Lurking In Shadows
Photography and music have leapfrogged each other for almost all of my life. Photography kicked in during my early teens with adventures in the school darkroom. Music arrived not long after that in the form of the tenor saxophone and the battle to be my number one was on. Sometimes the photographer would be ahead, sometimes it was the musician in me.
Where the two overlapped was my love of music photography. Quite often that could be rock and roll photography in Rolling Stone Magazine form, but my true love of music photographs was jazz, especially work by the great Herman Leonard. But strange as it may seem I didn't think about mixing my two loves until April 2013.
I'm a member of The Kage Collective (pronounced Ka-gay) and I was looking for a quick project to use as content for our monthly output. I decided to contact Tommy Smith about going along to a Scottish National Jazz Orchestra concert (Tommy is the director of the orchestra) and documenting both behind the scenes and the actual performance. That one night developed into a long-term project that I am still working on to this day as their official photographer. I've also shot a handful of jazz CD covers and even had the cover of Jazzwise magazine too.
It's hard to explain what I'm trying to capture in my music photography, but every now and then, when I squeeze the shutter button, I feel I've captured a true moment, something timeless that would sit perfectly in any of the jazz photography books on my bookshelf. These moments only exist for 1/125th of a second and they're gone. There is nothing before and nothing after...it's a heartbeat. I see a lot of these moments in my viewfinder, but by the time I see them, they're already gone. That's why they come once in a blue moon. Sure, there are hundreds of keepers during a gig, but these special moments are much more elusive.
So I'll keep trying to find these pure moments as I'm lurking in shadows and hoping my trigger finger is one step ahead of my eye. In this age of the smartphone and the constant snapping of hundreds of thousands of pictures each day, I think we all question the relevance of our pictures. But with an archive of over 47,000 jazz photographs, I have to believe there is historical value in what I'm doing. Time will tell.
Location, Location, Location
Photographers tend to be rather territorial. Whether its returning to our favourite location for sunrise or sunset or wandering the streets of our favourite town or city. Returning to a familiar location time and time again seems to be commonplace among photographers. Building a familiarity with a location is a good and allows us to fully exploit our surroundings. It may be that the light on a certain street at a certain time of day works well or that the sun rises or sets in just the right place at a certain time of year. Knowledge of an area allows us to adapt easily to changing conditions and ensure that we don't miss out on opportunities to make standout images.
There are two locations that I return to on a regular basis and I'm still managing to find new compositions each time that I visit. One location in particular I visit more than most and that's a place known as Priddy Ponds on the Mendip Hills.
Priddy Pools is a 30 minute drive from my house. It's an easy drive with little traffic and the location itself is rarely busy. You may get the odd dog walker every now and then but apart from that its quiet. It can be eerily quiet at night and extremely dark so not a location to shoot on your own if you are of a slightly nervous disposition. There can be some strange noises in the dark up there and its easy to let your mind play tricks on you. The tree itself provides a great point of interest but there are many other areas to explore as well as the pond which provides great reflections on a clam day.
Another location that I return to on a regular basis is the very famous wooden lighthouse located on the beach at Burnham-On-Sea. This location is particularly special to me as I was fortunate enough to have the image below printed in Landscape Photographer of the Year 2016. It also made it onto the back cover of the book. This is the one of the few times I have had recognition for my photography so I take every opportunity I can to shout about it.
Again, this location provides masses of opportunity for different compositions and I've yet to explore many of them. I want to shoot it at high tide with the water around the legs of the lighthouse but so far ever time I have had chance to visit the tide hasn't been right. At low tide there is great opportunity to capture the reflection of the lighthouse in the tidal pools. It can mean getting knee deep in the mud of the Bristol Channel but isn't that what landscape photography is all about?
The other reason that this photograph is special to me is that it was this photo that convinced me to ditch my DSLR and go full Fujifilm. This shot was made with incredible Fujifilm X-Pro1 and superb XF 16mm 1.4.
I will continue to visit both of these locations and if you have a favourite location I would encourage you to do the same. You could visit the same location for 20 years and one day get that once in a lifetime shot. The large collection of images will also look good put together in a book when you feel the location has finally run its course and every avenue (or street) has been explored.
My favourite tree is going to be the subject of a long term project so if you follow my work I'm sure you will be seeing a lot more of it. I intend to use the GFX 50s to photograph it at when conditions allow and I'm excited to see what results I can achieve with it. This will be the subject of a future blog so stay tuned for that one.
Matt
www.shootprocessrepeat.com
A Fujiholics Story – David Yeoman
About you
Born in the 60’s, I bought my first real camera (SLR) whilst at university, after graduating I worked for Plessey writing real-time software, before moving to Reading to work in the broadcast TV industry. Since 1994 I have run my own businesses in the world of industrial imaging, culminating in my current work in Industrial Automation. I specify and fit cameras to production lines and write software to interpret the image, to inspect products/parts or act as the eyes of a robot (robot guidance). I’ve also been moving slowly further northwards, from starting in Poole, Dorset, I’ve got as far as Cheshire, I reckon by the time I retire I’ll have reached Oban!
Photography although part of my business is a complete passion, almost an obsession. Not only do I love taking part, but I enjoy teaching others, and for the last two years I’ve been running workshops for a local camera shop, and starting in 2018 will be running a number of workshops for Fujiholics.
So you’re a Fujiholic?
Fuji cameras are in my blood…… my first SLR was a Fuji STX-1N, my first digital camera was a Fuji MX2900. Despite a couple of forays into the world of Canon, I’ve returned to Fuji and for the last 5 years, I have been shooting with the X series cameras. I’ve owned many models (X100, XF1, X-E1, X-E2, X-T1, X-T2, X-A2, X100F), but now have two main bodies X-T2 and X100F, my original X100 is going nowhere though, and still gets the odd trip out, it’s a bit like taking a classic car out, slow, a bit bumpy, but the journey is always enjoyable.
Fuji lenses have always been excellent (I even use a lot of the C-mount products in my Industrial Automation work), and in my opinion, the light and optics are what forms the picture. In my Industrial Imaging work, we always say that lighting and optics are 95% of the problem, the rest is just selecting the right sensor and amount of computer power. It’s really no different in photography!
Which is your favourite lens? Why?
My favourite focal length is without doubt 23mm (35mm FF), I could be happy if I only ever shot at this focal length, so I suppose you’d have to say that’s my favourite, but the one lens that takes my breath away every time I use it is the XF90mm. It’s a very special lens, both in terms of sharpness, out of focus bokeh and it’s colour rendition.
When you next go travelling, what gear will you take?
If it’s a city break or a family holiday, I’ll travel light, often taking the X100F, Wide Angle Converter, spare batteries and memory cards. I feel that there is very little you can’t do with an X100 series camera, yes you have to zoom with your feet, and sometimes you can’t make that first shot you envisage, but there is always that more interesting second shot that you didn’t initially see that the X100 series captures so well.
I managed to go on a weeks holiday to the Isle of Mull, leaving my then DSLR bag at home (a packing mistake!), all I had was an X100, one battery of indeterminate charge and a tripod, no spare batteries, memory cards, etc. By switching off power-hungry functions, relying on the OVF, I managed to make the week, taking over 350 shots, even shooting Puffins (though I had to sit still for a long time, and heavily crop!). It’s a very capable camera.
But if it’s a ‘photographic expedition’, I’ll take the X-T2, a selection of lenses, tripod, filters, etc.
When out shooting, what are your settings? Why?
Again this varies, I always shoot RAW+JPG, but rarely use the JPG, but the simulation helps compose the image in your head. There are three images to every photograph, the one in your head, the one the camera takes and the resultant one from post-production. Most of us strive to get the first and last images the same!
On the whole I’m an Aperture Priority shooter, when I’m out a photography day, I’m very deliberate with my settings, I’ll spend some time getting it right especially with regard to composition, I’ve found that by slowing down I end up with more ‘keepers’ at the end of the day (and as a bonus I don’t have to wade through thousands of images to find those keepers!)
But on a city break, I’ll often just set up the Auto-ISO (comfortably up to 6400 on X-Trans3), set a min shutter speed, and then just adjust aperture as I need it. It enables me to shoot fast and gives reliable results.
What kind of tools do you use for post-processing?
I use LightRoom with some of the NIK software plug-ins, notably Dfine for noise reduction and Silver Efex Pro for Black & White conversion. Once you get your head around the control points in Silver Efex Pro, it is a very powerful tool.
Unless I’m working on a project that demands a high level of post-processing, I like to process my images quickly, I’ll often only select a few to process from a shoot, and rarely spend more than 5 minutes on each image.
What is your favourite Film Simulation? Why?
I don’t really have a favourite, but usually, my camera is set to PROVIA or ACROS+R if I want to see the tonal contrast.
What’s Next?
In my own photography, I’m working towards being more project-based, not exclusively, but to try and give some structure to my photographic journey. There are always more ideas that I want to try, it's finding the time and money to do them! I have an endless bucket list……
With regard to equipment, I’m really happy with what I have at present (though I should probably cull a few lenses!), but I can sense that there is a MF itch that needs scratching!
I also intend to develop my workshops, enabling more people to learn new skills, so hopefully, I’ll see some of you on Fujiholics workshops.
www.davidyeomanphotography.co.uk
https://www.instagram.com/davidyeomanphoto/
A Fujiholics Story - Matt Walkley
In this weeks A Fujiholics Story we take a look at Matt Walkley, why he is a Fujiholic, what he considers to be his favourite bits of equipment and what he hopes to do next.Read more
A Fujiholics Story - Rob Wood
Rob Wood, so you’re a Fujiholic?
Since buying an Fujifilm X100T in June 2016, I was instantly impressed with the small powerhouse of a camera. Not only with its performance but also on its sheer good looks and how it felt in the hands. Once getting familiar with it and its capabilities I was well and truly hooked on the Fujifilm brand.
Seeing articles on pre production of the original X100 I wanted one straight away as it reminded me of my days with my old rangefinders. I love minimalism and a 'Rangefinder' type camera suits me fine.
Fast forward to 2016, in Rome, a Canon 5D mark ii hanging from my wrist all week. The result? Sore neck, aching elbow and a decision to buy the Fujifilm X100T, not a difficult decision considering all the reviews I´d been reading.
The Fujifilm X100T had all I needed in a camera for my type of shooting, image quality, stunning looks, portability, ergonomics, usability and best of all its pure fun to use, which can only induce motivation to improve my photography.
My first love is ' Street' photography and the X100T with its field of view I find is just perfect.
I've considered the Fujifilm X-Pro2/X-T2 but I love the Fujifilm X100T and being angst free from not having to choose which lens to use.
Less stress equals happy photographer. The Fujifilm X100T, for me, puts true enjoyment back in to photography.
Am I a 'Fujiholic'? Without any doubt, a camera that puts a smile on my face is good enough for me.
Which is your favourite lens and why?
As I only shoot with the X100T, it has to be the Fujinon 23mm fixed lens.
When out shooting, what are your settings and why?
- I shoot in RAW
- Automatic White Balance
- Film Simulation on Standard
- Dynamic Range on auto
- Noise Reduction to zero
- Highlight/Shadow tones I adjust to suit for prevailing conditions
- Colour on zero
- Sharpness on zero
Depending on the look of the image I'm making I'll use either Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority and Zone Focus,
Generally I use ISO Auto control with a default sensitivity of 200 and maximum sensitivity of 6400 with a minimum shutter speed of 1/125th.
I never use manual focus.
What kind of tools do you use for post processing?
I import my files into Lightroom 6, zero out LR default sharpening then export to 'NIK sliver Efex Pro 2 where for me the magic happens.
What is your favourite film simulation? why?
I stay on 'Standard' mode, i'm not that keen on film simulation modes.
What’s next?
I'm hoping to have an exhibition in 2017, dependent on costs of course, I know it's not cheap and I'm retired now so have to watch the budgets.
There's lots of opportunities here in Barcelona where I now live and it's a fantastic city for doing what I love most, 'Street' photography.
If the exhibition never happens I won't be too bothered, it would be interesting though. I just love getting out there amongst it all and then the excitement of seeing my shots on the computer and hopefully one will jump right off the screen. The icing on the cake.
Contact Details:
https://www.facebook.com/RobWoodStreet/
https://www.instagram.com/robertwoodphotos/
https://twitter.com/RobWoodImages
http://www.fujifilmxworld.com/gallery/default/view/id/8241bbfc7ed69867
In the bag - Warren Millar's Gig Gear
Who am i?
I am Warren Millar, Fujiholics newest team member. I have already run some workshops for Fujiholics over the last year as well as regularly attending Fujiholics events and I am also looking forward to contributing to the Fujiholics blog. A little more on my photographer background can be found on my Fujiholics profile page.Read more
I'm a Professional Photographer! Why would I go on a photography workshop?
I have photographed over 400 weddings, sometimes I feel amazing and sometimes I feel like a beginner! As photographers we give so much to our clients, we bring out so much from them. We make the miserable people smile, we make the insecure feel great about how they look! We manage stress, emotions, family politics, all within short time frames, difficult lighting conditions within unfamiliar venue/locations! We burn ourselves out achieving the best for our clients !
How do we top up our creativity and passion?
Workshops are amazing places to share ideas, think differently and look at ways to work differently !
I promised myself many years ago that I will always top up my creativity with learning from others! I always come away from a workshop! Revitalised, energised, ready to see me through for the next season of weddings! I don't think I could keep so passionate without these amazing, low cost workshops !
Photography workshops always bring back the love I first had for photography! I have that feeling in the pit of my stomach that excites me, I'm like a child again, happy in my zone!
So even after 400 weddings I get so much out of a street workshop a landscape workshop or even a business related workshop!
I owe it to my business and my customers, but above all I owe it to myself !
If you have never done a workshop because you believe it's beneath you or you won't get anything from it, I really believe you are missing out !
No course will make you a photographer, I see them as building blocks, if I can learn one thing on a workshop, I'm so happy, because I add that to my workflow and that Leads to a happier me !
The added bonus, is you shoot for you, you get to drink plenty of coffee, some hot fruit toast, and you fill your lungs with some lovely fresh air along with sometime out with your everyday life !
Lee Glasgow
www.leeglasgowphotography.co.uk
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Switching to Fujifilm - Lee Glasgow
Lee's background:
13 years ago I purchased a Canon 300d, what a wonderful camera it was in its day, then I upgraded every 2-3 years ending with the Canon 5D Mark three, there is no denying these are great camera’s !
7 years ago I decided to focus on weddings and my kit replicated most other wedding photographers equipment ! A couple of years ago i realised my bones were taking a battering from carrying around two full frame camera bodies and 4 heavy lens’s for 12 hours at a time!
I then purchased the little Fuji X100t after reading the reviews from a couple of well known fuji ambassadors, now i have to say this was a perfect travel camera/gig camera/family camera, I love it, but I never really had much success with it at weddings!
My Canon gear that had served me well but was looking battered and it was obvious that it would soon need replacing. Once again I started following the blogs of the Fujifilm ambassadors and started to get excited with the Fujifilm X-Pro2 and the new The Fujifilm X-T2! Lets fast forward as I’m boring myself!
Lee's current kit:
My kit now includes 2 Fujifilm X-T2’s a 50-140mm 2.8, the 56mm 1.2 and the 16mm 1.4 lens (i will be adding a lens to bridge the gap between the 16mm and the 56mm in time)
So what have I learnt in changing over?
Well firstly, Im now carrying around 2.5kg less equipment than before, I really can feel huge difference!
I shoot always in manual for everything, so shooting in manual on the Fujifilm X-T2 came so natural, there was little or no learning to be done! The tilt screen is a God send.
I went on a training day with Chris Chambers Photography, I felt smug as the other members lay on the floor getting muddy and damp, i simply crouched down and tilted the screen, I shoot low, high and waist height now, why? because I can!, this is not really possible without the tilting screen because of seeing whats in the frame and focusing, well not for me anyway!
Lee's go to lens:
My lens of choice for when I’m taking portraits at the wedding or capturing guests chatting, is the 56mm, with its 1.2f stop i simply love the results it achieves.
So is the Fujifilm X-T2 a wedding camera?
For all the reasons I’ve mentioned if you were to give me two 5d mark 4’s right now, hand on heart, I would not trade these fuji’s in! Why would I? They have the focusing I require and the speed shutter rate I require, even without the booster grip! Yes its a cropped sensor, but connect a prime lens to this you have an amazing fast, light, versatile camera, and we have not even gone into Video in camera options!
The support I have received from the Fuji community has been amazing!
Here is the cheese folks!
I became a photographer because I fell in love with a camera!
and now?
I guess, Im a born again Fujiholic!
Lee Glasgow
www.leeglasgowphotography.co.uk
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A Fujiholics Story Revisited, Warren Millar
A Fujiholics Story Revisited recently caught up with Warren Millar to see if anything has changed since his A Fujiholics Story at the beginning of the year and to see what he planning to do in the future.
When we last caught up with you, you owned a Fujifilm X-Pro1 & X-T1, is this still your current setup?
I still have, and use my X-Pro1 and X-T1 but have added the X-Pro2 which I now use for most of my gig photography alongside my X-T1. My X-Pro1 is now the camera I carry around with me everywhere I go usually with the 27mm attached. The X-Pro2 is a great camera and I have grown to love it.
You stated that the 50-140mm 2.8 zoom lens was your favourite lens, with other lenses available since, is this still your preferred lens?
It’s still my favourite lens. For what I normally photograph its ideal. In my time I’ve used quite a few great pieces of glass and the Fuji 50-140mm f2.8 is right up there amongst the best. I have recently got a Samyang 12mm which will be getting used a lot I think.
Out of the current Fujifilm X series line up, is there anything you have got your eye on buying?
Oh yes I would love to own an X-T2 , I was lucky enough to use and have a little play with the X-T2 before it came out. Alongside my X-Pro2 at gigs and when working at The Studio (a music venue where I’m the resident photographer) they would make a killer combo. I live in hope that sometime soon I will have one.
You made the switch to mirrorless from DLSR a while ago, has using X series cameras changed the way you approach your photography?
Without a doubt, I think I said this in my first “Your Story” for Fujiholics. The X Series brings back the magic of photography for me and makes me think more about the images before I even press the shutter, even in what can sometimes be a fast moving environment like the press pit at a festival.
A while back you ran a gig photography workshop for a group of photographers, how did that go?
It was a great day, I loved every second of it and I got some great feedback from the guys and girls who attended. Take a look at the blog post that Jim very kindly posted from the day. I must thank my fellow Fujiholics and good friends Jim and Richard for turning up on the day and helping me out, I know for a fact their contribution to the sessions were well received by all in attendance. Also a big thanks to the lovely guys at “The Studio” where we held the workshop, anyone that knows me also knows how much I love working there. A great place for local live music and art. Not forgetting “Faster Than Bulls” who played a great set for us all. Look out for another gig photography workshop there around February next year which is in the planning with a great band lined up to play for us.
What are you future plans?
Things are looking up, like I said I am planning another gig photography workshop in February 2017 again at “The Studio” and also looking forward to working with Liverpool's great music webzine “Get in to this” starting this October. I will also be covering “Shiine On Weekend” at Butlins Minehead for these guys with what looks like a great line up including “Echo and The Bunnymen” “Black Grape” and “Cast” just to name a few ( I may need to pack my dancing shoes!) So not too bad considering I no longer do this full time but to be honest I have never enjoyed myself so much and I do think Fuji and Fujiholics have a lot to do with this.
Any advice for anyone etc?
Only to get out and shoot more. Shoot what you enjoy shooting and have fun. The best way to do this is to get to a Fujiholics “Photowalk” the people you will meet there are great and a lot of experienced photographers who are more than willing to help and freely give advice. So just get out with your cameras and enjoy.
Love and Peace x
Warren
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A Fujiholics Story Revisited - Rich Waine
Fujiholics Story Revisited last caught up with Rich Waine back in April 2015 when he explained to us why he was a Fujiholic. In this article we ask what he has been doing, his opinions regards the current X Series line up and what he has planned for the future.
Since your featured 'A Fujiholics Story - Rich Waine' has anything changed much?
Good question, well I am still a active Fujiholic. I am still employed full time in the IT outsourcing industry so photography is still a hobby for me. But over the last 18 months I think I have found my comfort zone with photography.
As some people know, I am not the most outgoing or confident person unlike how I may appear on social media so I try and keep my photography within genres that I feel comfortable photographing. The last 18 months I've been encouraged to boost my confidence by follow Fujiholics Matt Hart, Jim Moody and our new convert Warren Millar as well as many other great friends such as Elaine, Jude, Sarah, etc so I have been trying to get to as many Fujiholics events as I can.
I fear these people are starting to see a dry humoured side of me they probably didn't expect after first meeting me.
In your last article you stated you had a Fujifilm X-T1 and a Fujifilm X100T, has your equipment changed much?
It has, I still own my Fujifilm X-T1 which I still have a great fondness for. It has been my main camera for my music photography, it has been soaked with rain & beer and been knocked and dropped countless times so it's never let me down, but since the last article I have traded the X100T in for the Fujinon 50-140mm f2.8 zoom lens which is just simply out of this world. The X100T is to me, probably the best fixed lens camera i have ever used but I was always conflicted if I should keep it in my collection or not mainly because I didn't have the time to use it and as the 50-140mm got released, it made sense to trade it in for that.
I currently own a Fujifilm X-T10, which has become my everyday camera when out and about, it usually has my 35mm lens attached all the time. The X-T10 also doubles as my 2nd camera at music events where I use it with my 12mm Samyang lens, 18mm or 35mm Fujinon lens. I find that the X-T10 is great for walking between crowds at festivals and as a street photography camera.
I am also a proud owner of the compact X-Q2. I have been after one of these since Richard Wan from Fujifilm dangled one in front of me at The Photography Show in 2015. The build quality on it is very impressive and the focusing is very fast. It is nice to have it in my laptop bag or keeping in the glove box of my car.
Out of the current line up, is there anything that you have got your eye on?
There are many exciting products in the X Series line up at the moment. Over the last 18 months it has been great to see Fujifilm engage with customers and develop and further enhanced their product lines including the recent announcement of a medium format camera, the GFX 50s which stole the show at #Photokina2016
Fujifilm have also released the X-Pro2 and a X-T2 which feature bigger sensors and even better colour reproduction. I do not own any of these cameras at the moment but I have tested them on many occasions while attending various Fujiholics events/photowalks and I do intend to purchase a X-T2 when I have done enough dancing down at the social club to pay for it.
One of the surprise cameras I owned was the Fujifilm X-A2. Dubbed a 'Selfie' camera it was actually pretty good and the XC kit lens, although the outer case was made out of plastic it was a very good lens. It was a nice camera to use and at the time made a perfect starter camera for the younger photographers who are active with the likes of Facebook and Instagram. Fujifilm has since released its successor the X-A3 which I thinking about purchasing as they have upgraded the sensor size in that.
Hopefully, some time in early 2017, I plan on upgrading my Fujifilm SP-1 printer to the new SP-2 which is supposed to have better print quality and is now powered by AA batteries. These are cool to have at gigs/events as you can print someones photo and write your contact details on the back. They are also very cool to use in a wide range of photography projects.
You seem to have been doing a lot of music photography over the last 18 months, do you have anything else in mind?
Yes, I have been really interested in my music photography and I try and shoot as many local music festivals as possible. One of my long term projects I refer to as 'Low Key Artists' has really developed over the last 12 months or so. The project is probably a marmite sort of thing with some people but to me it is a way of showing a artist or musician isolated with a instrument etc. It has been great that many of the festivals I have been covering this year, I have been in the company of fellow Fujiholics Matt, Jim & Warren, but I do think that they should be thanking me for bringing a element of humour and wit to the group.
During 2017 I am hoping to do a lot more colour music photography and I am hoping to do more landscape, long exposure and motorsport photography.
I am also excited that I was recently asked to be part of the Fujiholics team. Fujiholics has really grown over the last 18 months and it is nice to be able to use technical skills towards helping to rebrand Fujiholics to help continue taking it forward and to give something back to the community that's been a great confidence builder for me.
There is also some very exciting events & workshops planned so I am really looking forward to being part of those. I am quite looking forward to 2017.
Richard Waine,
http://www.fujixmad.com
e: richie@fujiXmad.com
Instagram: @fujiXmad
Twitter: @fujiXmad