Hacked GH1 testing in sunny Blackpool

Shot earlier today as a test with a GH1 hacked with improved firmware, edited in FCPX and music from Creative Commons - Borni - Lost In Space

Borni / CC BY 3.0

Lenses used were a 35mm Nikon Series E, 50mm Nikkor HC and a 135mm Nikkor Q but probably not in that order. 

All for fun.

Andrew Brooks exhibition

The first time I stepped inside Andrew Brooks' images was at an exhibition of his work at Urbis. They were large lightbox mounted duratrans type prints that had a depth and mystery to them that stopped me stone-still in my tracks. They were photographs from the top of Manchester - view from the Palace theatre iirc - to the hidden catacombs below the city. The way the images had been created with impossible angles and HDR like processing completely blew me away. 

I kept an eye on his work and when the Hive in Manchester showed his larger exhibition New Worlds last year, I turned up to witness again the strange panoramas and odd juxtapostions in his photography, this time his camera showed vistas worldwide. 

In the mill where I have my studio, there are currently a number of prints by Andrew being shown as part of the Guild 2012.

The address is in a post below, the details of opening times and contact info is here : http://oxheysmillstudios.com/

If you're in Preston for the Guild celebrations you really don't have an excuse not to be caught up in his work.

Studio Open Day

There's an Open Day this Saturday at the mill where I have my little photo cave. All are welcome, should be interesting. There are painters, makers of things, photographers, amd artists who I don't really know what they do.

I'm showing an edit of my A Preston Day timelapse video project. The projector is to be set up in my space, the white backdrop a huge screen. It'll be on a loop so anyone in Preston with an hour to spare, pop on over and have a look round. 

Oxheys Mill Studios
Stanhope Street
Off Brook Street
Preston




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On Morecambe Bay

I've just had back a number of rolls of film I shot recently for this ongoing project and updated the front of the website so I wanted to post a couple of the images here.

I've been busy shooting other work at the moment but will get to make some more images in the bay hopefully before the nights remain too light to get anything productive.

Anyway, heres the info from the site and a couple of images further down. I'll post more as soon as I process - or remove the dust specks from the scans....

On Morecambe Bay

On the night of the 5th of February 2004, 23 Chinese immigrant cockle pickers drowned in Morecambe Bay after being cut off by the tides.

This ongoing series of images aims to contemplate the sense of mystery & tranquility of the bay and offer a respect to those that died during that night.

These photographs were taken in almost complete darkness with exposure times of around 10 to 20 minutes revealing an otherworldly light from the night sky.

The images resonate from elongated exposures framed by lengthy countdowns, the shutter clicks punctuating the isolation.

Even though the wind rifles across the bay, there is a stillness, a static created by the waves gaining ground either at one edge or far way at another, and it is this broken calm that is at the core of these photographs. 

This project will be completed during 2012.

A Preston Day

Leading up to the Guild celebrations in September - info - I'm making a movie following the city of Preston over a 24 hour period.

Clips and the finished film will be blogged at this site: www.aprestonday.tumblr.com

I'm hoping to have it completed later in the spring.

Interlude in to other business

Along with keeping busy creating documentary projects, I also work on creating web content for businesses looking to add to their online marketing.

I designed, filmed and edited this for a company who manufactures innovative wall art & floor coverings. They were looking for a different take on the 'Meet the Team' theme whilst showing some of the business.

More info about Industrial & Commercial Timelapse here.

   

On Morecambe Bay

Spending cold nights photographing Morecambe Bay in the dark. Working with exposures of between 5 and 15 minutes leaves plenty of time to think ( and feel the chill I guess... ).

I'm working on this as part of a project tied in with the reopening of the cockle beds and also the highlighting again the almost forgotten tragedy that happened here only eight years ago.

I'm also filming a documentary mainly looking at the creation of this photographic project and as the rushes come together, I'll post more here.

Super heroes......

These are from a new series - nothing too deep just a play on the concept of age and being invincible.

At this age, do kids think they are 'super heroes' and unbreakable? Is it inherent or is it a parent's remit to build them up to make them think that or to doubt it?

Or are these photographs more concerned with the viewer? Is it the parent who feels less invincible be it because of the difficulties of modern life or the fact the Little Jonny is growing up?

Alternatively, they focus on that age when you realise that your parent's aren't going to live forever and the firm belief that they are super heroes and will be there forever suddenly appears paper thin.

See, I told you it wasn't too deep.

Happy New Year.

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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Liverpool Winters Art Fair

Hello - if you took away the flyer to buy work online, this is your blog post!

Please click below for the gallery and remember to use Passcode: liverpool2010 and the coupon lpoolart before checkout.

CLICK ON HERE FOR ONLINE GALLERY

For shipping - in order to keep costs as low as possible, use the option for the largest item if you are purchasing more than one print / canvas. It should work everything out ok but if you have any issues, please email me on joe@joekennedyphoto.co.uk

Also please be aware that some of the images would have to be cropped to produce some of the sizes offered - wherever necessary I will email a quick proof to you prior to printing to ensure you are satisfied if there has to be any changes.

Thank-you,
Joe

Cubeopen 2010 opening night

Just got back from the private view and couldn't be happier with the position and placement of my photographs. As you walk in, they are along the facing wall and as a set they look fantastic ( ok, I'm biased.... )
There's some great work in there and if you are in Manchester up til the end of January, it is well worth a look.
I produced 30 or so of these mini packs of a concertina image and a postcard from the Sandcastle series and one from After - life and within 15 minutes there were maybe 3 left. I'm back in again next week and will produce more of these to leave.

Liverpool Winters Art Fair

Had confirmation that I've got a stand at this. Looking forward to gauging reaction to the Red prints - I've produced them at around 600mm x 1m and mounted on to foamex panels. They look great and hopefully the feedback will be positive as I'm going to start pushing these next.
I also have been asked to be part of a new photo crit group setting up in Preston - if anyone else is interested, it seems fairly informal, let me know and I'll pass on the details. It starts next month.
I also took the kids in to the local library last Friday and after passing across a concertina of Off season prints to the ladies ( they always like to know whats going on after showing some of my work here a few years back ), they had put up the prints proud of place near the main desk. Very nice and a big thank-you to librarians of Fulwood!