May 2008
It's Bluebell season and I will be out there at dawn & dusk. Asheridge is high on my list - and on the list of hundreds of other photographers too - as well as more local beech woods. And, one of the 3 commissions which resulted from my Lambent Light exhibition 'happens' this month. A client has aked me to create some pictures of her rather wonderful garden. My plan is to start the shoot at around 5.30am so I guess that the early bird will be lucky to get the worm - I claim it! A second commission - pictures of Frinton-on-Sea - is also planned for May / June. Having watched a recent TV programme on Frinton, I will be taking extra care to ensure that I have an escape plan.
Techy stuff:- The Ricoh 100GX has been a constant companion - a very capable camera, especially for close up / macro shots. Auto focusing is a bit slow so if you are in a hurry, the RAW file writing speed of 10 seconds per shot is likley to give you high blood pressure! Luckily, I'm taking the tablets. But that aside, here's an example of a hand-held shot made whilst controlling a 5-month old Boxer puppy who was bouncing around on the end of her leash! It says much about the Ricoh's image stability feature.
I will be doing a field test of the Ricoh vs the Canon 5D and some of the results will be on the site in August. I will be focusing - sorry - on what the results actually look like on the monitor and on an A3 print rather than trying to get technical with the likes of lpmm test charts. I'm a photographer and I am not interested in what sometimes seems like technical gobbledegook.
I have also just added the 20mm converter lens to the Rocoh. In the good old days of 35mm film, I always seemed to see the world through a 21mm Zuiko so the 20mm converter lens will be an interesting tool to use.
In April, I was lucky enough to make time to go to 2 exhibitions; the Vanity Fair exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery is quite amazing. In addition to my addiction to Bluebells, I love b&w fashion / portrait photography; this exhibition has it all; the glamour of Hollywood from the 1920's through to the grittiness of Helmut Newton in the 90's.
The second exhibition was David Ward & Anna Booth's Landscape Beyond at the OXO tower. A great opportunity to meet some old friends and make new promises to meet up and make some pictures, and to stand in front of some stunning images. The minimilism of David's 'Empty Sea', 'Sand Pattern Durness', and 'Strangles Cornwall' are quite breath-taking and infinite. Anna's graphic 'Frosted Lamp Nevada' her perspective defying 'Sand & Mud Patterns Sossusviei' and Renaissance-like 'Invading Sand Kolmanskop' were equally stunning. A wonderful exhibition which has also challenged my current choice of Ciba/Ilfochrome for my prints. David and Anna's choice of inkjet prints - some as large as 48" x 60" and that's 1200mm x 1500mm in new money - was inspired; the quality of the prints was outstanding even at nose-to-the-print distance. If you missed the exhibition, do buy David's book Landscape Beyond which has several of his exhibition pictures and lots of ideas that make your brain hurt! Landscape Beyond is a book that I strongly recommend.
Do you have those times when your best laid plans - or are they intentions - get splattered by life? Nothing too serious but you find yourself asking 'where did all the time go?' Well, it happened to me in December and January; the splattering effect was enhanced by the fact that I had just acquired a Ricoh 100GX camera and a 210mm lens for the large format and I had plans to use them. I'll be using the Ricoh as a viewfinder / compositional device for the 5" x 4". The Ricoh has been used and promises to be a great addition to the 20kg backpack! The 210 is still in it's box.
Plans for February are mixed; The South Coast is a must before the position of the rising & setting sun move too far to the North and locally, the gravestones of the dogs owned by the Disreali family. I also have 'pencilled in' a trip to the Highlands; Culnacraig is a repeat of November's visit which was disappointing weatherwise so this inspirational landscape beckons.
Developing Vision & Style really does live up to its title. There's lots to look at and simply enjoy - some truely magnificent pictures - and some thought provoking commentary. What is Vision? What is your Style? You do have one whether or not you see it for yourself. I believe that WHO YOU ARE fuels your Vision of the world and partly dictates your style. But more of these thoughts in March.
November 2007 - What happened to September & October!!
Well, 'Developing Vision & Style' has now arrived in the bookshops and looks certain to be even more popular and valuable to photographers than 'Working the Light'. I think that both books are essential reading for anyone who photographs the landscape.
I have made some new images of Marlow and a week long trip to Northwest Scotland with Joe Cornish and Richard Childs will hopefully result in some good pictures. Hopefully? Well the weather was foul for most of the week and my first mountain climb to the summit of Stac Pollaidh was dampened by cloud and aching legs. Fortunately, I had the support of very patient and experienced climbers Ken & Nicky.
Watch the galleries pages for the new pictures.
More of my photographs have been selected by Joe Cornish, Charlie Waite, David Ward & Eddie Ephraums for inclusion in their new book 'Developing Vision & Style' which will be available in September 2007.
3rd July - 22nd July 2007 - Lambent Light Exhibition.
Wycombe Swan Art Gallery, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.
From 3rd - 22nd July, the Wycombe Swan Art Gallery is showing an exhibition of outstanding large format landscape photography by Chilterns based photographer, Richard Holroyd. The exhibition is free and is open during the Swan Theatre’s afternoon & evening opening times.
If you can't get to the exhibition, you can see the pictures in the Galleries pages.
At the exhibition – ‘Lambent Light’ – you will see large format photographs that capture in beautiful lighting, the Chilterns, Heritage Coast and beyond the Channel Tunnel.
Many of Richard’s photographs have been published in books, calendars and greetings cards. The front cover image and 5 other pictures were chosen for a new book - ‘Working the Light – a Landscape Photographers Masterclass’ by internationally acclaimed photographers Joe Cornish, Charlie Waite & David Ward.
Joe Cornish
"An extremely elegant and sparse picture with a precisely drawn sense of line. It's very asymetrical and yet there is something perfect about it."
David Ward
"Perfection comes from balance, the exclusion of the unwanted or distracting elements. There is nothing in this image that feels out of place."
Charlie Waite
"There are lovely flecks of pink distributed throughout the grass, giving it a feeling of cats fur that is so fantastic. This picture is so enjoyable to look at that it almost defies efforts to intellectualise it. It has a lovely painterly quality. it is not dramatic and yet it is hugely so."
Lambent adj.
(of a flame or a light) playing on the surface with a soft radiance but without burning.
(of the sky, eyes etc) softly radiant
(of wit etc) lightly brilliant
June 2007
Naphill Village Fete 2007
A new Gallery to include photgraphs from my village's 2007 Fete. The theme this year was 'Pantomime Characters' and there are some magnificent characters. Look out for the Dark Princess.
The Red Arrows - YES the REAL Red Arrows - and the Hurricane & Spitfire fly-past was a triumph for the Fete Organisers. A bit of a challenge for next year then!