Monday, 16 August 2010

Gear of the Year 2010 Awards

Gear of the Year Awards were setup of for readers of Practical Photography and Digital Photo to vote for those retailers that have served them well. The categories include: Best Specialist Retailer, Best Retailer, Best Online Retailer, Best photo finishing service.

We are honoured that Grays of Westminster has been included in the example list of shops for the 'Best Specialist Retailer' category!

All voters will be entered into a draw where they can win:
  • 1st Prize: One of two copies of Adobe Photoshop CS5
  • 2nd Prize: Photoshop Lightroom 3
  • 3rd Prize: Photoshop Elements 8


All you have to do to be in with a chance to win one of the great prizes on offer, is to submit your name, email address and your choices (which we hope will include Grays!) at http://www.gearoftheyear.co.uk

Good luck!
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Sunday, 15 August 2010

A Journey into Time-Lapse Photography with Neil Lucas

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left to right: Michael Eleftheriades, Nikon Owner London Group Co-Ordinator, with Neil Lucas

On 19th June 2010, Grays of Westminster and the Nikon Owner London Group presented 'A Unique Midsummer Event A Journey into Time-Lapse Photography' with Neil Lucas, producer of the acclaimed BBC 'Life' Series, at Fitzroy House, London.

Neil's presentation took the audience through his career, from the moment he realised he wanted to work in television (when he saw a 1960s episode of Blue Peter explaining how it was filmed), right through to fascinating time-lapse behind-the-scenes details of the BBC documentaries 'Life', 'The Private Life of Plants' and 'Frozen Planet'. Neil also covered the history of time lapse photography itself covering the work of the pioneers of this highly specialised field, including Dr John Ott.

About Neil Lucas
Neil Lucas worked for the BBC Natural History Unit as a producer for over 20 years. During that time, he worked on many internationally acclaimed and award-winning productions, including Sir David Attenborough’s 'The Trials of Life', 'The Private Life of Plants', 'The Life of Mammals' and 'Planet Earth'. In the outstanding 'Life' series, he produced two of the most technically challenging programmes, and many of his programmes have been nominated for BAFTAs and EMMYs. Neil is now working as a freelance film director and photographer specialising in challenging and technical shoots, using the same filming and photographic techniques he has mastered throughout his career.
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Thursday, 12 August 2010

Last Chance to see CAPSULE #2 at Richard Young Gallery

This is the last couple of days to catch the hugely popular exhibition
CAPSULE #2 at Richard Young Gallery
New Graduate Work 2010, BA(Hons) Fashion Photography from the London College of Fashion.

All photographs are editions of 5 and are for sale at £295.00 each. Some of the students' editions have nearly sold out! Friday the exhibition will be coming down, so we hope to see you in the gallery sometime before then!

The gallery will close from Saturday 14th of August for 2 weeks. We will re-open early September with the GQ Man of the the Awards: A Photographic Retrospective by Richard Young. More details to come next month! Any queries please email: office@richardyoungonline.com


Tuesday, 10 August 2010

Images of Russia - Simon Marsden






162 photographs from Simon Marsden's recent travels
in Russia are now available for sale or editorial use.

Find them in the Russia category of the picture library.



Tuesday, 3 August 2010

Manual Lenses - Urgent Requirement!

Grays of Westminster have received a sudden and urgent request for multiple Manual focus AiS Nikkor lenses from a commercial client.Nikkor Lenses
Among other prime AiS lenses we urgently and specifically need the following in new or lightly used condition and of course optically perfect...
  • 28mm f/2.8 Nikkor
  • 35mm f/2.Nikkor
  • 55mm f/2.8 Micro-Nikkor
  • 85mm f/2 Nikkor
  • 105mm f/2.8 Micro-Nikkor
  • 135mm f/2.8 Nikkor
Please send details of these and any other prime AiS lenses you may wish to receive a buying offer on to: info@graysofwestminster.com

We look forward to your kind response in anticipation of a mutually attractive transaction.

Kind Regards,

Antoni Kowal
Grays of Westminster

Friday, 30 July 2010

Nikon Owner member wins large array of awards

African dancer, Liberian National Peace & Cultural Festival
by Jonathan Banks


We are proud to present
Jonathan Banks, a Nikon Owner subscriber and Grays of Westminster customer, who is a selected finalist for the Africa Photographic Awards 2010

Jonathan Banks recently received notification from the Africa Photographic Awards 2010 announcing that he was a finalist in three categories: Africa Culture, Weddings Single Image and the Weddings Portfolio category.

This is a great achievement, as the judges have narrowed down the finalists from thousands of photographers who submitted their images.

The winners will be announced at a gala event at the Vodaworld Dome, Johannesburg on the 12th of August.

Jonathan Banks behind his Nikon F100

About Jonathan Banks

Jonathan Banks graduated with a BA honours in “Photographic Studies” in June 1993. He won the Jessops student of the year award and went on to gain sponsorship with Kodak with whom he produced several bodies of work for a touring exhibition.

He has freelanced with many of the broadsheets, and world class magazines and now divides his work between a stable of blue chip clients and a handful of publications.

His recent achievements include:
  • July 2010 - Selected for the Foto8 Summer Festival
  • April 2010 - Featured as a winner in the Top Knots Awards in the PDN magazine
  • March 2010 - A semi finalist in two categories in the Nikon Africa International Awards
  • Dec 2009 - Runner up in the Travel Photographer of the Year - Festivals
  • Dec 2009 - Scooped a Silver in the Photojournalism category of the International Aperture Awards
  • Dec 2009 - Received a Bronze in the Weddings category of the International Aperture Awards
  • July 2009 - Achieved an honourable mention in the International Photography Awards in the Culture Pro category
For more information, check out his websites: www.jonathanbanks.co.uk and www.photo-banks.com.

About the Africa Photographic Awards

The Africa Photographic Awards celebrate photography, the most powerful and widely used communication medium in today’s society. It awards professional and aspiring amateur photographers using any make of camera, for photographic excellence, on an international stage.

The distributors of Nikon in South Africa’s support of the Africa Photographic Awards shows its commitment to photography, the public perception of the art, and a commitment to social prosperity via The Tomorrow Trust.

The distributors of Nikon in South Africa’s CEO, Stefan van der Walt elaborates : “We want to create a greater awareness of the importance of the role of photography in our society and to promote it as a career and rewarding hobby for life. Photography is the most powerful and widely used medium of communication today whether for recording history, for capturing memories or as an expressive art form.”

[Africa Photographic Awards information was taken from: www.africaphotographicawards.com]

Monday, 19 July 2010

World Exclusive! Photographers Jim Brandenburg and Mike Maloney interviewed for next issue of Nikon Owner magazine



Advance Sell-Out Notice: It is anticipated that this will be a highly collectable, sell-out issue. So to those who have been thinking of subscribing to Nikon Owner or renewing their subscription, they should consider doing so as soon as possible.

London – In Issue 32, the next unique issue of Nikon Owner magazine, Editor Gray Levett interviews two of the most well-respected photographers in their fields: Jim Brandenburg andMike Maloney OBE.

Arctic wolf, Ellesmere Island, Canada by Jim Brandenburg

In April of this year, Jim Brandenburg was awarded the prestigious distinction of having his work included in the Top Forty Nature Photographs in the History of Photography by iLCP, the international League of Conservation Photographers.

Jim Brandenburg travelled the globe as a photographer with National Geographic magazine for over three decades. His career resulted in numerous magazine stories, several television features and many National Geographic books. He has been published in a multitude of national and international publications including the New York Times, LIFE, TIME, Audubon, Smithsonian, Natural History, GEO, Modern Maturity, BBC Wildlife, Outdoor Photographer, National Wildlife, and Outside.

He has received a multitude of prestigious national and international honours for his work, including having been named twice by The National Press Photographers Association as Magazine Photographer of the Year for his work with National Geographic magazine, and as Kodak Wildlife Photographer of the Year by BBC Wildlife Magazine and the Natural History Museum, London. In addition, he was the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award by the North American Nature Photographers Association.

Dr Mike Maloney OBE

Mike Maloney is Britain’s most highly decorated press-photographer with 105 major prizes to his name. Voted three times Press Photographer of the Year, he has had numerous royal tours to his credit, as well as photographing world leaders such as Clinton, Regan, Gorbachev and Yelstin, with invitations to dine at both the White House and the Kremlin. Mike was awarded an honorary Doctor of Arts degree by the University of Lincoln for ‘a lifetime’s work in photography and his help to young people’. At the ceremony, he was able to read a personal letter of congratulations from The Queen Mother.

In the next issue of Nikon Owner, Mike recalls the pivotal moment which led him to take the road south to London from his humble beginnings at a provincial newspaper in Lincoln. He narrates some of the singular stories from the glittering career that followed, resulting in dozens of awards and an OBE from The Queen.

The interview with Mike Maloney will be followed in subsequent issues by a new series of articles unique to Nikon Owner entitled ‘Mike Maloney’s World’.

What is Nikon Owner?
Nikon Owner Magazine and Interactive Website is considered by many to be the world’s number 1 user group for Nikon owners. It was initially founded with the purpose of assisting Nikon users to make full use of the Nikon equipment they own, to give advice on a wide spectrum of photographic queries and problems, and at the same time to offer ideas to bring about an increase in photographic skills. Subscription to Nikon Owner magazine and interactive website provides a bridge between theory and practical, technical knowledge and accomplishment. As a subscriber to this group, you will receive an array of offers and assistance, as well as the unique photographic publication:
Nikon Owner Magazine
From the cold reaches of the Arctic to the muted ocres of The Palio, from the panoramic sweep of an alien landscape to the microscopic detail of a leaf in bud, Nikon Owner magazine is both inspirational and informative. It is a superb, glossy full-colour 60-page quarterly magazine that is 100% Nikon. Each issue delivers bench-mark technical reviews of the very latest Nikon equipment, thought-provoking interviews and articles with world-class images. With its mix of stunning images, illuminating articles to assist and enlighten the photographer, and the very latest reviews on Nikon equipment, it is the essential magazine for the Nikon user.

Nikon Owner subscriber benefits additionally include:

  • Private user name and password to subscribers’-only website which includes a lively forum, message board, technical equipment reviews, events’ page and use of a photo gallery.
  • Simon Stafford’s Technical Helpline: free technical consultation and support from Simon Stafford who is considered to be one of the top Nikon experts in the UK; you will be able to benefit from his formidable knowledge and have all your technical questions fully answered by email. This service is exclusive to Nikon Owner subscribers.
  • FREE 3-year warranty on all new Nikon products from Grays of Westminster within your year of subscription.
  • FREE 18-month warranty on second-hand Nikon from Grays of Westminster within your year of subscription.
  • 10% off Think-Tank bags purchased at Grays of Westminster.
  • Special trips: past visits have included a two-week trip to Japan and a personal tour of the Nikon factory, a visit to Nikon Thailand, Angkor Watt, Cambodia.
  • Substantial discounts on events and training sessions such as Mike Maloney’s House of Lords Photographic Workshop, Heather Angel’s Wildlife & Natural History Workshops, Neil Lucas's Definitive Time-Lapse Event, Chris Weston’s Photographic Courses, Simon Stafford’s Flash, Portraiture and Macro Seminars.
  • 10% off any training courses run by Nikon UK.
  • A range of complimentary meetings and outings organized by local Nikon Owner Groups.
  • Nikon Owner Grand Christmas Dinner at the Institute of Directors, Pall Mall, London.
Please email your name, daytime landline and mobile telephone number to me if you are interested in finding out more or speak to any of my colleagues between 10.00 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. Monday to Friday on 020 7828 4925 or 020 7828 8971; alternatively for International calls, telephone + 44 (0)20 7828 4925. The cost of an annual subscription to Nikon Owner : Special price: £59. Please quote JBMM:59.

For more information, please contact:

Gillian Greenwood
Features Editor and Events & Training Coordinator
Nikon Owner magazine
40 Churton Street
Pimlico
London
SW1V 2LP

+44 (0)20 7828 4925
info@graysofwestminster.co.uk
http://www.nikonownermagazine.com
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