On the bookshelf: A Camera, Two Kids, and a Camel: My Journey in Photographs

I was given one more photography book for my birthday. I hadn’t mentioned it already as A) it came by sea so only arrived recently, and B) it has a few more words than most photography books so I had to sit down and read it.

The book is  A Camera, Two Kids, and a Camel: My Journey in Photographs by Annie Griffiths Belt, a National Geographic photographer who has managed to juggle her career with two kids and a camel. (Something you don’t even see at Cirque Du Soleil.)

A Camera, Two Kids, and a Camel by Annie Griffiths Belt

It would perhaps be best described as an illustrated autobiography. The author talks about her life as a National Geographic photographer and there were several interesting facts or pearls of wisdom along the way. These included:

“Assignments in those days (early in her career) averaged three to six months. No assistants. No shot lists. No excuses.”  Photographers were sent to a place after a five minute phone call and then it was their job to find the story behind that city or region and to photograph it.

Interpersonal skills are one of the keys to being a travel photographer. Being able to change a NO to a yes. Convincing strangers to not only let you photograph them, but to let you into their home.

Access. Go where other can’t, won’t or fear to tread.

Enjoy it. You are probably doing one of the best jobs in the world.

Who is Ray Harryhausen?

If you are still wondering who Ray Harryhausen is, and why Pixar used his name for a restaurant in Tokyo…

He was the guy who pioneered stop-motion model animation in films. 

He was the guy who created the skeleton fight scene in the 1963 movie Jason and the Argonauts. I watched this when I was little and it was the most fantastic thing I had ever seen.  Mind blowing stuff.

Enjoy.

The Best of British – The BBC’s Natural History Unit

I have friends from many different countries and I am often amazed at how passionately patriotic they are of their homeland. I have been told numerous times that America / Canada / Australia / New Zealand / China / South Africa is the greatest country in the world and that not only should I visit but I should move there because it is such a fantastic place.

Brits don’t tend to enthuse quite so much about their own country. In fact, most, seem to delight in telling a fellow ex-pat how grey / rainy / bleak / miserable the UK was on their last trip.

I am sometimes asked what exactly Britain produces now that the shipbuilding, textiles, coal, and steel industries have almost gone. It turns out that we are still very good at banking, insurance, and producing weapons. Not the most popular industries in the world right now.

Britain does however have numerous small companies that I am proud of Bowers and Wilkins (speakers), Marshall (amps), Lotus – (fast cars), Mclaren – (very fast cars), Dyson – (vacuum cleaners), The Body Shop  (cosmetics). Perhaps the company, or corporation to be precise, that I am most proud of is the B.B.C. 

The news section of the BBC is excellent, with correspondents around the world. It has also managed, for now at least, to keep the focus on the news rather than the news anchors (unlike CNN). The BBC  also seems less prone to get two people with extreme opposing opinions on an issue to shout at each other for 5 minutes and call it a serious debate.

Perhaps the BBC’s greatest jewel is its Natural History Unit – the largest wildlife documentary production house in the world. I grew up watching shows like David Attenborough’s Wildlife on One, Life on Earth, The Living Planet, The Trials of Life and Life in the Freezer.

The most recent productions Blue Planet (2001) and Planet Earth (2006) are truly amazing creations. Everything about them is first rate from the quality of the camera work through to the orchestral score.  Stunning. Enchanting. Inspirational.

24 hours with David Levene

A couple of years ago I met David Levene a photographer for The Guardian. It was 5 in the morning and we were both  waiting to get in our respective hot air balloons while photographing the Bristol Balloon Festival. We had a good chat for an hour, and I said it would be great to meet again if he ever made if to Japan. I then got in my wicker basket and had my first (and only) balloon ride. It was a great experience and I got a few good photos.

Hot air balloon pilot David Fish fires the burner

Bristol Balloon Festival

 A couple of months ago I got an email from David saying he was coming to Japan to get shots for the newspaper, particularly the two page center spreads, which are an amazing showcase for a photographer. Check out this short video to see the kind of work David does. (Then come right back!)

David is in Japan for two weeks and came down to Okinawa for 24 hours to get some images of  Churaumi Aquarium I talked about in a previous post which you can find here.  I spent the entire time with David, escorting him around the island, recording some sound for slideshows, and learning a huge amount simply by watching him work. We had a great time at the aquarium and David got the shots he wanted. You will have to go out an buy copies of The Guardian to see his work in print, but I’ll finish this blog with a few pictures of my own.

David Levene -showing that even better than having one Canon 5D Mark II is having two.

Dave & Me

On the bookshelf – Sport & Action

Another title in Rotovision’s The World’s Top Photographers’ Workshops series is Sport & Action. For me this is perhaps the weakest in the series. My main niggle is that there are nine sports photographers and one wildlife photographer. Andy Rouse’s photographs are excellent, but they are completely out of place, especially when there is a separate and far superior book in the series called Wildlife. 

The other reason for not enjoying this one so much is perhaps more contentious. It seems to me that for  sports perhaps the still camera is not the best medium for recording events.

The opposite seems to be true in the world of Fashion & Advertising where a well crafted image has far more impact than catwalks or television commercials.

On the bookshelf – Travel & Nature

        

 

 

Travel & Nature by Andy Steel ( Rotovision )

 

Rotovision is a British publisher that produces several really good books on photography. 

 

I just got one of the latest releases in their “The World’s Top Photographers’ Workshops” series titled Travel & Nature. The book is divided into ten sections each based around a particular photographer. Each section has an interview with the photographer, several pages of their best photographs and then a Tips for Success page where the photographer gives 10 nuggets of wisdom (or common sense). 

Travel photography is a bit like ecology  in that it is a blend of several different disciplines. This book therefore has interviews with a wide range of photographers including Steve Bloom (nature), David Doubliet (underwater) and Lee Frost (landscape). 

I have most of the titles in the series, some of which are better than others. Travel & Nature due to its diversity is a great book by itself, and if you like the informative style that delves more into the mindset of the photographer rather than the equipment he or she is using it deserves its space on the bookshelf.

The song in my head : Boom de ya da!

And just in case you want to sing along too, here are the lyrics:

I love the mountains, I love the clear blue skies
I love big bridges
I love when great whites fly
I love the whole world
And all its sights and sounds
Boom de ya da, boom de ya da  Boom de ya da, boom de ya da
I love the oceans
I love real dirty things
I love to go fast
I love Egyptian kings
I love the whole world
And all its craziness
Boom de ya da, boom de ya da  Boom de ya da, boom de ya da
I love tornadoes  I love arachnids   I love hot magma   I love the giant squids   I love the whole world It’s such a brilliant place Boom de ya da, boom de ya da Boom de ya da, boom de ya da

Photographer Ben Simmons

Last week photographer Ben Simmons visited Okinawa and dropped by my house for coffee and a chat before exploring the island. It was fantastic to meet Ben and have a good discussion about photography, living in Japan, and the changes in both camera technology and the photography industry as a whole.

 

Japanscapes

 

 

I also got some advice on places to shoot when I am in Tokyo for a few days later this month. Ben has published several books including Tokyo and Japanscapes: Three Cameras, Three Journeys.

 

 

 

 

Tokyo by Ben Simmons

 

What pleased me most of all was that after many decades of working as a professional photographer Ben still loves taking photographs. I think it is all to common for the realities of work to erode away the passion you have for something. I know SCUBA diving instructors who found that their dream career rapidly became more and more like a regular job. It gives me confidence that I will still love taking photographs for decades to come.

 

 

 

Chris, Seiko & Ben

Inspiration – Stephen Wiltshire

When I was around 11 years old I saw a TV programme about an extrodinary British boy just a year older than myself. His name is Stephen Wiltshire and he has not just a photographic memory, but the ability to then reproduce what he has seen on paper.

In May 2005 after a helicopter flight over Tokyo he drew a 10 meter long 360 degree panorama of the city over the following 8 days. Possibly the greatest feat of memory there has ever been.

 

Tokyo Panorama by Stephen Wiltshire

See a larger version of the above panorama here

I love Stephen’s work, we have a shared interest in architecture and classic vehicles. Several years ago  I even bought a tiny sketch he had done of a New York taxi. It seems that  taxis have become one of his favorite things to draw, but for me his most awe-inspiring pictures are his cityscapes of London and New York. 

 

New York Taxi by Stephen Wiltshire

Next time I am in London I plan to visit his gallery, but until then I’ll continue to keep up to date with all his work at his website.

Baraka

A couple of years ago I met up with Jeremy Sutton-Hibbert, a Tokyo based photographer who produces fantastic images for clients ranging from The Guardian to Greenpeace. During our conversation he asked which photographers I was inspired by. There was a rather embarrassing pause, followed by me admitting that I had always been inspired more by TV and movies than photographers.  The truth is it was the images from documentaries like The Trials of Life and movies such as Dances with Wolves and Braveheart that were truly awe-inspiring. There is one film above all others that really affected me  - Baraka.

Baraka

 

 

Baraka is a fantastic journey through 24 countries with breathtaking cinematography.  I was amazed when I saw it 14 years ago as a university student, and it still inspires me. One wonderful thing is that I have now been to some of the places captured in the film. I have witnessed snow monkeys relaxing in their hot spring pools, and thousands of commuters surge through Tokyo’s stations. 

 

In a previous post I talked about film size and the tradeoff between film size( and therefore image quality) with portability and cost. Just as my still camera uses film that is 56mm x 67mm to get higher image quality than 35mm film. Baraka was filmed in 70mm film rather than the standard 35mm motion picture film format (Lawrence of Arabia was also filmed in 70mm).  For a few years I have had Baraka on DVD but happily gave this copy to a friend as now Baraka on Blu-ray has been released.  The original 70mm film  was restored and rescanned at extremely high resolution to produce images that will once again inspire awe.  

Don’t just take my word for it as an obvious fan. Film critic Roger Ebert said is was “the finest video disc I have ever viewed or ever imagined.”

Is it the greatest film ever made? Maybe. Perhaps, I shouldn’t feel so embarrassed that my inspiration comes from the moving pictures after all.