Product test: Aquapac PDA Case

One of the latest additions to my kit bag is an audio recorder, which I've begun using to produce interviews, location reports, video commentary etc for the GBP Blog. And so far, I can't fault it ('initial impression' review coming up soon). That is, except for one thing.

This technology is all well and good, but there comes a time when it needs a little helping hand in more extreme environments. Put simply, the audio recorder doesn't like the rain. Suffice it to say this is an assumption and I don't wish to test the theory - but for piece of mind, I set out to find some decent protection for the thing.

Enter Aquapac, who produce all manner of dependable covers and cases. I have been aware of these guys for many years, and took the opportunity to catch up with them earlier in the year at the Ordnance Survey Outdoors Show. Jump forward a few months and they suggested the 100% waterproof PDA Case for my particular requirements.

Rather than waffle on here too much, I've put together the following short video so you can see and hear the test for yourself:



Several details are not mentioned in the video, as I wanted to keep it fairly brief, but for your reference:

• This case will float in water, and is submersible to 15ft (5 metres)
• It has an optically-clear rear panel, good enough to shoot photos/video through
• You can use your PDA stylus as normal right through the case
• A stylus holder is built-in
• The product model reference/number is Small PDA Classic (344)
• You can also check out more more from Aquapac on their Facebook page
  

If you have any thoughts or comments, feel free to jot them in the comments section.

New website - honesty and advice

I need your help. But first a little background info.

With hands held aloft, I'll admit that it's been a while since the Giles Babbidge Photography website was tweaked, revamped, poked or otherwise toyed with. I could come up with a number of excuses but, frankly, there's no call for that. So I won't.

Fact is, the site's looking a bit dated these days. And in the words of John Cage (anyone remember Ally McBeal?) - "it troubles me".

But, hey, at least I've realised this - so I'm already on the road to resolving the situation, right?

There's been a fair bit of change at GBP in the past 12 months. Again, no need to elaborate, but one thing's for sure - the direction of my work and the way I promote myself, my services, have both been shaped by the the rise of new media (online social networks, blogs, videos etc) and my desire to adapt and make the most of such technologies. You'll know this if you're following me on Twitter, or have connected via YouTube or LinkedIn.

So what am I trying to say? I'll be completely honest - the current site just isn't me. Sure it's my imagery, my words, my philosophies even... but I feel it doesn't do a satisfactory job of representing me or the work I undertake. Don't ask me how it's happened, but the site is now far too 'corporate' for my liking - and although I frequently undertake corporate work, I'm just not of a corporate nature, so why should the site be if I'm trying to get 'me' accross?

With all this in mind, I'd like to put out a simple request and ask a quick favour of you.

If you could spare just 2 minutes to take a look at the website in its current state, and give me some feedback (either in the comments section at the bottom of this post or in an email), I would be extremely grateful. What do you like?... What do you dislike?... What would you prefer to see less or more of?... You know the drill.

Just so it's clear, I'm not going to take your comments personally, not going to take offense, and certainly not going to argue back at you from one keyboard to another. I'm being completely open and honest here, and I would ask you to do the same.

Inspiration often comes in the form of criticism - both good and bad - and as I see it, this is what I need in order to drive the website development not just to a satisfactory resolution, but to create an online resource that I can be happy and proud of.

Your thoughts about this here blog will also be gratefully received.

Thanks guys :)

Take shot, take flight

A number of weeks ago, I teamed up with all-round nice bloke John Preston (of Preston Creative Design Consultancy), to illustrate some publicity material for another of his clients.

The brief was simple enough - photograph a single male subject against a bright blue sky, pointing a branded paper aeroplane towards that sky. The reality of the shoot, naturally, turned out to be less than perfect just as soon as the weather got involved.

Arriving in plenty of time, John and I had a scout around the area for the best location, taking into account the sun's direction, the patches of blue sky and the fierce wind that was blowing around the coastal area. It's one thing having a nice breeze blowing through, but on this occasion it threatened to jeopardise the shoot, given that the paper plane was relatively flimsy and our subject's hair could look a mess if he was blown around too much! The morning's weather had generally been pretty good up until that point and the ground was dry underfoot, so at least that didn't pose any real problems.

Whilst Mr. P went off to meet with our subject, I investigated further, picking out a shortlist of two possible 'sets' to work with. In each case, the sun would be behind the subject - acting as a back-light over his right shoulder (and in so doing, balancing the flash nicely). But my main concern was getting the subject sheltered from the wind.

Here's a quick diagram of the set-up (click to enlarge):


Our saving grace came in the form of some trees and bushes, roughly shaped like a letter L, which wrapped around us nicely.

Next thing, moments before the guys returned, it was time to set up my kit. As ever, keeping it very simple, I went with a single lens (50mm) and single light (SB-800, triggered by Pocket wizard, on a stand). Remember, the sun would be my 2nd light - after all, it's free, so why not make use of it?!

That's when things started to slip. And within a time frame of approximately 1 minute, the shoot was over.

In all I shot just 7 frames, including lighting and posing/angle tests, before the heavens opened and we were forced to run as fast as we possibly could back to the cars.

From memory, the sequence went something like: Sun becomes obscured by cloud... wind picks up... single patch of blue sky is replaced by grey rain clouds... torrential rain. What a farce.

Of course, there had always been a Plan B - to head for a local hotel which both John and I have worked with in the past. There, we would be able to set up a more typical 'studio' arrangement in one of the larger rooms, if needs be.

Amid the ensuing deluge, we peered at the back of my rain-soaked camera...

Job done. No need for additional pictures, no need for a re-shoot. The only call was for dry clothes and a hot cup of tea.

Once the pictures were turned over to John's team, they were tweaked a little - just enough to bring a bit more colour into that damn awful sky. The picture at the top of this post is a quick scan of the final document, showing the image as it appeared, so apologies if it doesn't exactly 'pop' off the screen.

In hindsight, and keeping in mind the less than perfect conditions we faced, I was happy with the way these photographs came through. Looking for the positives, the paper plane stands out well from the sky and the 'mood' of that sky ties in well with the accompanying text.

Sometimes, as they say, it's not the destination but the journey - and this shoot was a case in point. The greatest irony of all still remains that as I was driving back to the office, the clouds parted, revealing a great blue sky and perfect sunshine. Bugger.

Still, at the end of the day, the client was delighted with the end product - and that's what really counts.

Now is the time to take action!

Given that it was recently my Birthday, I thought I'd mark the occasion with a Special Offer.

Simply put, here's the deal:

For the whole of this month, I am offering a discount on all rates. Photographic shoots, image restoration, even photo presentation options - everything will be subject to 1/3 OFF.

I'm not one for hidden catches, so there are none. The only condition is this:

All assignments must be booked and undertaken by 31st October 2009, and will be subject to a discount only when the Reference Code GBP30-1 is quoted.


A lot of people are holding back on their advertising/marketing spend (no guesses as to why!), and the issue of cost often over-shadows that of 'value to the business'. That's fair enough.

But at the same time, it is important to remember that bad photography can have a worse effect on, say, a website than including no images at all. Tempting as it is do 'do it yourself,' this is often a false economy.

I want people to be using great pictures in their brochures, newsletters, flyers etc because I know what a great marketing tool photography is.

So, if you've been considering commissioning a new set of imagery for your business, now would be a great time to give it some real thought and take action.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, this offer also applies to the social side of life too - family events, fund-raisers, group trips... everything is covered!


If you are planning an end-of-year event, such as a staff party or a charity ball, you can also benefit by taking action this month.

Secure your December photography booking by 31st October, and you will be given a 10% Discount.

All assignments must be booked by 31st October 2009 , and will be subject to discount only when the Reference Code GBP30-2 is quoted. Bookings will only be secured after receipt of a non-refundable deposit.


Getting in touch is easy - just follow this link and tell me what you have in mind.

A positive exhibition

Well, I'm glad to say that things are finally getting back to some normality, following the past couple of months... which means the GBP Blog is fully functioning once again. Thank you to all those who offered their support in recent weeks; it meant a great deal.

Right then, by way of a quick catch-up, a small reminder of my joint exhibition which runs until 1st November...

Some months ago, my good friend Jane Doel, author of a little book of inpiration entitled 'Positive Steps Forward,' approached me with an idea for a collaboration - to illustrate some of the pages of her book. From this starting point, progress generated further ideas, until the day we said "Let's put on an exhibition!"

And so, with everything in place, our first collaborative show - intitled 'Positive Posters' - has been revealed to the public.

The location is the Pumfrett Room and Coach House Cafe at the Queen Elizabeth Country Park, just off the A3 near Petersfield, Hampshire. Jane is Life Coach in residence at QECP which, together with Butser Hill and West Beach on Hayling Island, has been the source of inspiration for the words of her book and the photographs I have taken to illustrate them....

So, if you are in the area and have half an hour free, why not pop in and take a look?

Entrance is free, car park is £1 all day. And if you have any questions or feedback, you can get in touch with me here.

If you can't make it along, fear not. At some point in the near future, I will be writing a post specifically about the exhibition. I shot some time-lapse footage at various stages of preparation and at the Private View launch evening, and we will also be recording some audio, too.

FOS '09 - Day 3

Just a quick post this evening, by way of completing my 3-part coverage of this year's Goodwood Festival Of Speed. It's been a long, hot weekend and as much as I've enjoyed covering the event, as I always do, I really am looking forward to hanging up the cameras and taking a few minutes for myself at the end of this day!

Following a brief visit to the track and the opening Super car run, I went in search of a few candid protraits as drivers waited to make their way to the start line. It was the turn of the pre-war race cars, so lots of opportunity to show off some of the great characters behind the wheel. Although this event does not specify 'costume' (as with the Goodwood Revival later in the year), a number of those taking part were clearly more than happy to get into the spirit of things.

By late morning, current Formula 1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton made his first appearance on the track - and of course, being a star attraction, it was important that he was photographed as part of the web site coverage. I caught up with him as he got out of his car to a round of applause from spectators - who he graciously acknowledged.

With the afternoon sunshine beating down, it was time to head over to the Cartier Style et Luxe area again, to photograph the competition-winning cars, following judging earlier in the day. Nothing fancy, just simple pictures which showed the vehicles being admired by onlookers.

The day wrapped up with the now-traditional award presentations, recognition of drivers' performances throughout the weekend. With a myriad of famous faces up on stage, the assembled crowd saw a great end to yet another fantastic Festival Of Speed.

When time allows, I will be working on a number of my pictures from the three days, giving them the treatment they deserve. Naturally, these will be presented here on the GBP Blog - along with a little background information. Watch this space!

Today's action (featuring a selection of both my images and those captured by colleagues) can be seen on the Goodwood website here.

Related posts: FOS '09 - Day 1, FOS '09 - Day 2

FOS '09 - Day 2

Well, the second day of Goodwood's Festival Of Speed 2009 has drawn to a close under a blue sky and puffy white clouds. It hasn't been like that all day, but at least the only rain we had lasted all of 2 minutes - so I mustn't grumble!

So then... Today's imagery was not so much weighted towards the main track action, instead taking in the wider variety of sights and the people enjoying them.

After a brief visit, first thing to, to the Supercar line-up, I headed to the Dunlop area in order to get a few people pictures. With lots of display panels and notable vehicles running on Dunlop tyres, there was plenty of scope to shoot some candid (unposed) pictures - both of the public and of guest speakers. At the time I arrived, racing car driver Richard Attwood was being interviewed, and I ran off a series of pictures looking down from the back of the 'audience' stand, just as the brief rain shower began.

Very often, part of my brief involves interacting directly with people, posing them and arranging them strategically. However, it is always my preference to follow the 'natural' route where possible, as the expressions and true personality almost always come across better when the subject is unaware that they are beingphotographed . It is for this reason that the same approach (albeit under very different conditions) is used when we deal with with teams, staff and corporate groups.

On the walk away from Dunlop, one passes through the Cartier Style et Luxe area, which this year displays some fine examples of both vintage and modern machines from the likes of Bugatti, Alfa Romeo and Maserati. With the rain still clearly visible on the bodywork, I took the chance to go in close to capture some detail shots which are simple in their arrangement, but great as 'filler' images. Plenty of scope here, also, for images depicting people viewing the cars, looking through windows and under bonnets. Oh, and we mustn't forget the jazz musicians who were creating a great backing track to a lively atmosphere on the lawn.

Next it was another brief visit to the Hill action, and a great vantage point looking directly down the track, to capture modern-day Formula 1 cars racing away from the start line. Amazing machines and challenge enough to capture on camera! As were theEurofighter Typhoon planes flying overhead just moments before.

A brief lunch was taken before heading to one of my favourite areas of the whole event - the rally stage, set in woodland at the very top of the site. So good is this area that it could actually pass as a real setting for a race. The cars on show - spanning a number of decades up to the current day - looked fantastic as they were thrown round the chalk roads. I positioned myself on one outer bend, protected by hay multiple bale barriers, and mixed up the shots to include both long-lens and wide-angle views of the action. Great stuff.

By this time, my shooting duties were drawing to a close, and I had just enough time to photograph a number of displays on my way back to the Press Office and before the process of preparing the images in line with yesterday'sarrangements.

Not sure what the weather will be doing tomorrow, but either way it should be another great day of diverse photographic opportunities.

Today's action (featuring a selection of both my images and those captured by colleagues) can be seen on the Goodwood website here.

Related posts: FOS '09 - Day 1, FOS '09 - Day 3

More to come.