Bac Ha Market with Karl Grobl’s Vietnam Explorer Tour
The dawn chorus in Bac Ha, North Vietnam is different from most in a number of ways. It begins – irritatingly – well before dawn and really should be called the pre-dawn chorus and is notable for the absence of any of the traditional cockerels crowing or birds tweeting – though I suspect social media [...]
British Polo Day Thailand
I spent last Saturday living the dream! I was invited to Thailand to take the photos at the “British Polo Day – Thailand” event – a celebration of some great British brands mixed with the ritzy and fascinating sport of Polo. The event was held at the Thai Polo and Equestrian Club, and was sponsored [...]
Review of Mitchell Kanashkevich Rabardi ebook
I’ve known Mitchell Kanashkevich for a while. That it to say that I have known “of” Mitchell Kanashkevich – or Mitch, or Mitchell K – for a while. He is good friends with some of my photographic buddies, though we have never met. He was also one of the inspirations behind Focus For Humanity, though [...]
New 1 day digital photography workshops in Singapore
We are delighted to announce the dates for our Spring courses which cover everything form getting the most out o your digital camera to advanced post processing techniques using Adobe Lightroom. Click on the links below to find out the detailed information on each of the courses. Beginners Course – Getting the most out of [...]
The impact of Mismanagement on the Customer experience at Hanoi’s Hotel Metropole
There is no doubting the grandeur and luxury of the Sofitel’s Hotel Metropole in Hanoi. There is a sophisticated french colonial atmosphere that has been augmented under the Sofitel brand. The old citroen’s out the front fight for attention with the gleaming color coordinated cyclos and the liveried staff hint at a bygone era of [...]
Traditional Vietnamese Ao dai being modeled in Hanoi’s old quarter
I am certainly not purporting to be my good friend Manny Librodo – whose talent at creating fashion photographs that are truly individual and pieces of art in their own right is at long last gaining him the due global recognition he deserves. I do however just want to share with you a few of [...]
Vietnam bridal shower – how Hanoi can surprise
On my third day in Hanoi, I has retraced my steps down to the Old Gate at the southern end of the Old Quarter, determined to escape the tourists, 4x4s incessant scootesr and give Hanoi’s old quarter a chance to surprise me. When I usually go out on my own with no specific brief I [...]
Has Hanoi’s old quarter lost its mojo
I’m in Hanoi trying to find my photographic muse again after what can only be described as a brutal, painful 2011. My own Annus Horibilis if you will. What better way to put that right than being in photographic Hanoi with nothing to do and no-one else to worry about? I remembered reading a great [...]
Angkor Photo Workshop July 2012
There are still a few of spaces left on this ground breaking workshop. Based initially in the UNESCO world Heritage Site of Angkor Wat, but then moving to Phnom Penh and finally Battambang, The Angkor Photo Workshop is limited to 16 participants. This small enrollment provides each and every participant plenty of face time with [...]
Natural Tendencies Exhibition in Henley-On-Thames
I am very fortunate that 6 of my pictures have been chosen for inclusion along with those of my friend, Jasper Dalgliesh, in an exhibition in Henley in Thames. The private view is tonight, Thursday 29th September and the exhibition continues for 10 days. The focus of the exhibition is “Natural Tendencies” – a collection [...]
Angkor Photo Workshop – soundslides presentations and farewell
When a group of 18 people get together there is an expectation that everyone will become fast friends, that everyone will get along. Throw in the creative temperaments of 18 photographers, and at least 7 different nationalities and statistically you are pushing your luck. For this reason alone the last two weeks on the inaugural [...]
Infra Red and Silver Gelatin Effects in Lightroom
Last week I was in Siem Reap and met the photographer John McDermott who has been based there for over 15 years. His two galleries – one next to the FCC Siem Reap and the other in the bustling center of town – show his collection of hand printed Silver Gelatin and Infra Red pictures [...]
Chum Mey and Bou Meng – Survivors of Toul Seng and Polt Pot’s genocide
Man’s inhumanity to man is a depressing theme that, over the centuries, has seemed unwilling to disappear. Most of us thankfully never have to experience first hand a holocaust, witness a genocide or live in a culture of mass murder but that does not mean that we should be oblivious to their lessons nor unwilling [...]
How to guarantee great images on a photo workshop
Sitting in the colonial grandeur of the FCC hotel in Siem Reap whilst helping Karl Grobl to run the inaugural Angkor Photo workshop I was chatting with a number of the participants about their varied experiences of attending workshops with different leaders. Most had some horror story to tell until they had found Karl’s, Gavin [...]
Angkor Photo Workshops – Monks
I try not to go to a new location with pre-conceived ideas or expectations, even if I have researched it because sometimes the weight of expectation will stifle my ability to see something with fresh eyes, or it will lead to disappointment because I couldn’t create a shot I was after, perhaps because the sky [...]
New friends in familiar places
Tomorrow Gavin Gough and I fly up to join Karl Grobl and Matt Bandon for the final preparations for the 2 week Angkor Wat Workshop that has been organized by Karl and his business partner Jim Cline. I cannot think of a better place or a nice team of colleagues to spend 2 weeks immersed [...]
Using the iPhone HDR feature to get non HDR images
Those that know me or follow my feeds, know that I travel more than most. One of the things I always travel with is my iPhone – so useful on so many levels. Recently I have been playing more and more with the camera and its built in HDR function. I make sure that I [...]
Approach to Changi Singapore shot on an iphone
I’m in Singapore exploring moving here permanently, and I have had little time to make any images that I felt really conveyed the feeling I have at the moment of a new chapter in my life. Until I remembered that I had witnessed a beautiful sunrise as we came onto the final approach to Changi [...]
Same old Chicago but perhaps a different voice
Chicago is one of those cities that I feel very much at home in. The combination of culture, lake, beach, architecture, great restaurants and some dear friends make it a joy to visit time and time again. But it can also make it a challenging place for me to shoot in, as it is a [...]
Step by Step Lightroom workflow for Black and White image
In the previous post, 3 pictures but 1 Voice, I shared how I have been reviewing not just which images I envision, or how I use the camera to capture that image but also how I am rethinking what and how I post-process. It will help you in reading this post to have read the [...]
3 pictures but 1 voice
I can’t remember who said it – was it the eponymous David duChemin? – that there were 3 pictures that happened every time you shoot an image: the one you conceive in your head (the masterpiece); the one you actually take with the camera and the one you process. Experience and skill is of course [...]
Discovering a new voice during the storms on Koh Samui
As I sit typing this post, the reassuring rhythm and sound of waves gently lapping against the golden sands of a Koh Samui beach just 8 feet from my table, bring a reassuring heartbeat and restoration of normality to life here on this once beautiful and small Thai island. If it weren’t for the scene [...]
On assignment with The Asia Foundation in Laos
I have spent the last week in Laos working with The Asia Foundation – standing in for the indefatigable Karl Grobl who is their normal “Go-to” photographer for South East Asia, but who was double booked. It is always a tremendous privilege to work with an International NGO such as the Asia Foundation – whose [...]
Cairo Depatch – an insiders view of the situation in Egypt
What can I say? A week is a long time in politics, and never has this been truer than the last 7 days at home in Cairo.
As many of you know my family and I have been based in Cairo for the last 3 years, and have come to love Egypt and the Egyptians.
The last seven days have been unprecedented yet both fascinating and frustrating: Fascinating to watch the brave Egyptian people stand up for their freedom and to create such a groundswell of change so quickly yet frustrating not to have been able to share some of the inside stories or images as it happened as we were without cellular network, email, internet or Social media for the last 5 days.
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