In your bag No: 811 – Trevor Hughes

In your bag 811, Trevor Hughes
Could this be the most badass bumbag (fanny pack to Americans. Heh, fanny) ever? Trevor shares with us the barest bones of a kit. Check it out.

My name is Trevor Hughes and I am a street photographer living in Toronto, Canada.
This photo is a look back – way back to the years 1992-1998 when I was working as a bike messenger. I had an unique opportunity to document an intimate portrait of the bike messenger community in Toronto.

My approach was minimalist.

small compact waist bag (allowed quick access to camera)

Rollei 35 SE

Ilford HP5 film

B+W rubber lens hood (I should have used it more often)

For 9 years the Rollei was my constant companion on the road while I was working as a messenger. Throughout the seasons and in all weather conditions the Rollei performed flawlessly.

Please visit my Flickr set The Bike Messengers (1992-1998): http://www.flickr.com/photos/trevorhughes/sets/72157624999460264/

These days I have moved on to digital but stayed minimalist; a Ricoh GRD3 carried usually in a pocket. My recent work can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/trevorhughes/

Thanks,
Trevor Hughes

Thanks for sharing that with us Trevor. Sometimes the bags get a bit too big, it is nice to see this and hit reset.
Check out the links and make sure you come and comment.

Keep them coming folks, we need more submissions, so get your bag on Japancamerahunter.com. Send me a hi resolution image of the bag (please make sure it is horizontal) and its contents, with some details about yourself and what you shoot. Oh and don’t forget your contact details (twitter, flickr, tumbler et al). Send the bag shots here. Please understand that there is a long wait now as there is a backlog of submissions. Not all make the cut, so make sure yours is funny/interesting/quirky. And please make sure the shot is of good quality, as the ones that are not do not go up.

Cheers
Japancamerahunter

25 comments on “In your bag No: 811 – Trevor Hughes”

SilverChrome7 March 12, 2014 at 3:40 pm / Reply

I really like your bike messengers series. Very nice Rollei too.

Trevor Hughes March 13, 2014 at 7:58 am /

Thanks a lot!

Thomas Roessler March 12, 2014 at 4:06 pm / Reply

Oh, what a wonderful work. The bike messenger series is so perfect. Have you made a book? Ask Steidl. Participated in some photo-festivals? Your work should be much more published than only on a flickr site.

Trevor Hughes March 13, 2014 at 8:06 am /

Thanks for the wonderful response. Doing a photobook of the work would be fabulous. I have exhibited in some small shows. I am encouraged by the enthusiastic comments that the series has been getting and hopefully I will be able to explore options for publication or another show soon.

David K March 12, 2014 at 4:12 pm / Reply

Great series, have you considered doing an exhibition or producing a photobook?

Trevor Hughes March 13, 2014 at 8:08 am /

Thanks! Hopefully soon.

Wolf March 12, 2014 at 4:46 pm / Reply

Hi! amazing equipment! I have another Rollei 35 SE and I would to know how do you use to shoot with this camera. Thank you in advance, Trevor ;)

Trevor Hughes March 13, 2014 at 9:06 am /

Thanks for the comment, here are some suggestions. The tiny Rollei is a guess-focusing camera, there is just a scale on the lens for distance. Get a tape measure and practice guessing distances … 5 feet to 10 feet can be guessed quite accurately. Using a fast film and stopping the lens down to get more depth of field will help cover focusing errors. The lens has a wonderful rendering quality, but it is flare prone, use a lens hood if you can. On Flickr there are a number of groups for Rollei 35 enthusiasts that are well worth checking out.

Matt March 13, 2014 at 5:36 pm /

Great bag and a great series on the messengers. I’m still kicking myself for not grabbing a Rollei 35 that came up locally here.

Wolf, you may want to check this out for a little more info on the Rollei. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzAuWuq6Ho0&list=UUD02lA5vhfnmDgY6XxnW9Ew

Thanks for sharing Trevor

Digby Pritchard March 12, 2014 at 4:58 pm / Reply

That is a great series and the Rollei has certainly earned it’s stripes.

Trevor Hughes March 13, 2014 at 10:11 am /

Thanks for the comment on the photo series. The Rollei is a solid performer and amazingly heavy for its small size.

Anders W March 12, 2014 at 5:45 pm / Reply

This is a true photgraphers bag and gear. Not a gear collecting guy.

Trevor Hughes March 13, 2014 at 10:12 am /

Thanks! Keeping it simple works for me.

Marian March 12, 2014 at 9:17 pm / Reply

This is my favorite bag so far. Your story and pictures make me feel like I was one of the messengers myself.

Trevor Hughes March 13, 2014 at 10:15 am /

Great that the photos drew you in! Thanks.

Blaine March 13, 2014 at 2:13 am / Reply

That’s a great bag.

Trevor Hughes March 13, 2014 at 10:16 am /

Thanks!

Andrew Portillo March 13, 2014 at 12:46 pm / Reply

Nice! Keep it light and simple…I don’t get why people carry so much when all you need is so little.

Trevor Hughes March 14, 2014 at 3:27 am /

Thanks. Yes, I do like to keep it simple.

Mario March 13, 2014 at 11:58 pm / Reply

I really enjoyed your photos Trevor! I was wondering how you shoot the Ricoh GRD for your street work. Your settings and technique. Seems like you get very close but the subjects don’t look at the camera.

Trevor Hughes March 15, 2014 at 1:50 am /

Thanks. There are many approaches to street photography and I still have much to learn. I shoot on the move, I don’t stop walking. I am using the small sensor Ricoh GRD 3 and I like to preset all the settings and work in manual mode. My normal settings for shooting on the streets in late afternoon sunlight would be Snap Focus set to 1.5 meters, manual exposure usually around aperture F/4 and shutter speed 1/2000 s at ISO 200. I get in close, grab the shot and I am gone with usually the subject not noticing. There are limitations to this approach, precise framing and composition are difficult achieve. Luck, intuition and practice are required.
The photographer Eric Kim has an excellent website with lots of information on practising street photography.
http://erickimphotography.com/blog/