Blogs
I am not a intrepid trekker by any stretch of the imagination, but climbing the great Dune De Plya at Arcachon France was one of the highlights of 2011.
I have been here before, many years ago, and have always remembered how magnificent and beautiful it is.
It really is stunning and a photo opportunity not to be missed if your traveling in south west France.
Theres not only the impressive sand dune to photograph, the dune is a heaven for para guilders that literately cruise past you at eye level
From the tens of multi coloured para gliders to the white sand and the turquoise of the ocean, photographs are rich in contrast and saturation.
I was using my Cannon 450d and 18 - 55 lens with lens hood and polarising filter. The polarising filter worked to bring out the intensity of the blue sky and show the great contrast between the sky and the sand.
Here are a few things I had to consider when photographing Dune De Plya(Pilat) Read more
Yuck. The weather has been dull, rainy, grey, and completely pants for the last week or so. Sunny France they say!!
Travel photography is all about different challenges, the weather being a huge one. When I travel in Asia the monsoon is what I have to get around. Here its dull grey skies.
Having all your photographs with beautiful blue skies may look picturesque, but will they really make an interesting set of photographs?
If they country has variable weather, one of my missions is to capture that. You have to show the spectrum of weather, and yes that does include miserable days! Read more
Its been a few days now and I have hardly taken any photographs. I have told myself its a break but I’m not feeling inspired. I’m in France, one of the most beautiful and culture rich countries in Europe.
Every human being gets it from time to time. A slight lack of passion for the thing they are most passionate about. I feel a bit worried.......
So, I am taking some advice from my Grandpa, something he always says.....‘Just do it’. I know its cheesy but its so true. The best thing to do is just pick up my camera and press the shutter button.
All I had to do was just pick up my camera and the photos start to flow again. I have had photographers block before, its so annoying. I just feel its one of those things we have to live with, and hope it doesn’t last too long!! Read more
Today we drove from Spain to France. Driving across borders can seem dull, boring and uninteresting. But, my advice is to keep you camera handy(It should ALWAYS be handy!!). I find it a strange thing leaving one country and immediately entering another, especially the land in between.
Border towns are often not pretty or particularly culturally pleasing, try and capture this.
If your traveling in a car, its a good idea to use a fast shutter speed so you don’t get motion blur.
Things to look out for;
The hundreds of duty free shops advertising ‘Fags and Booze’. Read more
The different mixture of people wondering about.
Signs, telling your you have left one country and your entering another.
Signs in the different languages
Rubbish and dirt that no one takes responsibility for
Today we visited the amazing Dali Museum in Figueres, Spain. Its one of my favourite art galleries. Dali is so whacky and his sculptures are so visually stimulating. I’m so inspired by his work.
The museum is an old theatre which has been converted into a gallery, this is perfect for Dali as his art is really a ‘show’. Read more
Your permitted to take photographs in the theatre, with out flash, making it a fantastic photo opportunity. I felt in my element, everywhere I looked there was something to photograph. I love his sculptures, I was able to get some really great shots with different angles and perspectives.
Traveling around Europe in a Van is a fantastic way to see the slights and really get in amongst the action.
After a few days working and rushing about photographing Barcelona I treat myself to the morning off! The campsite we are currently staying on is beautiful, set in amongst olive trees, this place is riddled with birds. As I sit with a cup of tea the little birds are hopping about looking for food. Perfect Photo Opp!!
I grab some cous cous,(I know bit posh!) and start tempting the birds. I use a long lens to get some really close ups. I also need to use a fast shutter as the little birds are twitchy and very fast moving! (F7.1, 1/250s)
I love Barcelona. Its an absolutely amazing city and a photographers dream! With its fabulous architecture, vibrant shops and markets, impressive street art ect ect, it really is photography heaven.
There is, like every city so so much to spend your money one. Today, whilst visiting one of the many markets, my attention was drawn to an absolutely outstanding chocolate stall. Whilst in a trance of chocolate, I can only describe what happened and totally blame it on the chocolate. Suddenly I had chosen, brought and paid for two small chocolates.......for 8 Euros! This may not seem a lot to some but for me it really was!! But the transaction had already taken place! Big Ops!!
To get my moneys worth from the guy i proceeded to take lots of photographs of the chocolate and the stall.
Two things to learn from my experience is..... Read more
I have been travelling in the Catalonian region of Spain for several weeks now. Spending the last week or so in the small beach town of Sitges. Its a great fun little town with really easy access to the amazing city of Barcelona, by bus or train.
The Sitges is filled with beautiful old buildings and very pretty photographic streets. I have walked around the small town maybe six or seven times and thought I had exhausted all the photographic opportunities. But then I notice the little painted tiles that appear out side of many of the little shops and door ways. They are beautiful and I can’t believe I haven't noticed them before. It just goes to show its funny what we miss and how important it is to never stop looking for new things to photograph.
Wow!! What a race! We have been camping at the Barcelona race track just out side of Montmelo and what a fantastic weekend. Some much going on and so much to photograph.
The excitement and tension built up slowly over the weekend and climaxed at what is considered one of the most exciting races at this circuit. People where buzzing and the mood was electric.
I had my camera ready for all the different opportunities and used a telescopic zoom lens to capture all the action.
F1 Grand Prix can be alot cheaper to go to when your abroad. Some tickets start at just £30. I would definitely recommend it to anyone that wants a really fantastic buzz and great photo opportunities!!
Today I have been working on an article about mixing up the subjects your photograph when your travelling. It's a lovely sunny day today so I decide to go out for a nice long walk. I take my Cannon 450d. I'm a portrait photographer and love photographing people. Today on the theme of 'mixing up your travel photos', I decide to restrict myself to take no photos of people. This is straight forward but not as easy as I first thought. Read more
