Archway to Venice | Weekly Photo #49

I did have a trip to Amsterdam scheduled for the end of this month which we have had to cancel. I was really looking forward to going as it was my first visit to Amsterdam and I’d already started to prepare my must-see places to photograph. I don’t travel as much as I would like so when this trip was cancelled due to the wretched global situation, it was frustrating, but I do appreciate why it had to be done. I think all travel plans this year will be impacted in some way from cancellation to significant disruption while social distancing needs to be observed. I have tried to move the trip back to late August but we will have to wait and see how that goes.

One trip I did take was to Venice in 2018. It was my second visit and after travelling to this beautiful city just a year earlier in 2017, I fell in love with the place and wanted to return so, not long after I got back from my first visit, a return trip for the following year was booked and it then that I captured this week’s photo.

I have created a page on my website where you can see some photos and stories I wrote from my first trip in 2017 here A Weekend in Venice.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/850 Sec | f/2.8 | ISO1250

One thing I like to do in Venice is to wander the streets and side canals without any particular destination in mind but to just see what I find. With so many twists and turns, it’s easy to get lost but every so often, you turn a corner and a new surprise greets you such as a beautiful church or basilica or a bustling square with bars and restaurants. As I wander around, I’m always on the lookout for a photo opportunity and whereas I will typically have a subject and composition in mind and work a location until I have the photo I'm after, sometimes the photo opportunities are spontaneous and I only have a split second to capture the shot and this photo is a great example of that.

As I crossed a bridge over a small side canal and descended down a flight of stairs, the light from this archway behind me caught my eye. It was just over my shoulder and looking back, I could have easily ignored it but thankfully I didn’t and turned around to see what was there. The gondola was being framed beautifully by this brick archway but was disappearing fast and I could instantly see the story, even mystery of the image. Without any time to check my camera settings, I switched it on and framed the composition the best I could and only just managed to take the photo before too much of the gondola had passed. After a quick check on the screen, I knew I had the shot but being Venice, I couldn’t dwell and had to keep moving to see what the next corner had in store.

I like this photo a lot. I like the pastel shades in the water, contrasted against the reds in the brickwork and I love the green of the foliage hanging down from the top of the arch. There are, however, some things I would like to change. First, I would have included a bit more of the archway, but this wasn’t possible as just to the left of the opening, there was some discarded building rubble that would have been too distracting if included. I also find the gondola cover a little messy, but you can only work with the subject you are given and I suppose in a way, having it there makes the gondola look a little more authentic.

Technically this photo isn’t perfect, but technically Venice isn't perfect either. It's about capturing the essence of the city and even with some rustic brickwork, an archway, and the stern of the gondola, you clearly know what this is and where it was taken. It’s subtly obvious.

If you want to see more photos from this trip to Venice, check out a post I wrote that features a set of black and white photos I took after the weather turned the following day. Photographing Venice in Black and White.

Until next week.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

Circle of Light | Weekly Photo #48

Like most people, life gets quite busy, and rarely do I get time to sit down with a cuppa and enjoy a nice book but in the last couple of weeks, I have taken advantage of the time indoors and done just that. I love to read about the story behind the shot and the photographer’s personal thoughts about a particular image. It’s why I write these weekly posts after all. The book I’m reading at the moment is called “Masters of Landscape Photography” (Amazon UK link) and I think this is a great book for two reasons. Firstly, it features some stunning photos from 12 of the world’s top landscape photographers such as Joe Cornish and Art Wolfe. Secondly, each photo is accompanied by a few words written by the photographer about capturing and processing the respective image. Understanding the thought process and motivation to take a given photo helps understand the wider story that surrounds the image and for me at least, creates a deeper connection to the photograph itself. The book also includes some great questions and answers and includes some of the settings and equipment used for every photo shown. If, with everything that’s going on right now, you need some landscape photography inspiration, this might be just what the doctor ordered.

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF16mm F2.8 | 16mm | 15 Seconds | f/13 | ISO160

Around 5 years ago, back in my Nikon days, I took a similar-looking long exposure image of the London Eye which is still one of my favourite photos from back then and over the last couple of years, I’ve been trying to capture an updated version with my Fujifilm camera so it was sod’s law that the day conditions were good and the photo was on, I didn’t have my tripod with me.

To get a night-time long exposure photo like this a few different elements have to come together. Obviously, it needs to be dark and the lights on but still early enough that the London Eye is still running so the spinning movement can be captured. Next, you want to avoid a high tide so anything floating in the foreground is low enough to be out of shot. If not, you will need to point your camera higher, creating more distortion to correct later. You will also have too much sky and a lot less foreground meaning you would lose the lights and colour reflecting in the water.

I was heading out from Westminster Station to take some night shots of London with my Fuji X-T30 and newly acquired XF16mmF2.8 prime lens (which you can read all about here) and just before the heavens opened, I noticed that this photo was on but without a tripod, my only option was to rest my camera on my camera bag, shuffle it around a bit until the image was level and pointing in the right direction and once in position, I dialled in the settings (f/13, ISO160) and took the shot. The full list of settings can be seen underneath the photo.

Back in Adobe Lightroom, I needed to straighten the photo, adjust the white balance to cool down the orange tones created by the city lights and sharpened the photo using the high pass filter in Photoshop.

Stay safe, stay inspired.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

Sunburst at More London | Weekly Photo #47

What makes this whole lockdown experience just about bearable is the nice weather we’ve had in the UK throughout April. Just getting out for a walk in the sunshine each day is a welcome relief from the hours we have to stay indoors and if it was cold and wet outside, I suspect the whole mood would change and patience would be wearing a lot thinner than it is already.

With the nice weather comes some beautiful sunsets and I will often be caught staring out of the window longingly like a pet waiting to be let outside just to go and explorer and experience the great outdoors once again. Thankfully, over the last few years, I have taken advantage of as many opportunities as possible to head out and photograph this special time of day and it gives me some comfort to look back on these photos and appreciate some of the sunsets I have been fortunate to capture.

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF18-55mm | 18mm | 1/90th Sec | f/13 | ISO160

Without any new landscape or cityscape photos in the last 5 weeks, I continue to mix in a bit more of my previous work into these Weekly Photo stories. This shot of London was taken early last year during what was a glorious springtime evening. I had spent a few hours trying to make the most of photographing a clear, blue sky day in the city by looking for strong shadows and harsh light with little real success and as I wandered along the Thames I was keeping my fingers crossed that some interest in the sky would appear during the golden hour.

As it was nearing 6pm, I hadn’t yet settled on a composition and time was running out. The sun was starting to dip close to the horizon and the golden hour was in full swing. As I crossed Tower Bridge, I managed to get into position to capture this classic view of the Shard behind More London and City Hall just in time before the sun dipped out of view behind the buildings.

Normally, when capturing photos looking directly at the sun to create this starburst effect, I will take a number of photos to get the very best from the scene. For instance, I will bracket the shots and merge them in Lightroom later to recover some shadow detail as when shooting directly into the sun, with only one exposure, those buildings would almost certainly be rendered as a silhouette. Also, I will take an image with a smaller aperture (larger f number) to maximise the sunburst effect which would result in extra-long light streaks and add more wow factor to the final image.

Unfortunately, as I arrived the sun was disappearing fast and I had no time to take all of the different photos I mentioned above so, instead, I set the camera to bracket mode, the aperture to f/13 and just began shooting. Although I do feel with a bit more time on location, this photo could have been even better, I’m still really happy with how it turned out.

This photo is also included in my recently updated London Sunrise and Sunset gallery.

I do hope this nice weather continues here in the UK and wherever you’re reading this article from, I hope you are managing to find some positives throughout your day to help get you through these crazy times.

Stay safe, stay inspired.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

My 10 top tips for photographing London

London is one of the most photographed cities in the world and with so many inspiring views from epic cityscapes to ornate details, after just a short time out with your camera, you will be hard beat to come away without a good crop of photos. That being said, with just a few useful pointers that will help you plan and inspire while out in the city, you can increase your chances of going from taking a few OK photos to taking a few great photos of London.

One thing to note before we dive in is that although some of these tips are specific to photographing London such as some of the locations I mention, most of the tips can be used in any city or town you happen to be in so just because you might not be photographing London, it doesn’t mean you can’t take some of these ideas and apply them locally to you.

So, let’s not waste any time and jump into my 10 top tips for photographing London!

#1 Check where and when you can use a tripod in London

This photography tip is an important one because the use of tripods in London is to some, a contentious topic. Experiences and therefor opinions of when and where tripods can be used will vary so although I won’t be able to say definitively what is or isn’t ok, I will be able to give you some general advice to help you manage this ambiguous subject.

There are some well-known areas of London that have some very strict “no tripod” rules such as the area around County Hall and the London Eye near Westminster Bridge as well as More London and City Hall over by Tower Bridge, as these are all technically private land. There are, however, plenty of places you can still use a tripod to capture some great shots along the Thames. Directly in front of the Tower of London on the north side and the areas around Tate Modern and the Millennium Bridge are good examples to start.

My personal experience has overall been positive. I have taken my tripod into London countless times and can count on one hand how many times I have been approached about the use of my tripod. I tend to stick to the rules and I’m aware of the absolute no-go areas so, overall, I have learned to work around the restrictions avoiding any necessary telling off from the local security guards. Check my advice below so you can be as informed as possible when heading into London with your tripod and remember, the vast majority of outdoor places are ok with tripods providing you act responsibly.

Research the location

Before you travel, do your research. Check the owner’s website if they have one or ask the photography community. Knowing the rules can help if you get approached by someone less informed and in some situations, enables you to reasonably and respectfully stand your ground if you know tripods are allowed.

Look out for the tripod police

If you are unsure of the rules and there are no signs, go ahead and set the tripod up but always be ready to be approached and told to put the tripod away.

Avoid confrontation

If approached, just be polite and respond appropriately. The guards are just following instruction and even if you come across a wise guy, the best thing to do is move on and avoid any unnecessary confrontation.

Be considerate to others

Even if tripods are allowed, remember that you have no right of way over anyone else so try to keep out of the way to avoid your tripod being bumped or worse, someone tripping on one of the tripod legs. Photographers have a hard-enough rep and we certainly don’t want it to be made any worse.

#2 Embrace the grey weather when photographing London

You may notice as you read this post that all the photos have a common grey, almost monochromatic look to them. This was a deliberate choice I made to keep the images consistent but also show that London can still look great in what most consider bad light. London gets cloudy. I mean, like, all the time and anyone who visits the city has a pretty good chance of experiencing this pretty dull weather for themselves. So when heading out with your camera, you have to keep an open mind as to the style of the photos you will likely walk away with and instead of being put off or unmotivated, try to embrace the weather, seek out some interesting shapes and lines and let the darker clouds give your photos a sense of mood rather than let them defeat your inspiration.

In this previous blog post, I talked about how a wet, miserable day in London turned out to be a surprisingly positive shoot: Capturing London on a Cloudy Day.

#3 Photograph London’s financial district on the weekend and don’t forget to look up!

Like most major cities around the world, London has a financial district, well actually it has two. One in the Square Mile (The City of London) and the other over at Canary Wharf just east of the city. The thing about most of these financial companies is that they tend not to work weekends and as such, this part of London pretty much shuts down over the weekend which for street photographers is less fun but if you want to capture some of these cool skyscrapers and empty London streets, it’s a great location to spend a few hours having the place nearly all to yourself.

While surrounded by all these tall buildings, why not have a go at some “Look Up” shots like this one here. Not an original idea but with the ever-changing London skyline, there is always a new view to be captured and best yet, you can take these types of photos any day of the week!

#4 Get out early to photograph London’s popular tourist hot spots

London can get really busy, particularly at the weekend around the popular tourist hot spots and if you are looking to capture the location free of too many people, then you really must avoid daytime and evening visits. Instead, set your alarm for 4 or 5 am and get out to these popular locations before most of the tourists have even sat down for their hotel breakfast.

London’s great for an early start as public transport will be running and you can get anywhere quickly enough. In addition, you get to be out during the very best time of day for photography as the light is always best in the morning, it’s so much quieter and you have the entire place to yourself for a short while.

#5 Get up high for free, without booking and photograph London’s rooftops

Although there are plenty of opportunities to get some cityscape photos from high up above the streets of London, many come at a cost for entry or requirement to buy food or drink but there are a few rooftop photo spots in London that don’t cost or even require advance booking and you can just rock up on the day and take advantage of some of the epic views of the city and start shooting. Below are my top three to get you started.

One New Change (Find it on Google Maps)

• Great for fantastic high-up and close-up shots of St Paul’s Cathedral.

• Tripods allowed? No.

Tate Modern Viewing Platform (Find it on Google Maps)

• Great for elevated views of the modern financial district in the city and fantastic views of St Paul’s Cathedral from across the river.

• Tripods allowed? No.

The Garden at 120 (Find it on Google Maps)

• Great for a framed view across West London like the one posted above. Also, there are great rooftop views of Tower Bridge, Canary Wharf and St Mary Axe (aka The Gherkin).

• Tripods allowed? Yes.

#6 Photograph the London skyline by walking the South Bank

My absolute favourite thing to do with my camera in London is to walk the South Bank between Westminster and Tower Bridge. This stretch of the Thames Path is popular for good reason as you get to experience some of the best views of London’s skyline available. Although the walk itself isn’t too long, you do need to allow a couple of hours at least if you visit for the first time as you will no doubt stop to capture all the great views as you go.

Along with the classics such as Big Ben, St Paul’s Cathedral and the high rises over in the city, the South Bank offers some great opportunities to capture some street photography and architecture too so, like much of London, it has something for all types of photographer.

Bonus Tip: If you have time, walk back along the North Bank. Although a little quieter, you can still grab some great cityscape photos of The Shard, Tate Modern and the London Eye.

#7 Walk London’s streets and photograph the hidden views

Next up in my top tips for photographing London is to get out on foot and find some of the hidden views of London. They are dotted all over the place and provide great opportunities to take cool, framed photos of some of London’s architectural icons.

The centre of London isn’t a huge place and if you're prepared to get your walking boots on and wander the streets you can be rewarded with some great views of the city. Unless I have a planned shoot and need to get somewhere in good time, I would rather wander the streets with my camera instead of missing potential opportunities by rushing across the city on public transport. If you’re short of time, I’ve listed a few of the more popular backstreets that provide great views of London which also include links to Google Maps to help you find them.

Lovat Lane (Find it on Google Maps)

This cobbled street provides a great foreground for this fantastic view of the Shard from across the river.

Watling Street (Find it on Google Maps)

A great view of St Paul's Cathedral where you can make use of the buildings that flank the street to frame the cathedral and the yellow painted lines which provide some great lead-in lines.

St Helen’s Place (Find it on Google Maps)

This is a cute little street hidden amongst the high-rise buildings in the city and provides some classic London architecture with a great view of St Mary Axe (The Gherkin) which towers over where you stand.

Those were three of the more popular hidden views of London but there are so many more which can be found as you wander the street so if you have time, grab some comfy shoes and head out to explore.

#8 Shoot London, whatever the weather

Number 8 in my top tips for photographing London is a bit of an extension of tip #2 as it also talks about the weather conditions but this time, it’s all about having some fun and shooting in the rain.

“Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass...It’s about learning to dance in the rain.”

— Vivian Greene

Just like the grey, cloudy weather, there’s always a good chance that you’ll get rained on when in London so my top tip is to embrace the conditions as much as you or your gear will allow so you can capture some really cool shots during or just after the rain.

The photo below is a great example of how the scene changes in the rain. The wet cobbled street in front of the Tower of London provides this cool reflective surface making for a much more interesting foreground.

After mistakenly leaving my weather-sealed camera at home, I took a chance and went for a walk into London after dark to take photos in the rain which you can read all about here: On Location | Photographing London With The Fuji XF16mm F2.8.

There are endless opportunities to get creative by taking photos in the rain such as reflections in puddles or shooting through streaky wet windows so don’t let it put you off and grab your raincoat and hit the streets whatever the weather.

#9 Add people for interest and scale when photographing London

London boasts some of the tallest buildings in Europe but it can sometimes be challenging for those taking the photos to portray the scale and “epicness” of the city to those viewing the image, so, tip number nine is to try including people as a familiar point of reference that will allow the viewer to grasp just how big (or small) the objects in your photo really are. Including just one person, like in the photos below, can add just enough interest, mystery and scale to your cityscape photos without them looking overly cluttered and distracting.

Referring back to previous tips in this post, including just a single person in your composition in one of the busiest cities on the planet can be a tad challenging so as per tip #3, hit the city at the weekend when there are fewer workers around or tip #2 by getting up and out early when most people are still waking up. By doing this, it gives you the best chance of avoiding the crowds and capturing that solitary figure to help you portray the scale in your photos.

#10 Do your research before heading out to take photos in London

This final tip is about what to do before a shoot. Whether you have a particular location and type of photo you want to capture, or you like to just head out into the streets to see what photo opportunities jump out at you, you can always increase your chances of coming away from a shoot with a few good shots if you prepare to some degree.

Scout the location to get the best compositions

If you are after a specific shot of London and have limited time, research the location online before heading out. Use Google Maps, Flickr or Instagram to understand the best place to stand so you don’t miss the best light wandering around searching for that killer angle and not being able to find it fast enough. My website also has lots of London based articles to view and gather useful tips. Check out two of my articles below.

Check the venue information

Check opening times and like in tip #1 above, check the rules and regs they have. Not everywhere is photographer friendly and knowing this before you head out may well save a wasted trip.

Check the weather and conditions

Check the weather before you head out! The conditions, wind direction or angle of the sun can all affect the final image and, in most cases, can make or break the shot. Also, knowing the weather conditions will help ensure you head out with the right clothing and camera gear so you’re not standing there soaked through because you didn’t bring your raincoat rushing your shots so you can get back inside.

Bonus Tip: Stay safe and have fun

It should go without saying but please do not take your safety for granted. Photographers tend to carry quite a bit of valuable gear and not all areas of every city are safe to wander alone so, whatever you do, be discrete, take care of yourself and where possible, take a friend with you, especially at night.

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That’s it. My top 10 tips for photographing London has come to an end. I do hope this article comes in useful for anyone looking to come and photograph London in the future or as mentioned earlier, using the transferable tips to photograph your local town or city wherever you live.

If you have any tips you would like to share, feel free to drop them in the comments below so everyone can take advantage and get the very best images when out photographing London.

A London Sunrise | Weekly Photo #46

One of the first things I’ll be doing after lockdown is heading out with the camera to shoot this city once again. Being out on my own with the camera is my therapy which ordinarily, I try to do at least once a week but so far, it’s been a month and counting since I took the camera on a shoot and I’m itching to get back out there. During this period of necessary lockdown, one thing I have done is to make sure my camera (X-T30 with the 35mmF2 lens) is out of the bag and available so it can be picked up quickly in an instant when an opportunity to take a photo that documents my family’s experience while our movement is restricted. It’s not something I will ever share online but more of a personal project to both record our own journey as well as helping me keep my camera skills sharp for when we do get to go out and explore the world once again.

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/2200 Seconds | f/5.6 | ISO160

This photo is part of a collection I took one morning in 2019 when I went for a walk along the River Thames at sunrise. I posted the full collection in a previous blog post called On Location | Photographing London With The Fuji XF35mm F2.

On this shoot, I had the X-T30 camera and 35mm F2 as I wanted to stay light and agile and find new compositions while keeping things simple and equipment decisions to a minimum. I had no plan to shoot anything in particular nor any idea as to what the weather had in store on that morning, I just wanted to be out with the camera and see what I could capture. Although at face value, walking around the city with a single 35mm prime lens might appear limiting, in fact, after just a short while my eye was in and I started to see all different compositions from the more obvious to the creative and I had great fun playing with depth of field to create some interesting shots. Do go and check them out using the link above.

Starting my walk near London Bridge, I ventured over to More London and captured a few of the classic compositions before heading along the river towards Bankside and the Millennium Bridge. As I crossed the bridge, the sun was hidden behind some of the clouds which defused the light enough to take the shot and not cast the entire foreground as a dark silhouette, leaving just enough detail and interest in the scene. This is also a testament to how good the dynamic range is on modern cameras. I am regularly blown away by how much detail can be recovered in the shadows in shots like this.

There is a cluster of taller buildings to the left of the frame which if included would change the entire look and interpretation of the image. I guess that supports the compositional lesson that it’s not just about what you include in the frame, it’s also about what you leave out.

Until next week.

Trevor.

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

Under Westminster Bridge | Weekly Photo #45

It is inevitable that as time goes by, photography styles change and I’m no exception to this. Up until about 2 to 3 years ago, my approach to editing was to try and create high impact, stand out photos with lots of contrast and colour but I could be guilty of pushing every photo in this direction, some past their limits which, when looking back was a result of my immaturity and lack of patience, focusing on the result above all else. More recently, over the last couple of years, my style is changing again and I’ve started to appreciate that I don’t need to make every photo I take stand out in the same way but instead, I have started to enjoy capturing images in all conditions and instead of pushing the photo to look a particular way, I try to be more sympathetic to the subject and conditions it was taken without forcing it to be something it’s not during post-processing.

Fujifilm XT-10 | XF18-55mm | 21 mm | 0.6 Sec | f/10 | ISO200

As pretty much all of the world is stuck in their homes at the moment, there’s not much in the way of opportunity to get out and shoot so I have been spending my time getting my photographic house in order by getting through some of my editing backlog, organising some files, checking my backups and having a bit of fun printing some of my recent photos. In addition to those things, I’ve been looking through some of my older photos and having a go at re-editing a few to see how they might be improved using newer features since released in Lightroom and a few upgraded editing skills of my own. One photo I had a go at re-editing was this one I took in 2016 of the Elizabeth Tower and the Houses of Parliament from under Westminster Bridge.

Even though it was about 4 years ago, I remember this day well. It was my very first trip into London after switching from my Nikon D90 to the Fujifilm X-T10 and I was excited to be in the city to put the camera through its paces. As I crossed Westminster Bridge, the heavens opened and without any kind of weather sealing on this camera and lens combo, I had no protection from the rain so I ducked under the bridge to get some shelter. While I waited for the rain to die down, I spotted this fantastic view of the Elizabeth Tower framed by the arched entrance to the tunnel. Although it was still raining, there were still plenty of people passing through, so I moved to the back, set up my tripod, and when a suitable gap in the foot traffic appeared, I grabbed the shot.

When I first processed this photo in 2016, I didn’t take into account the conditions while editing the photo and in my opinion, tried too hard to introduce colour and warmth to the photo to make it pop but looking back, it was a dull, grey and wet evening and I wanted this mood to show through in the final photo so I brought those colours back down, cooled off the white balance and pulled the shadows down just a little to darken areas around the frame.

It’s a little strange because, at the time, I was happy with the first effort but after 4 years, that photo no longer represented my current taste and style and I’m a lot happier with this new and proved version which makes me wonder, how many other good photos do I have which I once dismissed? I guess there has never been a better time to go and have a look.

Please stay safe and talk to you next week.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

First Light at More London | Weekly Photo #44

As I write this post, we in the UK are coming to the end of week two of our national lockdown and I can’t help but wonder, like many cities around the world, how much of a ghost town London must be right now. It’s strange when I think about it as I’m always trying to capture my cityscapes free of people as I like a more simple composition and too many can make my photos look a bit too busy. It’s one of the reasons why I make the effort to get up and out so early and London looking like this photo below 24 hours a day is strange to me. I truly hope humanity can get on top of the situation as fast as they can so the suffering can stop and we can all get back to something that resembles normality.

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF16mm F2.8 | 16mm | 8 Seconds | f/11 | ISO160

I’m pretty sure that this part of London is my favourite place to take photos at the moment as I’m constantly looking for opportunities to head here. It’s got everything a cityscape photographer wants from epic views at both sunrise and sunset, old and new architecture and plenty of opportunities to build layers and compositional interest into the image to boot.

On any given day, I’m happy if I get a single good image during a shoot but on a rare occasion, I get a bit lucky where I manage to capture a few photos that I would consider keepers. In fact, during this particular morning, I managed to grab 4 of them and this being the second I have shared to date. The first being in week 34 where I posted the photo I call City Blues.

On this shoot, I had with me my Fuji X-T30 and the 16mm 2.8 prime lens and as I was walking between More London and London Bridge I spend a bit of time around this area looking for compositions to capture. Using my small table-top tripod I keep in the bag, I rested the camera awkwardly on the ledge overlooking City Hall and Tower Bridge and went about taking this 8-second exposure seen here. The blue hour was still in full swing but what I like about the photo is the small amount of colourful pre-sunrise light peeking over the horizon and lighting up some of the clouds.

With the mid-level clouds and gap over by the horizon, it had the makings for an epic sunrise that day and it most certainly delivered. By the time I got over to London Bridge, the sky looked like it was on fire and probably the most dramatic sunrise I had ever seen in London. I haven’t quite finished editing that photo yet but once done, I will share it a future post.

Please try to stay safe and well and I will talk to you again next week.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

Spinning Wheel | Weekly Photo #43

Before I dive into this week’s post, I wanted to let you know about an article I published last week all about printing the photos we take. In the article, I talk about what I’ve printed recently and why I think it’s so important for all photographers to commit ink to paper and the benefits it can bring to your craft. I decided to share the article now as with many of us on lockdown due to the global pandemic and unable to head out to take photos, I honestly feel this is a good opportunity to go through some of your most important work and have a go at printing some photos. For people that love their photos, there is nothing like holding them in your hand as physical, tactile pieces of art. You can find the article on my blog here: Why every photographer should print their photos.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 21mm | 95 Seconds | f/7.1 | ISO200

I haven’t shared a long exposure for a few weeks now and as I was rummaging through my photos searching for this week’s post, I came across this photo of the London Eye which was taken from my favourite vantage point looking down the River Thames from the Golden Jubilee Bridge. One of the reasons I take long exposure photos is that it allows me to remove some of the clutter from the image such as the ripples in the water or in this case, smooth the motion of the London Eye and this composition suits this approach perfectly as I can exclude the taller buildings which are just out of frame on the left allowing this modern icon to stand tall and dominant in the frame and simplifying the composition even more.

In my main cityscape kit, I use the Formatt-Hitech 85mm system and for this photo, I used their 10-stop ND filter to give me the shutter speed I wanted to smooth out any movement in the scene. The London Eye moves quite slowly and takes around 30 minutes to go all the way around which means if the exposure is too short, all you really get is a bunch of slightly blurry passenger capsules. To get this effect that makes the London Eye appear to be spinning more rapidly, the exposure really needs to be at least 30 seconds or in this case, with the ambient light fading fast, I ended up with a 95-second exposure.

Shooting from this spot is not without its challenges when taking longer exposures like this. First off, the bridge is a bit wobbly. The Golden Jubilee Bridge is attached to the older Hungerford Bridge and when a train crosses, everything shakes a little which can cause some camera shake. Also, as the camera is pointed down the Thames, the river traffic takes longer to pass through the frame and when taking long exposures, finding the right gap to take a photo can be difficult, to say the least. Looking through Lightroom at the photos from that evening, of the 10-15 shots I took, this is the only photo I managed that was both sharp and free of ghostly looking riverboats in the water.

I visit this location regularly enough and more often than not, leave without a shot in the bag and for those times I do leave empty-handed, I have to remind myself that the hunt is as important as the catch which can be a bitter pill to swallow.

Stay safe and well while we all get through these uncertain times and I’ll talk to you next week.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

Why Every Photographer Should Print Their Photos

It’s 2020 and the shift to digital photography happened a long time ago. We now take more photos than ever before and nearly all these photos are stored and consumed on our phones and computers. With so many photos to consume, the time we all spend looking at these photos gets shorter and shorter to the point where these days, from the point they are taken, most photos likely never get seen by human eyes at all.

In this post, I’m going to dive into the world of printing and talk about how I currently print my photos and provide my reasons why I believe everyone should be printing their own best work in some form or another. What I won’t cover in detail is how to prepare photos for print and instructions for printing photos at home as that’s an entire topic on its own. I have already written a blog post called How I printed this photo of the Shard, London but that post only really skims the surface of printing at home as I wanted to keep the post light and free from too much jargon so everyone could follow along but there is so much more information that could have been included.

“The negative is the equivalent of the composer’s score and the print the performance.”

— Ansel Adams

How I Print My Photos

I’ve been printing my photos for many years, long before I first took up photography as a creative hobby. When I was young a photo was only a photo when it was physically printed as apart from using a slide film and projector, there wasn’t really any other option. Most of us would head off to the local print lab or drugstore and hand in our film to be processed ad collected 24 hours later. Although times have changed and photos can now be displayed in both digital and analogue form, for me at least, nothing has changed with regards to my desire to commit ink to paper and have my photos printed.

I consider myself lucky to live in an age where there are so many more options when it comes to printing photos, from your standard print to fine art paper, large wall-art such as canvas and acrylic and my personal favourite, the photo book. 20 years ago, when I would pick my prints up from the lab, I didn’t look forward to spending the next few hours sticking them all in an album. It was tedious work, to say the least. These days, photo books are the new photo album and whether it’s using a phone, tablet or laptop, anyone can design and create their own books featuring a collection of photos with relative ease.

After visiting Venice in 2017, I wanted to round off my amazing trip by printing some of the photos I took. I decided to do two things. First, narrow down my favourite images and present them in a small coffee table style book and second, choose just a small selection to be framed and hung on my wall. I chose around 35-40 photos that were taken across the weekend and designed a book in my usual minimalistic style. I chose to print the book with a quality soft-touch matte cover which oozes quality with the photos printed on the thicker 250g silk matte paper. I could have chosen cheaper paper but this book was for me, a one-off and I wanted it to look and feel great to read.

Scroll through a few pages of the book below to get an idea of the layout and style.

After the book, I wanted to print a few pictures a bit bigger and hang them on the wall in my studio. I chose 3 images that fit together and printed these on my Canon Pro-10s printer. I chose these three images in particular as not only are they photos of what I think shows off the beautiful city, but they also fit well together visually. All three were taken around the same time, early in the morning and each has strong blues from the sky and warm oranges from the rising sun.

While preparing the images for printing, I increased the vibrancy, added a little sharpening and brightened the images by around a stop of light. Once printed, I used frames with mounts in the same style as my other prints on the studio wall and hung them as shown in the photo below.

If you want to see more photos I took in Venice, check out my Weekend in Venice project which includes lots more photos and information about the final prints. The project page can be found here: A Weekend Photographing Venice.

Printing my Weekly Photo Series

One advantage of publishing a single photo each week is that the numbers are low enough to make printing the entire collection manageable. When I kick off a project or in this case a photo series, I immediately think about the project end game and that will include what plan I will have for the work I produce.

As with the Weekend in Venice project, I wanted to create something I could grab in a pinch and review all of the photos I produced for the series so, in keeping with the same size and style as before, I put together the Weekly Photo 2019 photo book below.

Although I share a photo on this site and social media each week, this book was for me as above all else, this is still a personal project and for all of the work that goes into producing all of the posts and choosing the photos, I wanted something I could keep and potentially recreate each year as I build up a convenient collection of my work.

I heard a quote on a podcast I was listening to recently from a photographer/teacher called Katrin Eismann and she said: “The truth is revealed when the ink hits the paper” which nicely sums up one of the reasons I also print my photos onto A3 paper.

As with the book, every photo I publish each week also gets printed. Although I love my photo books, seeing and holding your work printed in A3 or larger allows you to appreciate the photos in all of their high-resolution glory but importantly, it highlights issues with the print you may not have noticed on the computer such as compositional distractions or errors introduced when the photo was being processed. I’m no exception as I’ve previously been forced to take an image back into Lightroom or Photoshop to fix a problem found only after I had printed the photo. It’s frustrating at the time but I want these prints to represent my best work.

I print my photos on a Lustre paper which I find suits my style of photography well as the paper is not too glossy but the resulting image still has good contrast and a nice sheen to it and works well when mounted and framed behind glass.

The only problem when printing all of these photos in A3 is how I store and keep them safe. I’m keen to hear what others do to store their prints but currently, I use an A3 black presentation box which has enough room to hold around 60-70 prints all separated by a sheet of acid-free tissue paper. I don’t really know the long-term effects of the photos that sit at the bottom of the pile with all of the weight pressing down but time will tell I guess and for now, it’s the best option I can come up with.

Why every photographer should print their photos

So, I have talked a bit about my personal photo printing but if you still need help convincing to get your images off of the computer and onto paper, then here are some reasons why I think you should give it some serious thought.

#1 There are so many print options to choose from

As I mentioned earlier in this post, when I grew up, print options and finishes were incredibly limited and most photos would end up in a shoebox in a cupboard. We are so lucky to live in an age where there is literally a different print option for every photographer. If you want to create a book like I have, great, what size do you want? How many pages? What cover style? If I wanted to print a single image large and hang it on my wall, do you choose a traditional framed print or do you create a modern, vibrant acrylic or aluminium print? Don’t even get me started on how fun the Fujifilm Instax system is. With so many options, choosing the best format for your work has never been easier.

#2 Prints make a great backup

Now, I don’t strictly buy into the fact that one day all of the electricity can go off and along with it your photos will be lost if not printed as truth be told, if we all suddenly lost power, I would be much more worried about surviving than my photos of London. But that being said, if for some reason I was to lose my digital copies in some freak data loss situation, having my best work printed means they couldn’t be affected and I would still have a copy of my photos should the worst happen.

#3 Making a good print of your work means you get to learn a new skill

Ok, so technically yes, you can just grab one of your photos and upload it to the cheapest online print lab and order without giving it much of a thought and if that works for you, then happy days but, if you really want to make sure your printed work looks its absolute best then learning the steps needed to prepare your files for print is essential. This might include understanding why prints might come out darker than your screen or digging further down into colour science or print profiles. This may all seem a bit complicated to some but for those who want to spend the time to understand all of this will stand the best chance of getting a print that properly reflects the work they see on their screen.

#4 Printing your photos does not have to be expensive

Truth be told, after a very limited amount of research, I can’t find much in the way of what a print costed 20 years ago compared to today but one thing I do know is that you no longer have to print an entire roll of film just to have a few good photos. You can now walk into a high street lab with just a selection of your favourite photos on your phone and hand them over or upload just the photos you want to be printed to an online print lab, confident in the knowledge that the prints you get back will be keepers. This selective approach means you no longer have to waste money on printing photos that end up in a shoebox in the cupboard, never to see the light of day.

On the flip side, printing can be an expensive undertaking. If you choose to print on fine art paper or choose to buy a professional printer and print at home then you are going to make a more considerable investment but, the key-word here is “choose”. You can choose to spend more money but with so many options at either end of the price spectrum, you just don’t have too.

#5 Print for prosperity

Apart from the photo books I mentioned above that showcase my personal work, I have also printed many family albums in the form of photo books covering a great holiday, an event or a period of time. For example, I started creating yearbooks for my kids when they were born, converted my wedding album to a photo book and I now have close to 30 photo books and counting on my shelf which I hope one day will be on the shelves belonging to my children and maybe even their children’s shelves and so on. A photo book won’t suddenly go obsolete because the picture format is no longer supported or the social media platform they are hosted on suddenly shuts down, so, over long periods of time, the only way to ensure your photos remain accessible and if you’re lucky, passed down the generations is to get them printed.

#6 Printing your work can make you a better photographer

I mentioned earlier in this post how printing my photos bigger will emphasise compositional issues, distractions or processing errors and I think that’s a good thing. As you hold your printed work in your hands and study it, what you are doing is logging both the good and the bad within the image so if there is something you spot that works well, you know to continue doing it and on the flip side, learn from any mistakes you made while taking the photo.

When I post photos to social media sites such as Instagram, I know that most people will be viewing the images on a mobile device and this smaller form-factor is far more forgiving to issues within the photo but when I am out taking photos knowing that the photo I take could end up as a large format print, I know I have to take extra care while taking the shot, making sure the photo is as good as it can be as any flaws will be on full show once the ink hits the paper.

Should you print at home or use a professional print lab?

Before I wrap this post up, there is one last point I want to touch on and that’s the decision to print using a professional print lab or to invest in the equipment needed to make prints at home. This is a long, complicated subject but I will try to summarise why you might choose one over the over with as fewer words as possible, so, here it goes.

Printing your photos using a professional print lab

So, let's start with why you might use a professional print lab. When printing using a lab, you are effectively outsourcing the task to print your work which depending on what you are trying to achieve could be a good or bad thing. Although you are giving up the control to someone else to produce the final print, if you prepare the work properly and choose a good lab using recommendations you trust and conducting your own tests, you can end up with some quality prints easily enough. On top of this, compared to printing at home, the initial outlay is low. You don’t have to pre-purchase any equipment which is an advantage but if you have issues with the print, the turnaround time and delivery charges can add up.

Printing your photos at home

Printing at home is initially more time consuming, more technically complicated and certainly carries far higher up-front costs as you need to buy the printer, paper and inks before you can even start. Like photography itself, I regard printing my own work a craft in itself and one that needs time to explore and learn to get the very best out of it which can involve learning topics such as printer profiles, screen calibration, etc. The advantages of printing at home are that you retain full control of your final print and you can get your work printed faster, in particular, if you need to tweak and re-do.

Print your photos and bring them to life

What we do with our digital photos will continue to evolve and who knows what the next best thing will be but one thing I know for certain is that we will all continue to view most of our photos on a screen, in many cases taking only seconds to process the image before we skip to the next.

It doesn’t have to be this way for all of our photos. For those that evoke a special kind of emotion, be it fond memories, loved ones or simply a picture you are proud to have taken, bring those select few to life by making a physical print and displaying it in your home or a book on your shelf rather than being stored and forgotten on your phone or computer lost among the many thousands of other photos you probably have there.

I hope this post has gone some way to both inspire and convince more people to print their work and if you have any more tips or experiences you want to share with the community, feel free to write a comment below.

The Sun Will Rise | Weekly Photo #42

As I sit here in the UK during some incredibly uncertain times, I know that for most people right now, photography is far from the top of the agenda. I get it and I feel the same. But, while there are many people being impacted by this unprecedented global event and there are far more important and practical jobs which are being done by many heroes all over the world, I do feel that positive distractions are incredibly important for everyone now more than ever, and I for one am grateful for all of the content creators out there continuing to provide these welcome creative distractions including my favourite photographers and YouTubers.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 10mm | 1/6th Second | f/7.1 | ISO200

I first shared this photo in a recent article I posted titled On Location Photographing a Sunrise In Ghent. This is the view looking down the River Leie from St Michael’s Bridge in the historic city of Ghent in Belgium. Although there is no clear focal point in this scene, when I first crossed the bridge during the day I knew this view with its fantastic reflections was one I had to revisit and try to photograph during my planned sunrise shoot the following morning.

After taking a photograph of Saint Nicholas’ Church during the blue hour, the sunrise exploded into the sky, casting these beautiful colours across the scene. With the tripod set up, I decided to go as wide as possible for this shot to get as much of the reflections into the foreground as possible so on to the Fuji XT2 I attached the 10-24mm lens set to 10mm.

Although there are some strong compositional elements such as the long, sweeping lines created by the river bank and the detail in the reflections creating a strong foreground, there isn’t really a main focal point which lets the image down somewhat. A taller building that stands out like an ornate clock tower would have been perfect on the right hand third but we can only capture the view we see. What I feel does work and helps here is the way the light is well balanced across the scene as the sky on the right lighting up the buildings on the left help make sure the light isn’t too strong on just one side.

I will be using some of this time during social distancing to process a few photos I have yet to get to and write a few blog articles that have been on the back burner. I will continue to post my weekly photo posts during this outbreak which I hope will be a small but welcome distraction and although it seems a long way off yet, as the title says, the sun will rise again.

Stay safe.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

Canary Wharf Reflections | Weekly Photo #41

This is another one of those fantastic views of London that is rapidly changing. I recently returned to this spot over on the Isle of Dogs and found a handful of new buildings have appeared in a relatively short period of time, changing the composition you can see here. I don’t claim to be a documentary photographer in the traditional sense, far from it in fact, but I do think my photos are in their own creative way documenting the city skyline and over the years will show just how much London has changed.

Fujifilm X-T10 | XF10-24mm | 10mm | 7 Seconds | f/9 | ISO200

This week’s photo is one from the 2017 archives. I remember this day well as it was my first outing with my then, recently purchased Fujifilm XF10-24mm lens and was looking for a location to put this wide-angle through its paces. I decided to head to Blackwall Basin as it provides a great view of the buildings over at Canary Wharf and if you are lucky, some beautiful reflections too. This spot can be a little difficult to find but for those local to London looking to try and take the same photo, you need to head over to the east side of the Isle of Dogs and head toward Blackwall Basin. Here is a link to the location in Google Maps.

On my first visit to this spot, I didn’t have a wide enough lens that could capture the view in one frame so I ended up taking a series of photos and stitching them together. With this new lens, I was now able to capture the entire vista in a single image so off I went to have another go. My aim for this photo was to use the lens to capture the epic buildings and their reflections in the water to provide some foreground interest but on the day, it was a bit windy and the water had a few ripples across the surface so I ended up using a 10-stop ND filter to slow the shutter enough to smooth the water and remove the ripples. The end result was a nice smooth surface but the reflections lacked the clarity I was after. You win some, you lose some I guess.

I’ve never visited this location at sunrise before and with the sun rising from the east and behind this vantage point, the scene will be illuminated from the front which could make a cracking image so it’s definitely on the list for a future shoot when the current round of building work is complete.

Have a great week and given the current situation, I wish you all good health.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

On Location Photographing A Sunrise in Ghent

I have been sitting on this post since last year, never quite getting around to publishing it but at last, it is finally out in the wild.

In the Summer of 2019, I travelled to the city of Ghent in Belgium with my family to explore what I consider one of Europe’s best-kept secrets. Since falling in love with the chocolate-box city of Bruges during a trip the year before, we were left wanting to see more of what Belgium has to offer.

I won’t be covering the entire trip in this post as I have already done so in a previous blog which you can find here: On Location | Photographing Ghent. Instead, this post will talk about my early morning shoot during which I was lucky enough to capture a beautiful sunrise across this fine city.

Although this trip to Ghent was a family city-break, I still made a point of getting a sunrise shoot in by heading out early on my own to try to photograph the city while looking its best, during the best light and with fewer people around. Getting out earlier gives me a few hours to explore the deserted city, photograph away and have the best compositions to myself.

Contrary to my daytime setup where I had with me the smaller Fujifilm X-T30 camera, for this shoot, I took with me the larger XT2 workhorse which I use for my main landscape/cityscape work. Normally, I wouldn’t have so much gear with me when on a city-break but as we travelled to Ghent by car, I had the luxury of taking as much camera gear as I wanted.

Photographing a Sunrise in Ghent

Before visiting Ghent, I researched the city for photo ideas and had spotted a composition similar to this looking across the bridge towards Saint Nicholas' Church, so, when I arrived in the city, I headed to this spot first. I wanted to incorporate the ornate streetlights that lined the bridge so I looked around for the best composition as I waited for the sky to get a little lighter but wary not to wait too long just in case the lights were turned off before I had the shot in the bag.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 18mm | 2.6 Seconds | f/11 | ISO200

From the other side of the Bridge and with my wide-angle 10-24mm attached, I managed to capture a few more shots, including this view down the River Leie just as the sky came alive with these fantastic sunrise colours. This stretch of river and between St Michael’s Bridge and Grasbrug is one of the most picturesque areas of the city and where I spent most of the morning with my camera soaking in all of the history during these peaceful early hours.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 10mm | 1/6th Second | f/7.1 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 25mm | 1/3rd Second | f/11 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 18mm | 0.5 Seconds | f/11 | ISO200

Once done on the bridge, I wandered down to the water’s edge. Having noticed how the disorderly buildings looked as they lined the river and with the 10-24mm lens still attached, I had a go at photographing them front-on and capture some of those great reflections at the same time. Although the light in the sky was amazing, it was all coming from behind the buildings so I had some dynamic range issues to deal with in post-production but the excellent XT2 dealt with it well and I was able to recover a lot of detail from the underexposed buildings. I also struggled to align the composition properly because the building to the left of the clock tower is leaning to the right making the entire scene appear wonky so the final image isn’t quite as good as I was hoping for but I know there is potential there if I visit again, maybe at the other end of the day so the light hits the front of the buildings.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 11.5mm | 1/12th Second | f/11 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 18mm | 1/8th Second | f/7.1 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 55mm | 1/17th Second | f/7.1 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 36mm | 1/400th Second | f/3.6 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 31mm | 1/1700th Second | f/5.6 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 17mm | 1/400th Second | f/8 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 30mm | 1/340th Second | f/8 | ISO200

When the last of the sunrise colours were gone, I spent some time wandering back along the river and around St Michael’s Bridge taking more photos during the morning golden hour. I had a great time capturing the city while continuing to play with the lead-in lines and reflections along the water’s edge.

If I had one regret after the shoot, it’s that I didn’t take any long exposure photos during this sunrise. In reality, if I had attempted to spend the time to set up the kit, get the filters ready etc, I might have come away with nothing so it was probably the right decision and given that the city is such a short drive from Calais, I can always come back to this charming city and try another time.

It wasn't too much longer before the best of the light was gone which was my cue to leave and meet my family for breakfast at the hotel feeling pretty happy I had a few good shots on my memory card.

I hope you enjoyed this On Location photo travel blog and please get in touch if you have any questions.

Cheers

Trevor

City Glow | Weekly Photo #40

For those that don’t know the city well, this view of London might be less recognisable but I suspect that won’t be the case for too much longer. When crossing Westminster Bridge, most people will be on the other side, checking out the view of the London Eye but this is the view looking in the opposite direction and judging by how fast this part of the city is being developed, it wouldn’t surprise me if this area of the city starts to get a bit more attention soon enough.

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF55-200mm | 67mm | 9 Seconds | f/7.1 | ISO160

During an early morning stroll in London, I crossed Westminster Bridge at the start of the blue hour on the hunt for new views of the city and as I looked towards the west, down the River Thames, I was drawn to how the buildings in the distance were lit. It had a kind of futuristic, sci-fi city feel, specifically how the lights are designed on the St George Tower (that’s the tall, round building that looks a bit like a battery).

The inevitable consequence of having these areas of development are all of the cranes creating these red dots all over the frame. When I first started to photograph London a few years ago, I would be quick to Photoshop as many of these out as possible as these temporary structures offered nothing and distracted from the main subject but more recently, I tend to leave them in. Yes, it means the photo has these distractions around the photo but they tell their own story about these areas of London and a time of significant change from the traditional, industrial architecture to these modern, striking developments. Some oppose this change, some embrace it but whatever you think, this is the inevitable change needed to keep London firmly on the global stage so there is no stopping it.

While out on this early morning photo walk, I had with me my Fujifilm X-T30 and the impressive XF55-200mm. I love this lens as it is small (compared to similar focal length models) and super sharp. When I spotted the composition, I knew I had the right kit with me as I would have to zoom right in, close to 70mm to isolate the best composition and to ensure the buildings are prominent in the frame.

It was very windy in London and I had to hide next to one of the street lamps to shield myself from the gusts but still, the longer lens was wobbling and with the lens OIS (optical image stabilisation) switched on, it still took me around 8 or 9 attempts to get a sharp 9-second exposure. I could have shortened the exposure by raising the ISO or opening up the aperture further but I was deliberately trying to get a longer exposure as it helps smooth out the river a little, making the already busy composition a little less so. Thankfully, my perseverance paid off and the wind died down for long enough for me to eventually capture the shot.

Until next week.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

Shards of Chrome | Weekly Photo #39

Who else uses presets when editing their photos? I’ve built up quite a collection over the years and included in these is a collection I call “City Chrome” which I use for many of my photos of London and can end up being a huge time saver. Granted, individual approaches will differ but I use presets as a kind of starting point, a base edit if you will. Then, once I get close to the look I’m after I will finish editing the image by making manual adjustments from there. If I create a new look that I like and want to recreate later, I will save those settings as a new preset in the collection.

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mm F2 | 35mm | 1/450th Second | f/2.8 | ISO160

This photo was taken during one of my recent shoots from the top of St Paul’s Cathedral. After climbing 528 stairs to get to the Golden Gallery, you are awarded some epic views of the city. I have shared two other photos taken from this location in previous Weekly Photo posts which you can read by following the links here:

• Wester Towers | Weekly Photo #24

• The View from St Pauls | Weekly Photo #19

As I circled the pinnacle of the dome, absorbing the epic views of London, the striking shape of The Shard caught my eye and away from the other high-rise buildings, it appears to stand alone, dwarfing the buildings that surrounded it. With these nice tones and textures in the clouds creating a great backdrop and The Shard positioned dead-centre in the frame, I went ahead and took the shot.

What I particularly like about these high-up, cityscape photos is the detail you can capture and the subtle areas of interest you can pick out as you look closer at the photo. Once I have studied the photo, taken in the entire scene and start to look closer, I get drawn to the details such as the tiny red buses crossing the river over on London Bridge or the smoke billowing out of the tall chimney over in the distance.

So back home, I used one of my City Chrome presets to kick off the editing process but in reality, the photo didn’t need much in the way of changing. With the preset applied, the photo was still a little underexposed so I lifted the exposure a touch and added some contrast. Next, I reduced the saturation a little, particularly the blue tones and finished off with a subtle vignette to pull more attention into the middle of the photo.

Until next week.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

A Brief Moment in Brighton | Weekly Photo #38

Outside of London, Brighton is one of my favourite places to take photos. Not only is it the closest beach to where I live, but as many of you might know by now, I tend to include the “hand of man” in my photos and for a seaside location, Brighton certainly has that in abundance. I typically get drawn to man-made structures such as the West Pier’s skeletal remains as the imposing but frail-looking structure makes for a strong subject to photograph but the photo here is less about the subject or particular focal point but more about capturing the moment, the mood or feeling I experienced during the shoot.

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mm F2 | 35mm | 1/1,700 Second | f/2 | ISO160

I have already shared this photo as a part of a collection in a post I wrote titled Mental Health and Why Photography Matters and decided to share it again in my Weekly Photo series as not only is it my favourite of the set but it’s the one that connects with me the most. I can find it difficult at times to portray the feeling or mood I experienced during a particular shoot. It’s something I try to work on but find others accomplish this far easier and better than I do. Or at least that’s the perception I get. So, when I do take a photo that represents the mood accurately in a shot like this photo here, it creates an instant connection with me and rekindles the memories and emotions I felt on that particular morning.

As I walked along the beach with my X-T30 Camera and 35mm F2 prime lens, I spotted someone standing close to the water, seemingly deep in thought and appearing happy just to be out at a time many other people rarely get to experience. This is exactly the kind of feeling I was experiencing and one I wanted to capture. The sun was just starting to rise off to the right and with the clouds just lining the horizon, the light was slightly defused resulting in this beautiful warm glow across the scene. Aware the moment could be over in an instant, being careful to make sure the figure in the distance stood out and was not lost amongst the structure of the pier, I quickly crouched down low to include the pebbles in the foreground and captured the photo.

Technically, the photo itself isn’t amazing. The composition isn’t particularly balanced being heavier on the left-hand side and the person standing on the beach isn’t in the best position compositionally but not all photos have to be prize winners to mean something to you. After all, who do you take photos for? It’s sometimes good to throw the rule book out the window and just enjoy the photo because of the connection you have with it, not because it’s technically and compositionally perfect.

Cheers,
Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

Good Morning London | Weekly Photo #37

This is the view looking east, across London taken from up at the Sky Garden on a cold but beautiful January morning. From this vantage point, you get a stunning view of some of London’s iconic landmarks such as Tower Bridge and the Tower of London that once, themselves dominated London’s skyline.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 17mm | 1/60th Second | f/4.5 | ISO800

Photographing London’s Rooftops

This was my first attempt at capturing London’s rooftops from the Sky Garden so I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect when I got up there. It was still dark when I arrived so I had a few minutes to wander around and pick out some possible compositions but it didn’t take too long to find this cracking composition of the city. I like the way the river flows into the frame taking you on a journey past Tower Bridge and all the way across to the Isle of Dogs where you will see some subtle silhouettes of the cluster of skyscrapers just poking through the horizon.

With the composition chosen, I had to get a bit creative with supporting my camera as it was still pretty dark and tripods aren’t allowed up in the Sky Garden. Thankfully I had my rather flat backpack with me which made for a somewhat stable platform to rest my camera and with the lens hood attached and pushed up against the glass helping to cut out any reflections, I positioned my camera ready to take the shot.

To capture the photo I wanted, I had to get the timing of the shot just right as I needed to wait long enough for the sun to light up the sky but not too long so that the city lights started to dim, leaving the foreground across the city muted and uninteresting. I wanted the photo to pop a bit more so with my aperture opened up and a shutter speed of 1/60th second, I started firing off shots as the sun rose towards the horizon in front of me.

The main challenge in post-production was to avoid pulling back the shadows in the foreground too much. If I had done so, the darker areas would look a bit too HDR-like and I would end up with a noisy, messy image. I had to tweak and adjust bit by bit to get the look I want whilst avoiding pushing the editing too far. I’m quite pleased with how it turned out.

Here are a few tips to help anyone preparing to shoot from a high vantage point, through a glass window which I have taken from a previous post which also features more photos taken on this very morning: Photographing London’s Rooftops

#1: How to work around the no tripod rule:

Some locations that have a “no tripod” rule turn a blind eye to the mini tripods but having tried this in the Sky Garden, I was quickly corrected by the staff, so for this location big or small, you can’t use a tripod. Improvising, I laid my camera bag on the floor right up against the window and used it to rest my camera on. It was a little tricky but it did the trick and my images were nice and sharp.

#2: How to shoot through dirty windows:

This one is simple. get the aperture as wide as you can. Use f/2-4 if you can get that wide. Shooting these distances won’t give you any depth of field issues but even though most lenses are not their sharpest wide open, that’s the trade-off to render all of the marks on the window out of focus and invisible in the final image. Also, with a wider aperture, you will have a faster shutter speed which helps combat the no tripod rule above.

#3: How to avoid the reflections on the glass:

When taking photos through glass windows you will no doubt have some trouble with reflections. The cheap and easy way to avoid this is to place the end of the lens right up against the window. Although this might be effective, it restricts you to the angle you can shoot so you might not be able to capture the ideal composition. The alternative is to invest in a lens hood. I used the Ultimate Lens Hood for the photo above which fits around the end of the lens and creates a reflection-free area when pressed up against the window. I still find lens hoods like this a little tricky to use but at least I can capture the compositions I want without those pesky reflections.

I hope some of you will find these tips useful.

Talk to you next time.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

On Location Photographing London With The Fuji XF35mm F2

Up until about a year ago, I suffered from a condition I can only describe as “Lens FOMO”. The notable symptom is the fear of missing out (FOMO) on the perfect photo because I don’t have the right lens with me. To combat this, I would always carry a full bag of gear so I was ready and prepared to capture any subject in nearly all conditions. This strategy is all well and good, but a full bag is a heavy bag and that weight can get tiresome and the long term effects on my back surely can’t be good, right? Something had to change.

Fast forward to today and things are quite different. I realised some time ago that I needed to relax more. Worrying about missing the shot was taking the fun out of the shoot and being frustrated if I wasn’t heading home with some kind of successful photo was missing the point in a really big way. What many photographers, including myself, realise at some point along their journey is that the hunt can be as satisfying as the catch. When I first took up photography, I was in it just for the photo. In my rather ignorant opinion, that was the be-all and end-all. It goes without saying that catching the killer photo is still the target but these days, the exploration, escapism and creativity are all just as important which is why, when I head out on a shoot, I no longer feel the need to take all of my gear with me and will often just head out with a single camera and one or two small prime lens. With this minimalistic setup, I feel liberated and agile to explore different angles and compositions and best of all, have great fun doing so.

You can read more about the gear I use and how I pack my bag depending on the shoot over in this post: What’s in my camera bag (2020 Edition).

Photographing London with The Fujifilm X-T30 and XF35mm F2

Recently, armed with only my Fujifilm X-T30 and the super light XF35mm F2 lens, I headed out before sunrise for a walk along the river in London to take a few photos. The compact X-T30 combined with any of Fuji’s small prime lenses is such an awesome combination. You get all the latest and greatest tech inside the X-T30 such as Fuji’s latest X-Trans sensor and super-quick autofocusing with a small, fast, high-quality prime lens. With the tactile knobs and dials to play with, for me at least, it is a joy to shoot with.

I also posted a similar article while out in London with another of Fujifilm’s compact prime lenses which you can read all about here: Photographing London With The Fuji XF16mm F2.8

I had no plan to shoot anything in particular nor any idea as to what the weather had in store. I just wanted to be out with the camera and see what I could capture. Starting off near London Bridge, I ventured over to More London and captured a few of the classic compositions before heading along the river towards Bankside and the Millennium Bridge. With such a small set-up, I started to look for new, creative compositions and had a lot of fun opening up the aperture and playing with a shallow depth of field.

Below are a few of the photos I captured during the shoot.

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/20th Second | f/2 | ISO800

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/13th Second | f/2 | ISO160

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/20th Second | f/2 | ISO160

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/280th Second | f/4.5 | ISO160

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/45th Second | f/2 | ISO160

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/125th Second | f/2.8 | ISO160

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/750th Second | f/2 | ISO160

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/450th Second | f/2 | ISO160

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/70th Second | f/5 | ISO160

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/1,100th Second | f/5.6 | ISO160

Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mmF2 | 35mm | 1/3,200th Second | f/5.6 | ISO160

Although the single camera, single lens strategy is not just limited to prime lenses, I wanted to just touch upon why I have a couple of them in my bag. Unlike a zoom lens which allows you to get closer or further away from the subject while keeping your feet rooted to the spot, prime lenses have a fixed focal length which means you have to zoom with your feet (as in walk closer or further away from your subject). Zooming with your feet doesn’t work in all situations and may sound restrictive to some, but it’s that limitation coupled with typically wider apertures and increased image quality that attracts so many to them. Primes tend to simplify the process, stripping away the compositional decisions around the focal length. What you see is what you get. This for some is far more liberating than having a zoom lens.

Overall, it was a great morning to be out photographing the city. I had some nice light and had some fun with the wide aperture and shallow depth of field. I still occasionally head out with a full bag of gear, particularly if I have a shot in mind such as a long-exposure, cityscape image for which I need extra equipment but I do so much less frequently these days. With only a single camera and lens, I feel free to wander the streets and find angles and unique compositions that I just wouldn’t think to look for when weighed down by a big heavy bag on my back.

Speak to you soon.

Trevor

150 Seconds in London | Weekly Photo #36

This is my own take on a classic composition of Tower Bridge with the Girl and the Dolphin fountain in London taken back in 2018. It’s a popular location for photographers and tourists alike as it provides a great view of some of London’s iconic landmarks. This particular long exposure photo is a personal favourite of mine which I have printed large and hanging up on my wall at home.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 16mm | 150 Seconds | f/11 | ISO200

Before I speak about the photo itself, I wanted to talk about how this shot reminds me of the patience needed while out and about taking photos like this in London. This is such a busy spot and it was such a nice evening so there were quite a few people about, trying to grab a peek at Tower Bridge. Normally when taking long exposures, if the exposure is long enough, someone walking into my shot won’t register in the final image but if they stop, even for a short while, I will get a blurry, messy figure in the scene.

Being someone who likes my cityscape images clear of people and with so many people stopping to look at the view, as much as I tried, I could not get a clean image. Every time I thought the coast was clear, I fired off a new shot only for another person to walk into the scene and stand there long enough to be visible in the final image. I won’t lie, it was incredibly frustrating and if I was that way inclined, I may have asked some of the people to move out of the way while I took the shot but firstly, I don’t have the front to do this and secondly, what right do I have to do that anyway? Being there photographing this location gives me no greater rite of passage and everyone is entitled to stand where they like and take in this epic view even if it means me missing the shot altogether. So, I just stood there, waiting patiently for a gap in the foot traffic with no outward signs of frustration and while I still had good light, I was eventually rewarded with a 150-second window without someone stopping for too long enabling me to capture the image.

This photo was taken on my Fujifilm XT2 and wide-angle XF10-24mm lens. Using a wider focal length of 16mm meant that I could capture the entire scene without it looking squashed in and leaving the architecture enough room to breathe. I used my Formatt-Hitech 10-stop filter to give me the 150-second exposure allowing me to capture the movement in the clouds perfectly resulting in a kind of frame around Tower Bridge which I think works really well here.

I also have another black and white, long exposure of a slightly different composition which I published in week 21 of this Weekly Photo series. You can see that image here: Deserted City | Weekly Photo 21.

I was (and still am) really pleased with this photo. the light and movement of the clouds were just perfect and although it’s not too often I get the right conditions for taking a long exposure photo at sunset, I’m glad I was able to stay patient and wait it out as it paid off in a big way!

Until next time.
Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

Defenders of London | Weekly Photo #35

Some will recognise this distinctive structure but for those that don’t, this is the Thames Barrier situated just east of London, not far from the Isle of Dogs. It was erected in 1982 to protect the city against high tides and storm surges.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 28mm | 209 Seconds | f/10 | ISO200

As you will probably know, I do like a long exposure photo. Something about the ethereal, minimalistic look they provide means that for me at least, it’s the perfect technique to use when capturing a busy, sometimes overly cluttered London Cityscape. The process allows some of the tension in the scene to be defused enough to ensure the main subject can stand proud and distraction-free in the frame.

You can check out more reasons to give long exposure photography a try in an article I wrote a while back called Slowing Down Time | Why the Long Exposure?.

I took this photo a couple of weeks ago while on a shoot with Andy Conway. Andy is an excellent photographer and up and coming YouTuber based in the South of England. After meeting at Canary Wharf, we decided to leave the hustle and bustle behind and head east to capture the Thames Barrier. The weather was pretty miserable, the sky was lifeless and the light was flat so there was really only one thing for it. A black and white, long exposure image was on the cards for this shoot. After spending a minute or two scouting the location, we settled on this side-on composition of these imposing structures that appear to be standing in-line, at the ready to defend the city against their tidal enemy. With the camera mounted and a 10-stop filter attached to the lens, I went about capturing this 209-second exposure.

After converting to black and white, I process the image with a high key, minimalistic look which helped to emphasise the strong architectural lines of these powerful, intimidating structures. I used local adjustments in Lightroom to dodge and burn parts of the image to get the tones and brightness how I wanted and finished up with a bit of split toning to cool down the overall image and give it the clean, slightly metallic look I was after.

One last thing before we wrap up. For some, giving long exposure photography a try can be a bit daunting, but in truth, it really is quite straight forward if you understand what’s involved so, I wrote a 10-step guide that you can follow if you want to give this technique a try. Use the link at the bottom of this post to subscribe to my newsletter and a PDF copy will be sent straight to your inbox.

Cheers,
Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.

10 Top Tips For Taking Great City Photos

With so many people living in and around cities, it’s no wonder that cityscapes are a popular subject for many photographers but taking great cityscape photos doesn’t always come easy so, if you’re a beginner looking to give cityscapes a go or an experienced photographer in need of a bit of inspiration, here are my 10 top tips to help any photographer be successful in capturing their own amazing urban cityscape photos.

Before we start, I thought I’d just mention that although all of the example images were taken in my home town of London, these tips to can be used when visiting any city and in fact, some of them are transferable to other genres of photography such as natural landscapes and even street photography.

#1: Look for lead-in lines in your cityscapes

First off, let’s start with a classic compositional tool. I introduce to you the much talked about, famous amongst photographers, ever-reliable lead-in line!! OK, tongue and cheek aside, the lead-in line is a classic for a reason as they help lead the viewer’s eye around the frame, taking them on a journey which should eventually end at the main subject. Take the photo below, the lead-in line is created by the wall in the foreground which takes the eye from the bottom left to the right-hand side and up towards the main focal point which in this case are the high-rise buildings over in the city.

#2: Use people in the photo to add interest

Although I don’t consider myself to be a street photographer, I will on occasion include people in the frame to add another element of interest into my cityscape photos. You can use people as compositional subjects like in the shot of St Paul’s below where this man is placed in the opposite corner to the cathedral’s dome which helps to balance the scene. Alternatively, including a smaller, silhouetted figure like in the second image can add a little mystery to your photo so, think about how you can incorporate people into your cityscapes in the future.

#3: Try a long exposure to create a unique cityscape photo

Those that follow my work know I take long exposure photos of London’s skyline and one of the reasons I do so is that it provides a unique view of the cityscape which cannot be seen with the naked eye. If you are looking for that something a little different or want to simplify the scene somewhat, then try a long exposure image.

Top tip: Although long exposure photography can be a little daunting at first, I have created a useful 10 step guide to creating successful long exposure photos which you can download when you sign up to my newsletter here.

#4: Get creative and use a shallow depth of field

Opening up that aperture and getting creative with shallow depth of field is a great way to get a unique look in your cityscape photos. You don’t necessarily need a professional lens with a super-wide aperture such as f/1.4 or f/1.8 as it all depends on the distance your focus point is from your lens. Take the photo below for instance. This was shot with an aperture of f/5 with is achievable for nearly all lenses but because the focus point is close to the lens, the background is rendered out of focus.

#5: Have fun and frame your subject

Frames are a great compositional tool as they help to draw the viewers eye straight onto the main subject. You can have so much fun finding different ways to frame the subject so next time you are out capturing cityscapes, try looking for doorways, arches or even gaps in the railings to shoot through.

#6: Climb up high and photograph the rooftops

There is an ever-increasing number of high vantages points that provide stunning views of the city and although this trend is not just unique to London, I do know that in London planning rules require public viewing galleries to be incorporated into new high-rise buildings which means the number will only go up over the coming years. This is great news for photographers on the hunt for great cityscape photos as from this high up you get an entirely different perspective and the resulting images can be quite awe-inspiring when the conditions are right.

Top tip: There are a few tricks you can use to capture clean, sharp photos when photographing your cityscapes through the glass of a high-rise building which you can find in one of my previous posts here: London in the Mist | Weekly Photo 13

#7: Get really wide to capture a dynamic photo of the city

By using a wide-angle lens, you can have a bit of fun and capture some unique perspectives such as the one below of Canary Wharf over on the Isle of Dogs. Having a wide-angle lens enabled me to include the steelwork and chains into the scene which add interest, lead-in lines and a handy frame around the main subject.

#8: Capture the cityscape during blue hour

Photographing the city at blue hour can help create some unique cityscape photos as this is the only time of day when the ambient light is low enough for the city lights to be switched on but still bright enough for there to still be detail in the sky. This view of London’s Square Mile financial district was taken from the top of St Paul’s Cathedral and is a great example of how the city can look during the blue hour.

Top tip: Capturing the blue hour can be tricky if you are not prepared and ready, so, research the time of day the sun sets and blue hour starts in advance to ensure you are ready to capture your photo in plenty of time.

#9: Go for a cityscape at sunset

Sunsets are beautiful and here’s a newsflash, people like looking at beautiful things so when you have a great cityscape coupled with an awesome sunset then you have all the ingredients needed to capture something quite special. Although the sun rises and sets every day, a good, dramatic sunset doesn’t happen too often and when they do, they come and go quickly so do your research. Check what time sunset takes place, check the weather and cloud cover so when you head out, you give yourself the best opportunity to capture Mother Nature’s greatest show.

#10: Shoot the city lights at night!

I guess I could have used this image in the first tip above as it has a fantastic lead-in line (bonus tip: look for bridges as compositional subjects) but this tip is about going out after dark and capturing the city at night. London, like many other cities, takes on a whole new identity at night. 10 years ago, London’s skyline would consist of just dull orange lights but these days, with the modern high-rise buildings and projects such as the Illuminated River Project, London has made a great effort to spice things up and add a splash of colour to the city at night.

Top Tip: Close down the aperture to create cool starburst effects like those shown in the photo below.

A quick note about safety. It should go without saying but please do not take your safety for granted. Not all areas of every city are safe to wander alone so, whatever you do, take care of yourself and where possible, take a friend with you, especially at night.

Now, get out and shoot!

The most important tip of all is to actually get out and start taking photos. So, armed with these 10 top tips for successful cityscape photography, I urge you to go and give them a try in your nearest town or city and take your own great cityscape photos.

If you have any tips you want to share or if you have any other thoughts on this post, please post your comments below and feel free to share this article so that others might see and take advantage of these tips for when they are out photographing their local city.