Why, when we see the world in colour, do we often find black and white portraits so engaging? With the distraction of colours stripped away we are driven to focus on elements such as the direction of a gaze, skin texture and the interplay of light and shadow on the face. Elements such as clothing and jewellery fade into the background and the expression on the face takes centre stage.
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It’s probably many years since any of us used Kodachrome to capture ‘nice bright colours’. But digital photography allows us to achieve similarly cheerful results. It also, of course, allows us to opt for a purely greyscale monochrome palette.
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It has been hard to find ‘perfect’ days this past June. It started too cool and too dull, then in the space of a few days transformed itself to an extreme heatwave. Temperatures hit 35 Celsius and the high humidity made life in London pretty tough. Such is a our changing climate, unfortunately, and England wasn’t built for heat.
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The letter B, the second letter of our alphabet, is one of the first a child learns to recognise. ‘A is for Apple, B is for …’ Yes, what objects do begin with a B? I had great fun trawling my archives for these 'B' images!
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There are no guarantees of whale sightings, as anyone who has ventured out on a whale-watching trip must know. Nature always has the upper hand and may surprise, delight or disappoint. Yet whatever you see, or don’t see, a day out on the water is always a pleasure.
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As photographers we are trying to convey three-dimensional scenes and objects on a flat two-dimensional surface, whether paper or screen, and we can use similar tricks to those of the Renaissance artists. Lines that converge on a point close to the horizon (‘leading lines’) create a sense of distance, as do receding objects.
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Gal Oya is the most untouched and least visited of all of Sri Lanka’s national parks. It was established in 1954 but having been off-limits during the civil war it is only now being re-discovered. On the day we did a jeep safari in the park we seemed to have it to ourselves.
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From the well-known (think Grand Canyon or Great Pyramid of Giza) to the less lauded (an ancient artefact, a beautiful stained-glass window, a snow-capped mountain, a colourful bird, a surprise encounter with wildlife) … the world is full of wonders. I am fortunate to be able to travel and to appreciate the wonders I am able to discover far from home.
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It's important not to get so hung up on technique that we forget to concentrate on what really matters in our photography: creating an emotional connection with our subject. Yet technique is important, and good technique can help bring out that feeling.
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Is there anyone who isn’t awed by a waterfall? Whether it’s the sheer power of the water tumbling over the edge a one of the world’s great falls such as Victoria or Iguazu, or whether it’s the delicate lace and spray of a stream tumbling over rocks, the movement and sound seem always to hold us in their grip.
