pixel snapper

Another Tree......

2012-02-26T10:11:00.000-08:00

Powerful Sky......

2012-02-26T09:37:00.000-08:00

Warm Tree......

2012-02-25T16:28:00.000-08:00

Starbucks......

2012-02-25T06:37:00.000-08:00

St Pauls......

2012-02-24T23:40:00.000-08:00

The Underground......

2012-02-24T13:37:00.000-08:00

Yucky day......

2012-02-24T13:30:00.000-08:00

You cant beat a good sunset......

2012-02-24T13:11:00.000-08:00

Back from holiday......

2012-02-24T13:03:00.000-08:00

Drawing again......

2012-02-24T12:58:00.000-08:00

Another one......

2012-02-24T12:43:00.000-08:00

Last night was curry night!

2012-02-24T12:35:00.000-08:00

Amazed at the iphone camera quality......

2012-02-24T12:29:00.000-08:00

New app new tweaks......

2012-02-24T12:23:00.000-08:00

Fab food......

2012-02-24T12:07:00.000-08:00

iphone 4s plus Hipstamatic......

2012-02-24T11:47:00.000-08:00

New toy and a fab app!

More Ft......

2011-10-05T09:08:00.000-07:00

Benches......

2011-10-04T10:31:00.000-07:00

just to prove its not always people i photograph.......

Ft ing......

2011-09-14T02:10:00.001-07:00

and again......

2011-09-14T02:10:00.000-07:00

London again......

2011-09-14T02:09:00.000-07:00

Barings Asset Management......

2011-09-14T01:54:00.000-07:00

details to follow....

Mark Hoban, Secretary to The Treasury......

2011-09-14T01:52:00.000-07:00

details to follow....

Portaits Portraits Portraits........

2011-09-08T06:42:00.000-07:00

details to follow....

more FT......

2011-08-23T11:35:00.000-07:00

details to follow....

New Toy...... Polaroid 600se......

2011-07-27T02:55:00.000-07:00

details to follow....

More commercial 360’s....

2011-07-25T08:01:00.000-07:00

details to follow....

Fashion Show......

2011-07-21T10:54:00.000-07:00

images to come....

More drawings......

2011-06-02T06:59:00.000-07:00

Holiday time again......

2011-06-01T03:52:00.000-07:00

and at last some time for some drawing......

more to follow.....

Top 25 Accountancy Firms......

2011-05-26T11:49:00.000-07:00

Back to New Bond Street for awards / drinks and iconic photographs....

Some classic images for sale this time from the likes of
Andreas Feininger

His shot above called "The Photojouralist" 1951

Works from Horst P Horst

Robert Freeman's iconic Beatles album cover shot

and a Roy Shatt's James Dean portrait

Colin Campbell of Fairbairn Private Bank starts off the evening.

Introductions over and it's on with the evening....

A small selection of the images that were taken......

More 360's......

2011-05-24T03:14:00.000-07:00

One in a series of 360's taken for a local Volvo dealership.....

Please click the link below the image not the image itself to view

( Link )

Aston Martin Auction......

2011-05-21T12:28:00.000-07:00

Another nice job for Aston Martin......

They arrive nice and early this year
( This is the sixth that i've covered )

and it's not just Aston's that arrive.....

A Bugatti Veyron 16.4

This is by far the most expensive street legal car available
on the market today and capable of accelerating 0-60 in 2.5 seconds.

View of the exposed engine.

Car specifications here

The room starts to fill up......

The car above is a rather rare 1965 DB5 Vantage Shooting Brake

which later sold for £390,000.

Below are three " found in barn " projects all of which sold rather well.

The memorabilia auction takes place in the morning......

......and the cars after lunch

Food and decor supplied by 1st Class Cuisine
Nice guys and girls.

On with the Auction.

It's me !
Photograph supplied courtesy of
Tim Cottingham / www.astonmartin.com

Last chance to check the lots.

The star of the show....

A concourse winning 1963 DB4 Series V Vantage 4.2L Convertible.

One very pretty car which sold for a very pretty price £460,000.

Spending hundreds of thousands and so happy about it.

Amazingly busy this year.

If you wait long enough two Astons will pass....

and they all go home....

Just a small sample of over 300 shots taken on the day.

Pretty Pictures......

2011-05-20T01:24:00.000-07:00

Just images this time......

lovely time of the year.....

Financial Times...... Shoot Three......

2011-05-15T23:01:00.004-07:00

Another day back into the City and this time it's off to Cannon Street, opposite St Pauls Cathedral to be precise...

Richard Romer-Lee, MD of obsr is todays subject matter....
a few shots inside to start....

and then outside to use the Cathedral as a backdrop....

just a small sample......

More portraits in this series to come as the weeks go by.....

Financial Times...... Shoot Two......

2011-05-15T14:29:00.004-07:00

The location this time is Grosvenor Place and a shoot with John Chatfield-Roberts, Chief Investment Officer and head of the Jupiter Independent Funds Team.
colour first again....then the black and white versions....

just a small selection....cant wait to see them in print !

Financial Times...... Shoot One......

2011-05-13T13:01:00.004-07:00

Back to London again, this time right into the centre of the City at the heart of the capital also known as "The Square mile" It's crammed with Banks and Financial institutions, on par with New York as the leading centre of global finance.

It's a strange location of ultra new and old Gothic architecture all mixed up together....
a fantastic location for architectural photography.

My location for this shoot is right under " The Gherkin "

a Norman Foster creation.......

its correct name is 30 St Mary Axe.

I've been commissioned by The Financial Times for a series of portraits to illustrate a weekly article on various business personalities.

The first in this series is

Rob Hepworth, Chief Investment Officer for Ecclesiastical.

A few samples below.....

colour first then my preferred versions in black and white afterwards.

more to follow.........

Nursery Portraits......

2011-05-11T06:00:00.004-07:00

Portraits of various members of staff at a local nursery....

just a small sample of numerous portraits taken.....

Nice House........£2.6 million any one?

2011-04-28T06:29:00.004-07:00

Back to work.....Properties........

2011-04-28T06:28:00.004-07:00

First off a nice commercial property.....

various internals were taken as well....

also 360's to show off some of the main rooms...
( click the links not the images to see the 360's )

( link )

Holiday ........

2011-04-22T14:20:00.004-07:00

Currently on holiday at the moment.

Fabulous weather, and superb coastline....

what more could one want ?

Images above taken with my trusty Panasonic FT2
( a newer version is available now - The Panasonic FT3 )
not quite Canon 5D mark2 but a great tough little camera nonetheless especially for use in and out of the surf. Highly recommended.

Back to the office soon....

Aston Martin.....V12 Vantage....

2011-04-20T23:42:00.006-07:00

Most of my assignments are good....some are even better!

This weeks highlight, an Aston Martin V12 Vantage Day for owners, hosted at Works Service in Newport Pagnell.

( My badge below )

The V12 Vantage is Aston Martin's most exhilarating sports car...

based on the hugely successful V8 Vantage it features a 6.0 litre V12

more importantly they look and sound fantastic...

( specifications here )

This is a select group of Astons. Only 850 have been made of which under 250 are in the UK

group call for Photo

and a guided tour around Works Service

The car below is a DB4 GT Zagato,
one of just 19
and worth in the region of £5 million

nice green!

360' of the inside of works service ( link )
( also shot by me.....needs Quicktime installed to view )

some race cars as well....

The Heritage Restoration Centre...

maybe the previous green was not quite right for you sir ?

how about a bespoke purple interior instead ?

Kingsley Riding-Felce, Director of Works Service opens the talk

and my now, compulsory food shot.

Food supplied by 1st Class Cuisine
Nice guys and girls.

The last shot of the day.....nice cones....

full set of images here

Bonhams.....New Bond Street, London

2011-04-17T17:01:00.006-07:00

Back to London again for this one....

I've said it before but..... " I LOVE LONDON "

....and this time there's enough time, pre-assignment to photograph some landmarks for my stock collection.

It's Big Ben, or rather the clock tower that catches my attention.

Time to move on as the assignment is in New Bond Street this evening......

London’s famous Bond Street and New Bond Street are revered throughout the world for their wealth of elegant stores, exclusive brands, designer fashion, luxury goods, fine jewels, art and antiques. Set in the heart of Mayfair, in London’s popular West End and encompassed by many of the world’s most outstanding hotels and restaurants.
It looks good in daylight but it's at dusk when it comes alive...

with shops such as Cartier

and so many more...

The location for tonight is the hallowed venue of

Bonhams.

for an evening of Art, drinks and award recognitions...

There is something a bit haunting about the Art work below ?

don't look now...... but it's behind you !

it's behind you again !
Oh, it's a different one.....

or how about an original Banksy like the one on the left hand side of the following picture

for the sum of £80,000 ?

one of many on sale....

Just a sample of the photographs taken during the proceedings.

A good evening was had by all.

Analog.....

2011-03-22T06:07:00.008-07:00

This caught my eye in the press the other day an exhibition entitled Analog - " last one out "....
It brought back fond memories and started the search for some old transparencies I knew I had knocking about in some Ilford 10"x8” paper boxes....more on that later...

...Analog is an exhibition by photographer Richard Nicholson,
photographing the disappearing commercial darkrooms......

He spent three years photographing them in London. It's scary that when he began his project in 2006, there were more than 200 thriving darkrooms dotted around the city, when he completed in 2009, there were just 12 !
Dread to think how many are left now...

My first photographic job was working in a black and white darkroom 20 plus years ago....

at the tender age of 17...

( see image below )

It's me with my favourite toy of the time, a DE VERE 504 drop baseboard enlarger with an Ilford multigrade head. You can still buy a 504' new amazingly
( link ) but modified for the digital age.

Hours must of gone by filing down neg masks so I could print “full frame” with the negatives black borders showing.
Fond memories of Radio 4 afternoon plays, red lights and the smell (or rather taste) of fixer which needed to be replaced once a month. Syphoned off with a tube into 5 litre containers ready for the silver to be reclaimed.
I can still taste it now.

Looking through Richard's shots it's amazing how similar all darkrooms are or evolve into.

While delving into these boxes I also came across more embarrassing pictures of me...

these are of me, going self employed....first press release shots...contact sheets even !
oh how I miss contacts....

a Hasselblad was almost a right of passage then.....

...and now the red lights have gone...its predominantly me and my 17” MacBook Pro these days....
so much more flexibility (I'm a huge fan of Silver effects pro ) but it's nowhere near as much fun...
must be getting old and I also wonder what's in store for us photographically in the next 20 years......

Photography @ " Matrix House "

2011-03-19T14:37:00.009-07:00

champagne reception this time.....
Top 40 achievers under 40 and a new location again as well..
Vine Street London W1

a small selection below....

nice H'ordeurves as well....

Matrix House just happens to be opposite
Chris Beetles Fine Photographs ( link )

they specialize in photographic prints by the world's most sought after photographers........Prices range from £1400 to £50000+

this Picasso for example is £75,000 ! taken by Irving Penn
( link )

another print currently on the walls
Malcom X by Eve Arnold

( link )

it is nice to see original framed prints rather than posters or books...

you just smile nicely at the lady, press the buzzer and you're in.

just round the corner and up the road a bit is Regent Street...

and the Apple store...

a quick pop in....play with some toys...
but......
I'm waiting for the 25th March
and the big decision?

to iPad 2 ..... or not to?
watch this space.......

Photography @ " The Dorchester "

2011-03-16T14:49:00.010-07:00

back at one of my favourite hotels.... The Dorchester

a hotel full of history (more details here)....famous visitors have included Sir Winston Churchill, General Dwight D Eisenhower and T S Eliot to name but a few.....
it opened it's doors on 18th April 1931....so this year it will be celebrating it's 80th birthday !

there is also a fabulous tree out the front called The Dorchester Plane (Platanus x hispanica)

more details here

I was there to photograph The PAM awards...

this year's host was Alexander Armstrong...

good host...

various awards later...

great food but.... £17:50 for a glass of house red !
(Blackberry Phone Photo below)

and the night's over by 1:30am
all that's left is to upload approximately 600 pictures.....match them with audio files for the names

and the night's done....

250th f8 ?

2011-03-14T06:41:00.011-07:00

I wish !
I seem to spend my photographic life at f2 and whatever shutter speed i can get at iso 1250.
Normally with my 24mm f1.4, 50mm f1.2 or 135mm f2

It’s amazing how times have changed with digital files compared to the quality of high speed film.
Ive been shooting indoor sports activities this time for a local sports arena.....

Gymnastics....

and Climbing......

The Glamorous side of re-touching......

2011-03-12T12:20:00.012-08:00

Not all jobs are high end fancy reworking of images for glossy publications.
Some are just as taxing but with much lower budgets...here's an example of a property that is in a state of construction.
The original image shot on a wet and miserable day.
The builders obviously want to get it on the market as quickly as possible but it's still far from being completed...

so here we go...

removal of the cement mixer...now....the relaying of some grass...

finishing off walls...

even the removal of window stickers...

The property still needs a door but its almost done...... sky added and colour tweaked...

and after a bit of time spent we can now see the potential of the house in question weeks before it is finished...... from Building Site to a Home in no time at all.

Having a bad day ?

2007-07-25T01:47:00.012-07:00

Spotted this a couple of days ago on the Reuters site...

Think your day is going down hill...
...lucky guys....not so good for Renault Cars though.

full story here

anyone want a second hand 80 to 200mm or 300mm f2.8 ?

Reuters run a very good blog by their editors and photographers it's worth a look here

Space Invaders...

2007-07-14T21:53:00.012-07:00

I seem to get more interest from the last post than my photography postings so here's another to keep you busy, a classic ..... Space Invaders

....same as before click the link and not the picture,
to start the game press the " Play " button on the left hand menu....
Enjoy........

Waiting for permission.....

2007-07-12T15:17:00.012-07:00

While waiting for the clients clearance of photos for my next entry I thought I would add this......

An online Photographers Game, click the link not the above picture
and see how well you do...... zoom the camera's lens for a higher score...

What the Duck

2007-06-25T11:25:00.012-07:00

I'm now officially a "friend" of "What the Duck"

What an honor.

WTD is an online comic strip by Aaron Johnson ( he classes himself as 40% photographer, 60% Photoshopper ) it's a comment on the life / times / observations of a " Duck " Photographer.

originally a ‘blog filler’ it's hugely popular with photographers all over the web and has great insights into the life of a photographer.

( it also appears in Amateur Photographer Magazine )

My favorites can be found here
Aaron also updates it daily, the latest can be found here

Keep them coming Aaron,

1080 HD

2007-06-23T14:31:00.012-07:00

Back to London again this week.

I spent a day this week photographing a " Pushing Investment Frontiers Forum"
........... Snappy title.

It was held @ The Cavendish Conference Centre, just off London's Oxford Street
(go down Oxford Street, turn right in to Regents Street and in to .........The Apple Store...)
More on that later.

........back to the shoot,
it was a questions and answers forum interleaved with guest speakers on various subjects
( you know the the sort of thing........Portable Alpha, Exchange Trade Funds, Hedge Fund Replication, Emerging Market Debt...and more such snappy titles and subjects like these )

The brief was to shoot all the speakers and cover any interactions from the audience to illustrate a magazine article on the forum.

I finished the shoot and then it was down to the Apple Store to play with a new 24" iMac with one of my Lexar JumpDrive Lightning USB sticks in my pocket.
These are fantastically fast, I can play 1080HD video footage from it without any stuttering or frame hanging what so ever.
So, before I went I collected various samples of 1080 HD footage from the likes of Yahoo Movies and Apple to test out the 24" iMac 's screen, which by the way runs @ 1920 by 1200 pixels.

N.B. try the Transformers and Ratatouille trailers in 1080 HD.

All I can say is Wow want one, want one now......but I will wait as the rumours are ripe for a new updated version.
Sample rumours here and here.
Hopefully Apple will add full Blue-Ray / HD support on the new version ?
Hurry up Apple my money is burning hole in pocket !

Who's the Weakest Link !

2007-06-15T15:33:00.012-07:00

Thursday night is" Curry night "

Well about once every 2 weeks.
It's a good excuse for the boys to put the world to rights....
by the way heads up to Chris....a " The Weakest Link " winner yesterday !
Thursdays Curry was paid for out of his winnings.
Cheers Chris.
I had fully intended my next post to be about this weeks Curry Night with a piccy of my " Chicken Passanda with Spinach and Onion " to illustrate it.
But as hard working photographer balancing work / young family / wife, dashing out the door
( me not my wife ) i completely forgot my digital compact !

Not even my Blackberry has one.

So without pictures to post ( maybe next time ) and it's also on a kind of takeaway theme this caught my eye this week.....

........made me laugh.

a note to ones self ........... always have a camera to hand.

enjoy

Photography @ " The Brewery "

2007-06-13T12:37:00.012-07:00

Here we go then with my first post:

It was a new venue for me last week http://www.thebrewery.co.uk/
photographing " The Mobile Awards" held in London, UK.

These are the Industry Awards for guess what? mobile phones and their various network suppliers, Orange / Vodaphone etc.

Overseeing the event was Omid Djalili

an Iranian stand up comic who seems to pick on anything and everything!
especially photographers working in the audience, we seem to be fair game for any comic!
10 or so Awards in there's an award called "Shop Idol" this is for the best of the best of the shop staff! you know the ones you see behind the shop counters.

A few more awards and the evening moves on.
Soon it's down to the finalist, and the winner of " Shop Idol" is......
Wow!

Last few shots to do of people having fun in the sponsors areas..........

and back to the PowerBook, burn CD's and away... home by 2:30am!!!!

What’s 250thf8 all about?

2007-06-11T15:09:00.012-07:00

Well my name is Simon Hargrave, I'm a professional photographer and I'd like to introduce you to my very first blog @ 250thf8.
This aims to be my personal photoblog where I introduce you to the highs and lows of a location photographer ( and some self promotion as well )
I intend to post pictures ( clients willing ) of my commissioned work with links / postings / ramberlings about Life, Curry night and my own personal highlights of the web.

But first,

Below are some grey step wedges, as a quick calibration guide. For the best monitor setting please adjust your brightness and contrast so that you can distinguish all the single grey tones from one another

If you can see the image and see all the grey steps my first post works.

Great!

So here i go....