Pixelpost

28 Miles Offshore - The Isles of Scilly

Sun, 28 Feb 2010 12:07 +0000

Driving around the coast of west Cornwall toward Cape Cornwall and got this great view over to the Isles of Scilly. It requires a really clear day to see them. On the left you can see a hailstorm moving across St Marys the main island. It ended up going south and missing us. One of the great things about this area is you can see clearly what the weather is doing!

I don't know how good this photo actually is or if I am being biased more by my affection towards this part of the country and the Scillies in particular. This one is definately better blown up.

Hoped to get over there this year with the band but alas turned out to be too difficult to pull off. Just goes to show how cut off the place really is.

Mousehole Star4

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 19:03 +0000

View down the lane. Same details as the last 3, changed colour temps and luminosity etc. Still a bit blown out but the stars came out brill. Got a really nice surreal feel to this photo. Probably my favourite of the bunch.

Moushole Stars 3

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 21:33 +0000

Again taken from the field near to where we were staying. Tried really hard to get a good shot of the moon but it was so bright relative to everything else would have had to combine a number of shots. This one came out ok although it's a bit blown out.

Mousehole Stars2 / Mars Landing

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:00 +0000

Another photo taken that evening, I ventured into the field seen in the last shot to try and get some better views of the bay over to st micheals mount but ended up facing this way instead. I think most of these photos were 20 second exposures. I've left the red colour of the sodium light in but just desaturated it a bit along with adding a tiny bit of vignetting.

Stars of Mousehole

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 20:36 +0000

Been overdue a new photograph on here but have been busy battling the joyous issue of spam comments. Think I've sorted them now but means noone can comment :(

This photograph was taken last weekend whilst staying at a lovely cornish fishing village of Mousehole. It was an amazing clear night so thought I'd try some night photos with the beast aka 5dmk2. The light is courtesy of some sodium lights where we were staying. I've mucked with colour temperatures and colour luminance / saturation to get the browns and greens. The original scene was all red.

Captured on Film

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 19:45 +0000

On a recent trip to Edinburgh I took two rolls of Ilford HP5 ISO 400 Black and White using my Practica MTL-3 and two lenses. A 28mm f2.8 and 50mm f1.8. It's a completely manual camera and it's the first time I've taken photos on film for about 5 years. I'm actually really pleased with the results :)

You can see the whole set on FlickR here.

Ellie Williams - Album Launch Party Exeter Phoenix

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:15 +0000

The other week we supported the talented Ellie Williams at her album launch party. After our set I grabbed my camera and set about getting some snaps. Fortunately the lighting was great although not particularly bright. I've picked a few out of the set to post on here although you can find the full set on FlickR here.

Ellie Williams - Album Launch Party Exeter Phoenix

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:14 +0000

Ellie Williams - Album Launch Party Exeter Phoenix

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:14 +0000

Ellie Williams - Album Launch Party Exeter Phoenix

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 21:13 +0000

Plymouth HDR

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 15:30 +0000

Whilst on the theme of the dynamic city thought I'd chuck this old photo in. It's actually made from 3 bracketed images and combined to create this HDR (High Dynamic Range) image. This was used on the album cover for an old band of mine. I think this was taken back in 2006.

Charles Cross at Rush Hour 2

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:08 +0000

Another one of Charles Cross

Charles Cross at Rush Hour (with my new camera :)))

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:15 +0000

Took this tonight whilst killing some time. First chance to take my new camera out of the house. Taken on a Canon 5D MkII using Tameron 28-75mm f2.8. Amazed how sharp this lens is on this camera especially for the price. Tell you what though my computer is feeling the pain of 21mega pixels!!!

Winter Storm at Bigbury

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:45 +0000

Taken the other day following first decent storm of the year. Bigbury was particularly special as the waves were coming around both sides of island and crashing together in front of it. Pretty much everything was coated in sea salt too - both me and the camera!

Dartmoor 2

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 22:16 +0000

Another photo taken on Dartmoor today, this photo feels a bit like a painting to me and a friend commented similarly earlier when shown it.

Sunday on Dartmoor in November 1

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 22:14 +0000

I've really struggled getting good photos on Dartmoor, it really is all about getting good light. Had a couple of minutes of good light today and this is one of the results.

Sunset over Samson 2

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:20 +0000

Another one of the same sunset but this time taken using telephoto

Eastern Rocks on Isles of Scilly

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:40 +0000

Tried to process this one to emphasise the bleakness. These rocks experience some really extreme weather and it shows!

Scilly Seals 2

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:39 +0000

Had to wait to for the right opportunity to get the seals in the right position for this photo.

Scilly Seals

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:38 +0000

When on the Scilly Isles we did a boat trip to the eastern Isles nearest to lands end. Really enjoyed it and saw loads of seals which I was able to capture a few of using 70-200.

Rotting Boat

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:33 +0000

A rotting boat on the Isles of Scilly. It's a great place for finding things like this. Processed to exagerate the peeling paint on the boat and draw focus to it.

View through the Isles of Scilly

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:31 +0000

Another one from the Isles of Scilly taken using the Sigma 70-200 f2.8. I think this photography captures a lot about the islands in one shot. A boat - the main method of transport, the open seas beyond the islands, the many fragmented islands, the stone wall and the history there and also the lighter sandy water between the islands.

Beach on the Isle of Tresco

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:28 +0000

I find with many things in life I can be overly critical. I have also found that with photography if you focus too much on getting things 'technically' correct or the little details you can often miss the moment. I have been trying to put more photos up on this blog of late and not worrying too much about them being perfect. It is interesting to see the responses to some images I post on photography forums. I find a lot of people can be overly critical focusing on details and missing the point of a photo - not to say that they are wrong! I find it really interesting to get the opinions of those who aren't photographers themselves, it is often a very different perspective.Anyways, this is a photo I took whilst we were in the Scilly Isles this summer, a really special place. I can quite easily pick holes in the composition of this photo and at the time I really struggled to get all the elements I wanted into a photo whilst maintaining things like the rule of thirds and trying to capture the good light as it kept changing. In the end this is what I settled for.

Paul Recording 1

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:43 +0000

We were recording the other day, I play bass in this band all be it not very well. Paul was laying down some drum tracks so I tried to get some photos. There was a lot of clutter in the background but I tried to use some of the interesting background colours. Used off camera flash and on camera flash, not quite right balance but that's how you learn.

Doubletake

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 23:38 +0000

We were laying down some keyboard tracks tonight for our latest album (possibly a double one, oh how mellon collie). This was a pretty long exposure with the flash fired just before shutter closed (If I remember rightly).
I know its really busy but there is something about this photo I really like. Reading a book on black and white photography too at the moment which has inspired me to think about how changing the saturation of colour thus affecting the shades of grey can be used to affect a composition.

Drum Kit

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 23:34 +0000

Messing around with some off camera flash tonight. Hoping to do more of this in the next year and really invest some more time in learning about lighting (stuff like strobist etc). Again tried to make a more interesting composition by use of lines. I don't think this one is that great but it's ok.

Autumn Berries

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 23:32 +0000

Autumn is properly upon us. I'm trying to post on here a bit more regularly. This is a simple snap of some berries taken using Tameron 28-75mm f2.8. Great lens for the money. Tried to make the shot more interesting by using an unusual crop.

Ellie Williams - Porthtowan Cornwall

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 18:19 +0000

Recently we have been doing a number of gigs around Cornwall which have been great fun. We have also been lucky enough to play with an upcoming talent in the south west called Ellie Williams. I took a few photos during her set although the lighting wasn't great (basically all off flash). This is one from the set. I hope to get some more photos during her album launch party next month. I seriously recommend you check her out out as I have a good feeling she is going places. You can find her website here.

Old Phone

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:58 +0000

I've been off this week with man-flu and bored out of my head. I also picked up my 50mm f.18 mkII which has been repaired. It really is one of the worst kept secrets in photography. Such a great lens but unfortunately built sooo cheaply!

Anyway being stuck in the house I took a couple of photos using the lens, this is an old phone which came with the house, thought an antique effect suited it even though it is a bit obvious!

Polzeath Views 4

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 08:39 +0000

Susie and I went up to Polzeath on Sunday with our good friends Zac and Emma to check out their wedding venue. They're getting married there in November and I'm helping out with some photos. We just happened to catch a great sunset and awesome spring tide sea on a walk round to the village. I grabbed a few quick snaps which have come out quite nicely.

Need to learn a bit more about controlling lens flare though, sods law I didn't bring my hood.

This is probably my favourite one though bit gutted the shutter speed wasn't a tad quicker to freeze the spray on the sea.

Polzeath Views 3

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 08:38 +0000

Polzeath Views 2

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 08:38 +0000

Polzeath Views 1

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 08:37 +0000

Borth 4

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:09 +0000

At the end of August I spent a week back home in Wales catching up with friends and family. We took a couple of days detour to explore up the coast of Wales to Anglesea and back. On the way back we stopped in a place called Borth which is just north of Aberystwyth. I didn't take any gear with me other than 350d and 10-20mm sigma lens so wasn't as prepared as I could be - a tripod would have been good. Even so I grabbed a few snaps putting the camera on rocks on the timer. First time I've tried these sorts of shots - I've always wanted to after following other photographers blogs such as milou - these aren't perfect but I'm quite pleased with them.

Borth 3

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:08 +0000

Borth 2

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:07 +0000

Borth Breakers 1

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 09:50 +0000

Iestyn 2

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 22:15 +0000

I was on holiday last week back in Pembrokeshire, Wales. Got to catch up with some old friends too including my mate Ian and his family. Always seem to get a nice picture of his kids for him so thought I'd do the same this time. Using the trusty 50mm f1.8 -which incidentally is really on its way out, keeps falling apart :(

Second photo in set - this ones not quite focused on the eyes but I like it never the less.

Iestyn

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 22:14 +0000

Superbikes 2

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 15:33 +0000

Last weekend I went to Brands Hatch in Kent England to watch the British Superbike Racing. I've never photographed any type of motorsport before so it was a great chance to have a go. I've never seen so much camera gear in one place - people walking around with 10k of kit around their neck all over the place. Anyways, I had a go using my 40D with 70-200 f2.8 sigma which were both suited to the task. It took a bit of practice to get the balance between background blur and a quick enough shutterspeed to get a sharp image of the bikes. Also technique of panning comes into this. I think I was using shutter speeds between 320 - 400 mostly. I'm not sure what the pros use but I got a couple of decent ones :)

Superbikes 1

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 15:30 +0000

Sunset Silhouettes

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:29 +0000

I'm back.....well I never really went anywhere I just put my camera away for a while after doing so much last year. Following a recent trip to the isles of Scilly I'm reinvigorated. This photo was taken the other week when camping down Perranporth. My girlfriend Susie and friends Luke and Rachel are in this photo.

Winters Surf

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 17:55 +0000

A lone surfer practicing during a cold winters day in St.Ives.

Autumn River Flow #2

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 18:03 +0000

Another image taken down in cornwall the other weekend. Took this one on the 70-200 to try and get a different angle and also shot downstream instead of up.

Scottish Salmon Smokehouse

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 11:30 +0000

Exactly what it says on the tin, taken on a visit in the summer to a smokehouse. If you are like me and love smoked salmon then you can appreciate the aromas floating around the place.

Porthcurno #2

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:19 +0000

Another bout of grey weather requires another nice photo from cornwall to combat it.

View from the kit

Sun, 09 Nov 2008 19:01 +0000

Taken at a recent band practice, the view from my drums with Francis and The Drakes!

Idea for the album

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 16:11 +0000

This photo was one of the ideas for the new Francis and The Drakes album cover. In the end I decided it was too dark really for the music we are doing but still like the photo.

Baby Phoebe-Lily

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 08:32 +0000

Phoebe is my friends Pete and Naomi first baby. She was born around 10 weeks ago so whenever we pop over I tend to take a couple of snaps of her for them. I took this one last weekend, I tried really hard to get a smile but I think the big camera lens put her off to be honest.

Golitha Falls (Conwall)

Thu, 06 Nov 2008 08:33 +0000

Well autumn is well and truely with us and it seems I caught it at just the right time when I went out last weekend. The red and orange leaves cut through the dark colours of this scene nicely.