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TKing

Interview with Toby King

03 July 2015

Posted by Sally Hart

Hi Toby! Tell us about yourself in two sentences - who are you?

My name is Tobias King, I'm 40 years old and have been taking photographs since I was given what was actually a ropey old compact camera for my 10th birthday, but I thought it was the bees knees at the time. I am an Intellectual Property Researcher for a design company and also their photographer.

QWhat's the weirdest situation you've found yourself in while taking a photograph?

A This was back in 2012 when there were many events celebrating the imminent start of the Olympics. The torch procession was coming to town and this offered multiple unusual photo opportunities (I was lucky enough to capture an image that was used by The Guardian and later won an award and was exhibited at the Design Museum in London). Ahead of the arrival of the Olympic torch, there was a concert in a park close to my house and thanks to being dressed smartly and having the confident swagger of someone who was blissfully ignorant of where he was, I managed to wander unchallenged into the backstage VIP area. I knew Wretch 32 would be performing and hoped I might catch a glimpse as I was a genuine fan. By an amazing coincidence, he arrived in a chauffeur driven Mercedes right at that moment. Suddenly I was a paparazzi photographer! But even more weirdly, I then found myself the de facto welcoming committee, shaking his hand and having a chat about how his journey had been. I took around 500 pictures in five minutes and despite the fact I've not had any communication with him since, still consider Wretch to be my best friend.

QWhat do you shoot on? What's your favourite set up?

A I've had a wide variety of kit down the years. After opting to take redundancy from a dreadfully boring IT role in 2013, I was fortunate enough to be able to buy a Nikon D800 and spend six wonderful months taking photos every day. Alas finding gainful employment was harder than I thought it would be, so I had to sell my beloved D800 because it turns out that being able to afford food is quite important. Not a day goes past when I don't think about that camera and I still mourn her more than most of my deceased relatives. Since then I have been using the three backup cameras I've had for some time and they all offer something useful (despite being entry level and far removed from the high end kit that I look upon fondly - like a greedy but poor child with his face pressed against the window of a bakery). Nikon D3300 - can produce some lovely results thanks to a decent sensor coupled with a sophisticated processing engine, so long as you don't want it to do anything too quickly. As I mainly shoot landscapes, it is most often found connected with my Sigma 10-20mm f3.5 wide angle zoom lens. Samsung NX2000 - coupled with the 16mm pancake lens, this is a genuinely pocketable compact system camera that I love for its portability and convenience. After all, the best camera is the one you have with you! Fuji X-M1 - another pocketable mirrorless camera that offers some beautiful images thanks to its X-Trans sensor and some gorgeous Fujinon lenses that are available.

QWhat's your number one tip for an aspiring photographer?

A Make sure you enjoy the whole experience and have fun! Pictures convey emotion and the chances are, if you enjoyed taking it, people will feel that same way when they view it. Shoot the things that you connect with; the things that move you emotionally. Photography should be a passion and never a chore. If it ever starts to feel stale, or you feel creatively blocked, limit yourself. For example, only shoot at a particular focal length or only take black and white pictures for a week. This kind of limitation makes you stop, think and overcome challenges, i.e. it forces you to be creative. Technical skills can be learned fairly quickly and you should definitely know how to use your camera properly to achieve the effects you're after, but this knowledge should be happening naturally in the background, with the emotion of the moment directing what to capture. Oh and always shoot RAW and expose for the highlights (shadow detail is always easier to recover than blown out light).

It's really tricky to pick a favourite pic, but I'm going to go with this one. It was a beautiful, misty morning and I had gone down to the river to capture the sunrise. A littl... Read more

It's really tricky to pick a favourite pic, but I'm going to go with this one. It was a beautiful, misty morning and I had gone down to the river to capture the sunrise. A little way up the hill from there was a lovely view looking back towards Salisbury with the cathedral rising majestically through the mist. It was a nice scene anyway, but the sudden appearance of a couple of very noisy geese helped give it some life. I feel it's a real gift when a transient element appears in a landscape image because it's impossible to plan for or ever replicate exactly again. I love the mood of this picture and rather sentimentally, it reminds me of a very happy time in my life with my D800 and the freedom to take photographs every day! Read less

by Tobias King

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I'm very lucky to live close to an old iron age hill fort, with winding paths and interesting undulations. Whenever I sense a nice sunset is imminent, I scrabble up there and en... Read more

I'm very lucky to live close to an old iron age hill fort, with winding paths and interesting undulations. Whenever I sense a nice sunset is imminent, I scrabble up there and enjoy the views and its atmosphere. Here I was struck how the low sun was casting a beautiful light through the trees and across the path, like something from Tolkien's Shire. I was really pleased with how the final image captured the feeling of that moment. Read less

by Tobias King

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This was taken in the underpass beneath Westminster Bridge. I adore Street Photography so much because it captures something we are all always a part of and can relate to strong... Read more

This was taken in the underpass beneath Westminster Bridge. I adore Street Photography so much because it captures something we are all always a part of and can relate to strongly.I was struck how this gentleman evoked a feeling of isolation, just him and his music, despite the fact he was performing in such a busy place. I had to wait a fair while for a break in the human traffic before I could capture him on his own and therefore create an image that I felt better reflected his solitude. Read less

by Tobias King

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I had volunteered to take photographs at a charity ball in London, so took advantage of being there to take some good old touristy pictures. I love London and as a slightly back... Read more

I had volunteered to take photographs at a charity ball in London, so took advantage of being there to take some good old touristy pictures. I love London and as a slightly backward country boy, it always mesmerises me. I get the same thrill from seeing parliament now as I did when I was 10 years old. I love clouds and the crepuscular rays they help produce when shielding the sun and was very fortunate that this happened against the backdrop of such an iconic building, with a passenger jet arriving at just the right moment. Read less

by Tobias King

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I help to look after my sister's horses and often find myself out and about at some ungodly hour performing manual labour. But thanks to being able to fit my Samsung NX2000 in m... Read more

I help to look after my sister's horses and often find myself out and about at some ungodly hour performing manual labour. But thanks to being able to fit my Samsung NX2000 in my pocket, I'm able to take advantage of the beautiful sights that occur at that time of the day. This was a chilly morning where the mist had left beautiful beads of moisture on a spiders web. Look closely and you can see the blurred background outline of a Shetland Pony in the middle of the web! Read less

by Tobias King

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One thing I like about winter is that everything gets dark so early, making night photography far more accessible. Thanks to an app on my phone, it's easy to determine exactly w... Read more

One thing I like about winter is that everything gets dark so early, making night photography far more accessible. Thanks to an app on my phone, it's easy to determine exactly where and when the ISS is going to be. This was my very first time of seeing and photographing it and it genuinely moved me to tears! I loved how the horses who I was in the same field as just carried on grazing with a nonchalant attitude of, "we've seen this loads of times before, so we'll just carry on eating". Read less

by Tobias King

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Macro photography has always fascinated me because I love how it reveals the intricacies of an otherwise hidden world. I think simple flowers like dandelions are truly beautiful... Read more

Macro photography has always fascinated me because I love how it reveals the intricacies of an otherwise hidden world. I think simple flowers like dandelions are truly beautiful but because they're so common and considered a nuisance by many, they are easily overlooked and ignored. I find the way each individual seed is so carefully placed in the head of the flower is a gorgeous piece of design and felt pleased to have captured that structure in this picture. It's a good reminder to always be on the lookout for potential pictures of the so called everyday and mundane. Read less

by Tobias King

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In contrast to the Lonely Busker picture above, this guy had a completely different feel to him - far more engaged and dynamic. I wanted to capture this sense of engagement and ... Read more

In contrast to the Lonely Busker picture above, this guy had a completely different feel to him - far more engaged and dynamic. I wanted to capture this sense of engagement and was wondering how to achieve this, when thankfully the young girls came into view and helped to create a visual connection between him and his audience. Not untypically for my Street Photography, I felt a monochrome image best helped to create the sense of intimacy I was trying to convey. Read less

by Tobias King

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