The old ones are the best. The Nikon 50mm f1.4.

In all the hullaballo surrounding the digital revolution some things get left behind. In my case it was the humble 50mm lens. When I started out in photography the lens of choice when buying a new SLR body was a 50mm...... and a roll of film. FILM! Yep, it was that long ago. Kodak GOLD I seem to remember was where I started. Colour negative - there's a phrase consigned to history.

Anyway back to the 50mm. It was a beauty, small, light, sat well on the camera. Used it for years til I needed to get more versatile. Zoom lenses got much better, more popular and were good value for money. Mr Nikon 50mm got consigned to a cupboard here in Bristol and was, quite frankly, forgotten about. Until now, he was dusted down and given an outing this week and he was as good as ever. A client was asking for a shallow depth of field and my normal weapons of choice didn't cut the mustard. In a last ditch attempt to fulfil the brief I dug out the 50mm. Oh yes, that did the trick. He's back in the bag and raring to go again. We salute you, the ever delightful Nikon 50mm f1.4.

Christmas is coming..already

I'm back photographing in Bristol today but I was out shooting for next Christmas earlier this week. Yep, just when the credit card was starting to breathe again and the memories of overindulgence and turkey were fading....along came Christmas 2010. It turned out to be a lovely shoot even if it was slightly unseasonal!

Thought you might like to see some more images

Fine art prints - Images by Jonathan Bowcott

Large montage

When I first moved back to Bristol to start my photography business one of the first commercial jobs I was commissioned to do was for Parsons Bakery. They are great to work for, firstly because they are very old friends and secondly they trusted me enough to shoot some striking black and white images for them. Shot in a gritty documentary style there was no strict brief other than to show that what they do isn't just a huge faceless production line. Real people bake real bread. The images went down really well. In fact all their stores around Bristol now boast either framed images or canvas prints from the shoot. Recently they asked for a 2 metre long canvas with a montage of some of their images. No problem - spoke to the lab and after some tech/practical constraints I picked it up last week.
Obviously I'm biased but it does look impressive. They are very pleased too.
I'm really happy that the photographs have longevity and I'm still very fond of this shoot and the images produced.
Here's the website link for them. My montage features on the homepage too!
Parsons Bakery, Bristol

Subscribe to this feed CHANGES to address

Thanks to those who've already subscribed. I've changed the feed and address (simply for getting 'found' on the net reasons) so please resubscribe and join in with my stuff. Cheers

Sleepwalking to censorship and a police state

I'm speechless. This:  POLICE ARREST PHOTOGRAPHER  is happening more and more to photographers in the UK. Mandelson and his evangelical zeal regarding the The Digital Economy Bill means that photography could effectively become illegal in the open air. Don't sleepwalk into censorship, write to your MP now, before it's too late. See more here: Copyright erosion

Some more images have been uploaded

Products - Images by Jonathan Bowcott

Photoshop is 20

Congratulations to all those involved. The evolution of a product over that time has seen enormous progress - paradigm shifts in the way the photographic industry works and the way amateur photographers shoot and view their images.
In my house I'm affectionately (I think) known as 'The Digital Dr' as I can smooth away lines and tone down anything considered unsightly. This is a controversial subject - Should images be doctored? If it wasn't for the retouched images on magazines would women, girls (and men increasingly) have a better image of themselves? Not sure I'm qualified to answer that. As long as any retouching is done subtly and doesn't alter the actual shape or appearance of someone then perhaps it's OK? I don't get many people suggesting that the lines around the eyes that I softened by 20% makes then look retouched or false. Surely everyone likes a spot on their chin removed? I wonder where the line is and when it gets crossed. Any ideas?
Adobe

A slideshow

More testing I'm afraid. I'm trying out a new website and I can send slideshows all over the place from there so I'm trying out here to see if it works. I'll be happy when all this maintenance is over. Until then here's the slideshow.

People - Images by Jonathan Bowcott

Hang on a minute, shouldn't there be some pictures?

Yep! Since the last post I've spent a whole bunch of time looking at sites, thinking about my own website and integrating the blog. How about this option or that option? My head is buzzing. In fact I've been dreaming about websites. This morning is the first time since last week when I've had an opportunity to sit at my desk and try things out. It's basically taken me all morning to try and customise a different blog to integrate with an image hosting site so I can keep everything together. Then frustration sets in and I'm back with Blogger (nothing wrong with blogger) In fact, its easy peasy lemon squeezy, whereas the other guys seem to be, to quote 'In the Loop,' "Difficult, difficult, lemon difficult.
It's almost 2pm and I'm starting to resolve some issues. Double espresso on the way and......you never know, I might even add some images to my blog soon. That'd be a novelty eh!

I'm going to get the hang of this....

As usual, the more you look into something the more you find out. I'm using this post to see if it automatically lets my twitter followers know I've posted something new to my blog. In the meantime I'm reading a photographers guide to social media an excellent free resource from some nice Canadians! Here goes.....

Shameless link 2

In an act of barely disguised desperation I implore you to vote for my book. Not since my Blue Peter Badge have I won anything and I want to do it for my boy!!!! C'mon, Book of the year at the age of 2, life won't get any better for him! Here's a link to go to. Sign in and vote your hearts out. Cheers ta. Link = help Jonathan Bowcott win book of the year. Vote for September 2009s book called Lets Go!

Tech. Exciting or dull depending on your POV

Todays shoot will be at twilight - if the light at twilight is good and the location is clear! That means I have some time to play with some new software I'm test driving. Capture One is a RAW processing tool from a Danish company that has a low public profile. Probably because it's associated with high end cameras that cost as much as a Volvo. However, if your camera is supported by the software then it has a fantastic reputation. I have Photoshop, Aperture Lightroom 3 and now Capture One. I've always been slightly underwhelmed by Camera RAW in Photoshop - never gives me what I saw straight out of the can, so to speak. Lightroom is also from Adobe and as a streamlined product is good but the RAW processing is essentially the same as Photoshop. Apples Aperture gives a much better RAW conversion straight out of the box but I've never quite mastered it. (they released Aperture 3 yesterday so I might be a bit premature) Which brings me neatly to Capture One. The RAW conversion it does straight out of the box is fabulous. It somehow manages to tweak more out of the image than any of the other options leading to a v. clean, bright, usable image with v. little extra needed. Am enjoying playing with it but have yet to work out a proper workflow that involves the import of images and once processed how to get them out of the program. Going to use some test shots done of my images on the wall at the surgery. Dull images, but if I mess up there'll be no tears. Laters.......

Say what you mean and mean what you say........are you sure?

Less than a day in and realising that there are all sorts of boobytraps awaiting the impulsive blogger. If I say this..... and that person reads it..... will they tell so and so? Need the diplomacy skills of, well, a good diplomat. Ain't got those so might be re-editing posts after they've gone out and I've come to my senses. No point in upsetting people with less than thought out comments. Personally, I like to really think things through properly before upsetting people!

Shameless link

Gotta do all you can these days. www.jonathanbowcott.com

Exhibition

As part of a drive to brighten up hospitals and health centres locally there is an initiative getting local artists to hang images and make the whole business of being ill slightly better. I'm hanging some images this afternoon as a 2 month exhibition at a local surgery. Hoping it brings cheer to some people and a desire to buy to others! At least it'll get me out of the house where there are currently 3 little boys causing havoc.

Something for nothing

Why is it that when you agree to do something at a reduced fee or FOC that the job escalates and you have to spend more and more time trying to play catch up on what, at first glance, looked simple?
Having said that I have learnt a bunch of stuff today and I realise that what I take for granted ain't as easy for others to comprehend. Note to self: Try and be a bit more patient.

Gotta go

OK, I created this blog and now I see I gotta go. Late already, bye.