The Conversation - Episode 7

An Apple a Day vs. drcraig

Are you a real doctor?

Yes! I'm a GP, I think they call that Family Practice in the US. One of my friends knows another Craig, so for online purposes I became drcraig, and it kind of stuck.

Medical advice left in blip comments will be billed. If in doubt consult your physician :)

Many blippers might not know this, but you started a 365 project on your own and were posting it to flickr before coming here. So while you are on blip #121, you are actually on day # 320 of your photo a day project. What was the inspiration for starting your 365 project?

My friend Stewart started doing daily self-portraits about 2 years ago. The idea appealed to me and I loved looking at his pictures, but was put off from joining in by the amount of work that he was doing. When he stopped doing self portraits and moved to other, simpler subject matter, I suddenly realised that doing a photo a day could be possible. About the same time I also heard about Jamie Livingston, who had taken a polaroid photo every day for eighteen years, from 1979 until his death in 1997. That's over 6000 photographs, all of which are available to view online here. A lifetime in photographs? Will blip still be here when we're all in our 80s? I hope so!

What, if anything, changed once you made the move to blip?

The furniture got nicer and the people friendlier! I mean both of those things - Joe and blipcentral have put a lot of effort into the design of the site and have made it great to look at and use. And you lot are the friendliest online community I've come across, thanks guys. I think the positive feedback that I have recieved has helped me be a bit braver at trying new things, like stretching my post-processing abilities and trying self-portraits.

Are you planning on continuing after the big #365?

Absolutely. I started with no real idea of how long this would go on for, and now can't see myself stopping. Blipping has become as much a part of my day as brushing my teeth or kissing Mrs drcraig goodnight!

Speaking of moving to blip, you started a highly addictive website just two days before the birth of your second baby - what were you thinking?!

Clearly I wasn't thinking at all, if I had my time again I'd stay well away ;)

I remember you commenting on Euan's birth that I now held the record for 'fastest
blip-start-to-baby-blip' - I was very proud to recieve such a coveted accolade on only my 3rd blip :) I must admit I wondered if I would be able to keep it up in the first few weeks after he arrived, but it's been surprisingly easy to carry on blipping. It helps to have such a lovely little boy to show to you all, as well as such an appreciative audience.

A lot of your blips have a product-photography style. Do you have any photographic training? Where does your style come from?

When you're shooting every day you've got to go with your instincts and be flexible, so I think my style just reflects what's going on in my head - which has been pretty dark at times since Euan's arrival, to be honest. Babies are wonderful, but incredibly draining, and it's great to get the dark stuff out in a way that doesn't upset my mental balance. This year I've been looking at a lot more photography, too, and I think some of it can rub off. Reading
this book about W. Eugene Smith's Pittsburgh project, for example, was an influence on my urban landscape shots.

I've had no formal training, but a lot of practice. I'm a bit of a 'learn-by-doing' sort of person, so have just figured out stuff as the need has arisen - there's so much advice available on the internet now that it's possible to figure out the technical side of photography just with a lot of googling. The rest has been developing my ability to see an image. The product-photography thing comes, I think, from the limited time I've got to get my picture each day - grabbing whatever comes to hand and seeing what I can do with it.

You also do a lot of really interesting image processing. Can you tell us a little about your process for taking an image from the camera to a final blip state?

I use Lightroom, which I love as I can use it to import, select, edit and then output an image all in one program. It's got some very flexible editing tools that are very intuitive to use. I like to put a bit of drama into my images; generally I achieve this by increasing the contrast or adding a vignette. And I nearly always change the white balance to make the image warmer. Mrs drcraig loves it when I do that to pictures of her as she says it makes her look much more healthy!

What is the inspiration behind your 'Urban Landscapes' portfolio?

I've already mentioned the W. Eugene Smith book. A lot of the industrial areas round my way are disappearing; the area near where I work is going to be turned into a new hospital, so I'm keen to photograph it before it gets demolished. And there's something very cool about demolition sites (although there's nothing cool about being chased away by contractors who see your camera and automatically think you must be planning a robbery!).

The 100mm macro, favorite lens or most-favorite lens?

It does come out a lot, doesn't it? If in doubt, get the macro lens out! It's the Canon 100mm macro, a very nice lens, well made and lovely to use, and can create great images. I like how it lets me get in close and focus on the subject, devoid of distractions. Is it my favourite? How can I have favourites amongst my children... erm, I mean lenses.

Explain this blip. Are you lost? Are you homesick?

I was born and brought up near Edinburgh (another reason that Blip was so appealing), but I've lived in England for about 12 years now. I recently said to a friend that I no longer felt particularly Scottish, so was very surprised to get all misty-eyed when The Proclaimers came on the radio one night. The next morning the image and text popped into my head fully formed, so I just had to go with it. Homesick? A little, I guess. I miss my family, and the sea.

You go to your local Buddhist center to 'chant, meditate and discuss the meaning of life'. How has that influenced your life since you started? And what is the meaning of life?

Buddhism has had a very balancing effect on me, I've always had that dark streak and it was beginning to dominate my life, but through meditation I've got it to behave a bit better. Sorry to get all new-agey here, but meditation has really unlocked a latent creative streak that I never knew I had. The big catalyst for this was going on a 'meditation and photography' retreat at Dhanakosa buddhist retreat centre on the banks of Loch Voil in Scotland. I spent a week intensively meditating, and using the heightened awareness this brought to photograph the surrounding landscape. Regular meditation seems to bring a richer experience of life and an increased ability to notice stuff, very handy for a photographer.

The meaning of life? To get 'blip of the week', obviously!

In these conversations, we always ask for the top-ten favorite blips but since you recently picked your favorites on your 100th blip I am going to ask you the more difficult question: tell us your favorite blips by others and why you like them.

Gee, thanks, that'll be easy... thank goodness for the new search function!

Out of control by S2 - Another Day Abroad. Because it made me laugh like a drain, and because we all feel that way sometimes.

900 post-its by Something's Missing. Poor, poor Sarah.

Warehouse District by An Apple a Day... Because I wish this was one of my urban landscapes.

Zero G by Constant Exposure. A moment that you can only see with the aid of a camera.

Poplar Saplings by memento. Because I'd like to hang it on my wall.

Monster Truck 550 by William Elliot. I might have borrowed an idea from this...

And a (dis)honourable mention to...

Small Woman with Big Breasts by sleepyduck. The greatest blip anti-climax the world has ever seen.

Where can I get a t-shirt like Rory's?

The orange one? That information is confidential. I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you...