One of my voluntary roles is as the administrator for the Facebook site of North Devon Jazz Club. I’ve always enjoyed watching the Jazz played by often national or even international Jazz musicians. This small club based at the Beaver Inn in the small coastal village of Appledore, seems to attract the highest caliber of performers who are often used to playing huge festivals elsewhere. I could see locally that attendance was dwindling and felt I could do something to help bring it into the digital age giving it a social media platform. So last summer I added the administration of the Facebook site to my list. Once the site was live and people were looking and interacting with it I was compelled to better it by populating it with photographs from the gigs – another job that I gave myself!
This is work that I’m very used to as I had often photographed bands in the past including work for the Bideford Folk Festival and Barnstaple’s Fringe TheatreFest, and most of my personal photography is done under low light or difficult lighting conditions. I like the challenge of photographing the musicians live under low lighting; being close enough to be enveloped by the sound I love, but considerate enough that the band is not disturbed and the audience is not annoyed by my presence. I’ll get my pictures all taken through just one tune if I can.
The camera I’m using is a Pentax K3 dslr usually with a 50mm f1.8 lens. With this camera I’m able to shoot at 3200iso or 6400iso and still achieve great detail. This also enables me to use a shutter speed fast enough to freeze the typical body movement musicians put into a live performance, usually 1/60th – 1/100th of a second.
Photographic Workshops in Devon, Spring 2016
Dave Green is a fully qualified photography teacher with over 20 years experience teaching the subject at all levels in schools, colleges, arts organisations and in industry both in the UK and USA. For a bespoke 121 course, run over a number of weeks, the price is from ?20 per hour. A rolling programme of workshops is listed below:
Digital Camera Skills – 10am-5pm ?50
A practical days workshop learning to gain control over your camera, shutter speeds, aperture, ISO, flash etc, setting it up for optimum quality under any given lighting, and making better pictures through composition. Numbers limited to a hand-full. I also offer it on a 1:1 basis for ? a day for ?75
Wednesday 23rd March in Bideford Click to Book
Half Day Intro to digital photography – ?25
A ‘sit around the table’ workshop to get to know your camera better. You’ll learn about shutter speeds, aperture, ISO, flash and setting your camera up for optimum quality.
Wednesday 9th March in Bideford, (8.45am-12.15pm)Click to Book
Family Photo Workshop – get to know your camera – ?30 per adult (maximum 2 accompanied children free)
A practical workshop to get to know your camera better. You’ll learn about shutter speeds, aperture, ISO, flash and setting your camera up for optimum quality. This is a 3 hours contact time with 2 hours in the middle for taking photographs and having lunch.
Thursday 31th April in Bideford, (10am-3pm) Click to Book
iPhoneography Workshop – ?25
A practical workshop to learn how to use your iPhone’s camera to take professional looking photographs and enhance those images on the go. Suitable for anyone with an iPhone. You will need to install a few cheap photo apps in advance which I’ll advise on when booking!
Wednesday 16th March in Barnstaple (9.30am-12.30pm) Click to Book
SmartPhone Photography – ?25
A practical workshop to learn how to use your Smartphone’s camera (Android, Windows or Apple) to take professional looking photographs and enhance those images on the go. Suitable for anyone with a SmartPhone. You will need to install a few cheap photo apps in advance which I’ll advise on when booking!
TBA? Click to Book
Painting With Light (Light Graffiti) – ?25 per photographer (but please bring a torch swinging friend at no extra cost)
or ?30 per family (one adult plus up to 2 children under 16) An evening workshop celebrating the last of the dark nights of the Winter. You’ll learn how to make ‘long exposure’ photographs using coloured lights, flames, sparklers and hand-held flash
Monday 21st March at Westward Ho! (6pm-9pm) Click to Book
Sea Caves, Shipwrecks and the Rocky Shore (10am – 5pm) – ?50
An introduction to Dave Green’s own photography. Spend a day with Dave experiencing the secret coast, hidden at the far ends of a sandy beach, full of caves and shipwrecks. Learn how to make the best of your own camera under demanding landscape and lighting.
TBA Click to Book
Photographing your own Artwork – ?60 with lunch, tea and coffee provided!
I have a wealth of knowledge and experience of photographing 2D artwork, jewellery and ceramics and I’m willing to pass this on to artists eager to improve their own image making camera skills. Although this workshop is for a small group (max 4) I also offer it on a 1:1 basis for ? a day for ?75, or I can deliver the workshop in your own home or studio anywhere in Devon for ?125
Thursday 24th March in Bideford, (10am-5pm) Click to Book
Introduction to Photoshop – ?70 with lunch, tea and coffee provided!
Opening an image file and adjusting levels, contrast, brightness and colour balance. Rotating, resizing and cropping an image. Placing an image or images into a new file. Using layers and history. Participants will need to be computer literate i.e. use a computer on regular basis and understand the basic controls. Small group (max 4). I also offer it on a 1:1 basis for a full day in your own home or studio anywhere in Devon for ?175
Wednesday 30th March in Bideford, (10am-5pm) Click to Book
For more pictures and information please go to the Facebook site of North Devon Jazz Club
I have been making documentary photographs since my time at College where this was my strongest work. I?m still very attracted to the tradition in it?s pure sense: shooting only under available light, being a witness to what actually happens rather than setting it up or manipulating events, being as ?invisible? as I could be so that my presence didn?t affect what happened, being objective, looking for ?decisive? moments, being open to the unexpected, anticipating what might make the picture and being amazed at what does make it.
It didn?t help that I had picked up teaching work in Tiverton which took me out of the Thursday and Friday daytime slots, and the weekend was spent at Broomhill doing my Art Trek residency.
There were 3 venues, the Baptist Church Hall and the
This kind of work though is very rewarding. I remember a restrictive graphics brief on a National Diploma course used to bring out better ideas than an open brief. Restriction brings us freedom, and there where lots of restrictions here both enforced and self imposed: imagine how dark a theatre is, then imagine there are no stage lights set up, then remember these are spaces that have been made into venues within a couple of days and you can start to appreciate how dark it was ? the cameras rarely had an iso slower than 1600, shutter speeds 20th of a second or slower, aperture wide open ? there was also the hike from one venue to the next hoping not to miss anything.
Sadie did a great job on her own when I was unable to be there getting this wonderfull ?Winograndesc? picture of Janice Connolly as Barbara Nice from ?Hiya and Higher?.
All of the photos can be seen on the Fringe TheatreFest Website: http://theatrefest.co.uk/pics.htm