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Birmingham Loves Photographers
Run in conjunction with the independent coffee shop 6/8 Kafé, this is a space to promote Birmingham based photographers all of styles, both amateur and professional. We will also be a running events for photography around the West Midlands. If you want your work featured on here, please contact by Ask Me a Question, or go to our Twitter @birmlovestogs
Birmingham Loves Photographers Website
We have now moved to BirminghamLovesphotographers.com
Come check it out and get involved!
Photo Of The Week by Ian Winstanley: ‘Painted Priest - Kathmandu’
Kate Hook
How did you get into photography/what is your background?
It was when I was about 14 when my dad bought a camcorder where I started playing around with imagery, and then about a year later I got a compact digital camera. It was a really good camera to start with (it was a Fuji one but I can’t remember what model it was!) as it had manual settings so I taught myself the ins and outs of photography. I studied photography at Sutton Art & Design from 2006 to 2008, but due to personal circumstances I gave up photography shortly after I passed my course. Just over a year ago I was encouraged to get back into it and bought my first DSLR and never looked back.
How would you describe your style of photography?
Guess I’d have to say “fresh” as I’m still learning new skills with it and it shows in my work. I’m not known for having a certain style, just being able to do a small variation of techniques and being experimental. I’m quite edgy and starting to become a lot more risqué with my images.
What equipment do you use?
I use a d90 and I’ve started using a manual lens off an old Nikon SLR camera. Also I like to do Lomography so I use a Mini Diana and a Holga a lot too.
Who has influenced your work?
Terry Richardson & Ellen Von Unwerth I’d say were my biggest influences when studying photography. My friends are always throwing ideas at me for pictures, even models have given me some good ideas on shoots! I get a lot of my ideas from my surroundings, like I’ll walk into a scuffy lil corner shop and think it’ll be a great place to do a shoot. As well as different cultures, music, old books, even from old movies I get influenced by styles, colours, even just what an extra is wearing can influence me!
Do you have any ideas on how photography in Birmingham can be developed or ideas for events/projects?
There should be exhibitions that don’t cost a bomb to get involved with! Also maybe start up some workshops with different photographers so they can teach their own tricks of the trade.
Lewis Maxwell Bloor
Q. How did you get into photography/what is your background?
When I was around 18 I had no real interests apart from playing in punk bands, playing gigs and DJing parties and night clubs but I needed something to do between all these things to actually make some money to live… I applied for a bunch of jobs, one of which was as a photographers assistant at a commercial photographers. I trained as a commercial photographer for 5 years, starting with large format 5x4 film cameras and medium format hasselblads, then digital backs then dSLR’s. The boss retired and I went to uni to do a graphic design degree and used photography as my main medium borrowing cameras whenever i could. I left uni and moved to Birmingham to be a designer. I realised how much the company were spending on outsourcing so I started a photography department. Product photography, specialising in watches is my day job but always having access to a camera I’d never bought one or owned my own until last year when a friend asked me to photograph her wedding and I thought I’d have a go. the week I got a canon 500D my band were playing so I took the camera along to the gig to photograph the other bands and quite enjoyed it. from there I just took it with me everywhere and just started shooting.
Q. How would you describe your style of photography?
My motto is “point, shoot, hope…”. After working as a product photographer and training to be precise while using lots of lighting set ups, I enjoy just getting to somewhere, seeing what the lighting is like and going from there. I enjoy long exposures, movement, flash, available light, lens filters and having fun. I like to post produce as I used to enjoy cross processing and using different films, I see it as a natural progression from the dark room. I know there are a lot of people that swear by film still but after 5 years of 3 trips a day to the processors not knowing if the 8 shots of the day have turned out correct there’s no love lost where that’s concerned! I guess I like my shots to be slightly whimsical and show the viewer something extra than what they might see in real life.
Q. What equipment do you use?
I’m a bit of a canon fan boy nowadays, a 1Ds III in the studio, a 60D for weddings and location and a 500D for wondering around with. I buy whatever equipment I can afford, loads of lenses, flash guns, lens filters, lights, reflectors and daft add-ons that can add some sort of creative twist to any situation
Q. Who/what has influenced your work?
The first photographer that I assisted was a bastard, but I am eternally grateful for everything he taught me, his precision was unparalleled in studio environments although his manner left a lot to be desired. I love a lot of design based photography like Alexander Rodchenko and Josef Müller-Brockmann but I’m addicted to buying photography books and trying to work out how photographers light their shots. I guess from the younger photographers I enjoy the work of Tom Barnes and my good friend Joe Watson from the band Attack! Vipers! Check out his work and his rad music! then my band… Cannons And Tanks, obviously ;)
Q. Do you have any ideas on how photography in Birmingham can be developed or ideas for events/projects?
I’ve been a little scared to come to the meets as I don’t know anyone really and don’t have anyone to go with, I guess I’d like there to be a little club or get together on a Sunday afternoon where everyone can come and meet similar people in the same situation :D
Contact Lews on:
Website: http://lewismaxwell.carbonmade.com/
Tumblr: http://wentdownfighting.tumblr.com/
Twitter: @pointshoothope
Andrew Pilsbury
Q. How did you get into photography/what is your background?
Well photography for me came around when I was at college, when I had the intention of studying illustration. However the illustration course wasn’t what I expected, so I took a gamble with photography, which proved to be a good choice. The photography course was great and soon I was hooked, it was an interesting medium to experiment with, completely different from pencil and paper.
After college I completed a degree in Visual Communication at BCU, where I was able to continue my Photography, whilst also exploring and refining other skills in illustration and design.
Q. How would you describe your style of photography?
I’ve not fully worked out my style yet, however I do know I am always looking to improve and experiment with different techniques, which has effect on my shooting style. I suppose my work falls into the ‘Reportage’ and ‘Documentary’ but I am slowly getting more into portraits, especially old people for some reason?!
Q. What equipment do you use?
I use a Mamiya C330 medium format and a Canon A1 35mm at the minute. I stand by film and its timeless qualities, and will hopefully always use, but for convenience and when the bank says I can, I will upgrade to digital.
Q. Who/what has influenced your work?
My peers and lecturers in education to begin with, most have influenced my work in some way shape or form, possibly good, possibly bad. I’m always looking at other photographers, whether my friends or professionals, Zed nelson, Joel Sternfeld, Stephen Shore and Joel Meyerowitz to name a few in photography. Spike Jonze, Chris Cunningham and Shane Meadows in film. My surroundings and encounters become important to my thinking and theories, I’m always looking at people and places for inspiration.
Q. Do you have any ideas on how photography in Birmingham can be developed or ideas for events/projects?
I went to a lecture by Magnum photographer Chris Steele Perkins this week, as part of Birmingham’s ‘Take To The Streets’ events and exhibitions. The talk was incredibly inspirational, and there was a good turn out of photographers throughout Birmingham. It’s things like this that should be promoted more and arranged throughout the area. Events like this are great to discuss work and ideas along with checking out the competition. I think it’s healthy to see who, as a photographer you are up against, and the level of work out there at the minute.
Contact Andrew on:
Website: cargocollective.com/andypilsbury
Email: aphotographic@gmail.com
Portrait Project - Round 2 Pictures
Below are the results of the second round of the Birmingham Loves Photographers Portrait Project. Snappers from around the Birmingham entered their names into a pool and were paired up to take portraits of one another and share tips and styles. There’s no prizes or competition involved, it’s all in the name of fun.If you would like to know more or take part in the next round, then send an email to blpportraitproject@gmail.com and we’ll take it from there
Andy Reeve by Matt Daniels
Matt Daniels by Andy Reeve
Craig Bush by Jon Bell
Jill Evans (B&W) by Jon Iles
Jill Evans (colour) by Jon Iles
Louise Holgate by Karl Stevens
Pete Sloan by Kathryn Cartwright
Karl Stevens by Louise Holgate
Kathryn Cartwright by Pete Sloan
Jon Iles by Jill Evans
Matt Walford
Q. How did you get into photography/what is your background?
I first got into photography when I went to college, it was a City&Guilds course focusing on black and white photography, I was also studying Graphic design which was my main interest back then. But when I developed my first roll of film I instantly loved it, I really liked messing round with different darkroom techniques like scratching/burning negatives, as well as putting things directly on the enlarger.
After that I kind of forgot about photography for a few years and concentrated on graphic design, but my heart wasn’t really in it and I liked playing with photoshop more than actually doing graphic design… Flash forward a year or two when I didn’t really know what I wanted to do, apart from skateboard, and I found myself travelling around New Zealand for a month where I fell in love with Photography again and decided that I would try to get into a Uni to study it.
I got accepted (to my surprise) to the University of Gloucester on their Editorial and Advertising course. In the first year we had an excellent grounding in film and darkroom techniques, but during the second year whilst using digital I really started to know this was what I wanted to do. I graduated with a 1st in 2008 and after a few small assisting jobs I decided I wanted to go Freelance, but it’s tough!
Q. How would you describe your style of photography?
Surreal-digital montage?
I use a lot of different techniques when I’m making a picture, when I was at Uni I started experimenting with flat-bed scanners and how they capture things which I then incorporated with digital imagery for a lot of my work. This has kind of given my work a pretty unique feel. I have also got really into taking things apart (like flowers, or watches) and putting them back together again and a completely different way. This gives a very unique final image but is pretty time consuming! I recently made an owl out of tiny watch parts. Bit Frankenstien-esque :-) With the ongoing advances in technology the only real limits to photography are imagination and budget.
But along with that style of imagery, I love landscape photography which I apply the same digital montage ethos to, as I take a number of different exposures for each scene then blend them together manually to make it look like what I originally imagined in my head.
What equipment do you use?
I use Nikon DSLRs and lenses. I also use a modified Epson flatbed scanned for the digital capture of various things. And then Photoshop. For some of my images I don’t even use a camera, just the scanner and Photoshop.
Who/what has influenced your work?
Music, books, science, film, illustrators. Randomly looking at crap on the internet can be pretty inspirational sometimes. I just came across Luigi Serafini who is amazing! Some of the photographers who’s work I really love are… Guy Bourdin, Erik Almas, Olaf Veltman, Morgan Slik, Giles Revvel to name just a few!
Do you have any ideas on how photography in Birmingham can be developed or ideas for events/projects?
I think Simon Winnall pretty much hit the nail on the head, the photographic community getting together can only be a good thing, that and more photographic centred exhibitions in the area.
Contact Matt on:
Blog is…. www.lasoothemoon.blogspot.com
Email is… oi@mattwalford.co.uk
Birmingham Loves Photographers Portrait Project (round one)
Below are the results of the first round of the Birmingham Loves Photographers Portrait Project. Snappers from around the Birmingham entered their names into a pool and were paired up to take portraits of one another and share tips and styles. There’s no prizes or competition involved, it’s all in the name of fun.
If you would like to know more or take part in the next round, then send an email to blpportraitproject@gmail.com and we’ll take it from there.
Alan Palmer by Karl Stevens
Alex Jones by Chaz Barnes
Andrea May Chance-Hill by Andy Round
Andy Round by Andrea May Chance-Hill
Chaz Barnes by Alex Jones
Claire Williams by Craig Bush
Craig Bush by Claire Williams
Harry Starling by Pete Sloan
Jennifer Peel by Jonathan Bell
Jonathan Bell by Jennifer Peel
Pete Sloan by Harry Starling
Rob Connor by Craig Bush
