— bikes and things

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Tag "London"

I’m catching up on a few things that have caught my eye recently. I’ve been adding various interesting links to Instapaper and then coming back to blog about them. It’s becoming an overwhelming list but this one definitely deserves a mention. Portraits are especially hard in my opinion and there’s a few people who are good at it but I definitely admire a good one. Pete Zelewski has been shooting a series of portraits around Soho recently. I’ve added a few of my favourites below along with a description of his project. Well worth checking out the rest of his shots on Flickr.

Since my arrival on these British shores many years ago, Soho has always been, for me, the true heart of London. Although historically synonymous with the sex industry, the Soho I know and love today will always be the centre of Bohemian London with its culturally diverse mix of inhabitants living and working in a place that never closes and where anyone can be whoever they want to be.

In early 2011, I began a continuing street portraiture project called ‘The People of Soho’ photographing local characters who I thought captured the true essence of the area. From stylish shop assistants to arty media types, to street savvy students and the casual passers-by, the people I met and photographed were the ones I felt made Soho the unique and vibrant place that it is today.

The People of Soho: Bobby DazzlerThe People of Soho: Style CouncilorThe People of Soho: Second Hand ChicThe People of Soho: Das Modell

All images © Pete Zelewski

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Last Sat Emma and I ventured out into town to catch the last day of the Edgar Martins exhibition at The Wapping Project – Bankside. So glad we made the effort to go as the work is simply extraordinary. Emma also wrote a few words which I won’t repeat here but suffice to say she’s far better at the words than I am.

The work is rather neatly summarised by Robin Wilson over at the Architects Journal.

..perspective views onto monumental turbine halls, ‘portraits’ of specialist station equipment, control panel displays and empty waiting rooms with potted plants, alien, isolated, yet flourishing in these sterile environments.

It was great to talk to the gallery owner and understand some of the technical details behind them. All shot on 10×8 view camera with up to and hour long exposure also with selective flash added to fill in dark spots or balance overall lighting. The effect is one of an almost painterly like hyperreal quality where shadows don’t always exist. There also seems to be an amazing sense of perfection in the spaces that he’s working in which is constantly engaging when stood in front of the enormous prints. Some of the images feel timeless, or 70′s or even slightly futuristic. It’s hard to really get a handle of their context. Fascinating but ultimately too expensive to afford a print. I came away with a £30 book of his which is just as enjoyable.

Timemachine

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I never used to be a bus person until someone taught me the error of my ways (when not on my bike of course). Always the top deck, always the left hand window seat, always looking around and seeing what’s going on – silently observing the world going on below you.

This experience is perfectly summarised by the below video (via Michal Dzierza). The child playing, the guy arguing on the phone with someone, the accident that everyone cranes their neck for, road works, cyclists, tourists, landmarks, the crazy guy, the gaggle of school kids – it’s all there. Beautifully shot & edited from 30 hours of footage. A lovely feel to it – watch in HD!

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Had a lovely walk around the Southbank yesterday courtesy of Brighton Jim. We also had the pleasure of being joined by Aleks and Sally who I’d never met before – only conversed with on Twitter. After some initial hassle from security, which I’ll go into another time, we had a great walk around just pausing to take pics whenever it took our fancy. A quick pint a lunch where the conversation ranged from the nerdy to the creative and back again, then further along to the Tate Modern. Another glorious autumn day with that golden sunshine I’m so fond of and I shot a lot more pics than I’d imagined. Rather than stagger them and upload bit by bit on Flickr I’ve just uploaded them all for now.

A few of my favourites are below. The usual mix of shadows angles and the odd person but hey, why deviate.

Yellow

Concrete Shadow man

Funny stuff Jim

Lovely concrete Stair shadow

Many books Sh

Onlookers Walker

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Here’s a picture of me on my new bicycle. Takes a while to get used to but great for nipping around town. A little bit much to go all the way to Camden on it from Peckham but bearable. Slightly odd to get used to the smaller wheels after using 700c for riding around. Feels very twitchy at first. I think I may swap the bars for the lower ones for a bit more tucked in position.

Brompton

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