It’s not a bad old town
Another early morning start in the capital, the first location being London Bridge, which can be a busy place, especially with the financial district nearby. I felt it was time to try my luck with my tripod. I had a long-exposure shot in mind – vibrant red buses with iconic London architecture in the background. It can sometimes take a little trial and error to settle on the right exposure length. I opted for just one second, as I didn’t want the blur to look too elongated and artificial. One of my favourite storytelling genres is science fiction, with elements of film noir and dystopian fiction. The London Underground offers a great location to try something that fits these categories. The key to shooting these candid scenes is to respect people’s space and to be considerate (and not use the flash) when taking portraits of strangers. Amongst other locations I focused on throughout the day. The image of The Ritz Hotel was helped by several motorbikes parked nearby using a mirror, with the image being flipped in editing. I could go on about the technical aspects, but I fear I will just end up rambling…
For one of my personal projects, I want to start a series (over the next few months) of unique full-body portraits which is a little out my comfort zone. Focusing on distortion/silhouettes/slow shutter speeds. For a control freak, it could be a nightmare project - as I'm going to have to rely on luck and timing more than ever before...
