Taken last year

As some of my regulars may know, last year I visited the Vatican and got chance to take a few snaps too.

On average, I can take a few thousand pictures during a photoshoot so it isn't that surprising that even though its a year ago, I'm still processing some of the pics.



I can't help feel a certain degree of pressure when photographing some of the greatest works of art in the world. It has to be spot on and maybe thats why I don't really want to rush into anything. So as I look at my finished picture (which has taken longer to produce than the statue itself!), can I honestly say I'm happy with the results?

This sculpture is called the Pieta by Michelangelo. It shows Christ after his crucifixion, his lifeless body is being cradled by his mother.

Michelangelo originally made this sculpture to cover someone's tomb but it was moved onto an elevated plinth in the 19th century. The sculpture employs some perspective 'trickery' too. At first glance, it may appear quite normal, however the figure of Christ has been made smaller in comparison in order to fit appropriately into the overall scene. The figure of Christ also includes a 'modest' depiction of the crucifixion wounds although bizarrely, there are no wounds on the soles of his feet. Some interpret this to be symbolic of the resurrection story. Either that, or he forgot.

Michelangelo also signed this work, his name is written on the sash of the Virgin Mary. Apparently this is the only piece of work that he signed and afterwards, he vowed never to do it again.

He also designed the colossal dome which covers the tomb of St Peter and also painted the ceiling in the famous Sistine chapel.

I hope my picture does some justice to a remarkable work of art by a remarkable artist although nothing can come close to seeing these things in person.

Make money from your camera snaps!

Once again, I received an email from fotolibra to advise me that someone has bought one of my pictures of Loch Ness for publication.

Fotolibra is just one of many web-based photo management services where you can sell your work automatically without having to program a website or worry about marketing. Now of course, you pay for the privilege, its a 50% split for any images sold and you need to pay to join up but I suspect that will soon change as more companies thart to offer similar services.



Its always nice to get an email saying that your pictures are selling and if you have a good eye for advertising photography then you could easily make a tidy sum from your picture sales too.

This is also a growing market, Getty Images have also introduced a similar service although it would appear that the sales figures aren't as exciting for the photographer and Getty also want exclusivity too. Although Fotolibra do take 50% comission, they don't demand exclusivity for your royalty free pics.

My thanks to all the good folks at Fotolibra and I look forward to hearing from you more often :-) Oh and here's my fotolibra galley page if you want to buy my pics :-) And finaly, if anyones wondering? Someone made £25,000 from one image via fotolibra for a picture which sold with worldwide 'billboard' usage rights... Not bad for a days work eh!

Photography Exhibition

Sunday was a busy day for me as I put the finishing touches to a special exhibition of photography which opens at the Wythenshawe Forum later on Monday.

The work will be on display for two weeks and the photographs have all been taken by my students who studied on a course which I developed (pardon the pun!) and delivered for Manchester city council.

The work started a number of months ago when another BBC freelancer and friend contacted me to ask if we could write a short course to introduce people to digital photography, so we got together and devised a four week course which was aimed at complete beginners, to show them the ropes and get to grips with some of the current crop of digital compacts.

I then tutored around sixty people from four different community centres around Manchester and we looked at the basics along with some of the more advanced techniques of how to get the best out of even the point-and-click digitals.

I suppose its a common mistake, but lots of people often think that you need to spend mega £££ to get equipment thats good enough to take an award winning photograph, and while it can help, I think most people found it refreshing to find out that its not a necessity. All thats really needed is a 'good eye' and a bit of luck by being in the right place at the right time.

Some of the group were just intrigued by what they could achieve with their new piece of kit whilst others wanted to incorporate photography with their own art-related hobbies and one lady (Janet) was learning how to take better pictures for her blog.

Whatever the reason for being on the course, I feel that digital photography has something to offer most people who give it a go and even as Damian and myself devised the course, I began to plan for a special exhibition which would be used to showcase some of the photos taken by those on the course. Its this exhibition which finally saw the light of day today and as we stood back from the pictures which had just been hung, I felt very proud of each and every photographer represented there.

It would be easy to finish my post be saying that the course went well and that I'd like to do another but I'm hoping we've achieved more than that. I'm hoping that we've inspired some people to take a closer look at the world around them and I hope that we've helped others to realise that they have the skills to learn and grow in areas that they never thought possible.

Sometimes, we may think that as we press the button down, we are showing people whats going on in the world outside of the camera lens, but quite often we are also allowing people a glimpse inside our minds and sometimes even our hearts too.



The photographs may be seen for two weeks at the Wythenshawe Forum, Manchester.