Mike's Photography, Travel, and anything else I can think of, Blog

Mornings in York reveal a different city from the one that exists during the day, bustling with tourists all vying to grab their photos of all that York has to offer. Before the streets fill and the medieval charm turns bustling, York becomes something else entirely, quieter, softer, almost abstract. Stone walls glow gently. Empty spaces emerge where crowds usually dominate. This walk isn’t about postcard landmarks or dramatic tourist shots. It’s about simplicity. Shapes. Light. Silence. Using nothing more than a smartphone, you’ll explore York as a study in minimalism, where small details, clean lines, and negative space tell a far more interesting story than the obvious views ever could.  For three hours, the goal is simple: slow down; simplify; see York differently. This is an early morning, minimalist smartphone photography walk around York, where as far as possible you should think in terms of: • Shapes • Negative space • Light and shadow • Clean lines • Single-sub...

Welcome to my latest blog, which this week takes a look at some of the common technical and conceptual mistakes beginners tend to make in photography, and how to correct them. Relying exclusively on full auto mode will stop you from understanding about the fundamentals of exposure. If you don't make the effort to learn how aperture, shutter speed, and ISO (the exposure triangle) all work and interact with each other, then your photography is never going to improve. You can fix this by switching to Aperture Priority (A/Av) mode or Shutter Priority (S/Tv) mode. In simple terms, Aperture Priority (A/Av) is when you choose the aperture and the camera sets the shutter speed. With Shutter Priority (S/Tv) you choose the shutter speed and the camera sets the aperture. You need to understand these three basic elements of taking a photograph. Confusing or not understanding how each component of the exposure triangle affects your photos will give you inconsistent results. Here's a...

Welcome to the blog—a space where photography and travel come together to tell richer, more meaningful stories. Here, you’ll find more than just destinations and images; it’s about capturing moments, understanding places, and seeing the world with intention. From practical shooting tips to reflections on the journey behind the lens, each post is designed to help you travel deeper and photograph with purpose. Whether you’re chasing light in a new city or learning to appreciate the details closer to home, you’re in the right place. In this latest blog I take another deep dive into how to read a photographic image. When I was studying for a BA one of the modules I took was art history, which introduced me to the concept of 'reading' a painting. Up until then I had always thought of art as, well, art, something nice to look at, but I was totally wrong. My eyes were opened to the possibilities of meaning, symbolism, and interpretation. Art isn’t passive—you bring your own experience...

Archaeologists have unearthed what they suspect is the last resting place of the legendary seven dwarfs of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs fame. Seven small skeletons were found close to one another in a site just outside the city walls. Although they have not been able to find any evidence of a settlement, which according to legend consisted of one below average size cottage in the enchanted forest, and near to a diamond mine, archaeologists are in little doubt that these are indeed the remains of the Seven Dwarfs. An assemblage of metal tools and implements found nearby, and thought to be connected with the dwarfs, suggests that they were mineworkers. The Seven Dwarfs are known to have lived in the period of Fairy Tale, between the periods of Once upon a time and They all lived happily ever after. Oxygen isotope analysis carried out on the bones and teeth of the skeletons confirms that all are of central European origin. Marks on their bones indicate that they all came to a grim end....

Welcome to my latest blog, which this week is about something I am passionate about, that is smartphone photography, as opposed to lugging a 'proper camera' about with me everywhere I go. Think about this statement for a moment: a photo can only work on a phone because the phone disappears. Why might this be true? Let's take a look at the evidence. First off, a smartphone is smaller than, for want of a better term, a conventional camera. When you take a photo with your smartphone the process is generally quiet, no clicking sounds as the shutter is activated. Generally, because smartphones are everywhere these days, people don't feel threatened by them, whereas pointing a conventional camera at someone, say in the street, can sometimes provoke a hostile reaction. Lifting a conventional camera up to your face is like announcing ‘I am going to take a photograph!’. Discreetly raising your smartphone means people don’t stiffen, scenes don’t break, moments stay honest and can...

Welcome to my latest blog, which this week takes a close look at the Snapseed and Lightroom Mobile photo editing apps. I have been a fan and a user of Snapseed for many years; I was also aware of Adobe's Lightroom Mobile app, in fact of the whole Adobe photography ecosystem, and had dabbled with their mobile version over the years, but had always returned to Snapseed. I decided to take a deeper dive into these two apps and see what each of them has to offer and what makes me stick with Snapseed. In the age of smartphone photography, snapping a stunning shot is sometimes only half the story, the real magic often happens in the edit. Whether you’re polishing up your travel photos for Instagram or fine-tuning portraits for a professional portfolio, having the right mobile editing app can make all the difference. Among the crowd of editing tools, Snapseed and Lightroom Mobile stand out as two of the most powerful and popular options. But which one truly deserves a spot on your home scr...