Get Featured: Kevin Shelley
Kevin has done something that really shows a dedication to his craft, he renovated a camper van so he could tour and shoot. And what he likes to shoot is the streets of the UK. Check it out.
Hi Bellamy and Visitors,
I’m Kevin Shelley, a 46 year old UK based street photographer of about 20 years experience. I host the Street Photography Blog and live in Cumbria UK (very rural). Street Photography opportunities are thin on the ground here, unless you enjoy ‘Country Lane Photography’ – sheep, farmers, tractors etc. Civilisation is a very long way away.
Problem was, in order to visit towns and cities I would have to stay in hotels and B&B’s which could cost up to £40 per night !!! So that’s why I spent 18 months restoring an old VW Camper Van and now regularly visit places such as Manchester, Liverpool and Chester for 2 or 3 days at a time and stay at nearby campsites costing £8 per night. Here’s a playlist of all “27” videos of the restoration work on my Youtube Channel if you’re interested.
Photography wise, I wouldn’t say I work with any particular project in mind. Rather I view my hobby as an ongoing ‘life project’ and attempt to capture a ‘flavour’ of the places I visit and the people I see.
One recent visit was to Manchester which I particularly enjoyed as there was such a diverse mix of people, cultures and streets.
I’m drawn to the more (how can I put it) unusual characters – misfits and dropouts if you will. Regular everyday folk are too boring for me and don’t make good photographs (well my type of picture at least).
Camera wise I `try` to shoot an even mixture of 35mm film and digital, though given a choice of just one it would be film in a blink and more often than not, it’s the film cameras I’ll use. Digital is taken care of with a Fuji X-E1 with XF35mm f/1.4 lens. For film I shoot a Leica M2 with 50mm f/2 Jupiter 8 lens and recently, an M6 with a Voigtlander 50mm f/1.5 LTM.
For me one of the biggest joys of shooting film is the developing and making of prints. Once again, that’s why I renovated an old chicken shed and converted it into a darkroom.
Something I learnt a long time ago was to ALWAYS have your camera with you, even if you’re not planning on taking pictures. Otherwise it’s ‘sods law’ that something unexpected will pop up.
I consciously avoid getting bogged down in the supposed rules and stigmas of street photography and operate solely by one guiding principle, “If I like it, photograph it”. This applies to anything I upload as well. In the past I easily spent to much time worrying and becoming quite emotional about comments I received regarding my pictures, often ending in tears and periods of photographic induced depression. Life’s to short wasting time by attempting to please others. Please yourself, shoot and upload what you wish and that way, you’ll never be disappointed.
This is the main `driving` reason for my starting the Street Photography Blog and in particular avoiding photo sites such a Flickr and Tumblr. Often you can post a picture and never see it again as it gets lost in the huge sea of everyone elses photographs. With the blog I’m in control, the content is always viewable and presented in the manner that I choose. It may take longer for my work to make it’s way up the search engines, but it’s an incredible sense of achievement when it does.
My next outing shortly will be the Edinburgh Fringe Festival which I’m looking forward to immensley. The possibility of so many people drawn to an event devoted solely to the arts, will (hopefully) be an incredible photographic opportunity.
You’ll also find me and my work featured on Inspired Eye Magazine’s website http://www.theinspiredeye.net/do-what-you-like/ ,the Street Photographer Blog http://streetphotographerblog.wordpress.com/2014/01/03/feature-161-kevin-shelley-a-complimentary-light/ and one of my equipment reviews in Street Photography Magazine issue 14 http://streetphotographymagazine.com/newsstand/ ,who will also be publishing an interview with myself in a later issue.
Cheers and massive kudos for your `treasure trove` of a site,
Kevin
My photography blog www.streetphotographyblog.co.uk
Facebook www.facebook.com/streetphotographyblog
Twitter https://twitter.com/streetblogphoto
and the Camper Van videos playlist http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkn95Q-MxtH2-3EjTjYQDlQJW4iyG9Fbh
Thanks for sharing your work with us Kevin. Your dedication and passion is really inspiring.
Come on, share with us what you have and get yourself featured.
Click on this link and send in your project/work: Get Featured. *I am looking for mainly projects, not individual images*
Oh, and click here to see a few of the photographers that have been on the site before https://www.japancamerahunter.com/?s=featured
Please make sure you come and comment. Polite and constructive critique is welcome, offensive and disrespectful comments will be removed.
Thanks
JCH
