Guest blog by Michael Tuska, Artist of the Week

Spontaneous Reaction - Happy Days, by Michael Tuska

I have enjoyed photography for many years although, admittedly not as seriously or, indeed, in depth, prior to the digital age. I suppose business and domestic responsibilities took priority for many years.

I am retired and was a company director for many years connected with printed folding carton manufacture and heavily involved at senior level with the major high street store groups. This of course brought me slap bang into photography for graphic design and packaging construction and development in general: as I took early retirement, that is now quite a few years ago .

Unknowingly, it obviously laid some foundations for photography, design appreciation and presentation.

The Royal Photographic Society of which I am a licentiateship member (LRPS) is one of the routes I choose to, I suppose, judge my photographic progress and am actively now pursuing the next distinction challenge for the ‘Associateship’ accreditation. This will now probably be via a final panel of fifteen images in the Professional and Applied section related to Documentary and Visual Journalism ( ie Candids, Street and Documentary type images).

Odd One Out, by Michael Tuska

My other interests are flora especially close-in macro type, closer detail landscapes and travel. My Travel ‘panel' based on a narrow strip of coastal land stretching from Lyme Regis to Exmouth failed in the final judgment although many thought it was good enough (only two passed out of twenty odd).

I belong to the local photographic club and enter various competitions locally and in competition with other clubs; with some rate of success. The apparent friendliness and camaraderie of The Shed is encouraging and I sincerely think that when the the new developments get up and running we will all benefit in the long run and hopefully gain notice and success.

I attach a few of my favourite images; hope you like them.

- Michael Tuska

Portofino NW Italy, by Michael Tuska

Sidmouth Fishing Boat, by Michael Tuska

Church Yard Fern, by Michael Tuska

Time on my own Barcelona Style, by Michael Tuska

To see more of Michael's work please visit his Shed Profile. And, as ever, please do feel free to comment and provide feedback to Michael on here!

Paula Youens on being Snowed In

We were up in the Fens & got snowed in at our friends' amazing place. It was once a religious building, (12th century) then a farmhouse, before laying empty & forgotten for a long while. It is full of atmosphere, strange corridors, stairways, chilly rooms, grumpy cats & cobwebs….the monks are reputed to be buried out on the Fen. 

These are not meant to be fab photos, just me recording odd corners & strange places again. 


- Paula

Snow Patterns

Winter Light

the joy in the geometry of sheds!

To see Paula's work please visit her Shed Profile
Follow Paula on Twitter @DrawntoDevon

Artist of the Week: Michael Tuska

Norwegian Fjords Land of Trolls, by Michael Tuska

This week we are happy to present Michael Tuska as our Artist of the Week! Michael is a Licentiate member of the Royal Photographic Society, and has a diverse range of photographic interests. His interest in photography first developed out of his work as a print and packaging company director, and since retiring Michael has found the time to develop his interest and passion in a more personal way. 

Michael will be guest-blogging for us later in the week, but for now here is a sample of his work. To read more about Michael, and to see more of his work please visit his Shed Profile. 

Down but not Out in Barcelona, 

by Michael Tuska

Unripened Oats a Cereal Crop,

by Michael Tuska

Yellow Quarter, by Michael Tuska

Five-a-day (Part III): by Caroline Collett, Artist of the Week

My last blog post of the week is also the final ‘Five-a-day’ posting. This series of three pieces has allowed me to enjoy being a photography fan and to give back some appreciation to the many great photographers on the Shed site.

Here’s my selection of five pictures for today:

Image number one is ‘SC 2pm’ by Maisie Hill. This is part of a series Maisie did on people’s dining room tables and is definitely the pick of the bunch. It has so much going on – wonderful composition; subtle light; the green of the broad beans meeting the green of the vase; the fallen rose petals still on the table; the subtle, muted colours and a feeling of faded nostalgia. A properly painterly still life.

SC 2pm, by Maisie Hill

Image number two is Frose, my second pick of the week by Doug Chalk. This is actually my favourite image in the whole gallery! It’s just so beautiful. I love the clash of the seasons, the delicate colours of the still-born rose, the melting frost and the light. It’s a picture that makes my eyes really happy!

Frose, by Doug Chalk

Image three is ‘Cagliari' by Alfredo Lietor. This is such a subtle image in its pinky-brown monochrome – unhurried and cool, with the slight pathos of old-fashioned retail. It’s an offbeat subject, an off-beat angle and it’s devoid of people. A quiet, quirky and pleasing image.

Cagliari, by Alfredo Lietor

My fourth choice, ‘Statue’ is also a second time around from a photographer chosen earlier in the week – Jacques Tutcher. It’s both spiritual and slightly chilling and reminds of me of Peter Saville’s Joy Division cover art. The statue itself is amazing – both solid and fluid, with the extraordinary portrayal in stone of the movement of material, but it’s the under-exposure that makes it sing and the dark areas in the shot are as enjoyable as the light.

Statue, by Jacques Tutcher

Finally, there’s ‘Abandoned’ by Joshua Morris. The building in the shot is great, with endless variegation in texture and colour and with the evidence of weather and time so clearly marked. But the killer detail is the abandoned car, which makes the whole image come alive with the suggestion of back-story, as if someone arrived, parked and simply never left the building…

Abandoned, by Joshua Morris

- Caroline Collett

To see Caroline's own work, please visit her Shed Profile, and to buy prints of any of the images you see here, and more, please visit the Shed Shop.

And we'd like to say a huge Thank You to Caroline for all her contributions this week as Artist of the Week - it's been great to see more of her own work, and also to hear her reflections on the work of her fellow Shed Creatives!

Five-a-day (Part II): By Caroline Collett, Artist of the Week

As my penultimate blog of the week, here are five further images from The Shed gallery by other photographers, which I find beautiful, provocative, touching or inspirational. Thanks to all who took them!

My first image of the day is ‘Legless’ by Mark Thomas. It’s just a great image – both funny and witty, which isn’t easy – and I love the Man Ray ‘rayograph’ feel.

Legless - by Mark Thomas

My second choice is ‘Apple’ by John Stevens. I’m not usually a fan of post-production – natural light is everything for me - but this image is something different. Rather than being part of the horrible urge to make melodrama out of drama, this is more like pop art, with a Warhol feel in the great choice of colour. It’s great!

Apple - by John Stevens

My third choice is ‘Clearing Rain Over the Dales’ by Helen Clark. I absolutely love Helen’s set of photos, not just because they’re such great examples of landscape photography at different scales, but because the subject matter is so close to my heart – the Dales and the Lakes are very much the background to my childhood. In this shot Helen has really captured the essential feel of the Dales – the ancient land, the dilapidated stone walling, the kaleidoscopic light and particularly the ever-changing skies, where several weather fronts always seem to be colliding.

Clearing Rain over the Dales - by Helen Clark

Image number four is ‘Juxtaposition composition Building with Tree’ by Pete Hackett. Simple and striking, the shape and texture of the geometric man-made building is set against an organic natural form, with neither gaining dominance. It’s this equal weighting that really makes the picture.

Juxtaposition composition Building with Tree
- by Pete Hackett

My final image today is Sky-Scoop by Lauren Fox. What is there to say? A perfect example of when simple is best.

Sky Scoop - by Lauren Fox

- Caroline Collett

To see Caroline's own work please visit her Shed profile. To view more work by any of the artists featured on this page, and to buy prints, please visit the Shed Website!

Five-a-day: by Caroline Collett, Artist of the Week

For the last few days of my Artist of the Week tenure on the blog, I thought I would focus on one of the real pleasures of being involved in The Shed for me – seeing and appreciating other photographers’ work. So, over the next three days I will select five images a day from the gallery that really catch my eye, with a little note trying to define why I think they’re so good.

My first choice is Doug Chalk’s ‘East Cliff, West Bay’. I like all of Doug Chalk’s photos, but this one is particularly striking. I know the coastline well and the light on these cliffs at Burton Bradstock is amazing and ever-changing, but Doug managed to find a really spectacular moment here. The end of the rainbow is a great detail.

East Cliff, West Bay - by Doug Chalk

My second choice is Lottie Heffer’s ‘Alella Green Corridor’. Images of decay and dilapidation have long been a photographic standard and this is a great example. The location really does look to be exactly as found, in all its faded grandeur, but what makes it so great are the astonishing shades of green and yellow and the interplay with light.

Alella Green Corridor - by Lottie Heffer

Choice number three is Potato Field by Andy White. Again, ploughed fields have always attracted photographers for obvious reasons – pattern, repetition, endless lines of dark and light – but this is a very creative example because of the changes in pattern, the incline and 

the perspective, with the broad lines in the foreground coming towards you.

Potato Field - by Andy White

My fourth choice in this initial batch is ‘Hydrangea’ by Charles Hollsworth. Charles’ profile says that he is also a painter and I think this really shows. There’s a wonderful, almost operatic dramatic feel to some of his shots. This one is so painterly with its velvety, dark colours. So few people would have shot a dark flower against a dark background. Delicious!

Hydrangea - by Charles Hollsworth

My final choice today is ‘Ring’ by Jacques Tutcher. I find missed details more appealing than grand vistas in photography on the whole and the tight focus in here is wonderful, with just enough of the face to make you wonder about the person. An extremely sensitive shot with a light touch, made all the better for being in black and white.

Ring - by Jacques Tutcher

- Caroline Collett

To see Caroline's own work, please visit her Shed Profile. And as ever, keep the comments coming - it's great to have an interactive dialogue in response to Caroline's thoughts and reflections!

A Sense of Beauty - Guest Blog by Caroline Collett, Artist of the Week

I do portraits quite rarely and not by commission, but I really enjoy them when I do. My starting point is when I come across a particular kind of female beauty, that intrigues me - and where you sense you might have to chase a little to pin it down.

I am really not interested in polish, poise or posing. I prefer a more direct and uncompromising relationship between camera and sitter. Here are six examples from three recent shoots. Only in the last of the images below did I try something a little more fanciful. These three sisters had such beautiful hair that I kept imagining it flowing and intertwined, which then made me think of the Lady of Shallot, ‘robed in snowy white’. I was after something non-contemporary and timeless.

- Caroline Collett

To see more of Caroline's work, please visit her Shed Profile.