Oct
Earlier this year I was approached by Zoner Photo Studio X to test out their powerful but lesser known photo editor.
Zoner Photo Studio X is “the most universal photo software there is.” It is something that bridges both Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop with RAW processing, layer support, presets, retouching tools, video editing and cataloguing.
During the past six months I have been photographing for InterGen at their UK power stations. The photography is a challenging mixture of portraits, reportage, architectural, interior, and exterior stock photography that I decided would be a perfect test for any photo editing software.
There is a logical progression from image “Management” to “Development” and then advanced options of “Editor” and Create”.
Like all digital imaging software this is something that you “grow with” and never stop learning as Zoner updates the program.
I was impressed with the “Presets” which produced some great results and really liked the offer of cloud storage.
The magic wand auto seemed to work really well and I liked the Split toning “colour Wheels”. It was slightly frustrating that I could not double click the sliders to reset the adjustments as this is a useful function in Lightroom.
Everything else seemed to work as I would want it, crop tool, filter brush and graduated filter.
I think there is an initial problem when coming from using Adobe Lightroom, which is that it has taken me the best part of twenty years to learn. When I fire up Zoner X I get frustrated that I cannot always work as fast, even though I have only been using it for a short time.
It is the equivalent of swapping my flagship Nikon’s in for the equivalent Canon’s. I know how to use a digital SLR and I know that the Canon camera is pretty f*({ing awesome, but I also know my Nikon's back to front so am a little "unsteady on my feet" with something else.
Overall, I warmed to Zoner Photo Studio X in a short period of time. There are some incredible features and I like the flexibility that it offers being somewhere between Lightroom and Photoshop. I don’t think everything always works as well as Lightroom or Photoshop, but I do think there is a lot to shout about.
Intergen, Coryton Power Station The Manorway, Stanford-Le-Hope SS17 9GN - 17 September 2020
Oct
Earlier this year I was assigned to photograph Project Breathe for Microsoft. Project Breathe is a smartphone-based solution which allows people with cystic fibrosis to monitor their health at home with devices that measure key indicators such as lung function, blood oxygen levels and activity. That data is then stored in the cloud and can be accessed by clinicians on a dashboard using Power BI, Microsoft’s data visualisation platform, to look for trends and determine when patients are becoming unwell. By tracking their own data, patients can intervene earlier and potentially head off serious, lung-damaging infections.
The solution was developed through a consortium involving Microsoft, the U.K.-based Cystic Fibrosis Trust, the University of Cambridge, Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge, Microsoft Research and Magic Bullet.
I wanted to capture the human side of the project and show how the tech was improving people’s lives. The problem was that as we were discussing the photography the world changed and the UK went into lockdown. How do you photograph during a pandemic which is shielding the most vulnerable, when the assignment requires photographing people with cystic fibrosis in various locations including hospitals?
There was an initial thought that we should postpone the story but then realised that the lockdown was not going away and that Project Breathe became even more important to capture. The fundamental concept of the idea was to reduce hospital visits and try and have each person monitor, understand, and manage their condition.
The pandemic meant that there was a new risk to anyone visiting a hospital with cystic fibrosis, and hospitals were now under great pressure to reduce visits that were not Covid 19 related.
I spent time talking with everyone involved to learn as much as I could about how they were part of Project Breathe, and in the cases of those with cystic fibrosis, how they were using the tech.
It was an incredibly inspiring project to photograph and I enjoyed spending time with everyone involved. I have also been pleased at the initial response with a great retweet and comment from Satya Nadella
To read the full article -
https://news.microsoft.com/innovation-stories/project-breathe-cystic-fibrosis/
Sep
I have been photographing with InterGen for 13 years, providing them with commercial photography for their annual reports, website, & marketing material.
Originally, I photographed all 3 UK sites going on to capture 2 power stations in the Netherlands plus 5 sites in Mexico which they no longer own. I have also photographed their corporate portraits & various events along the way.
InterGen is a world class developer, owner & operator of power generation facilities in the UK & Australia, with over 25 years’ experience in energy markets.
Earlier this year InterGen asked me to return to the UK sites to produce a new set of pictures for a rebrand which required fresh content for their new website.
This time Photobanks Ltd. in collaboration with VisMedia supplied photography, film, drone photography & 360 degree content for online tours.
We spent a day at Spalding Power Station in March & then went into lockdown immediately after. The website was launched shortly after
We have recently covered the two other UK sites which I will showcase in the future.
Sep
Two years ago, Microsoft approached me for an assignment in Orkney Scotland, to photograph the deployment of Project Natick, an underwater datacenter. Frustratingly I had to decline because I was due to have a minor operation a couple of weeks before.
In June I was contacted with the news that Microsoft would be retrieving the vessel shortly and would I be able to capture it? They had me at “Orkney”!
Project Natick is Microsoft’s research into the feasibility of an underwater datacenter – it’s a pretty far out concept to begin with, but the more you learn about it the more you begin to see the genius behind it.
A sealed vessel on the ocean floor does not have any of the issues that the equivalent land datacenter does, with corrosion from oxygen and humidity, temperature fluctuations, and bumps plus jostles from technicians who monitor and replace broken components.
Project Natick also supports Microsoft’s sustainability goals with the vessel in Orkney consuming no water for cooling and being powered by renewable energy sources.
I worked with Spencer Fowers and Mike Shepperd, alongside the Natick team and Microsoft News, with Photobanks supplying all the photography, film and drone photography.
To read more about Project Natick check out
https://news.microsoft.com/innovation-stories/project-natick-underwater-datacenter/
