A little life change: the round-up

Suffice it to say, the past few fleetin' weeks have been quite the madness, (lamentably) leaving my little lifestyle journal somewhat neglected. Against this busy backdrop, I thought it might be apt to - as the title teases - round up recent weeks in the most pain-free way possible. I wanna keep y'all in the loop.

#1: Totally Grad

After four fruitful years - at times tricky, overall amazing - I concluded my uni life with a first-class honours degree, accompanied by a first-class graduation at Durham Cathedral. The end of an era, for sure, but by no means a permanent goodbye to my most-cherished chums - and my, did we end on a high!

#2: EyeEm Hired

My original post-uni plan to play things to-ta-lly by ear on the job front took an unexpected, indeed most welcome, turn, when my dream job cropped up at my dream company, EyeEm. Although in the midst of my final exams and personal tragedy, there was simply no way I was gonna let this opportunity slip through the net. One two-week application process later and I was OVERTHEFLIPPINMOON to learn that my efforts and enthusiasm had paid off: as of July 1st 2015, I was to be EyeEm's newly appointed Social Media Manager (starting a mere seven days after graduation)!

#3: Back to Berl

This necessarily brings me to Punkt 3 (which you've no doubt gathered by now): after a rather rapid post-uni pack, unpack and pack again, I'm now livin' and lovin' life in my beloved Berlin, where I plan to settle indefinitely. Hurrah! So, on the back of the lowest low, these past weeks have ended on the highest of highs. As mind-numbingly cheesy as it sounds, my personal lil dreams really have come true all at once (and a lot quicker than I'd ever anticipated, too). There's no denyin' I've still got a bunch of challenges to contend with, but really, bring it. After all, good things come to those who wait hustle.

Global EyeEm Adventure

Last weekend saw the online and offline worlds come together under the most utopian of circumstances, in the shape of the Global EyeEm Adventure. Indeed, on November 1st, the mobile photo app - which I’m sure you’ll recall me bigging up a bunch of times before - challenged their burgeoning band of followers to capture the most photogenic spots across the globe, meet-up style. Having been a keen advocate of EyeEm's vision since hitting upon the startup in Berlin this year, it was with open arms that I accepted their kind request to host the London leg of the worldwide event. 

Photography lovin' folk were beckoned to connect out of life 2.0 and meet a likeminded line-up of lovely people in our respective cities, from Tel Aviv, to New York, to Kuala Lumpur. Together, these relaxed independent affairs amounted to an impressive large-scale effort, with designated EyeEm albums offering an insight into the event's international engagement.  

For the London edition, I decided - after quite the deliberation -  upon the city's multifaceted East End. An obvious choice, ya might surmise, but there is so much more to the Shoreditch area than the hipster stereotype it's become synonymous with. As we determined during the course of my lil route (which lasted about 2.5 hours), the E1 ends are an absolute melting pot of characters, cultures and curiosities. And, within a somewhat limited timescale, I felt it an ideal patch to shoot a decent dose of diverse images; there's a pretty high concentration of marvels in a not-too-vast space. 

After convening outside the overground station, I gave my camera-bearing crew a petite briefing, and armed them with stickers to spread some EyeEm love on our travels. The group was made up of totally distinct characters, from all walks of life, bridged through a mutual appreciation of photography and a fancy to capture some of London's most photogenic facets. This diversity also lent a freshness to the end results, with identical scenarios captured in totally idiosyncratic styles. Throughout the afternoon, we grew to be an endearing unconventional family, content and creatively elevated in each other's company. See: the virtual and the real ain't so antithetical after all.  

*See also: 1 // 2 // 3*

The 2014 EyeEm Festival & Awards

If there needed to be an affirmation of EyeEm's vanguard positioning in the digital photography revolution, then the past couple of days confirmed it, big time. Their eponymous festival, which spanned two inspiring days, was an absolute testament to a forward-looking business and thriving photo sharing community that's set to rapidly (and deservedly) evolve into something very significant indeed. 

The event, which additionally encompassed the 2014 EyeEm Awards, kicked off on Friday at Spree-situated industrial treasure, Alte Teppichfabrik. Berlin's converted carpet factory, with its expansive rugged walls and deep-set character, provided the perfect backdrop for the day's finely orchestrated line-up. Esteemed and inspirational speakers (think CEOs, CTOs, journalists, photographers, creative directors and more) from the likes of TIME Magazine, Getty Images, The Huffington Post, Gestalten, Etsy, The Photographers' Gallery and LCC - to name just a few - graced the stage with their wise words and learned insights, offering informed and perceptive viewpoints on the contemporary era of image proliferation and mass digitisation. 

Key issues and themes included, but were by no means limited to: the camera of the future, fragile formats, the changing notion of photographers, photography copyright and ethics, the vital issue of organisation and curation amid photo inundation,  the significance of collaboration, monetisation strategies, the changing dichotomy of culture makers/culture takers and the ever-increasing importance of visuals against a background of desktop to mobile transition. In short, a lot of food for thought. 

Friday culminated in the exhibition opening, which showcased the worthy winners and finalists of the 2014 EyeEm Awards. Spread over two floors, the display offered a tantalising taste of the emerging talent and capabilities in the digital and mobile photography realm. As I'm sure I've mentioned before, the inestimably precious nature of old school analogue and its associated creative craftsmanship is a territory I hold pretty dearly, and one that I'm not willing to give up entirely, but - and it's a big but - the sheer potential of the digital domain and the visual revolution is undeniable and very, very exciting.  The proof was there to see (in exceptionally high resolution).

Things became a bit more up close and personal on day two, which took place in EyeEm's shiny Kreuzberg HQ. Zooming in (pun intended) on the concerns and questions covered at Friday's summit, Saturday's 'Community Day' was made up of smaller scale workshops and discussions with industry-shaping professionals, as well as a healthy dose of totally unforced mingling with the lovely likeminded folk in attendance. In a largely online world, the importance of "real life", offline connection and communication cannot be underestimated, and the whole day (and night) epitomised a seamless amalgamation of both; proof that two worlds don't have to collide, but rather symbiotically liaise and raise one another. 

Remarkably and most importantly, the technical masterminds behind it all - the EyeEm crew and all four founders - operate on the most human level; an ethos of infectious, genuine passion and loyalty towards the root cause, each other and their burgeoning mobile photography community. It's a seminal time for photography; how incredibly encouraging that this inspiring, friendly bunch are at the forefront of it.

EyeEm haps

You might remember this recent big up to flourishing online photo sharing app and above all photographers' community, EyeEm. And yes, I've recycled the title wordplay for this mini post, because it was just too tempting (sorry). Anyway, as the title suggests, I was indeed happy to discover I've been chosen as one of their '20 New Recommended Photographers' for September! You can see the round-up here if you like. 

This week EyeEm lovin'

Over the past couple of months, I've taken quite the shine to rapidly on-the-rise photo sharing app, EyeEm. Though I haven't entirely neglected the likes of Instagram, Berlin-based EyeEm is without doubt its cleaner, upgraded counterpart. Particularly apt for creative souls with a penchant for photography, the image stream is of high quality and above all aesthetically on point. 

What's more, EyeEm's partnership with Getty Images enables you to offer up your work to a renowned stock photo marketplace; it recognises and rewards quality photography, whether you're a pro or not. In a similar vein, regularly-set 'Missions' encourage out-of-the-box thinking, with current topics including: 'What Does Peace Look Like To You?', 'RePicture Femininity', 'Transitional Moments' and 'Supersize Yourself'; an open-call to transgress the boundaries of traditional selfies, through creative innovation. 

So, it was with a touch of glee that I discovered the EyeEm team made me their 'Photographer of the Day' today! I was especially touched by their comment about 'making the mundane beautiful', as it's a philosophy I hold pretty close, be it in photography or life as a whole. They were even sweet enough to feature one of my images in their '10 Tips & Tricks For Shooting Great Portraits' article. A petite (and perhaps trivial) win it may be, but you've gotta appreciate the small triumphs.