New Blog

My current hosting company has just expired so i’ve taken the trip across to dreamhost who will look after my hosting needs from now on. They give me a lot more freedom than my previous host so the first thing i’ve done is to get my blog up-to-date. I’ll cease to use this blog as of today and all updates will come through to my new site. If you have had this blog delivered to your email or a rss reader (whats this?) then just visit the new site and subscribe again. It wont take you 2 minutes.

This latest blog has been designed by myself and i feel its good to go out live now. If you see anything you don’t like or have any suggestions for improvements then just let me know, i’d be happy to hear them. Hopefully it should be looking nice and slick very shortly. I’m currently designing a new website for this blog to compliment which i’ll let you know about as soon as its ready to drop.

Hope to see you over on the new blog www.timlloydphoto.com/blog

Cheers for following this one,

Tim.

Volcano Analogy

7 years ago i spent some time in Indonesia during a university break. Volcanoes dot the islands landscape and i climbed a few whilst there. Ever since climbing Gunung Merapi i’ve used climbing volcanoes as an analogy linking it  nicely with other activities. To put it simply; climbing the volcano was not much fun, sitting in the freezing cold at the top wasn’t fun and walking back down the slope turned out to not be that much fun either. Basically not a lot of fun – but i loved it.

This feeling doesn’t come around often, they save it for the big occasions. Running a marathon is another prime example (i still need sponsors for my next one….lots of sponsors! please consider clicking here to donate). The marathon requires months of training which i don’t really enjoy, followed by the race which again isn’t much fun – but is great.

This volcano analogy hit me hard yesterday and gave me plenty of thinking time to consider just how little fun i was having whilst trying to assure myself that, once all over, it would have been great. I finally delved into the world of ocean boat racing. Having been more of a tourist on my earlier races, i’d only actually been involved in the sailing on one occasion – basically 7 hours bobbing along with virtually no wind. This left me feeling a little anticipation at the prospect of a full day race where breakfast would turn into lunch which itself would turn into dinner before many dark hours later would turn into breakfast again. It was going to be an attempt for the sea to break me, just to see how much of a roller coaster i could take without being allowed to get off.

The race was in the Sea of Marmara going from Istanbul to a south Island and then back again. The first 7 hours were all downwind with the spinnaker doing much of the hard work. The strong breeze made it important to try and rest up during the southerly trip as coming upwind we could tell was going to be exciting. Reaching the island at 5pm on Saturday we were now ready to attack the upwind leg which was one of the craziest experiences i’ve ever felt. As we crested waves as big as houses the whole  boat literally fell from the sky to an enormous bang and a drenching for us sat dangling over the sides. This continued well into the evening just making it more extreme as you couldn’t see the approaching waves. The swell died down at around midnight where salvation could be taken in your 1m squared area to try and close your eyes even for ten minutes.

We finally crossed the line after 19hours and 35 minutes of racing. At 5.35am the finish whistle sounded and i rushed for my camera below the deck. 5.38am brought us this images as the sun rose over Istanbul and a group of dolphins escorted the boat back to the mariner. Did i enjoy the first leg – not really. Did i enjoy the upward leg – honestly, no. Now i’m back home having showered, slept and eaten can i say i enjoyed it? Yeah i loved it…..it’s that volcano analogy.

Turkish Grand Prix Race Day

As earlier anticipated, i missed Saturdays qualifying round to participate in a sailing race which drained me of most of my sanity and a good half bottle of aftersun. Lots of sun and virtually no wind made it a gruelling day on the ocean.

The heat was at epic levels again yesterday making it impossible to sit out in the sun for any real length of time which could be an answer to why the stands seemed so empty? the admission cost would surely of played a part too.

Seeking refuge

The race was dominated once again by British driver Jenson Button. He produced an awesome display of driving to win comfortably from Mark Webber in 2nd and Sebastian Vettel (both Red Bull drivers) in 3rd. Fellow Brit Lewis Hamilton was happy with his race despite finishing in 13th place.

Its one of those funny sports to follow live as i spent the duration of the race with little idea what was happening. You can’t hear anything, you can’t speak to anyone and you don’t really see much of the action…but you can pay $10 for a can of beer. At least it was cold.

Jenson Button reflects as he crosses the finish line

Red Bull driver Mark Webber drives past the empty stands…

…while a spectator has the pick of the seats.

Ferraris Felipe Masa takes to the pits

Jenson Button takes the top honours.

Jenson salutes his fans

Champagne Celebrations.

All images © Tim Lloyd, 2009.

Turkish Grand Prix – Day one

So i’ve just got home and am cursing the speed of my slowly dying computer. The Turkish formula one grand prix started today here in Istanbul and it looks like it will be a great weekend. I could tell you who was quickest in practice today only after looking at the results on the internet as i had no real idea what was going on at the time. I was too busy trying to stop my ear drums from bursting.

Anyway, i’m not too sure if i will make it to qualifying tomorrow as i’ve been invited to join a sailing race instead, something i’ve become quite partial as of late. I’ll be at the race though on Sunday for sure and will keep you updated on how it went.

Here’s a cheeky couple of images to keep you happy in the meantime.

Lewis Hamilton on a flying lap

East meets west meets formula 1

Red Bull flying by

Watching on

In the pits

Home Time

Sailing around

The Bosphorus Cup is held every May in the Bosphorus Strait separating Europe from Asia and it couldn’t be a better setting. I’ve now been invited twice and is something i’d keep on accepting quite happily. It really is a roller coaster life onboard with never a dull moment. Tempers fray, shouting begins and my job is both simple and complex, stay the hell out of the way and produce great images. Staying the hell out of the way, whilst holding on as hard as you can and trying to shoot a few hundred frames makes interesting times for sure.

Here’s a couple of images from the races.

Queuing at the gas station

reigning in the Spinnaker

Boats race under the Bosphorus bridge as a helicopter films from above

Racing at close quarters

Working at full stretch

In full swing

Balancing act

Since the races i’ve been out again without my camera and i must say its the most amazing adrenaline rush attempting to get as much speed out of the boat as possible. I really think sailing is a great sport and its a pity that’s not so accessible to everyone as it’s something i’d really like to continue doing.

A Million Little Pictures Project

I first heard about this project a few weeks back on the Chase Jarvis blog. The Art House Co-op based over in Atlanta, America have come up with the great idea where they send 1000 people a disposable camera and you have the summer to document your life, all in 24 images.

Once you’ve filled your 24 image quota then they get shipped back to The States to form a gallery show on the 25th September. This could prove to be a fun little project for the summer, especially as it’s back to the fun old days of disposable cameras. Sometimes, less is more. If you like the sound of it then get involved, i’ve just applied for mine this morning and am looking forward to the cameras arrival. Let me know if you decide to  join up and see how the community grows.

Red Bull Soapbox Derby

The last few days have been a beehive of activity with events looming out at me from every direction. These included the Bosphorus Cup sailing race, which i’ll post up afterwards and the Turkish Junior show jumping championships – horses again!

Yesterday afternoon was the time for Red Bull to bring its carnival to town. Last year in Istanbul they arranged  a flugtag but this year was the turn of the Soapbox Derby; where 60 home-made go karts attempt to make their way down a 550m course with some being successful while lots of others were not so lucky. There are too many photos to put up here so as usual just click on the image below and it will take you through to a gallery.

Its not all about the gear

A few weeks ago i overheard someone at Badminton Horse trials state that my photos would be superior to his, “because he’s got a better camera” (i was carrying a Canon 1d, 70-200mm combination to his 400d and cheaper long telephoto). Only a few weeks before that i was lent a Canon 40d (which in my eyes is an awesome camera – just don’t get it wet) with the instruction of “just press the button, and be careful, it wasn’t cheap”

My first camera was a Pentax K1000 which was a brilliant camera to break into the world of film SLR cameras. I was largely self taught about the progression into digital photography so went back to basics studying everything about my new camera, which at the time was a Canon 300d.

Since Canon introduced digital slrs they have sold over 10 million worldwide. With so many people now owning them there is always going to be a belief in some peoples minds that they will make better pictures if they have more expensive equipment. When i was around 15 i blamed my downhill mountain bike race times on the fact that i didn’t have a full suspension bike. The reality was that it was completely down to my lack of skill at that level of riding, not at all to do with my bike. The same can be said about many things. I see it a lot with young snowboarders blaming their equipment for their downfalls. It all relates back to the saying, “i’ve got half as much as i want, and twice as much as i need”. People want automatic results; they buy the best, it will make the best….or so they think.

The moral of the story? Get out there and experiment. Study the theory and put it into practice. Should you be saying, “just press the button” with a very good digital camera? No way! Get it off the automatic setting and start playing around learning what each twist of the dial does. Don’t make excuses about your photography based on your gear.

This all stems from two nights ago where i was lucky enough to bump into a ticket tout and get tickets for the UEFA Cup final in Istanbul. As i was literally just wandering the streets before the game i had only brought the bare minimum gear out with me (a Canon 40d and 50mm 1.8 lens). Did i enjoy the game? Yes. Did my gear have its limitations? Yes of course it did but i was still able to use it to make images that i’m happy to look at and show to others…..surely the original aim of buying a camera?

If you really want to purchase a lens to make great images then look no further than the 50mm 1.8. Check out the reviews on Amazon here. I’m sure you can find it for around £50 and if you’re walking the streets of Istanbul, or any other city, then it looks nice and conspicuous not attracting attention.

If you fancy checking out a couple more from the evening just click on the image below. Right, off to do some real work…..more to come.

Need to hear what i’m doing the minute you read this? you can check me out on Twitter for those kind of updates

And yes, that button at the top of the page isn’t lying. I really am running the Eurasia marathon raising money for UNICEF. If you can spare any change then please consider donating.

Australian Snowboarder

As i prepare myself for a trip to the sunshine later this week its worth remembering that the weather in the southern hemisphere is readying itself for winter. Australian Snowboarder magazine has recently been released and i’ve managed to work my way into some of it. First up is Paul Mcmahon killing “boxzilla” which was an installation Snowpark constructed for the last couple of days of the season at the beginning of October.

The magazine also features an interview with Michaela Davis-Meehan with the following shots being in it. The first one was shot in Mayrhofen on a really flat light day with the second at Chiesa Valmalenco. We timed this to be right at the end of the day, just incase anyone was prepared to take our lift passes. With it being in laid back Italy, no on seemed to care!

Am heading out on the road again this week with a sailing competition, a  music festival and a bit of home made go-karts in the form of the Red Bull Sopabox derby for the weekend. You can keep updated here or for a more day to day rundown you can catch me on Twitter.

Horsing Around

Last week i was thrown into the Equestrian world spending several days in the company of horses. I grew up in a family that originally revolved around horses as my mother used to train them. Those days have long gone but it was enjoyable to get back amongst them. First up was Chester Races. Chester has a great little circuit that attracts some of the best horses and jockeys from around the country. After the chaos that ensued it was quite a change to then go direct to Badminton Horse Trials, a world class three day event where you find yourself in the company of royalty, quite literally. Feel free to click on either of the below images to take you through to a separate gallery  with more photos from the events.

First up: Chester Races

Next on the cards: Badminton Horse Trials

My birthday will roll around this weekend and then i’m off to shoot a sailing race and Red Bull Soapbox Derby in warmer climates than Chester right now. I’ll keep you posted.