Is Capitalism Broke?

I remember, 6 years ago, being immersed in a book called 'The Commanding Heights: The Battle for the World Economy' by Daniel Yergin and Joseph Stanislaw.

The book considers the shift of assets from central governments to private enterprise in Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East, and analyzes how such changes as deregulation and privatization will affect economic power in the world. It predicted a new model (although it didn't say what that model way) to replace the bankrupt Communist model and the future discredited Capitalist model, or at least our current version of Capitalism.

A very convincing read at the time, I was sympathetic to its predictions. I am not sitting here amazed the predictions are now being realised I am only amazed that its predictions of the fate of the current Capitalism would be realised so quickly and so dramatically.

With the world dependent on banks to generate capital to fuel the capitalist production and consumption, which underpin the capitalist model and the economic mechanisms put in place to support the capital markets, came speculative market practices and the new pariahs of the marketplace, derivatives and short selling.

Marx wrote of the alienation of the human species from the objects of capitalism - materialism, wealth, greed... and philosophied that the human species would only realise its true progress through abandonment of those values.

Many risk hungry bankers, driven by materialism, wealth, greed or just plain arrogance, have made their millions and are now asking for money from you and me to pay for their mistakes.

It doesn't matter how you look at the mess, our current Capitalism didnt work for the ordinary men and women who work just to get by - and Communism didn't work either... what next? A friend of mine says Anarchy should be the next model of choice but I say that's what we've had that already in the markets for the past
two decades and that didn't work either... any ideas?

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Protect the Human

Geogre Galloway MP

Tower Hamlets and City Amnesty held its annual Summer Festival at Christchurch near Spitalfields Market on 14 September. The event, a fund raiser and vehicle to raise awareness of a number of campaigns, with the main focus on Human Rights in the War on Terror, was opened by John Biggs, member of the London Assembly and closed with an impressive and pationate speech by George Galloway MP.

Both John Biggs and George Galloway rolled the dice and found themselves on the wrong side of the War on Terror, spending time in the cage to promote the new interactive website http://www.protectthehuman.com. All the detainees photos can be seen on www.protectthehuman.com in the 'Tower Hamlets and City Amnesty Summer Festival 2008' gallery.


John Biggs AM

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Winepsych.com

I've been working on the photography for a new web site winepsych.com due for launch in the next year. The author of the site is Miles Thomas, Psychologist. Spend an hour with Miles and his wife Sarah and you'll soon see where the idea for a wine psychology web site came from, as both are big on wine.

This portrait is from the first sitting to establish a look and feel for the site's photography. Their house makes for an easy shoot, with its large windows, clean decor and some impressive paintings that make excellent backdrops.

Lookout for the winepsych.com launch on the web sometime in the next year.

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Childeren of the Corn

My little nephew is a photogenic little man. This summer I went camping in the Canadian Rockies with my my brother, sister-in-law and my nephew. I carted my photo gear and lights into the wilderness to get a portrait of them all together on holiday... as with most kids, my nephew likes getting his picture taken and this one was taken while we were waiting for dinner - only 20 mins earlier the little man had a bath - he's your typical 4 year old, if there is sand or dirt in the vacinity he will find it.

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Niki DaRold

While I have been living in London UK, I have been lucky enough to meet many interesting and talented individuals. One of which is Niki DaRold whom I met while taking a Photojournalism Course at the London College of Communication/University of the Arts London.

Originally from Italy and living in London for the past 2 years, Niki is an accomplished photographer who blew me away with his photo story of the alternative bike courier scene in London and his self portraits.

A couple of us photography geeks got together this last weekend to play with flash and share some techniques, the above photo of Niki was taken with the camera on manual, with an aperture of F8 for good depth of field in the foreground, and the flash unit on ETTL off to camera left (using the Canon off-camera shoe chord OC-E3).

Many would argue that the shadows cast by the flash from the nose and glasses takes away from the image, but I kind of like the effect. These shadows can be easily filled in with a flash unit on manual to camera right, if so desired.

The image is a good example of how manual exposure and ETTL flash can work together to create a dramatic lighting effect (Ive included the straight exposure, without flash below for reference). Now I dream of some high powered studio lighting units to enable me to light full body portraits and street fashion photography in the field... I will have to keep buying those lottery tickets for now.

Before Exposure Adjustment and Flash...


After Exposure Adjustment and Flash...

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Copyright and Photo/Image Licensing Enquiries

All the photos on this site are copyright and should not be reproduced without prior written consent. All my photos are available for license... for more information, please send your enquiries to gwlad(at)hotmail(dot)com. Please provide details of the desired license usage including whether the image will be used on the web, in print (brochure, magazine etc), intended use (marketing, editorial etc) and for how long the image is required.

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Tracey and Chris

I've known Tracey since 1994 when we worked in the same office. We had lots of fun in and outside of work and we have remained friends ever since. Our lives have changed a great deal in the past 14 years, and we were living on two different continents for over 10 years, but we have managed to stay in touch and she an important person in my life.

Tracey met Chris in High School and back in 1996 they started dating again, its all a bit of a fairy tale and I wanted to take their portrait for one of my photo assignments. I am very happy they agreed, which I think shows how proud and good they really are together.

Thanks guys for letting me take your photo and for being excellent hosts as always.

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Dan Jones - Human Rights Activist and Author

I have been lucky enough to have been working alonside Dan Jones, veteran Human Rights activist and author. Dan has been with Amnesty International since its beginning and he has been host for the City and Tower Hamlets Local Amnesty International group in London since 1980 (see http://www.towerhamletsandcityamnesty.blogspot.com/).

I joined Dan's Amnesty Group earlier this year and have been overwhelmed by the generosity and passion that all its members bring to the group. Regular fixtures include annual fund raisers at The George (on commercial road, London), an annual Summer Festival near Spitalfields and special events coordinated to highlight specific Amnesty campaigns.

Dan kindly agreed to sit for a portrait for another one of my assignments and we spent about 40 mins setting up, shooting and talking about his involvement in Amnesty and Human Rights activism.

As is proving to be tradition, my preferred final image was different to Dan's preference. I wanted to show Dan as a strong character so I chose the more traditionl portrait and I hope the final image achieves this (above). Dan's preference was for one that showed his softer side and a more contemporary camera angle(below).

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Self Portrait

Self portraits have always fascinated me. However, as I am not as photogenic as I would like (woe is me) I've steered away from my own self portrait in the past.

Recently though, I had to produce a self portrait for my coursework so I finally had to turn the camera on myself for a change. I originally planned a bit of a protest by using high key lighting and as much in the image as possible to distract attention away from me... time limited, I settled on water meaning I had to find a way to take pictures while I stood in the shower.

I covered my camera in a plastic bag, with a hole cut out for the lens, and sealed the bag around the lens with an elastic band. Placed two flash units either side of me and dialed up the flash until I got the lighting I was looking for - enough to blast the background and provide some depth to the image. Then it was a matter of setting the camera on timer and standing under the shower, taking as many pics as I could until the lens steamed up. I eventually ended up standing in a cold shower as the steam was getting out of hand.

Post processing was a little brightness and contrast adjustment and adding a blue filter to my eye to give the image a bit more pop... my eyes are probably the only part of the physical me with any real merit... but then I'm more than a little colour blind, so they probably look better than they actually work.

The experience was all a bit narcissistic and made me feel more than unconfortable at first, but I'm quite pleased with the outcome, and eventually had some fun with it, so I will definitely be doing more self portraits in the future.

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Falun Gong Meditation Protest

Back to an earlier theme, China. With the Beijing Olympics less than 3 months away, Amnesty International groups worldwide are using the event to publicise China’s Human Rights record.

I am co-ordinating one such event for a local Amnesty group based in Tower Hamlets in London’s East End (Event at the St.John’s Church yard Stratford, in the Olympic Borough of Newham, on the afternoon of 28th June 2008… so come along and enjoy the entertainment and a bouncy castle for the kids!).

So I took the opportunity to cover a story on the Falun Gong Meditation protest group outside the Chinese High Commission on Portland Place in London’s West End.

The meditation protest stated on June 5th 2002 by a group of Falun Gong observers. I met up with Yudon Gong, who was in meditation when I arrived, and after getting the requisite photos I spent some time talking with her about her family’s experience which led her to claiming asylum in the UK in 2001.

Yudon, a financial officer for a charitable organisation and Falun Gong observer from childhood, came to the UK from Beijing, China in 1999 to study for her Masters in International Business. While Yudon was in the UK studying, her husband had given accommodation to a Falun Gong observer from outside Beijing [Mrs Wu] who was putting together a formal appeal to the Chinese government’s clamp down on Falun Gong.

The police came to their flat in the middle of the night and took Mrs Wu away, she has not been seen or heard of since. Her husband immediately fled to Shen Zhen with their son. Following the arrest of Mrs Wu, her husband’s travel visas and flights for visiting Yudon in the UK were immediately cancelled by the government and Yudon was unable to return to china and claimed asylum in the UK in 2001. Shortly afterwards, a family friend visited the UK and brought Yudon’s son with her, mother and son were reunited after three years apart.

Her husband’s journey took him to Hong Kong and an eventual flight to the UK in 2003 when the whole family was united again for the first time in 5 years.

Last year Yudon’s son, now sixteen years old, passed eleven GCSEs. Yudon attributes her son’s focus and good temperament [attributing his not being naughty or ill tempered] on the Falun Gong meditation, which he learn from his mum at age five. Yudon learnt it from her mother, who learnt it from her mother before her.

Yudon worries that many more Chinese are unable to gain exit visas and claim asylum in the UK and other countries and she continues the protest outside the Chinese High Commission to maintain visibility for the plight of fellow observers and campaign for an end to the persecution of Falun Gong observers inside China.

Look out for a photo story I am planning with Yudon in the next couple of months, you can find out more about Falun Gong at http://www.clearharmony.net/ and more information on Human Rights in China and Amnesty International’s ‘Human Rights for China’ Campaign at http://www.amnesty.org.uk/china/.

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A New Normality?

March saw the five year anniversary of the coalition invasion of Iraq and in October this year it will be seven years on from the invasion of Afghanistan. British and American troops are still entrenched in a campaign against the Taliban in Afghanistan and fighting Insurgents in Iraq, where the debate is on whether Iraq is slipping into a civil war, fuelled by funding from Syria and Iran. Is the new world order, that America’s President Bush and the UK’s Prime Minister Tony Blair introduced to the world, here to stay? Or is there an end in sight?

As the news from Afghanistan and Iraq have arguably become more a flow of statistics, with most citizens having become accustomed to the weekly statistics, is this the new normality? With the economic boom years which began in the 90s seemingly coming to an end and governments struggling to balance the military budgets [with some estimates bringing the US cost alone to $3 Trillion], Are we beginning to accept that war in Iraq and Afghanistan (or in fact, elsewhere) is a fact of life? What happened to the new millennium optimism for peace and prosperity?

On 6th May 2008, Brian Haw was arrested again after the latest police action to enforce the Serious Organized Crime and Police act on his Parliament Square protest camp. Has even Brian Haw’s protest become part of the furniture? Do we see an Anti-War protestor? A maverick? A crusaider? Or as some would suggest, has the public come to see him as an eccentric, possibly with mental health issues and merely a pawn of a few wealthy individuals who calm their conscience by funding a righteous and well publicized cause? Has the public forgotten about him altogether? How many members of the public remember his name or how long he has been camped out in Parliament Square? [he established himself in Parliament Square on 2nd June 2001, on a platform against war and foreign policy including the sanctions on Iraq, before the 2001 attack on the world trade centre, before the invasions of Afghanistan or Iraq].

After the anti-war demos of the pre-Afghan and pre-Iraqi invasions, is there still an anti-war movement in the UK vocal and energised enough to keep us all talking the talk and walking the walk? Has war become a fact of life? Is this the new normality?

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Assignment 01

Spring is here and its time to shake off the winter blues and get busy. One such project is a Photojournalism course I am doing at the London College of Communication (University of the Arts London).

Assignment 01 is for the LCC newspaper and an article about the Elephant & Castle market. The LCC news story is about the multi-billion pound regeneration programme taking place locally that will transform the area. There is some doubt about the future of the Elephant & Castle Market, with no defined plan to relocate or rehouse the market.

The man in the picture is Jamal Uddin who runs a handbag and leather stall. He has had a stall in the market for the past 7 years, 6 years of which the future of the market has been in doubt. Although Jamal is unsure what this will mean for his livelyhood, he says 'business is down...' especially for the past three months. Jamal has not been given any indication or timeline for the shopping centre redevelopment adjacent to which the market is currently located. He remains philosophical and thinks 'the redevelopment is well overdue' pointing out how run-down and dirty the current location is. He is optomistic that a new location or facility will be forthcoming as he points out 'where else can people get bargains like this?'.

For now the market is still a busy centre, if not as busy and prosperous as it once was. Only time and the will of the redevelopment programme will determine the fate of the market as the area undergoes its dramatic transformation.

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My First Blog...

The above picture was taken in Ramallah in October 2005.

After years of travelling and taking pictures my friend has persuaded me to start a blog... Its about time! You can view my friend Judy's blog (who persuaded me to submit to my inner blog) here...

I find photojournalism fascinating, although I was oblivious to its potential as a career when I was a teenager, so I found myself in the world of Information Technology. After some years focusing on my career in the IT industry, I have been lucky enough to be able to live on two continents and to indulge in my love of travel and document my travels in photographs. I have some back travels and pictures to add to this blog over time, hopefully I will learn quickly because I am not the most patient learner :) The posts here are a work in progress, I have still to add pics for reference in some and even spell check others, so forgive my sloppy work for now, please!?

Onwards and Upwards!

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The London leg of the Olympic Torch Relay in the run up to the Beijing Olympics 2008 were marred with controversy, as they were to be in Paris, San Francisco and New Delhi. The controversy will likely continue throughout the relay, especially the planned Sydney and Tibet legs, and well after the Beijing Olympics have been and gone.

You can see the rest of my photos here...

I met the London leg of the Olympic Torch Relay at Whitechapel in East London and followed it through to the lighting of the cauldron at North Greenwich (bypassing Stratford because of the restricted access and lack of time).

Whatever your views on the demonstrators, or knowledge of the issues they were out to publicise (China's human rights record in Tibet, East Turkestan, Burma, Sudan, Zimbabwe, the death penalty etc) their impact has managed to get the world talking where it was once silent on the issues. Athletes have published a press release here... and although missing the point entirely, the issues are out in the open and the the demonstrators have succeeded in making themselves heard.

You can see the rest of my photos here...

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