A series celebrating the talent of our friends over in the Londonist Flickr pool. Here, they introduce themselves and share their favourite London shots.
My name is Chris. I was born and raised in London but I must admit that at a younger age I did not like this city. I remember many years back that weekends ended around eleven o’clock, most shops were shut every Sunday and people were reserved in terms of accepting diversity.
However, today’s London is vibrant, diverse and boasts amazing architecture, tourist attractions, theatres, bars and open green spaces. I walk past tourist spots such as Trafalgar Square and Piccadilly Circus nearly everyday and watch excited tourists taking photos of the famous landmarks which Londoners tend to take for granted. Speaking of photos, my first experience with photography was a basic Canon 3.2m pixel compact flash used for taking quick random or holiday snaps.
My first DLSR experience was two years when I went through a bad patch and decided to opt for a hobby to kill time with. I eventually invested in a modest but amazing Nikon D40x. The camera changed my relationship with this city as I started to explore places I'd never visited such as Brick Lane, Mudchute and Elephant and Castle.
My humble camera and standard lens really opened my eyes as I realised that London was an amazing venue for photography. Having said that, any typical Londoner will tell you the ever-changing weather conditions make it challenging to convert grey landscape into beautiful photos. Once I'd got into urban landscape photography, I wanted to learn more and explore different genres such as wedding, night shots, festivals, abstract and sport photography. After experimenting with the D40x for a certain period of time, I realised my new found hobby had converted into a serious passion and knowing the limits of the D40x for certain types of photography I decided to exchange my D40x to a D300 and opted for high quality lenses. I know that it is an expensive hobby but when I take a few good photos it all seems worthwhile.
Although I boast a decent kit collection I would say the most important part of photography is what you see and want to capture. The composition is what makes a photo. Technology is there to make it easier if used correctly. I only use Photoshop to slightly touch up my photos but sometime I do admit I can get carried away!
I had recently got involved with assisting at function and wedding photography around London but even now I still tend to take random tourist shots in places such as the British Museum and go shutter crazy when I take my kit with me on holidays. My favourite places to take photos here are Canary Wharf, Brick Lane, Greenwich and across the South Bank as they have individual character and distinctive cultural demographics.
A friend introduced me to Flickr and I tend to upload all my photos on it. It's a great website and I like to study and appreciate the photos other people have taken. I have taken thousands of photos across London, so please feel free to flick through my stream and leave comments but above all, appreciate London and keep clicking!
Check out Chris 07's Flickrstream for more and browse past Lensers. Want to be featured here? Make sure your shots are in our Flickrpool and let us know; email [email protected].
