My goal this year was to take more photos, and that’s what I’m doing. Thanks my Ricoh GR3 I have a camera with me all of the time.
Spring is around the corner too, so lighter nights are making it easier to take photos.
Feeling Snappy
Point and Shoot
I don’t hate the camera on my phone, but I am not a fan of using my phone as a camera. It’s big (bring back the iPhone Mini), and the controls are rubbish, and making manual adjustments takes too long. I wanted something to take on days out with friends (which usually involves drinking), or on a city break. Something that was small and easy to use.
The X100vi is still a fairly hefty camera, and definitely not pocket-able. So, I decided to dig out my point and shoot.
This camera has been sat in my sock drawer for a good few years and hasn’t been used. It wasn’t cheap and I have thought about selling it a bunch of times. But, I’m glad I didn’t because I haven’t given it a fair chance.
This isn’t a review, there are a million already out there by much more qualified people.
I love the sound this camera makes when you turn it on. That’s a good reason to buy a camera right? It’s the little things.
I like to use this camera in aperture priority (AV) mode. It can be used fully manual, but with a camera this size I just want to worry about the aperture. As I’m using this as a point and shoot I don’t want to spend lots of time editing. So I generally just use the straight out of camera Jpegs.
I have three presets on the dial for different colour profiles, Kodak, Portra and Ilford Black and White. But, the built in colour modes are good too, and easy to access from the control dial.
There are lots of great recipes over at https://ricohrecipes.com, the same guys that run the brilliant https://fujixweekly.com.
In my last post I wrote that I wanted to take more photos this year, and photos of our life rather than just one I’d put in my ‘portfolio’. This camera will definitely help with that.
Steel City
I love Sheffield. I think it’s a bit of a forgotten city, even here in Yorkshire people think Leeds or York are where it’s at. But, Sheffield has such a lot going on and a nice friendly atmosphere. I was there the other day to meet some friends for lunch, so I decided to go a little early and capture a few images, and as is usual these days my Fuji X100VI went with me. I was short on time, and didn’t get to explore as much as I’d have liked, but it’s only down the road so I will make the time to take a trip there just for photography.
This was an instant click of the shutter button. As soon as I saw this scene. I loved the trolley being parked up while the bloke had his break.
I saw the girl in the coat a little too late, so she’s out of focus. Let’s pretend she’s moving really fast and it’s intentional.
I would have prefer just the Crepe stand, bt it was so busy. But, the point of street photography is to capture what’s going on.
I love older couples, I’m an old romantic. She was helping him get the lid on his coffee, after losing patience with him. It reminded me of my wife.
I need to go back and take this again. There’s better framing to be had.
What did I learn? Well, nobody cares if you’re taking photographs, so I don’t need to stress about street photography as much.
I need to change the focus modes on my camera. I’m still in landscape mindset, so autofocus isn’t set to ‘continuous’ and my focus is on fixed central point. Every day is a lesson.
Candid Camera
I’ve never been one for New Years resolutions, and if I have I doubt I ever kept them. But, this year I have decided to set a couple of photography goals. The first is simply to take more photographs with the aim for getting four ‘good’ images a month. What’s a good image? That’s subjective, obviously – but for me it’s something that I like enough to post on the front page of in the portfolio section of this site, but that doesn’t happen very often. For example, I went out the other week and took 129 photos, and kept only three. Of those, I’m happy to post them in my blog, but not anywhere else.
My second goal is to take more candid photos of family and friends, not just photographs that (in my head) are worth sharing with other photographers. Our first grandchild is due this year, and the older I get the more sentimental I am. iPhone photography doesn’t do it for me, it’s the buttons – there aren’t any!
My last goal is to simplify my whole process, by having less process. For the whole year I’m only going to shoot in JPEG, and do as little post processing as possible. One of my favorite things about Fuji cameras is the Film Sim bracketing, which allows me to take three photographs at once, each with a different film sim. Then, there’s the endless recipes for creating filmic looks. I’m hoping it will make me compose better in camera. I’ve got rid of my Adobe subscription. I begrudged paying it, but it was the standard and everyone was using it. I’m going to do as little editing as possible, so I need need a fancy bit of software.
I really want 2025 to be more relaxed, and fun. Hopefully that will come across in my photography.
That’s all 2024…
Time flies, doesn’t it? It feels like just yesterday we were celebrating Christmas, but here we are at the end of 2024.
I didn’t have any specific photography goals at the start of the year. I’m not really one for New Year’s resolutions. But life has taken some interesting turns.
I switched from using Lumix cameras to a Fuji cameras. That brought its own set of challenges. The most positive being that I don’t spend as much time editing as I used to. I’m a big fan of the film simulations, so I focus more on getting the shot right in the camera rather than in Lightroom.
I tried my hand at street photography for the first time. It was a bit nerve-wracking, but I had a blast. I love seeing other photographers’ street work, and I’ve been collecting books on the subject. Mr. Whisper’s work is really inspiring (more on him next week).
I discovered new local spots to photograph, which got me into clouds (especially in black and white). I hope to explore that more next year.
We also managed a few trips away.
So, while it wasn’t an incredible year overall, it wasn’t bad either. And most importantly, I still love photography.
Ynys Môn
(That’s Anglesey to you and me)
Had a lovely break in Anglesey recently. Thankfully, it stayed dry, however like the rest of the UK, the sun hasn’t made an appearance since last month. Anglesey is an absolutely beautiful place. It has everything; mountains, lakes, forests and the most amazing beaches. I’m not going to write much about it, it wasn’t a photographic break, just some much needed downtime.
Street Photography
If you’re a street photographer, then you have my absolute respect. It scares the shit out of me. I took my camera into Sheffield the other week with the intention of doing some candid street photography, and I was so nervous. I just don’t have the guts to point my camera at complete strangers and take a photo.
I found myself holding my camera at my side, pointing it in the general direction, pressing the shutter and hoping for the best…. That’s not good. It doesn’t allow for composition, adjusting the settings, making sure the focus is right. Ugh. Any half decent photo would be pure happy accident.
I don’t know why I was so nervous. There were plenty of other people with cameras taking photos and nobody was confronting them. I think this is the reason I tend to stick to landscape type photography, the trees won’t accuse me of invading their privacy (as far as I know).
So, do I just give up? I don’t think so. I really like street photography (other peoples). I like images with humanity doing human things. I just need to build up my confidence, and I have a plan.
I’ve signed up to do a street photography course with Fuji in London at the end of January. That in itself is a big deal for me as it means being around other people and being open about my visual impairment, but at least we’ll have common interests so we’ll have something to talk about. They provide all of the gear, but I’ll take my own as it’s set up how I like it. Hopefully, I’ll come away more confident and less worried about other people.
Eye Spy
Drones can be controversial as a subject. Understandably people have privacy issues with them, and now sub 250g drones can be flown closer to people and buildings there is a chance they could become even less unpopular. I tend to fly mine only when I know I’m a long way from other people and I’m not going to get hassled. Also, I pretty much exclusively use mine for stills photography. It’s very rare that I use them for video. Of the three I own, one is a DJI Mini 4 Pro which I would call my ‘main’ drone. The tech packed into this tiny package has come so far in the last ten years. It can pretty much fly itself, and the avoidance and safety features make it fool proof. Even I, with one eye can safely operate it. The other two are a DJI Avata 2 which is just used mostly for fun as it’s a racing drone, and lastly a DJI Neo, a new model that’s ridiculously small and I’m still figuring out. It’s classed a as a ‘selfy’ drone, but can do quite a lot more.
So, why am I writing about drones? Well, I was pleasantly surprised to see that Landscape Photographer of the Year had added drone photography as a category over the last few years (although sadly, they have left it out this year). It’s something I’ve dipped my toe into, but never fully got stuck into. As someone that tend to go tp the same place for photography I’m always looking for new angles and perspectives. So, what better way to do that than from the air?
I’m always looking for a new way to view a familiar place because most of my photography is done in one location, so as big as that space it it can be a challenge to find something new. Using a drone has massively increased the number of options I have, especially because I photograph in a wetland. For example, the image above is a location I regularly walk by, but I’ve never been able to find a good angle until now.
I particularly enjoy the types of shots shown above. Straight down with contrasting terrain (in this case marsh and scrubland). Again, it’s something that isn’t possible with a normal camera.
There are some downsides to drone photography. Firstly, I feel very self conscious. Despite a relaxing of the laws around flying drones under 250g (which mine is) which allows them to be flown closer to people and buildings, I still feel incredibly uncomfortable flying anywhere other people might see me. I think that is a me problem. Luckily, the kind of photography I enjoy generally means I am nowhere near other people anyway.
The other issue is that you can’t just take the drone out of your camera bag and go. So, it’s no good for something fleeting. By the time you’ve taken it out of the bag, unfolded it, taken off the lens protectors, turned it on, turned the RC on, got a satellite signal and a return to home point locked in, you’ve lost a good few minutes.
I also worry about the wind taking the drone off too, but I think that isn’t really a risk. They’re quite wind resilient.
The drones have a lot of videos capabilities that I currently haven’t explored. I am quite keen to get more into video though, so it will be fun to get into that later on. Hopefully the more I get out there, the more confident I’ll become and the more interesting my drone images will become.
All Change (again)
It’s been a while….
Since I last wrote on this blog I have a new camera. The X100vi is amazing, and I’ll keep it for travel and an everyday carry camera. But, I needed more flexibility with focal lengths. I stuck with Fuji and got the XT50, and after having it for a couple of months I’m really happy with it. It’s basically an X100Vi with interchangeable lenses.
I love the sensors on this range of Fuji cameras. Going from regularly using 16mp to 40mp is a revelation, and allows me to capture so much detail. Similarly the jump from micro four thirds to APSC sensor allows for much greater freedom when shooting low light. Fuji have managed to pack a lot into a small package. I paired the camera with the Fuji 15-50mm which is great for just about everything, especially landscape photography, and Fuji the 35mm lenses which is fantastic for street and portraits (not that I do much portraiture).
I haven’t quite been out as much as I’d like in the last few months, but hopefully that will change now. Also, it’s autumn – which anyone knows is the best time of year for photography so I’d be stupid not to.
I’m going through a black and white phase. Mostly because when I have been out it’s been in bright sunlight so taking out the colour helps to concentrate on the subject (at least for me).
The photo above is a new local discovery on the Moorland down the road. It’s nice to still be finding new things over there. I’d love to know how these trees ended up looking like this. I’m going to try and get some different angles from above. I’ll also try from the other side. To help with that, I’ve bought a new drone. It’s the DJI Mini 4 Pro. I had planned to use it only for photography. However, since I have a DJI Pocket 3 and some DJI mics, I might try and dabble with some video.
Maybe I’ll end up on Youtube…. not really.
The Great British Seaside, and the Fuji X100vi
A Quick Note – I lost the original images featured in this post when I accidentally formatted the memory card, so I wasn’t going to write it. In the end I’ve gone ahead, but I’ve had to use the Instagram copies, which is why they don’t look great.
Over the last year or so I’ve moved away from landscape photography. It’s something I’m still really interested in, and still enjoy. But, the reality is I live somewhere that isn’t very landscape-y. So, I’m trying other things, one of them being street photography.
I have always been nervous about trying street photography. Mostly, I’ve been worried about someone being upset about me taking their photo, either intentionally or not. I don’t know why, I’ve had my photo snapped a fair amount when we’ve been in York and I’ve never been upset by it, but some people can be funny. But, an impromptu Wednesday night trip to Scarbrough a few weeks ago and a new camera were a good motivation to give it a go.
The first thing I learned – walking a dog whilst trying to take photos doesn’t work. Especially if you already have vision issues making getting around challenging. The second thing I learned, my wife would rather I didn’t take photos when she’s around.
This was the first time I used my new camera. I didn’t realise I had the in built ND filter turned on, so that slowed the shutter speed down and related in blurry images. Thanks a lot eyes….
I decided to shoot solely in JPEG, after all one of the points of the new camera was less time messing around editing. I’m pleased to say, it worked for me. There was a bit of cropping here and there, but that’s it. I mostly used a ‘recipe’ (I hate that term in this context) from Fuji X Weekly, which is a great resource for finding film simulations that aren’t already built in to the camera. In this instance I mostly used Vibrant Arizona (inspired by the Wes Anderson film, Asteroid City), which is a look I’ve really like since I saw the film.
I was stressing about manually adding recipes to the X100, but it’s actually fairly easy. Once you’ve changed one the rest come fairly easy. That said, I do want to spend more time taking photos with the in build simulations, but Scarborough was made for this recipe.
It turns out people don’t care if you’re taking photos. I think they assume they’re not in the frame. It helps that this camera has a small profile and doesn’t have a massive lens sticking out of the front.
Speaking of the lens. The biggest worry I had about moving to this camera was a fixed focal length. In this instance, the 23mm (35mm full frame equivalent) was perfect, and the 40MP sensor allows for a lot of cropping if needed. It will be interesting to see how I feel about actual landscape photography with this focal length.
The one thing I don’t like about this camera (and there is only one thing), the front dial is too close to the on off switch. I kept changing the shutter speed instead of turning the camera off, or vice versa.
What did I learn on this trip? Always take the right glasses. Always. Check your camera settings with the right glasses on, so you can actually see them. Don’t format the SD card until you have copied the images to the network drive. Dogs or wives and cameras don’t mix. Street photography isn’t scary.
On that last point, street photography isn’t scary. I did kind of enjoy it, but I don’t think it’s something I would set out specifically to go and do. I still think that what I enjoy capturing the most lies somewhere between landscape photography and documentary style photography. Something that shows the human relationship with the natural world rather than towns and cities. Maybe.
This was my first outing with the Fuji X100vi, and yes, I still love it. I’ve spent the weeks since this going over the camera and learning where everything is. I’ve changed the function buttons around 87 times, and think I’m finally settled on them.
I think I’m at the point now where I feel confident enough to go out and really enjoy using it.
Shaun Madill Photography 