Oxted Beer Festival 2014

Where and When

On Monday 14th July the scene was being set for the third Oxted Beer Festival and I was given the honour of photographing the event from construction to destruction and all that happened in between. The event took place at Oxted's very own Master Park on Church Road on Friday 18th,19th and 20th July. The marquees were supplied by Crown Marquees who did a grand job.

The festival took place during the hottest week of the year, thankfully the Westerham Brewery made sure there was enough beer to satisfy the thirstiest punter!

I went equipped with two Nikon bodies one with my 70-200mm lens and the other with my 24-120mm lens and Nikon Speed light. I was dipping in and out of the festival around studio and location work I had booked in. This is my account of what I saw and photographed.

Why?

Oxted Beer Festival  was the brain child of Peter Hanrott, he just wanted to get a few friends together on Master Park for a beer or two with some live music, some cricket on the green to raise money for the good of Master Park and for the Oxted and Limpsfield Cricket Club. This year The Oxted and Limpsfield Community Sports Association (the “OLCSA”) has been created to run the festival and hold all the funds raised so that local sports clubs can apply to the association for funding, thus all funds raised are ploughed back into helping local sports clubs and infrastructure projects including Master Park.

From this tiny thought grew a fun filled community spirited festival that the locals have come to love and enjoy! With the added benefit that Peter can share it with the majority of Oxted now. Without the help of volunteers from the front gate, to the clearing up, the event would not have been able to take place.

Beers, Cricket, Live Music and More...

Local businesses were invited to sponsor a firkin, with over 100 opting to get their name out there and support this well attended and worthy event. This year saw a huge variety of beers to choose from that were sourced from breweries all over the country.  I sponsored "First Light" at 5.5% proof, it was pretty strong even for the discerning beer drinker! I could just manage a quarter of a pint! The bar was manned by volunteers, from the ladies serving the Pimms to the men and women pulling the pints, it was a community coming together at their best, and it showed, everyone was in good spirits.

All sponsors and their guests were invited to a VIP event to sample the beers from 5pm - 7pm on the Friday before the gates opened to the public and the party officially started.

Having photographed the Beer Festival last year this years event was on a much bigger scale and had the same vibrant atmosphere.

The currency for the festival was the "Stilling" where your pounds were exchanged at

"The Beeroo de Change".

Friday night did not disappoint with live music from Payback to get the party swinging, I had to remind myself I was in Oxted and so lucky to have this on my doorstep! 

Just a tip when you are photographing bands in low lighting conditions, up your ISO to at least 1600 or better still 3200, don't use flash unless you want to kill the atmosphere!

The other bands appearing over the weekend, to name a few were Eric and the Claptones, The Reservoir Frogs and on Saturday evening Randy and the Rocketts - they were all so good and got the crowds on their feet.

During the afternoon families were there to enjoy a relaxing time, it was lovely to see so many familiar faces come together for a good time. 

If beer wasn't your tipple then you weren't disappointed as there were pitchers of Pimms to cool you down and wine, Champagne, with soft drinks too!

This years main sponsor Natterbox  supplied the glasses in half and one pint sizes which were given out on entry and kept by each person for the duration of their stay and to take home as a souvenir of the occasion.

You could even watch the golf, cricket and F1 on the TV in the main marquee, so there really was something for everyone.

Each day there was cricket on the green to watch, 

Oxted & Limpsfiled CC XI played 3 times, once with each of the following:- 

Kalibazar Wanderers, Old Hamptonians CC and Reigate Priory CC who entertained the crowd.

I had the opportunity to photograph the cricketers in action, some of whom were professionals from Jamaica.

There was even a streaker who interrupted the game on Saturday evening, and disappeared as quickly as he arrived!!

For the first timeThe Riot Bar was introduced in a separate marquee, for those who wanted to chill out and sip cocktails to a different beat.

As well as supping pints there were food stalls to curb those hunger pangs including Oxted's very own "Gurkha Kitchen" and the new "Thai Pad" restaurant (well worth trying), there were pizzas prepared and cooked on site, dim sum, burgers, curries and Jamaican patties, something to suit every taste.

Thanks for reading, if you didn't go this year, its well worth going to next year, you won't be disappointed!

My next newsletter will be in two weeks time about my experience at the Wilton Classic and Supercar Show in Salisbury.

Bye for now.

Stella

The Masterpiece Marie Curie Party.

Where and When

On Monday 30th May I had the pleasure of attending The Masterpiece Marie Curie Party at the Masterpiece Art and Antiques Fair, located on the South Grounds of The Royal Hospital, Chelsea. I always look forward to visiting the fair because of the diversity of pieces for sale and the history behind them, they each have a story to tell.

For sale were museum-quality art, antiques, jewellery and a whole host of exclusive designs covering different eras, a collectors paradise. Each item at the fair was individually vetted by 26 committees of independent experts and specialists to guarantee authenticity.

Mid Summer Party

This years Masterpiece Marie Curie Party was supported by watch manufacturer Jaeger-LeCoultre. For the second year Marie Curie Cancer Care was selected as the beneficiary of funds raised at the party.

Ambassador Heather Krezner hosted the Champagne, cocktail and canapé reception and greeted guests who included David and Catherine Bailey, Tina Cobley and her husband Oliver Wheeler, Clive Owen, Monica Lewinsky, Princess Beatrice of York, Kirstie Alsop, Rachel Hunter, John Caudwell, Amanda Eliasch and celebrity photographer Richard Young to name only a few of the celebrities who attended.

The general public were invited to attend too and paid £95 per ticket to this prestigious event. There was the option to purchase luxury goods and experiences in the silent auction, including a painting lesson with Ronnie Wood, all proceeds to the chosen charity. There was also a raffle to win a brand new MINI convertible and an exclusive pair of fine earrings by Niquesa Fine Jewellers, at only £20 per ticket, a bargain for the lucky winners.

After the drinks reception the celebrities were privately entertained to a dinner and auction which raised in excess of £900,00 for Marie Curie Cancer Care that depends on events like this to fund their nursing care. It was so lovely to see so many of the nurses and staff from the charity at the event, and the local Chelsea Pensioners too.

My Photographs

I photographed the atmosphere which was buzzing, as well as the guests, there was a lot going on which really set the party scene from a graceful ballerina to Robin Harris' London Dixie and Jazz Bands and snippets of wonderful characters through time from Gideon Reeling.

I particularly like going to visit Long Sharp Gallery this Indianapolis based gallery features works from Picasso and Andy Warhol to Pop with a huge variety of innovative art too.

I was introduced to The Masterpiece Fair by my clients Chris Jowitt and Ray Russell from WW.Warner who specialise in 18th and 19th century porcelain. I have had the privilege of photographing their exclusive pieces for the BADA catalogues and always look forward to seeing what I'm going to photograph next. For example a Worcester porcelain lobed dessert plate (as shown) hand painted at the London atelier of James Giles . Circa 1768-70, at nearly 250 years old it's a strange feeling working with such fine quality that has withstood the test of time.

Photographed in my studio using Nikon's 24mm-120mm lens and one soft box to light the subject, I find it picks up the fine detail synonymous with art of this era, propped against a neutral grey background, the perfect contrast. The artwork shows a traveller on horseback with his dog at his side. Post production on these images ensure the colour reproduction is as accurate as possible.

This was a wonderful evening enjoyed by so many to raise funds so needed to support Marie Curie Cancer Care.

Thanks for reading, my next newsletter will be in two weeks time about the Oxted Beer Festival.

Bye for now.

Stella

Sonisphere Festival 2014

When and Where

On Friday 4th July I was very excited to be going to the Sonisphere Festival.  It's a three day music event for rock and heavy metal fans.

I drove to Knebworth House in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, it's been the home of Sonisphere since it started in 2009. I found out that Knebworth House is celebrating 40 years as the home of British rock music and I can see why. The park is vast with a natural bowl shaped arena and easy to get to with great links from the M25 straight onto the A1(M).

I was invited to enjoy the festival by K2, the event owner and had an access all areas pass to photograph a little bit of history, and boy was I in for a treat.

(I am writing this on a high on the Monday after the night before) Let me tell you more about my experience.This year for the first time Iron Maiden and Metallica  were headlining at the same festival.

My Experience

It had been a while since I had attended a rock festival, so I prepared well and made the most of my three days.

On arrival I was directed to the guest car park, which was close to the main stage (Apollo), so there was no danger of forgetting where your car was parked or having to walk miles to get to it!l 

The layout of the festival was well structured. A few days prior, this was just park land, and now there are porta cabins as dressing rooms, toilets, showers, marquees for food, drinks, crew catering, guest hospitality, and two huge stages (Apollo and Saturn) and three smaller stages (in marquees). You could get a new tattoo, buy a new outfit and have a ride on all the fairground attractions. 

There were bands performing from morning until late at night, with a choice of exciting entertainment until the early hours (they even had a silent disco!).

It was interesting to see the array of accommodation on site, which ranged from a one man tent, to very comfortable Winnebagos complete with all the mod cons, home from home to chill out and recharge. There really was something for everyone. 

The array of food kiosks available was enough to suit any diet and palette, I was spoilt for choice.

You could sense the excitement and fever in the air, the 50,000 plus fans were there for a good time and they weren't disappointed.

Behind the scenes was very calm. Everyone got on with their duties; the production team, the caterers, the engineers, sound and lighting, hospitality, press office the golf buggies ferrying crew to the main stage and the limousines driving the artists back stage to take centre stage.

On Saturday, Iron Maiden's front man Bruce Dickinson had taken to the skies and flown a 1977 fokker tri plane as part of the First World War memorial. He was joined by members of the Great War Display Team, who together staged an eight-plane dogfight above a wooded area next to the festival site, with commentary and machine gun fire playing throughout the display, this really got the crowd in the mood for what was to come later.

Apollo Stage

Just before 9pm the fans gathered in anticipation in front of the Apollo stage. Iron Maiden were playing their last concert of a three year tour. The roar of the crowd as they joined the stage was incredible. From back stage I was escorted through the crowds with precision weaving, to take my position in the mixing tower a few hundred feet away from the stage.

I felt so privileged to have been able to take photographs from this magnificent viewpoint, with a sea of fans below either side.

I was swept away by the pure theatre and precision of their performance, it became very clear why they have been so successful for the past thirty plus years, and are one of the most well respected bands in the world!

And they're British too!!

In The Pit

I got a snap shot of the end result and photographed the artists doing what they know best during the first three numbers of their performance. Especially during Metallica's performance, I could feel the music reverberating in the cavity of my chest - the atmosphere was "on fire".

Seeing around 50,000 people of all ages, all walks of life and countries having a good time was a surreal experience, enhanced by the sun going down.

I was able to take time out behind the scenes and speak to the crew and band members about their experiences, including Martin Mickels from Oxted who was playing with his band Empire Kill and with his "roadie" Randy from Oxted's very own Randy and the Rockets.

I got to photograph Iron Maiden, Metallica, Deftones, Gary Numan, Limp Bizkit, The Lounge Kittens, Little Matador and others, it was an experience to listen to the bands, some I hadn't heard of before.

My camera kit consisted of:-

2 Nikon D700 bodies 1 with MB-D10 battery pack

1 wide angle 15mm-30mm lens

1 telephoto 70mm-20mm lens

1 standard 24mm-120mm lens

1 Nikon speedlight SB-910 with spare batteries

3 Memory cards 32mb

All I can say is WOW, and WOW -  what an amazing, exhausting, exhilarating experience!! A huge, huge thanks to my hosts for looking after me so well and enabled access all areas to what was a first class festival. I can highly recommend Sonisphere to all you music lovers out there for next year, you don't have to be a big rock or metal fan, I wasn't, but I certainly am now. 

Thanks for reading, my next newsletter will be in two weeks time about the Masterpiece Fair in Chelsea.

Bye for now.

Stella

Edenbridge Car Pageant

Where and When

On Monday 26th May I drove a few miles south to Edenbridge to see (and hear) for myself what the car pageant I had read about had to offer. The weather was overcast and wet, not ideal for such an occasion. The event was organized by the Eden Valley Chamber of Commerce as part of the Edenbridge Fun Day. As a member of the Oxted Chamber of Commerce I caught site of an email from our chairman letting us know what another local chamber were up to over the Bank Holiday weekend. I’m very glad I took note of this because what unfolded filled me with delight and added so much to my visual and mental portfolio of cars! All on my doorstep in Fircroft Way, Edenbridge, Kent.

John Surtees OBE

Edenbridge is the hometown of Motor sport legend John Surtees OBE.

This year John is celebrating 50 years since he won his Formula 1 World Championship title as well as his 80th birthday. John Surtees OBE is a one off; the only person to have won World Championships on both two and four wheels. John proudly showcased his F1 bikes and cars outside his Bradford shop, Station Road, the Surtees team factory and business base for the past 56 years. The cars were built at this address and mainly by local residents. Edenbridge High Street was closed to allow the parade to take centre stage. It was led by John in the Ferrari 158 which he won the 1964 Formula One Driver’s World Championship, and was followed by Team Surtees Formula 1 cars of the Seventies driven by Scott Malvern and Robbie Kerr.

Exhibition and Book

John will be launching his book "My Incredible Life on Two and Four Wheels" on June 19th 2014. The book contains over 250 photographs some of which were on display at TOPFOTO Gallery also in Fircroft Way. The photographs are an incredible account of an incredible man. The majority of the photographs were taken by John Topham a documentary photographer who lived in Edenbridge until he died in 1992, please follow the link to find out more about him http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Topham_(photographer).

The book can be ordered from Evro Publishing.

The exhibition was an added bonus to my afternoon as it showcased some of John's finest moments, even better, it was an opportunity to own a limited edition print signed by John Surtees and very reasonably priced too, £50 for an unframed A3 print.

Fund Raising

The event raised funds for the Kent Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance Association and The Henry Surtees Foundation.

The foundation was set up in memory of John’s son Henry who was tragically killed in a freak accident at Brands Hatch in 2009 aged just 18 years, whilst competing.

The Pageant

I was pleasantly surprised to see so many owners turn up with their cars and bikes, they had travelled from all over the country to take part in this prestigious event. I chatted to a few of them who were happy to tell me the history of their cars, one man told me he bought his MG when he was just 18 years old and has owned it for the past 36 years, and was passing it over to his son to enjoy.

Amongst the parade were Ferrari, Aston Martin, MG, Corvette Stingray, Lotus, BMW, Morris Cowley to name just a few. They followed John's parade of cars and gathered at the Lingfield Road recreation ground, the other end of town, for all to enjoy as part of the fun day.

It was a very enjoyable Bank Holiday Monday afternoon, thanks to all involved who made this the great success it was, despite the great British weather.

All part of my other passion in life photographing Classic and Super cars. You can see and read a bit more about this on my website www.stellascordellis.com

If you would like to commission me to take photographs of you, your family, or your cars, then please get in touch.

Bye for now.

Stella

Fish Master Class Browns Mayfair

A Wonderful Evening

One of my passions in life is food, having been born into the restaurant industry it's in my blood. I love food markets, cooking with good quality fresh produce that I can feed my family and friends, after all it's all part of my Greek-Cypriot roots to feed and entertain en-mass.

Even more, I like to take the opportunity to combine two of my passions in life, photography and food! When I'm not photographing people or classic car collections I like to indulge in some fine dining and to capture those moments forever (give me a commission to photograph food from field to plate and I'd be one happy lady).

Brown's, Mayfair

On Wednesday 21st May I went to Rocco Forte’s Brown's Hotel in Mayfair, London's oldest luxury hotel for an entertaining evening with Mark Hix for his Fish n Hix master class. My photographs show an account of what happened next, this may inspire you to try it too.

Mark Hix

Our host Mark Hix owner of Hix Oyster & Chop House and Tramshed entertained a group of nine of us, on how to prepare and cook some of his signature dishes. Located in the plush surroundings of the Niagra room he took centre stage at the head of the table with one cooking ring armed with the appropriate knives, scissors and tweezers.

What’s For Dinner

We were wowed with the quality of produce and the attention to detail that Mark is known for. He explained where he likes to source his produce from and uses sea vegetables where possible, in particular samphire, stonecrop, sea purslane, sea beet and sea aster, which really complemented the flavours of the fish.

We were served by a group of discreet and efficient waiters who made sure our wine and water glasses were always full, and service swift and attentive.

Mark started with a demonstration on how to prepare ceviche using fresh whiting fillets, a fish often under used but very tasty and lends itself to this recipe using the acidity of the lime to ‘cook’ the fish.

Followed by smoked salmon, we had a go at slicing under Mark's guidance and watchful eye, super sharp knives guaranteed you could glide the knife diagonally through this slab of heaven. The fillet of salmon once pin boned is smoked on site at Brown's. For his restaurant in Selfridges he told us he has a shed that sits on the roof where he can smoke his salmon to perfection. The salmon was moist, not oily, very lightly smoked and served with soda bread.

The red and white wines accompanying the courses were sourced in Portugal by Mark and his friend, restaurateur, chef and food writer Mitch Tonks. They have named their wine 'Tonnix' a combination of their surnames, the labels on the bottles designed by friend Tracey Emin.

We were also shown how to fillet and bone fish with a few tricks to make this less time consuming. Take a look at the menu below to see what followed, each dish was light and flavoursome and relatively easy to prepare at home. Mark is a lover of rapeseed oil, we were encouraged to drizzle this on our fish, in particular the salt baked sea bass and chargrilled brill.

The gurnard was prepared and cooked in paper pouches and was a tasty conclusion to this gastronomic event.

Photographs

The photographs I've taken are a snapshot of the evenings events over the two hours showing Mark at his best, he was entertaining and happy to answer all our questions and share his culinary experiences. I used my Nikon body with a 24-135mm lens and a mixture of daylight and bounced flash with a high ISO.

Thanks Mark for a great evening, next on the agenda is to try your meat master class.

The Menu

• Marinated Newlyn whiting with chilli and plantain crisps

• Albemarle smoked salmon 'Hix cure' with Corrigan's soda bread

• Isle of Barra cockles with Burrow Hill cider and smoked Orkney bacon

• Salt-baked St Margaret's Bay sea bass with buttered seakale

• Chargrilled whole Start Point brill with aura potatoes and béarnaise sauce

• Paper-baked Lyme Bay gurnard with steamed coastal greens

• Strawberry jelly and fool

We left the evening feeling comfortably full with a generous goodie bag containing a signed cookery book, an apron and a bottle of rapeseed oil. Not forgetting lots of inspiration for future cooking .

I can highly recommend a Fish Master class Browns Mayfair.

Anyone for fish?

Bye for now.

Stella

Wedding Photography Tips

This is how I do it!

First of all to be a great wedding photographer you have to have passion and buckets of it helps, a passion for the art of photography and a passion for communicating with people, this is a winning combination. I’ve been photographing weddings for over 35 years and started with a twin lens Rolleiflex using four rolls of film with only 12 exposures on each, so every shot counted and you had to get it right!! Let me tell you how you can do it with these wedding photography tips.

Passion

Passion isn’t something you can buy you need it to be able to get the results as this is probably one of the hardest genres of photography but probably one of the most rewarding, after all you have been entrusted with a very special day there really is no margin for error. Location Always make sure you have visited the location the wedding is taking place at so you are familiar with the best spots for group photographs, bride and groom shots and where the sun is positioned at the time of day you’ll be shooting. A plan B is a must in case rains prevents any outdoor photography, so check the inside of the venue too (especially if it's a church ceremony).

My Kit Keep it simple!

You have a lot to think about on the day - who’s who, what’s the weather doing, am I in the right place at the right time, the names of the people you are interacting with, is my exposure correct with the changing light. Knowing your kit inside out is crucial to be able to make split second decisions. I carry two D700 Nikon bodies with additional battery attachments that way I don’t have to worry my batteries are going to die, after approximately 1000 exposures the second battery automatically kicks in. One body is fitted with a 70mm-200mm lens and the other a 24mm-135mm lens. I use a Nikon speedlight attached to my shorter focal length lens body as a fill in light source and also as a main light when shooting inside. I carry a foldaway reflector too, you never know when you might need it, especially for natural window light shots. In reserve I carry two more bodies as backup and a wider focal 18mm lens should I need to introduce this lens for the back of the ceremony wide angle shot. I often shoot with a second photographer as it’s impossible to get all angles covered, especially during the ceremony when roaming photographers are a big no no. I carry a sturdy tripod to prevent camera shake if I need a slow shutter speed in the church, as any supplementary lighting is often forbidden and natural lighting is far more complimentary. Make sure your 32gb memory cards are formatted and ready to go. I carry a light metre with me so I can get an accurate reading, I check this with the histogram on my camera too. In my kit bag I carry two spare flash guns with charged batteries and lens cloth cleaners.

Camera Settings

I choose to set the shooting control on my camera to manual so I can have full control of any given lighting. I have my flash set to manual too and set to two stops under the exposure of the camera so it should deliver the correct dose of light to fill in the shadows of group photographs or, for when your subject is backlight, full flash is best. This is something that over the years becomes second nature as does the camera settings. I generally set my ISO to 400 but change to 1600 for internal shots in low lighting and often use a low dose of flash too, this all depends on what my experience is telling me. I always set my camera file size to JPEG normal and RAW so I have two files of each image. A typical combination when shooting on a bright day is shutter speed 250th and aperture f11. When using my camera fitted with the 70mm – 200mm lens I don’t use flash and sometimes set this on aperture priority of f4 or f5.6 so I can shoot on a fast shutter speed in bright lighting. The image below is an example of this, I have used the backlighting and flare to my advantage, as usual these shots are rarely planned and capture the moment. I have my white balance (WB) set to auto, this is fine tuned in post production. Another crucial thing that makes life easier when you are sorting all the images from two or three memory cards together in one folder, is to set your cameras all to the same time, otherwise you’ll be doing lots of sorting to get everything in chronological order. You don't want to put yourself in this position.

Post production

Once I have downloaded the images usually between 1000 to 1500 images the editing takes place, this is a lengthy process and often takes place over two or three days. All images I take whether in the studio on location or weddings go through a fine tuning post production process prior to printing to ensure they are true in colour, this too is a lengthy but necessary process to ensure optimum quality. The RAW file (up to 10mb each) records maximum data, this helps if you are caught out and have over or under exposed your file, the RAW file will allow you to retrieve the data that a JPEG wouldn’t. Don't rely on this as it's always best to get the exposure right to start.

What Next If you would like your wedding photographed please call the studio to check we have your date available I am only taking 8 wedding commissions a year to ensure I can give them the time and attention they each deserve. To learn more about photography and understanding your camera, my masterclasses with give you the confidence to take better photographs.These can be small group classes or on a one to one basis. My classes will give you valuable wedding photography tips that you can use whatever you are photographing.

Thanks for reading!

Bye for now.

Stella