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....another varied day
27th March 2018
The weekend offered me another varied day of photographic work :-)
First there was a Commercial shoot for pi-top at The Digital Greenhouse.
Pi-top is an international innovation award winning company which produces a build-it-yourself laptop powered by the Raspberry Pi. I photographed the pilot event which saw young people gaining access to over £10,000 of state of the art inventor equipment.
I was very impressed by how quickly the young students grasped the flexibility and power of this modern teaching aid. The Digital Greenhouse offered a fantastic, bright and modern 'backdrop' to the photo-shoot.
When that was all done and dusted it was off to the Motocross track for the latest round of the championship... I told you the day was varied!
Then to complete the day there was an evening shoot where I photographed the Guernsey Island Snooker Championship at the Gremlin Club.
Here are a few pics:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF THE MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF THE GUERNSEY ISLAND SNOOKER CHAMPIONSHIP
27th March 2018
The weekend offered me another varied day of photographic work :-)
First there was a Commercial shoot for pi-top at The Digital Greenhouse.
Pi-top is an international innovation award winning company which produces a build-it-yourself laptop powered by the Raspberry Pi. I photographed the pilot event which saw young people gaining access to over £10,000 of state of the art inventor equipment.
I was very impressed by how quickly the young students grasped the flexibility and power of this modern teaching aid. The Digital Greenhouse offered a fantastic, bright and modern 'backdrop' to the photo-shoot.
When that was all done and dusted it was off to the Motocross track for the latest round of the championship... I told you the day was varied!
Then to complete the day there was an evening shoot where I photographed the Guernsey Island Snooker Championship at the Gremlin Club.
Here are a few pics:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF THE MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF THE GUERNSEY ISLAND SNOOKER CHAMPIONSHIP
Making the best of MSA Accredited Media access.....
01st March 2018
This Blog explains some challenges to photographing Motorsport… and a couple of the solutions I came up with recently.
It was whilst photographing the first Resolution-IT Guernsey Rally that I used a little ingenuity to help myself get the shots that I wanted.
After the recent tragic loss of life on Scottish Rally sections the first challenge in Motorsport photography is to acquire permission to get close access to the track. The MSA has revised and tightened up how they allocate Media access with a process that can perhaps best be described as a classic ‘chicken or egg’ puzzle.
Accreditation is only offered to published photographers… forget it if you are a ‘Facebook Photographer’. Forget it if you are 'working' for a ‘Sponsor’ or competitor or simply running your own website selling pics. You have to prove that your work has already been published in ‘paid for’ media and that you have been assigned, by a publication, to take pics at this event.
This is where the ‘chicken or egg’ comes in. For your work to be accepted for publication it will need to be dynamic and immersive… this almost always requires you to be close to the action… but without accreditation you won’t be allowed that access… so how do you get published in the first place?
I’ve had many conversations over the years with enthusiastic amateurs who are VERY frustrated by this fact. I can only advise that they stick with it and a ‘lucky break’ might come along.
I’m fully aware and appreciate that I’m privileged to have MSA Accreditation. I certainly don’t take it for granted and I make sure I maximize this advantage where-ever I work… read on.
At the first Resolution-IT Guernsey Rally I was given MSA Media access to photograph the action from track side for four publications. Having attained this access it was important that I made good use of it and I’m sharing a couple of the ‘tricks’ I used to enhance my pics and make best use of my limited time - firstly making use of modern technology, then later in the day the technology couldn’t have been more basic!
The first example: I rarely enjoy having my own picture taken but on this occasion it was fun! Even with accreditation the access to photograph the Resolution-IT Guernsey Rally was still restricted and though it allowed me enhanced access I still needed to maximize that opportunity. The problem was that the competitors had just four runs through each section… so this limited the chance to take a variety of shots from different angles. This was compounded by my intention to vary my pics by moving between Sections (when the track wasn’t ‘live’). This movement between Sections meant that during the travel I'd not be capturing any action at all! Maybe a waste of valuable shooting time?
This is where a bit of technology helped me out - by doubling the shots taken at a single corner. Take a look at the ‘double’ picture above. These two shots were taken on one of the afternoon’s sections at exactly the same time by using a second radio controlled camera. By the way the photographer in the top picture is me... in my own shot. Clever, eh! Two different viewpoints for the price of one. Bargain!
The second ‘trick’ I used was as simple as it gets… at least once I had thought of it! Take a look at the picture below as it shows the problem.
The Rally stages ran into the early evening and as it’s February they finished in complete darkness. Eventually it was near pitch black as I don’t think electricity has reached the narrow back lanes in Guernsey yet! There certainly isn’t any street lighting!
So I was faced with the challenge of photographing the speeding cars with the only light coming from their powerful headlights. The problem was that flash photography isn’t permitted as it could distract the drivers. My first couple of shots after the darkness descended quickly showed that as well as coping with the speed of the cars and the high contrasts of the scene the side view of the cars were just black silhouettes. The photographs were unusable. Then I had a brainwave. I had a small LED cycle lamp in my camera bag. Would that be able to light the side of the cars?
I found a convenient twig high up on a track-side tree to attach the torch to and aimed the tiny light onto the road where I expected the cars to pass... then I continued shooting. Amazingly, and a credit must be given to the class-leading low-light quality of the Nikon D5 camera, this low level of additional light seemed to be just enough to do the job. This simple work-around enabled me to capture another range of pics adding variety to what was a long and tiring days’ work… but fulfilling too.
If you’re a photographer yourself you might be interested in the settings that I ended up using for the night-time pics. They prove to you that even with my added torch light it was still very dark! These two examples really misrepresent just how dark the scene was. But that's what photographers do... we enhance reality ;-)
Pics were shot with these settings:
Camera: Nikon D5 (the low light master!)
Lens: AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED at f2.8 and 15mm
Shutter speed: was at 100th sec
ISO 12800
It should be obvious (hopefully) which the ‘unlit’ shot is (above)!
Here are a couple (below) showing how just adding a little extra torch light to the shots turned them into keepers.
I’d love feedback to this short Blog with stories of how you have improved your chances of returning back to the studio with usable pics taken in challenging circumstances.
E-MAIL YOUR COMMENTS AND STORIES BY CLICKING HERE
01st March 2018
This Blog explains some challenges to photographing Motorsport… and a couple of the solutions I came up with recently.
It was whilst photographing the first Resolution-IT Guernsey Rally that I used a little ingenuity to help myself get the shots that I wanted.
After the recent tragic loss of life on Scottish Rally sections the first challenge in Motorsport photography is to acquire permission to get close access to the track. The MSA has revised and tightened up how they allocate Media access with a process that can perhaps best be described as a classic ‘chicken or egg’ puzzle.
Accreditation is only offered to published photographers… forget it if you are a ‘Facebook Photographer’. Forget it if you are 'working' for a ‘Sponsor’ or competitor or simply running your own website selling pics. You have to prove that your work has already been published in ‘paid for’ media and that you have been assigned, by a publication, to take pics at this event.
This is where the ‘chicken or egg’ comes in. For your work to be accepted for publication it will need to be dynamic and immersive… this almost always requires you to be close to the action… but without accreditation you won’t be allowed that access… so how do you get published in the first place?
I’ve had many conversations over the years with enthusiastic amateurs who are VERY frustrated by this fact. I can only advise that they stick with it and a ‘lucky break’ might come along.
I’m fully aware and appreciate that I’m privileged to have MSA Accreditation. I certainly don’t take it for granted and I make sure I maximize this advantage where-ever I work… read on.
At the first Resolution-IT Guernsey Rally I was given MSA Media access to photograph the action from track side for four publications. Having attained this access it was important that I made good use of it and I’m sharing a couple of the ‘tricks’ I used to enhance my pics and make best use of my limited time - firstly making use of modern technology, then later in the day the technology couldn’t have been more basic!
The first example: I rarely enjoy having my own picture taken but on this occasion it was fun! Even with accreditation the access to photograph the Resolution-IT Guernsey Rally was still restricted and though it allowed me enhanced access I still needed to maximize that opportunity. The problem was that the competitors had just four runs through each section… so this limited the chance to take a variety of shots from different angles. This was compounded by my intention to vary my pics by moving between Sections (when the track wasn’t ‘live’). This movement between Sections meant that during the travel I'd not be capturing any action at all! Maybe a waste of valuable shooting time?
This is where a bit of technology helped me out - by doubling the shots taken at a single corner. Take a look at the ‘double’ picture above. These two shots were taken on one of the afternoon’s sections at exactly the same time by using a second radio controlled camera. By the way the photographer in the top picture is me... in my own shot. Clever, eh! Two different viewpoints for the price of one. Bargain!
The second ‘trick’ I used was as simple as it gets… at least once I had thought of it! Take a look at the picture below as it shows the problem.
The Rally stages ran into the early evening and as it’s February they finished in complete darkness. Eventually it was near pitch black as I don’t think electricity has reached the narrow back lanes in Guernsey yet! There certainly isn’t any street lighting!
So I was faced with the challenge of photographing the speeding cars with the only light coming from their powerful headlights. The problem was that flash photography isn’t permitted as it could distract the drivers. My first couple of shots after the darkness descended quickly showed that as well as coping with the speed of the cars and the high contrasts of the scene the side view of the cars were just black silhouettes. The photographs were unusable. Then I had a brainwave. I had a small LED cycle lamp in my camera bag. Would that be able to light the side of the cars?
I found a convenient twig high up on a track-side tree to attach the torch to and aimed the tiny light onto the road where I expected the cars to pass... then I continued shooting. Amazingly, and a credit must be given to the class-leading low-light quality of the Nikon D5 camera, this low level of additional light seemed to be just enough to do the job. This simple work-around enabled me to capture another range of pics adding variety to what was a long and tiring days’ work… but fulfilling too.
If you’re a photographer yourself you might be interested in the settings that I ended up using for the night-time pics. They prove to you that even with my added torch light it was still very dark! These two examples really misrepresent just how dark the scene was. But that's what photographers do... we enhance reality ;-)
Pics were shot with these settings:
Camera: Nikon D5 (the low light master!)
Lens: AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED at f2.8 and 15mm
Shutter speed: was at 100th sec
ISO 12800
It should be obvious (hopefully) which the ‘unlit’ shot is (above)!
Here are a couple (below) showing how just adding a little extra torch light to the shots turned them into keepers.
I’d love feedback to this short Blog with stories of how you have improved your chances of returning back to the studio with usable pics taken in challenging circumstances.
E-MAIL YOUR COMMENTS AND STORIES BY CLICKING HERE
It's SALE TIME... and it's not even January yet!
23rd December 2017
In a rare moment (for me) of Festive good spirit and cheer I've started my January Sale already :-)
Whatever the reason... be it the ample partaking of the Single Malt or the mild weather this gives you a chance to make real savings on the regular price of A4 & A3 sized colour prints.
When you purchase 5+ A4 prints they now cost just £6 each.
Order 5+ A3 prints and they now cost just £14 each. I recommend the A3 size as I think that prints look their best when printed BIG.... but I may be biased :-)
These reductions represent savings of up to 25%!
This FESTIVE MADNESS won't last forever so take your chance to pick up an early JANUARY BARGAIN before my rosy glow of Christmas wears off!
The reductions are made automatically as you check your Shopping Cart after adding the required quantity of a print size.
Seasons Greetings to you all.....
CHECK-OUT ALL THE OPTIONS HERE
23rd December 2017
In a rare moment (for me) of Festive good spirit and cheer I've started my January Sale already :-)
Whatever the reason... be it the ample partaking of the Single Malt or the mild weather this gives you a chance to make real savings on the regular price of A4 & A3 sized colour prints.
When you purchase 5+ A4 prints they now cost just £6 each.
Order 5+ A3 prints and they now cost just £14 each. I recommend the A3 size as I think that prints look their best when printed BIG.... but I may be biased :-)
These reductions represent savings of up to 25%!
This FESTIVE MADNESS won't last forever so take your chance to pick up an early JANUARY BARGAIN before my rosy glow of Christmas wears off!
The reductions are made automatically as you check your Shopping Cart after adding the required quantity of a print size.
Seasons Greetings to you all.....
CHECK-OUT ALL THE OPTIONS HERE
A picture says it all.....
28th November 2017
We can't avoid it. Christmas is on the way and present ideas are in short supply!
So why not think about buying a CUSTOM DESIGNED MONTAGE for a family member or friend.
Or, if you don't know what to add to your own Christmas list why not request a MONTAGE of your own special memory?
These can still be supplied for Christmas... just don't leave it too long!
Details of how to order your INDIVIDUALLY DESIGNED MONTAGE can be found here:
CLICK TO VIEW HOW TO ORDER A MONTAGE
If you have any questions or if you prefer to have a chat about a design don't hesitate to contact me here:
E-MAIL ANDREW LE POIDEVIN
Or phone my Mobile: 07781 144525
28th November 2017
We can't avoid it. Christmas is on the way and present ideas are in short supply!
So why not think about buying a CUSTOM DESIGNED MONTAGE for a family member or friend.
Or, if you don't know what to add to your own Christmas list why not request a MONTAGE of your own special memory?
These can still be supplied for Christmas... just don't leave it too long!
Details of how to order your INDIVIDUALLY DESIGNED MONTAGE can be found here:
CLICK TO VIEW HOW TO ORDER A MONTAGE
If you have any questions or if you prefer to have a chat about a design don't hesitate to contact me here:
E-MAIL ANDREW LE POIDEVIN
Or phone my Mobile: 07781 144525
A cause for celebration.....
27th November 2017
A cause for celebration.....
Well I know I can’t expect you to get quite so excited as I am today as this celebration is personal to me and this website.
But you might like to enjoy the moment too as the fact you are here reading this Blog means that you are actually part of this occasion… without even knowing it!
The special event is the achievement of another significant number of views of THIS WEBSITE.... but just missing 5,000,000 views in the last twelve months, maybe next time, eh!
I know I sound like a ‘cracked record’ if you read through some of my previous ‘Landmark’ Blogs but my enjoyment of the interest so many people take in my photographic work never fails to surprise and humble me.
The continued and increasing visits to my picture galleries encourages me to continue this work and as time goes by the widening selection of events and occasions that I photograph grows the awareness among Islanders of just how many Sports, Gigs, Events and Places we have available to all Guernsey residents to have fun at and take interest in. There is never a weekend without something to attend.
You’ll never find me moaning about having nothing to do on our beautiful, but small, Channel Island. If you are ever tempted to make such a comment I’d encourage you to look through a few of my picture galleries… you’ll soon see what you have been missing!
Now I’ve allowed myself to get side-tracked, again. What this Blog should be stating is that the viewings of this website have just passed another very significant number.
TWENTY MILLION VIEWS…. That’s 20,000,000 if you like your numbers with noughts on the end. I’m not fussed. I’ll take it either way!
So thank you for your continued interest in my work. This really is a LANDMARK number 😊
I’m also proud of the fact that these views are all on my own self-run website. The viewings and interest are all generated without the benefit and help available when photographers enroll into one of the big, but anonymous, picture gallery sites.
I’d like to take this chance to recommend the website provider and admin that I use to run this site. They are called Photium and I wholeheartedly endorse them to you. This provider has hosted my website for many years with VERY little downtime or other problems. Their tech support if needed is usually - literally - just minutes in responding. They also offer a good choice of packages and even a Trial to see if the options suit your needs.
If you have been considering starting a website of your own it’s well worth having a look at: CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE PHOTIUM WEBSITE
Please continue making occasional visits to view the latest updates to my Galleries… maybe even buy an occasional print or two! You can then be part of the next MILLION MILESTONE.
I hope to see you out and about at one of Guernsey’s many varied events sometime soon. Remember... NEVER SAY THAT NOTHING GOES ON IN GUERNSEY, you just haven’t opened your eyes and made the effort to find out!
You can view a few of my previous MILESTONE BLOGS here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW SOME OF MY PREVIOUS MILESTONE BLOGS
27th November 2017
A cause for celebration.....
Well I know I can’t expect you to get quite so excited as I am today as this celebration is personal to me and this website.
But you might like to enjoy the moment too as the fact you are here reading this Blog means that you are actually part of this occasion… without even knowing it!
The special event is the achievement of another significant number of views of THIS WEBSITE.... but just missing 5,000,000 views in the last twelve months, maybe next time, eh!
I know I sound like a ‘cracked record’ if you read through some of my previous ‘Landmark’ Blogs but my enjoyment of the interest so many people take in my photographic work never fails to surprise and humble me.
The continued and increasing visits to my picture galleries encourages me to continue this work and as time goes by the widening selection of events and occasions that I photograph grows the awareness among Islanders of just how many Sports, Gigs, Events and Places we have available to all Guernsey residents to have fun at and take interest in. There is never a weekend without something to attend.
You’ll never find me moaning about having nothing to do on our beautiful, but small, Channel Island. If you are ever tempted to make such a comment I’d encourage you to look through a few of my picture galleries… you’ll soon see what you have been missing!
Now I’ve allowed myself to get side-tracked, again. What this Blog should be stating is that the viewings of this website have just passed another very significant number.
TWENTY MILLION VIEWS…. That’s 20,000,000 if you like your numbers with noughts on the end. I’m not fussed. I’ll take it either way!
So thank you for your continued interest in my work. This really is a LANDMARK number 😊
I’m also proud of the fact that these views are all on my own self-run website. The viewings and interest are all generated without the benefit and help available when photographers enroll into one of the big, but anonymous, picture gallery sites.
I’d like to take this chance to recommend the website provider and admin that I use to run this site. They are called Photium and I wholeheartedly endorse them to you. This provider has hosted my website for many years with VERY little downtime or other problems. Their tech support if needed is usually - literally - just minutes in responding. They also offer a good choice of packages and even a Trial to see if the options suit your needs.
If you have been considering starting a website of your own it’s well worth having a look at: CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE PHOTIUM WEBSITE
Please continue making occasional visits to view the latest updates to my Galleries… maybe even buy an occasional print or two! You can then be part of the next MILLION MILESTONE.
I hope to see you out and about at one of Guernsey’s many varied events sometime soon. Remember... NEVER SAY THAT NOTHING GOES ON IN GUERNSEY, you just haven’t opened your eyes and made the effort to find out!
You can view a few of my previous MILESTONE BLOGS here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW SOME OF MY PREVIOUS MILESTONE BLOGS
I turn my back and look what happens....
10th August 2017
Well how about that. I turn my back for a couple of days and the viewing total on this website passes through another MILLION MILESTONE!
I've been very busy for the last week and it seems that the 18 MILLION VIEWS total was broken at the weekend... and I've only just noticed!
What is also quite amazing is that the last five days has seen an extra 100,000 views added to the total!
Thanks for the continued support :-)
You can read a few of the previous MILLION MILESTONE Blogs by clicking here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PREVIOUS MILLION MILESTONE BLOGS
10th August 2017
Well how about that. I turn my back for a couple of days and the viewing total on this website passes through another MILLION MILESTONE!
I've been very busy for the last week and it seems that the 18 MILLION VIEWS total was broken at the weekend... and I've only just noticed!
What is also quite amazing is that the last five days has seen an extra 100,000 views added to the total!
Thanks for the continued support :-)
You can read a few of the previous MILLION MILESTONE Blogs by clicking here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PREVIOUS MILLION MILESTONE BLOGS
Summertime at the School of Popular Music....
26th July 2017
During its short life Guernsey's School of Popular Music has established a strong base of support. It has also established its own traditions. Not a bad effort after just a couple of years work!
I've been lucky to document some of these 'traditions' as they became established. It has been fantastic to get to know the tutors and students and to see how the hard work and practice is rewarded.
It is clear that the SoPM's modern approach to teaching music enables the students to blossom in confidence leading them to enjoy sharing their talents with friends, family and a wider audience.
The students have just completed two showcase events allowing them to demonstrate the progress they have made and I was at both gigs capturing some of the performances.
Many now familiar faces took to the stages fulfilling their ambitions to share their love of live music.
The first of the summer season's events was the Summer Concert at The Church on the Rock. Followed by the Summer Gig at The Doghouse.
You can view my pics here:
CLICK TO VIEW THE SoPM GALLERIES
26th July 2017
During its short life Guernsey's School of Popular Music has established a strong base of support. It has also established its own traditions. Not a bad effort after just a couple of years work!
I've been lucky to document some of these 'traditions' as they became established. It has been fantastic to get to know the tutors and students and to see how the hard work and practice is rewarded.
It is clear that the SoPM's modern approach to teaching music enables the students to blossom in confidence leading them to enjoy sharing their talents with friends, family and a wider audience.
The students have just completed two showcase events allowing them to demonstrate the progress they have made and I was at both gigs capturing some of the performances.
Many now familiar faces took to the stages fulfilling their ambitions to share their love of live music.
The first of the summer season's events was the Summer Concert at The Church on the Rock. Followed by the Summer Gig at The Doghouse.
You can view my pics here:
CLICK TO VIEW THE SoPM GALLERIES
FOUR MILLION ANNUAL VIEWS... how many each minute?
27th May 2017
I’m chuffed to say that this website continues to gain a following. My thanks and a high five (a hug if you’re a lady) to anyone who pops along here for an occasional browse through the picture galleries.
The time I spend taking pics is mostly exciting and enjoyable…. and it definitely beats having a ‘proper job’!
Now whilst the pleasure I get from working full-time as a photographer should be enough to keep me happy there is an additional side to making me smile – that is this website and the amount of interest shown in my work.
The total number of picture viewings of the galleries has just passed another MILLION MILESTONE. The total now exceeds 17 MILLION VIEWS!
It seems that the annual average has now settled at FOUR MILLION VIEWS A YEAR!
This got me interested in calculating what that number means on a daily, hourly and minute basis. The result is quite surprising!
So I started with the 4 MILLION annual views.
A simple division gives you 11,000 views a day – every day of the year!
I then looked at the Google Analysis which shows most viewings are between 7am and 1am…. that’s eighteen hours out of the twenty-four day.
So another division…. 11,000 views divided by the 18 hours gives you 600 views an hour every day of the year!
Next divide the hourly views by 60 minutes and you arrive at 10 views a minute.
Finally another quick calculation and you can work out that (on average throughout the year) a picture is viewed every six seconds. WOW!
So there we have it, my Maths teachers at the Grammar School always said that I would be surprised how useful ‘learning sums’ could be later in life. In this case it has helped tickle my ego and encourage me to keep taking the pics…. At least while the interest remains ;-)
Thanks again for all your support.
If you want to read a few of my previous ‘MILLION MARK’ Blogs just click on this link:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PREVIOUS MILLION MARK BLOGS
27th May 2017
I’m chuffed to say that this website continues to gain a following. My thanks and a high five (a hug if you’re a lady) to anyone who pops along here for an occasional browse through the picture galleries.
The time I spend taking pics is mostly exciting and enjoyable…. and it definitely beats having a ‘proper job’!
Now whilst the pleasure I get from working full-time as a photographer should be enough to keep me happy there is an additional side to making me smile – that is this website and the amount of interest shown in my work.
The total number of picture viewings of the galleries has just passed another MILLION MILESTONE. The total now exceeds 17 MILLION VIEWS!
It seems that the annual average has now settled at FOUR MILLION VIEWS A YEAR!
This got me interested in calculating what that number means on a daily, hourly and minute basis. The result is quite surprising!
So I started with the 4 MILLION annual views.
A simple division gives you 11,000 views a day – every day of the year!
I then looked at the Google Analysis which shows most viewings are between 7am and 1am…. that’s eighteen hours out of the twenty-four day.
So another division…. 11,000 views divided by the 18 hours gives you 600 views an hour every day of the year!
Next divide the hourly views by 60 minutes and you arrive at 10 views a minute.
Finally another quick calculation and you can work out that (on average throughout the year) a picture is viewed every six seconds. WOW!
So there we have it, my Maths teachers at the Grammar School always said that I would be surprised how useful ‘learning sums’ could be later in life. In this case it has helped tickle my ego and encourage me to keep taking the pics…. At least while the interest remains ;-)
Thanks again for all your support.
If you want to read a few of my previous ‘MILLION MARK’ Blogs just click on this link:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PREVIOUS MILLION MARK BLOGS
Dodging the showers for a BMW bike photoshoot.....
25th May 2017
It was a case of dodging the showers at a recent photoshoot I did for BMW, Jacksons Garage and the Guernsey Press.
The special event was an open day featuring a wide range of the latest BMW motorbikes which were on display and also available for test rides.
Brian Martel had been asked to test ride and report on the BMW R nineT Scrambler. I needed to capture pics to support his article.
Whilst I'm guessing that the damp conditions were what this bike is designed to cope with it was still a shame to get a new bike wet and splashed with spray.
After the shoot, this meant more work for both the photographer and garage technicians to get the bike looking at its best again.
My cleaning 'tool' was the Lightroom 'spot healer'. I didn't go for a complete touch-up as I quite liked the slightly 'grungy' look. I am sure, however, that my cleaning work was easier than the rags and polish required back in the garage!
You can view a small gallery of pics here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW A FEW PICS OF THE JACKSONS BMW OPEN DAY
25th May 2017
It was a case of dodging the showers at a recent photoshoot I did for BMW, Jacksons Garage and the Guernsey Press.
The special event was an open day featuring a wide range of the latest BMW motorbikes which were on display and also available for test rides.
Brian Martel had been asked to test ride and report on the BMW R nineT Scrambler. I needed to capture pics to support his article.
Whilst I'm guessing that the damp conditions were what this bike is designed to cope with it was still a shame to get a new bike wet and splashed with spray.
After the shoot, this meant more work for both the photographer and garage technicians to get the bike looking at its best again.
My cleaning 'tool' was the Lightroom 'spot healer'. I didn't go for a complete touch-up as I quite liked the slightly 'grungy' look. I am sure, however, that my cleaning work was easier than the rags and polish required back in the garage!
You can view a small gallery of pics here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW A FEW PICS OF THE JACKSONS BMW OPEN DAY
Life has been a bit hectic but the updates still arrive....
09th March 2017
My work-time has been a bit disrupted recently as I've had to commit more and more hours to the care of my father.
It has been a challenging time trying to fit everything from a 'normal' work and home life around the substantial hours spent caring for my dad.
My father is now over 90 and up until recently he has managed to look after himself... with a lot of support from me. But as time marches on things change and during the last few weeks he has had several falls which have knocked his (and my) confidence in his ability to live alone.
However I'm really pleased to say that after I've stayed with him nearly 24/7 for the last week he is now getting back to normal and is getting stronger again. We have also had fantastic support from all the Guernsey Social Services... from Carers, Fast Response Nurses, Social Workers, St Johns Ambulance, A&E, Doctors.... the list could go on. Thank you all.
This whole episode has caused me to step back and re-asses what is important in life... what is really important to me. I have realized that spending so much time with my father has meant we have strengthened our love and friendship in a very special way. It has been very rewarding.
But, away from that commitment life has to go on and whilst it has been challenging in every way I think a care plan is now in place. I think dad will be able to remain at home - which his wish.
The lack of free time and the stress of trying to keep dad safe are now the main factors that we have to address going forward.
What this ramble is leading to is explaining why it has taken more than a week to update a gallery featuring Round-6 of the GVC Winter MTB XC. I've now sorted this out and you can view the pics by following the link.
Going forward is a bit of an unknown. I'm intending to stay fully committed to the caring of my father and fit as much photography around this as I can. You'll maybe have to be a bit patient if the updates are a little slow sometimes.
Thanks to everyone for the continued support and interest in my pics... life goes on... it's just a little different :-)
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF ROUND 6 OF THE GVC MTB XC SERIES
09th March 2017
My work-time has been a bit disrupted recently as I've had to commit more and more hours to the care of my father.
It has been a challenging time trying to fit everything from a 'normal' work and home life around the substantial hours spent caring for my dad.
My father is now over 90 and up until recently he has managed to look after himself... with a lot of support from me. But as time marches on things change and during the last few weeks he has had several falls which have knocked his (and my) confidence in his ability to live alone.
However I'm really pleased to say that after I've stayed with him nearly 24/7 for the last week he is now getting back to normal and is getting stronger again. We have also had fantastic support from all the Guernsey Social Services... from Carers, Fast Response Nurses, Social Workers, St Johns Ambulance, A&E, Doctors.... the list could go on. Thank you all.
This whole episode has caused me to step back and re-asses what is important in life... what is really important to me. I have realized that spending so much time with my father has meant we have strengthened our love and friendship in a very special way. It has been very rewarding.
But, away from that commitment life has to go on and whilst it has been challenging in every way I think a care plan is now in place. I think dad will be able to remain at home - which his wish.
The lack of free time and the stress of trying to keep dad safe are now the main factors that we have to address going forward.
What this ramble is leading to is explaining why it has taken more than a week to update a gallery featuring Round-6 of the GVC Winter MTB XC. I've now sorted this out and you can view the pics by following the link.
Going forward is a bit of an unknown. I'm intending to stay fully committed to the caring of my father and fit as much photography around this as I can. You'll maybe have to be a bit patient if the updates are a little slow sometimes.
Thanks to everyone for the continued support and interest in my pics... life goes on... it's just a little different :-)
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF ROUND 6 OF THE GVC MTB XC SERIES
A star is born......
16th January 2017
I’m not usually touched by the celebrity culture that we live in.
I’m rarely ‘star-struck’ when meeting people that spend their life in the public eye. Maybe that comes with my job as a Press photographer and Journalist where I attend many events where ‘faces’ are the centre of attention.
However, when I think back, I’ve never really been ‘star-struck’… even as a teenager when I followed David Bowie, Black Sabbath and Alice Cooper I never really thought of them as anything other than people… just like you and me.
OK, they did have a BIT MORE TALENT and MONEY and FUN than me (and probably you)... but hey, they were still just human beings!
Over the years I’ve had the opportunity to meet many famous people and I’ve rarely been star-struck by the person themselves.
So what is this Blog leading to?
Well you should now have an idea that I’d be the last person you should invite to join any sort of quiz team that requires a knowledge of celebrity. My missus has learnt (after 40 years) that it is pointless trying to have any conversation with me if it involves the lives, jobs or faces of the rich and famous! I’m not interested. I know NOTHING!
I have friends who work as Paparazzi in London and they enjoy taking the piss out of me by saying that I would starve if I did their job… they are right. If David Beckham bumped into me with Cheryl Cole on his arm I wouldn’t even notice them!!
So you understand that I’ve built up a ‘thick skin’ when in the company of celebrity… particularly in this decade when so many people that are given the label of ‘celebrity’ have no memorable talent at all!
All this commentary has been to try and explain how uninterested I am, normally, with star quality.
But occasionally I get caught out. This happens when I meet a particularly charismatic person or experience an amazing live performance.
That was the case at The Fermain Tavern on Saturday.
I had been looking forward to seeing Nessi Gomes play at her Diamonds & Demons album launch. Nessi is a Guernsey girl (with a Portuguese background). She was a familiar face on the local music scene before she took control of her ambition to make music and she started a passionate road to making that happen.
The first time I can remember seeing Nessi perform was at the Vale Earth Fair ‘Beach Life’ in 2009 (I have the pictures!). This mini festival was held in the picturesque Petit Bot valley next to the beach. Nessi played an acoustic set with a few friends and, even way back then, I remember that there were hints that Nessi had a special talent.
This talent has now blossomed and matured and Nessi Gomes revealed the result of the many years developing her own unique style and sound with her live performance at the ‘Tav launch of Diamond & Demons.
I was bowled over by the quality of her performance and yes… this old hag was more than a little star-struck! She must be something really special!
Now is the the time for you to discover Nessi Gomes. Follow her here on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nessigomesmusic/
I've edited my pics of the album launch and you can take a look at them here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF THE NESSI GOMES DIAMONDS & DEMONS ALBUM LAUNCH
16th January 2017
I’m not usually touched by the celebrity culture that we live in.
I’m rarely ‘star-struck’ when meeting people that spend their life in the public eye. Maybe that comes with my job as a Press photographer and Journalist where I attend many events where ‘faces’ are the centre of attention.
However, when I think back, I’ve never really been ‘star-struck’… even as a teenager when I followed David Bowie, Black Sabbath and Alice Cooper I never really thought of them as anything other than people… just like you and me.
OK, they did have a BIT MORE TALENT and MONEY and FUN than me (and probably you)... but hey, they were still just human beings!
Over the years I’ve had the opportunity to meet many famous people and I’ve rarely been star-struck by the person themselves.
So what is this Blog leading to?
Well you should now have an idea that I’d be the last person you should invite to join any sort of quiz team that requires a knowledge of celebrity. My missus has learnt (after 40 years) that it is pointless trying to have any conversation with me if it involves the lives, jobs or faces of the rich and famous! I’m not interested. I know NOTHING!
I have friends who work as Paparazzi in London and they enjoy taking the piss out of me by saying that I would starve if I did their job… they are right. If David Beckham bumped into me with Cheryl Cole on his arm I wouldn’t even notice them!!
So you understand that I’ve built up a ‘thick skin’ when in the company of celebrity… particularly in this decade when so many people that are given the label of ‘celebrity’ have no memorable talent at all!
All this commentary has been to try and explain how uninterested I am, normally, with star quality.
But occasionally I get caught out. This happens when I meet a particularly charismatic person or experience an amazing live performance.
That was the case at The Fermain Tavern on Saturday.
I had been looking forward to seeing Nessi Gomes play at her Diamonds & Demons album launch. Nessi is a Guernsey girl (with a Portuguese background). She was a familiar face on the local music scene before she took control of her ambition to make music and she started a passionate road to making that happen.
The first time I can remember seeing Nessi perform was at the Vale Earth Fair ‘Beach Life’ in 2009 (I have the pictures!). This mini festival was held in the picturesque Petit Bot valley next to the beach. Nessi played an acoustic set with a few friends and, even way back then, I remember that there were hints that Nessi had a special talent.
This talent has now blossomed and matured and Nessi Gomes revealed the result of the many years developing her own unique style and sound with her live performance at the ‘Tav launch of Diamond & Demons.
I was bowled over by the quality of her performance and yes… this old hag was more than a little star-struck! She must be something really special!
Now is the the time for you to discover Nessi Gomes. Follow her here on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nessigomesmusic/
I've edited my pics of the album launch and you can take a look at them here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF THE NESSI GOMES DIAMONDS & DEMONS ALBUM LAUNCH
Was your office party as good as mine??
24th December 2016
How do you get into the festive spirit?
Well if you're still of 'working age' then the chances are that part of the seasonal 'warm-up' process is to spend some time in the company of your work-mates at the office Christmas party.
Now, as we all know, these 'do's' can end up in all sorts of dramas!
Some of the stories of misbehavior circulating around the office the day after a lively party go on to become legendary. Reputations are both made and lost!
Even though we all know that we are walking a risky road by joining the revelry at the office party we all give in and let our hair down... well why not - it's just once a year ;-)
This blog is leading on to me telling you about my own ultimate office Christmas party.
When I throw a party everyone is invited ;-)
OK, maybe I'm 'bigging' up my part in organizing the TALLPICTURES.com Ultimate Office Christmas Party just a little.... OK, actually quite a lot.
In fact my own TALLPICTURES.com office party involved me sitting in a dark corner of The Cock & Bull (alone) with a pint of real ale and a packet of crisps... it can get lonely when you're the only employee :-(
However there is always an answer to any problem, if you look hard enough.
So my idea was to tag onto someone else's office party. This turned out to be an amazing plan as I joined hundreds of revelers at the OneLouder 2016 Ultimate Office Christmas Party at Beau Sejour.
These guys really know how to have fun and their choice of two of the most popular bands in the Channel Islands was perfect to party to!
Fade2Grey and King Rat & the Soul Cats had Beau Sejour rocking and the party took its place among all the legendary parties of years gone by... but this time it was for all the right reasons :-)
So I left the party with a camera-full of pics (yes I know I shouldn't work at my office party) but I couldn't miss the chance to take a few pics... even if the lighting was a struggle for a photographer to work with. Yes I'm still a moaning misery even at Christmas time!
The OneLouder party did its job getting me in the festive mood and I've just one more thing to say...
'Seasons Greetings to you all'
If you want to see how my office party went, check-out the pics here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF MY ULTIMATE OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY
24th December 2016
How do you get into the festive spirit?
Well if you're still of 'working age' then the chances are that part of the seasonal 'warm-up' process is to spend some time in the company of your work-mates at the office Christmas party.
Now, as we all know, these 'do's' can end up in all sorts of dramas!
Some of the stories of misbehavior circulating around the office the day after a lively party go on to become legendary. Reputations are both made and lost!
Even though we all know that we are walking a risky road by joining the revelry at the office party we all give in and let our hair down... well why not - it's just once a year ;-)
This blog is leading on to me telling you about my own ultimate office Christmas party.
When I throw a party everyone is invited ;-)
OK, maybe I'm 'bigging' up my part in organizing the TALLPICTURES.com Ultimate Office Christmas Party just a little.... OK, actually quite a lot.
In fact my own TALLPICTURES.com office party involved me sitting in a dark corner of The Cock & Bull (alone) with a pint of real ale and a packet of crisps... it can get lonely when you're the only employee :-(
However there is always an answer to any problem, if you look hard enough.
So my idea was to tag onto someone else's office party. This turned out to be an amazing plan as I joined hundreds of revelers at the OneLouder 2016 Ultimate Office Christmas Party at Beau Sejour.
These guys really know how to have fun and their choice of two of the most popular bands in the Channel Islands was perfect to party to!
Fade2Grey and King Rat & the Soul Cats had Beau Sejour rocking and the party took its place among all the legendary parties of years gone by... but this time it was for all the right reasons :-)
So I left the party with a camera-full of pics (yes I know I shouldn't work at my office party) but I couldn't miss the chance to take a few pics... even if the lighting was a struggle for a photographer to work with. Yes I'm still a moaning misery even at Christmas time!
The OneLouder party did its job getting me in the festive mood and I've just one more thing to say...
'Seasons Greetings to you all'
If you want to see how my office party went, check-out the pics here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF MY ULTIMATE OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY
I LOVE round numbers.....
08th November 2016
I love round numbers. Numbers like one million, one hundred, ten… in fact any number that ends in noughts. The more noughts the better though!
There is something nice and tidy about a number that ends in a nought.
I’ve no idea where I get the passion for numerical tidiness from as my office desk is proof that I don’t carry this zeal for tidiness into all aspects of my life!
But I won’t let that small fact spoil the pleasure I felt when my website viewing passed another significant mark… another of those cherished ‘round numbers’.
In fact I’m celebrating two new markers in one this time around. Just how happy can a photographer be???
The celebration comes as this website's total picture views passed through the FIFTEEN MILLION mark…. that’s SIX NOUGHTS you know ;-)
By coincidence this also marks a new record for the number of views within a twelve month period. In fact it is just eleven months since the website views passed ELEVEN MILLION, so for the first time, I have had more than FOUR MILLION views within a year.
That deserves a smiley face :-)
When viewings passed the THREE MILLION annual total I commented that it probably wouldn’t be repeated but now I’m getting cocky and have set myself the challenge of breaking an annual FIVE MILLION views.
To achieve this I don’t see any time in the near future when I’ll find a moment to get around to tidying the disorderly desk…. But that’s fine as ‘tidy’ round numbers will keep me happy ;-)
Thanks for the continued visits to view my pics. It is you who make up the numbers.
You can view a few of the old ‘Milestone Millions’ Blogs by following this link:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PREVIOUS 'MILLION' BLOGS
08th November 2016
I love round numbers. Numbers like one million, one hundred, ten… in fact any number that ends in noughts. The more noughts the better though!
There is something nice and tidy about a number that ends in a nought.
I’ve no idea where I get the passion for numerical tidiness from as my office desk is proof that I don’t carry this zeal for tidiness into all aspects of my life!
But I won’t let that small fact spoil the pleasure I felt when my website viewing passed another significant mark… another of those cherished ‘round numbers’.
In fact I’m celebrating two new markers in one this time around. Just how happy can a photographer be???
The celebration comes as this website's total picture views passed through the FIFTEEN MILLION mark…. that’s SIX NOUGHTS you know ;-)
By coincidence this also marks a new record for the number of views within a twelve month period. In fact it is just eleven months since the website views passed ELEVEN MILLION, so for the first time, I have had more than FOUR MILLION views within a year.
That deserves a smiley face :-)
When viewings passed the THREE MILLION annual total I commented that it probably wouldn’t be repeated but now I’m getting cocky and have set myself the challenge of breaking an annual FIVE MILLION views.
To achieve this I don’t see any time in the near future when I’ll find a moment to get around to tidying the disorderly desk…. But that’s fine as ‘tidy’ round numbers will keep me happy ;-)
Thanks for the continued visits to view my pics. It is you who make up the numbers.
You can view a few of the old ‘Milestone Millions’ Blogs by following this link:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PREVIOUS 'MILLION' BLOGS
The Pride of Guernsey Awards evening.........
15th October 2016
As one of the Guernsey Press pool of freelance photographers I was called in to assist the team of full-time 'togs to photograph the Guernsey Press 'Pride of Guernsey' Awards Evening.
The GP and all their staff had made a huge effort to make the evening memorable and a success.
The whole main open plan office area had been cleared of all the workstations leaving a massive space to layout the dining tables and stage together with the lighting and sound system supplied by Joys.
During the preparation there had been a massive amount of work and inconvenience... remember that this was the working office that still had to produce the daily Guernsey Press from within all the disruption!
However all that upheaval was worth it as the space worked incredibly well and the evening was considered a success by everyone I spoke to.
Of course I was the lucky one as the next day for me was just a 'normal day'... my GP workmates had to rebuild their office before meeting the next days print deadline.
I really enjoyed being part of the event and supplying 'live' pics of the awards ceremony so that a special edition of the Guernsey Press could be printed on the evening so the Award winners and guests could take away a copy as they left.
The only thing remaining for me to do is to congratulate all the Award winners.
You can view a few of my pics in this gallery:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF THE PRIDE OF GUERNSEY AWARDS 2016
15th October 2016
As one of the Guernsey Press pool of freelance photographers I was called in to assist the team of full-time 'togs to photograph the Guernsey Press 'Pride of Guernsey' Awards Evening.
The GP and all their staff had made a huge effort to make the evening memorable and a success.
The whole main open plan office area had been cleared of all the workstations leaving a massive space to layout the dining tables and stage together with the lighting and sound system supplied by Joys.
During the preparation there had been a massive amount of work and inconvenience... remember that this was the working office that still had to produce the daily Guernsey Press from within all the disruption!
However all that upheaval was worth it as the space worked incredibly well and the evening was considered a success by everyone I spoke to.
Of course I was the lucky one as the next day for me was just a 'normal day'... my GP workmates had to rebuild their office before meeting the next days print deadline.
I really enjoyed being part of the event and supplying 'live' pics of the awards ceremony so that a special edition of the Guernsey Press could be printed on the evening so the Award winners and guests could take away a copy as they left.
The only thing remaining for me to do is to congratulate all the Award winners.
You can view a few of my pics in this gallery:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF THE PRIDE OF GUERNSEY AWARDS 2016
FIAT 500 Gathering at North Beach...
12th September 2016
Few cars have endeared themselves on drivers over the decades as successfully as the classic Fiat 500.
The original version is now a sought after vehicle which truly qualifies as an iconic motorcar.
This status encouraged Fiat to try to re-interpret the design and the success of the current Fiat 500 proves that they did a fantastic job.
Le Mont Saint Garage decided that there was an opportunity to celebrate the owners love of their cars with a chance to raise a few pounds for three important charities.
So on Sunday morning, for as little as a fiver, Fiat 500 owners could meet other owners and help the RNLI, St John and Channel Island Airsearch all at the same time.
I popped along to take a few pics....
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF THE FIAT 500 GATHERING
12th September 2016
Few cars have endeared themselves on drivers over the decades as successfully as the classic Fiat 500.
The original version is now a sought after vehicle which truly qualifies as an iconic motorcar.
This status encouraged Fiat to try to re-interpret the design and the success of the current Fiat 500 proves that they did a fantastic job.
Le Mont Saint Garage decided that there was an opportunity to celebrate the owners love of their cars with a chance to raise a few pounds for three important charities.
So on Sunday morning, for as little as a fiver, Fiat 500 owners could meet other owners and help the RNLI, St John and Channel Island Airsearch all at the same time.
I popped along to take a few pics....
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF THE FIAT 500 GATHERING
I've discovered a new talent......
06th August 2016
I've just discovered that I have a new talent... and it's a bit special.
It's one of those amazing abilities that you dream about as a child and now, at the ripe old age of sixty-one, I've just found it!
How would you like to be able to see into the future too?
Well I promise that if you follow my advice you too can possess the same super-power!
All I had to do was to attend the School of Popular Music's Summer Party at the legendary Fermain Tavern last night.
The SoPM's young and energetic team had organized the evening to show-case six of their new bands. There was huge support given to all the young performers who were treated to a full stage sound system and lighting all controlled by pro technicians. How lucky were they!
If that opportunity didn't fire up their passion for live music I don't know what else would.
To get back to my original point I think that last night I saw into the future of the Guernsey music scene and it looks good.
In fact my guess is that the talent on show could be destined to even bigger things. Maybe there was a future chart-topper among them?
... but that's just a bit too far into the future for me to see yet :-(
Follow this link to see into the future with me:
CLICK HERE TO SEE PICS OF THE SoPM 2016 SUMMER PARTY
06th August 2016
I've just discovered that I have a new talent... and it's a bit special.
It's one of those amazing abilities that you dream about as a child and now, at the ripe old age of sixty-one, I've just found it!
How would you like to be able to see into the future too?
Well I promise that if you follow my advice you too can possess the same super-power!
All I had to do was to attend the School of Popular Music's Summer Party at the legendary Fermain Tavern last night.
The SoPM's young and energetic team had organized the evening to show-case six of their new bands. There was huge support given to all the young performers who were treated to a full stage sound system and lighting all controlled by pro technicians. How lucky were they!
If that opportunity didn't fire up their passion for live music I don't know what else would.
To get back to my original point I think that last night I saw into the future of the Guernsey music scene and it looks good.
In fact my guess is that the talent on show could be destined to even bigger things. Maybe there was a future chart-topper among them?
... but that's just a bit too far into the future for me to see yet :-(
Follow this link to see into the future with me:
CLICK HERE TO SEE PICS OF THE SoPM 2016 SUMMER PARTY
So, so SLooowwwW
01st June 2016
I'm sorry that this website has been completely down for a large part of the day and when the technical issues were identified it eventually re-appeared but in a VERY SLOW form :-(
This was all out of my control and my website administrator has been working hard to return things to 'normal service'.
The whole event is VERY frustrating but Photium... the web admin that I use, have a very, very good record of reliability and are extremely quick to respond to problems. Indeed they come with my full recommendations.
But sometimes these things are out of all our control and patience and understanding is all we can ask for.
I'd be feeling a little bit pleased if the 10,000+ daily views that this website gets had bought the internet down but I can't make that claim to fame!!
Please bear with us while we get things back up to full speed.... thanks.
UPDATE: The website has returned to normal and speedy service. I would like say a big thank-you to the Photium team for keeping me up-to-date with the problems... which were out of their control. These things happen but thankfully are extremely rare!
Andrew :-)
01st June 2016
I'm sorry that this website has been completely down for a large part of the day and when the technical issues were identified it eventually re-appeared but in a VERY SLOW form :-(
This was all out of my control and my website administrator has been working hard to return things to 'normal service'.
The whole event is VERY frustrating but Photium... the web admin that I use, have a very, very good record of reliability and are extremely quick to respond to problems. Indeed they come with my full recommendations.
But sometimes these things are out of all our control and patience and understanding is all we can ask for.
I'd be feeling a little bit pleased if the 10,000+ daily views that this website gets had bought the internet down but I can't make that claim to fame!!
Please bear with us while we get things back up to full speed.... thanks.
UPDATE: The website has returned to normal and speedy service. I would like say a big thank-you to the Photium team for keeping me up-to-date with the problems... which were out of their control. These things happen but thankfully are extremely rare!
Andrew :-)
It's great to have the opportunity to photograph a major event...
29th April 2016
Last Wednesday I photographed the 2016 Guernsey General Elections at St Sampson's Douzaine for the Guernsey Press.
I've photographed the Elections before and always enjoy being a part of what is a long, tiring and stressful day for all the candidates... and the media!
The whole local media 'circus' was on site to give complete coverage of the St Sampson District's General Election results and I think the small foyer of the St Sampson's Douzaine was the 'coziest' venue of any of the districts.
When the Returning Officer of the Day, Tom Oliver, climbed a few steps to speak to the amassed Candidates, family, friends, officials and supporters it was approaching 1pm.
The media had spent the previous five hours waiting in the Fontaine Inn, drinking Coke and tweeting whilst multi-tasking watching the earlier declarations on two televisions with live radio feeds running in the background on mobile phones! We didn't want to miss a thing!
When it came, the St Sampsons declaration saw an end of Deputy Kevin Stewart's short political career. Lyndon Trott topped the poll and there were two newcomers, Jennifer Merrett and Carl Meerveld.
After finishing the photography, which is not unlike sport/action photography as the whole thing happens very quickly, the job was only half-done as the editing, tagging and submissions had to be made at the Press headquarters to allow for an early print of the newspaper for Thursday.
I eventually dragged myself into bed at 3.30am having had a thoroughly interesting night at the centre of an epic, emotional event.
I can't wait for the next time... in 2020!
CLICK HERE TO VIEW A FEW OF MY ELECTION PICS
29th April 2016
Last Wednesday I photographed the 2016 Guernsey General Elections at St Sampson's Douzaine for the Guernsey Press.
I've photographed the Elections before and always enjoy being a part of what is a long, tiring and stressful day for all the candidates... and the media!
The whole local media 'circus' was on site to give complete coverage of the St Sampson District's General Election results and I think the small foyer of the St Sampson's Douzaine was the 'coziest' venue of any of the districts.
When the Returning Officer of the Day, Tom Oliver, climbed a few steps to speak to the amassed Candidates, family, friends, officials and supporters it was approaching 1pm.
The media had spent the previous five hours waiting in the Fontaine Inn, drinking Coke and tweeting whilst multi-tasking watching the earlier declarations on two televisions with live radio feeds running in the background on mobile phones! We didn't want to miss a thing!
When it came, the St Sampsons declaration saw an end of Deputy Kevin Stewart's short political career. Lyndon Trott topped the poll and there were two newcomers, Jennifer Merrett and Carl Meerveld.
After finishing the photography, which is not unlike sport/action photography as the whole thing happens very quickly, the job was only half-done as the editing, tagging and submissions had to be made at the Press headquarters to allow for an early print of the newspaper for Thursday.
I eventually dragged myself into bed at 3.30am having had a thoroughly interesting night at the centre of an epic, emotional event.
I can't wait for the next time... in 2020!
CLICK HERE TO VIEW A FEW OF MY ELECTION PICS
Your chance to grab a bargain to last a lifetime....
08th April 2016
As a Professional photographer I take pride in producing high quality work.
I also rely on selling a few pics to pay for the food, the beer, the household bills.... you get the idea :-)
A large part of my income comes from selling prints. I've invested in my own large format Pro printer that produces industry leading quality using 11 Archival Pigment inks. These prints should outlast you!!
But I often feel disappointed when I deliver a batch of prints as I have an idea that, after the initial enjoyment of them, many of the prints end up in a draw... forgotten and creased :-(
Now maybe I shouldn't be bothered... after all I have been paid for them!
The thing is, I long for people to see and enjoy the pics for longer than that.
This brings me to this SPECIAL OFFER. It's for the print option that I think is the best that I offer. An A3 sized FRAMED & BEVEL MOUNTED PRINT.
These A3 prints are big enough to have impact and show off all the pictures detail - and being framed behind glass they will remain in perfect condition for years.
So to encourage all my customers to try an A3 FRAMED PRINT I'm offering, for a limited time, a SPECIAL PRICE of £45... that's a £10 reduction.
This is a fantastic price that I'm only able to offer as I control every aspect of production. I personally optimise every individual print before hand-cutting a bevel mount. Finally the print is framed in the satin black frame that I purchase in bulk direct from the manufacturer.
This results in an UNBEATABLE PRICE.
Next time you are thinking about buying a pic please consider choosing an A3 FRAMED PRINT. You won't be dissapointed, I promise.
08th April 2016
As a Professional photographer I take pride in producing high quality work.
I also rely on selling a few pics to pay for the food, the beer, the household bills.... you get the idea :-)
A large part of my income comes from selling prints. I've invested in my own large format Pro printer that produces industry leading quality using 11 Archival Pigment inks. These prints should outlast you!!
But I often feel disappointed when I deliver a batch of prints as I have an idea that, after the initial enjoyment of them, many of the prints end up in a draw... forgotten and creased :-(
Now maybe I shouldn't be bothered... after all I have been paid for them!
The thing is, I long for people to see and enjoy the pics for longer than that.
This brings me to this SPECIAL OFFER. It's for the print option that I think is the best that I offer. An A3 sized FRAMED & BEVEL MOUNTED PRINT.
These A3 prints are big enough to have impact and show off all the pictures detail - and being framed behind glass they will remain in perfect condition for years.
So to encourage all my customers to try an A3 FRAMED PRINT I'm offering, for a limited time, a SPECIAL PRICE of £45... that's a £10 reduction.
This is a fantastic price that I'm only able to offer as I control every aspect of production. I personally optimise every individual print before hand-cutting a bevel mount. Finally the print is framed in the satin black frame that I purchase in bulk direct from the manufacturer.
This results in an UNBEATABLE PRICE.
Next time you are thinking about buying a pic please consider choosing an A3 FRAMED PRINT. You won't be dissapointed, I promise.
Another Million views means a Nikon D5 treat :-)
01st March 2016
It’s a tantalizing thought and something has just grabbed my interest. :-)
Now that another MILLION MILESTONE of views has been shattered I can only look ahead to the next one….
13 MILLION VIEWS HERE WE COME!
My interest was tickled after I analyzed how long it took to jump from 11 MILLION views to hit the 12 MILLION mark… it took a couple of days short of three months.
After a few simple sums it suggests that the hit rate might just be on the way to a new annual total.
How does 4 MILLION views a year sound to you?
It sounds GREEAATT to me. :-)
As always I have to thank all of you for making it over to visit this website. The Google analysis shows that more than 50% of you drop in quite regularly, so I guess that you continue to find the occasional item and photoshoot that interests you.
I’m encouraged by the fact that I’m also finding a stream of new visitors. Now it falls on me to grab their attention whilst they are browsing with the aim of getting them back again too.
I know from my own Internet usage that if a website is to become one of my regular ‘haunts’ it has to be updated on a regular basis. I’m also aware that my own browsing usually includes sites that offer comments, advise, reviews and analysis.
As I’ve been receiving regular requests to pass on a few of the tips and tricks that I’ve picked up along my photographic journey I intend to add an occasional Blog covering a variety of topics – from the software I use to the kit I hang around my neck.
Perhaps my first Info-Blog will cover my first impressions of the new Nikon D5 and D500 cameras!
I have these new range-topping cameras on pre-order with Grays of Westminster… right near the top of their list. :-)
As a registered Nikon Professional Services photographer I’ve been able to get my hands on the first UK delivery of cameras going all the way back including the D200, D3, D300, D3s, D4 and D4s. It has become a little perk of the job to play with the very latest kit… and I wasn’t about to break with tradition!
So the count-down to delivery has started. Hopefully in about three weeks I’ll have a new Nikon D5 to play with. This time I intend to share my thoughts. Pop back soon to see what I make of the latest upgrade. :-)
You can read some of my previous 'MILLION VIEWS' Blogs here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE PREVIOUS MILLION VIEW BLOGS
01st March 2016
It’s a tantalizing thought and something has just grabbed my interest. :-)
Now that another MILLION MILESTONE of views has been shattered I can only look ahead to the next one….
13 MILLION VIEWS HERE WE COME!
My interest was tickled after I analyzed how long it took to jump from 11 MILLION views to hit the 12 MILLION mark… it took a couple of days short of three months.
After a few simple sums it suggests that the hit rate might just be on the way to a new annual total.
How does 4 MILLION views a year sound to you?
It sounds GREEAATT to me. :-)
As always I have to thank all of you for making it over to visit this website. The Google analysis shows that more than 50% of you drop in quite regularly, so I guess that you continue to find the occasional item and photoshoot that interests you.
I’m encouraged by the fact that I’m also finding a stream of new visitors. Now it falls on me to grab their attention whilst they are browsing with the aim of getting them back again too.
I know from my own Internet usage that if a website is to become one of my regular ‘haunts’ it has to be updated on a regular basis. I’m also aware that my own browsing usually includes sites that offer comments, advise, reviews and analysis.
As I’ve been receiving regular requests to pass on a few of the tips and tricks that I’ve picked up along my photographic journey I intend to add an occasional Blog covering a variety of topics – from the software I use to the kit I hang around my neck.
Perhaps my first Info-Blog will cover my first impressions of the new Nikon D5 and D500 cameras!
I have these new range-topping cameras on pre-order with Grays of Westminster… right near the top of their list. :-)
As a registered Nikon Professional Services photographer I’ve been able to get my hands on the first UK delivery of cameras going all the way back including the D200, D3, D300, D3s, D4 and D4s. It has become a little perk of the job to play with the very latest kit… and I wasn’t about to break with tradition!
So the count-down to delivery has started. Hopefully in about three weeks I’ll have a new Nikon D5 to play with. This time I intend to share my thoughts. Pop back soon to see what I make of the latest upgrade. :-)
You can read some of my previous 'MILLION VIEWS' Blogs here:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE PREVIOUS MILLION VIEW BLOGS