Oxheys Mill current exhibition

I took a studio in an old mill in Preston a while back and between myself and two others, we cleaned it up and have been turning it into a gallery space along with our own studios.

There was an open event a month or so back but the place opened officially last week with all resident artists ( 7 now I think ) putting up their work and rolling up the shutters for all to see.

The opening went well and it will be open during October for all to view. Info at oxheysmillstudios.com

My own studio has taken shape and looking good. I've been involved in a bit of commercial portraiture in there with the flash setup I'm running and also have a couple of irons in the fire which I'll explain as they start coming more together.

I'm also starting to build some new sites so my joekennedyphoto site may be due a bit of a revamp - I also found that I own joekennedyphotography.co.uk aswell so may do something with that.

Contrast group exhibition

Four of the prints in my Off Season project have been included in a group show concerned with contemporary analogue photography.

Although they are digitally scanned and printed, the shots were taken with my trusty Pentax 67 which although it unfortunately doesn't come out as often as in the past ( the 5D M2 sees to that ), it still has a quality that in my mind eludes digital imaging.

If you have chance to pop by - its in Standish near Wigan - have a look in as their promises to be some interesting work.

NY Yankees v Toronto Blue Jays

While in NY, I went over to see a baseball game at Yankee Stadium. Great experience soaking up the atmosphere and the friendly vibe although being sat in the bleachers it got pretty rowdy.

Saw some homers, a lot of catches, some stolen bases......I haven't got a clue what I'm on about.......anyway, here are some of the shots I took with my Voigtlander.

Central Park image & studio wallpaper

I shot this image on my Holga in Central Park a couple of weeks back. I decided it would look good as an attempt at wallpaper on a rubbishy wall at my studio. Here's the photo and below is the short timelapse of me putting the thing up.
I'm happy with the finished result - theres a large rack and desk combo going in front of it but it will be viewed through the couple of shelves that are going up. I had to get the wall fairly wet with paste so the matte inkjet paper I used rippled and wrinkled but the next day, most of these have settled down and dried out.

Gasland here in UK

I watched a documentary a couple of weeks back called Gasland. Thought provoking and it presented a fascinating insight in to something I knew nothing about.

This morning, here in Lancashire on the local news, I heard a short story about a small earthquake in Blackpool about 30 or so miles from where I live. Geologists believe that this tremor, the second in a short timeframe, was caused by hydraulic drilling for gas.

This is exactly what the documentary Gasland concerned itself with. As something that is banned already in certain places within the US and also in France, it is terrifying that it is happening now only 30 minutes or so up the coast.

News articles on the net state that Cuadrilla Resources, the company behind the gas exploration, are to dig next month closer to my home in a place just outside Preston.

I feel that something here needs to be followed up and questions asked before we see in the UK's northwest the same water taps emitting gas and poorly families forced to drink bottled water and keep away from what is a supposedly safe water supply like what has so clearly happened in the States.

Independent 1/6/2011

BBC News 1/6/2011

Cuadrilla Resources Press releases up to 1/6/2011

Gasland

Under the Humber

Time lapse

I picked up a cheap timer remote from Ebay a couple of weeks back, mainly to try and nail some kind of technique for timelapse prior to going away in a few weeks time.
This is 20 minutes outside an old end of pier type coffee shop near the beach at Cleveleys, Lancashire condensed into 30 or so seconds.

Dunes

Last month I got rid of my Canon 5D and backup digital and some lenses I wasn't using much and picked up the 5D Mk2 and a 1DS Mk2 as backup. Both lovely cameras, the 1DS creates images that are so full of detail and with a tone that is just to die for. The 5D is just as good but also takes full HD video.
I'm trying to teach myself Sony Vegas software and pick up the best / easiest ways of transcoding, editing and rendering. With this I'm starting on mini movies just to give myself things to work on.
This was from yesterday at Lytham St Annes - first nice day for a while so had to get out.

Cubeopen 2010

This exhibition is now over but I popped by with my son on a quiet afternoon and attempted to make a short video showing my work there.
No oscar winner but its something for the people who missed it.

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