Snapped at my company Xmas party. This one’s a bit of an unusual crop for me, but I only saw the photo op (including the most obvious bit of the post processing – this is one of those shots that I knew *exactly* what I wanted to do to it before I took it) as we were leaving, so snapped it very quickly, resolving to fix the composition a bit in Lightroom.

To me, the obscuring pillar on the right is an integral part of the shot, but I’m curious to know if it works for you.

I’m not actually sure if these lights are just up for Christmas, or a permanent part of the fixtures at Tooting’s most recently revamped nightspot. But I only spotted them the other day, so I figure they count as festive at the moment.

(OK, the term “nightspot” is generous. “Grim drinking hole” might be more accurate. I don’t drink there, anyway. I just thought a picture of the lights might look pretty.)

Suddenly realised I never got around to blogging some of the other half-decent shots I got and White Mischief: From The Earth To The Moon, so you might get a few more in the near future. This one is a shot of the Pianist from the 1927 Cabaret.

“I dreamt we were standing,
by the banks of the Thames.
The cold grey water rippled,
in the misty morning light.
Held a match to your cigarette,
watched the smoke curl in the mist.
Your eyes, blue as the ocean between us
smiled at me” – The Pogues, “Misty Morning, Albert Bridge”

I don’t cross the Albert Bridge going to work, but I was thinking of that song when I took this photo in the fog the other morning on my way in. Obviously, I’ve doctored it, to make it look and faded, to lend it its own air of nostalgia.

This is one of the ladies of the Skinphony, the human orchestra.

This is the last of the shots I really like from White Mischief: From The Earth To The Moon. I might put a few more up here, because they’re not too bad, but this marks the end of the ones that I’m actually quite proud of, as opposed to ones I just think are OK…

(Although once again, a glance at the popularity of the various photos on flickr reveals my opinion of my own work to be drastically at variance with everyone else’s, so perhaps some of the one to come are better than I think.)

Kunta Kinte, from White Mischief. No clever commentary, as I’m just dashing out the door.

Another one from White Mischief.

The other shot of BSP from White Mischief that I like. Again, I wasn’t keen on it originally, but putting in into B&W improved it for me. By this point, I’m resigned to the fact that my gig photography isn’t likely to be saleable for a long time, if ever – my own taste runs to high contrast atmosphere stuff, which isn’t really what bands and magazines want, because well, I don’t give a toss about how clear their faces are, and that could be any bastard falling backwards into the crowd…

But it pleases me, anyway.

Last night, I hated this shot. Tonight, I have done a complete 180, and I really like it. It’s more or less the only acceptable shot I have of British Sea Power (a beat combo popular with the young folk of Britain), but it’s one of the gig shots I’m happiest with. I’ll add that this one looks better, bigger, so click through to see the original size on flickr. Even that’s only fractionally larger – I still won’t make anything bigger that 800 pixels wide available on-line, but it gives a slightly better idea.

I’ve got the original filling my screen, and I’m well happy (for a value of happy – I’d like him to be a bit clearer, and etc etc). I’ve actually got several versions, with different filters and colour effects applied, and I’m trying to decide which one to put on my portfolio site, but I thought I’d shot you the one that’s only been slightly tweaked, just to up the contrast a little, and make colours pop a bit more.