Brilliant Blackpool at FYC in Blackpool

Images from my Brilliant Blackpool are to be exhibited in Blackpool this month.
From Friday August 12 until Wednesday Aug 31.
Eighteen images will be on show at FYCreatives (just up the road from the Syndicate nightclub for you clubbers).
Brilliant Blackpool coincides with Mass Photograpphy at the Grundy Art Gallery in Blackpool, an amazing show which features a who's who of photographers Ian Berry, Alfred Gregory, Peter Marlow, Martin Parr, Tony Ray-Jones, Humphrey Spender, Chris Steele-Perkins and Homer Sykes.
While they all share the venue, the Brilliant Blackpool exhibition is exclusive to Garry Cook.

And the countdown starts here with some of the images from the show appearing on this blog between now and the opening.
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Preston coffin parade in Bamber Bridge selection

The Bamber Bridge coffin parade is the bizarre relegation ritual to mark Preston Northe End's departure from the Football League Chmapionship.
See the  complete set of images at gazcook.com

Preston North End coffin parade in Bamber Bridge

First look at the Preston North End coffin parade held in Bamber Bridge this week.

More glorious images from this decades-old event coming soon.

And don't forget to take a look at the webite gazcook.com for images and story from the last coffin parade in this town, over a decade ago, to celebrate the promotion of Blackburn Rovers.

Catholics, Protestants, Orange Order marches, India, Pakistan and tourism

Catholic and Protestant. Israeli and Palestinian. Indian and Pakistani. Sunderland and Newcastle. What’s the difference?

Well, apart from one of the above, none of these are able to get along harmoniously at any time whatsoever.

And which is the odd one out? Yes, you’ve guessed it, the Indians and Pakistanis are the unlikely couple who are able to produce a theatrical masterclass out of their religious differences.

Sadly, the Catholics and Protestants have been failing miserably to demonstrate similar traits during the marching season in Belfast.

What could be a spectacle of pomp and ceremony, colour and noise, ideal for tourist consumption is instead a call to arms for gangs of young men and teenagers to hurl bricks at police and set fire to any vehicle in their path.

Watching the uniformed gangs – in tracksuits, trainers and scarves over their faces – unhappy about the Orange Order marches, I was reminded of the Border Ceremony between India and Pakistan at Wagah.

Everyday both nations’ armies together perform a ritual that attracts thousands of partisan spectators who shriek and cheer as soldiers mock each other.

It’s a riot of fun and excitement that is all the more impressive as these two countries have a long history of problems, politics, dislike and hatred.

How can Northern Ireland, which has so much to offer for visitors, ever hope to achieve a high standing in the tourism industry when its inhabitants burn and riot in parts of Belfast because the other lot are going on a walk?

This is why India and Pakistan can teach us Westerners a lesson in sense and civility.

All images © Copyright Garry Cook. Do not dare use without permission.

Andrew Allington's a lucky bloke: Vicar marries model 20 years younger

Flicking through the Daily Mirror I thought I recognised his face.

He was the vicar I interviewed for my Outsiders project examining ourselves and how we judge others.

Andrew Allington had come to my attention through a news report of him being attacked in his own home by a local youth in Stainforth, near Doncaster, South Yorkshire.

Yesterday he was in the paper for the simple reason of getting married... To an ex-model called Hazel Trudgen twenty years younger than him. It’s the perfect tabloid story.

But behind the headlines is a vicar who has done some amazing things in what is a struggling mining community. He lets local kids come round his house for tea, he even launched a community cinema.

If all local vicars put invested a similar amount of energy and creativity into their community, Britain would be a distinctly more pleasant place to live.

This is a story about Andrew and Hazel in the Daily Mail.

Here is my direct-quotes interview.

And here is Andrew photographed in his home:

Travel: Mountain biking in La Plagne

Some images from a mountain biking travel feature in La Plagne, France.

Read the full travel feature here.

NBC iVillage, two pugs and a photograph

This photograph has had 1,600 views on flickr. I posted it in 2005.

This week I had an editorial request to use it. I get many of these through my photos on flickr. Whether they come from Swiss airline magazines, British online map companies or football magazines they always have one common theme - 'we can't pay you but...'
You know the rest. The request to use this image was from iVillage, which is now owned by NBC the American TV network.
Ignoring the fact that I was addressed to as Lauren, here is the email I received from iVillage's Michelle Menner (who I shall refer to as Steve):
Hi Lauren,
I'm with NBC's iVillage and am working on a feature about people who love their pets. Came across the photo of your adorable pugs in bug costumes and would love to use it as a part of a photo slideshow on the iVillage website.

Here's a link to the specific photo:www.flickr.com/photos/gazcook/50226996/
If you're interested, please send the photo, photo description (pet's name, what's happening), and credit information (photographer name, city, state) to michelle.menner@nbcuni.com by Friday, June 24.
The feature will run in the next few weeks.
Thank you.
Michelle Menner
iVillage | Pregnancy + Parenting
michelle.menner@nbcuni.com
I have refused every request to use my photography in an editorial publication unless payment has been offered. Only once has a fee subsequently been agreed.
At this point I can't stress strongly enough that you should never allow free use of your images, particularly for a profit-making agency or publication. If they get paid for their work, you should get paid for your work*.
Even if you are flattered, have never had a photo published before or are new to photography and looking to gain experience - never ever offer to work for free or allow your work to be used for free. It's idiotic and undermines the entire industry to the point where you can't complain about not being able to get aid for work later in your career because some other novice is offering work without payment.
For this request of the two pugs, to be included in a slideshow which I deemed was more of a promotional platform for my work, I decided I would allow the photograph to be used - but only after clarifying copyright and usage terms. So I emailed Steve back.
I received no reply.
It seems that organisations like NBC not only want images for free - they also can't be bothered to agree not to sell on your image for profit or promise that they won't grab the copyright off you.
*The only exception to this rule is if the publication is actually publicising your work or project.

Photographer John Stoddart National Photography Symposium 2011

It was a frantic 30 minutes when John Stoddart presented his own mini-retrospective in his hometown of Liverpool.

From Thatcher-hating socialist Liverpool to the excesses of celebrity in London, this Scouser in a suit was like a whirlwind in an otherwise plodding and overtly-serious National Photography Symposium.

Though still emitting Scouse tones, Stoddart’s eccentric poise is far from typical Merseyside. He’s more a slightly-camp head waiter than working-class scally.

These days, however, he serves the rich and famous. Photographing them for all the top publications. His ironic glitzy website is as good as I’ve seen in a long time.

He was a teenager in his 70s, photographing bands like Echo and the Bunnymen. Stoddart opened a studio (it didn’t last long). He tried the same thing in London. This time it worked. Magazines, record companies all commissioned him. Five shoots a week, he said. Now it’s fewer magaine shoots – ‘they don’t commission anymore'  but plenty of eroticism and art-porn (my description).

Stoddart admits to being a notoriously fast photographer. I can well believe it. Twenty-five years of photography crammed into a 30-minute slideshow. I blinked and I almost missed it.

Best camera mobile phone for photographers

You’ve got a Blackberry. But you, over there, have an iPhone. And what’s that I see, someone with a Sony Ericsson Cyber-shot – oh, that’s me.

But just what is the best camera on a mobile phone?

For a few years now I’ve used the Sony Ericsson K810i because its Cyeber-shot camera is very good. It’s xenon flash is terrific for use indoors and at night. But the K810i is pretty hopeless when it comes to surfing the internet and is a no-go for apps.

As a photographer and journalist the benefit of being able to upload photographs and audio to my blog or apps, such as Audioboo (iPhone or Android only) is immeasurable. A mobile phone with a top-rated camera and a decent internet capability is a must.

But which is best?

In order to facilitate which phone I’m about to buy I’ve carried out my own forums reading and research to come up with two phones that get great reviews from some respected organisations.

And the leaders are the Nokia N8 and the huge Android-running HTC Desire HD.

On the HTC Desire Which? Says: This comes with a range of different camera modes, such as distortion and sepia, but probably of more use is the dual LED flash, which helps in low-light conditions. Picture quality is above average and photos look fantastic on the large, sharp display. However we did note that the camera has a very tight focus, so you have to stand some distance away to fit in wide shots.

 

Tech radar says of the Nokia H8: Its massive image sensor (the biggest of any smartphone currently on the market), f/2.8 aperture and 5.9mm focal length produce photos that are almost film-worthy. Unfortunately, there's no optical zoom, just a disappointing 2x digital option - but the good quality optics, Xenon flash and manual controls for everything from the white balance to ISO settings make it an excellent choice for the photography-conscious.

Websites visited include Which?, androidforums.com and techradar.com

 

 

 

Why every photography gallery needs coffee

Buy me a coffee and I’ll come to a photography exhibition.
For anyone who likes photography it’s an offer you can’t refuse. For anyone who doesn’t like photography it should also be the offer you can’t refuse.

The problem is, the people who run photography galleries don’t have a clue about business and marketing.
If they did, the front entrances to their buildings would be full of tables and chairs with a big sign in the window saying ‘coffee.’ These galleries would also be full of people, something that photography galleries try to avoid at all costs.
This is my idea to make photography galleries popular. It is simple so I will reiterate: bring people in by selling tea and coffee.
Imagine two city centre buildings right next to each other. One is a beautifully kept, white-walled photography gallery hosting an exhibition by Sabastiao Salgado. The other is a Starbucks.
From 8am until 6pm one building is packed full of people, the other welcomes just two students and an elderly lady all day. Do you nee me to tell you which is photography gallery?
I’ll give you a clue: the old lady was looking for the coffee shop but walked through the wrong door.
This topic was talked about the other day (May 2011) by important people at the National Photography Symposium in Liverpool.

The Photographers’ Gallery in London is a case to illustrate my point. When it was housed in two adjacent buildings in Great Newport Street, London, (for 27 years until 2008) it had a marvellous coffee shop.
Despite being fairly narrow it was busy, with images on display around the room. I loved it.
Clare Grafik, The Photographers’ Galley’s current head of exhibitions, mentioned at NPS’s ‘Imagining the photography centre of the future’ panel discussion how she liked this almost accidental coffee shop.
“We tricked them into seeing art – got them in to buy a coffee and see an exhibition for free,” she remarked.
It’s so bloody obvious. The fact that The Photographers’ Galllery coffee shop is hidden on the first floor at its new premises on Ramillies Street, Soho, is a step backwards. But at least they have one.
Impressions in Bradford. No coffee shop. Few visitors. Several café’s round the corner are packed all the time. Liverpool’s new Open Eye Gallery does not have a coffee shop, tea bar or drinks machine.
I remember visiting the old Open Eye Gallery on Wood Street. I had to walk past about fifteen bustling coffee shops to get there. The exhibition was by an Eastern European photographer whose name I can’t recall. But I do remember being the only person in the building, apart from the staff.
When you’re the lone person visiting an exhibition and are out-numbered by the staff you sort of feel you’re intruding. I never went back.
Now, I’m not saying that venue was ideal for selling tea, coffee and carrot cake – but their brand new building could’ve been. They’ve missed a trick. You have to go to the Museum of Liverpool next door for a hot drink.
Open Eye didn’t even have anything for sale. At least Newcastle’s Side Gallery were selling a few books the last time I visited. Selling books – that’s another story (something I have to say The Photographers’ Gallery does well).
The National Media Museum in Bradford has a canteen-cum-coffee shop. It’s always far busier than the exhibitions. When will the penny drop?
What are the people running photography institutions actually doing to attract new people to photography?
The answer is: Not enough.

This is me drinking coffee in Rome.