough even for your 70-200mm lens, The Retrospective 30 can fit some telephoto zoom lenses attached to a DSLR, facing sideways in the bag..

The Retrospective series is comprised of four shoulder bags and two lens changer bags.  Created for the professional photographer that wants to blend in with the crowd and remain inconspicuous in any situation.  Our product designers have blended the look and feel of "old-school" camera bags and infused it with "new-school" features and technology for the digital imaging age.  

Top Features:

• Minimalist outer appearance conceals expensive photo equipment
• Carries a pro size DSLR with standard zoom lens attached
• Wider size to fit a 70-200 f2.8 attached to DSLR facing sideways
• Accommodates 2-4 lenses in main compartment with 2 DSLR bodies in front pockets
• Two front pockets to carry pro size DSLRs (bodies only)
• Organizer pocket built into main compartment for pens, note pad, batteries, etc.
• Choice of two different colors, black or pinestone, to suit the situation
• Hook and Loop “Sound Silencers” on the front flap eliminate noise while opening the bag
• Soft, adjustable shoulder strap with cushioned non-slip pad
• Clear business card holder under front flap
• Removable short carrying handle for convenience
• Seam-sealed rain cover included for protection against the elements

Gear Profile:

• 1 pro size DSLR with standard zoom lens attached and 1 - 3 additional lenses, including a 70-200 f2.8
• 2 pro size DSLRs (bodies only) in front pockets and 2 - 4 lenses in main compartment, including a 70-200 f2.8
• 1 pro size DSLR with 70-200 f2.8 attached, facing sideways and 1-2 additional lenses.

Photographer Profile:

• Photojournalists and travel photographers

Technical Specifications:

• ID:  15” W x  9.5” H x 6” D (38 x 24 x 15.2 cm)*
• *bag softness and flexibility allows expansion to carry a pro size DSLR with lens attached, facing down
• OD:  16” W x 10.5” H x 7” D (40.6 x 26.7 x 17.8 cm)
• Weight:  3.2 lbs (1.5 kg)
• Lifetime Warranty

Think Tank Retrospective 30 Pinestone Shoulder Bag

Think Tank

Buy on Amazon

Think Tank Retrospective 30 Black Shoulder Bag

Think Tank

Buy on Amazon

New Job.

Hello all,

Its has been awhile since my last post. I have been very busy with my job abroad over in Baku - Azerbaijan.

In the last 17 weeks I have been back in the UK less then 2 weeks and so i have been run off my feet.

After new year i will be on a rota and have more time off which is good news,

Here are a few images from being offshore over in Baku. The images were taken on my Canon G10.

Azerbaijan on the world map

Hong Kong vacation.

Hello, 

Well it feels like a life time ago since i last made a post. But i have been a busy one with work and other commitments, so i am seriously playing catch up now, as have a large amount of images to work through. 

Here are some of the images from a recent trip to Hong Kong. 

A view from the highest point on the Island.

Market Stall.

On the beach, where you can see the double Shark nets.

                                                            Part of the 5.5km escalator. 

View from the 5.5km escalator. 

Dont Let Dunstable Die...

I have met up with, a couple of times now the ladies who are running the DLDD campaign, and what a fantastic job they are doing for the town.

We met with the intention for a couple of promotional shots that they can use, but as you can see the weather wasnt playing ball and so we will meet again soon. 

Also keep watching as when i can ill be attending some of the functions that they are doing, and so ill post images of the great things happending in Dunstable in the future.

A couple of short

videos

explaining their campaign.

Check out  their

website

 to see the latest news in Dunstable. 

The Ladies Bio...

Sharon and Sharon are two ladies who want to help Dunstable to become the lovely market town it once was, please give us your views and ideas. Together we can make a difference. Long Live Dunstable!

"Tell your friends and spread the word, Dunstable must be heard.Long Live Dunstable can't be wrong,the supporters are growing forever strong. We believe in Dunstable and the support that you give, so let's all make Dunstable,the best place to live!"

We are now as of 15th December 2010 two ladies who want to help Dunstable to become the lovely market town it once was, please give us your views and ideas.

LLD

Long Live Dunstable (Don't Let Dunstable Die) was established last year by two woman to help raise the profile of our Historic town of Dunstable and to keep the supporting public informed as to what is happening as best we can. We have no businesses in Dunstable or political agendas just a passion to see our town great again. Thank you for your continued support.

"Tell your friends and spread the word, Dunstable must be heard. Long Live Dunstable can't be wrong,The supporters are growing forever strong. We believe in Dunstable and the support that you give, So let's all make Dunstable, the best place to live!

"LONG LIVE DUNSTABLE!"

Stage Writer. Jessica Luxembourg.

I was asked recently to do some portraiture head shots and promo shots for a fantastic stage / screen writer actress Jessica Luxembourg.

With having a little bit of notice with this shoot, i wanted to set it, in a relevant location.

I came up with the idea of having books in the back ground and so set about trying to find a willing bookshop.

I thought the best places to try would be small independently run stores, and so the search began...

They are becoming harder and harder to find. Even this store will be closed at the end of the month.

I think due to the Internet, people do not seem to visit these places any more. Even i am very guilty of this. As it is far to easy to order books from say Amazon or if going to a store we head to Waterstones as they have a huge collection of items. It is a great shame with the changing world the "small business" has an almost impossible fight to remain in the game. 

This was shot in the book castle over in Dunstable,

A big thanks to the ladies who run the shop, They were great and very friendly, with out their help i do not think i would of been able to achieve my goal and so would of had to resort with another back drop.

Biography of Jessica Luxembourg

Jessica Luxembourg is an award-winning writer

(International Student Playscript Competition, Arc Productions sponsorship, Time Out DVious Shorts Award)

Whose work has been performed at venues including the Hackney Empire,

the Soho Theatre and the Pleasance Courtyard.

Her short film "Phil's Job" was produced by Blaze, The Trail with Nick Rowe (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels)

in the title role and screened at the Cannes, Melbourne and Raindance film festivals. Jessica is a graduate of the MA in Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, and of Cambridge University.

Jessica's plays include:

Denver, Contact Theatre, Manchester (2006);

Babel Junction, Hackney Empire (2006);

The Devil's Own Goldfish Scam, Soho Theatre (2003);

Insane Jane, Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh, transferred to Soho Theatre (2003);

Reflecting Flesh, UEA Studio Theatre (2001);

Losing Track, UEA Studio Theatre (2001);

and Craze, UEA Studio Theatre (2000).

Her short films include: Phil's Job, Cannes, Raindance and Melbourne film festivals (2001).

Teelan Stack.

Hi all, 

Well, what a busy couple of weeks with re: to the photography.  

Last week i had a fantastic child shoot with the little Teelan seen below, 

It was the first toddler shoot that I have done. I have worked with babies before and they are great as they tend not to move.... 

As you can see Teelan is full of character and is a fast little runner keeping me on my feet and having to think fast. 

Big thanks to the Stack family and hope to work with you again. 

Over the next couple of weeks ill be posting other photography work that i have been working on, 

I had a corporate head shot with a great stage writer, 

some portraiture work with a model, 

a couple of shots with the Dont Let Dunstable Die ladies,

plus i have started a personal project which can be seen over on the main website. 

A play up Dunstable Downs this evening.

This evening around 1600hrs the sun looked stunning, and so i grabbed my camera bag and headed out, to catch a sunset.

the sun had other views and finally set behind a huge cloud. 

Here are the images i took, and so i hope that i did not waste my time. 

This HDR is made up of around 54 images. 

Another HDR image

This was lit by an oncoming car. 

 A play with car lights.

Attend 1st Photography course on outdoor flash lighting.

I have recently been hooking up with Phil over at

Melen Studios

Phil was running an outdoor flash lighting course and so had to attend.

I have been a fan of flash photography, but just lack the knowledge how to use it properly. So a course was right up my street to push and progress my photography.

I would strongly recommend

courses

ran by these guys-

a day outside with a load of cool down to earth people being creative sounds more like fun to me rather then a course.

Here are a few images from the day..

iPhone project.

I have for some time really fancied doing a little project.

I am always snapping away with my phone.

To aid in the inspiration - i was talking with some friends who, view my images on facebook and i quote, "my images are only good as my camera is an expensive one."

So this certainly gave me a kick up the backside to get cracking..

The iPhone does not focus well, its rough round the edges and struggles to expose correctly...

but we all love it! 

NO fancy trickery, NO computer photoshopping just honest good fun. 

New Bar Design by 4orm ltd Design.

Here are a few images taken for the guys over at 4orm.ltd.

They do the designs for the top bars and night clubs in and around London.

This Bar is situated in Notting Hill.

Amsterdam, Queens Day April 30th 2010.

I ended up travelling over to Holland to party at Queens day in Amsterdam.

If you are like me you probably have not heard of this day before, i think it's a Dutch secret...

But WOW what a day!

The day origins from a previous Queens birthday, which the people still remain to celebrate.

The Dutch people are very much like the Brits and enjoy a good drink and party!

Queens day starts off early, where the towns people are out in force selling there possessions on the streets.

The buyers and sellers are all drinking, there are boats with HUGE sound systems booming out tunes which adds to the party atmosphere.

The sellers, then get drunk and seem to wonder off from their pitch.

As you walk the Streets of Amsterdam you turn a corner, the roads are blocked off and a DJ has set up shop with party go-errs dancing, drinking having a great time.

Here are a few images from my time there...

Revisited Photos..

Today ill start with a big tip..

Don't ever throw pictures away (delete)!

Your hard drives are getting full and so you go through and delete images.. noooo!

It's time to buy a new hard drive.

You might not like an image today, but in time you may view it, with different eyes and fancy having a play around.

The following image was from the hard drive and at the time i was not too keen on them.

The Cat was a Big Hit on Flickr, I also printed this image off and gave it to the owners of the feline. They were thrilled!

Snow in Dunstable.

I spent Christmas at work on an oil rig,

I was down in the south of England for New Year with family and loved ones.

As you are all aware the weather has been awful of late.

We got it hard in the North Sea over Christmas, I was itching to get home and have a play in the snow with the camera before it all melted.

Well, my luck was in, i’m now in Dunstable and the heavens are open, I set out to get some pictures of the snow. 

The sky was dark and not looking good, I took a few shots of the people who were wrapped up warm braving the cold. 

Whilst on the retreat back to the house... 

feeling a bit disappointed, as there wasn't much that could be taken. I see the sky start to clear. 

Oh yes, happy days....

I take my time to see what will unfold before my eyes. Some stunning colours started to come out.

I took a few snapshots of the cold and grey. My favourite piece of the weather is the cemetery scene.

Xav and Corinne Shoot.

Good friends of mine Xav and Corinne wanted some pictures taking of themselves. 

Corinne is a singer/song writer. Her personal site is here and goes under the name Vanessa René

" and so want a promo pic, where as Xav loves his bike and so wanted one with his beloved triumph bike...

The Bike picture, i was trying again with the flash at sunset theme i like. This has worked better then the car one i have previously done. 

Once again the TTL mode is letting me down. It has made me bite the bullet and im saving for some pocket wizard flash syncs. With syncs you can be so much more creative too, rather then just placing the flashes where they can see one another.

Here are my 2 favourite images from the day.

Arm Wrestling.

Last night i went round to a very good mate of mine's in Manchester. After a few beers the camera came out and so we had a mess around.

Here are a couple of images - the making of the idea, and the finished image…

Ronin Ryu Atemi JuJitsu, Martial Arts Club.

A mate of mine runs a martial art club in Blackpool. I loved the idea of trying to catch some natural shots of the guys, and girl - doing they're thing.

I didn't want to use a flash on this shoot so I could fit in better and try to be unnoticed.

Scot who runs the Club is a fantastic teacher, very clear and puts things into perspective, so everyone can understand. 

The people who train there are great, there are no egos, 

all just want to train hard and enjoy it.

Scot runs self-defence and fitness classes also.

Car Shoot with Dom.

Through a friend, i have met a photographer called Dominic,

He has some fantastic ideas and some very well exicuted work.

We decided to hook up and have a play with our cameras, he has a love for car photography and so i cleaned up the car. It was interesting to see how he views things.

i always find it interesting to talk to the educated photographers.  As i am self taught, its nice to see how they tick. 

This was a fun day, the fish eye'd picture was taken right on Preston North End's football ground. We turned up and asked the girl on reception, that we are students and for a project, can we shoot a car there. 

This is something i think can be used time and time again.

Here are a couple of shots from the day.