The Sadhu of Pashupatinath Temple, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Just a quick post with a composite image of 6 of my favourite Sadhu portraits from Nepal... theres more to come.
“Like the Batman sign, but you know, photography related…”
Ok i'm not saying I'm Batman, or that i've wanted to wear a coloured spandex outfit and save the day Spiderman/Peter Parker Stylee, but I've always liked the concept of a visual that needs no explanation. A symbol that can be instantly recognised.
My ideas for my own logo have given me endless nightmares and false starts as I've just found it so hard to delve outside of my photography comfort zone and dip my toe into the world of graphic design. I did some design work way back in the day during & after uni, before falling in love with the dark room, so I felt I could at least do SOMETHING to help this concept along!
After a lot of messing around with pens, pencils and sketchbooks and with some professional inspiration from James Ellis of www.ellisgraphics.co.uk I've finally found a logo design that I'm happy with.
Its been one of those things that hasn't been an essential addition to my website or photography, but something that i've wanted to get as part of my identity for 'Darren Newbery Photography' for quite sometime.
So I thought i'd share a few examples of the design stages that its has gone through to reach the point we're at now. There's still a couple of minor colour and text tweaks i'm playing with at the moment but the same bold graphic style and concept will remain.
Early sketch idea:
This idea didn't get much beyond the drawing board, but I still think it has potential... in a very skate shoe type way! Maybe one for the future... ;-)
I guess the symbol style concept was still in my mind at this point...
Here's a few old, old, old, text/layout style logos from my previous websites & branding.... (if you've been paying attention you'll know I've had the habit of changing the design a little too often!!) Time to stick to one design for a while I think!
Ok so the reoccurring theme seemed to always be the same style of colours and basic text. Then I tried to add in a black & white wood panel image into the mix.... it didn't last long though! Boredom set in and I found myself thinking it looked dated even before the metaphorical paint had dried....
So, this time I wanted something from the design, something bold, strong, graphic. Symbolic. Like the Batman sign, but you know, photography related instead!
Something that would stand alongside my photography and like all good design should, enhance it without overpowering it....
So I enlisted the help of Graphic Designer James Ellis. Heres a few examples of what he came up to based upon my basic & sketchy design briefs.
Covering concepts like Art Deco style, an Aperture logo, and text with upper and lower case, I don't think I made it easy for James!
But considering how un-focused and scattered my ideas were, I think he did a grand job. And without his input my ideas wouldn't have taken the path that they did.
Professional input....
The bold graphic style and design of the black and white logos were the ones that really worked for me, and took my ideas in a different direction. I really liked the lens aperture part of the design, and the strong rectangular shape too, so played around until I felt I was on the right path.
I'd previously been using a thin font style, and had avoided the bold strong styling that James had started using for these designs.... So after a couple of weeks of looking at the designs I went back to the drawing board and came up with this:
I even like how it works as a watermark style overlay over images too.... Obviously it would be smaller on an actual image but, i've kept it quite large here just to show how the designs text blends into the background.
James has worked on adapting it a little further with various font sizes, colours and trying to define the separation between my first & last name which I think is something i'll continue to play with & tweak in the next few days and see if theres another Eureka moment where it all clicks into place. Until then, i'll leave it as it stands on the website and portfolios.
Besides, i've got photographs to go out and shoot!
Ok, so the outcome of all this logo design work isn't an instantly recognisable Batman-esque symbol... it has text, and is very graphically simple in concept and appearance. But i'm not Batman. I don't own a Bat-mobile, I drive a Nissan, and there is no way i'm getting into a spandex suit.
So i'm sure I'll live with a logo that uses text and a simple shape.
Anyway, most importantly i'm happy with it. So long live the new logo!
Thank you James! You can find James Ellis and his great work here : www.ellisgraphics.co.uk
Fashion & Lifestyle Portraits…Part One: Summer
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Here's a sneak preview of a new series of images from one of my recent shoots. I'll be posting more as the series progresses, and beginning a step by step tutorial for recreating the lighting i've used. These sets of images will be lightly themed around mood & how the light you use can really influence the feel of an image.
The aim for this selection was to produce a set of images that embodied a light, bright summery feel... full of warmth, summer sunlight & good moods!
For the summer themed images I wanted a mix of lighting styles, some using the sunlight to blow out the image which involved shooting into the sun (playing havoc with the auto focus at the same time). And others where the sunlight worked with me in providing a soft and natural light.
Using nothing but natural evening sunlight diffused through a light layer of cloud, the images have been given a clean & pure look to them. Like using a giant natural soft box!
There will be more images in this portrait series, complimenting the style of these images and going further in other directions.
My aim is to create moody urban style fashion photographs using a combination of natural light and strobe light to provide a darker feel to the images. These images will sit alongside purely studio based portrait concepts taken out into urban locations. Creating shadows & highlights using flash will enhance the surroundings, and bring both the model & mood of the backgrounds to life.
I've included a couple of test images below the 'Summer' photos as a preview of the next set of images from my scouting shoot, plus the first strobe light tests. When I have shot the first batch of strobe flashlight images I'll include a lighting diagram, equipment list and step by step process in how I created the lighting & setup for the images.
This step by step process will start a new tutorial section for my personal & commercial projects and also blend into the Photography workshops that I've now started to run alongside Christopher Parsons at 'the_studio' in Exeter.
www.darrennewbery.com/photoworkshop
For any questions regarding these images or questions about how I've lit each image, please just leave a comment and i'll try to answer as best I can...
Thanks to Anna for modelling & finding an awesome cliffside BBQ location!
Location scouting & strobe lighting test...
These shots will obviously include a model in the foreground during the actual shoot, both still/posed & moving through the frame. Using a localised & direct fill light will provide the model with enough light to create a dynamic feel yet not too much to affect the background lighting set up...
Before & after:
Kilimanjaro Training Walk : Dartmoor
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This sunday I joined the rest of the Mount Kilimanjaro / Sparks climbing group for our first joint training walk on Dartmoor. We started at Two Bridges and walked a long loop around, taking in views from the top of Tors, around & through muddy bogs, over stepping stones & fences until we arrived back at our starting point 12 miles later!
It was the first time we as a group (along with a couple 4 legged friends) had done any training together and it was good to meet & walk with the people who would be taking part in this adventure. It was great to just be out there again too, its been a long time since I hiked anywhere on Dartmoor and living so close to places like this it's sometimes easy to forget just how beautiful it can be.
It was a good test of my own training too, not only have I lost weight, but thanks to all the cardio work mixed with weights & a more selective diet, the 12 miles of hiking with an DSLR kit didn't seem to have that much of an effect on me. Sure my old hiking boots gave me slightly sore feet but thats probably down to their age and me having not done any longer distance hikes for a while, so I think they will need to be replaced before the big climb.... but physically at the end of the day I felt surprisingly good!
Now, if only I could remember to use sun block the next time...
To follow my fellow 'Kili' members on Twitter please visit : @MECAservices @Bluegrass_IT
Thanks to Nicole for organising us all plus the amazing cakes & cookies that kept us all going. And to Matt for the navigation & guidance skills.
For information about Sparks please take a look at their website: www.sparks.org.uk
And for more information about my climb and to give a generous donation please visit: www.justgiving.com/darrennewbery
Thank you for the memories…
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Today, with the reminder from my good friend and travelling companion Claire I realised that it is close to 2 years since we left for our almost year long travel & documentary Photography trip. We've both been feeling that itchy feet sensation recently and I guess subconsciously we have both been thinking about when we left on that crazy, exciting, daunting, and exhausting trip back in late May '08.
From our first early days on the trip of almost being ripped off by a 'friendly cuban' trying to help us out, to learning spanish the hard way on the road from the locals, it was one hell of an experience..... here are just a few highlights......
...Buying a car in Chile while speaking very little spanish, navigating through numerous South American towns & villages, driving the wrong way up a one way road, swimming with Dolphins, horse riding through Cuban valleys, helicopter trips on and above a glacier, camping & cooking in the middle of the Chilean Desert, swimming through underwater caves, watching the stars & the sun come up on an empty Easter Island Beach with only the wild horses for company, long ass & cramped Vietnamese train trips in over-loaded carriages, getting trapped in a Nepalese town due to government protests & violence, eating weird & wonderful foods, trying Alpaca burgers, food poisoning, DIY mechanics on our Chilean Car from the very first day of ownership, using a condom to fix a cars radiator, Rickshaw rides, playing with baby elephants, chasing Alpacas, hot springs, discovering Cuban 'Batidos', avoiding the tourist traps & doing the whole trip our way - no guides just us and the adventure, discovering kindness in strangers, camper van lifestyle in NZ, the joys of being on the road and just taking pictures, sunrises, sunsets, the most amazing driving experience I have ever had-through the northern Chilean Pan American Highway into Peru, exploring Machu Picchu at Sunrise, the wonderful people of Pisac, Peru that made us feel like part of the town and more welcome than just tourists.....
I could go on forever and seemingly not exhaust the memories from that year of my life. Only the combination of the thousands of photographs, our trinkets & souvenirs, and our memories can really do justice to it all, and as much as we can try to explain just what a year it was it will only ever be fully understood by myself & Claire.
It was quite easily the hardest and the easiest, most exciting, adventurous, scary, intimidating, fun, heartwarming, life inspiring, and amazing experience that we could have ever had. And to share it with someone and be able to reminisce about it every now and then with them is a very special thing.
Thank you to Claire, Foz, Eddie, Visa, luck & the good old fashioned spirit of adventure that seemed to guide us through even when we made mistakes!
Heres to the next adventure... Mongolia / Syberia / Eastern Russia anyone?! :-)
An Introduction To Digital Photography
Announcing our first photography workshops : An Introduction To Digital Photography. This is the first of a course of five workshops that myself and Chris Parsons of 'The_Studio' Exeter will be running. It will cover everything to help you learn how to use your Digital SLR camera, how to get the very best out of it and how to use a wealth of photographic techniques to improve your composition, shooting, and photographic eye.
Alongside the camera settings & details to help you understand how to get the best from your camera we'll be shooting outside or in the_studio (weather dependant) alongside our great Quayside location here in Exeter, then returning to critique everyones images, and a run through of how the next step (the digital darkroom) can be used to improve your pictures even further.
Included throughout the day are refreshments, a buffet lunch, and a workbook to make notes & take away with you for easy reference.
Other workshops will include :
An Introduction To The Digital Darkroom - Digital retouching & image enhancement through readily available computer software, both free and available to purchase.
Advanced Digital Darkroom Techniques - Focusing on more advanced editing & retouching techniques to grow your creative digital skills, and answer those "how did they do that?" questions about the world of Creative Digital Photography.
Portraits & Creative Lighting Photography - A mix of studio flash light, speedlight flashes, and techniques that everyone can use regardless of their budget to improve their own portrait photography at home or on location.
Landscapes, Scenic, & Abstract Photography - One for the landscape enthusiast, and people that want to learn how to obtain better scenic photographs and use their cameras to produce abstract photography from the amazing scenery around us.
Our next workshop is Sunday, May 23rd 2010 and will run from 10am - 5:30pm. The cost for the whole day, plus lunches etc is £95.
Spaces are limited to 10 per group so we can maintain the high quality of the workshop.
Further dates are available, so if you are unable to attend this one, please let us know and we will provide you with alternative dates.
For further information and to make a booking please contact us :
Darren Newbery - t : 07941 005 260 e : info@darrennewbery.com
Chris Parsons - t : 01392 897 239 / 07813 654 075 e : studio@maclaines.com
www.darrennewbery.com/photoworkshop/
I am climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in support of the Children's Medical Research Charity - Sparks. Any support you could give me will be gratefully appreciated!
For information about Sparks please take a look at their website: www.sparks.org.uk
And for more information about my climb and to give a generous donation please visit: www.justgiving.com/darrennewbery
Red Wine Studio Shoot
Rainy weather = A perfect opportunity for some studio work! Heres a couple of images from my recent studio shoot. Theres more to see on the Commercial & Editorial page of my website : www.darrennewbery.com
Mount Kilimanjaro Climb 2011
Yes, you read that correctly. In February 2011 I will be trekking, hiking, scrambling and if need be crawling up to the top of one of the '7 summits', Mt. Kilimanjaro. Its not all just for my personal enjoyment this time though as there is a hugely important charity to support through this climb; the children's medical research charity 'Sparks'. I have pledged to raise £3,750 for them between now and next February so, along with a whole host of fund raising ideas that will come to life in the upcoming months I will be producing a book documenting the trip and the views from the summit too. All the proceeds from this book will be donated to Sparks along with everything that you all donate to my climb.
As I train for possibly the biggest physical challenge of my life I'll be updating the blog and documenting my ups and downs as I go. I'm looking forward to getting back out into the big wide world again and shooting some more documentary and scenic images, especially in a place I have never been before. So hopefully along with getting into shape, having a great experience, i'll also be able to raise a lot of money for Sparks. It would be amazing if I could raise above and beyond the minimum donation amount and go back to Sparks with a big cheque next year following the climb, so please give generously to this very worthwhile charity.
THANK YOU! 
For information about Sparks please take a look at their website: www.sparks.org.uk
And for more information about my climb and to give a generous donation please visit: www.justgiving.com/darrennewbery
Judge Joe Brown
Now, I understand that 'Pro' photography gear doesn't always make a 'Pro' quality photograph, and that experience, skill, an understanding of light and a good eye for composition can create a beautiful image. Even with limited tools like an iPhone camera for example. But, if you are asked as a 'Pro' to shoot a wedding, and you don't even know the speed of the lens you are using or the limitations of the gear that you have, let alone have any apparent clue about the constraints of using a cheaply priced kit lens for certain shots indoors, without a tripod, or any flash lighting then surely you REALLY should drop the 'Pro' monicker!
This Youtube clip from the U.S. TV show Judge Joe Brown really highlights the issue of people buying the cheapest SLR camera they can get, advertising themselves as a 'Pro' Photographer and going out there on a paid shoot for a client and delivering low quality images. You NEED to have an understanding of photography and the techniques of using light to create images. There's no easy route to learning that by just buying a camera from a store. The photographers in this video could have gone out and bought the best 'Pro' gear available but without knowing what they were doing the images were never going to be up to the quality of a true professional.
You've gotta love Judge Joe Brown here though, he really knew his stuff and you could just see the photographers cracking under the pressure of knowing they were up against someone who knew more than even they knew as the 'Pro's'. And the verdict is definitely what they deserved... :-)
Enjoy the clip!
The last days of the Devon Winter
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With being out of the country so much in the last few years I think i've been neglecting some of the beautiful countryside that is right on my doorstep. So with the nice Spring time weather just about here its time for me to go out there and see what I can photograph around here instead of jetting off to strange places in search of photographs!
After only just a few minutes drive out into the 'wilds' I found a few forest walks and photos that caught my eye just waiting to be captured, and you could just feel the end of Winter in the air along with the coming of the Springtime. Now with all the coastline, the moors and local natural scenic areas I think I should have my hands full around here for the Spring and summer without feeling the need to get out of the country for a change! I'm looking forward to getting out there and finding a new inspiration that i've overlooked. Its funny, i've seen more of New Zealand a country on the otherside of the world than I have of my own home County. Time for a change I think!
