Sadhu

I'm going to be going off the radar for the next week or so. Heading back up north to Skye to do some research for some future workshops for my business, but in the meantime, thought I'd leave you all with one of the new images I've been working on.

Shot in Jaisamler in Rajasthan, earlier this year. I took this with a Contax 645 and standard lens shot at f2. Sadhus are holly men, but I often felt that they had become so used to generating a nice income from the local tourist trade. I will put it another way, often I didn't have to approach Sadhu's for pictures, rather they would approach me whether I wanted to take their photo or not.

But they do make excellent subjects. I had made some more black and white contact sheets today and this shot was just so gorgeous I had to make a large black and white print of it. I had no idea just how it looked in colour until I chose the same negative to scan when I got back to my home.

I feel I've hit the tip of the iceberg in terms of potential images. Somehow, I think I needed time away from these images when I got home from India. The entire trip was so overwhelming. Space, a little bit of distance and all of a sudden I'm ready to take the task of working on 100 rolls of film on board. I feel very wary - I've got to becareful I don't rush, as I may pass an image which has great potential. I think it's just going to take a lot of time.

Scotland Outdoors Magazine

The latest edition of Scotland Outdoors magazine has one of my Sandwood bay images on it's front cover. If you don't know the magazine well, it's a pretty nice read - full of articles about people doing alternative activities in Scotland and has a nice green slant on most ventures that people are getting into.

Pushkar पुष्कर), Rajasthan

I've had over 100 rolls of processed negatives sitting in my filing cabinet in my home studio since February. The images in question are from India and Nepal. I've been too swamped with things to do as well as going full time with my photography workshop business to get round to working on them.

Part of the issue for me is that negatives are hard to review (I'd have to load them into the scanner 2 at a time) and contact sheets cost a bomb to get done at the time of processing. I really don't mind paying to get film processed. Sure it's costly, but the results are always worth it, but contact sheets at £5 on top of the cost of processing the film - is out of the question for me.

But here's the thing, I joined a local camera club last year - Midlothian Camera Club. I do lots of talks around Scotland so I'm lucky to get to observe a lot of clubs and in general, I think most clubs are great. They're all different, but the great thing is that you're surrounded by folk who love photography. I just loved this little club because they were all so sociable and I was feeling that I needed to get out and meet some new friends etc. I think my reason for joining wasn't really anything to do with learning anything, it was more about just being able to spend time around folks who like to talk about photography and 'get it'. If you know what I mean.

Anyway, my little club has their own premises and dark room facilities.  So there I was last night at the back of the club doing my first contact prints (colour negative film onto black and white paper), aided by a long time member of the club (thanks Adam!). It was just such great fun being back in a dark room and before I knew it, I wanted to do some large prints.

Anyway, this photo is one of the images on the first contact sheet I processed last night. It's cropped a bit, because the Indian in the scene was a very tricky customer to photograph. I couldn't get near him and he was taunting me.... yet he was just so incredibly photogenic (in my mind anyway). This was shot on my Contax 645 with 140mm lens. I now have a 210mm lens for the kit which would have suited this subject better). He was a 'rascal' as we say here in Scotland.

So I don't really know what the aim of this post is. Perhaps I'm suggesting that getting in touch with your local photo club is a good way to enhance your photography. I've met so many great people over the year in the club and I think I may be on the verge of entering the domain of trad dark room printing. But I also wanted to show you this shot, taken in Pushkar, a very religious place (similar to Varanassi). I've only just begun to dig into the negatives and will spend some time at my club this weekend developing more contact sheets, so I can decide on which images I need to load into the scanner tray......

Hornets Nest?

A few days ago, I was asked  if I photoshop my images. It did stirr up some rather strong feelings I have on the matter about manipulation, but perhaps not in the way you may think I mean. Before reading the rest of my post, I encourage you to watch this video first.

Ok, so you watched it? I'd love to know what your feelings are on the matter. But before you rush off to post an entry to me, I'll tell you mine, straight to the point.

I really deplore people who use the word 'photoshop' to imply cheating, like photoshop is bad. It's not. I also don't agree with people who feel that photography should be truthful. In their minds, they have this concept that when the shutter is clicked, the unmanipulated image contains truth. That is incorrect from the start because if it were true, the image would be 3-D. It would also have the same dynamic range that our eyes are able to record, but the simple matter is that cameras, sensors and film do not see the way we see. And in order to convey what we saw, we have to use things like Neutral Density filters and dark room techniques like the ones you saw Ansel doing in the video.

I use photoshop techniques all the time. I'm a big fan of layers and masks. I like to add localised contrast to elements of the scene. I also like to 'suggest' to the viewer aspects of the image by controlling brighness and darkness.

But there is skill in what I do out in the field too. I cannot turn any old image into a good one. I have to have good light, good subject matter and above all else, a sense of strong vision.

I feel I am very much in tune with how Ansel approached his images. He was a master printer. But he had a strong sense of vision and when he saw a scene, he knew how he wanted it to be realised.

It's pretty disparaging when people say 'oh, you photoshopped that', as if to say 'you cheated'. It demeans the value of the work.

Let's put it another way. If it's as simple as just getting a copy of photoshop and playing around with images, we'd all be making great images, but we're not. The subject is a whole lot more complex than just assuming that if you have a really expensive camera or a copy of photoshop, you're going to get great results.

Hebrides & other stories

This has certainly turned out to be a year of productivity for me. I started January in India then moved onto Nepal in February. March saw me return to Patagonia for my annual photo workshop and just before leaving South America, I managed a non-stop tour of the Bolivian altiplano.

But for years I've felt that I've neglected my own country too much. Scotland has a lot going for it and after all the traveling I've done, I have come to appreciate its beauty more so than I ever thought I could. We have such changeable weather here which has a direct impact on the quality of the light.

So in March I visited the north west of Scotland during a flurry of Snow and caught some rare shots of places in really wintry conditions.

Now this summer, I've managed to tick off a few islands that I've always wanted to visit : Orkney, Harris and Lewis. So this post is really about them. I now have a new collection of images from these islands as well as some shots from Knoydart - a remote peninsula on the north west of Scotland.

I hope you enjoy these images as much as I enjoyed making them.

What I love very much about photography is the surprises that are waiting for me. Sure I do a lot of planning and I'll research maps to find places of interest, work out logistics such as travelling times between locations and I'll often go to places middle of the day and make notes to return at 3am because the light is bland and I really think the place has potential later on. I seldom shoot middle of the day, but when the light is overcast, its softness is kind to the film I use. Harsh shadows are avoided and blown highlights don't get a look in. I'm always studying the light and watching, waiting for the conditions I know my camera's film can handle.

Shooting at 11pm in twilight and then back up at 3am to capture the light from the east does take its toll. It's at times like these that I do question my motivations.

But there is something very contemplative and enjoyable about being on a deserted beach just listening to the waves and watching the colour temperature go from cold to warm. I think my private thoughts and lose myself in what I'm doing and I can't really say there is any better way to disconnect from the pressures of life for a few hours.

I simply love it.

Contact Sheet - Summer Adventure

This summer I visited Knoydart peninsula and the islands of Orkney, Harris and Lewis. The last two islands are part of the Western Isles or more specifically the outer Hebrides. Orkney is at the very top east of Scotland. Summer brings long evenings in which to shoot and early mornings which are torturous - a 3am start always makes me feel a little bit 'wobbly'. It is at times like this that I start to feel rather 'out of it' and do question my motivations for making images.

Here is a contact sheet of the images that have made it to the final selection for my web site. I'll be putting them up in a new portfolio titled 'Summer Adventure' to mirror my 'Winter Adventure' portfolio.

I'm always looking for concepts as I find it helps me focus my efforts when shooting and also helps me figure out how best to present the new images when I'm ready to publish them.

I'm tempted to head out to the Uists this Summer if time permits. They too are also part of the Hebrides, a long tail of islands joined by ferry or causeway, each stunning in their own right (I should be getting some money from the Scottish Tourism Board for this!). The downside is that it's often expensive and very time consuming. I've lived in Scotland all my life and it's only this summer that I've managed to venture out to these places. But what beauty I've encountered there.... I don't feel it will be my last endevour there.

September Isle of Eigg Workshop, Sold Out

Just a quickie, the September Isle of Eigg workshop is now full, but if you wish to be kept informed of any cancellations, just drop me a line..

Eigg, Harris, Lewis & Orkney

I've been busy working on my new images from Harris, Lewis and Orkney. So this post has a nice preview of some images from those trips, but before I show you them, I have some important information on my Isle of Eigg workshop for September.

Isle of Eigg Workshop - Only 1 space left!

I know plenty of you have been telling me for months that you are intending on coming along on the Isle of Eigg workshop.

I now only have 1 space left, so if you are still thinking about coming - now is your chance.

Don't worry

TThe good news is that I have set up a second Eigg workshop for the 19th to 24th of April 2010, in case you can't make the September trip because I've been overrun by a stampede to get the last place ;-)

See : http://www.lightonscotland.com/pages/eigg.html

Harris & Lewis & Orkney

I thought I'd show you a preview of some new images I shot on Harris and Lewis & Orkney earlier this Summer.

This image was shot on the main Orkney Island at the rings of Brodgar.

And this one is of Seilbost beach on the isle of Harris:

And sometimes you find strange things on a beach. I loved the 'rocking horse' shape of this dead tree:

But I think I was most impressed by the Callanish Stones and happened upon them one summers evening while the moon was rising:

Callanish, Isle of Lewis

Callanish, one of Scotland's 'must see' ancient sites is situated on the Isle of Lewis. Lewis is part of the Western Isles, or the outer Hebrides. I came here two weeks ago to photograph the place and the island. I just thought I'd share this image with you all while I busy myself working through all the images from my trip.

The islands of Harris and Lewis are very photogenic. And it just so turned out that I was there one evening while the moon was rising.

Shot on Fuji Velvia 50 with my trusty Mamiya 7 and 80 mm standard lens. Straight from the scanner with no dodging or burning.

Creating a portfolio book

Just a few days ago, I was approached by a very well known company to use my images with their products. As a result, they've arranged for Fed Ex to pick up my portfolio this week to ship it to California so they can appraise my work. How many of you have your work printed up, and presented in a professional system which allows you to reconfigure and change pages in the book depending on the client’s need?

The trick with this sort of thing is to keep the collection of images as pertinent as possible to the proposed medium your client is interested in, and to be ruthless with the choices you decide to include : any image that is causing you doubt, or that you feel is flawed in some way - has to be removed. Print quality is paramount as well.

I got my portfolio printed up by a local professional lab onto mat paper. It’s the only way to go because glossy paper behind plastic sheets is too highly reflective. The book is leather bound, has my name embossed on it and was made by a company called Plastic Sandwich. I decided to go for a small book which contains 10×10 prints. Some people go for really large books, but I feel that it’s got to be reasonably portable, and it’s only a means of illustrating what you are about. If they like what they see, then larger images can be prepared.