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[H1] Oxford School of Photography
insights into photography

[H2] More Urbex from Chernobyl

2 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 10, 2019

There is no doubt that the faded, dissembled life of a town returned to nature is attractive. There are so many sites that explore  ‘urbex’ photography and it is no wonder that Pripyat offers such poignancy.
Every student of photography would benefit from understanding the way to introduce atmosphere into their pictures and looking at David’s pictures would be a good place to start
The Guardian says:
The Chernobyl disaster in 1986 forced the evacuation of nearby Pripyat, home to 45,000 people. David McMillan has journeyed there 21 times since to record abandoned homes and buildings as they are reclaimed by nature
All photographs: David McMillan
There are many more of David’s beautiful pictures on his site here
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Railway station, village of Janov, October 1996 Janov was the nearest village to the reactor. It was considered so contaminated the entire village was razed, but the railway station remains, as do the trains that were there at the time of the accident
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Portrait of Lenin, Kindergarten, October 1997 The character of Pripyat and the rest of the exclusion zone is still Soviet. The image of Lenin, whether three-dimensional or painted, is ubiquitous
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Riverside cafe, Pripyat, October 2016 The cafe on the banks of the Pripyat river was one of the many amenities available to residents. The city was considered one of the finest places to live in the former Soviet Union
see more here
and the Guardian article here
[H3] Rate this:
Architecture Photography, Uncategorized, Urbex Chernobyl, Chernobyl nuclear disaster Art and design books Ukraine Urban exploration Nuclear power Art, David McMillan, Nuclear disater, Pripyat, The Guardian, Urbex, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] Beauty In Decay

3 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on March 7, 2019

I have changed the title of this piece from that used in the Guardian because many people see beauty in decay, see the many Urbex projects that revel in decay.
This set of pictures takes the idea of beauty in decay to a whole new level. These images are so impressive not just because of the decay but because of the effort that has been taken to dress each room and produce images of extreme poignancy.
Melbourne artist Rone transforms a deserted Art Deco mansion called Burnham Beeches in his most ambitious takeover yet. The installation runs from 6 March – 22 April. Left vacant for more than 20 years, this sprawling 1930s mansion sat neglected, in a state of ruin. It saw a condemned family home in suburban Alphington transformed into a gallery and installation piece before it was demolished.
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
see more from Rone here
Finding the friction point between beauty and decay is a thread that runs through much of Rone’s work. As a street artist best known for his haunting, stylised images of women’s faces, he understands better than most that beauty can be fleeting. Seeing his artworks gradually worn away by natural and human elements has taught him to appreciate the unexpected beauty of an image as it begins to blend back into its more prosaic surroundings.

[H3] Rate this:
Uncategorized, Urbex

[H2] You could do this…no really you could

3 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on February 26, 2019

I found this article on the BBC website about Richard Bevan who having moved to small town USA decided to photograph as many of the residents as he could.  As Phil Coomes says in his article
“Photographers love to travel but sometimes it pays to look at what is close at hand and document the community you live in. Richard Beaven has done just that, turning his lens on the residents of Ghent, about 120 miles north of New York.
Beaven has worked on the project for a year or so and in that time he has made 275 portraits, about 5% of the population of Ghent.
“The catalyst for the project was the town’s bicentennial in 2018 and creating an archive for it,” says Beaven.
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
News of the project spread through the town, with one shoot leading to another and only a handful declining the opportunity to take part.”
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
It reminded me of Martin Stott, a long time friend from the old days of the darkroom. He has recently rediscovered his photography by embracing digital and has been on a few courses with me. I always preach that finding a project is the way to make your photography important to you and to others. Martin lives on Divinity Road in East Oxford and has started a project to photograph everyone who lives on his street. If you know Divinity Road you will know this is no mean feat.
Back to Richard…Each portrait is accompanied by the subject’s name and the amount of time they had spent living or working in Ghent at the time of being photographed….”The portraits are of individuals. While I take care to select appropriate environments, I provide minimal direction in terms of clothing or what the subjects happen to be carrying at the time.”
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
So what is stopping you from doing this? You live somewhere, a street, a village, a block of flats, where you live is a place you can build a project around. For Richard the motivation was “The catalyst for the project was the town’s bicentennial in 2018 and creating an archive for it,”
But for Martin it was as much about meeting the neighbours he didn’t know and to build a picture of where he lives,
“My aim with this project is to photograph everybody who lives on Divinity Road, Oxford, over about a two year period. I started in July 2018. This may be as individuals, couples, families or groups of people living in the same house such as students. Divinity Road is a long street and a diverse one. As a resident for over 31 years I still only know a relatively small proportion of the people who live on it. As well as making a photographic record this helps me to get to know more of my neighbours.”
Sources:
BBC
Richard Bevan
Martin Stott

[H3] Rate this:
documentary photography, Photography Projects, Portrait Photography, Uncategorized BBC, Martin Stott, Phil Coomes, Richard Bevan, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, www.photographersworkshop.co.uk

[H2] Don McCullin Retrospective

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on February 6, 2019

There is a retrospective of Don McCullin’s work at the Tate starting tomorrow. It will be one of the great exhibitions this year and I would recommend you find the time to go. It will be tough, his war photography is uncompromising but he is a man of genuine compassion. As he said in a recent Guardian article while in conversation with Giles Duley…DMcC It’s about the emotional – we’re not just photographers, we gather emotionally. A camera doesn’t mean a toss to me. I just put it in front of me and transfer the image through that piece of glass and that film. But I’m using my emotion more than I’m using that piece of equipment. And at the same time there’s a thousand thoughts going through my brain saying: “Is it right do this?” I’ve seen men executed and I haven’t photographed it and I thought my God, if my editor knew that I hadn’t pressed this button he’d give me the boot. But it’s my moral duty not to take that picture because the man who’s about to be killed hasn’t given me his permission…….When a man is standing in front of you about to die, you can’t help him. He’s crying and he’s looking at you. He’s looking up to where he thinks God is and he’s scrambling around like mad to this last chance to keep alive and you’re standing there, you can’t help him. You are ashamed of humanity.
It is a dangerous mistress, and it’s one of those love affairs that never ends, you know. It just never ends. You’re totally captive to photography once it gets a grip of you.
There is a review of the exhibition here
[IMG: x78]
[IMG: Screenshot 2019-02-06 at 15.05.57]
[IMG: Catholic Youths Attacking British Soldiers in the Bogside of Londonderry 1971, printed 2013 by Don McCullin born 1935]
[IMG: Cyprus 1964, printed 2013 by Don McCullin born 1935]
[IMG: Shell-shocked US Marine, The Battle of Hue 1968, printed 2013 by Don McCullin born 1935]
All images Don McCullin as seen at Tate Retrospective
[H3] Rate this:
Uncategorized Don McCullin, Giles Duley, Tate Britain, The Guardian

[H2] The extraordinary story behind the iconic image of Che Guevara and the photographer who took it

Leave a comment
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on January 28, 2019

I have recently returned from Cuba where on every street, or hat, t-shirt, flag or poster there was one image. That image was of Che, taken by Alberto Korda a Cuban photographer. This image is perhaps the most reproduced photographic image in the world, I can’t think of another that is so ubiquitous.
The story of this image, when and why it was taken and it’s passage to iconic status is fascinating.
[IMG: che-guevara]
The moment
The Che image was made on March 5, 1960, at a funeral service for the 136 people who were killed when a French ship carrying arms to Havana was sabotaged and blown-up. Crowds filled the street of Havana, and Korda was there working for the newspaper Revolución. As Castro’s funeral oration droned on Korda approached the speakers’ platform. With Castro were other leaders of the revolution, the French writers Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir, and, of course, Che. When Korda got close to the platform, he noticed that Che — who had been standing in the back of the stage — had moved forward.
“I remember his staring over the crowd on 23rd street,” Korda says. Staring up, he was struck by Guevara’s expression which he says showed, “absolute implacability,” as well as anger and pain. …..
The “viral” effect
This all changed one day in early 1967 when an Italian publisher, Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, came with a letter from the Cuban government asking Korda to help find him a portrait of Che. Korda pointed to the print hanging on the studio wall, saying that it was the best one he had ever taken of Che…..
[IMG: screenshot 2019-01-28 at 13.12.07]
The tipping point
But the tipping point for the image was in October 1967, when Che was executed in Bolivia. Demonstrations broke out around the world condemning the murder and Feltrinelli printed up thousands of Che posters and sold them to protesters. The photo was now called Guerrillero Heroico, and it next surfaced in 1968 on New York City subway billboards as a painting by artist Paul Davis advertising the February issue of the Evergreen Review magazine.
Read the full article here
[IMG: img_4021]
[H3] Rate this:
Photo-journalism, Portrait Photography, Street Photography, Uncategorized Alberto Korda, Che Guevara, Imaging Resource

[H2] Architectural Photography Awards 2018 shortlist

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on October 3, 2018

The BBC has a gallery of images
[IMG: _103675304_3d46d2d1-1b56-4935-ae0e-d86585256e2a]
[IMG: _103674437_63d65915-c543-4d7e-8ce8-f00aa740933c]
[IMG: _103674436_5aeb00d7-4c30-4227-8b20-b178b991aee9]
[IMG: _103674430_593977d1-583e-4d07-ab5f-4cc634c88a4b]
[IMG: _103671641_biu_91]
from this year’s award and they are worth 5 minutes of your time

[H3] Rate this:
Architecture Photography, Uncategorized

[H2] How to choose a camera

Leave a comment
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on September 12, 2018

I was sent this rather excellent article by Jen Reviews about the different types of cameras and how to understand why they are different.
[H1] How to Choose a Camera – A Comprehensive Guide
I have published similar articles in the past but this one is really comprehensive and his you are thinking about buying a camera this will help you choose the type. We then have on this blog posts about the best cameras in any particular range, just go to the Categories Drop down menu on the right and scroll down to new cameras. I am sure you will find this article and the earlier posts useful
By the way while you are thinking about a new camera you should also consider one of our excellent courses, we have a new series starting this autumn, here are the dates
Entry Level DSLR Cameras
[IMG: images]

[IMG: imgres-1]
[H3] Rate this:
New Camera, Uncategorized Bridge, Compact, csc, DSLR, Jens Review, Mirrorless, New Camera

[H2] New Course Dates for the autumn

Leave a comment
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on August 8, 2018

[IMG: ©Keith Barnes Photography]
Catching up on a good book, Dorchester Cathedral
I know, we are still in the heat of summer, so thinking of autumn and grey short days is not something we want to countenance, but it is coming and so is our new schedule of courses. If you haven’t yet, you should make sure you have signed up on our GDPR compliant mailing list:
If you sign up here you will receive the new dates when they are available. We will only ever use your information to tell you about our courses. We will never share or sell your information to anyone else. You can un-subscribe at any time
Sign up here
Here are the new dates
Understanding Your DSLR Camera Evening Class £85
4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start2.10.18
Understanding Your DSLR Camera Saturday Morning Class £85
4 sessions 10 – 12 start 3.11.18
1 Day Understanding Your DSLR Camera £95
Sundays 10 – 4 30.9.18 28.10.18 25.11.18
Beginners Photography £85 4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 1.10.18
Intermediate Photography £97
6 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 25.10.18
Understanding Lightroom £85
4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 3.10.18
Introduction to Photoshop and PS Elements £97
5 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start Monday 29.10.18
Composition In Photography – Seeing Pictures £85
4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 30.10.18
Portrait Photography £85
4 sessions Please email to register your interest
Travel Photography £85
Start date 3 sessions 6.30-8.30 start 4.10.18
Flash Photography £85
4 sessions Please email and register your interest
[H3] Rate this:
Uncategorized

[H2] EMPTY DAYS PADDY SUMMERFIELD

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 10, 2018

Paddy was the first person to walk through the doors of the original Photographers Workshop in June 1982. He has been my friend and teacher ever since. I learned from Paddy that a photograph doesn’t have to be about a thing, it can be just about a feeling.
His latest book ‘Empty Days’ is a testament to the idea that art is about feeling and not necessarily decorative. Like Nan Golding or Richard Billingham Paddy does not shy away from showing “the tragic lives he e

[H1] Oxford School of Photography
insights into photography

[H2] More Urbex from Chernobyl

2 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 10, 2019

There is no doubt that the faded, dissembled life of a town returned to nature is attractive. There are so many sites that explore  ‘urbex’ photography and it is no wonder that Pripyat offers such poignancy.
Every student of photography would benefit from understanding the way to introduce atmosphere into their pictures and looking at David’s pictures would be a good place to start
The Guardian says:
The Chernobyl disaster in 1986 forced the evacuation of nearby Pripyat, home to 45,000 people. David McMillan has journeyed there 21 times since to record abandoned homes and buildings as they are reclaimed by nature
All photographs: David McMillan
There are many more of David’s beautiful pictures on his site here
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Railway station, village of Janov, October 1996 Janov was the nearest village to the reactor. It was considered so contaminated the entire village was razed, but the railway station remains, as do the trains that were there at the time of the accident
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Portrait of Lenin, Kindergarten, October 1997 The character of Pripyat and the rest of the exclusion zone is still Soviet. The image of Lenin, whether three-dimensional or painted, is ubiquitous
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Riverside cafe, Pripyat, October 2016 The cafe on the banks of the Pripyat river was one of the many amenities available to residents. The city was considered one of the finest places to live in the former Soviet Union
see more here
and the Guardian article here
[H3] Rate this:
Architecture Photography, Uncategorized, Urbex Chernobyl, Chernobyl nuclear disaster Art and design books Ukraine Urban exploration Nuclear power Art, David McMillan, Nuclear disater, Pripyat, The Guardian, Urbex, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] Beauty In Decay

3 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on March 7, 2019

I have changed the title of this piece from that used in the Guardian because many people see beauty in decay, see the many Urbex projects that revel in decay.
This set of pictures takes the idea of beauty in decay to a whole new level. These images are so impressive not just because of the decay but because of the effort that has been taken to dress each room and produce images of extreme poignancy.
Melbourne artist Rone transforms a deserted Art Deco mansion called Burnham Beeches in his most ambitious takeover yet. The installation runs from 6 March – 22 April. Left vacant for more than 20 years, this sprawling 1930s mansion sat neglected, in a state of ruin. It saw a condemned family home in suburban Alphington transformed into a gallery and installation piece before it was demolished.
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
see more from Rone here
Finding the friction point between beauty and decay is a thread that runs through much of Rone’s work. As a street artist best known for his haunting, stylised images of women’s faces, he understands better than most that beauty can be fleeting. Seeing his artworks gradually worn away by natural and human elements has taught him to appreciate the unexpected beauty of an image as it begins to blend back into its more prosaic surroundings.

[H3] Rate this:
Uncategorized, Urbex

[H2] You could do this…no really you could

3 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on February 26, 2019

I found this article on the BBC website about Richard Bevan who having moved to small town USA decided to photograph as many of the residents as he could.  As Phil Coomes says in his article
“Photographers love to travel but sometimes it pays to look at what is close at hand and document the community you live in. Richard Beaven has done just that, turning his lens on the residents of Ghent, about 120 miles north of New York.
Beaven has worked on the project for a year or so and in that time he has made 275 portraits, about 5% of the population of Ghent.
“The catalyst for the project was the town’s bicentennial in 2018 and creating an archive for it,” says Beaven.
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
News of the project spread through the town, with one shoot leading to another and only a handful declining the opportunity to take part.”
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
It reminded me of Martin Stott, a long time friend from the old days of the darkroom. He has recently rediscovered his photography by embracing digital and has been on a few courses with me. I always preach that finding a project is the way to make your photography important to you and to others. Martin lives on Divinity Road in East Oxford and has started a project to photograph everyone who lives on his street. If you know Divinity Road you will know this is no mean feat.
Back to Richard…Each portrait is accompanied by the subject’s name and the amount of time they had spent living or working in Ghent at the time of being photographed….”The portraits are of individuals. While I take care to select appropriate environments, I provide minimal direction in terms of clothing or what the subjects happen to be carrying at the time.”
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
So what is stopping you from doing this? You live somewhere, a street, a village, a block of flats, where you live is a place you can build a project around. For Richard the motivation was “The catalyst for the project was the town’s bicentennial in 2018 and creating an archive for it,”
But for Martin it was as much about meeting the neighbours he didn’t know and to build a picture of where he lives,
“My aim with this project is to photograph everybody who lives on Divinity Road, Oxford, over about a two year period. I started in July 2018. This may be as individuals, couples, families or groups of people living in the same house such as students. Divinity Road is a long street and a diverse one. As a resident for over 31 years I still only know a relatively small proportion of the people who live on it. As well as making a photographic record this helps me to get to know more of my neighbours.”
Sources:
BBC
Richard Bevan
Martin Stott

[H3] Rate this:
documentary photography, Photography Projects, Portrait Photography, Uncategorized BBC, Martin Stott, Phil Coomes, Richard Bevan, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, www.photographersworkshop.co.uk

[H2] Don McCullin Retrospective

Leave a comment
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on February 6, 2019

There is a retrospective of Don McCullin’s work at the Tate starting tomorrow. It will be one of the great exhibitions this year and I would recommend you find the time to go. It will be tough, his war photography is uncompromising but he is a man of genuine compassion. As he said in a recent Guardian article while in conversation with Giles Duley…DMcC It’s about the emotional – we’re not just photographers, we gather emotionally. A camera doesn’t mean a toss to me. I just put it in front of me and transfer the image through that piece of glass and that film. But I’m using my emotion more than I’m using that piece of equipment. And at the same time there’s a thousand thoughts going through my brain saying: “Is it right do this?” I’ve seen men executed and I haven’t photographed it and I thought my God, if my editor knew that I hadn’t pressed this button he’d give me the boot. But it’s my moral duty not to take that picture because the man who’s about to be killed hasn’t given me his permission…….When a man is standing in front of you about to die, you can’t help him. He’s crying and he’s looking at you. He’s looking up to where he thinks God is and he’s scrambling around like mad to this last chance to keep alive and you’re standing there, you can’t help him. You are ashamed of humanity.
It is a dangerous mistress, and it’s one of those love affairs that never ends, you know. It just never ends. You’re totally captive to photography once it gets a grip of you.
There is a review of the exhibition here
[IMG: x78]
[IMG: Screenshot 2019-02-06 at 15.05.57]
[IMG: Catholic Youths Attacking British Soldiers in the Bogside of Londonderry 1971, printed 2013 by Don McCullin born 1935]
[IMG: Cyprus 1964, printed 2013 by Don McCullin born 1935]
[IMG: Shell-shocked US Marine, The Battle of Hue 1968, printed 2013 by Don McCullin born 1935]
All images Don McCullin as seen at Tate Retrospective
[H3] Rate this:
Uncategorized Don McCullin, Giles Duley, Tate Britain, The Guardian

[H2] The extraordinary story behind the iconic image of Che Guevara and the photographer who took it

Leave a comment
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on January 28, 2019

I have recently returned from Cuba where on every street, or hat, t-shirt, flag or poster there was one image. That image was of Che, taken by Alberto Korda a Cuban photographer. This image is perhaps the most reproduced photographic image in the world, I can’t think of another that is so ubiquitous.
The story of this image, when and why it was taken and it’s passage to iconic status is fascinating.
[IMG: che-guevara]
The moment
The Che image was made on March 5, 1960, at a funeral service for the 136 people who were killed when a French ship carrying arms to Havana was sabotaged and blown-up. Crowds filled the street of Havana, and Korda was there working for the newspaper Revolución. As Castro’s funeral oration droned on Korda approached the speakers’ platform. With Castro were other leaders of the revolution, the French writers Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir, and, of course, Che. When Korda got close to the platform, he noticed that Che — who had been standing in the back of the stage — had moved forward.
“I remember his staring over the crowd on 23rd street,” Korda says. Staring up, he was struck by Guevara’s expression which he says showed, “absolute implacability,” as well as anger and pain. …..
The “viral” effect
This all changed one day in early 1967 when an Italian publisher, Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, came with a letter from the Cuban government asking Korda to help find him a portrait of Che. Korda pointed to the print hanging on the studio wall, saying that it was the best one he had ever taken of Che…..
[IMG: screenshot 2019-01-28 at 13.12.07]
The tipping point
But the tipping point for the image was in October 1967, when Che was executed in Bolivia. Demonstrations broke out around the world condemning the murder and Feltrinelli printed up thousands of Che posters and sold them to protesters. The photo was now called Guerrillero Heroico, and it next surfaced in 1968 on New York City subway billboards as a painting by artist Paul Davis advertising the February issue of the Evergreen Review magazine.
Read the full article here
[IMG: img_4021]
[H3] Rate this:
Photo-journalism, Portrait Photography, Street Photography, Uncategorized Alberto Korda, Che Guevara, Imaging Resource

[H2] Architectural Photography Awards 2018 shortlist

Leave a comment
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on October 3, 2018

The BBC has a gallery of images
[IMG: _103675304_3d46d2d1-1b56-4935-ae0e-d86585256e2a]
[IMG: _103674437_63d65915-c543-4d7e-8ce8-f00aa740933c]
[IMG: _103674436_5aeb00d7-4c30-4227-8b20-b178b991aee9]
[IMG: _103674430_593977d1-583e-4d07-ab5f-4cc634c88a4b]
[IMG: _103671641_biu_91]
from this year’s award and they are worth 5 minutes of your time

[H3] Rate this:
Architecture Photography, Uncategorized

[H2] How to choose a camera

Leave a comment
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on September 12, 2018

I was sent this rather excellent article by Jen Reviews about the different types of cameras and how to understand why they are different.
[H1] How to Choose a Camera – A Comprehensive Guide
I have published similar articles in the past but this one is really comprehensive and his you are thinking about buying a camera this will help you choose the type. We then have on this blog posts about the best cameras in any particular range, just go to the Categories Drop down menu on the right and scroll down to new cameras. I am sure you will find this article and the earlier posts useful
By the way while you are thinking about a new camera you should also consider one of our excellent courses, we have a new series starting this autumn, here are the dates
Entry Level DSLR Cameras
[IMG: images]

[IMG: imgres-1]
[H3] Rate this:
New Camera, Uncategorized Bridge, Compact, csc, DSLR, Jens Review, Mirrorless, New Camera

[H2] New Course Dates for the autumn

Leave a comment
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on August 8, 2018

[IMG: ©Keith Barnes Photography]
Catching up on a good book, Dorchester Cathedral
I know, we are still in the heat of summer, so thinking of autumn and grey short days is not something we want to countenance, but it is coming and so is our new schedule of courses. If you haven’t yet, you should make sure you have signed up on our GDPR compliant mailing list:
If you sign up here you will receive the new dates when they are available. We will only ever use your information to tell you about our courses. We will never share or sell your information to anyone else. You can un-subscribe at any time
Sign up here
Here are the new dates
Understanding Your DSLR Camera Evening Class £85
4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start2.10.18
Understanding Your DSLR Camera Saturday Morning Class £85
4 sessions 10 – 12 start 3.11.18
1 Day Understanding Your DSLR Camera £95
Sundays 10 – 4 30.9.18 28.10.18 25.11.18
Beginners Photography £85 4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 1.10.18
Intermediate Photography £97
6 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 25.10.18
Understanding Lightroom £85
4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 3.10.18
Introduction to Photoshop and PS Elements £97
5 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start Monday 29.10.18
Composition In Photography – Seeing Pictures £85
4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 30.10.18
Portrait Photography £85
4 sessions Please email to register your interest
Travel Photography £85
Start date 3 sessions 6.30-8.30 start 4.10.18
Flash Photography £85
4 sessions Please email and register your interest
[H3] Rate this:
Uncategorized

[H2] EMPTY DAYS PADDY SUMMERFIELD

Leave a comment
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 10, 2018

Paddy was the first person to walk through the doors of the original Photographers Workshop in June 1982. He has been my friend and teacher ever since. I learned from Paddy that a photograph doesn’t have to be about a thing, it can be just about a feeling.
His latest book ‘Empty Days’ is a testament to the idea that art is about feeling and not necessarily decorative. Like Nan Golding or Richard Billingham Paddy does not shy away from showing “the tragic lives

[H1] Oxford School of Photography
insights into photography

[H2] Category Archives: Uncategorized

[H2] More Urbex from Chernobyl

2 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 10, 2019

There is no doubt that the faded, dissembled life of a town returned to nature is attractive. There are so many sites that explore  ‘urbex’ photography and it is no wonder that Pripyat offers such poignancy.
Every student of photography would benefit from understanding the way to introduce atmosphere into their pictures and looking at David’s pictures would be a good place to start
The Guardian says:
The Chernobyl disaster in 1986 forced the evacuation of nearby Pripyat, home to 45,000 people. David McMillan has journeyed there 21 times since to record abandoned homes and buildings as they are reclaimed by nature
All photographs: David McMillan
There are many more of David’s beautiful pictures on his site here
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Railway station, village of Janov, October 1996 Janov was the nearest village to the reactor. It was considered so contaminated the entire village was razed, but the railway station remains, as do the trains that were there at the time of the accident
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Portrait of Lenin, Kindergarten, October 1997 The character of Pripyat and the rest of the exclusion zone is still Soviet. The image of Lenin, whether three-dimensional or painted, is ubiquitous
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Riverside cafe, Pripyat, October 2016 The cafe on the banks of the Pripyat river was one of the many amenities available to residents. The city was considered one of the finest places to live in the former Soviet Union
see more here
and the Guardian article here
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Architecture Photography, Uncategorized, Urbex Chernobyl, Chernobyl nuclear disaster Art and design books Ukraine Urban exploration Nuclear power Art, David McMillan, Nuclear disater, Pripyat, The Guardian, Urbex, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] Beauty In Decay

3 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on March 7, 2019

I have changed the title of this piece from that used in the Guardian because many people see beauty in decay, see the many Urbex projects that revel in decay.
This set of pictures takes the idea of beauty in decay to a whole new level. These images are so impressive not just because of the decay but because of the effort that has been taken to dress each room and produce images of extreme poignancy.
Melbourne artist Rone transforms a deserted Art Deco mansion called Burnham Beeches in his most ambitious takeover yet. The installation runs from 6 March – 22 April. Left vacant for more than 20 years, this sprawling 1930s mansion sat neglected, in a state of ruin. It saw a condemned family home in suburban Alphington transformed into a gallery and installation piece before it was demolished.
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
[IMG: https://www.r-o-n-e.com/]
©RONE
see more from Rone here
Finding the friction point between beauty and decay is a thread that runs through much of Rone’s work. As a street artist best known for his haunting, stylised images of women’s faces, he understands better than most that beauty can be fleeting. Seeing his artworks gradually worn away by natural and human elements has taught him to appreciate the unexpected beauty of an image as it begins to blend back into its more prosaic surroundings.

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Uncategorized, Urbex

[H2] You could do this…no really you could

3 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on February 26, 2019

I found this article on the BBC website about Richard Bevan who having moved to small town USA decided to photograph as many of the residents as he could.  As Phil Coomes says in his article
“Photographers love to travel but sometimes it pays to look at what is close at hand and document the community you live in. Richard Beaven has done just that, turning his lens on the residents of Ghent, about 120 miles north of New York.
Beaven has worked on the project for a year or so and in that time he has made 275 portraits, about 5% of the population of Ghent.
“The catalyst for the project was the town’s bicentennial in 2018 and creating an archive for it,” says Beaven.
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
News of the project spread through the town, with one shoot leading to another and only a handful declining the opportunity to take part.”
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
It reminded me of Martin Stott, a long time friend from the old days of the darkroom. He has recently rediscovered his photography by embracing digital and has been on a few courses with me. I always preach that finding a project is the way to make your photography important to you and to others. Martin lives on Divinity Road in East Oxford and has started a project to photograph everyone who lives on his street. If you know Divinity Road you will know this is no mean feat.
Back to Richard…Each portrait is accompanied by the subject’s name and the amount of time they had spent living or working in Ghent at the time of being photographed….”The portraits are of individuals. While I take care to select appropriate environments, I provide minimal direction in terms of clothing or what the subjects happen to be carrying at the time.”
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
So what is stopping you from doing this? You live somewhere, a street, a village, a block of flats, where you live is a place you can build a project around. For Richard the motivation was “The catalyst for the project was the town’s bicentennial in 2018 and creating an archive for it,”
But for Martin it was as much about meeting the neighbours he didn’t know and to build a picture of where he lives,
“My aim with this project is to photograph everybody who lives on Divinity Road, Oxford, over about a two year period. I started in July 2018. This may be as individuals, couples, families or groups of people living in the same house such as students. Divinity Road is a long street and a diverse one. As a resident for over 31 years I still only know a relatively small proportion of the people who live on it. As well as making a photographic record this helps me to get to know more of my neighbours.”
Sources:
BBC
Richard Bevan
Martin Stott

[H3] Rate this:
documentary photography, Photography Projects, Portrait Photography, Uncategorized BBC, Martin Stott, Phil Coomes, Richard Bevan, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, www.photographersworkshop.co.uk

[H2] Don McCullin Retrospective

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on February 6, 2019

There is a retrospective of Don McCullin’s work at the Tate starting tomorrow. It will be one of the great exhibitions this year and I would recommend you find the time to go. It will be tough, his war photography is uncompromising but he is a man of genuine compassion. As he said in a recent Guardian article while in conversation with Giles Duley…DMcC It’s about the emotional – we’re not just photographers, we gather emotionally. A camera doesn’t mean a toss to me. I just put it in front of me and transfer the image through that piece of glass and that film. But I’m using my emotion more than I’m using that piece of equipment. And at the same time there’s a thousand thoughts going through my brain saying: “Is it right do this?” I’ve seen men executed and I haven’t photographed it and I thought my God, if my editor knew that I hadn’t pressed this button he’d give me the boot. But it’s my moral duty not to take that picture because the man who’s about to be killed hasn’t given me his permission…….When a man is standing in front of you about to die, you can’t help him. He’s crying and he’s looking at you. He’s looking up to where he thinks God is and he’s scrambling around like mad to this last chance to keep alive and you’re standing there, you can’t help him. You are ashamed of humanity.
It is a dangerous mistress, and it’s one of those love affairs that never ends, you know. It just never ends. You’re totally captive to photography once it gets a grip of you.
There is a review of the exhibition here
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[IMG: Screenshot 2019-02-06 at 15.05.57]
[IMG: Catholic Youths Attacking British Soldiers in the Bogside of Londonderry 1971, printed 2013 by Don McCullin born 1935]
[IMG: Cyprus 1964, printed 2013 by Don McCullin born 1935]
[IMG: Shell-shocked US Marine, The Battle of Hue 1968, printed 2013 by Don McCullin born 1935]
All images Don McCullin as seen at Tate Retrospective
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Uncategorized Don McCullin, Giles Duley, Tate Britain, The Guardian

[H2] The extraordinary story behind the iconic image of Che Guevara and the photographer who took it

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on January 28, 2019

I have recently returned from Cuba where on every street, or hat, t-shirt, flag or poster there was one image. That image was of Che, taken by Alberto Korda a Cuban photographer. This image is perhaps the most reproduced photographic image in the world, I can’t think of another that is so ubiquitous.
The story of this image, when and why it was taken and it’s passage to iconic status is fascinating.
[IMG: che-guevara]
The moment
The Che image was made on March 5, 1960, at a funeral service for the 136 people who were killed when a French ship carrying arms to Havana was sabotaged and blown-up. Crowds filled the street of Havana, and Korda was there working for the newspaper Revolución. As Castro’s funeral oration droned on Korda approached the speakers’ platform. With Castro were other leaders of the revolution, the French writers Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir, and, of course, Che. When Korda got close to the platform, he noticed that Che — who had been standing in the back of the stage — had moved forward.
“I remember his staring over the crowd on 23rd street,” Korda says. Staring up, he was struck by Guevara’s expression which he says showed, “absolute implacability,” as well as anger and pain. …..
The “viral” effect
This all changed one day in early 1967 when an Italian publisher, Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, came with a letter from the Cuban government asking Korda to help find him a portrait of Che. Korda pointed to the print hanging on the studio wall, saying that it was the best one he had ever taken of Che…..
[IMG: screenshot 2019-01-28 at 13.12.07]
The tipping point
But the tipping point for the image was in October 1967, when Che was executed in Bolivia. Demonstrations broke out around the world condemning the murder and Feltrinelli printed up thousands of Che posters and sold them to protesters. The photo was now called Guerrillero Heroico, and it next surfaced in 1968 on New York City subway billboards as a painting by artist Paul Davis advertising the February issue of the Evergreen Review magazine.
Read the full article here
[IMG: img_4021]
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Photo-journalism, Portrait Photography, Street Photography, Uncategorized Alberto Korda, Che Guevara, Imaging Resource

[H2] Architectural Photography Awards 2018 shortlist

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on October 3, 2018

The BBC has a gallery of images
[IMG: _103675304_3d46d2d1-1b56-4935-ae0e-d86585256e2a]
[IMG: _103674437_63d65915-c543-4d7e-8ce8-f00aa740933c]
[IMG: _103674436_5aeb00d7-4c30-4227-8b20-b178b991aee9]
[IMG: _103674430_593977d1-583e-4d07-ab5f-4cc634c88a4b]
[IMG: _103671641_biu_91]
from this year’s award and they are worth 5 minutes of your time

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Architecture Photography, Uncategorized

[H2] How to choose a camera

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on September 12, 2018

I was sent this rather excellent article by Jen Reviews about the different types of cameras and how to understand why they are different.
[H1] How to Choose a Camera – A Comprehensive Guide
I have published similar articles in the past but this one is really comprehensive and his you are thinking about buying a camera this will help you choose the type. We then have on this blog posts about the best cameras in any particular range, just go to the Categories Drop down menu on the right and scroll down to new cameras. I am sure you will find this article and the earlier posts useful
By the way while you are thinking about a new camera you should also consider one of our excellent courses, we have a new series starting this autumn, here are the dates
Entry Level DSLR Cameras
[IMG: images]

[IMG: imgres-1]
[H3] Rate this:
New Camera, Uncategorized Bridge, Compact, csc, DSLR, Jens Review, Mirrorless, New Camera

[H2] New Course Dates for the autumn

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on August 8, 2018

[IMG: ©Keith Barnes Photography]
Catching up on a good book, Dorchester Cathedral
I know, we are still in the heat of summer, so thinking of autumn and grey short days is not something we want to countenance, but it is coming and so is our new schedule of courses. If you haven’t yet, you should make sure you have signed up on our GDPR compliant mailing list:
If you sign up here you will receive the new dates when they are available. We will only ever use your information to tell you about our courses. We will never share or sell your information to anyone else. You can un-subscribe at any time
Sign up here
Here are the new dates
Understanding Your DSLR Camera Evening Class £85
4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start2.10.18
Understanding Your DSLR Camera Saturday Morning Class £85
4 sessions 10 – 12 start 3.11.18
1 Day Understanding Your DSLR Camera £95
Sundays 10 – 4 30.9.18 28.10.18 25.11.18
Beginners Photography £85 4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 1.10.18
Intermediate Photography £97
6 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 25.10.18
Understanding Lightroom £85
4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 3.10.18
Introduction to Photoshop and PS Elements £97
5 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start Monday 29.10.18
Composition In Photography – Seeing Pictures £85
4 sessions 6.30 – 8.30 start 30.10.18
Portrait Photography £85
4 sessions Please email to register your interest
Travel Photography £85
Start date 3 sessions 6.30-8.30 start 4.10.18
Flash Photography £85
4 sessions Please email and register your interest
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Uncategorized

[H2] EMPTY DAYS PADDY SUMMERFIELD

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 10, 2018

Paddy was the first person to walk through the doors of the original Photographers Workshop in June 1982. He has been my friend and teacher ever since. I learned from Paddy that a photograph doesn’t have to be about a thing, it can be just about a feeling.
His latest book ‘Empty Days’ is a testament to the idea that art is about feeling and not necessarily decorative. Like Nan Golding or Richard Billingham Paddy does not

[H1] Oxford School of Photography
insights into photography

[H2] Tag Archives: www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] More Urbex from Chernobyl

2 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 10, 2019

There is no doubt that the faded, dissembled life of a town returned to nature is attractive. There are so many sites that explore  ‘urbex’ photography and it is no wonder that Pripyat offers such poignancy.
Every student of photography would benefit from understanding the way to introduce atmosphere into their pictures and looking at David’s pictures would be a good place to start
The Guardian says:
The Chernobyl disaster in 1986 forced the evacuation of nearby Pripyat, home to 45,000 people. David McMillan has journeyed there 21 times since to record abandoned homes and buildings as they are reclaimed by nature
All photographs: David McMillan
There are many more of David’s beautiful pictures on his site here
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Railway station, village of Janov, October 1996 Janov was the nearest village to the reactor. It was considered so contaminated the entire village was razed, but the railway station remains, as do the trains that were there at the time of the accident
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Portrait of Lenin, Kindergarten, October 1997 The character of Pripyat and the rest of the exclusion zone is still Soviet. The image of Lenin, whether three-dimensional or painted, is ubiquitous
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Riverside cafe, Pripyat, October 2016 The cafe on the banks of the Pripyat river was one of the many amenities available to residents. The city was considered one of the finest places to live in the former Soviet Union
see more here
and the Guardian article here
[H3] Rate this:
Architecture Photography, Uncategorized, Urbex Chernobyl, Chernobyl nuclear disaster Art and design books Ukraine Urban exploration Nuclear power Art, David McMillan, Nuclear disater, Pripyat, The Guardian, Urbex, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] You could do this…no really you could

3 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on February 26, 2019

I found this article on the BBC website about Richard Bevan who having moved to small town USA decided to photograph as many of the residents as he could.  As Phil Coomes says in his article
“Photographers love to travel but sometimes it pays to look at what is close at hand and document the community you live in. Richard Beaven has done just that, turning his lens on the residents of Ghent, about 120 miles north of New York.
Beaven has worked on the project for a year or so and in that time he has made 275 portraits, about 5% of the population of Ghent.
“The catalyst for the project was the town’s bicentennial in 2018 and creating an archive for it,” says Beaven.
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
News of the project spread through the town, with one shoot leading to another and only a handful declining the opportunity to take part.”
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
It reminded me of Martin Stott, a long time friend from the old days of the darkroom. He has recently rediscovered his photography by embracing digital and has been on a few courses with me. I always preach that finding a project is the way to make your photography important to you and to others. Martin lives on Divinity Road in East Oxford and has started a project to photograph everyone who lives on his street. If you know Divinity Road you will know this is no mean feat.
Back to Richard…Each portrait is accompanied by the subject’s name and the amount of time they had spent living or working in Ghent at the time of being photographed….”The portraits are of individuals. While I take care to select appropriate environments, I provide minimal direction in terms of clothing or what the subjects happen to be carrying at the time.”
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
[IMG: http://richardbeaven.com/]
©Richard Bevan
So what is stopping you from doing this? You live somewhere, a street, a village, a block of flats, where you live is a place you can build a project around. For Richard the motivation was “The catalyst for the project was the town’s bicentennial in 2018 and creating an archive for it,”
But for Martin it was as much about meeting the neighbours he didn’t know and to build a picture of where he lives,
“My aim with this project is to photograph everybody who lives on Divinity Road, Oxford, over about a two year period. I started in July 2018. This may be as individuals, couples, families or groups of people living in the same house such as students. Divinity Road is a long street and a diverse one. As a resident for over 31 years I still only know a relatively small proportion of the people who live on it. As well as making a photographic record this helps me to get to know more of my neighbours.”
Sources:
BBC
Richard Bevan
Martin Stott

[H3] Rate this:
documentary photography, Photography Projects, Portrait Photography, Uncategorized BBC, Martin Stott, Phil Coomes, Richard Bevan, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, www.photographersworkshop.co.uk

[H2] EMPTY DAYS PADDY SUMMERFIELD

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 10, 2018

Paddy was the first person to walk through the doors of the original Photographers Workshop in June 1982. He has been my friend and teacher ever since. I learned from Paddy that a photograph doesn’t have to be about a thing, it can be just about a feeling.
His latest book ‘Empty Days’ is a testament to the idea that art is about feeling and not necessarily decorative. Like Nan Golding or Richard Billingham Paddy does not shy away from showing “the tragic lives he encountered, lives that touched him because they reflected his own struggles, he made images that would tell their stories, his own story.”
[IMG: Paddy Summerfield Empty Days]
Paddy Summerfield Empty Days
From his publisher:
… a sustained enquiry and search for understanding and meaning in a sometimes-bleak interior landscape … the great success of ‘Empty Days’ is in drawing the viewer fully into Paddy’s world… and as in life, it is both rewarding and on occasions disturbing.
– John Goto in Photomonitor, March 2018
…………….
“I would say Empty Days is my road trip, through the places I know – on foot.”
In run-down streets and shabby cafés Paddy Summerfield found his pictures for Empty Days. Among the tragic lives he encountered, lives that touched him because they reflected his own struggles, he made images that would tell their stories, his own story.
“This is the world I know, it could be anywhere, a place we have all seen before. I am sad, the world is sad. I don’t know if I take photographs to embrace sadness or or push it away.”
[IMG: Paddy Summerfield Empty Days]
Paddy Summerfield Empty Days
For Empty Days Summerfield has found emblems of the great themes: religion, sex, and death. Yet among the bleakness of various addictions, the ravages of drinking, of pills, he shows no spiritual comfort, no sexual joy, only the search for love in an unloving world, an unsatisfied spiritual longing. Along pavements and pathways, in claustrophobic rooms or open spaces, he finds the isolated figures, lost in thought or caught in a flash of emotion, to express the yearnings and pain that so many of us share. And where no people are shown, the human traces – an abandoned bicycle, a fallen doll, a tangle of nettles and barbed wire – continue themes of loss and melancholy. Yet however powerless or worn down the people and places shown, these pictures offer compassion, not judgement. A handful of troubling portraits, suggesting powerful and complex emotions, punctuate Empty Days, and intensify our sense of a narrative, albeit elusive and incomplete, as the photographs lead us through a fragile and fragmented world to an ending that suggests the possibility of hope.
[IMG: Paddy Summerfield Empty Days]
Paddy Summerfield Empty Days
Oxford-based, Paddy Summerfield, trained at Guildford School of Art in the Photography and the Film departments. His work has been shown in many galleries, including the ICA, The Barbican, The Serpentine Gallery, and The Photographers’ Gallery. His work is in the collections of the Arts Council and of the V&A, as well as in numerous private collections. Empty Days is his third book published by Dewi Lewis. His earlier book Mother and Father(2014) was widely acclaimed, and featured in several lists of the ‘Best Photobooks of The Year’.
You can buy this exquisite book here
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documentary photography, Masters of Photography, Street Photography, Uncategorized Dewi Lewis, Empty Days, Paddy Summerfield, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, www.photographersworkshop.co.uk

[H2] The Playful Street Photography of Pau Buscató

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on March 8, 2018

Petapixel is a site worth following, there are often interesting articles and great finds, like this photographer Pau Buscató
My last post was by another photographer who had the ability to see those things others miss and this post has more images that are clever and witty.
Pau Buscató is a street photographer who has a knack for capturing playful moments in which subjects and scenes come together in curious ways for brief moments of time. Many of his pictures are illusions that may cause you to stare a little longer to understand what it is you’re actually seeing.
[IMG: paubuscato-03]
You can find more of Buscató’s photos on his website, Instagram, and Flickr.
You can find more of Buscató’s photos on his website, Instagram, and Flickr.
[IMG: paubuscato-04]
Pau Buscató
“My approach to street photography is very intuitive and I’ve always liked to let my work grow freely, without me forcing any direction or themes,” Buscató writes. “It’s a very open process that demands full awareness and fresh eyes, to see the ordinary things of our everyday not just for what they are, but also for what they can become, when photographed.
“There is a strong sense of play in my street photography. It’s a game for me, and the city is my playground.”
[IMG: paubuscato-01]
Pau Buscató
[IMG: paubuscato-11]
Pau Buscató
[IMG: paubuscato-12]
Pau Buscató
https://www.buscato.net/colour/
You can find more of Buscató’s photos on his website, Instagram, and Flickr.

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Masters of Photography, Street Photography, Uncategorized Pau Buscató, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] Casablanca Not the Movie – in pictures

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on March 6, 2018

I saw this in the Guardian and had to share it with you. A few weeks ago I was taken to see Casablanca, the movie, by some friends. I am not sure I had ever seen it in it’s entirety before but it was enjoyable in a noirish sort of way. These pictures have nothing in common with the movie and all the better for it
There’s no sign of Humphrey Bogart or the stereotyped images found in travel guides in Yoriyas Yassine Alaoui Ismaili’s photographs of Casablanca. His images are full of energy and surprise, and show what the city is really like. Casablanca Not the Movie is at Riad Yima, Marrakech until 30 June 2018
[IMG: 2500]
Moulay Rachid, Casablanca, 2015
[IMG: 4999]
Sidi Othmane, Casablanca, 2017
[IMG: 2500 (1)]
Old Medina, Casablanca, 2017
[IMG: 2500 (2)]
Hay Hassani, Casablanca, 2015
[IMG: 2499]
Ain Diab beach, Casablanca, 2016
see more of Yoriyas Yassine Alaoui Ismaili’s photographs of Casablanca here
or better visit his website here
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Masters of Photography, Photo-journalism, Street Photography, Uncategorized The Guardian, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, Yoriyas Yassine Alaoui Ismaili

[H2] The 10 best bridge cameras in 2017

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on December 4, 2017

A bridge camera is usually shaped a bit like a DSLR, so bigger than a compact but has a fixed lens. These are often super zooms, so from wide angle to extreme telephoto, and this is their appeal. The often suffer from the compromise of having smaller sensors to allow for the extended zoom.
Tech Radar has a review of the best bridge cameras from 2017 here
[IMG: dgrkuDJzpLqkGwZDfLa8t5-650-80]
Canon PowerShot SX60 HS
Bridge cameras are a versatile and affordable alternative to DSLRs, offering the same kind of manual controls plus a huge zoom lens that covers everything from wide-angle to super-telephoto photography.
There are two important differences to be aware of, though. The first is that bridge cameras have much smaller sensors than DSLRs or mirrorless cameras, so most can’t match those models for picture quality
The second is that the lens is non-removable, so although it can handle a wide range of subjects you can’t swap to a macro lens for close-ups, for example, or a super-wide-angle lens, or a fast prime lens for low-light photography.
If you’re not quite sure what kind of camera you need, read our essential guide: What camera should I buy?
Bridge cameras do, however, give you a lot of camera for your money, and they’re a great stepping stone for photographers who want to move on from simple point-and-shoot cameras. There are also now a few models that have larger sensors and deliver better picture quality, and which come a lot closer to the performance of a DSLR.
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Canon, New Camera, Uncategorized Bridge cameras 2017, Techradar, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] The best travel compact cameras in 2017

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on December 3, 2017

So travel photography has a number of challenges and the first is the size of your gear. I tried to compromise and use smaller compact style cameras but never felt I could get the same as using my DSLR kit. So my compromise is to carry weighty cameras and lenses however not everybody is that stupid.
There are a range of compact cameras aimed at the travel market, for me Lumix and the TZ range has it in the bag but strangely not everyone agrees with me.
A travel compact should produce decent images, have good pixel count and probably most importantly a tremendous zoom range, sometimes called a super-zoom.
Tech Radar has done a sterling job reviewing what is the best travel camera in 2017
[IMG: wF9usnqNA7L7rmZLpccAtL-650-80]
TZ100 Travel Compact
When you’re going on vacation you’re going to naturally want to take a camera along with you too, and the one in your smartphone probably won’t cut. Why? While it might be fine for snapshots, the fixed wide-angle lens on most smartphones won’t allow you to zoom into your subject.
In fact zooming is the key, because you won’t know what you want to shoot until you get there and quite often the things you want to photograph will be off in the distance. Now is not the time to find out your zoom isn’t powerful enough. And don’t think that you can simply digitally zoom in on your smartphone’s screen – quality will drop off rapidly.
Check ou

[H1] Oxford School of Photography
insights into photography

[H2] Category Archives: Urbex

[H2] More Urbex from Chernobyl

2 Comments
Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 10, 2019

There is no doubt that the faded, dissembled life of a town returned to nature is attractive. There are so many sites that explore  ‘urbex’ photography and it is no wonder that Pripyat offers such poignancy.
Every student of photography would benefit from understanding the way to introduce atmosphere into their pictures and looking at David’s pictures would be a good place to start
The Guardian says:
The Chernobyl disaster in 1986 forced the evacuation of nearby Pripyat, home to 45,000 people. David McMillan has journeyed there 21 times since to record abandoned homes and buildings as they are reclaimed by nature
All photographs: David McMillan
There are many more of David’s beautiful pictures on his site here
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Railway station, village of Janov, October 1996 Janov was the nearest village to the reactor. It was considered so contaminated the entire village was razed, but the railway station remains, as do the trains that were there at the time of the accident
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Portrait of Lenin, Kindergarten, October 1997 The character of Pripyat and the rest of the exclusion zone is still Soviet. The image of Lenin, whether three-dimensional or painted, is ubiquitous
[IMG: ©David McMillan]
Riverside cafe, Pripyat, October 2016 The cafe on the banks of the Pripyat river was one of the many amenities available to residents. The city was considered one of the finest places to live in the former Soviet Union
see more here
and the Guardian article here
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Architecture Photography, Uncategorized, Urbex Chernobyl, Chernobyl nuclear disaster Art and design books Ukraine Urban exploration Nuclear power Art, David McMillan, Nuclear disater, Pripyat, The Guardian, Urbex, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] Beauty In Decay

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on March 7, 2019

I have changed the title of this piece from that used in the Guardian because many people see beauty in decay, see the many Urbex projects that revel in decay.
This set of pictures takes the idea of beauty in decay to a whole new level. These images are so impressive not just because of the decay but because of the effort that has been taken to dress each room and produce images of extreme poignancy.
Melbourne artist Rone transforms a deserted Art Deco mansion called Burnham Beeches in his most ambitious takeover yet. The installation runs from 6 March – 22 April. Left vacant for more than 20 years, this sprawling 1930s mansion sat neglected, in a state of ruin. It saw a condemned family home in suburban Alphington transformed into a gallery and installation piece before it was demolished.
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©RONE
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©RONE
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©RONE
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©RONE
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©RONE
see more from Rone here
Finding the friction point between beauty and decay is a thread that runs through much of Rone’s work. As a street artist best known for his haunting, stylised images of women’s faces, he understands better than most that beauty can be fleeting. Seeing his artworks gradually worn away by natural and human elements has taught him to appreciate the unexpected beauty of an image as it begins to blend back into its more prosaic surroundings.

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Uncategorized, Urbex

[H2] Abandoned places: the worlds we’ve left behind – in pictures

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on September 22, 2016

There is a great interest in what is known as Urbex Photography. This is the discovery  and photography of abandoned buildings, usually in an urban setting, we have featured these images often as they are so popular. New photographers are entering this arena and coming with their own take on the meme.
Kieron Connolly’s new book of photographs of more than 100 once-busy and often elegant buildings gives an eerie idea of how the world might look if humankind disappeared. Here are 10 evocative, stylised images of nature reclaiming the manmade world as seen in The Guardian
[IMG: Rubjerg Knude lighthouse, northern Jutland, Denmark This lighthouse was built on the top of a cliff in 1900 and ceased operating in 1968. With coastal erosion and continually shifting sands a major problem in the area, it is anticipated that by 2023 the cliff will have been eroded so far that the lighthouse will fall into the sea. Photograph: Elisabeth Coelfen/Dreamstime]
Rubjerg Knude lighthouse, northern Jutland, DenmarkThis lighthouse was built on the top of a cliff in 1900 and ceased operating in 1968. With coastal erosion and continually shifting sands a major problem in the area, it is anticipated that by 2023 the cliff will have been eroded so far that the lighthouse will fall into the sea.Photograph: Elisabeth Coelfen/Dreamstime
[IMG: Rotunda, Wola Gasworks, Warsaw Opened in 1888, destroyed during the second world war, then rebuilt, the Wola gasworks finally closed in the early 1970s when the city switched to using natural gas. Today, part of the gasworks is a museum, but other areas, such as the rotunda, remain dilapidated. Photograph: Fotorince/Dreamstime.com]
Rotunda, Wola Gasworks, WarsawOpened in 1888, destroyed during the second world war, then rebuilt, the Wola gasworks finally closed in the early 1970s when the city switched to using natural gas. Today, part of the gasworks is a museum, but other areas, such as the rotunda, remain dilapidated.Photograph: Fotorince/Dreamstime.com
[IMG: City Hall station, New York City Designed as a showpiece for New York’s new subway system, City Hall station (towards the southern tip of Manhattan) opened in 1904. It’s an elegant structure in Romanesque revival style with skylights, coloured glass and brass chandeliers, but because of its tightly curved platform longer subway carriages were unable to stop there. It was always a quiet station, and passenger services were discontinued in 1945. Photograph: Michael Freeman/Alamy]
City Hall station, New York CityDesigned as a showpiece for New York’s new subway system, City Hall station (towards the southern tip of Manhattan) opened in 1904. It’s an elegant structure in Romanesque revival style with skylights, coloured glass and brass chandeliers, but because of its tightly curved platform longer subway carriages were unable to stop there. It was always a quiet station, and passenger services were discontinued in 1945.Photograph: Michael Freeman/Alamy
[IMG: Uyuni Train Cemetery, Bolivia In the late 19th century, the Andean town of Uyuni served as a distribution hub for trains carrying minerals to Pacific ports. After the mining industry collapsed in the 1940s, the railways fell into ruin, leaving the trains to the harsh winds blowing off the Uyuni flats, the world’s largest salt plain. Today, though, the rusting, graffiti-covered hulks have become one of Uyuni’s attractions. Photograph: Javarman/Dreamstime]
Uyuni Train Cemetery, BoliviaIn the late 19th century, the Andean town of Uyuni served as a distribution hub for trains carrying minerals to Pacific ports. After the mining industry collapsed in the 1940s, the railways fell into ruin, leaving the trains to the harsh winds blowing off the Uyuni flats, the world’s largest salt plain. Today, though, the rusting, graffiti-covered hulks have become one of Uyuni’s attractions.Photograph: Javarman/Dreamstime
see more here
More Urbex here

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Urbex The Guardian, Urbex, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, www.photographersworkshop.co.uk

[H2] How I shot an abandoned asylum – An interview with an Urbex Photographer

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on January 20, 2015

I found this on the photography pages of The Telegraph,
Urban explorers (Urbex) and their photographs have become extremely popular over the last few years, each post we make about the subject becomes one of our most popular at that time. It is hard to know why such images of desolation and decay are so riveting but they have great currency, at the end of this post I will list our other Urbex posts for you to follow if you wish
Fabiano Parisi talks to Lowenna Waters about photographing crumbling and deserted locations.
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Born in Rome in 1977, Fabiano Parisi began photographing abandoned mental asylums as part of his Psychology degree. It triggered a love affair with deserted locations that has taken him to the United States, Belgium, Germany, the United Kingdom, Eastern Europe and Russia. He’s snapped everything from a disused swimming pool in Woodridge, Illinois, to a derelict church in Żeliszów, Poland.
The series, titled ‘Il Mondo Che Non Vedo’ (‘The world I do not see’) has gained Parisi widespread critical acclaim, including winning the Celeste Prize International in 2010, and the Arte Laguna Prize in 2012. He participated in the 54th Venice Biennial, and has been shortlisted for the prestigious Young Master Arts Prize in 2012 and 2014.
Read the full article here
Find our links to other Urbex posts here
https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2013/04/24/30-abandoned-structures-that-evoke-more-than-just-decay/
https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/urbex-talkurbex/
https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2012/01/30/urbex-urban-explorers-with-cameras/
https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2014/12/08/abandoned-america-amazing-photos-of-a-nations-ruins/
https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2012/02/20/the-ruins-of-detroit-by-yves-marchand-romain-meffre/
https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2014/12/05/treasure-trove-of-60-barn-finds-includes-lost-ferrari-250-gt-swb-california-spider/
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Architecture Photography, Art Photography, Exhibition, Urbex Fabiano Parisi, Lowenna Waters, The Telegraph, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, www.photographersworkshop.co.uk

[H2] Abandoned America: Amazing photos of a nation’s ruins

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on December 8, 2014

By Fiona Macdonald on The BBC website
There is a great interest in abandoned buildings, they somehow speak to our own fragility and remind us of what happens where we don’t look after things. The finding of and photographing derelict buildings is often called Urbex, (urban explorers) their motto is take nothing but photos, leave nothing but footprints
“People love to use Detroit as a poster child for the abandoned urban landscape … but it’s not just Detroit that is suffering from the loss of urban infrastructure. The collapse of industries has torn holes in the identities of many major cities,” says Matthew Christopher. The photographer began exploring abandoned buildings when looking at the history of mental health care in America, but soon widened his search. A new book, Abandoned America: The Age of Consequences, brings together his images of prisons, hospitals, churches and hotels. Christopher aims “to connect the dots, to show that it is not simply one type of structure or one geographic location that is affected”. His photographs reveal both decaying industrial giants and derelict domestic spaces
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you can see more of this here
more posts on Urbex here
Treasure trove of 60 barn-finds includes ‘lost’ Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider
[H2] 30 abandoned structures that evoke more than just decay
[H2] ‘The Ruins of Detroit’ by Yves Marchand & Romain Meffre
[H2] Urbex – Talkurbex

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Architecture Photography, Urbex BBC, Matthew Christoper, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, www.photographersworkshop.co.uk

[H2] Treasure trove of 60 barn-finds includes ‘lost’ Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on December 5, 2014

we get a lot of hits for our urbex posts and here, pictures of dishevelled buildings, but these pictures of the automobile equivalents will have petrolheads salivating with these exquisite images from Rémi Dargegen for Classic Driver
From Classic Driver
“Never again, anywhere in the world, will such a treasure be unearthed,” says Pierre Novikoff, motor car specialist at Artcurial auction house. He’s describing a staggering collection of 60 barn-find cars that have been discovered after lying hidden for 50 years.
And if you think he’s exaggerating, then let me quote our photographer, Rémi Dargegen, who reported back to us right after the photo-shoot, saying, “It’s amazing, just amazing. The place is incredible… the most impressive thing is the sheer quantity of cars hidden in the barns.”
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It all began with the grandfather of the family that currently owns the collection: back in the 1950s, he dreamed of conserving the heritage of pre-War cars in museum surroundings, focusing on the great French brands and famous body shops. This gentleman was an entrepreneur with a transport company in the west of France and he was a serious enthusiast: he even exhibited a roadster that he’d built himself at the Paris Motor Show in the 1950s. Sadly, during the 1970s, his dream fell apart when his business suffered a setback and he was forced to sell some 50 cars. After that, the rest of the collection stayed totally untouched, all these years, until its very recent discovery.
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Photos: Rémi Dargegen for Classic Driver © 2014
See all of these wonderful old cars and read the jaw dropping histories here
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Photography, Urbex Bugatti, Chapron, classic cars, Classic Driver, Delage, Delahaye, Ferrari, Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider, Hispano-Suiza, Levassor, Maserati, Million-Guiet, Panhard, Rémi Dargegen, Saoutchik

[H2] 30 abandoned structures that evoke more than just decay

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 24, 2013

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[H3] HOLLAND ISLAND, CHESAPEAKE BAY Via: baldeaglebluff
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[H3]  THE MAUNSELL SEA FORTS, ENGLAND Via: fivelightsdown.squarespace.com
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[H3] SUNKEN YACHT, ANTARCTICA Via: ruschili.35photo.ru
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[H3] ABANDONED MILL FROM 1866 IN SORRENTO, ITALY Source: logicalrealist / via: i.imgur.com
See the rest of these 30 images here on My Science Academy, and thanks to The Recommender for doing what his name says

[H6] Related articles
https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/urbex-talkurbex/
https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2012/01/30/urbex-urban-explorers-with-cameras/
https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2012/02/20/the-ruins-of-detr

[H1] Oxford School of Photography
insights into photography

[H2] Category Archives: Street Photography

[H2] The extraordinary story behind the iconic image of Che Guevara and the photographer who took it

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on January 28, 2019

I have recently returned from Cuba where on every street, or hat, t-shirt, flag or poster there was one image. That image was of Che, taken by Alberto Korda a Cuban photographer. This image is perhaps the most reproduced photographic image in the world, I can’t think of another that is so ubiquitous.
The story of this image, when and why it was taken and it’s passage to iconic status is fascinating.
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The moment
The Che image was made on March 5, 1960, at a funeral service for the 136 people who were killed when a French ship carrying arms to Havana was sabotaged and blown-up. Crowds filled the street of Havana, and Korda was there working for the newspaper Revolución. As Castro’s funeral oration droned on Korda approached the speakers’ platform. With Castro were other leaders of the revolution, the French writers Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir, and, of course, Che. When Korda got close to the platform, he noticed that Che — who had been standing in the back of the stage — had moved forward.
“I remember his staring over the crowd on 23rd street,” Korda says. Staring up, he was struck by Guevara’s expression which he says showed, “absolute implacability,” as well as anger and pain. …..
The “viral” effect
This all changed one day in early 1967 when an Italian publisher, Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, came with a letter from the Cuban government asking Korda to help find him a portrait of Che. Korda pointed to the print hanging on the studio wall, saying that it was the best one he had ever taken of Che…..
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The tipping point
But the tipping point for the image was in October 1967, when Che was executed in Bolivia. Demonstrations broke out around the world condemning the murder and Feltrinelli printed up thousands of Che posters and sold them to protesters. The photo was now called Guerrillero Heroico, and it next surfaced in 1968 on New York City subway billboards as a painting by artist Paul Davis advertising the February issue of the Evergreen Review magazine.
Read the full article here
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Photo-journalism, Portrait Photography, Street Photography, Uncategorized Alberto Korda, Che Guevara, Imaging Resource

[H2] EMPTY DAYS PADDY SUMMERFIELD

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on April 10, 2018

Paddy was the first person to walk through the doors of the original Photographers Workshop in June 1982. He has been my friend and teacher ever since. I learned from Paddy that a photograph doesn’t have to be about a thing, it can be just about a feeling.
His latest book ‘Empty Days’ is a testament to the idea that art is about feeling and not necessarily decorative. Like Nan Golding or Richard Billingham Paddy does not shy away from showing “the tragic lives he encountered, lives that touched him because they reflected his own struggles, he made images that would tell their stories, his own story.”
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Paddy Summerfield Empty Days
From his publisher:
… a sustained enquiry and search for understanding and meaning in a sometimes-bleak interior landscape … the great success of ‘Empty Days’ is in drawing the viewer fully into Paddy’s world… and as in life, it is both rewarding and on occasions disturbing.
– John Goto in Photomonitor, March 2018
…………….
“I would say Empty Days is my road trip, through the places I know – on foot.”
In run-down streets and shabby cafés Paddy Summerfield found his pictures for Empty Days. Among the tragic lives he encountered, lives that touched him because they reflected his own struggles, he made images that would tell their stories, his own story.
“This is the world I know, it could be anywhere, a place we have all seen before. I am sad, the world is sad. I don’t know if I take photographs to embrace sadness or or push it away.”
[IMG: Paddy Summerfield Empty Days]
Paddy Summerfield Empty Days
For Empty Days Summerfield has found emblems of the great themes: religion, sex, and death. Yet among the bleakness of various addictions, the ravages of drinking, of pills, he shows no spiritual comfort, no sexual joy, only the search for love in an unloving world, an unsatisfied spiritual longing. Along pavements and pathways, in claustrophobic rooms or open spaces, he finds the isolated figures, lost in thought or caught in a flash of emotion, to express the yearnings and pain that so many of us share. And where no people are shown, the human traces – an abandoned bicycle, a fallen doll, a tangle of nettles and barbed wire – continue themes of loss and melancholy. Yet however powerless or worn down the people and places shown, these pictures offer compassion, not judgement. A handful of troubling portraits, suggesting powerful and complex emotions, punctuate Empty Days, and intensify our sense of a narrative, albeit elusive and incomplete, as the photographs lead us through a fragile and fragmented world to an ending that suggests the possibility of hope.
[IMG: Paddy Summerfield Empty Days]
Paddy Summerfield Empty Days
Oxford-based, Paddy Summerfield, trained at Guildford School of Art in the Photography and the Film departments. His work has been shown in many galleries, including the ICA, The Barbican, The Serpentine Gallery, and The Photographers’ Gallery. His work is in the collections of the Arts Council and of the V&A, as well as in numerous private collections. Empty Days is his third book published by Dewi Lewis. His earlier book Mother and Father(2014) was widely acclaimed, and featured in several lists of the ‘Best Photobooks of The Year’.
You can buy this exquisite book here
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documentary photography, Masters of Photography, Street Photography, Uncategorized Dewi Lewis, Empty Days, Paddy Summerfield, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, www.photographersworkshop.co.uk

[H2] The Playful Street Photography of Pau Buscató

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on March 8, 2018

Petapixel is a site worth following, there are often interesting articles and great finds, like this photographer Pau Buscató
My last post was by another photographer who had the ability to see those things others miss and this post has more images that are clever and witty.
Pau Buscató is a street photographer who has a knack for capturing playful moments in which subjects and scenes come together in curious ways for brief moments of time. Many of his pictures are illusions that may cause you to stare a little longer to understand what it is you’re actually seeing.
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You can find more of Buscató’s photos on his website, Instagram, and Flickr.
You can find more of Buscató’s photos on his website, Instagram, and Flickr.
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Pau Buscató
“My approach to street photography is very intuitive and I’ve always liked to let my work grow freely, without me forcing any direction or themes,” Buscató writes. “It’s a very open process that demands full awareness and fresh eyes, to see the ordinary things of our everyday not just for what they are, but also for what they can become, when photographed.
“There is a strong sense of play in my street photography. It’s a game for me, and the city is my playground.”
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Pau Buscató
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Pau Buscató
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Pau Buscató
https://www.buscato.net/colour/
You can find more of Buscató’s photos on his website, Instagram, and Flickr.

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Masters of Photography, Street Photography, Uncategorized Pau Buscató, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] Casablanca Not the Movie – in pictures

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on March 6, 2018

I saw this in the Guardian and had to share it with you. A few weeks ago I was taken to see Casablanca, the movie, by some friends. I am not sure I had ever seen it in it’s entirety before but it was enjoyable in a noirish sort of way. These pictures have nothing in common with the movie and all the better for it
There’s no sign of Humphrey Bogart or the stereotyped images found in travel guides in Yoriyas Yassine Alaoui Ismaili’s photographs of Casablanca. His images are full of energy and surprise, and show what the city is really like. Casablanca Not the Movie is at Riad Yima, Marrakech until 30 June 2018
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Moulay Rachid, Casablanca, 2015
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Sidi Othmane, Casablanca, 2017
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Old Medina, Casablanca, 2017
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Hay Hassani, Casablanca, 2015
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Ain Diab beach, Casablanca, 2016
see more of Yoriyas Yassine Alaoui Ismaili’s photographs of Casablanca here
or better visit his website here
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Masters of Photography, Photo-journalism, Street Photography, Uncategorized The Guardian, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk, Yoriyas Yassine Alaoui Ismaili

[H2] LensCulture street photography awards

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on November 30, 2017

I wrote about the awards season and missed this one. Thanks to The Guardian I was alerted to these rather excellent images. I don’t know anything about the organisers LensCulture except this street photography award. I think you only have to look at these images to wonder why you don’t pick up your camera and head to the streets.
From intimate personal narratives to teeming markets and the world from a dog’s perspective, the LensCulture street photography awards celebrate the explosion in popularity of the form over the past decade
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Grace and elegance emerge from chaos in this shot of an old man feeding pigeons Photograph: Alexandre Grand
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Taken on the afternoon of 23 July 2016 at the Tongi railway station in Gazipur, Bangladesh. ‘I arrived to shoot in the early morning and waited. It was raining heavily. As a train from Dhaka reached the platform, I suddenly noticed a pair of curious eyes looking at me through the window, while on the left, someone had opened a black umbrella. The mist on the glass and that piercing gaze created a dreamy environment filled with questions’ Photograph: moin/Moin Ahmed

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Diamond Days is an exploration of the commonplace with a playful touch, a sense of joy and slight unease Photograph: Manuel Armenis
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An exploration of the world of pet parents, from a dog’s-eye view Photograph: Dougie Wallace
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‘One morning in 2016, on a tube journey into central London, I looked up to see a lady dressed in a velvet hood, seated in a classical, timeless pose. Immediately, a 16th-century Flemish painting came to mind. I looked around and suddenly found I couldn’t see anything else but people held in their own Renaissance-like, personal moments’ Photograph: Matt Crabtree
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For Hakan Simsek street photography is in an instinctive practice. ‘My chosen photographs are flashes about myself and my death’ Photograph: Hakan Simsek
there are more to see in The Guardian here
and for more information and further images go to the LensCulture site here

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Photography Awards, Photography Competitions, Street Photography LensCulture, www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] Photography Awards and Competitions

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on November 27, 2017

It is said this is the season to be merry, I know, whoever said that was mistaken, but it seems to me this is the season to be inundated with the outcome of photography competitions and awards. In the past I have produced separate posts on each but I have decided to roll them into one this time as it does all get a bit boring otherwise.
Landscape photographer of the Year
Travel Photographer of the Year
Sony World Photography Awards
Nature Photographer of the Year National Geographic
Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Magnum Photography Awards
International Garden Photographer of the Year
Photographer of The Year Panoawards
Taylor Wessing Portrait Photography Award
Urban Photography Awards
This one is always a winner
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Henri Cartier Bresson – Sunday on the banks of the River Marne 1938

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Art Photography, Garden and Plant Photography, Landscape Photography, Photography Awards, Photography Competitions, Portrait Photography, Street Photography, Travel Photography, Uncategorized www.oxfordschoolofphotography.co.uk

[H2] Paying it Forward: Stuart Franklin on teaching the next generation of photographers

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Posted by oxfordschoolofphotography on June 20, 2017

Stuart was a member of the original Photogragraphers Workshop when we were based in St Marys Road Oxford. It was a darkroom and studio hire centre so anyone interested in making their own photographs could come and develop film and make prints. Stuart lived in Oxford at that time and would come to make prints, he is a very friendly and helpful man so I am not surprised as his role as a Magnum photographer he is teaching the next generation.
The urge to document their world photographically is a drive that has undoubtedly been felt by many Magnum photographers; and it’s a practice that Stuart Franklin explores in his 2016 book The Documentary Impulse, charting the motivation to visually tell stories and represent the world far back beyond the invention of the camera, all the way to cave painting. From pre-history onwards he explores a history of photographic representation in visual culture and many of the practical and ethical issues that form the backdrop to the current landscape of the industry. Through teaching, Franklin aims to help a new generation of photographers go beyond the practicalities of technique and understand their practice within the weight of this context. Here, Franklin discusses what there is to gain from a photography education, and explains how he experienced the ‘documentary impulse’ himself. You can read more here
Stuart Franklin Tiananmen Square, Beijing, China 26th May 1999. ©Stuart Franklin
On a personal level, how have you felt or experienced the ‘impulse’ in your own practice?
An impulse or obsession is almost crucial to a life in documentary. I have explored a number of ideas – still working on some today – with an irrational drive, where work that I’m pursuing, and the way I’m doing it, makes absolutely no economic sense. Most of my books evolve in that way: Footprint, The Time of Trees, Narcissus, La Città Dinamica – even The Documentary Impulse. I work on projects because I am impelled to do so.
[H3] “In visual storytelling coherence across a body of work is an essential part of authorship”
[H5] – Stuart Franklin
Read the full article here and find out about the course Stuart is running
Stuart Frank