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After many months of searching ('searching' makes it sound more involved than it actually was, but it's easier than saying 'checking the pre-owned gear in Jacobs every so often') I found good SLR - a Bronica S2 with a 6x6 back and a Nikkor 70mm f2.8 lens included. I have had film SLRs before, but for some reason I just don't like 35mm film. It probably has a lot to do with my preference for square photos, but I also just like the simplicity of 120 roll film. I spotted this Bronica in the window of a small store on Tottenham Court Road - the price was amazing and I was able to talk the price down a little too; I'll put the saving towards a new light meter.
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The timing of this find couldn't be better, as I am just starting to arrange some portrait work - it's about time, I think. So it's also appropriate that the first frame I shot on the first film I loaded was a portrait...
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09/05/10 - Groups, Images of Yore, fotoblur.
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I have set up a group on deviantART called #reflect-and-capture. The aim of the group is to collect images whose focal point or execution relies on the use of reflections, whether intentional or consequential. With the help of =Izaaaaa, I hope to put together a good collection of reflections.
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I really do like the groups system on deviantART (despite them being pretty low on useable features unless you pay up to be a 'super group') - as the site accepts so many different styles and mediums, it was previously difficult to avoid images you had no interest in (example: the front page is always awash with anime and nude photography), and now it's easier than ever to have all the styles you want to see collected. And, if no group exists, it's free to start your own.
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I did a little 'digging in the crates' today, and found an image from 2004 that got left behind. I have no idea why it was never shared before - here is a fresh and final edit:
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As a member from it's foundation, I'm not sure why I stopped posting images to and browsing fotoblur. The standard of work there is generally outstanding, and I love the promotions system which allows the most favoured work to float to the top, not to mention their string of publications which are all made up of user submitted photographs. I cleared out my gallery and started again, and I hope to keep a closer eye on the site than before. 19/04/10 - Updates, Work.
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So... Things are a little quiet, no? Well, since we last spoke this site has had a major upgrade: more than 100 additional music photos, new collections and a new database and some smarter PHP is keeping everything running smoothly. I wish I has some more time to write something that you might actually want to read...
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I think I'm going to take a bit of a break. Recently, I have filled 3 rolls of film using a few different cameras (Holga 120SF, Diana F+ and a Pixie Gnome box camera) and have hated every single shot. They all just seemed so... pointless. There are still a few ideas in my head, but I need to get the execution straight. I know exactly what I am looking for, but I cannot find it.
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I think my decline in quality is pretty evident in you take a look my gallery - I peaked at the end of 2009 and have been coasting through 2010. Maybe my work with toy cameras is over?
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Whatever happens, this lull will give me some time to get my book sorted (did I mention I'm working on a book?) and maybe try and work on some other ideas. We'll see.
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I am pretty happy with the photo below though. It was taken in Cologne in March, and you can just about make out the spires through the filthy glass roof of the station. What do you think? Does the station obscure the Cathedral too much, when it would once have been totally visible from all parts of the town? Am I looking for something in this photo that isn't there?
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17/02/10 - A photographic nod to Mark Rothko
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06/02/10 - v2.1 already...
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Part of my day job is software testing, and something that is repeated by either my colleagues or myself during every project is that it is impossible to test every scenario before the software goes live; errors and the required changes are inevitable.
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So with that in mind, I don't feel too bad about needing to make a handful of changes and fixes one day after putting up this new site. It's for the best. Some of the changes include spelling mistakes, JavaScript errors, small changes to the photography collections and some weird issues that only appear in Internet Explorer. No big deal.
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I'm sticking by my decision to forget about IE6 compatibility; anyone still using that browser must be used to 90% of the internet not rendering correctly. That is, if the endless security risks haven't already disabled their computer entirely... 05/02/10 - It's all new...
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What started as a few small changes to the website to make it easier to update and improve browser compatibility turned into a complete re-build from the ground up.
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2010 has started slowly in terms of new photographs - I put a fresh roll of Delta 3200 in my original Holga on the 1st of January, and here we are in February and it remains entirely untouched. Not because I don't know what to shoot - I actually have some ideas for once - I just haven't been able to find the time. Work is manic, I've really upped my training (cycling/running, but more on this later) and I have entirely re-catalogued all of my photographs (both digitally and my negatives).
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Still, just over 4 weeks of 2010 have passed and I have already made 2 major steps forward for my work. What will I have done by March? 02/02/10 - Polaroid Film is available, and not just from eBay...
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A risk of having my office 5 minutes walk from London's Photographer's Gallery is that I often end up in their excellent store/cafe area. Not only is the soup good, the selection of books and Magazines (they stock Light Leaks, which makes me very happy) is insanely good, not to mention the range of film including the new Polaroid stock, as part of The Impossible Project.
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The films come in a fresh new slipcase, and all appear to have expired as recently as 09/09, making them good for another year or so before you're likely to see any ill effects (hence, I intend to save mine for a few years...), and cost around £20 each which when you consider Polaroid sold them for half that before they ceased production, is about what you'd expect. 25/01/10 - All About Film
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Since the launch of the new Groups system on deviantART (which is excellent, despite the massive increase in new work that lands in my message centre) has seen the birth of a new Group - #All-About-Film - of which I have been appointed a 'Co-Founder'.
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The goals of the group are pretty simple - promote the use of film over digital. I have seen an increase in people turning back to film as digital imaging becomes even more popular and even less under the control of the user, and I like what I see.
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Please don't think of me as a film snob or elitist - I work in digital occasionally and I love the possibilities and the fact that more people can be more creative more easily... I just see it the same way as I see music: many people still like that analogue sound and see auto-tune as a means to make people with no talent appear talented... 01/01/10 - TwentyTen
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TwentyTen promises to be a productive year, with a few projects (or at least ideas for projects) in the pipe line, as well as new work and improvements to existing work.
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I have not updated the site in some time, as I am currently in the process of scanning and filing all of my negatives. This of course means all photography featured here will be replaced with re-scanned and, in some cases, re-edited versions. It's been pretty remarkable how much detail was lost on some of the original scans; the new versions have really bought them to life.
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As well as replacing images themselves, I will be working on the entire site to improve the focus of the work, browser compatibility, accessibility and ease of use.
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I'm looking forward to seeing where TwentyTen will take me, both physically and mentally. 31/12/09 - Albums of 2009
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What follows is a list of my favourite new albums of 2009. I have not ranked them; that's impossible:
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Bat For Lashes - Two Suns
Big Business - Mind the Drift
Bike For Three! - More Heart Than Brains
Clark - Totems Flare
Clutch - Strange Cousins From The West
DOOM - Born Like This
Fink - Sort of Revolution
Garage A Trois - Power Patriot
Isis - Wavering Radiant
McTuff - Volume 1
Medeski, Martin and Wood - Radiolarians III
Mono - Hymn to the Immortal
Mr. Lif - I Heard it Today
Odd Nosdam - T.I.M.E Soundtrack
Pelican - What We All Come To Need
The Dead Kenny G's - Bewildered Herd
The Dead Weather - Horehound
The Flaming Lips - Embryonic
Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures
Themselves - CrownsDown
Vic Chesnutt - At The Cut (RIP, Vic)
Why? - Eskimo Snow
Zu - Carboniferous 06/11/09 - New York Galleries
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I have been in New York all week to shoot and see some shows; here is a short breakdown of some notable galleries:
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The Leica Gallery
Probably my favourite gallery in New York. It may be very small, but the space is located on the 5th floor of a historic building in Greenwich Village on Broadway and is extremely well presented. The content never disappoints and currently features Pete Souza's photographs covering Obama's first 200 days in office. May not sound good, but it really, really is. The show runs until tomorrow.
Official Site
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The New Museum, Bowery
Possibly the most impressive gallery space in New York, the New Museum in Bowery only opened it's doors two years ago. The building was designed by SANAA and looks completely alien among the older buildings of the Bowery/China Town that surround it. However, the content of the gallery is, in my opinion at least, dreadful. The gallery claims to specialise in contemporary art, which to my mind shifts the focus of the work toward concept rather than substance. The building is still worth visiting if you have any interest in architecture and the shop carries some good books, just keep the $12 standard admission in your pocket.
Official Site
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International Centre of Photography
The current show - Dress Codes - is mostly portrait photography with some reportage mixed in. All pretty standard stuff aside from one image that I stared at for some time. Taken by Richard Learoyd using a camera obscura (a room divided in 2, one side lit with the subject, the other side in darkened with positive photographic paper, and a lens in the dividing wall), the resulting huge one-of-a-kind image has jaw-dropping detail which has to be seen. The photograph on his very slim web-site is from the same series.
Official Site
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Jazz at Lincoln Centre
Not technically a gallery, but since they are currently showing a large collection of Hermon Leonard (one of my favourite photographers), it's currently my number one pick for New York. Think of an iconic photograph of a Jazz Musician (excluding Blue Note album covers), and there is a good chance it was taken by Hermon Leonard. Every one of his photographs IS Jazz, from late forties, smoke filled New York clubs featuring Dexter Gordon to late eighties studio shots of Miles Davis in his final years. With digital photography doing it's best to eliminate photography as a truly skilled craft, Leonard's early photographs really make you reconsider what photography should be. Whether you appreciate Jazz music or not, his photographs are sure to speak to you on some level. The show runs until 14th February 2010. See it if you can.
Hermon Leonard Official Site
Jazz at Lincoln Centre Official Site 14/09/09 - Become a Fan on Facebook!
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I have set-up a page on Facebook, since everyone uses it. I hope more people outside of deviantArt will see some more of my work, especially since personal web sites (such as this one) will always be second to easily viewed hubs like Facebook, Myspace and Twitter.
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Become a 'fan' here: facebook.com/alanshortis
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A bigger update with more new work is on the way - I have been snowed under recently with work (J.O.B work) and I have just moved into a new place (a warehouse in Hackney), so time has been short... 11/07/09 - Volume Magazine
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Volume Magazine have featured 3 of my photographs in their 6th issue, all 3 from my holga/diana series. Volume is a free quarterly publication that features new British creative talent. Physical copies are available from various stores, galleries and bars in London (Magma, Rough Trade, Sister Ray, Fopp, Rockit, Old Blue Last, Vibe Bar) and Paris, but can be viewed in full online here (see pages 84, 85 and 86 for my pieces. Can't say I'm entirely happy about the text overlay on one of the shots, but it's no big deal.) 08/04/09 - Scroobius Pip's Satin Lizard Lounge
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A new night of spoken word and music, devised by Scroobius Pip in association with Redshift Rebels, and taking place the second and fourth Wednesday of every month starts tonight at Pure Groove in Farringdon, London. There is an exclusive EP featuring that night's performing artists available on each night, and recordings from each night itself will be compiled into a podcast, available the following week from iTunes directly and via this very website.
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I am DJing the four nights confirmed (8th April, 22nd April, 13th May, 27th May). These will not be fully mixed sets, just a a selection of tracks I am feeling at the time that fit the mood of the evening.
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The first act is on stage at around 6.30, and entry is FREE. 14/02/09 - Expired Film
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I have been hunting for expired film in the last few weeks and have picked up some real gems. After winning a single Roll of Ilford PANF Plus 50 120 (expired in September 2008, so that'll need a little extra time to mature), the seller threw in 2 rolls of Ilford Delta 3200 35mm (expired March 2006). Not bad for 99p. The Delta 3200 is my favourite film in 120, so I'll be keen to try the 35mm. Next, I was given 5 rolls of Fuji Neopan 100 120 (expired August 2005) and 6 rolls of Agfa APX 100 120 (expired January 2004). The real score (or risk depending how you look at it) was 5 rolls of Kodak 400 120 film, in the original box, expired in... 1968! (UPDATE 02/02/10 - this film didn't work at all, so I sold it on.) 25/01/09 - Twitter
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I have recently joined twitter, and I am sure many more people will after Stephen Fry launched it into the news recently by mentioning his updates in an interview. I am usually very slow on the uptake with social networking - it took me ages to join Myspace and Facebook for example. If you're interested in staying up to date with my mundane day-to-day activities, please follow me: twitter.com/alanshortis 25/11/08 - Writers Block
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I have been working on a screenplay for about 4/5 months now, and it's got to the point where I have around 60 pages written of my target of 100. Every time I sit down to work on it, I end up taking as much out as I put in, or going back over dialogue and pulling it around because I don't like the tone, or it doesn't fit the character. The only scene I haven't touched since writing it, is a frank conversation about visiting prostitutes - but even in that scene I have described the bar the characters are in in minute detail, and changing this description if I see something in a real bar or restaurant that I like the look of.
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I don't think all this chopping and changing is a case of being a perfectionist, more rewriting and editing as I go rather than finishing a draft and rewriting in full. There have been a few whole scenes that have been removed entirely (but I have kept them for possible future use. If it works for Kevin Smith, it could work for me).
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Part of the problem is the plot has changed a little since I started writing. The original idea and one of the possible endings I had in my head became all too real a few months ago and therefore I really don't want to go there. I have a new ending (a long monologue) written, but I'm having trouble getting there. I'm also concerned it's a little too similar to a recent, very big movie.
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Currently, I am just writing it for myself with no plans to do much with it. Though depending on any feedback I get from the first draft that could change... We'll see. 26/10/08 - US Elections
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Judging from recent polls, and the amount of people who are choosing to vote early, I am really hopeful that America make (what I consider to be) the right decision on November 4th and elect Barack Obama.
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Even before getting into his policies which (on the surface at least) are sound and sensible, you can tell that he will provide the change that is desperately needed in American politics. He is incredibly genuine and confident yet down to earth and seems humbled by the response to his campaign.
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More important than Obama's qualities is the fact that his victory will keep McCain out of the white house. Not only is he a technophobe who will not be able to make decisions that will be vital over the next 4-8 years, I'm not convinced he will survive to see two full terms, which would put Palin in the most powerful position in the world.... I don't even want to think about that.
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I stumbled upon this fantastic gallery of photographs from Obama's campaign trail. Also, lots of great work by Zoltron and Sticker Robot.
