Covent Garden
Night in London, and I was out shooting at Covent Garden…
Ah, lovely London - so much to see, so much to shoot! I do love London, and each time I visit I try and stop by Covent Garden for a least a quick visit. I find the main structure (pictured here) as well as the surrounding area to be quite beautiful and photogenic. I captured this on my trip there a couple of years ago, and did edits to this photo in On1 Software.
Covent Garden at night
A night shot of a musician at work in Covent Garden, London…
From my last visit to lovely London…I captured this gentleman playing music in Covent Garden while wandering over there one evening. It’s a beautiful part of London and one well worth visiting. I will be returning to London soon and hope to pop over here for a little while to check it out again!
Modeling in London
A young lady was modeling for her boyfriend in front of these phone booths, so I let her model for me as well…
I rarely take photos of people, generally preferring to capture a scene when it is empty, or at least where a person is not a big part of the shot. But sometimes you have to make exceptions. In London one evening I was lining up to take some shots of these lovely phone booths, which are over by Covent Garden. As I got set up and ready, this girl and her boyfriend starting taking photos as well, with her modeling for him in front of them. No worries, I usually just wait these things out. But instead I just started firing, thinking that having a person in the shot actually gave it a little more interest. I find myself doing that a bit more than I used to, and am liking the results. Maybe people aren’t so bad after all. ;-)
Night at Covent Garden
Covent Garden in London under the cover of darkness…
Here's a pair of pics from lovely London, one of my favorite cities anywhere. Covent Garden is a great place to hang out and shoot, although at times the security guards get all fired up about tripods. So you have to be stealthy and quick to get it done! ;-)
Night at Covent Garden
Nighttime at Covent Garden in London, and I'm using a tripod despite their ban on such things. But what happens when a security guard approaches? Here's my little story about that.
Yep, I'm still working through London photos, and will be for some time!
I took thousands of photos on my trip to London, and really have only scratched the surface with editing them. That's part of the fun of a big trip - so many photos to edit when you get home. But the other great thing is reliving the memories of a place when you look at the shots again.
This photo is a great example of that. I was out shooting with my good friend Michael Murphy, and we were at Covent Garden. This place has a strict "no tripod" rule, which interestingly I learned there one evening several years ago, while also out with Murphy that time. But regardless I set up my tripod and started firing away, know it may not last.
As I suspected, a security guard approached and told me that it was dangerous to have my tripod there as someone could trip over it, etc. I noticed his accent wasn't English but rather Irish, so I started asking him about Ireland. We ended up having a nice chat and he was super friendly. Eventually he told me it was fine if I used my tripod, as long as I was careful and made sure to avoid people if possible. Win!
Often these sorts of confrontations end with me being frustrated and not getting my shots, but in this case just changing the subject and having a nice chat ended up with things going my way. As they say, you catch more bees with honey, right?
Nightfall at Covent Garden Market
A 3 photo collection from a nice little market in London...
I finally made it to this spot in London - and loved it!
If you are anything like me, before you head out on a trip somewhere you compile a big list of all the things you hope to go see and photograph while you are there. That's one of the reasons I write so many lists for the various cities I travel to - it makes it easier for those who are in the planning phase. And why not share? It's a big beautiful world, and we all need to go see it.
So on my last trip to London, one such thing on my list was Covent Garden Market. In all my previous trips to London, I had just never made it over here, and I am glad that I finally did! It's a great little spot, and it's pretty easy to get to.
I was out with my friend Mike Murphy and this was the last stop that evening, as I needed to get back to the hotel and get ready to fly home the next morning. We arrived well after dark and I immediately took that hallway shot. As the brackets were firing, I was approached by a security guard who informed me that all tripods were banned from the property, and he literally walked me to the spot where the property line ended, and said I could shoot from there. Well! At least I got this shot finished before I had to move back.
So we spent the next half hour or so working our way around the place, firing from various angles and generally enjoying the spot. I rather like it. My only preference would be to return at sunrise and get some great light (and I assume it would be empty then).
I have a bunch more shots from here to work on when I find the time, but wanted to go ahead and get these out there for your inspection. Add this spot to your London list!
You can see my entire list of recommended London spots here.
So, it stays on the list for next time, hopefully!