 I had some spare time today, so I nipped over to the Imperial War Museum North in Salford Quays to catch the penultimate day of the George Rodger Exhibiton. What an amazing exhibition. and what lengths the war photographers of the time had to go through? Truly fantastic work, but as its last day is tomorrow, you'll be hard pushed to catch it.
"Born in Hale, Cheshire, George Rodger (1908 – 1995) was a largely self-taught and uniquely gifted photographer and pioneering photojournalist who never lost his concern and sympathy for the victims of conflict. As a photographer for Life Magazine during the Second World War, George Rodger travelled to most major war zones, photographing what he saw for a distant audience in America. Starting in wartime London, George Rodger’s photographs record his personal journey and growing horror of war as much as the course of the war itself. After his experiences, especially at Belsen concentration camp, George Rodger sought to abandon war photography. However he could not escape the conflicts of the post war era entirely. His coverage of Palestinian refugees and the Mau Mau in Kenya is as poignant and powerful as that of the London Blitz. Contact reveals how the challenges and changing nature of photojournalism in wartime shaped George Rodger’s work and experience. It examines his lasting legacy both as a photographer and as co-founder, together with Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Capa and David (Chim) Seymour, of the legendary Magnum photographic cooperative agency 60 years ago. "
For more info on the exhibition click here
To see more of George Rodger's work, go here.
I've been out of the real world for the last 2 weeks, on a Firebrand training course in Oxfordshire trying to earn my MCTS accreditation for my day job. It was very very intense, save to say that I've shot absolutely no images for nearly 2 weeks now - that's not good!
I've barely even managed to check my mail never mind keep on top of the plethora of feeds I subscribe too.
Anyway, just a quickie tonight to point out this useful series of tutorials that John Arnold of PhotoWalkThrough.com is running on Photoshop Express. I've not had time to look at the product yet, but John's tutorials are very good, and well worth checking out if you're using it. Click here for more - Photoshop Express Quicktip 5 - Adding fill light.
Originally uploaded by floyduk
 3 more shots from the Roma game to add to the Football Fans project. This was shot just after the referee had awarded Roma a very dubious penatly. Fortunately De Rossi completely sky'd it! I have printed the majority of these myself in the darkroom, but I thought I would have a go at scanning the negs and getting them printed digitally too. (There are a few I have had problems with in the darkroom due to the low light they were shot in, and lack of contrast in the neg). I collected the prints yesterday and am rather disappointed with the results to be quite honest. Some are better than others even though I followed exactly the same procedure for each shot. Some are rather pixelated and the final quality is nowhere near as good as those I printed myself. Since my last post on this subject, I have done a not insignifcant amount of reading on how to scan B&W using ICE and dodge and burn (not using the standard PS tools as these are too intense) and so I am now torn as to how exactly to complete this assignment. I am out of the office all next week on a course and the deadline is rapidly approaching.....
Some time ago a local property developer submitted plans to demolish our local village centre, which has served the local community well for over 30 years with a behemoth of a development towering above everything in site. It was grossly oversized and all in the name of greed. We would have had to endure 2 years construction and no local amenities for this time too. As we quite literally overlook the site it would have been an absolute nightmare. Admittedly, the area is looking a tad tired and dated, but it doesn't help that CityBranch, the landlords and proposed developer have upped all the tennants rents with a view to booting them out so that they didn't have to buy out their leases should the plans be accepted. But the result is that there are now several empty units. The local council (Trafford) initally approved the plans, much to everyone's disgust. A residents' response committee was formed and a decision to appeal against the plans taken, and the Deputy Prime Minister's office informed. Long story short. After a great deal of time and effort (and money) a decision was eventually reached. The announcement was due in mid February, and as this deadline slipped by and nothing was heard, we all assumed the worst. That was until last night. And the appeal has been dismissed, so the plans have been rejected. HALLELUJAH! So now CityBranch have loads of empty units and less rent coming in - serves them right the money grabbing *#!?'{}***! Many many thanks go to Tony Woolf, Rev Rob Hinton and the rest of the committee that worked tirelessly in proving that there is at least some small semblance of common sense left in this world. Read more here: www.hbrr.co.uk
 Well I'm pretty close to finishing the Football Fans Project I've been working on for the last few months. I need a few more crowd shots, which I hope to get tonight at the Roma game. I'm still undecided on the exact title. "15 Minutes" has been suggested a few times, as the project is primarily concerned with the pie and a pint routine at half time (though at Old Trafford, its now a hotdog and a lukewarm plastic bottle of Budweiser - ugh!). For the intro page I wanted a good football orientated quote. I've searched for quite some time for this, and also asked several fans about what football means to them. But the most appropriate quote I can find, and for me pretty much sums football up, is Fergie's quote after winning the European Cup in Barca in '99. So I'm thinking it will be quite simple and read something like this:
"Football. Bloody Hell! Sir Alex Ferguson, Barcelona, May 1999
(I received this by email today. Not sure where it originated, but amusing nonetheless. ) 'Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as: Knowing when to come in out of the rain; why the early bird gets the worm; Life isn't always fair; and maybe it was my fault. Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn) and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge). His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition. Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Elastoplast to a student; but could not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion. Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault. Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement. Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by his 4 stepbrothers; I Know My Rights, I Want It Now, It's Not My Fault, and I'm A Victim. Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.' And a little extra........................ Can you imagine working for a company that has a little more than 600 employees and has the following statistics? 29 have been accused of spouse abuse, 7 have been arrested for fraud, 19 have been accused of writing bad cheques, 117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses, 3 have done time for assault, 71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit, 4 have been arrested on drug-related charges, 8 have been arrested for shoplifting, 21 are currently defendants in lawsuits, 84 have been arrested for drink driving in the last year. Which organization is this? It's the 635 members of the House of Commons, the same group that cranks out hundreds of new laws each year designed to keep the rest of us in line.
Busy day in the darkroom today printing up some of my football fans project, so only time for a brief post. Stumbled across the following articles whilst munching on a bacon butty. Some really useful tips for food photography. All fairly obvious stuff, but a useful reminder nonetheless - View Article
 Today was the first time I've managed to get out with the rucksack fully loaded and had a chance to put it through its paces. In it I managed to get:- Hasseblad 503 80mm & 150mm lenses Prism finder Spare A12 back Power Winder & grip 32E Extensions tube Lee Hood, Polariser & ND Grads Polaroid back Small binoculars Nikon D70s Sigma 18-200, 30mm F1.4, 10mm-20mm F4 & 150-500mm Flash Polariser, ND Grads and several other filters. Spare batteries, memory cards, & extensions tubes Tripod Torch, penknife & kitchen sink. Well no, not quite the kitchen sink, but I was amazed at how much stuff I could get in and it still felt really comfortable on my back. Heavy, but comfortable. Now I'm certainly no fitness geek, but I reckon that I could certainly manage a good few miles with this load on my back. The pack is that well designed. I've got a couple of lenses at the menders, so there will have to bit of jiggery pokery to get them in (I'm soooo missing the 40mm for the 'blad) when they come back. I think the Sigma 150-500 will have to live elsewhere. But all in all a great buy. Well worth the pennies & from a build quality point of view, it beats the LowePro hands down. Kata rock! Oh and here's a wee snap I took on the way!
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