CAPTURE NEW HORIZONS

  On Thursday evening in the European Le Mans Series paddock at the Autodromo Internacionale do Algarve in Portugal we conducted an interview with Hollywood star Michael Fassbender, who has been racing in the five round series this year with Porsche team Proton Competition.  We wanted to catch up with him at the end of his first season of endurance racing and get his take on racing in a top European championship. As the ELMS press officer I wrote the questions and did the filming, while with my colleague Sophie Liger asked Michael the questions. The interview was filmed on two Fujifilm X-T4s.  The main interview camera was fitted with the XF16-55mm f2.8 lens and this was fixed to a 3 Legged Thing 'Jay' video tripod.  The second X-T4 was used by me handheld and was fitted with the XF90mm f2 lens.  I also used a GoPro Hero 8 Black to give a rear view of the interview (see still image below). All three cameras were set to record in 4K25 with the final video produce...

Over last weekend I shot several video interviews with drivers during the European Le Mans Series (ELMS) and Michelin Le Mans Cup (MLMC) using a new Fujifilm X-T4 video rig for the first time. I have spent the last few months investing in the new X-T4 and associated gear with a view of using it primarily for video at the ELMS and MLMC events.  To this end I bought a second X-T4 last week and a Smallrig cage so I can attach a 5 inch Freeworld LCD screen and microphones easily. Here is an interview we shot with Algarve Pro Racing's Gaby Aubry who was interviewed in French by ELMS Communications Manager Sophie Liger. As you can see in the image at the top of the page, this interview was conducted in the paddock with the X-T4 video rig attached to 3 Legged Thing 'Jay' Carbon Fibre video tripod.  The lens used was the superb XF16-55mm f2.8, which was fitted with a Haida M10 filter holder with a 3 stop ND filter fitted to allow a wider aperture to be used in the brig...

I have just got back from the South of France where I have spent the last week at the official press season test and opening round of the European Le Mans Series at the Circuit Paul Ricard near Le Castellet. One of the things I have been doing during the Covid19 lockdown it to increase my skill set with regards to video production.  In 2019 I really started to shoot more video content, especially on the FIA European Historic Sporting Rally Championship, so I took a couple of online courses on video editing and production and last week was the first real chance to be able to put what I had learned into practice. Because the event was held behind closed doors and the number of media attending the event was reduced significantly, one of the goals for communications during the ELMS week was to increase the number of video interviews we produce so that the fans and the media had more behind the scenes content. One of the focus of the communications plan was the inclusion for t...

As you may have seen a few weeks ago that I tested the Haida Filters M10 system and I really liked the quality and the usability of the system.  Since my glowing review Haida asked me if I would like to work with them as a Co-Photographer / Ambassador and I said 'yes'. So today I am pleased to announce this partnership and HERE is a link to my profile page on the Haida Photo website. I am currently in France at the Circuit Paul Ricard for the two day pre season test and first round of the European Le Mans Series and Michelin Le Mans Cup. I have been using the Haida M10 0.9 (3 Stop) and 1.8 (6 Stop) Neutral Density filters for shooting videos at the track. Here is a the video interview with the crew of the no50 Richard Mille Racing Team Oreca that we did yesterday evening and then shot the track footage earlier today.  I used the two Haida ND filters to allow me to use a wider aperture in the sunny conditions here at Paul Ricard.  The final video was used on ...

Fujifilm X-T4 + XF10-24mm f4 - Haida M10 1.8 ND + Red Diamond 0.9 ND Grad 1 second @ f11 ISO80 Last week I ran my first Black and White Landscape workshop of the year.  Like many businesses the Covid19 pandemic caused me a bit of a headache and I had to put my photo workshops on hold for three months.  The clients who had already booked workshops were offered a refund but I was happy when they said they would be OK to postpone and wait until I could rearrange the bookings with them.  The first workshop was a 1-2-1 with a client who was returning for her second one day MacLean Photographic workshop.  Fujifilm X-T4 + XF50-140mm f2.8 - Haida M10 1.8 ND 1/6s @ f8 ISO250 The workshop was held at Barns Ness and Tyningham, demonstrating the techniques on how to 'see' a landscape in black and white and expose the image accordingly.  This something I have learnt from experience and I now endeavour to teach my clients during the one day workshop. The...

My favourite time of the day to shoot landscapes is dawn, I just love being out in the fresh air and watching the sun rise above the horizon.  At this time of year in Scotland sunrise is round 4:25am, which means a very early start to get in position. Luckily, I have plenty of beautiful locations to visit here in my home town of Dunbar and Barns Ness Lighthouse, which is only five miles from my front door, ranks as one of the very best. So I checked the weather forecast, set my alarm for 3am and packed my camera gear ready for a very early start. Luckily the forecast was correct with high clouds and the potential for a fiery sunrise so I got in the car and head out to Barns Ness to set up. I was trying out a brand new tripod on this photoshoot, a recently purchased 3 Legged Thing Punks Billy carbon fibre tripod.  This was replacing my sturdy, but weighty, Manfrotto 055 aluminium tripod, with an option ball grip head.  The 'Billy' was almost the same height...