Egyptian Memories For Sale

OK so a few years back I went on a Nile river cruise and it was one of the coolest things I have ever done ! Better still I took some awesome photographs that I then put into a book using Lightroom & Blurb so that I would have a hard copy to share with friends.
I have posted the best of the collection online before and received great feedback. So now, with Christmas approaching,  I am offering the book for sale.

Egypt - the Long Cruise aboard the SS Misr by Simon W Randall | Make Your Own Book

So if you are a lover of Egypt or know someone who is this may just be the perfect present.

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An Eventful Few Weeks

Have I mentioned that I have started doing event photography ?
The folks at Cheshire Life Magazine have taken me on as a freelancer covering Manchester. It's only part time, which means one job every four to six weeks, so not enough to live on but it's work and it gets my name in print (about 30,000 in circulation).
All I have to do is be available, turn up on time and cover every important detail and get peoples names spelt correctly. Luckily for me this summer saw a few extra events so I've already shot three with two more booked.
The key is to travel light, eat before you go, don't drink alcohol and be respectful.

Salvi's Restaurant launch event

My first job was covering Salvi's Restaurant and a dinner they laid on to promote their new restaurant  and deli which will be opening across town.

I was lucky with this one. It was early enough for the daylight to make exposure easy and I didn't have to fight the camera over slow shutter speeds  when it did get dark. There is nothing worse than uploading the shots onto your pc only to discover that some are too 'soft' for print. Low light shooting is a whole new arena. More on that to come...

Getting on Track and Getting Serious

Finally life has given me space to get back to doing what I love.
    So in the last two months I connected with the editor of Cheshire Life magazine and she gave be the opportunity to do some freelance event photography. Go to a venue photograph people enjoying the hospitality and make sure you get their names spelt correctly. Then deliver the shots promptly.
    It's only occasional work (once a month if lucky) but you get to go to interesting places and meet interesting people. I have learned though that it is a good idea to check in with the PR person a couple of days before the event to make sure there haven't been any last minute changes or cancellations !

    So far two events covered and a few more lined up over the next few months (and yes I get paid !). For the first event I used my prime lenses -50ml f1.8 and 85ml f1.8 these are great for interior shoots thanks to their big apertures. Then combine a TTL off camera flash and you have got it covered. Obviously this means lens changes are needed according to the subject matter which means carrying the lenses and stopping every couple of minutes to change over. Not too efficient. Well, when you know there is more work coming and you are serious about it you invest in the appropriate equipment. In this case a 28-70ml f2.8 lens. This is the lens that every Canon shooter talks about and wishes that they could afford. Used for portrait, fashion and editorial it is a fabulous piece of kit but at £1400.00 new it is out of reach of mere mortals.

   Step in Wex Photographic who are fast becoming my favourite supplier. Free and almost always next day delivery and their used department is excellent. Who ever writes the descriptions and ratings for the used equipment is very modest and conservative. The 28 -70ml lens that I invested in was described as having some wear on the focusing ring and around the mounting. Well when I received the parcel, wrapped in about 6 feet of bubble wrap, even the original box looked as new ! I spent five minutes examining the lens looking for any sign of wear. I could not even find any dust inside the elements. So at £749.00 it's an investment but if you pick carefully you can get your hands on an 'as new' lens at half the price ! So how serious are you ?
    I intend to keep shooting and want to keep Cheshire Life magazine happy so this lens is a real investment in my career and that has to be a good thing.

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