Stephen Harvey Smith

Rehashing some shots from Richmond Park

2012-01-08T21:09:00.003Z

A bit of a boring technical post, but I was given a scanner for Christmas, which means I will be able to scan some of my own film, bringing the cost down significantly from the place I was using previously, and possibly increasing the quality too.

Of course, the main reason to use a scanner is that you get to scan in the rebate, which looks absolutely fantastic, and is almost a reason in and of itself to shoot film!

I tend to keep this blog away from equipment related issues, but I thought that it would be worth demonstrating the difference between a scan on my new (a gift from my wife for Christmas - chosen unilaterally, most correctly - well done her!) Epson v500 (first image) and the same image as it was scanned by the developers, Genie Imaging, Wandsworth (second image). Genie recently changed their scanner for transparency film; they now use the same scanner as they do for colour negative film, which doesn't produce such good transparency results:

I should add that Genie are excellent for general developing and printing, but I am disappointed by the E6 scanning recently. The first image is much closer, if not identical, to the colours of the transparency on the lightbox. The camera was a Bronica ERSTI (or something), with either an 75mm or 150mm lens.

What was interesting about shooting on film that morning was the contrast in shooting style to the many digital shooters there were. I heard literally thousands of shots taken near me - while I used about 5 or 6 frames on my medium format, using Fuji Velvia 50. I was shooting Kodak Ektar on my Canon EOS5 as well (to shoot at on a good 35mm after shooting medium format is hard to describe; it is as if film is as flexible as digital suddenly, it is so much easier) some of the other photographers had fatigues on their lenses as well as themselves, and it looked like they were brandishing rocket launchers! This shot is scanned by Genie Imaging, on Ektar (their C41 scans are fine):

And finally, two shots, the first on my Epson V500:

The second from Genie Imaging:

Ok, so mine has lots more dust - probably because I've messed about with the transparency so much since getting it; this was my first ever roll of medium format film, and once you get the transparencies on the light table, they look addictively good!

I'm too lazy to record tech details when I shoot film, preferring to rely on my memory - but in the above instance, I took the following on my iPhone (f5.6, 1/250):

All shots taken on 15 Oct 2011 at Richmond Park, Surrey. I metered all shots using a further Canon, an EOS500N.

So there we are. A technical post. Please accept my apologies...

More from Richmond Park

2011-11-07T21:56:00.000Z

More from Richmond Park; the first three on medium format (Velvia), final on 35mm (Kodak Ektar).

Richmond Park at Dawn

2011-10-22T20:05:00.002+01:00

A selection from Richmond Park at sunrise, taken on digital, some on film yet to be developed:

There were around 20 photographers that morning, many with some serious "glass", in fatigues, even with camouflage lenses! I simply couldn't compete (not least because I was in a bright yellow cycling jacket!), so I didn't hang around to get the classic "rut" shot of two stags locking antlers.

Welsh Light

2011-09-13T22:02:00.004+01:00

We had a great time in North Wales in August. Although we expected the weather to be poor, it was actually very good (considering!), and the changes in weather patterns made for some really interesting light:

These were all taken either from or in the immediate vicinity of where we were staying - which was great, as it meant I could put the children to bed and then grab the camera and fire away!

Extreme Photography in Yosemite

2011-08-27T19:23:00.002+01:00

I've always liked Ansel Adams' photographs of Yosemite - but this is completely different, and inspiring. I'm fresh back from a week in North Wales, where I thought standing alone at the top of a mountain (accessed via car...), needing to wear my North Face jacket in August was extreme...

On Assignment from Camp 4 Collective on Vimeo.

I saw this link on a blog by a photographer in the U.S. which I follow from time to time - well worth a look.

Revive 2011 First Picks

2011-07-03T22:03:00.004+01:00

First picks from this year's Revive conference:

London Music Ministry Conference 2011

2011-05-22T20:01:00.002+01:00

Yesterday I went along to the London Music Ministry Conference to capture some of the day on camera, here's a snapshot of what I got:

(Screenshot from Aperture. All shots taken on my new 24-70mm f2.8 L)

New York City

2011-04-12T21:10:00.004+01:00

Fresh back from the developers, my photos of New York (all on Fuji Veliva slide film);

Radio City Hall

See previous post:

This is the view of Brooklyn Bridge from the 21st floor of an apartment block:

Soho (I think) - the one free day I had was met with pouring rain!

Radio City Hall, again

This is just near the big public library

Grand Central Station

Soho, rainy Sunday afternoon - this was near a very cool bookshop, though I can't remember its name:

Radio City Reflections

As it happens, I was not that happy with the quality of the scans, so I have emailed the developer to ask if they've changed their set up - there are others that I have not included because they weren't upto scratch, even though the transparencies are fine.

Wedding of Hannah and Ed

2011-04-07T21:45:00.007+01:00

Some photos from a lovely wedding I helped to photograph a couple of weeks ago in Wimbledon. You can see the full gallery here, but for now a slideshow:

I should acknowledge a key photography blog that I have found very useful in getting hints for wedding photography - Laurence Kim, a Seattle-based wedding photographer, who I first found about a year ago. Very interestingly, he has just moved to using film for a lot of his work, which gets film fans like me very excited... On that note, I'm expecting some developed films back from my New York trip very shortly, so if they are any good, I will post them here.

New York

2011-03-30T22:37:00.004+01:00

It's been a while since I posted anything... Earlier this month I had the privilege of travelling to New York with work - not much time for photography, and I wanted to travel light, so I only took my old Canon film SLR (which, secretly, even though literally every other camera I saw was digital, is a delight to use, and the joy and anticipation of getting the photos back from the developer is just brilliant...), and I am yet to get my photos back from the developer. In fact, I am yet to send them off!

This is the camera and lens I took with me, and a few rolls of Velvia and Portra 400 - in the end, I only took a couple of rolls of Velvia.

And here are some digital shots from a long time ago before I even had my own DSLR. James Brown had just died, hence the second shot.

New Website...

2011-02-26T14:30:00.005Z

I've been working on a "proper" website for a little while, and it's finally ready to be rolled out. You can see the preview site here. There is a wedding section under "events".

Eclipsed Solar Eclipse

2011-01-06T15:08:00.003Z

A few days ago there was a partial eclipse of the sun; it was scheduled for around 8.00am in London, so I decided to get up early and capture it as it emerged behind a prominent London landmark, Tower Bridge, which apparently looks great with the sun rising behind it.

Trouble was, there was almost complete cloud coverage, so there was no solar eclipse. Fortunately, the otherwise grey and dull cloud did go an interesting purple colour, which was captured quite well by my camera.

The morning started off as a boring night scene - this was at around 0715am:

From Tower Bridge

Fine. Nothing special. Thinking the light was not going to be that great, I tried to play around with some framing:

From Tower Bridge

Then, as 8am approached, the sky went an interesting purple colour, which I managed to capture. At the time it seemed only slightly different to normal, because the change was gradual and I had been standing there for quite a while (in the cold...)

From Tower Bridge

These are exactly as taken - maybe a bit of contrast added in Apple's Aperture to make up for the flat feel of the RAW image - but the sky really was an interesting colour.

The next day I viewed the inspirational Landscape Photographer of the Year exhibition at the National Theatre: very good stuff. Makes me want to get out there and take more photos of the landscape - its hard to do with a young family, but I have a long suffering wife who is delighted for me to get out from time to time. And I even have a really warm North Face coat to make the most of, so no excuses about the cold!

Victoria Homeless Ministry

2011-01-06T14:53:00.004Z

Each Sunday evening, the Korean congregation of my church runs a mercy ministry in the Victoria area of London. Free (usually Korean, very tasty) food is distributed, clothes and sleeping bags are handed out, and there is a Christian service in a nearby church which most of the people who arrive for food choose to go on to.

I went last Sunday to take some photos and to talk to the people who come. It was quite sad to see such poverty and at the same time know that I have so much - and that made it a challenge to photograph: not to exploit, not to take by surprise, to respect.

From Victoria Mercy Ministry, 2 Jan 2011

It was also challenging light - it didn't feel right to use flash, so I had to resort to shooting at f1.4 and ISO 3200, which completely reduces the image quality. The autofocus found it very hard to lock onto subjects, and it was too low light to focus manually, especially with the very limited depth of field which f1.4 gave. It was also the first time I have asked complete strangers to pose for photographs.

London Southbank

2010-11-13T21:46:00.003Z

Last week I popped to the Southbank in London:

From London Southbank, 6 Nov 2010

The aim was to get some seasonal shots of London - although this has been a wonderful autumn, sadly most of the great colour had gone by the time I was able to take some time out to take these shots.

Fireworks

2010-11-07T19:51:00.004Z

In honour of the time of year, here are some recent fireworks photos I took - not from bonfire night, but from London's Thames Festival back in September. Took them all on film and didn't get the shots back until a few weeks ago - my wife says there is no real point to them (which is probably true), but I like them, so think that I should put them here...

(Tech - Canon EOS500, Velvia 50, f5.6, bulb exposures of approx 10 - 15 seconds each, enough to expose the skyline and get some good, but not too many, firework trails. Digital would have been fine, but I have lost my cable release for my DSLR, and fuji velvia is excellent for fireworks - its high contrast cuts out the yellow in the sky, makes it really black, and brings out the colours in a most excellent way - see here )

Clapham Central Church

2010-10-28T19:48:00.003+01:00

At the beginning of the summer a friend who is starting a new church in Clapham Junction, Phil Alcock (see video below), asked me to take some shots of Clapham and the surrounding area. I did, and managed to do the lot on film (colour & BW). Here are the shots, and below is the promo video they are used in - which is great stuff if you ask me. Looking forward to seeing the website!

From Clapham Central Church Landscape Shots

And here is the finished product:

Clapham Central Church from Dundonald Church on Vimeo.

Wedding of Andy & Antonia

2010-10-28T19:39:00.004+01:00

Although I'm more of an events person than a weddings person, I do love a good wedding. I was second photographer at this wedding of some friends of ours back in August. Most of the shots below were on black and white film; great fun!

I'm in the process of putting together a proper website - Andy & Antonia kindly have provided this quote for me to use:

We love the photos Stephen took of our wedding; he captured our very special day very well - thank you! - Andy & Antonia, Tooting 2010

Sarah & Jacques

2010-10-27T21:24:00.004+01:00

Sneak preview of a wedding I shot over the weekend:

From Wedding of Sarah & Jacques

They were a lovely couple and it was a lot of fun!

If you click on any of these photos it will take you to the full album, from where you can see a few more.

Wedding of Matt and Rose

2010-09-10T21:39:00.004+01:00

Back in January I was the official photographer at this wedding, for a friend of a friend. Have been meaning to put the shots here for a while. A thoroughly exhausting day! I was quite pleased with the results...

Getting ready

M.O.T.B - aka mother of the bride

And my favourite shot of the day:

I was second photographer at another wedding recently - much harder; the main guy gets to take all the good shots, while you have to clear up what he leaves behind and turn it into something that looks good...

A spot of press photography/men in tights

2010-07-06T21:56:00.003+01:00

One of those "right place at right time with a camera moments" - Ken Clarke sworn in as the Lord Chancellor:

London Music Ministry Conference

2010-06-28T22:00:00.003+01:00

Back in May, I was asked to photograph the London Music Ministry Conference, an event to equip and support Christian musicians who are involved in creating music for times of worship and praise at church and other meetings.

It was a great event to shoot - in All Souls Church, a fantastic venue and a gift to photograph - but also because it was really very interesting to listen to the things musicians have to think about in a church setting.

As time goes on, I am being asked to photograph more and more Christian ministry events; if you are putting one on, and would like some shots, do get in touch. (That's not all I photograph... I'll put some shots of Ken Clarke on soon to prove the point. But right now, I've been staring at the computer screen for far too long. I'm off to drink some freshmint tea in the garden. Bye for now)

Revive Part II

2010-06-24T22:46:00.005+01:00

You can't beat film... At the Revive weekend, I somehow thought, amongst the 800 digital shots that I took, reviewed, reviewed again, re-took, uploaded, and generally got tired of taking, that the 5 or so frames I had left on a roll of Fuji Velvia 50 would be the best shots of the weekend. I think they were. I used them for the fireworks, and had no idea how they would turn out, until I received the transparencies last week...

From Revive 2010 First Selection

If it wasn't for the fact that film was so expensive (almost 20GBP/roll, by the time you have bought the film, paid to post it to the lab, paid for developing, paid for medium res scanning, paid for return postage...) I would use it a lot, lot more. In fact, it is tempting to commit to film, rather than the next v expensive DSLR...

Revive 2010 - Part I

2010-06-16T19:38:00.002+01:00

Last weekend was my church's annual Revive weekend away - 600 adults, 200 children, 2 big tops and 1 official photographer. Here are a few tasters:

More to follow!

Camber Sands

2010-06-10T21:31:00.003+01:00

Right, we've moved into the new place. We have internet. We have two computers. I have a nice dining table to blog from via the laptop or a desktop upstairs. No more crouching at the coffee table to use the computer, as in the old place. Surely this means a new era for this photoblog?

So, here goes; as promised the holiday slides from April's froray to the south coast.

Camber Sands beach, at sunset - I had to run to catch the reflection in the water as the sun was going down. If it didn't reflect in the water, because the sky was so much lighter than the ground, the ground would have been completely dark.

And a little later, as the sun had set and the colours were a lovely pastel pink:

But what I really wanted to do was to try some ultra low light photography, where it was so dark you could hardly see, but you know that if you leave the shutter open for long enough, the camera can see what you can't. All this was on film, so I really was guessing:

This was a 5 min exposure at ISO 40 (geeky bit - set the film ISO to 1600 to get a meter reading, the difference is 40 stops - so whatever the time given is, multiply it by 40, and then - with film - add some extra time because you need to with long film exposures - and I ended up with 300 seconds at about f8... yawn....)

Back to daylight hours: Sea Mist that came from out of nowhere, reducing visibility to an eerie few feet and the colours to monochrome:

And finally, a few minutes earlier, this is what the scene had looked like:

Holiday Slides

2010-05-25T22:21:00.005+01:00

It's been a while since I've posted anything here - mainly because nothing I've shot recently seemed worth posting. Actually, that's not true; it's more the case that I am too lazy... Anyway, today I finally received the developed slides and CD of some landscape shots I took on holiday at the south coast last year. As always with film, at the time I think its more hassle than its worth and too expensive, but when I get the results, for some reason, I can't say why, the shots are far better than I would have managed on my digital SLR. Not had time to process fully yet, but here is a snapshot of what's on the way...

The colours are immense!

From Misc

There is also a wedding, some portraits, Ken Clarke, and some events to come. All sadly on digital, but I'll get round to posting them soon...

Success!

2010-03-20T08:55:00.002Z

My gallery for the Guardian's monthly assignment has been featured on the website today. Delighted!

London by Day

2010-03-07T21:32:00.003Z

A wonderful day in London today.

The camera was poised for a cliched view of St Paul's Cathedral over the Millennium footbridge, when all of a sudden about 10 brightly clad St John ambulance cyclists sped past...

London at Night

2010-02-21T11:35:00.002Z

London at night, taken this weekend, possibly for entry into the Guardian Camera Club's Monthly Assignment, night photography (though these may be a bit too run of the mill for that sort of thing...)

The Marriage Course

2010-01-22T07:44:00.002Z

I was asked to take some photographs of a course on marriage at my church; here is a selection:

From Dundonald Church Marriage Course

Hopefully some of these, and others, will make it on to the new church website!

Autumn in Richmond Park

2009-10-18T15:19:00.004+01:00

Autumn colours in Richmond Park, London; taken during normal waking hours - much better than the ones I got at dawn the day before!

From Autumn Colour, Richmond Park, Oct 09

A spot of press photography... Opening of the Legal Year, Westminster Abbey

2009-10-01T22:14:00.006+01:00

I found myself in a great spot to take these photos of the annual judges' procession from Westminster Abbey to the Houses of Parliament today:

From Opening of the Legal Year, Westminster Abbey, 1 October 2009

The Lord Chief Justice and Jack Straw

From Opening of the Legal Year, Westminster Abbey, 1 October 2009

Processing across Parliament Square followed by the Justices of the Supreme Court

From Opening of the Legal Year, Westminster Abbey, 1 October 2009

These guys wish they had my spot...

From Opening of the Legal Year, Westminster Abbey, 1 October 2009

You looking at me sunshine?

From Opening of the Legal Year, Westminster Abbey, 1 October 2009

High Court Judges

From Opening of the Legal Year, Westminster Abbey, 1 October 2009

Circuit Judges

Peter, Marisa and Oscar

2009-07-13T21:45:00.005+01:00

Here are the first cuts from a portrait session with our friends Peter, Marisa and Oscar. It was such fun. Peter, Marisa and Oscar - I hope you like the shots! And thank you for being willing models!

Hammersmith Bridge, 30 June 2009

2009-07-02T22:49:00.005+01:00

My wife likes this photograph, so I thought I would upload it here. She is my biggest/only fan...

From Hammersmith Bridge, 30 June 2009

The Solway Coast, Cumbria

2009-06-23T22:04:00.006+01:00

Some of my favorite sunset shots from the Solway Coast, Cumbria, during Easter this year:

Psalm 19 sums this up

" The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands"

Adventures in Kodachrome - Part II

2009-06-23T19:34:00.004+01:00

Last month I sent off a roll of Kodachrome 64 - have heard loads about its iconic history and thinking that there surely is more of a challenge to shooting in film rather than digital. The effort paid off and most of the film are keepers, the sharpest, most saturated ones at that. I was very surprised the film came back at all - see here.

Sadly, Kodachrome is shortly to be discontinued. Looks like it will be Fuji Velvia from now on...

When I have scanned in the images, I will post them here.

Revive 2009 - Part II

2009-06-16T21:35:00.002+01:00

You can view many, many more Revive photographs here:

Revive 2009 - Part 1

2009-06-16T21:19:00.005+01:00

Just back from our church's annual mega-weekend away with all the churches with whom we're connected, Revive, where I was the photographer for the weekend. Here are some of my favourite moments; more to follow:

Relaxing on Saturday afternoon

Singing praises to God

Having lots of fun

A glimpse into our main Bible teaching sessions

The bouncy castle is a regular feature

Waiting for News

2009-06-04T22:50:00.003+01:00

On the day of the European Elections, the press in Westminster are clearly less than hard at work...

Sunsets and Twilight

2009-06-04T22:29:00.003+01:00

I love the late summer evenings when the twilight blends with the evening lights and even boring buildings have an enchanting silhouette. Central London on such an evening would be wonderful. However, when I'm babysitting, the best I can manage is to lean out of the living room window and just imagine what London's skyline would be like...

Adventures in Kodachrome

2009-05-31T19:50:00.006+01:00

Just back from a weekend walking in the North Downs. To keep the weight down, I left my digital SLR at home, and took a lightweight film SLR, only a 50mm lens, with a Kodachrome 64 film.

The pre-paid processing address is in Switzerland. According to the Kodak website, the Swiss lab is now closed and all rolls will be posted to the sole remaining Kodachrome processing lab, which is in the USA.

I have a feeling that once I put it in the postbox, I will never see it again. If I do, I will share the results here...

Garden Party at the Vicarage

2009-05-25T09:49:00.002+01:00

Some moments from Robin & Rachel's 30th Birthday Party in the Vicarage Garden

Winning Entry

2009-05-18T20:41:00.004+01:00

This shot was deemed to be the winner of the shadow theme at the Earlsfield Photographic Society, meaning I get to chose the next theme - which I have done, and its to take a press photo.