Olympus Street Photography with Rob Pugh
Olympus have a great event schedule available for photographers to attend. Many of the events are free and others are available for a small fee, depending on the sort of event. If you're an Olympus photographer, or even if you're not, you can check out the Olympus Image Space website for the calendar of events and get your name on the list if you want to attend an event.
The great thing about these events is that Olympus usually have an Ambassador and an Olympus rep present on the day, so if you're curious about features and functions on your existing Olympus camera, or want to know more about the Olympus range you'll be in safe hands at an Olympus event. And yes - you can usually try out the cameras and lenses too!
Streets Ahead
On Saturday 24th January I attended my second Olympus Image Space event, this time with Rob Pugh in Reading for an event titled 'Streets Ahead'. As you can guess it was Street Photography related.
Myself and another 13 other Olympus Photographers, who were in attendance by invite after applying to go, met up with Rob and Jez from Olympus in Reading at the newly (re-)opened Jessops store before setting off on our route around the Berkshire town of Reading, which is just a few miles away from where I live.
An Education
From the get-go it was easy to see why Rob was selected by Olympus as an Ambassador: Rob not only knows the Olympus cameras inside and out, he was also able to professionally demonstrate and explain his vision, settings and ideas as we walked. From reflections in puddles and the angles on buildings, to the colour filters available within the OM-D's and how they'll affect various scenes in the end result. Furthermore Rob explained these methods and techniques in such a way that all of the participants seem to understand the reasoning behind them. I was very impressed with Rob's aptitude for information sharing and enabling others.
Rob had us all switch our EVF's into Mono mode and then make some adjustments to the level so that we were seeing a nice contrasty rich view through our EVF's. It made the experience of shooting much more fun!
Local Knowledge
Being a local Rob also knew Reading pretty well too. It's a town I visit a couple of times a month with my wife and children, but usually for a spot of shopping or lunch. It was great to see what else Reading had to offer in terms of photographic opportunities. We walked through alleys and pathways I never even knew existed in a town I've been visiting for some 15 years now! As part of the walk we also stopped for at the Handmade Burger Co as well for a bite to eat and a catchup on all things Olympus. For many (myself included) this was a golden opportunity to ask our two hosts about forthcoming Olympus gear and releases. Rob and Jez remained tight-lipped though and refused to confirm or deny anything we were asking or suggesting, of course, but exciting things are coming by the smiles on their faces :)
Gear used on this shoot
I got caught up in conversation with Rob and Jez so much that I guess I was distracted somewhat from the scenes around me. Whereas I'm usually shooting the scenes and goings-on around me, I was more focussed on the conversation and the shapes and structures rather than the people and that reflects in the series of photographs below.
I spent the day with my Olympus OM-D E-M5 and trusty Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8. I tried the 25mm f/1.8 for a short while too (thanks Jez) as it was a lens I wanted to buy, but also wanted to play with before hand to see if it was as good as people say it it. I can confirm it's a great lens and as part of my move over to Olympus after selling all my Canon equipment, it was indeed one of the lenses I had in my shopping basket. Both of these primes are sharp and fast to focus! Which is exactly what is needed for Street Photography.
The Photographs
So, here is my small selection of photographs from the day. The EXIF and Camera / Lens details are below each shot. Comments are more than welcome, of course!
Enjoy!
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 800 | Aperture: f22 | Shutter Speed: 1/25
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 800 | Aperture: f/5.0 | Shutter Speed: 1/640
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 800 | Aperture: f/7.1 | Shutter Speed: 1/800
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 800 | Aperture: f/7.1 | Shutter Speed: 1/250
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 3200 | Aperture: f/2.2 | Shutter Speed: 1/2.2
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 250 | Aperture: f/ 1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/1250
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 640| Aperture: f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/200
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 25mm f/1.8
ISO: 100 | Aperture: f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/800
Low-Light London with the Olympus OM-D E-M1
Pretty much everything you see in my portfolio was taken in London. It's no secret that I love the place. The variety and quality of the food, the friendly local faces, the multicultural nature of the people you'll see. It's a modern city set against an historic backdrop. I've mentioned before that other cities such as Paris and New York are often favoured in place of London when it comes to photographic qualities, but if you ask me I'll champion London any day of the week as one of the greatest photographers playgrounds going.
I live on the outskirts of London and go for a walkabout with the camera at least once or twice a week. Suffice to say I know the place pretty well. In the last 5 years I've seen it change as much as it has in the last 15. The gentrification is rapid, but unlike many cities much of the redevelopment is being done with respect for what was there before and with thought to history as well. London truly is unique. And even more so at night!
With it being so dark recently I have been more inclined to head home as soon as the light starts to fade, but I recently took receipt of my new Olympus OM-D E-M1 and the excitement of a new camera has made me go out and seek light among the shadows. So, today I want to share some photographs from London at night.
Almost all of the shots in this series see me pushing the E-M1 to the heights of what it can do in terms of high ISO. Fortunately for us Olympus shooters we've also got the outstanding in-built 5-axis stabilisation in our OM-D cameras, meaning we're able to shoot hand held at speeds lower than in cameras without this feature. You'll notice some of these are down at 1/15th of a second!
All of the images below were shot with either the Olympus OM-D E-M5 or the E-M1. It is worth noting though that anything the E-M5 is capable of, the E-M1 is simply better! I've only had the E-M1 for a week now, but I will be doing a review of it in due course.
The lenses used were either the Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8, the Olympus M.Zuiko 25mm f/1.8 or the Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40mm f/2.8. Owing to the x2 crop factor that makes these lenses a 34mm, 50mm and 24-80mm respectively.
If you're the slideshow type then skip to the bottom for the slideshow. If you'd prefer to see the EXIF for each shot just scroll down and view each image.
Note: I'm a huge fan of black and white photographs and this is the reason you'll see many of the photographs in this series in mono. I find that the OM-D's render black and white's beautifully, and furthermore the Olympus RAW files can really be pushed in Lightroom to produce some stunning, contrasty monochrome photographs...but more on that in my upcoming E-M1 review :)
Enjoy!
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 3200 | Aperture: f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/50
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 5000 | Aperture: f/3.5 | Shutter Speed: 1/1000
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 5000 | Aperture: f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/200
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 5000 | Aperture:f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/320
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 5000 | Aperture: f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/2000
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 5000 | Aperture: f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/200
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 3200 | Aperture: f/10 | Shutter Speed: 1/13
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/100
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/160
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/100
Olympus OM-D E-M5 & Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/60
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 28mm
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/80
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 15mm
ISO: 1250 | Aperture:f/4.0 | Shutter Speed: 1/20
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 12mm
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/125
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 40mm
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/125
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 40mm
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/160
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 24mm
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/80
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 40mm
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/50
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 12mm
ISO: 3200 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/50
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 21mm
ISO: 4000 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/60
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 60mm
ISO: 4000 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/60
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 18mm
ISO: 4000 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/60
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 12mm
ISO: 4000 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/100
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8 @ 27mm
ISO: 4000 | Aperture:f/2.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/100
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko 25mm f/1.8 @ 25mm (50mm)
ISO: 4000 | Aperture:f/1.8 | Shutter Speed: 1/60
Olympus OM-D E-M1 & Olympus M.Zuiko 25mm f/1.8 @ 25mm (50mm)
ISO: 4000 | Aperture:f/2.2 | Shutter Speed: 1/15
Conclusion
My conclusion is relatively simple: I'm very impressed!
Some of the photographs do contain a fair amount of digital noise (grain, if you prefer) but unlike the files I used to get out of my old Canon DSLR the noise isn't unpleasant. It's actually quite atmospheric in many of the photographs. So much so that I've actually opted to not use any noise reduction and leave the noise as it is! Others I've added a touch of Noise Reduction in Lightroom, but my personal rule is to never take the slider higher than 20. I love sharp images and noise reduction is the enemy of sharpness. Having said that, as I also eluded to in my own review of the Olympus OM-D E-M5 last year - the
Slideshow
If you're more the slideshow sort, just click on any of the images in the grid below to view in a lightbox and then use your arrow keys (or swipe) to navigate to through the images).
Enjoy!
London Street Photography with Ready Steady Pro
This past Sunday 26th October I made my way into London to meet up with some wonderful photographers and members of the Ready Steady Pro community for a walk around England's capital with the cameras.
We hold regular walks in various locations and photowalks are a great way to get to know more photographers that are otherwise profile pictures and banter over the internet.
So, we met in Leadenhall Market and after a few introductions we set off on our route
This is the Lloyds Tower, just outside of Leadenhall Market. Very Swanky!
Sometimes you just get busted taking someone's photograph. Damn!
"In Rememberence" - The Tower of London - the ceramic poppy display as a tribute to those who laid down their lives for us.
Love Lock - A now common practise on the railings of bridges all over the world
So, if you're interested in joining a photowalk just head on over to Ready Steady Pro and join us! You can also subscribe to this blog for updates and announcements for new walks.
The next walk is Manchester on November 22nd!
Looking forward to seeing you there!
Portraits of London with the Olympus OM-D E-M5
Sometimes the world has a pretty dim view of London and prefers cities such as Paris and New York for photography. They're both grand cities; I know this first hand, but London is a wonderful place and more importantly it's full of some of the most colourful characters you're likely meet almost anywhere in the world!
In London over 300 languages are spoken (Not including the local dialect 'Cockney' :) ). Over 8 Million people call London home and it is the most visited city in the world.
So, when it comes to making portraits of strangers I'm very fortunate to have the City of London on my doorstep.
The Ready Steady Pro Street Photography Photo Walk
On Sunday 27th April I took over 20 photographers on a photo walk in London. The walk, organised as part of The Ready Steady Pro series of meetups, would take in a 4 mile route, passing through Covent Garden, Leicester Square, Carnaby Street, The Mall, Westminster and South Bank. It may not seem like very far, but with over 20 photographers and countless coffee stops (mostly my fault) it took the best part of 6 hours!
Outside Your Comfort Zone
As the organiser and an experienced street photographer It was my aim to get the group out of their comfort zone by making street portraits. This involves approaching complete strangers on the street and making their photograph with their permission. It was something that many of the group were very uncomfortable doing at first, but by the end of the day, after plenty of encouragement and advice (which I'll write about in my next post - Subscribe to receive updates via email) it seems almost everyone had made a few portraits of their own.
I was really pleased to see people getting outside of their comfort zone and talking to locals and tourists.
Gear & Equipment
There were all sorts of cameras to be seen on the day: Sony, Nikon, Canon, Fuji and Olympus (xx was even using an Olympus OM Film Camera!) I personally had my favourite camera to hand: my Olympus OM-D E-M5. Seeing as the walk was hosted in conjunction with Paul Griffith's One Camera One Lens community I made the decision to try and not change lenses all day, so bar a couple of photographs, these portraits were made with the Olympus M.Zuiko 17mm f/1.8mm prime lens (effectively 34mm owing to the x2 crop factor of Micro Four Thirds). It wasn't later on in the day until Linda Johnston and I had a chance to catch up that I had a play with the M.Zuiko Pro 12-40mm f/2.8 (giving an equivalent focal range of 24-80mm). I almost didn't give this lens back to Linda!
I've included all of the EXIF data: just hover above the photographs to see the details.
Enjoy the portraits! You can also click them to enjoy them full screen
The Portraits
We were casually walking through South Bank having a conversation about photography when I noticed this chap briskly walking towards us. I promptly stopped whatever it was that I was saying in the conversation and stepped into this young chaps' path "Wow! Can I please, please make your photograph?" I asked. It wasn't my usual method of convincing people I'm a trustworthy person and that they should let me photograph them, but this guy was in such a rush that I couldn't afford to miss the opportunity.
He kindly obliged and I had him step to one side so I could put the river and some sort of skyline behind him. With the sky now being behind I made a quick adjustment to the aperture and shutter speed to expose correctly and made 3 frames.
As always I took his email address and I'll send him this photograph shortly.
On our way to Leicester Square we walked through The Burlington Arcade in Mayfair. The Arcade is home to many fine shops selling what can only be described as 'Premium' goods; luxury cashmere sweaters, antique fountain pens and of course - a Leica Camera store! We couldn't resist so a few of us went in for a look around. The store is barely 10 feet by 8 feet but it had enough Leica's on display that when sold would amount to more than I'm likely to spend on camera gear in an entire lifetime! Put it this way - the prices weren't on display. And when the prices aren't shown, you know you can't afford something, right?
This man greeted us as we entered, with our cameras in our hands and around our necks a few of us piled into this tiny, minimalist store to adore the Leica cameras which were stored behind glass to protect them from drooling enthusiasts who go there to dream. They weren't prepared to just let us play with the cameras unfortunately, but after some casual conversation, some quizzing about how much of a staff discount he got (which he wasn't prepared to share with me) and after he'd had a good look at my E-M5 I asked to make his photograph - which he was more than happy to allow me to do. For good measure I was sure to include the Leica's in the background here.
I'm not really into my gear too much, but they had a particularly impressive display behind glass in the middle of the store, where they showed the stages of the making of the T-System from one block of aluminium, to the finished camera. This video explains the process.
Perhaps my personal favourite from the day. This is Keith. I was encouraging a participant of the walk to approach strangers and ask to make their portrait. As I said earlier It's easier for some people than it is for others so on this occasion to demonstrate I said "Look, just watch me". I spotted this guy waiting in the middle of the street. He was easy to spot: other people seemed comparatively plain looking, but this guy had his cool hat and dark shades - He was my next portrait!
"Hey there, I love the hat! I look like such a dork in hats! Where did you get it from?" I asked
"I got this back home in The States" He said in an American accent. "Hats don't really suit me either but I don't care" he continued
"No! It looks cool on you, it really does. Do you mind if I make your picture?"
"Yeah sure, go ahead"
As I got into position he started telling me that he was from Seattle and that he was here doing the tourist thing at the moment. We continued our conversation, I explained that we were there in London doing Street Photography. I handed him a business card, thanked him for his time and we continued on down Carnaby Street.
As we got past Leicester Square we stopped for a coffee for a short while. Many people were a little achy by this point. Just next door the Costa where we stopped were these guys (above and below) standing outside a shop providing people with samples. Of course, being the sort of people to get attention and provide samples meant that they were happy go lucky and confident. After trying the Tea and the Cold Hot Chocolate I asked this guy for his portrait. At first he was little unsure, but it just a took a "Oh come on!" to convince him: "Go on then!" he said.
I included the tray of sample drinks in the frame to show what he was doing on the street.
Next up for a portrait was this guy. When I first approached him and his colleague they were both a little unsure, as many potential subjects can be: it's not every day someone stops to chat to you and then asks to make your photograph!
After making the photograph of the gentleman in the previous picture we all had a little laugh and then it became a little competetive. This guy here agreed to have his picture taken because the other guy had just has his done too. So rather than standing there a little nervously this chap put on a smile, gave his head an interesting tilt and effectively gave me a pose for the camera. Good on him!
An area of London I've always had success with street portraits is over at South Bank. It seems to be an area that a real odd mix of people walk through. It's south of the river between Westminster Bridge and Waterloo Bridge right next to the London Eye. For this reason you get plenty of tourists, plenty of people who work in London but also a collection of people who seem to be drawn to the area by the Undercroft - a very popular and globally recognised skate park. It's currently under threat as money men want to demolish it and build retail units in it's place. Owing to it's location as I mentioned above it's in a prime position to make any businesses that would potentially occupy the space a good amount of money. However, as the sign in this chaps mouth suggests - "You can't move history"!
I approached this man who was manning a table outside the Skatepark collecting signatures for the 'Save South Bank' petition. I offered a signature in exchange for a portrait, which he happily agreed to. As I wrote my details down on the clipboard he grabbed his hat, shades and the flier and did this!
Next up was a young chap also collecting signatures for the petition. Having seen his friend have his photograph made I think he too warmed to the idea. I didn't have to ask much this time round other than to look at him, gesture by raising the camera and asking "Can I make your picture too?" He nervously nodded and agreed and then seemingly tried to out do his friend and stuck this over his eyes.
I was about to ask him to take it off, but I actually quite like how it turned out. I made a few frames and thanked him. What a cool guy!
By this point in the day we're still at South Bank. As it's close to Waterloo Station, which is linked very well to all areas of London via the Underground, this was an ideal for many people who joined us on the walk to make their way home if they weren't staying later with those of us that were going to have something to eat.
I was saying a few goodbyes and thanking people for coming when I saw this guy walking in our direction. There was no way I couldn't photograph a Jedi in London! Typically, people dressed up like this don't mind having a laugh and clearly don't care so they can be great street portrait subjects. I stopped him and said: "Wow! Great look you've got going on there! Where have you come from, how come's you're dressed as a Jedi?"
"It's the 2014 Sci-fi-London Event. It's closed now you've missed it!"
I asked for his photograph. He pulled out his lightsaber, pressed the button and it made that notorious Lightsaber noise! I made this frame, shook his hand and thanked him. Off he went!
So, that's it for this post. I hope you've enjoyed the photographs and the stories behind them?
Future Events
Come and join me on a UK Photo walk. Upcoming events include London (29th May) and Brighton (August 17th). We are also making plans for a walk somewhere in the Midlands and perhaps Manchester too. Just subscribe to keep up to date, or head on over and Join the Ready Steady Pro community
Street Portrait Tips
Making Street Portraits can be a challenge for some - You need to bring your confidence and ask the right questions. Next week here on the Blog I'll be sharing my top tips for getting a 'Yes' when asking people if you can make their photograph. Subscribe to receive updates via email