lubo

• date

• February 20, 2012

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• A boar shoot in the Mazury, Poland January 2012

• In January I went to Poland just as the first snow fell, to photograph with my Leica M9 a boar hunt which will form part of a book showing a small part of this wonderful district in Northern Poland called the Mazury. We got up at 5am, had breakfast, then met the hunters, wardens & beaters in the Olsztynek car park where the rules of the shoot were explained and cards scheduling the position of each gun on each shoot were distributed, before driving off to near the first drive. On each occasion the horn was blown to signify the start and end of each drive.

  At 11 we stopped for tripe soup with bread and at the end of the day as it got dark around 4pm  a barbecue with wild boar sausages, tea and vodka and the marking with blood of a successful shoot for a new member of the group. We had walked about 15km that day in -9 degrees C temperatures! We retired to one of the hunters houses where more vodka was drunk with many a tale of successful shoots and the odd one that got away!.

  The following day I had time to photograph the snowy landscape. You can see more pictures in a slideshow.

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• date

• February 20, 2012

• feature

• Earth Laughs in Flowers LaChapelle at Robilant + Voena

• On 13th February I headed off to the Robilant + Voena gallery where the charming Edmondo di Robilant hosted a “Reception for the Artist” at the launch of the Earth Laughs in Flowers exhibition which will also be in Milan and St Moritz with receptions on 15th & 18th February respectively.

  I had photographed Edmondo in the gallery some time ago, with full studio flash and using PhotoShop made him an old master painting as well!

  This time I took my Leica M9 and Leica Elmarit 21mm F2.8 lens and mingled with the crowd whilst David and several of the guests were interviewed for TV. The Leica captured the subtleties of the light from highlights to shadows and being small and nearly silent, did not intrude into peoples conversations or their enjoyment of the art.

  You can see more of the pictures in a slideshow.

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• date

• November 23, 2011

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• Your personal photographer!

• In September I had the pleasure of fulfilling a new type of commission. A Taiwanese living and working in London was taking a few days off when his girl friend came over for a holiday and they had a busy programme visiting London and its many sights. They wanted to focus on enjoying themselves and actually seeing the sights and not be distracted by taking pictures as well. They commissioned me to spend a day with them starting in South Kensington at the Victoria and Albert museum and ending in Knightsbridge at Harrods.

  They were young, full of life and energy and it was fun, photographing them with my unobtrusive Leica M9, informally, paparazzi style, mixed in with some posing and fooling around.

  We had time to visit the Natural History Museum, the Royal College of Music, the Albert Memorial, Kensington Gardens, The Serpentine gallery with its summer pavilion and ending outside Harrods.

  You can see some more photographs in the “Your personal Photographer” slideshow.

  So if you are planning a memorable day in town, the country or on your yacht contact me for a quotation for joining you to take photographs of the days activities and I then deliver the images as files, prints, a slideshow or even a hard back book. If its something more ambitious such as a week in the Himalayas, a three day party in Ibiza, the house warming of your Barbados home, a family gathering over a weekend in the Cotswolds, do get in touch and put the icing on the cake with a photographic record, professionally done with artistic flair.

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• date

• November 11, 2011

• feature

• Gallery Different “Amy Winehouse” Charity Art Event for the Hannah Meredith Foundation

• On November 8th I attended a wonderful evening event in support of the Hannah Meredith Foundation at Gallery Different in Percy Street, Fitzrovia, London which was instigated by the sad loss of Amy Winehouse. Sculptors Guy Portelli and David Begbie initiated the event to help this emerging grass roots charity focusing on working with families who are dealing with alcohol and drug problems.

  The exhibition is designed to reflect the synergy between art and music and will run from the 8th to 19th November with free entrance. All work is for sale and a third of the proceeds will go to The Hannah Meredith Foundation to support its work in developing The Jade Project (jump-starting Adolescence/Adults Drug Education) programme.

  Two of my pictures are included being images I took at RAK Studios of Elliott Randall, famed Steely Dan guitarist and sound man Wes Maebe moulding the sound to perfection!

  As usual I took along my Leica M9 and snapped the merry throng and some of the art works. Even Amy seemed present in one of the photos standing on the pavement looking in! You can see some of the shots above, along with my two contributions and yet more in a slideshow.

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• date

• October 26, 2011

• feature

• A corner of Belgravia

• I have been commissioned to take a series of photographs of Belgravia for the Belgravia Residents Association (BRA) Members Directory, which is due to be published in January 2012. The brief for the photography is evolving and will include aspects such as elegant, timeless and classic along with “Great people have always lived here. I will be capturing aspects of culture, history, architecture and the environment.

  The pictures shown here are from an initial walk through a small part of the North East corner of  Belgravia near Hyde Park Corner and concentrates on the architecture from some of the grand houses to mews houses, blocks of flats and a pub.

  Future walks, will focus on shops, churches, street life, culture, people and business.

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• date

• October 19, 2011

• feature

• A commission in Poland for a photobook of the Western Masury

• I have recently been commissioned, by a local hotel, Dwor Kraplewo to photograph over a year, the landscape of the Western Masury, near Ostroda, an area 200km North of Warsaw, known for its lakes and forests and spectacular landscapes, which is one of the favourite areas in the country for people to take their holidays, especially walking and cycling.

  The pictures shown here, were made during an initial visit to agree the boundaries of the area to be covered and select the principal locations. The area is full of historical sites and was once being part of Prussia and reflects Poland’s turbulent history.

  I will be visiting 4 or 5 times over the next months building up a picture of the changing seasons, its effects on the landscape, and the varying activities, whilst a colleague writes a very local history of the area, from the 1st World War to now, which will accompany the the images.

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• date

• July 19, 2011

• feature

• Welcome to lubo – distinguished photography

• I am pleased to launch my new website and welcome you to my world of photography. The site celebrates the evolution of my photographic career and my direction into and speciality as a distinguished lifestyle photographer. Several years ago I started my enterprise as ‘Stefan Lubomirski de Vaux – photography’. My very first commission was to take an official portrait of the Duke of Kent shown here, which led to a broad range of other commissions. In addition to private clients, I gained corporate work and became ‘photography by lubo – character into focus’. Now, after a period of reflection on my loyal client base, subject matter, style of photography and high quality of service, I have gone full circle. I am returning to where my heart is ‘lubo – distinguished photography’.

  I hope you enjoy browsing the galleries, which feature some of the most powerful examples of my work. From a Year in the Life of a Scottish estate, to a Greek Cruise and a selection of shots from the amazing world of British artisan craftsmen, these galleries represent the range of work I do, and my approach.

  With my website now powered by WordPress, it will be easier to ensure more regular updates and I intend to showcase my latest work not just in the online galleries, but here, in my regular journal. I’ll also share with you my thoughts on the various photographic lenses and equipment I use, together with some useful tips and techniques. So please don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions and I will enjoy answering you – watch this space.

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• date

• July 18, 2011

• feature

• A snapshot of life on a Scottish Estate

• You may remember that a couple of years ago I was commissioned to tell, in pictures, the story of ‘a year in the life of a Scottish Estate’ – a vibrant working farm on the borders. As you can imagine, over the course of 12 months, and with the changing seasons, huge transformations take place – both in the scenery and in the working and sporting activities. So it has taken a good two years to capture the key moments and provide an accurate ‘snapshot’ of this 4,000 acre estate.

  In the end I took over 3,000 photographs, chose 800 of these, and had a draft book of 350 pages printed by Blurb to present to the client for discussion and fine tuning.

  This resulted in a small shot-list of further scenes and additional people to photograph, and in mid June I revisited the estate. I took over 300 additional pictures with my new Leica M9 which has now replaced the M8.

  The Leica M9 has several advantages over the M8, including a full frame 18 mega pixel chip, the ability to change ISO directly and to adjust EV settings while shooting – just by turning a wheel. This helps me ensure a scene is every bit as dark as I want it, or conversely that snow is as white as white. With a Leica you can be quietly confident of always remaining in control.

  The book of the Estate now includes new images and is in its final draft. Once printed, copies will be given to the client’s family and the members of staff who make the estate such a wonderful place to live and work in, and above all to enjoy.
  

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