Charlie Hopkinson

Garden Photography, Kennington.

2012-01-28T14:34:00.003Z

Pack Shot Time

2012-01-28T14:26:00.003Z

I love the eccentricity of the ill fitting Angostura bitters bottle, the label too tall for the shape, yet persevered with. I think the old bottle here is about 25 years old.

Camp Coffee went all PC not long ago, and tried to rewrite history, having the Indian chap sitting alongside the kilted fellow, rather than standing, as shown here. I don't have a replacement bottle to show you, there's still half left in my old one, despite the best before label, reading 1983.

To really go back, these poppadums were repatriated by my father from India in 1946. I've a few left - they're very tasty still.

Oriental Seagull and Lith Printing

2012-01-16T11:05:00.004Z

A final clear out of the dark room... unearthing Oriental Seagull paper, all 20 x 16 sheets, most of it grade four and a couple

grade five, in packs that have never been opened. If anyone out there's still printing liths, then please get in touch. It should go to a good home, over a hundred sheets of it.

Memories.

2012-01-15T15:50:00.004Z

Dear Bill,

Like you said, it's funny how memories can be thrust onto you with no warning and from unpredictable directions.

The china was in a junk shop in Hay (doubtless these days, they'd deny the use of the word junk...) and the paper was wrapped around a photo frame that had been in the loft since 1988, the year she died - yet there was the cup and saucer they used to drink their tea from, and a crossword, her handwriting as fresh as it had been, all those years ago.

2012-01-10T18:32:00.001Z

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

2012-01-10T18:29:00.000Z

2012-01-10T18:27:00.001Z

HITCH

2011-12-16T14:52:00.001Z

2011-12-14T18:33:00.000Z

2011-11-30T21:31:00.000Z

2011-11-19T11:58:00.001Z

Have you ever entered a room only to forget why you went to the room in the first place?

Recent research has suggested that it's the physical act of passing through a doorway that strips the memory of the reason for doing so. It doesn't happen if you pass from one part of a room to another. Was Lewis Carroll aware of this? And do loft livers who live in one room suffer less from temporary memory loss than the rest of us?

Cher Bill

2011-11-19T11:37:00.011Z

Wave hello to Andrea Arnold. I took your advice and saw Wuthering Heights which was directed by her. And I agree. The photography was superb, all that movement and shallow depth of field, close focus and darkness. But doesn't it get a bit irksome after a while? Especially the hand held look. It ends up becoming the focus of the film at the expense of plot and character. Good photography should compliment and enhance a story, not dominate it. But perhaps it's what cinema audiences want these days: style over substance. It was the same with Tinker Tailor, and you only have to watch Guinness's performance in the original version to recognise that photography does not alone make a great movie (despite coming close in The Third Man).

Look at Carlos Reygadas's Silent Light as an example. A perfect balance between character, story, and photography.

2011-11-16T17:21:00.004Z

The Serious Poet.

2011-11-06T21:04:00.004Z

Radio Four's excellent piece on Spike Milligan is well worth a listen, f you can still access it.

It reminded me of whether it's a good idea to meet your heroes. I'd argue against it, though meeting him was the exception. It was one of the most enjoyable shoots ever.

2011-11-05T00:08:00.000Z

In at the deep end.

2011-10-29T11:09:00.005+01:00

2011-10-26T18:15:00.000+01:00

Do you?

2011-10-22T14:25:00.008+01:00

spend a significant amount of time photographing or gardening? What do the following questions reveal about your reasons for doing so?

Do you garden or photograph:-

because it is good for you?

because it is good for the planet?

to make money?

because it is a creative endeavour?

to see what the world looks like in a photograph?

to eat what you grow?

to seek praise or approval?

to seek recognition for your achievements?

because it is a job?

to please or benefit others?

to keep yourself occupied?

to create a legacy or a record?

2011-10-22T10:12:00.000+01:00

A head gardener's garden. (Anon.)

2011-10-21T17:57:00.002+01:00

2011-10-19T15:52:00.000+01:00

Polaroid 665

2011-10-19T07:45:00.004+01:00

Gone. All gone. None left. Finis!

2011-10-17T18:28:00.001+01:00

2011-10-17T17:38:00.008+01:00

Dear Sophocles,

I did as you bid and watched an evening's telly. I fear you may be right. I heard a rugby interviewer ask a player if a referee's decision (that they had earlier agreed was spontaneous) was in fact "too spontaneous". Presumably that's an very unique remark. Worse was to come. Kelly Hoppen told her viewers that her style reflected her clients. Look out for a variety of beige people rushing out for her deft touch.

Waldemar Januszczak told his viewers that the painter William Dobson painted most of his subjects from the knee up. Waldemar helpfully pointed to his own knee. Blow me down, his knees are in about the same place as most people's, between his foot and his mouth. By the way, the presenter of the weather forecast reported that we were in for a lot of "weather".

I was told by M M that the minister who can't tie his tie properly apologised to viewers for "giving the impression of wrongdoing" on the telly, though not on the night I was watching. What a brilliant (Minister of) defence. If I've "given the impression" of being underwhelmed by any of the above mentioned telly folk, then I'm really sorry too.

I know you put it down to dumbing down, but I'm not convinced. I think they regard the lot of us as plain stupid. Maybe we are for watching and listening to them.

P.S. That 50mm lens is sharper than I thought it would be.

2011-10-13T15:02:00.001+01:00

2011-10-07T17:53:00.001+01:00

Growing

2011-10-07T17:50:00.002+01:00

Working

2011-10-07T17:47:00.003+01:00

2011-09-10T14:53:00.000+01:00

Advertisment or Spoof?

2011-09-09T13:53:00.005+01:00

Four Eyes in The Garden

2011-09-09T13:45:00.006+01:00

are definitely better than two. Thanks to Pia Ostlund, and the Chelsea Physic Garden in London.

From Cader Idris

2011-09-06T16:31:00.001+01:00

What's God got against photography?

2011-09-06T11:22:00.005+01:00

Is photography inside a church seen as perhaps, a little vulgar? Who's to decide on vulgarity though? Priests? Photographers? God? By the way, the sign says: The Church is Open for You.

Reminded me of the priest who refused to christen a child called Poppy, on the grounds that "Poppy" wasn't a Christian name.

Garden photography (in colour).

2011-08-03T17:28:00.002+01:00

Garden photography (in black and white).

2011-08-03T17:24:00.004+01:00

2011-07-31T12:12:00.000+01:00

London's Gardens

2011-07-31T12:05:00.003+01:00

Chelsea Physic Garden looks fantastic at this time of year, the legacy of Rosie Atkins's curatorship over the last few years.

A new team is now in place. It's a good place to eat outside, without being a pavement victim of fumes and god knows what else.

Dear Bill,

2011-07-29T10:51:00.012+01:00

I met someone who knew James Ravilious, the closest I'll get to the late photographer, whose work is sublime. A quick on line search will reveal plenty of his black and white photographs. I think his wife, Robin still sells prints. I'm lucky enough to have two of them. Andrew Lawson (well known garden photographer) showed me the tree Ravilious had used in one of his shots.

This is Andrew, collecting yellow rattle seeds to thin the grass out.

I'm casually envious of those who live near the sea, though not so keen on the traffic that chokes the roads on the way in and out. The price you pay for living on a little island. The coastal walks are a breeze (if you are fit, and a struggle if not). We surrendered to the Navy at Falmouth, and spotted two peregrine falcons from a hide that overlooked their nest.

St Ives was humming with all sorts of fascinating people enjoying the pre school holiday calm, I even bumped into the photographer Gavan Goulder who works and lives there. He photographs the seascape every morning at dawn, so you can have a shot taken on the day your child is born. What a neat idea. We also saw BH's studio, discovering in the process that some of her work left me quite underwhelmed. Did you know you can get curried parsnip Cornish pasties?

Driving back, I passed this sign. Who is responsible for counting them? And what a lovely round number. I failed to spot one...

Lastly, I hope you've made the exhibition of Hungarian photography at the RA. There's some blisteringly great photography to see, including my all time favourite image, Kertesz's photograph of Mondrian's studio, a masterclass in composition. I didn't know that Mondrian had painted the tulip's leaves white to cover up their green colour. Now my knowledge of photograph is vastly improved. There are gems in every direction, including many of the classics and a good deal of work I'd never seen before. It's a must see.

Carry a camera all year round..........

2011-07-11T18:59:00.000+01:00

PPE at the Hampton Court Flower Show.

2011-07-04T20:05:00.010+01:00

I bumped into the Philosopher at the Hampton Court Flower Show this year. She was compiling her list of things to be banned forthwith which included tennis commentators who didn't know when to belt up. I commiserated, and thought how well off cricket listeners were in comparison. John Arlott; he knew the score, as did Brian Johnston. As for Wimbledon, we liked to listen to McEnroe, but not to have to endure most of the other witterers, save possibly Boris.

She wasn't that keen on the cameraman's propensity to focus in on the family and girlfriends of the players, almost to the exclusion of all else. That's our celebrity culture for you. She overheard a couple talking about the "Bog Brush" versus "Bum Fluff" match, and instinctively knew who they were referring to, despite not having experienced a British public school. Mind you, she doesn't have a clue what an apple pie bed is.

I'd only add the use of graduated filters on cameras to her list, including those used by the BBC on their coverage of the flower show. So 1970s. So dreadful, so amateur!

2011-07-01T11:56:00.001+01:00

William Cooper Ltd

2011-07-01T11:53:00.004+01:00

My thanks to Rob Hughes for showing me his copy. They used to be in south London. Maybe they supplied the church photographed in Brixton, (see Architecture 8th May 2011, below).

Don't you love a bit of nostalgia? Reminded me of the Anderson shelter we used to play in a kids. Forgive the sod awful photography. It was competing with a muffin from the Deli in Hay. Anyone who's been lucky enough to eat one, knows that nothing gets in the way of that process.

Has anyone seen or even own one of these studios/darkrooms? Could you get in touch if you do?

Before the rain came.

2011-06-12T17:25:00.000+01:00

The Old Man is Snoring.

2011-06-12T17:24:00.000+01:00

Dear Bill,

2011-06-08T16:49:00.009+01:00

James Alexander-Sinclair.

They sometimes ask why I'm smiling when I'm shooting, fearing perhaps that I'm laughing at them. Far from it, I'm just enjoying myself. Do you do the same?

I've been told that photographers fall into the following camps: those who enjoy shooting; those who enjoy the post production; and those who enjoy looking at the results. (And those who just love the kit. Do they qualify?)

Who sends The Queen a telegram on her 100th? Been dying to ask.

Do you ever shoot from a ladder?

A doctor told me he's treated several photographers with RSI, caused from using zoom lenses.

That's it. Off to feed the slugs.

Gifford's Cricus

2011-06-08T11:28:00.007+01:00

The spectacle was great, the history, "interesting" and the horsemanship terrific for such a tight ring; and the jester was hysterical. The old ones are the best.

Dear Bill,

2011-06-08T09:39:00.030+01:00

Chelsea Flower Show & The Hay Festival. Don't you love the start of summer proper? Always a treat to see you at both events.

You could be forgiven for developing a love hate relationship with the flower show though. There is so much to marvel at, (especially Cleve West's best in show garden. Proving that less is more, he made brilliant and subtle use of the space available, yes?),

and the post card from Wales garden, exquisite non?

and fantastic plants in the tent, and yet the circus suffers from its own success with cramped crowds, silly celebrity mania (is nothing sacred?) and horti-hype.

Institutional worship of attendance figures always seems to spoil the product. Just look at BBC1 and BBC2 TV, Henley and so on. No event appears safe from the relentless desire for more attendees. The Hay festival may well follow soon. Why don't the organisers recognise that, and conclude that there might be more to life than a bottom line?

If you venture into the hallowed ground before the dayglo jackets disappear, you also get the pleasure of being needlessly bossed around by a most humourless and rude crowd of health and safety officials, flexing their peaked caps. Not a dignified or gracious bunch. Before we were made to wear reflective vests many many people must have perished each year at the show. Did you hear about the health and safety officer complaining that there were no exit signs displayed in a tent that had no walls? Sad, but true. Oh how we laughed.

The dear old beeb are still advertising for 'citizen journalists' (it means unpaid) in the men's loo. How apt. Do they insult the ladies too? Could you ask 'her indoors'?

And photographers still photograph gardens from where you'll never see them.

Monty Don and Derry Moore presented a talk at the Hay festival this year, about their book on Italian Gardens, with all the photographs taken from a human, rather than a beanstalk perspective. I hope you were there. In the queue behind me were two gardeners who had met at Carol Klein's garden, and I was there with the lifestyle photographer, Janie Airey, who's just started up 'Shoot West' the location agency. The place was packed with fans of the Don.

The Hay Festival is sponsored by the Telegraph paper. Good for them, though if ever there was a 'Guardian' like event, it's that one. It's a shame the Telegraph paper doesn't lavish proper money on their contributors. Odd priorities. They even managed to turn away half their own guests at their Hay party. Oh dear. Guess who's been turning in his grave, Bill. Quite.

The good and thrilling news at Chelsea was that Crug Farm Plants won the President's award, proving that razzmatazz isn't everything, and deserving stands do sometimes get rewarded. And it was the first year that Sue and Bleddyn Wynn-Jones had been at the show. Dig the handbag (and forgive the pun).

I wish I had a summer house made from a shipping container, like the one in Nigel Dunnett's Garden. His effort was simply superb. How's your place coming on? I gather all the YBA lot have migrated your way recently.

For the gardening crowd, I suspect Chelsea is as much about seeing friends and colleagues as it is about looking at gardens and plants. That's the thing that's best in my mind. The 'gardening crowd' (writers, gardeners, designers, photographers and so on) are simply the nicest bunch from any industry you could ever hope to meet. For that reason alone, Chelsea is fab.

So Bill, summer is here, a chance to drive off and picnic somewhere, safe that you won't get wet in the rain that no longer falls. Bon appetit.

2011-05-08T18:08:00.000+01:00

Sir Antony Sher.

2011-05-08T18:02:00.004+01:00

Architecture

2011-05-08T17:53:00.004+01:00

I came across this little gem in a London suburb. What a contrast with the high rise block in the background.

Gardening Leave.

2011-04-04T17:52:00.004+01:00

The Gardening Leave charity was set up by Anna Baker Cresswell in 2007. It seeks to improve the mental and physical well being of ex servicemen (and women) using horticultural therapy.

A site has been started in London, following the success of two other sites in Scotland. They used walled garden areas which provide a conducive environment for the horticultural therapy to work.

More here

What a brilliant idea, given what sacrifices these man and women make. And fascinating to see the power of gardening, growing, and plants in action.

Lost and Found

2011-04-02T21:45:00.002+01:00

Nurseryman John Hoyland

2011-04-02T21:36:00.005+01:00

How much of yourself do you put in a photograph you take? If you don't like dogs, how much trouble to you go to to get a picture where the dog looks as good as the subject? What do dogs say about their owners? (Please don't send answers, just in case a dog is reading this.)

John, thanks for a great shoot.

Garden Design Magazine, US.

2011-03-23T17:33:00.002Z

Childhood, home revisited.

2011-03-23T11:55:00.000Z

2011-03-22T18:03:00.001Z

How to Sell Yourself

2011-03-22T17:43:00.006Z

In the rag trade, and it's spring, chuck some flowers in the window, even if you're selling floral dresses... But what on earth are therapy culottes and therapy vests? Maybe they keep you Jung. The old ones are the best.

If you're chugging on the high street, selling charity (?), you're meant to get eye contact with your target while walking backwards. Great demonstration of eye avoidance tactics here by three pedestrians.

Wooden Churches.

2011-03-22T14:01:00.004Z

Vauxhall

2011-03-22T14:00:00.002Z

John Grimshaw's spring.

2011-03-16T21:47:00.006Z

My grateful thanks go to John Grimshaw for allowing me to photograph his flowers and where he works.

Would having a dog improve your quality of life?

2011-03-08T14:28:00.006Z

There's plenty of anecdotal evidence that says it would. I recently met someone who had eighteen cats.

That's all I have to say on the subject.

Irina Werning

2011-03-07T18:17:00.007Z

My nephew sent me the link to this photographer's site. The Argentinian photographers name is Irina Werning, and the project is titled 'back to the future'. She recreates old photographs with the original subjects with fantastic attention to detail, including location, props, and film grain.

Worth a look, it's beautifully produced.

Plants on the Equator.

2011-03-07T17:57:00.006Z

It's a very strange place, where elephants have been found at 16,000 feet and a leopard at 17,000 feet. And despite being almost slap bang (scientific phrase) on the equator there's snow too, even a glacier, though not for long if you believe all that CC stuff.

I didn't see a leopard or an elephant, though not for want of trying, and a fair amount of huffing and puffing.

If you want a brilliant account of climbing this mountain, go no further than 'No picnic on Mount Kenya', the true story of three Italian POWs who escaped from their British camp in Kenya during WW2, just to climb it (and then return to their camp!). A movie was made of the book, called 'The Ascent', and if you have a copy, I'd love to borrow it.

Despite being far better equipped than the Italians (who had to make their own climbing gear) it was still hard work and pretty nippy at height. Recommended though.

Vivian Maier

2011-03-02T08:47:00.006Z

You may have heard some of the news that's been circulating about the photography by this woman who died in 2009. She worked as a nanny in Chicago, taking photographs in the street in her spare time. Her work was unearthed by John Maloof, who came across her negatives in a suitcase in a sale. He tracked down a further hoard, including unprocessed rolls of film, and has spent the last four years organising the photographs.

Eighty photographs can be seen at the Hilaneh von Kories Gallery in Hamburg, in a show titled 'Twinkle twinkle little star'.

There are obvious visual echoes of the work of Dianne Arbus amongst others, but it's refreshing to see work of 'unknown' street photographers. Part of the appeal may be in the angle of view, using a camera where the photographer looks down into the viewfinder, resulting in photographs that are taken from below the eye level of the subject. This is seldom seen today, due in part to the use of medium format cameras with eye level viewfinders.

Street photography, to some extent, has become more difficult to practice, especially if you point a camera at people. For some reason there appears to be more resistance to being photographed in public. Heaven help you if (especially if you are male)you point your camera at a child in the street, however innocent your intention may be. People used to joke about you being from the 'tax office' but now it's almost as if photographing people in public is sinister. How nice it would be to return to the days when it was not so, but the genie seems to be so far out of the bottle that it's unlikely. Even the Met police have tried to curtail photography in some areas, as have the National Trust. Anyone who has pulled out a camera in a shopping precinct will know that it's a red rag to the little men of the peaked cap brigade.

So it's great to see these wonderful photographs from a time when street photography wasn't seen as being harmful.

Alottments. And TLN.

2011-02-03T10:49:00.001Z

My thanks to Naomi Sachs for the following:

http://www.healinglandscapes.org/blog/2011/01/the-allure-of-allotment-gardens-an-interview-with-photographer-charlie-hopkinson.

It's well worth looking at the work of TLN while you're there. Very very interesting. More to follow, with photographs.

On Blogging.

2011-02-03T10:30:00.003Z

Recently a friend bemoaned the lack of postings on my blog. I admit it, I'm an infrequent blogger (loath that word). Perhaps blog activity is a barometer that reflects the rest of ones life. Or, that sometimes there doesn't seem to be anything going on that's worth putting on a blog.

Not so.

I came across some photographs on Flickr the other day, while I was researching something. The person who had posted them has put a caption alongside to the effect that he didn't know who would be interested in the images, he was just going through the motions. 'Au contraire' as Del Boy might say. So, in that vein, here are some images taken yesterday, that I can't imagine anyone would be interested in. I even question why I took them.......

Phone me, if you can remember the number.

2011-02-03T10:20:00.003Z

Remember when you had, in your brain, before auto dialing, countless phone numbers. How do you split up a number?

This is my work one: 07976 402 891. That's how I break it up. How off putting when I see it broken up 0797 6402 891 or any other countless variations.

Like wise, London Numbers. 0208 852 6636. Yes? Or should it be 020 8852 6636? Or, are there more important things to worry about?

Read on

2011-02-03T10:14:00.003Z

Whilst I'm on books. Below is a new book by an unknown author. More to follow, but it's nice to see what a novel looks like before the publishers get their hands on it. And when they do, if they use one of my photographs on the cover all the better.

Crime Pays

2011-02-03T10:05:00.007Z

Crime writers are well paid, goes the saying. I'm not a big devourer of crime (or mystery as it's known in America). Most of the exposure I get to fictional crime is via tv shows. In Oxford there can be up to ten murders a day when either Morse or Lewis are on shift. Someone ought to have a look at halving the crime rate there by suspending those two. Better perhaps to read the work of:

Mark Billingham, Val McDermid and Stephen Booth.

Dear Bill,

2010-12-11T11:53:00.008Z

The tin on the right of the photo belonged to my Mother. She wasn't an ardent Royalist; she used it to keep her buttons in, and it was part of her sowing box. I once mentioned this to a well known (female) garden presenter, and also said I thought it might make an interesting mini photo project; photographing the boxes and tins that women kept their buttons in. I was told, with an absolutely straight face, that it was a sexist idea, and that I should include men in the project. Actually, including men would be a good idea, but without them? Sexist? I took a deep breath at the time.

Anyway, it's a red herring. The reason for the photo above is that I saw an identical tin , for sale, in a cafe in Covent Garden, while I was waiting to go and photograph an actor there, so I bought it (it's on the left in the picture). I wonder if there are loads of them around? They'd make a nice collection; so, if you're sitting on one (figuratively speaking) and would like to sell it, please contact me.

This winter will doubtless have supplied enough images for Christmas cards for many years to come. What effect will the recent weather have on the sale of such cards? Everyone with a digital camera can now take a half decent photograph, so making your own has never been easier. Plus, I've received some e cards this year, a trend I'd love to see die, but I wouldn't bet on it. Definitely not the time to go into the Christmas Card business. Talking of Christmas Cards, have they been banned where you are yet? Or, at least been forced to be called something else, like a Seasons Greeting Card? Sad, innit?

Lastly, I can't remember if you were swishing about on the slopes of Verbier in the early 1980s? I'd love to hear from anyone who was, so I could have my memory massaged, or even re booted. I can remember the Farm club, and the Milk Bar, but precious little else, so please contact me if you can help.

Not yet received an e card for the season we're in? Feel free to treat the one above, as being specifically sent to you. No really, the pleasure's all mine.

Another 'time of year'

2010-12-07T15:42:00.006Z

I hesitate to mention Christmas, because it seems to be so closely associated with commerce, and little else today. Ah well, a bandwagon has just drawn up, so I'll jump on it. If you want to give beautiful photographs to loved ones, or even other people's loved ones (?) you could do worse than a signed Charlie Hopkinson print, like the ones above for example. They're not hugely expensive, do give me call on 07976 402 891.

Photographers are corny too.

2010-12-07T15:22:00.006Z

Sometimes, even people who make photographs for a living, just cannot ignore the beauty in front of them, even if half of Britain is taking the same shot, so with no further ado:

Don't judge a book by its cover

2010-12-07T14:57:00.003Z

Good advice. Far better to judge a book by the quality of the author photograph, and check to see if it was taken by me. And if not why not?

Joan Brady, photographed by Charlie Hopkinson.

Remembrance.

2010-11-15T12:53:00.001Z

Hyde Park corner, London, 11.01 hrs.

Tony Benn.

2010-11-12T12:41:00.005Z

The Times Magazine recently ran this photograph of Tony Benn from my archive. He was without doubt the most interesting politician I've ever photographed; amusing and interested. (Not always the case with politicians. Some are truly awful to photograph.)

I loved the little touches in his office, especially the coat hanger taped to the back of the chair to hold his jacket in place. The origin of the paper hanging from the ceiling goes back to his days as a pilot, when he would stick notes to the inside of the aircraft canopy.

We shot a few silhouettes illustrating some of the themes of his life, including pipe smoking, tea drinking and diary keeping (he videoed a lot).

Dear Bill,

2010-11-02T16:03:00.011Z

Dear Bill,

Good to see you at the Odysseus performance the other evening. Wasn't George Mann outstanding? I was amazed, not least by the sound effects that can be made by the human voice. Just shows how used we‘ve got to digital special effects.

You would have been amused by the call from an art department on a national magazine I got this morning. “We need your photo for the cover sent in a larger size please, at least 30 mb. Perhaps you could let me know the dimensions you need? Oh, we can’t do that, we’re going to blow it up you see…. You mean you’re going to crop it then? No, we’re going to blow it up. Enlarge it then? No, BLOW IT UP! And so it went on. I hope they put their fingers in their ears when they “blow it up”.

Don’t you dread the day when airlines just ban hand luggage? You can see it coming a mile off. Imagine what will happen to our cameras in the hold luggage, going through Thiefrow and all those other dodgy airports. Talking of Heathrow reminding the Pope’s staff of a third world airport, you'd also think that Wi fi was available for all at the airport. Not so. BAA would far prefer you to spend your time (and money) shopping in that grotesque shopping mall they call terminal 5. So instead of super fast broadband, what about better coverage of the existing? No wonder visitors think Heathrow is third world.

I can’t wait to get Cameron’s super fast broadband here too. But I wonder if it will get here before the slow one does? BT promised me a broadband connection by Christmas. Want to place a couple of bets on that coming off?

All those pumpkins reminded me of the time when my wife (ex I suppose) was studying for her British Citizenship test. I had a shufti at some of the stuff the Home Office send out. Apparently, we are a Christian Nation, and celebrate the following: Christmas. No mention of Easter, anywhere. Brits also celebrate the British tradition of Trick or Treat at Halloween. News to me, I thought that was an American invention. Much the same for the rest of the contents.

At least we can get out of the office and enjoy the fresh air. I was on the beach recently, shooting Polly Samson, but I can’t remember the breed of dog she had with her. Any ideas?

P.S. We were talking about wedding photography the other day, and how there’s a bit of a stigma attached to it, rather unjustly. What could be more important than recording someone’s “most important day”? I know there are some photographers who won’t even contemplate shooting a wedding, and one rarely sees wedding and editorial photography on the same website. And I agree that's there's some awfully naff stuff knocking around. But it would be nice to see a change on this one. Watch this space?

How to take photographs when driving on a motorway.

2010-10-11T18:30:00.003+01:00

There are many ways to go about this, but the best way is to pass the camera to your passenger. Obviously.

Looks Familiar.

2010-09-27T11:21:00.007+01:00

If you look like one of your parents, you must tire of the "you look just like your mother" greeting made by each new acquaintance. Predictably, it's exactly what issued forth from me when I went to photograph novelist Anna Stothard (above). Her second novel, The Pink Hotel, is being published by Alma Books next March, and is loosely based on her experience of living in LA for two years.
A few years back I photographed Anna's mother (also a writer), Sally Emerson, so apologies for the foot in mouth comment (perhaps understandable), and good luck with The Pink Hotel.

A Visit to an Artist

2010-09-27T10:48:00.010+01:00

I can't be alone in relishing a visit to an artist's studio, especially one as interesting as Jean-Claude Courat's studio in Paris.
Jean-Claude's pastel pictures of all things horticultural are exquisite and his skill is self evident. I love his chosen subject matter, vegetables, allotments, trees, even tin sheds.
And who could resist an artist with such a twinkle in his eye?

His pictures remind me of many of the gardens I visit, and the attention to detail is fantastic.

It's not just the work that appeals though. Like many artists, Jean-Claude is an avid collector, and some of his collections litter both his apartment and studio.

Jean-Claude is also a fine photographer, but it is interesting to note that his paintings are composites of places and things he has seen and stitched together in his mind. They are not painted from photographs, and not even a hint of Photoshop, as he still shoots on film on his 35mm and 6x6 cameras.

Huge thanks to Jinny Blom who organised the trip and wrote about it in this month's Gardens Illustrated Magazine (October 2010) where you can find Jean-Claude's contact details.

Prayer Time.

2010-09-15T16:38:00.006+01:00

Churches, by and large, don't appeal to me in an architectural sense. It may have something to do with being made to attend on Sundays, or it just might be down to all those pointy victorian gothic bits that festoon so many.

But I love wriggly tin as many others do, so when the two combine, all is well. I admit, it's not strictly speaking a church (rather, a chapel) but it has an appeal and charm that hits the spot.

Brazil and Suffolk.

2010-09-08T13:30:00.013+01:00

The two sculptors I met earlier today from very different parts of the world. I was introduced to Brazilian Carina Ciscato (above) some time ago, and have seen her work in a number of collections. Her web site is here. Two examples follow.

We then gatecrashed the studio of Annie Turner, from Suffolk, photographed here with some fishing net. She was brought up on the River Deben in Suffolk, and the many aspects of the river inform her work. The piece shown here is about a foot high.

Lastly, a picture of the studio dog of Carina the lovely Chamo (I wish I could do that with MY ears):

They think it's all over (2)

2010-09-06T17:12:00.009+01:00

And for some, it is.

HCB said that once he'd pressed the shutter, that was the end of it as far as he was concerned (though the plethora of books of his photographs might indicate otherwise). What about you? Is the shutter going clunk only the beginning? Of course many photographers process their own digital images. But do you yearn to see the image used, preferably somewhere public? Best even on a giant billboard somewhere? Or on the cover of a magazine? Or is that it for you?

Pull up a sandbag.... I used to love printing my own negs, though only in b&w. It was in the darkroom that I felt a 'real' photographer, or at least a complete one. I don't get the same experience from sitting in front of Photoshop, but this isn't "I wish we were back in the old days" daydream, because I adore digital photography too.

It seems that photographers (I hate the slang togs) fall into two broad Camps: those that belong to the one where the taking of the picture is the final act, and the other where it is only the beginning. Actually, I think there's a third Camp that just want to talk about the kit, and sod the actual act of photography, but let's disregard them here.

If I shoot for a client, the end for me is really when the shutter trips, though I have an academic interest in seeing the published choice. I'd love to ask them why they didn't use my favourite frame if that's the case, but I know my place. Today I found out that a novelist I had photographed earlier in the year lobbied the editor of the magazine I was shooting for, begging for such and such a shot not to be used. He got his way.

All sorts of influences are at work in a final frame choice, that we as photographers are rarely privy to. I clearly remember discovering for the first time that the picture editor (picture commissioner in effect) who received my carefully crafted images did NOT make the final decision. That was left to a features editor. I couldn't believe it. I soon got over it, that's the publishing world. And why shouldn't the editor have the final say?

I used to fantasise of a an environment where the art director and photographer worked hand in hand to decide what should be shot, and which images used. It happened, infrequently, but the death knell seemed to be the reduction of easy access to the office, made more and more difficult with increased security measures (I'm thinking of newspapers in the early 1990s). And also the work load. Then, at least one had to turn up with the film, process it, and hand the edits to the picture editor in person. Now, it's sent by ftp. (Is there anyone from across the water who thinks ftp stands for something other than file transfer protocol?)
Is this a bad thing? Does it matter that art director and photographer seldom meet over the lightbox? I think it's a shame it doesn't happen, but most magazine staff will tell you that if they had the time for it they would spend more time collaborating. And do busy photographers have time for face to face photo editing either? If you photograph gardens how much interaction is there with the person writing about the garden? Are you both there on the same day? Did you know that they were going to write about the irises more than the grasses? (You did photograph the irises didn't you?) Bear in mind that this is the editorial world.

Just to round this up, I've thought of a Camp Four, those that love looking at photographs (their own and others) more than taking them, but who also take them for a living. And does one take a photograph or make one?

(Photo shows playwright John Patrick Shanley. Photographers choice of frame.)

Aisle or Window sir?

2010-08-23T21:22:00.006+01:00

Thank you to the lovely KLM staff (and no doubt the good Doctor) for asking if, as a frequent flyer (news to me), I'd like a couple of seats to myself with spare legroom.

Scared (sacred?) Crows

2010-08-23T21:07:00.005+01:00

Not a Guy Fawkes in sight as enterprising parents dream up ever more ways of keeping their children occupied during the summer holidays. What's wrong with a two week Scripture Union camp anyway?

This scarecrow competition produced some very creative figures, including no less than the Tiger Woods effigy, complete with legs sticking out of a golf bag.

Dear Bill,

2010-08-22T20:16:00.017+01:00

Why do you and I photograph people? Or, why have we chosen to shoot people, over interiors, or gardens, or still life?

Most subjects seem to fall into two groups. One, with a story to tell (and they tell it) , and the other without (or they aren't sharing the tale). I'm reminded of it having met Ted Simon, who famously motorbiked around the world in the 1970s and wrote Jupiter's Travels as a result. Quite a story to tell, and well worth reading the account. The bit I liked best is when he's endlessly asked why he's making the journey; to which he replies:

"to find out why I'm making the journey".

Doesn't that remind you about Gary Winogrand who was asked why he photographed things, to which he replied:

"I photograph to see what the world looks like in photographs."

And isn't that true? Nail on head stuff.

I was reminded again when I arrived to photograph a well known writer, in her South London flat recently. I had barely introduced myself before I was blasted with a diatribe about how useless photographers were, how absurd it was that her publisher had dared to send me to shoot her, and how I was bound to fail at my task. How is one meant to respond to a subject who seems determined to thwart one's best efforts? Anyone sensible might be inclined to say well sod it then, with that attitude you're right, and I won't waste time trying..... But there's another (higher) consideration, and that is the publisher is expecting to get a lovely portrait; so one swallows hard, and unpacks the gear. Actually William, I expect you're like me and enjoy a challenge, even when the challenge looks as if it has reversed through a hedge backwards in the last five minutes and has an attitude to rival Naomi's.

I've only once been seriously close to walking out on a shoot, but the subject beat me to it. Without doubt the most unpleasant person I've had to photograph, and it put me off celebrity chefs for a long time. A shame, because I photographed Richard Corrigan last year who was utterly charming and affable.

I don't mind listening to the story either. We should relish the opportunity. After all, the shoot is about the subject, we're mere spectators with a job to record the teller. Rarely has a tale been dull, even when it was the same as the last time I heard it. At The Telegraph, the same subjects used to come round every five years or so, sometimes more frequently. Everyones story is worth listening to, an invitation to look through the looking glass.

The most interesting story I've heard? I'll let you know soon. (Remind me, it's the Hitler youth story.)

And lastly, aren't you bored of zoom lenses? So irritating the way they suck dust into the camera. I have a love hate relationship with the blasted things, and much prefer fixed focal length lenses, but then you need to carry endless numbers of cameras around with you. Or get an assistant to carry them. What's the answer?

African Reportage

2010-08-22T11:58:00.012+01:00

I couldn't resist a rare invitation to produce some reportage which found me shooting in rural Kenya, well away from the usual tourist trail.

KEMRI (Kenyan Medical Research Institute) was researching rural health centres, and we spent the day photographing day to day life in a range of small health clinics. Some had only one health worker and a handful of patients, others had a full and hectic workload.

Patients sometimes had a round trip of 20 kms to attend a clinic from their home, with no transport available; bad enough when you’re fit and well, quite awful when you are unwell. In the west, we are forever being made aware of the problems of HIV/Aids in sub-Saharan Africa, though the ‘old’ problems of TB and malaria are still a major health threat.

In each location, we were welcomed with much generosity, and good humour. When I told people I had come from England, almost all them brought up the name of Wayne Rooney. That is what ‘England’ means to many in the country, where English football is followed closely. These schoolboys were appalled that I didn't know which club he played for.

For those attending health centres much of the time is spent waiting, and waiting and waiting.

Churches, wriggly tin and a Peugeot 504SR

2010-08-05T18:06:00.009+01:00

Enough to keep a smile on my face for days on end. For some, a trip to the East Africa can't happen often enough. The last time I ventured south, furry paper was still being used. Now, the mobile phone coverage is enough to shame many parts of the UK. Safaricom would knock the pants off most UK phone operators. Ok, so a bit of 'tin' nostalgia and old cars still rolling is food for the visual soul, but other aspects of life in Kenya have evolved way beyond my recognition.
More to follow later on the reason for the trip.

Paris in the Spring, Mark 1.

2010-07-21T17:54:00.004+01:00

Oh dear. Good in one sense, to see that motorcyclists in France suffer from White Van Man idiots just as we do here. But the way the French scooter riders ride! They make our chaps look a tad tame in comparison.

Paris in the Spring. Mark 2.

2010-07-21T17:35:00.009+01:00

Should you photograph a garden from a ladder? I'm not convinced. By doing so, you present a view that mere mortals would never see.
What if it looks better from a ladder? A garden is designed for people to work rest and play in. There's little to say that gardens are best enjoyed from the top of a ladder. There's even less evidence to show that garden owners are forever popping to the top of their ladders to enjoy their gardens.

Everything in photography is 'manipulated' to some extent, from what the photographer includes/crops out, to the light (often artificial), to the choice of lens and so on. But let's get some semblance of honesty here. Why not shoot the garden as a person (or child) would see it; from ground level? At least that would reduce the "it doesn't look like that in the brochure" comments. Some idiot once said that the photograph never lies. Just for the record, here's a shot of me, on a ladder, photographing a garden. It's a self portrait, honest!

Jardin Jardins

2010-07-21T17:09:00.007+01:00

Champagne house Laurent Perrier sent me to photograph Jinny Blom's sculpture which was exhibited at the French Garden Show Jardins Jardins. Inspired by seeds (no doubt hugely influenced by my seed photography) these large pods dominated the location in the Tuileries Garden in central Paris. The work was in great company too, as one had to pass Henry Moore's reclining figure (1951) to reach the Laurent Perrier stand.
This was the first time I had worked for this company in France. Zut alors! They looked after us like no other client has got near to. There's a serious point here. Many Continental Europeans have a very healthy attitude (along with a lot of Americans) towards photography, and by association, photographers. If we went even half way towards where these others are, our profession would be a far jollier place to work in.

Vests

2010-07-21T16:27:00.006+01:00

I was always made to wear one as a child at school, no doubt they were compulsory "in those days". But at some stage of growing up, they became deeply uncool for me. They still persist, though the sight of a string vest on a building site is indeed rare, no doubt because it's covered up by a high visibility vest. So, there's progress, string vests usurped by high vis versions. Why not bet me a date by when we all have to wear high vis vests, just to venture out side.......

Summer Days

2010-07-21T16:18:00.007+01:00

Mean some early starts to get on location for sunrise. For once, the roads are clear, and travel times shorten to something sensible. I know of at least one photographer who camps in his camper van next to the shoot, in order to arrive promptly for photography. Maybe that's the way to do it....

It's also a chance to stand alone in the countryside, listening to just the animals and birds, without the intrusion of human generated noise. I really don't miss the emergency sirens that endlessly surround us here in South London.

Richard Whitehead

2010-06-15T15:27:00.004+01:00

Thanks again for a brief, to shoot on film, from Nick Dixon.
So what's the big deal about film? Maybe photographers shouldn't try to write about how photographing someone 'feels', but using film is a different experience from digital, not least because it makes one stop, and slow down. Using large format does this even more, with a pause between each frame. This isn't always a 'good thing' but I benefit from it, and I like the results.

All Stop all Go

2010-06-15T15:03:00.007+01:00

I like the way tastes change from year to year. Flower shows are not immune, as Chelsea Flower Show demonstrates yearly.
More and more though, I find myself heading not towards but away from the show gardens;

despite their ability to inspire beautiful garden photography. So thanks in part to Andy Sturgeon for his show stopping garden , but also thanks to Medwyn Williams for drawing me into the tent yet again to marvel at his vegetables.

And thanks too for those who don't take the whole thing too ludicrously seriously.

This is a photo of a photographer wearing a vest. They must be worn for health and safety reasons, as in "Heavy Plant Crossing" I suppose, and cost the photographer a tenner for the pleasure.

And just in case you thought you were looking at real gardens, don't forget that nothing is real at these affairs.

Hugo Platt, printer, photographer.

2010-04-21T09:34:00.003+01:00

Hugo Platt is back in town. You may remember him, as the brilliant b&w printer, based in Havelock Terrace South London. He has a show of his fabulous b&w landscapes at The Gallery, Cork Street, London, all taken on his 10x8, and printed by himself.
You can see some of the photographs here and on his website
Hugo, good to see you and your work.

House and Garden Magazine.

2010-04-15T18:44:00.004+01:00

House and Garden, May issue, is out now.
My first published garden feature, given a lovely eight pages, leads with this dps of sheep in a field in this stunning English rural idyll. It's so refreshing to see landscape photography used boldly in magazines. Very exciting.

You thought it was all over...

2010-04-10T16:23:00.012+01:00

So did I, but isn't that the great thing about the English weather?
This is last weekend, during Easter, somewhere near Great Langdale.
Not that I'm complaining. There's little to beat the sound of snow, whether it's being swooshed over on skis, or being crunched under walking boots. And at last I revisited the Striding Edge, one of the approaches to Helvellyn. My Mother took me down this route off Helvellyn when I was nine years old. We both wore wellies, and carried nothing else. These days, everyone seems kitted out for an ascent on Everest. Probably wisely too.

To Direct or Not?

2010-03-26T18:35:00.004Z

Why not? It's a mini performance, and the photographer may be shooting to a brief.
Here's an example of one received recently:

"She should appear confident, aware and intelligent, challenging, authentic, engaging, innovative, dynamic, distinguished, knowledgeable, esteemed and entrepreneurial in spirit".

It doesn't refer to the shoot with Omid Djalili, shown below, where the brief was, well, brief. "Get some nice shots of 'im."

This wasn't directed, and I'd very rarely ask anyone to put a hand to their face, but sometimes there's no harm with going with the flow.

To young and inexperienced photographers, directing a 'star' can seem a bit overwhelming. But plough on I say, it's your shoot, you'll be judged on the pictures, and sometimes your subject needs a bit of direction.

How Many?

2010-03-26T17:55:00.012Z

"You're bound to get at least one good one, if you shoot that many frames." Some of us have heard this once, and some of us have heard it more than once. During a photoshoot with a British airline chief recently, he asked why on earth I took so many frames of him. I could have said because you don't look like Brad Pitt (which would have been honest and true, if not a little unkind). No doubt he would have taken it on the chin.

But it is true, and it informs us about something of the nature of being photogenic. Brad Pitt looks great in photographs, and you don't need to take many frames to end up with a great set of shots of him. The same is true of many people, but actors are especially adept at looking good in photographs. So they should be, given that they use their faces to express their work. They know what works well on camera. They probably know what works well with the lighting set up being used. If you've ever sat way up in the gods, and not been able to make out an actor's expressions, then you are missing a whole chunk of the performance.

Combine this professional use of the face with what is often 'good looks' and you have a winning combination in front of the camera. Take someone who may not be so good looking, and who hasn't learnt to exploit their faces to their full potential, and you will soon see that more frames equals a better chance of getting a good shot. Combine that with the vast number of muscles in the human face, with their multiple permutations, and you'll discover that variations in expressions are limitless. The challenge is often to try and get something unexpected from the professional, and something great from the non professional. Much fun can be had in doing both, regardless of success. It was Brian Dennehy I saw (or who I didn't really see) from the gods in Death of a Salesman. A wasted opportunity if ever there was one.

Mark Rylance

2010-03-22T18:59:00.013Z

Last night, Mark Rylance won Best Actor (Olivier Awards) for his role in Jerusalem. Jez Butterworth's play, not short at a hefty three hours, is on in London's west end. Also starring is Mackenzie Crook. The play is set in woodland; Crook owns a wood himself, so was well cast for the role.

Many people struggle with theatre productions, but most consider this is a must see performance by Rylance. Much is made of the strongly "Middle English" audience, who sympathise with the main character's disdain for the little englander bureaucratic administration prevalent here.
Hooray! At last someone is shining the spotlight on some of the ghastly officious people annoying us all to distraction with their approach to our green and pleasant land.