7 Super Shots

A bit of fun, down at HostelBookers they started a great game called ‘7 Super Shotsmonths ago. I waited and I waited, but no one out there nominated me…

Instead I did the next best thing and solicited for a nomination, so I would just like to thank Sophie from Hostelbookers and Angie Orth from AngieAway.com for responding to my harassment and including me.

Ok, Here goes:

A photo that…takes my breath away

A girl looking at the Sydney Opera House reflected in her Sunglasses (Philip Hill/Phil Hill)

I think from the moment I wanted to travel, Sydney was on the top of the list of places to visit. I moved to Australia in September on a working holiday visa,  work was limited to doing rural stints in the middle of nowhere, a bit of a shock when I was so used to the mayhem that is London. Luckily, I was working in New South Wales, flying in and out of  Sydney, so I took the opportunity to visit the city on a break. I headed straight to Circular Quay and the Opera House, sat for hours, I am not sure another city will have the same initial impact.

A photo that…makes me laugh or smile

Brits Abroad (Philip Hill/Phil Hill)

I am smiling just writing this one. I was lucky enough to visit Japan for a second time, this time for the wedding of my girlfriends brother. It was an entire family of Brits in rural Japan and we stuck out like a sore thumb wrapped in a fluorescent bandage! In the end I started to turn my camera to them and photograph the ‘Brits Abroad’ 

A photo that…makes me dream

Bamburi Beach, Mombasa at Dawn (Phil Hill)

I was in Mombasa for a few days after a shoot in West Kenya, I wanted to check out the African coastline and it was the first time seeing the Indian Ocean. I had got to Bamburi beach far too early for sunrise, so had to sit and wait for enough light to photograph. It was such a fantastic place to watch the sky go from black to a rich red over the flat and silently still waters.

A photo that…makes me think

Ruined American flags, Coney Island, New York (©2011 Philip Hill/Phil Hill)

I traveled to New York about a year ago, a day trip to Coney Island produced this shot of two ruined US flags. A poignant reminder of the current state of things when I look at this image.

A photo that…makes my mouth water

Taking delivery of fruit and vegetables via boat on Tigaki Beach, Kos, Greece. (Philip Hill/Phil Hill)

It was nearing the end of a hot day on the Greek Island of Kos when I saw these guys loading fruits and veg into a small boat, wading in deeper than my camera would have liked, I shot a quick series before they disappeared, delivering produce around the other neighboring islands. Anyone fancy a melon?

A photo that…tells a story

Mercury is used at this stage of the process to bind the gold dust together, A man handles the heavy metal without protection finishing the panning process. this produces a dull silver lump of gold. appearance is due to the contact with Mercury (©2011 Philip Hill/Phil Hill)

This is where the gold for your jewelry comes from. Macalder, West Kenya.

The small dull silver lump of metal is actually gold, processed using extremely toxic mercury. Large groups of Kenyans work punishing hours for little reward, and at great personal risk to themselves. Extracting small amounts of gold from an old abandoned mine site at Macalder in Western Kenya. I saw all the stages of this artisan operation and photographed as much as I could. Read the full article and see more images from the series

A photo that…I am most proud of 

A woman tends to the rice fields of Tabanan near the temple of Tanah Lot, Bali, Indonesia (Philip Hill/Phil Hill)

Here it is, my most prized image of the moment, from a trip to Bali, Indonesia a few weeks ago. I precariously walked down a border of a rice terrace to introduce myself to this woman and politely ask if I could photograph her. Unfortunately, she didn’t speak any English though seemed happy for me to take the photograph.

Here are a couple of people I think should go next:

Stefan Klenke at www.itchyi.co.uk – Not strictly a travel blogger, but has an interesting mobile phones eye view, especially London and Berlin!

Ken Kaminesky at blog.kenkaminesky.com – Just because I think he will have a great set of images to show for this

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You can view more images via my archive:
http://archive.philhillphotography.com/gallery-list
 
To commission this or any of my work please feel free to email me at: 
philhill@philhillphotography.com