It’s every photographer’s nightmare: “That email” from somebody telling you they’ve seen your work published in a place you didn’t know about. Usually this results in a sunken heart, some stern letters and frustration that yet another person has taken your work without permission. So, when I clicked the message from Joey yesterday, it was not only a huge relief – but also a pleasant surprise. It seems an agency I’ve been working with has […]
It doesn’t matter how many rooftops I’veĀ photographed from, wheneverĀ I’m in a new city I always getĀ that “wow” moment when IĀ look across the skyline for the first timeĀ – and this was no exception. From the top of a building (which was, in fairness, extremely tall in its own right!), I set up on the ledge and started clicking. Sadly, jpeg compression doesn’t do this imageĀ enough justice on-screen, but the tones of the sky and detail in […]
Well, it’s official – I got the news today that I’ve been awarded a Fellowship by the British Institute of Professional Photography (BIPP) š By their definition, an FBIPP award is “attainable for distinguished and exceptional ability and creativity” and my panel of landscape and cityscape images that were submittedĀ evidentlyĀ hit the mark! A Fellowship is considered as theĀ highest qualification that there is within the professional body and the fact I’ve been awarded one is quite […]
āVeneziaā ā print available to buy now What an awesome sight – being up before dawn on one of the first vaporetto (water bus) services across to Piazza San Marco (or “St. Mark’s Square” as we know it in English) and capturing San Giorgio in the distance as the gondolas moved gracefully in the tide, lapping the side of the lagoon. But Venice had a little surprise up its sleeve for me – just waiting […]
“Hey Paul, would you like to take over our official Instagram account for a week in January and publish some of your images as well as behind-the-scenes shots?” (Said Phase One to me a few months back). “Ummm – Yeah! Sure, that sounds cool!” was (of course) my answer. So, here we are on “Day 4” of my takeover, and I have to say it’s going pretty well. Everything you’ve seen on their Instagram accountĀ so […]
I’m rapidly becoming a huge fan of Sydney. This was the first place I ever visited in Australia, and while there are obviously many more beautiful places across the country to see, Sydney will always be the place that impressed me first.Ā My visit earlier in 2014 gave me the chance to shoot some unique (lucky!) images of the Opera House at sunrise as well as overnight during Chinese New Year – but this time, myĀ trip […]
You may not be aware, but 2015 is the International Year of Light (or “IYL 2015”) – a global initiative adopted by the United Nations and UNESCO to raise awareness of how light and opticalĀ technologies can promote sustainable development and provide solutions to worldwide challenges in energy, education, agriculture, communications and health. Along with over 100 scientific bodies spanning countries all around the world, SPIE organised a photo contest some time ago, and to my […]
What an amazing view – and what a privilege to be able to photographĀ it duringĀ a one-off event at such a special hotel location. I’ve always been a fan of the Shangri-La in Sydney, the views from the Horizon Club floor and Altitude/Blu Bar at the top of the hotel are simply the best panoramas you can get of the harbour. But this was an unexpected (and very gratefullyĀ received) honour to be allowed up onto the […]
“The City that Never Sleeps”, “Gotham City”, “The Big Apple”, “Empire City”, “The City of Dreams”, “New Amsterdam”, “The Melting Pot” – to everyone that visits or lives in this incredible city, the place leaves a lasting memory that means something different. One thing that is common to all who visit or wake up in this amazing place is the sheer sense of wonder as you look out over the skyline – and that’s what […]
It’s the one thing I promised myself I would never do after I upgraded my equipment from my Canon gear to a Phase One Medium Format system : re-shooting a cityscape I had already captured. But the lure of Shanghai’s rooftops on a clear night was just too strong, and here I found myself shooting “Shanghai Calling 2” with my 645DF+ and iQ280 digital back. Now, before I go any further, let my just clarify […]
This is Auckland, but not as we know it š This is the “Tiny Planet” version of my cityscape from New Zealand in June this year – and while only a bit of fun, I think it looks rather cool! Spending a week or so resting at Huvafen Fushi, I finally had time to start playing with some Apps I downloaded a long while ago. While there are much better (and higher resolution) ways of […]
There’s something really nice about arriving backĀ inĀ England for a few days to find some of your work, in print, waiting for you at home. This year the Royal Photographic Society has producedĀ its 157th International Print Exhibition,Ā featuring my image of Shanghai’s Nanpu Bridge – “Over The Rainbow” and both the RPS Journal as well as the Print Exhibition Catalogue were sat waiting for me to read when I got back from Shanghai. AsĀ the longest standing exhibition […]
Shanghai really is a city that needs to be seen from above to be appreciated. The problem is that getting up thereĀ in the more traditional way (in a helicopter) simply isn’t possible – so there is a growing movement of photographers who (ahem) “access” rooftops with key vantage points across the city. It’s not a risk-free process by any means, but when you get up there and can look down at the pace of things […]
Approaching the city of Auckland for the second time this year, I didn’t hold out much hope for a great set of images. Based on some of the weather “challenges” we’d encountered on the south island during this trip to New Zealand, despite being lucky with a few images it seemed that Auckland’s weather wasn’t set to be much better. Still, when you’ve travelled for 12 hours to get somewhere it would be rude to […]
The homepage of Phase One looks a little different today, as their feature on my cityscape work appears as the headlineĀ story online. š Backed by feeds on their Facebook page, galleries, email newsletters and more – this is quite someĀ campaign to get the quality of cityscape images that can be achieved with the 645DF+ and iQ280Ā out there and known. A year on from my purchase of their top end Medium Format equipment, I’ve taken quite […]
I was asked last week, as part of a written interview, if I’d ever had to get out of my “comfort zone” in order to get the shot I wanted – the answer, of course, was “yes”, and many times over. The next question was, funnily enough, about how I approach a brand new city in terms of locations and what to shoot. So, what better than a live demonstration as answers to both questions […]
As always, the most frustrating images to capture are also the most rewarding. At 7pm on New Year’s Eve, this is the night shot I was taking from a nearby rooftop looking out over Shanghai’s “Nanpu Bridge”. āOver The Rainbowā ā print available to buy now The bridge is one of two spans which link the two sides of the city – PuDong and PuXi. Not only is the HangPu river one of the busiest […]
