Light, Colour and People

It's the last day of the decade already, and for my final post of 2009 I'd like to quote our friend and colleague Charles Mifsud, from Malta. Charles is an experienced traveller and very keen amateur photographer who likes to enter print competitions with his travel images. On the final day of our recent visit to Malta it was Charles that drove us around the island to see the sights, and on the journey (he likes to talk....) he was describing just why he loves photography....

"Even if you don't win the competitions [he often does], photography and photographs teach you an appreciation of light, of colour, and of people" he said.

This simple statement summed up in a nutshell why I also still get excited by photography after over twenty years in the profession, and will be the philosophy behind our new photo-training courses for 2010. So enjoy the New Year celebrations, and then celebrate light, colour, people and life with us through the inspiration of photography in the year ahead.

Happy Holiday

After a few minor delays due to snow and ice I'm pleased to say that all of the framed portraits, canvases and multi-frames that were ordered by our clients for Christmas have now been collected and it's time to go home. These are just a small selection chosen from my favourites........

That just leaves me and Janet to say 'Thank You' to all of the clients, contacts, friends and family who have supported us over the year. We hope you have a peaceful Christmas and a fun-packed, healthy and propserous New Year.

A first birthday photoshoot in Cheadle

My last posting was little bit wordy, so here are some recent images from a photoshoot commission to capture Rory at age one, shortly after his first birthday. As you can see, this was just before the autumn leaves disappeared for another year. Rory had great fun playing in the leaves while I used a long lense at a wide aperture to capture him in action. Even though I normally shoot mostly black and white, the colours of these Maple leaves are so fantastic every year that I always like to head to this spot for some autumnal colour shots.

Denis Thorpe : On Home Ground

Late November and early December are always particularly busy for us at Michael Turner Photography, and last week was no exception - last minute Christmas portrait shoots and viewing sessions take up most of the time, as well as taking care of printing and liasing with our framers to ensure that our clients all get their portraits in time for Christmas. I'm not sure how I managed it, but I also managed to see three Manchester City home matches in eight days, which got better as the week progressed - a disappointing draw against Hull, an exciting 3-0 victory over Arsenal to progress to the last four of the Carling Cup and a sensational victory over Premiership leaders Chelsea that well and truly brought the house down.

Yesterday Janet and I went see our God-daughter Sarah who, in spite of a few scares and a couple of unscheduled extra operations, I'm happy to report is progressing well. She has been in and out of Alder Hey several times over the past few weeks, but is home now and ever so slowly putting on the weight she needs for her life-saving heart surgery to be properly effective (something to do with growing into a tiny band that was fitted to regulate the flow of blood between her heart and lungs apparently). Yesterday she gave us some beautiful big smiles so she must be feeling OK!

On Friday evening we went to see a slide show and talk by Denis Thorpe, one of the photographers who influenced my early career when I started out in magazine and newspaper photography. Denis spent most of his career as the staff photographer on The Guardian and his instinctive black and white photography from the past 50 years or so is quite simply stunning. Covering all subjects from landscapes and portraits to hard news, he was given the freedom to cover every story in his own quiet style. Sadly, as Denis himself will acknowledge, that simply doesn't happen in today's cut-throat world of newspaper photography that seems to be dominated by the paparazzi.

Denis's ability to come back from any assignment with photographs that capture the essence of a story in one or two telling images made him popular with his editors and hugely respected by his fellow photographers. I had never met Denis before Friday. He certainly lived up to his reputation as one of the gentlemen of the press, and his passion for people and photography shone through even though he's been retired for a good number of years now. If you like black and white documentary and pictorial photography I can recommend his book 'On Home Ground', or if you get the opportunity to attend one of his talks, even better.

More from Malta

Our Maltese photographer friend Jean Pierre Gatt has made a three minute film about the recent MIPP Convention we were part of. You can view it here :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vI9E-WuTf5o

David Williams Seminar

I'm pleased to confirm the dates for the 'Almost Alone with David Williams' seminar we're hosting at our studio in January. The seminar will run for three days from 26th-28th January 2010, with a select group of 12 maximum. David (from Down Under) specialises in weddings and portraits and is one of the world's leading teachers of photography. This seminar isn't about all the techinical stuff (though there will be a little), it's more about getting to the heart of what photographing people is all about.

The timing is perfect - after a busy wedding season or Christmas portrait rush, the seminar will help you to recharge the batteries and make an inspired, flying start 2010.

You can check out more details and find out first hand from David at www.davidwilliamsseminars.com. We'll hope to see you in January.

A whistlestop tour of Malta

Yesterday, after three days of hard work at the MIPP conference, our Maltese hosts treated Janet and me and the rest of the UK party to a trip around the island and a taster of the delights of Malta. Our base for the weekend, the Corinthia in San Gorg, was a very comfortable hotel and made a superb location for a photographic convention, but it was relief to escape our modern surroundings and get out to see some of the real Malta on our final day. Our whistlestop tour included Mosta, Dingli Cliffs and the Blue Grotto, Valletta, Mdina and Marsaxlokk. Needless to say that with only a few hours to spare we didn't get a lot of time for serious photography, but we did enjoy the beautiful November weather and saw enought of the country to convince us that Malta is a photographer's paradise.

Golden light in the alleyways of the ancient city of Mdina...

The fishing village of Marsaxlokk is famous for it's colourful fishing boats, but looking inland this colourful doorway also caught my eye.Mediterranean cats always make appealing subjects.....

After our brief taster, one thing is sure - we'll be making a return visit......

As featured on Maltese TV....

Janet and I have today returned from Malta where we've been working over the weekend as speakers for the Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers and the Malta Institute of Professional Photographers http://www.mipp-malta.com/ at their combined International Convention. The Maltese photographers have been some of the friendliest photographers I've ever had the pleasure to meet (maybe it's something to do with the sunny Mediterranean weather) and their enthusiasm has been an inspiration. The speaker line up included myself and Damian McGillicuddy from the UK, fine art photographer Ayman Lotfy from Egypt and a selection of home grown Maltese photographers. I've been teaching children's portrait and lifestyle photography over three separate seminars, as well as judging qualifications and the MIPP photographic awards. A hectic but very enjoyable few days.

To our surprise the event made the National News (the MIPP's Kevin Casha has friends in high places it would appear). You can view the clip on youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqE9u6E61vE

Here are a few of the portraits taken during the demonstration, all captured with natural light.

And finally.....

Dogs just wanna have fun!

Dogs are such characters and can teach us a lot about looking on the bright side of life. They never think it's too early to go for walk, or too late. They're always eager to please, they're eternal optimists and no stick is ever too big - they love a challenge!

These are a couple of shots of our dog Tara, taken on a recent trip to the West Coast of Scotland......

Tara's never happier than on a forest walk with lots of mud and with the added bonus of a sandy beach, but it can be hard work keeping her still long enough to be photographed. No wonder they say you should never work with children and animals.

Master Photographer of the Year Awards

Last weekend Janet and I were in our best bib and tucker at the MPA Awards at the Hilton Hotel in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. We had a great time meeting up with old friends and I can now officially claim to be a finalist in the awards and an Award of Excellence winner in the Under 5s! Winner of the Under 5s category though (and also the Portrait category), was last year's Master Photographer of the Year Lisa Visser from West Sussex, with two beautiful images from her successful 2009 fellowship panel.

Well done to Lisa and to all of the other category winners. You can view the winning images at http://www.thempa.com/

Hopefully we'll be there again next year....

A Very Special Baby

All babies are special of course, but Janet and I would like to introduce you to our new God-daughter, Sarah. Sarah's mum is Janet's cousin Suzanne. During routine checks, Sarah was diagnosed with a complex hole in the heart problem well before she was born just three weeks ago. She made her grand entrance at the new St Mary's children's hospital in Manchester with a whole team of medics and machinery on hand to ensure that her problems were instantly dealt with. Without them she wouldn't have survived the first few hours, even though from the outside she looks like a normal, healthy, bouncing 8lb baby.

Sarah was then transferred to Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool to prepare for major heart surgery. Since this photograph was taken she's had a SEVEN HOUR operation to partially correct the problem, and she'll need follow up operations in a few months time and just before she starts school. This is pioneering heart surgery at the forefront of technology, and only a few years ago none of this would have been possible for this particular form of hole in the heart. Even so, at the moment there is no long term cure for Sarah's particular condition, only temporary solutions. But who knows what medical progress will have been made in another few years?

The point of bringing this to light is really to thank all of the staff at St Mary's and Alder Hey for getting Sarah this far and for the fantastic support that Suzanne has received. It's only when something like this happens within your own family that you truly appreciate what amazing places our hospitals are. The NHS may not be perfect, but in this instance they could not have done any more for Sarah and Suzanne.

While husband Chris has been left at home to cope with Sarah's three siblings (with support from his mum and dad) , Suzanne has been staying at McDonald House, a charity supported unit for parents in the grounds of Alder Hey Hospital. Janet and I are in awe of the teamwork that has been devoted to giving one little girl the chance of life, and moved by the way that the mums of the other sick children rally round and support each other, when each one of them has their own fears and problems to contend with. Such is the strength of the human spirit.

In spite of her traumatic start to life Sarah has done fantastically well so far and she's making a good recovery from the first operation. We'll be supporting her all the way.

News Round-Up

First of all some great news from the Master Photographer's Association - one of my prints has been shortlisted for the UK Master Photographer of the Year Awards in the Under 5s subject category. The Annual Awards are like the Oscars so to receive a nomination is really exciting. We're now looking forward to the awards black tie dinner in Newcastle next Month, and Janet has the perfect excuse to go shopping for a new dress. With matching shoes of course.

Later in October Janet and I are going to Malta to present three seminars for the SWPP (Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers) at the annual Maltese Photographer's Convention. We're looking forward to meeting the Maltese photographers and finding out how they run their businesses. It should be a really enjoyable break, with some hard work thrown in for good measure!

Our recently launched Baby's First Year folio scheme is gathering momentum and proving to be very popular. For families and children we are soon to launch a brand new promotion that will raise funds and awareness for one of our favourite local charities, KidsCan, based at Salford University http://www.kidscan.org.uk/. Watch this space.

We expect to be busy with portraits in the run up to Christmas, then in January we'll be speaking again for the SWPP, this time in London for the Annual Convention. With three workshops to present and two days of print judging it will be a hectic week.

And as if that's not enough, the following week we are hosting a three day workshop at our studio for our good friend David Williams from Australia. David will be running his popular 'Almost Alone' workshop that gives wedding and portrait photographers the chance to think about 'real' photography for three days with one of the world masters of the art and enjoy the company of a small group of like minded group of photographers. More details will be announced soon.

As you can see, Janet and I never stand still for long. We'll keep you informed on progress through the blog, or don't hesitate to get in touch with us if you have any questions in the meantime.

Autumn Photoshoots

The kids are back at school, Father Christmas has arrived at Botany Bay (so the advert says) and we're all still waiting for the barbecue summer to arrive. That means it's time to start thinking about an autumn photoshoot. Autumn is one of my favourite times of year for outdoor portraits - the weather is usually settled (unlike summer), the colours are fantastic and children love to play in the autumn leaves. With the evenings drawing in and weekend appointments at a premium you'll need to book ahead. Please call the studio to discuss the options.

Postcard from Lytham

Brooding skies, almost empty beach, imminent downpours....yes, it's the British seaside Bank Holiday! Janet and I were visiting our photographer friends Jo and Martyn last Monday. Having aborted our planned beach barbecue (I wonder why?) we did manage a mid-afternoon walk down the sea front before the heavens opened. Still, it made for an interesting shot across the sands, captured on my Canon G9 compact.

The Digital Dilemma

"For some time, my loathing of cameras has been bubbling away on a low heat. The other day it finally boiled over". So said Nigel Farndale in his column in last week's Sunday Telegraph.

You can read the article on the Telegraph website, but, in a nutshell, Mr Farndale was relating the tale of being plagued by a snap-happy tourist on the Barcelona cable car. Apparently the tourist managed to rattle off over a hundrd shots in next to no time, never stopping once to admire the view first hand. In other words, his only recollection of the magnificent aerial views over the spires of Barcelona will be second-hand, some time later, if he indeed bothers to look at the pictures at all. Mr Farndale did refrain from pushing the tourist out of the cable car but you can imagine his irritation.

Over the past week the various comments added to the article (on the Telegraph website) have ranged from 'get a life and leave people to do whatever they want' to messages of support and further tirades against video cameras and people using mobile phones in public places.

My take on this is that the issue lies not with photography as such (I am rather biased of course), but with the invention of digital photography (of which I am also a fan). Suddenly photography is perceived to be easy. "You can take hundreds of photos at no cost only keep the good ones". And if they don't turn out as well as you'd hoped, "you can improve them later on the computer". There is an element of truth in both of these statements about digital, but the art of photography, and the thought processes that go into making a good photograph are the same as they ever were. Mr. Farndale bemoans the fact that photography is no longer a 'noble art'. But in my view it still can be. Photography has not changed, only the tools.

My advice is to treat your digital camera as if it were a film camera (if you remember film of course), with a cost attached to every frame. Consider your image before pressing the shutter and resist the urge to machine-gun your subject in the hope that you'll get one great image. But most importantly, put your camera down for a while. Take in the view. Soak up the atmosphere. Enjoy the moment. In the present, and not 'sometime later'.

Postcard from Greece

Janet and I have just returned from a holiday sailing around the Peloponnese peninsula in Greece. Normal service at Michael Turner Photography is slowly being resumed, though after two weeks of hot and sunny weather we're not impressed that it's still cool and showery here in the UK. It's OK, we don't expect sympathy!
We were sailing with our good friend Jonathan Chandler, his partner Conny, their summertime skipper Lex and an American couple from Connecticut, Conrad and Amy. This was a busman's holiday for Jonathan, he spends the rest of the summer running skippered charters around the Greek Islands. Jonathan was born in Greece, educated at Dartmouth Naval College and employed firstly in the Hong Kong Police and then in the world of corporate sailing in the USA (America's Cup, Whitbread Round the World Race). A colourful background to say the least. Now he has settled back in his home country and his local knowledge and understanding of Greek culture (and especially the food) gives an extra dimension to a sailing trip that can't be matched by the big charter companies. You can check out his website at http://www.sailcharter-greece.com/.

Jonathan's pride and joy, and our home for the past two weeks, Koralia3...

This was an active sailing holiday for us, rather than a photographic trip, but we did manage to take 'one or two' pictures along the way. This is a tiny selection :

A typical street scene on Poros, our first port of call after sailing out of Alimos Marina in Athens...

A sunrise walk around the harbour on Elafonisos island at the southern tip of the Peloponnese rewarded me with a portrait of this amazing looking character preparing his fishing boat. I don't speak fluent Greek (only a few words in fact) but a gesture to the camera and 'en-dak-zee?' (that's Greek for OK) and he was happy to pose.

Two more pictorial shots from my early morning walk...

Random images from the most southerly island on our voyage - Kythira...

If you think that Greece is completely dry in August you may be surprised to see this shot of an ethereal waterfall we found at Mylopotamos on Kythira island...

And finally...for our friends who think that our sailing in the Aegean is the same as going on a cruise, in other words lounging on board a luxury yacht drinking ouzo all day, think again....this is Janet in action raising the mizzen, nonchalantly assisted by Lex!

The Joy of Photography

My friend John Robinson, a keen amateur photographer, has reminded me (if I ever needed reminding) of the simple joy of picture taking. A couple of years ago he bought his wife, Al, a new camera, tried it out.....and was hooked. Now he lets her borrow it now and again when he's not out looking for subjects to photograph!

Even though I love my chosen career, as a professional photographer it's all too easy for me to get distracted with the day to day 'stuff ' involved in running a business and temporarily forget why I became a photographer in the first place. A fantastic photoshoot with fun-loving kids or a day out shooting personal projects usually reminds me why I love what I do; John's refreshing approach to photography for the sheer pleasure of creating beautiful pictures also helps to make the point.

Personally speaking, my favourite subjects often feature people whereas John likes to photograph nature and rural landscapes without people in them. The beauty of photography is that there is endless variety and scope for anyone to express themselves through their images, whether as a professional or simply for fun. For some people photography is a hobby, for others it's a living, but the resulting images can be enjoyed by everyone.

A graphic artist and web designer by profession, John has put together his own website to showcase his favourite photographs. You can visit at http://www.jrobinsonphotography.co.uk/

An Outdoor Photoshoot

Last weekend I had a commission to capture some natural portraits of a delightful little girl for her fourth birthday. With heavy showers a possibility we started off in the studio for a few minutes, which gave the opportunity for some beautiful close-up portraits before she started to get too restless and fidgety!

Then it was everyone outside for a walk to the park......fortunately by now the clouds were clearing and it stayed fine for the rest of the shoot.

Outdoor photoshoots are unpredictable, which is all part of the fun. Today we found some ladybirds - catching them and counting the spots is good fun for children and a great opportunity for some close up portraits. 'No ladybirds were harmed in the making of these photographs...'

Still raring to go and having fun at the end of the photoshoot. Studio portraits have their place but you can't beat the great outdoors for a fantastic photoshoot experience.