Proteus Photo

LJ 'The Heat' Heron

2011-05-24T22:06:00.003+01:00

LJ 'The Heat' Heron is a Nottingham Based wrestler who came into the studio for some new portfolio images after losing weight and pushing some serious iron down the gym.

This gritty style compliments the rugged style and the Council House Building in the background identifies Lee's origins.

Art on the Square

2011-05-20T18:07:00.004+01:00

2nd Art on the Square taking place in Nottingham Old Market this Sunday the 22nd May.
Lots of local artist showing their work and available to meet and talk to. Why buy mass produced wall art from Ikea when you can have an original piece of art for the same price?

Nottingham Photographers' Hub

2011-02-18T17:07:00.002Z

Just joined this studio Unit P, 69-73 Lower Parliament Street, Nottingham, NG1 3BB
Membership includes studio time and Exhibition Gallery space.

Four old men in the shade.

2010-10-17T10:11:00.004+01:00

Fuerteventura 2009
Black and white (7/75)
Four old men avoiding the midday sun and watching the world go by from a bench on the sea front. This makes me think of the Godfather, Sopranos and such. Four Dons discussing business in their sunglasses. Maybe a couple of heavies just outside the frame are making sure they wont be disturbed.

Not quite the Krays

2010-10-12T20:44:00.003+01:00

Nottingham 2007

Black and white (6/75)

2 year old Oliver is in front, being watched over by is older brother Thomas. Obviously the classic David Bailey pose for the Krays is used to posed these two little chaps.

Blind museum historian

2010-10-07T16:29:00.002+01:00

Dominican Republic 2007
Black and white print (5/75)
Shot at a coastal fort in the Domincan republic. I used natural light from behind this blind historian who explains the forts historical importance in defending against pirates and other sea bound threats.

Mother pushing swing

2010-10-05T21:51:00.008+01:00

Notttingham 2007
Black and white print (4/75)
This lovely little girl was a joy in the studio and had lots of fun when I took her to my local park. Although you can't see her mouth, you can see the smile in her eyes and her mothers smile just beams knowing her daughter is having fun.

Usher Brothers

2010-10-03T19:42:00.003+01:00

Nottingham 2006
Black and White print 3/75
Two brothers acting as Ushers at their fathers wedding. Shot outside the church as they perform their duties, the eldest seems quite happy to have his photo taken, while the youngest appears a little more unsure.

Models waiting their turn.

2010-09-13T20:14:00.005+01:00

Nottingham 2010
Black and white print (2/75)
Models prepared and ready for a group shoot, waiting for a photographer to ask them to pose at the Bright Lights studio in Draycott, Derbyshire.

Father of the bride

2010-09-11T23:23:00.008+01:00

Nottingham 2006
Black and white print (1/75)
A widower has a quiet moment with his daughter before she puts her wedding dress on.
Shot using natural light from the kitchen window over the sink. The father is sitting on the work surface.

This is the first in a series of black and white portraits inspired by an exhibition of work by Diane Arbus at the Nottingham Contemporary. The primary inspiration extends only as far as the print format of black and white. The forteen inch square presentation and the fact that the images are portraits. I hope to pick images that are not stricly formal portraiture but reflect a look or mood the subject might not think of as a posed "grin and bear it" image.

The 14 inch square images are available to buy and will be limited edition prints of 20 of each image. Handsigned, mounted and framed.

Cropping

2010-08-30T18:46:00.004+01:00

The Art of Photography.
Cropping and extending.

Vertical and horizontal frames

2010-08-21T08:45:00.013+01:00

The Art of Photography.
Project: Frame shapes and sizes.

Since the view finder of a camera is horizontal most images remain on this plain. The following exercise asks the photographer to capture 20 images in the vertical and compare it with the horizontal equivilant.
Here are a selection of subjects using both vertical and horizontal frames. Some subjects are tall and suit a vertical frame better than an horizontal one.

Nikon D700 ISO200 90mm 1/125sec f/13

Nikon D700 ISO200 80mm 1/125sec f/13

Here the vertical frame gives a balanced space above and below the subject whilst the horizontal gives the impression of wasted space either side of the subject.

Nikon D700 ISO1600 50mm 1/60sec f/1.8

Here the subject actually appear larger in the frame with the horizontal image even though both were shot using a fixed 50mm lens from the same standing position. This is because in the vertical image the roof and floor act as leading lines to the subject. Because the leading lines are more obvious in the vertical image the impression is that the subjects must be further away.

Nikon D50 ISO200 80mm 1/1000sec f/4.2

Nikon D50 ISO200 70mm 1/1600sec f/4.0

Positioning the horizon.

2010-08-15T20:51:00.029+01:00

The Art of Photography.

Project: Dividing the Frame.

Nikon D50 ISO200 200mm 1/250sec f/5.6

Nikon D50 ISO200 35mm 1/1600sec f/4.5

Nikon D50 ISO200 70mm 1/2500sec f/4.0

Nikon D50 ISO200 28mm 1/40sec f/4.2

An assortment of images were the horizon moves up and down the frame giving prominance to either the sky or land.

Balance.

2010-08-15T20:32:00.007+01:00

The Art of Photography.
Project: Dividing the Frame.

Focal lengths and different viewpoints

2010-08-09T17:56:00.006+01:00

The Art of Photography.
Project: Focal Lengths.

Nikon D200 ISO1250 10mm 1/400sec f/10.

A trip to the canal side. This shot taken with a wide angle lens at 10mm showing the length of the canal tow path.

Nikon D200 ISO1250 200mm 1/160sec f/10
Taken from the same place as the first shot but with a 200mm lens picking out the tow path anchor ring and lining up the tow path edge from bottom left to top right of the frame.

Nikon D200 ISO1250 10mm 1/100sec f/10
Now the anchor ring is shot again using the 10mm lens. The edge of the tow path is lined up from bottom left to top right of the frame again but the image is very different.

Nikon D200 ISO800 70mm 1/80sec f/2.8

Nikon D700 ISO800 50mm 1/60sec f/1.8

Two shots with identical settings and subject matter, but two very different results.

Focal Lengths

2010-08-06T13:27:00.006+01:00

The Art of Photography.
Project: Focal lengths.

Nikon D700 ISO200 70mm 1/80sec f/2.8

Nikon D700 ISO200 200mm 1/15sec f/2.8

Two images of a subterranean lake shot from one end of the lake to the other. The first is at 70mm taking in the whole cave including the reflection in the lake. The second taken at 200mm showing the seating area at the other end of the lake.

Nikon D200 ISO400 80mm 1/125sec f/16

Nikon D200 ISO400 200mm 1/125sec f/16

Taken on a foggy morning where it struck me that Paul Weller once sang "They were gonna build communities, it was going to be pie in the sky" and here it was. First shot taken of the view at 80mm. Telephoto shot of the block of flats taken at 200mm.

A sequence of composition

2010-08-05T17:01:00.005+01:00

The Art of Photography.
Project: Looking through the viewfinder

Scenes shot whilst waiting for a ferry to Lanzarote, initially shooting general scenes of passengers and the bus driver cleaning his coach. Then spotted this customer talking to the rep silhouetted against the bright morning sun. Slowly getting closer until the shot below which worked even better with the customer gesticulating and the rep holding her trip passenger list against her leg.

Object in different positions in a frame

2010-08-05T16:16:00.005+01:00

The Art of Photography.
Project: Looking through the viewfinder.

Original image.

Subject centred.

Subject placed bottom left, providing space for the subject to fly into.

Subject placed top/right of the crop, still as space to fly into but not as effective as the previous crop.

Fitting the frame to the subject

2010-08-05T15:18:00.008+01:00

The Art of Photography.

Project: Looking through the viewfinder.

A Conventional Viewpoint.

A detailed closeup of the Suzuki badge and switch gear.

Subject shot fit the frame.

Panning with different shutter speeds

2010-08-05T12:42:00.008+01:00

The Art of Photography
Project: Photographing movement

Nikon D200 ISO100 50mm 1/320 sec f/7.1

Nikon D200 ISO100 50mm 1/250sec f/2.8

Nikon D200 ISO100 50mm 1/320sec f/2.8

Nikon D200 ISO100 50mm 1/250sec f/2.8

Nikon D200 ISO200 50mm 1/125sec f/2.8

Various panning shots of motorcyclists. The various shutter speeds giving different feels to the end results, especially the last one which gives a feel of the subject even without any defined focus.

Shutter speeds

2010-08-05T10:41:00.005+01:00

The Art of Photography.

Project: Photograping movement.

Two images of the waterfall at Newstead Abbey to show the effect of shutter speed on an image. Both shot with Nikon D50 ISO200 70mm

First image 1/320 sec f/4 which almost freezes the motion showing individual droplets of water.

Second image 1/4 sec which is slow enough to start turning the motion into a milky flow.

Nikon D50 ISO200 35mm 25sec f/4.8

Using a slow shutter speed and a torch bulb to write with light.

Nikon D50 ISO200 32mm 8sec f/11

A church lit by the road traffic, in this case a single decker bus.

Focus at different apertures

2010-08-05T09:24:00.009+01:00

The Art of Photography.

Project: Focus

Nikon D700 50mm ISO200 1/25 sec f/1.8

This aperture gives a very shallow depth of view, only a few books in the middle are in focus.

Nikon D700 50mm ISO200 1/3sec f/5.6

This aperture produces a wider depth of view so that more books are in focus.

Nikon D700 50mm ISO200 15sec f/22

This narrow aperture brings everything into focus.

Focus with a set aperture

2010-08-05T09:08:00.006+01:00

The Art of Photography.

Project: Focus.

Using a keyboard to show the effects of depth of field.

Nikon D700 ISO200 50mm fixed lens at f/2.2

Focus progresses from keys nearest the camera, the middle of the keyboard and finally the number pad and computer in the back ground.

2010-07-29T22:12:00.005+01:00

Another shot of Heather from Sunday, my new LapTop wallpaper this one. Not a lot of work here. A crop and a rendered light effect, everything else almost SOOC.

Heather Burlesque

2010-07-27T19:32:00.005+01:00

Had a good day at Brightlight Studio's in Draycott on Sunday at a Burlesque/Pin-up shoot. Shot a few sets with Heather and processed this image which just stood out. I am really enjoying black and white images at the moment and 1930 Burleque works so well in B&W.

No press please!

2010-07-11T17:46:00.003+01:00

This is Sophie-Lee who we shot last year. I will be entering this at the next NOPS competition on Thursday night.

Emma in the spot light.

2010-07-02T09:02:00.002+01:00

Emma was a lovely, shapely model I shot at a group shoot last September. She now has her own website at emma-daisy.moonfruit.com and can be found on Purestorm.com and Web-models.co.uk

Possible new studio

2010-06-14T18:52:00.002+01:00

Really excited about the Raw Collective's propective studio/gallery. Looking forward to the coming weeks of planning how we can utilise a great space in the City Centre.

A Quiet Moment

2010-06-13T21:20:00.003+01:00

Entered in this months NOPS print competition. Scored 18 out of 20. Shot last year in Feuterventura, hense the volcanic rocks. This is practically SOOC just a little sharpening and cropping involved.

NOPS practical

2010-06-02T17:36:00.003+01:00

Practical night at the Nottingham Outlaws Photographic Society from last month.

William

2010-05-29T17:05:00.003+01:00

What a lovely little chap, young William from last weeks shoot. Such a cheerful little fellow.

This is his second sitting. His grandmother paid for a first year photography package as a gift for her daughter, Williams mum. We met him when he was only a couple of weeks old. Here he is 4 months later.

Hey Hey, Its a holi-holiday

2010-05-28T20:50:00.002+01:00

A four day weekend and great sunshine, what more could you all ask for?
My wedding anniversary tomorrow. 11 years.

Zero% Body Fat

2010-05-25T20:28:00.001+01:00

This is the guy who answered the advert for a model below.

Lost Finale

2010-05-24T13:03:00.002+01:00

Where to start with this one. Six seasons in. More questions than an 'A' level paper on Astro-physics. More fractured relationships than 121 episodes of The Jerry Springer Show. And we end up with a crib sheet from the closing seen from Titanic or Ashes to Ashes. Have all script writers got together to share endings to drama's that dig a hole so deep no one can escape. I guess it could have been worse, it could have all been a dream. The Simpsons guessed it was Vincent the dogs dream. Close but no cigar.
So to summerise. flight 815 did crash. Six escaped the island, then returned three years later. Locke and Ben left the island. Ben kills Lock, then returns to the island. Everyone dies except Sawyer, Kate & Clare, with a three hundred year old man, a guy who feels dead folk and a pilot who should have flown the original doomed flight. Hurley and Ben remain to look after the island. When everyone dies, not matter when, they all meet at a church to pass on to the other side together because that shared experience defined their lives.

Ever get the feeling you've been conned?

Summers here?

2010-05-23T20:12:00.004+01:00

Had a shoot this morning with a cheerful little 4 month old baby boy called William, a real smiler. His parents are a lovely couple and he is a credit to them both. Then stepped out into the world.
It's amazing to think that all it takes to see smiling faces in Britain is some great sunny weather. Got in the car and the temp readout was 31 degrees. Fantastic.
Sunday lunch at mothers, roast beef and yorkshire pudding. The business.
All the windows are now open, there's a cooling breeze through the house and my dog is dozing in any shade he can find.

Garden Frog

2010-05-22T15:31:00.002+01:00

Does exactly what it says on the tin, well title. Found this little guy while mowing the lawn.

Vogue58 wins.

2010-05-21T17:08:00.003+01:00

The Nottingham Outlaws Photographic Society held a monthly picture competition last night. Vogue58 took top marks and best image title in the Open Catagory. It then went on to win best image of the night when put against the winner from the Themed catagory.

Impatient Cabby

2010-05-20T16:57:00.006+01:00

Taken on a Saturday night in Houndsgate Nottingham.

I often walked down this street thinking how well the closeness of the buildings framed the church at its end. Determined to capture the shot in my minds eye I though a nightshot might had some drama to the image. The drama however was supplied by an impatient cabby who mounted the pavement to get around the other cabs sitting in the taxi rank. The long exposure provides ample evidence of his journey along the pavement.

Shove Your Ticket

2010-05-19T18:19:00.002+01:00

Exchange Walk, Nottingham. Outside McDonalds last summer, I couldn't resist this shot.

Using Honey For Bait

2010-05-18T17:48:00.009+01:00

I made this up into a poster for a Nottingham gym looking to attract a male model. I'm talking a real spit and saw dust gym, not one of these trendy Virgin type places. The tag line went along the lines of "Fancy This? Now I have your attention please call to book a free photography session with.... blah blah blah", the usual studio address details. I only got three responses and only one had the nerve to bare all and pose. Come back soon to see what answered the casting call.

Not Quite The Krays

2010-05-17T16:28:00.005+01:00

Inspired by David Bailey's iconic 60's shot of the Kray twins, this is a version with Thomas and his little brother Oliver. Not shot as harsh as the original because of the subject matter, but still a fun picture.

A New Hair Do

2010-05-16T19:39:00.002+01:00

One of my favourite portrait shots of a model called Jane White from Basford in Nottingham. She is an excellent model available for work. Drop me a line for her details. This iamge works really well as an Hi-Key image espcially as her new hair do frames her face.

Smokin'

2010-05-13T13:27:00.003+01:00

Another image left to languish till inspiration struck.
The original images were taken during a group shoot at Bright Lights studio in Draycott.
This panel of three images then became the main image at my last exhibition of work at the Art Organisation on Station Street in Nottingham.

Vogue 58

2010-05-12T19:32:00.004+01:00

The reworking of an image I took in January 2009 during a session with a model called Saskia Lee. The inspiration for this was from a Vogue front page which was reworked by Rankin in a BBC programme called Seven Images That Changed Fashion Photography. I often re-visit old images and rework them from a fresh perspective.

In loving memory of Walter S. Marriott Snr

2010-05-11T07:31:00.007+01:00

He was my greatest hero, my rock, my mentor, my councillor, my sounding board for life's questions. I did not always agree with him, but knew his advise came from a place of experience and love.

A lover and a fighter.

In a time of war he was born into a large loving family. Times were tough and so were they, they had no choice. He often told me that you don't back down from a fight. Fight for what you believe to be the truth and if you lose you take your lumps, but at least you fought for what you believed in. Brian mentioned yesterday that the times he fought by dad’s side, Dad never started it, but never walked away from it either. And that includes the times he kicked deaths arse over the last few years.

As a lover he loved with his whole heart. His family always came first. He was the rock they all knew they could rely on. If he could help he would, even if the price included what some might think a lecture. Life was for living and he lived it to the full. He was always cheerful and had time for all. He also had an anecdote for all occasions.

These last few years were tough ones, just like the first 18, but he often told me that between those times he had the best life, and the best of this country. He was only in the army for a few years but relived those adventures on a regular basis. And I would happily let him tell me stories he'd told me countless times before because he liked to, and I liked to hear him. He was young, vital and full of life in those stories. He was the hero of my childhood in those stories. He even named me after his best friend from those army days.

He was my hero for many reasons. As a young lad he and his bothers were my ideal of what a man should always aspire to be. Harder than granite. Yet I also saw the softer side that showed a real man cares for his family and both protects and prepares them from the harsh world around them.
He would take it upon himself to introduce not only myself but many of my cousins to the art of the pub crawl. And many times he told me that it was his way of protecting us. If we were out with him and got into trouble he would be there to help. Until we knew what it was all about, the move from children playing in the street to adults playing in the pub was watched over by our guardian angel.

Memories fade but the scars still linger,
Goodbye my friend,
Will I ever love again?

As I've already mentioned he loved to tell his anecdotes.
He also once sat me down and told me that in a hundred years time no-one would remember any of us, he was right. But they can still be reminded of us.
I would like to leave an open invitation to everyone who knew him to leave an anecdote of their own. Any fond memory of a big hearted man, born on Skipton Circus in December 1942, and died on Skipton Circus in May 2010.

Funeral Blues

2010-05-10T08:48:00.001+01:00

Funeral Blues
Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.

Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message He is Dead.
Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public... doves,
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.

He was my North, my South, my East and West,
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong.

The stars are not wanted now; put out every one,
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun,
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the woods;
For nothing now can ever come to any good.

-- W H Auden

I love you Dad and WILL see you later. I promise.

A Hero's Passing

2010-05-09T17:33:00.000+01:00

Sad to say that my father passed away this morning. He will be more than sadly missed.

Welcome

2010-05-09T08:38:00.000+01:00

Hello out there in cyber web internet type world. Welcome to my first blog. I have to thank Christian Payne @ documental.ly for the inspiration in giving this new aspect of communication a try. I hope you enjoy and feel free to leave comments.