Photographers rely so much on their “digital friend” rather than invest their time, money and effort into learning how light actually behaves (I was quite shocked to find out, the other day, that a “professional” photographer did not understand basic physics - that the link between light and colour vibrancy and saturation was simply not even considered), how their equipment works (I think how modern digital cameras measure and evaluate light is still akin to alchemy or magic to most photographers - and I’m not even referring to different measuring modes) or - and this is even worse - how the triangle between light, technique and subject works.
Read MoreI have almost always used local guides in my trips - discovered through a variety of ways, from word of mouth and recommendations, from lists provided by some of the largest publications and organisations in the world and, sometimes, through my own personal research and vetting. It’s usually a long and very rigorous process based on a wide variety of layers, from the financial to the intuitive - from what a person says to how they respond to the details they readily provide. Some shine immediately as real stars - professional, responsive, detailed and with clear mastery of their area of coverage - others need a lot more filtering and communication.
Read MoreAs photographers we live a sort of charmed life - we get to travel the world and, in exchange for loads of effort and exercising our art, we get to experience incredible people and amazing places. It’s not an easy life - certainly gets harder every year - but it can be magical. But despite that, we are, really, not very nice people - we are selfish, most of the time ignorant of the world around us, inconsiderate of others and, more and more frequently, downright nasty. I have always known that, but it was only recently that I felt, for the first time, its effects!
Read MoreImages have been processed since the dawn of photography - even the most die-hard street photographer or film aficionado, more often than not, make creative choices about how to interpret the images they captured. This can be as simple as pushing or pulling the film sensitivity or cropping, others may extend to dodging and burning and more. These techniques - which are by no means simple - have resulted in the amazing pictures the previous analogue generations have bequeathed us. Jump to today and what do we find?
Read MoreAs the world - that is us, normal people - start waking up to the reality of how stupid, insensitive and, arguably, damaging to our world influencers are, I wanted to provide a quick rundown of the more recent insanity stories, not to educate but just to hopefully bring to the front not only the scale and impact of what it is they’re doing but also to provide an insight on what us photographers and responsible tourists can do to alleviate some of the damage they’re causing - after all, it’s our world too. In fact, it’s more our world than it is theirs - as you will read in this post, I’m not 100% sure they live in the real world.
Read MoreResearching what is worth seeing in Hanoi one cannot but stumble upon a mention of the famous Train Street. You get to read about the train which passes “inches from the houses” (it doesn’t), about the locals who live “right on the tracks and only move moments before the train arrives” (they don’t) and about how “crazy it all is” (it isn’t) and you start dreaming about it and wanting to see it and so on and so forth. I mean, let’s face it - it sounds absolutely tantalising and amazing - the antithesis between the fragile human with the massive metal beast that is the modern locomotive, especially in this day and age of political correctness and safety-above-all. So, if you’re in Vietnam for something more than cheap booze and party, Train Street is a must see, right?
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