Photomode Photographers Q&A #35 - nanabu

  • Thread starter leeislee
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Great one lee, really like how indepth you went on the tips section.
Also, i think Mog may of gotten lost in the abyss that is Florida :lol:
👍 :sly:

What's that now? I believe you made a mistake good sir.

Other than that, fantastic read, Lee! I can tell you are a very passionate digital photographer. Your advice is top-notch! You've done quite a bit for the photomode community. And for that, I thank you.
👍 :sly:

Best 20min without a break I've spent in this thread forum (reading and enjoying your art/photography). Very inspiring "interview" and outstanding answers.

Good to see people that are never resigned. 👍

Also thank you for including me in that list of people. I'm here only for 2 months now. :)
👍:sly:

Excellent read Lee :)👍

Very passionate and honest - in fact, are you sure we're not related in some way??!! :dopey:

Looking forward to giving my slant on things. Thanks for the nomination, I thought I'd been forgotten. :nervous:
Hehe, i've just PM'd you about it mate. We're all looking forward to hearing from you.

Thanks everyone 👍
 
That was indeed a great read. I loved the detailed description of a shoot. I usually take around 20-50 pictures. I'll try focusing on the image more before I save it. Might save me some time too. :lol:

The whole interview is very nice and quite inspiring too.
 
Thanks for the mention, Lee! Awesome interview!

I feel VERY honored to be named as an inspiration by a person I look up to myself! :)
 
That was indeed a great read. I loved the detailed description of a shoot. I usually take around 20-50 pictures. I'll try focusing on the image more before I save it. Might save me some time too. :lol:

The whole interview is very nice and quite inspiring too.
👍:) If you want to take lots of photos then you should, but limiting yourself to a short shoot should make you become more picky as to what you keep!

This thread is very entertaining and informative... I love this Photomode community!
👍:)

Thanks for the mention, Lee! Awesome interview!

I feel VERY honored to be named as an inspiration by a person I look up to myself! :)
👍:) 20832 thanks for the kind words 👍

Thank a million fellas.
 
That was an interesting read, Lee. I appreciate all the effort you've put into your interview (and this thread in general) and agree with the advice you've given. ;)
 
Moglet (whatever happened to him?)....


Yeah, what happened to him? I did go to Florida and almost got lost a few times but I came back a while ago now. ;)

I still visit the site almost every day but rarely have time to venture into the Photomode forums or take any photos to upload anymore. :( It's a real honour to still be mentioned in so many people's 'inspiration' lists though, thank you everyone!
 
It was a great read Lee, I should have guessed you are a teacher :lol: A great insight into your philosophy and method. I love the extra questions too - I'll PM you later with my answers to those to add to my interview. Also great choice for the next interview - looking forward to that one. 👍
 
That was a super read Lee. I but I guess thats to be expected from someone who also writes, does great photography, art and plays/teaches music. Gees what don't you do. :sly:

Great insights and attitude and a lot of great stuff for people to take note of. Me included. Totally agree with all your points. Learning and putting in the effort to experiment is essential in improving your skills and creative judgement.

Had a look at your Flickr slidewshows and wow, man your stuff is good. Makes me feel rather amature in comparison. Keep up the great work. Also feel free to go nuts with tuts i'm sure everyone apprecaites them, can't see people getting sick of you at all. 👍

Bring on Miklad!
 
Yeah, what happened to him? I did go to Florida and almost got lost a few times but I came back a while ago now. ;)

I still visit the site almost every day but rarely have time to venture into the Photomode forums or take any photos to upload anymore. :( It's a real honour to still be mentioned in so many people's 'inspiration' lists though, thank you everyone!

Great to see ya Moggie! :D

And can I add, Lee - what a great showreel! Love the photography and the art - beautiful stuff! I see you're a breast-man too mate. ;)
 
Nice read Lee! Really inspiring stuff. 👍

Oh and some questions!

How did your love for Beetles & V-Dubs come about?

When did you realise that "creative arts" was something you were passionate about?

Can I have a cookie? :sly:
 
13, Which GTPlanet photomode member or members inspire you?

Some people I really admire are (In no particular order): DarkR, Miklad, BMXmitch, Mazda787, SlipZtrEm, Nato_777, Gtuned, slzk, 20832, Zerox, ShaolinMasta, RetroGiant, jBhIpS, SMfan, NBDESIGNZ, Horde, Ceiling Fan, Kodje, Taiga, ZZZ, lilmann, Moglet (whatever happened to him?)....And many more. sorry if i've missed anyone out but I could go on and on and on and on.

Seems like you found my clone. Now I have to kill it.
We're the same person. :lol:
 
I read through all the interviews earlier today. It's pretty interesting to see how different everybody is (or similar, in some cases :P ).
 
That was an interesting read, Lee. I appreciate all the effort you've put into your interview (and this thread in general) and agree with the advice you've given. ;)
Thanks 👍

Yeah, what happened to him? I did go to Florida and almost got lost a few times but I came back a while ago now. ;)

I still visit the site almost every day but rarely have time to venture into the Photomode forums or take any photos to upload anymore. :( It's a real honour to still be mentioned in so many people's 'inspiration' lists though, thank you everyone!
Ah good to know you're still around Mog. Hope you can get back here one day with some new shots. 👍
It was a great read Lee, I should have guessed you are a teacher :lol: A great insight into your philosophy and method. I love the extra questions too - I'll PM you later with my answers to those to add to my interview. Also great choice for the next interview - looking forward to that one. 👍
Thanks Nathan. Well i teach privately, one to one but yeah, i enjoy the thougth of everyone getting better at whatever they are interested in. I'm looking forward to Miks interview too. 👍

GPR
That was a super read Lee. I but I guess thats to be expected from someone who also writes, does great photography, art and plays/teaches music. Gees what don't you do. :sly:

Great insights and attitude and a lot of great stuff for people to take note of. Me included. Totally agree with all your points. Learning and putting in the effort to experiment is essential in improving your skills and creative judgement.

Had a look at your Flickr slidewshows and wow, man your stuff is good. Makes me feel rather amature in comparison. Keep up the great work. Also feel free to go nuts with tuts i'm sure everyone apprecaites them, can't see people getting sick of you at all. 👍

Bring on Miklad!
Thanks for the kind words. I can't sing...i sound horrific! haha. 👍

Great to see ya Moggie! :D

And can I add, Lee - what a great showreel! Love the photography and the art - beautiful stuff! I see you're a breast-man too mate. ;)
Thanks Mik. I'm an everything man really you can't beat a hot woman! But yeah, i love a good pair of ( . )( . ) hehe :sly:

Great 'set' :sly:
👍👍:sly::sly:

BkS
Nice read Lee! Really inspiring stuff. 👍

Oh and some questions!

How did your love for Beetles & V-Dubs come about?

When did you realise that "creative arts" was something you were passionate about?

Can I have a cookie? :sly:
I don't really remember where my love for Beetles came about but i've always loved classic cars that have been modernized with new wheels etc. When you see a Beetle that has been done up they always look amazing to me and i love a curvy car. I love modern cars too though, who doesn't?!

I've always been into creating things since i was a child. Not sure i can remember a definitive reason i chose it because it was always oozing out of me.

I used to as a kid love to dismantle things to see how they work. i was always good at fixing things and whenever i used to get a new TV or Stereo the first thing i'd do was to take it apart and put it back together.

That interest in how things work worked it's way into my art work, i was always really interested in how the human body worked and stuff like that so i used to study it so when i drew people they would look more realistic.

All of that helped me learn about lighting, perspective etc etc from a young age so as i grew up and got sick of drawing on paper i naturally wanted a more indepth medium so when i found Photoshop i was determined to learn it.

I used to open Photoshop and sit there without a clue what to do so i'd close it and get disheartened, but i persevered with it and before i knew it i was creating various bits and bobs. but it wasn't until i got a Wacom tablet and then i learned to use the pen tool and layer masks that my photoshopping went through the roof and all my old drawing skills came to the fore.

As for Music it was something i picked up because i knew i would be good at it and it seemed like a huge subject to learn so i really reveled in it and i still do.

Photography was another another way to create things really and i really really love that but i would love it more with a better camera and gear!

Again writing books was something i didn't consider until one night i was bored so i opened Microsoft Word and started writing and before i knew it many hours had passed and i had wrote half a book just from my imagination at the time. It's not the best way to do it but thats what i enjoy, writing it on the fly. Not saying my books are good but i enjoy it.

I hope i'm not coming across as arrogant because i'm the least arrogant and confident person you could meet but it really is how i've always been, i've been good at everything i've had an interest in. I'm very stubborn you see so when i start something i have to get good at it.

That translates itself onto others sometimes because i get really annoyed when people keep secrets on how they achieved something, they won't share with others or they go out of their way to put other peoples work down. No matter what level people are at the should be encouraged to continue because they are trying.

I'm not the best at anything i do but i've put in many many years of my life into getting better so when people go out of their way to have a go at me or whoever else, it bugs me and i get defensive. well not defensive but i could always question it or respond to them but i tend not to.

I'm very modest and i don't pay much attention to praise but i do pay attention to people who enjoy having a dig at others or thinking they are above everyone. But i can also ignore it as 99% of the time i rise above everything like that, but sometimes you always seem to come across someone who annoys you a bit more than others. It's such a bad trait some people on the internet and in real life have, i really don't like rude people.

I'm learning Japanese at the moment but that is hard so it won't be a fast journey!

Oh, and i'm going to have a go at 3D Studio Max too, so i'll have to see how i get on with that, not confident atall!! :nervous:

Sorry for the long answer :indiff:

SVX
Fantastic interview (if you can call it that?). 👍
👍

Seems like you found my clone. Now I have to kill it.
We're the same person. :lol:
:sly: 👍

Wow thanks for listing me as an "inspiration" Lee :D Very nice read and great tips and thoughts 👍
:) 👍

I read through all the interviews earlier today. It's pretty interesting to see how different everybody is (or similar, in some cases :P ).
👍👍
 
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Part 18
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Miklad

1, How about an introduction?
I'm Miklad, from Derbyshire, UK. Freelance graphic designer with a wife who is a childminder, 2 young lads at primary school, toys constantly everywhere, and no time for anything let alone shoot GT5 pics!

2, How long have you been taking photos in Gran Turismo?
I suppose I'm relatively new to the shooting side of things, only starting in September of 2011 (seems longer, but there you go). Have always played the GT games ever since the original on PSOne. Always been a gamer - indeed, being born in 1972 I am quite proud to be among the 'Golden Generation' who have grown up alongside computer games.

3, What was the first picture you took in GT5?
Probably this:

6301723671_31d0351bdd.jpg


I was just experimenting with the camera and the PhotoTravel locations really. I don't think I've visited Lucerne since!

4, And your first edit?
Hmmm... I can't be sure, but this was certainly one of the first:

6302253104_5172197e4c.jpg


Nothing much to say about it really - my 'style' hasn't really changed!


5, How would you describe your photography style?
I don't consciously try to have a 'style' as such - I just shoot what I think looks right, depending on my mood. Perhaps you guys could tell me what my style is? I notice the majority of my shots are quite dramatic in style, but it's not something I go all out to achieve quite honestly.

6, In your opinion what makes a great photo?
Composition is essential! If the photo is not comfortable to look at, then it's probably not worth looking at. I dunno - I suppose you can get away with it sometimes, but generally that is the rule of thumb I would work to.

Tones and colour for me come secondary - I appreciate you can change the mood of a shot immensely with a quick whaft of the levels/saturation slider, but without the above I think it doesn't matter greatly.


7, What is your favourite car to shoot?
Always depends on my mood - if I want a few guaranteed on-the-button shots I drag out the 787B or F40 (who doesn't?). I love how some of the comps occasionally throw up a surprise choice and it turns out to be an ace car to shoot. (Morrison's Vette was nice!).

It amazes me how varied the modelling is between the premium cars. Look at the arches of the Gallardo for instance - jagged and very 'standard', yet the LFA is virtually pixel perfect.

If I had to chose one, it would have to be the F40. I'm quite an old-school petrol head. Saying that, I love the classic Yank stuff - Camaro's and 'vettes in particular. I'd love the game to have a Porsche 959 or Ferrari 288 GTO - two of the best looking cars ever in my opinion.

Oh, and I do have a soft spot for the Stratos. So unique - can we have it premium for GT6 please?

8, What is your favourite location to shoot?
Again, depends on mood. Quite like Spa for the legendary status, SSRX for the lighting and scenery, Toscana for the 'naturally dramatic' feel but I guess it's La Sarthe (for personal reasons which you realise when you read further down). I don't really go for the night stuff - I find it too much like hard work to get a decent shot.

9, What is your favourite picture you have in your gallery and why?
Ooooh. Tough one. Changes every week to be honest.

This one I quite like:

6476488723_ac2bb2da13.jpg


because it was my first Comp win and I'm glad how it came out. I was lucky with the background and was quite pleased with the GT logo edit. Plus it made the News section on GTPlanet. It's not my best technically, but certainly one of faves. I like the idea behind it, at least.


10, Do you edit your photomode pictures and if so what techniques do you prefer?
Always, unless it's for a PMC. I don't really stick to a tried and tested method, I just wing it! I use Photoshop CS5 soley - it's what I'm used to - and just play with layers, saturation, burn and dodge, gaussian blur, flares (when applicable) and masks. Oh and I always work in LAB colour mode - I don't know why, but the dodge and burn tools seem to work much more precisely that way.

There was a great post some while back that gave me great results instantly. I forget who it was, but the method went like this: Take your shot and duplicate the layer. Take this layer and desaturate it completely. Add a little Gaussian Blur to this layer and invert it. Then set that layer to Soft Light. Then, take your original layer and dupe it again, desaturate, add a little more Gaussian blur than last time, invert and set to Soft Light. Finally (phew), take your original layer, desat, send to TOP and set to Overlay. Play about with the transparency values for each layer and you end up with a great starting block for a cool shot. Try it and you'll see...

11, If you could change, add or remove any feature in GT photomode, what would they be?
I'd just love a free-roaming camera! All the rest seems to do the job if I'm honest, but being able to save a number of camera settings would be good. Oh, and a Studio Set Phototravel location would be good. On a wider note, I'd love to be able to pick a grid lineup from my garage.

Well GT6 is just around the corner, so I suppose we'll see if we've been listened to or not!


12, Do you have any advice to share with the rest of the photomode users?
Just keep at it really and take a good look around the Galleries. There is stuff in there that can't fail to be both educational and inspirational.

And don't lose faith in the Comps - at the end of the day, they are only a bit of fun. Use them to improve your techniques - look at the polls, see what standard the shots that make it are at. Also, look in car mags and even ads on the telly. Look at the angles, the tones, the effects and be inspired!

13, Which GTPlanet photomode member or members inspire you?
When I first starting browsing the forum my biggest inspiration by far was Dolp - the simple approach that guy had was superb, and the results were absolutely stunning. He (she?) could take any simple composition and add a few tiny edited elements and create a work of art. I don't think Dolp participates much these days, but I urge anyone to seek out his Gallery for some brilliant shots.

Special mention goes to Nato_777 - his clean-up of the XJ220 inspired me to create the clean-up thread, which is still going strong. All the other 'big guys' (we all know who they are), are and always have been providers of more than a few OMG moments. Mitch, Slipz, Gtuned, Shaft, Zambuca, Keade, Nanabu, Leeislee (who at first I thought was a bit 'aggressive' in his posting, but has turned out to be a gem of a member), Shaolin, SMfan, NBDesignz, Hawk2201 (for his sheer quantity of work!), jBhIpS (stunning at times), Retro… the list could go on forever! The thing LOVE about every single member is that they help make this place so friendly - It is one of the best forums I frequent on the 'net.

But I have to say, the biggest inspirational member for me is DarkR. The style, composition and toning hit the mark every single time. Never over-done, always slick and always a great photo. Again, seek out the gallery - you'll be impressed.

14, Outside of GTPlanet, Do you have a special photo, piece of art or anything else you've created that you would like to share to showcase your other interests and talents?
Check out my company site www.dynamik-creative.co.uk to get a feel for the kind of things I produce commercially. I always wanted to stay within the Automotive sector - indeed a few of my major clients are in there - but I find I'm more and more these days concerned with brands and logotypes. I also provide advertising in print for major brands in the UK.

I get a buzz from the idea of people seeing my work, so I guess my favourite piece would have to be the 2011 Ferrari 458 livery I designed for the 24h Le Mans, raced by JMW Motorsport & Dunlop. I got taken out to the race weekend as a VIP and was so proud to see it 'in the flesh' on the track, competing with the Audis and the rest.

Couple of pictures below - more on my site and facebook page if you're interested

8284450051_b9870e7425.jpg


8285509472_667ccdfc70.jpg


8284447779_c2ef416882.jpg


8285508628_33d285ebe8.jpg


^^ Yeah, that's me.


15, Finally, Who would you like to nominate for the next Q&A session?
It would have to be Dolp - but I doubt he's even around to read this! Real shame…
If not, then let's hear from Hawk2201 - I'd like to see what keeps him going! The guy must never sleep!


Thanks Miklad 👍
 
This is always nice to read and learn a bit more about all those great peaople sharing their intrest about gt photomode, great idea Lee ^^
 
Another great interview. :)

I was to participate in that competition promoted by Dunlop but I didn't have the time to think about it :S I never imagined to meet the person who won it. Nice job Miklad.

PS: Don't you have a job for a designer in your company? :D
 
Ah good to know you're still around Mog. Hope you can get back here one day with some new shots. 👍

It's finding the time to take them and edit them that's proving difficult! Work is more manic than ever and I don't want to look at image editing software once I get home too. :lol:
 
It's finding the time to take them and edit them that's proving difficult! Work is more manic than ever and I don't want to look at image editing software once I get home too. :lol:
Hehe, i can imagine. Still, if you can make it back one day it'll be a welcome return mate 👍
 
Thanks 👍

Oh, and i'm going to have a go at 3D Studio Max too, so i'll have to see how i get on with that, not confident atall!! :nervous:

Good luck with that. I've used it a fair bit before and it can be quite confusing at times and theres a lot to take in.(Haven't touched it in ages) I suck at modelling though, I find that the hardest so a lot of my 3d stuff was mainly non-organic, architecture and stuff.

Still out of the many 3d packages out there I think it's a relatively easy one to learn. And with your kind of personality I'm sure you'll become pretty good with it. Will take time though. ;)


3D Studio Max has the steepest learning curve I've ever experienced, software-wise. Good luck! :)

Have you tried Maya?, to me it is way harder than Max as far as learning curve. :crazy:

Your answers were a great read too, always nice to hear from someone who also does design IRL. 👍
 
Didn't discover this thread until now. Will set off some spare time to read through all of the Q&A's we've had so far. I'm sure there is a lot of interesting stuff to read! 👍
 
Very intriguing interview Miklad! 👍

@Lee - Dude, it's scary how identical your nature is to mines. I'm almost word for word just like you. :nervous: :eek:
 
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