Open House London - A Few Ideas For You

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You've got some cracking photos there. You make me wish I was on my way to London this weekend (edit - last weekend). I wish I'd gone in the early days - I'm put off a bit by the queues now it seems so popular.

Have you been to Heal's on Tottenham Court Road? I struggle with staircases, so I'm especially envious of those shots. I've barely managed a decent shot of King's Cross Station either. How about the hotel - can you go in and take photos, or does it have to be an open day? CitizenM and the old Daily Express Building look great too.
 
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You've got some cracking photos there. You make me wish I was on my way to London this weekend (edit - last weekend). I wish I'd gone in the early days - I'm put off a bit by the queues now it seems so popular.

Have you been to Heal's on Tottenham Court Road? I struggle with staircases, so I'm especially envious of those shots. I've barely managed a decent shot of King's Cross Station either. How about the hotel - can you go in and take photos, or does it have to be an open day? CitizenM and the old Daily Express Building look great too.

Sorry for not replying sooner, I've been out of comms for the last week.
Thank you.
No, I've not been to Heal's, I've seen photos of it though. One day I'll get there.

When I asked in Sept 2016 about using a tripod inside King's Cross Station, there was so much Health and Safety bull shizzle and needing public liability insurance, it wasn't worth the effort.
The previous time I visited, all I had to do was watch a 10 minute H&S video and that was it.
It might be best to visit in the middle of the night, if you want to setup a tripod with minimal hassle.

At the St Pancras hotel, you can freely walk in and take photos at the base of the staircase at any time, just ask at the reception desks first.
You won't be allowed up the staircase unless you have advanced permission, like I did ;) (I just emailed them). Or you're staying there overnight.
If you're doing a professional shoot, I think they charge £1000 for 1 or 2 hours. So it's probably cheaper just to stay there :D

At the CitizenM hotel, I just walked in and asked if I could take photos and they said Yes.
The Daily Express Building is usually just open for the Open House events, but it's not always on the list of places.
It's always crowded when it's open though.
 
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Sorry for not replying sooner, I've been out of comms for the last week.
Thank you.

No worries - thanks for the info! I don't often use a tripod - I usually lean the camera on something, or fire off a few shots and pick the sharpest if I'm lower than 1/30ish. You can probably tell on some shots...

Heal's seem to encourage photography - they recently ran a competition requesting photos of their staircase. I was too late for it, which is a shame, as I was quite pleased with this shot (maybe the zoom blur and flip would've been too much Photoshop anyway): https://www.instagram.com/p/BZkJNpujzSN/?taken-by=alexharford.uk
 
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No worries - thanks for the info! I don't often use a tripod - I usually lean the camera on something, or fire off a few shots and pick the sharpest if I'm lower than 1/30ish. You can probably tell on some shots...

Heal's seem to encourage photography - they recently ran a competition requesting photos of their staircase. I was too late for it, which is a shame, as I was quite pleased with this shot (maybe the zoom blur and flip would've been too much Photoshop anyway): https://www.instagram.com/p/BZkJNpujzSN/?taken-by=alexharford.uk
I'm the exactly opposite :D I can't do photography without the three legged devil sticks.
I rely on exposure and focus blending too much, to do it hand held.

Good to know, next time I visit London Village, I'll do my best to visit there.
Very cool shot. I like mirrored abstracts :)
 
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Some of my shots would definitely benefit from a tripod (both exposure and focus blending) - I'm just not in the mood to use it most of the time, even if it's been weighing my bag down all day!
 
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Some of my shots would definitely benefit from a tripod (both exposure and focus blending) - I'm just not in the mood to use it most of the time, even if it's been weighing my bag down all day!
The secret is to get a tripod and head that's compact and lightweight, but can extend to match your height and needs.

My current setup is a FLM CP26-M4S and Sunwayfoto GH-Pro Geared Head.
I swapped from a Manfrotto 055MF3 and a Manfrotto 410 Junior Geared Head, and saved lots of weight and it's more compact when folded up.
 
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