Street photography after coronavirus Street photography has always been contentious; plenty of people have objected to it for their various reasons; privacy, the motives behind it, it’s boring, they don’t ‘get it’ and even jealousy. By its very nature, it necessitates contact with people. Some photographers are happy to stand away from the action with …

Street Photography After Coronavirus Read More »

Photographs from the lockdown Being prevented from going out hardly provides the best opportunities for street photography. Unlike many we have stuck to the guidelines, only going out for essential shopping and exercise. I use the word ‘exercise’ in its loosest sense – in our case it means walking Dylan, our border terrier. Before we …

Street Photography and the Lockdown Read More »

I’m a photographer, please let me patronize you.   A short while ago I posted this picture online, a candid street photo like many others. One of the comments was “He looks as though he needs money more than his picture taking. I hope you gave him some.” I think it’s useful to address some …

I’m a photographer, please let me patronize you. Read More »

Words about my father So what do I know? I have a vague memory of deep set eyes and heavy eyebrows. A slender frame with hairy arms. I may have imagined it. There were some photos now long destroyed that I remember seeing years and years ago – maybe this is where the memory comes …

Words about my father Read More »

I’ve Never Been To New York!   A lot of people dislike street photography. A lot of photographers dislike street photography. That’s okay, I understand that. What I don’t understand is those ‘photographers’ who insist that only street photography done in large cities has anything of interest. I read a comment recently along the lines …

I’ve never been to New York! Read More »

Leeds street photography  If you look too hard for photos they probably won’t be there. Just be ready for when they are 🙂 One of the questions that seem to come up regularly when I give the lectures is ‘do you plan a photo expedition and what gear do you use?’ One of the things …

An hour in Leeds Read More »

Scarborough and Bridlington – A photographer’s paradise   I never really had holidays as a kid. No transport, no father and no money. The closest we got was the ‘club trip’. Once a year, members and their relatives from the local Working Men’s Club were bundled onto a coach that invariably smelled of disinfectant and …

The Seaside Read More »

A few thoughts on photographing the homeless   I’ve often seen the argument that street photographers shouldn’t photograph the homeless. The reasoning seems to roughly come down to three things: It’s too easy. It’s exploitative. All street photography is wrong. The ‘easy option’ The ‘they’re too easy a target’ seems to come primarily from street …

Photographing the Homeless Read More »

A quick reminder that I’m one of the guest speakers at this years YPU Keighley Day in Pontefract on the 16th November. Below is the schedule for anyone interested in attending. Share: Twitter Facebook Pinterest Linkedin E-mail

Sorting through the reject pile One of the problems with street photography is there’s inevitably a lot of failures. Lots of camera shake, out of focus pictures and plenty of pictures that just aren’t very interesting. These are few ‘out-takes’ mainly taken in Leeds over the past year or two. Most aren’t strong enough as …

Leeds street photos – a few out-takes Read More »

A few photos from the pro and anti Stephen Yaxley-Lennon (or Tommy Robinson as he likes to be called so that he appears to be a man of the people) demos in Leeds yesterday. Fortunately, the turn-out by the right-wing yobs was very low, far out-numbered by the counter-demonstration and the police. I don’t really …

Far right demo in Leeds 7th September Read More »

Photographers are the bad guys now A few days back a friend of Bridget’s was taking pictures in Bradford city centre, the City Park. Bridget’s friend is a keen amateur photographer who uses a Canon 5D DSLR. She is also in a wheelchair. She was approached by a woman who demanded to know what she …

Photographers, Perverts and Paranoia Read More »

A few pictures from Leeds Pride August 2019 I’m not the world’s greatest ‘event’ photographer. There’ll be far better pictures that capture the colour of the LGBT Pride parade and characters than I could take. My approach to Leeds Pride 2019 was that of a street photography opportunity, mingling with the crowds and grabbing a …

Photographs from Leeds Pride 2019 Read More »

“Cold Turkey” A photographic essay depicting the side-effects of ant-depressant withdrawal. 15 years or so ago I was prescribed a high dose anti-depressant (Dosulepin) as a muscle relaxant for a chronic spinal condition. A couple of years ago the drug was found to cause heart problems with extended use and is now being withdrawn by …

Cold Turkey – coming off anti-depressants Read More »

YPU Keighley Day 2019   I’ll be one of the guest lecturers at the Yorkshire Photographic Union (YPU) Keighley Day  2019. The event will be held at Pontefract, West Yorkshire on the 16th November 2019 More details at the YPU website                 Share: Twitter Facebook Pinterest Linkedin E-mail

Moving back to film photography?   Almost all the photographs on this site are shot on digital cameras. I haven’t shot on film for a long time but I have hundreds of negatives I’ve taken over the years a few of which I’ve scanned and appear on this page. I used to develop all my …

Film vs Digital Read More »

There was a recent article in the Guardian Newspaper about the effects on industrial towns when the main industries close. This tied in closely with the After the Coal Dust project Bridget and I have been undertaking for the past few years. The Guardian article used Redcar in the North of England to illustrate the …

Redcar – Fashionably unfashionable Read More »

It now seems very unlikely that our After the Coal Dust exhibition at the HIP Gallery, Hull that was suggested for this year will take place at all. Several emails over the last few months to the gallery have been ignored totally, as have Facebook messages and a phone call. The only way we could …

No exhibition at Hull Read More »

  Below is the report of the photography talk we gave to Wakefield Camera Club on the 1st April 2019. On the evening of Monday 1st April the club hosted a fascinating presentation by Castleford-based John & Bridget Gill and their daughter Freya. The title of the presentation was “After The Coal Dust” and comprised …

After the Coal Dust at Wakefield camera club Read More »

The After the Coal Dust exhibition at Doncaster Art Gallery finished on the 21st April. Thanks to everyone who took the time to visit. Some feedback from the Gallery: Doncaster Museum & Art Gallery displayed the ‘After the Coal Dust’ exhibition in its Community Gallery between February and April 2019.  The exhibition was enjoyed greatly …

Exhibition at Doncaster finishes Read More »

Over the years we’ve taken thousands of pictures, several hundred of these have been posted on social media. Facebook groups in particular have been useful in getting the photographs seen by a wider audience. In the vast majority of cases these groups have been friendly and supportive. We’ve made lots of friends through these groups. …

The angry mob Read More »

Doncaster Art Gallery exhibition March 9th to April 21st 2019   A selection of photos by John, Bridget & Freya Gill will be exhibited at Doncaster Art Gallery for 6 weeks from Saturday 9th March. Around 40 prints from the After the Coal Dust project will be on display. All the photographs were taken over …

Exhibition Read More »

I get asked quite often why I don’t enter competitions, the British Journal of Photography ‘Portrait of Britain’ competition being one of them. Part of the problem is that you have to pay to entry. This is not necessarily a financial thing (it’s a tenner for one submission) it’s more the fact that the more …

Photo Competitions – why they’re not for me! Read More »

I tend to post a lot of pictures on Facebook and over the years I’ve been added to countless groups. I was nice to get a bit of a mention from one of the groups recently – apparently I must have made a bit of an impression with them. Please feel free to take a …

An icon??? Read More »

Feature in the December 2018 edition of Eye Photo Magazine A selection of my photographs and a short article is featured in the December 2018 edition of Eye Photo Magazine The magazine is well worth downloading (hi res PDF version is just a few pounds) although it can be viewed online.   Share: Twitter Facebook …

Feature in Eye Photo Magazine Read More »

A couple of hours in Rhyl, North Wales. The last time I was in Rhyl was when I was ten or eleven years old. Apart from having to spend a week with the stepdad from hell, I remember it being a nice place, lively and bustling in the typical British seaside town way. Recently we …

Oh I do like to be beside the seaside…Rhyl Read More »

I’ve just added a new page to the site featuring photos taken by my wife Bridget. As well as being a massive support in my photography (and many other things) her photographs have been featured in all of the After The Coal Dust exhibitions. You can see a small selection of her work here   …

Bridget Gill – Photographs Read More »

Street Photography – Cutting the Crap Think of a street photographer, one of your favourites. It could be anyone from CartierBresson to someone whose pictures you like on Facebook. Now think about their photographs, the really memorable ones. The ones that immediately spring to mind when someone mentions the photographer’s name. Chances are there won’t …

Cutting the Crap Read More »

My daughter Freya is now selling some of her designs on Redbubble. If anyone is interested in original designs on T-Shirts, hoodies, stationery, phone cases head over to her store and take a look. Original designs by Freya Gill Share: Twitter Facebook Pinterest Linkedin E-mail

….but the truth is open to interpretation! I’m always fascinated by the reactions some of the photos get and how preconceptions can influence the interpretation of the image. One of the things I aim for is to let the viewer add value to an image by creating their own stories around it. Sometimes a photograph …

The camera never lies… Read More »

Watch out there’s a photographer about! I don’t know if it’s just here in the UK but there seems to be a growing suspicion and even open animosity towards photographers, especially street photographers. Recently someone supposedly close to us has even gone so far as equating photographers with something far more unsavoury. “You have a …

The backlash against street photographers Read More »

There are many photographers who believe that if the image has been post processed then somehow it’s not real photography. I’m not in this camp. Post processing is inevitable to a certain extent; it always has been. Back in the film days working on the print in the darkroom was par for the course; dodging …

Post processing…not for the purists Read More »

Although the 100 Faces project features a series of photos that (hopefully) stand on their own merit the idea is to display the complete series as a 100sq. feet grid – depending on space either 10ft x 10ft or 20ft x 5ft. The image below is a very rough and ready mockup of what the …

100 Faces – What we’re aiming for Read More »

From time to time I get asked to write a few pieces on photography, in particular, street photography. Whilst there are plenty of books available on the subject (although not very many good ones!) most of these concentrate on technique. This article is definitely not a ‘how to’! Street Photography – Not a “How-To” Step …

An article on street photography Read More »

The “After the Coal Dust” exhibition at Bradford Industrial Museum featuring photographs taken by myself, Bridget and Freya was featured as a double page spread in the Telegraph and Argus newspaper. https://www.afterthecoaldust.com/after-the-coal-dust-in-the-news/ Although this exhibition ended its 6-month run at the end of April the prints are now part of the Museum’s permanent collection. A …

In the press! Read More »