Viva Cuba!

Ok, it’s been a little while since I posted anything to this blog. And for that, I apologise. It’s been a busy 6 months, we moved house, we got married, we got cats, pretty much everything major that could have happened recently, has happened.

So, on to this post, after my soulmate and I got married, we jetted off to Cuba for a much needed break on one of the most beautiful beaches in the world, Varadero. Sun, sea, sand, s…..shedloads of rum and a few photos along the way. Photographing the old American cars in Havana has always been on my bucket list. Now I’ve ticked it. 😉

Having been experimenting with numerous film sims over the past few months I came to the conclusion when I got to Cuba that I had no idea which one to shoot, so what now? I shot RAW. I’m sorry, I know, you don’t usually buy a Fuji camera for the RAW files, you buy them for the excellent JPEGs. But… I wanted a choice and I wanted maximum dynamic range in the strong Cuban sun. I plumbed for Lightroom’s classic chrome approximation and I’m pretty happy with the results.

Hometown Walk

It was time I had a walk around my home town of Leeds, my mate was coming up for a photo walk so it was time to see what the old town could show us.

I find it quite difficult to shoot in Leeds as I know the city so well, it’s probably over familair to me. The city centre can be really busy too so I spend a lot of time south of the river as it’s quieter.

On this particular outing though the sun was shining, the city felt warm and alive and it was good to show Chris my view of things.

Really starting to get a feel for the Fuji X100V, I’m starting to see things through the 35mm equivalent focal length, I still won’t say I’m a big fan of this focal length though, however it is starting to grow on me.

Colour shots are Classic Neg (mostly) maybe the odd Provia shot as I somehow managed to set that film sim by accident, mono is Acros +R as usual. All shot on Fuji X100V. Only camera I’ve got!

A Walk Around York

I had a few hours to kill on Sunday morning so I thought I’d give the car and the camera a run out to York.

I love York, the architecture is simply stunning, the gothic minster, the city walls, a castle, Medeival streets and a river running straight through the middle of it. There’s loads to see and you could easily spend a couple of days there and not see it all.

Sunday’s weather was cold and fresh but the light was amazing, lovely and warm and very directional creating long shadows.

I took a bit of a different approach to shooting, I’ve been trying to focus more on my composition and using light to create leading lines, also tried a bit of street photography – thanks for the tips JP!
I’m pretty pleased with the results.

All shots were taken in Classic Neg on the x100V, it’s the first time I’ve done a shoot with just this film sim but in warm light I think it really works.

The Old Golf Club

I took a walk down the road the other day to see what remains of the old Lofthouse Hill Golf Club near Wakefield.

The golf club has been closed for a few years now, all the greens and fairways are overgrown and it’s pretty much just used by dog walkers now. There are old cars and vans barracading the entrance and exit to the car park and the whole place is looking worse for wear.

Quite recently the clubhouse caught fire and was destroyed, so I wanted to document this before it was demolished.

It’s a real shame that this has happened to what was a lovely course and clubhouse, hopefully someone will buy it and return it to its former glory.

All shots are Acros + Red filter. Fuji x100V.

A Great British Journey

November 2021

This outing was a trip a mate of mine and I had been planning for a quite a while.

The Great British Car Journey is a museum situated in Derbyshire which charts the British car journey from the 1930’s up until present day. There’s everything from classics to family cars to super cars. You can even book to drive a classic car, unfortunately we weren’t able to do that on the day we went. There’s a good cafe too and it’s not too expensive.

You can find out more about this new museum here: https://greatbritishcarjourney.com

It’s a great outing for anyone interested in cars, I love cars and taking photos of them, so again this was another ideal day out for me.

This was my first proper outing with the X100V. So it was good to put it through its paces in some challenging lighting. I think it coped pretty well.

All shots taken in Provia film simulation – I usually shoot Pro Neg Hi but on the later Fuji cameras I’ve found the reds to be a bit pink for my tastes, on the V though, shooting Provia the reds seem properly red. Fuji x100V.

The S to The V…

November 2021

I took the X-T20 and 18-55 on a last trip to Blackpool in October when we went to see the lights. We had a great weekend and did a lot of walking. Took some reasonable shots but nothing I couldn’t have taken with a fixed lens. Plus after a couple of days of marching up and down the promenade with a camera bag, in a backpack with a couple of extra bits my shoulders and my back knew about it.

It was time to stop carrying more than I needed and go full time with the one camera one lens setup that I’d been experimenting with for the past 6 months.

I decided to upgrade my X100 camera to the V, as this was going to be my only camera for the foreseeable. There are many reasons to upgrade from an S to a V, but for me it was the better lens, better screen/viewfinder, better low light performace and a lot more film simulations – the S was quite limited, not so on the V.

The image below is one of the first I took with the V, close up with the lens wide open at f2, I used the Classic Neg film simulation, I was going to go for a super punchy Velvia vibe with this one but I think the Classic Neg really carries the shot. The new lens is super shartp too which you can see very clearly here. Fuji x100V.

Autumn Colours — New film simulation and a new lens, two of the big upgrades I really like on the X100V

That There London

August 2021

A trip to London with the kids, after two days running around Thorpe Park it was time to see the bright lights of the big city.

I love London, it’s like another world, it’s a multi-cultural multi-architectural melting pot, there’s alway something happening and always something to see. We also dropped lucky with the weather on this trip, not bad for August!

In amongst all the plans for the kids, I still managed to fit in some photography time, need to spend a lot more time down here, even if I spent a month in London I still couldn’t see it all.

Monochrome + Red Filter for the Black & White shots, colour is Pro-Neg Hi as usual. Fuji x100s.

Beetles Town

September 2021

A birthday trip to Liverpool was on the cards, I’d never been so I was really excited to see what the city had to offer.

Rain. And lots of it. When we arrived it was absolutely throwing it down, so arrival day was drinks and food day whilst the weather cleared, which thankfully it did pretty quickly.

Liverpool has some brilliant bars and restaurants and if you like live music, this really is the place for you.

The following day nursing a slight hangover it was time to have a walk around to see what this amazing city had to offer for the budding photographer, it certainly didn’t disappoint.

Mostly Pro Neg Hi and Monochrome + Red Filter. The really punchy shots are Velvia. Fuji x100s.

North Wales and a Camera Decision

June 2021

A week to North Wales was on the cards and I was still getting used to the one camera one lens mindset. A day out I could definitely work with, but a week not knowing what photographic opportunities laid ahead? I had to take everything!

I packed my Fuji X-T20, 18-55, 55-200 and my X100s. This was before I sold off the X-T20 and lenses. I was stressing about what shots I’d miss instead of thinking about the shots I’d be able to take with a very simple setup.

Once we got to North Wales, the X-T20 was unpacked from the car and stored in the bottom of the wardrobe. The next time it left the wardrobe was to go back in the car, I never used it.
This trip really cemented my thoughts on running a one camera one lens setup. It’s incredibly versitile and I didn’t miss a shot.

Mostly Pro Neg Hi and Monochrome + Red Filter. Probably a couple of Velvia’s in there too.
Fuji x100s.

Ripley Castle Car Show

May 2021

Another May outing and why not? we’ve had great weather this and a car show came up, I’ve loved cars since I was a kid so the opportunity to take the camera out and photograph something I love was just the ticket. Fab location at Ripley Castle up in North Yorkshire.

Gleaming and some not so gleaming classics captured in mostly Pro Neg-Hi with just a drop of Monochrome + Red filter thrown in for good measure. Fuji x100s.