University of Bath Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Tim Gander, Photographer, Bristol

June 24, 2014June 24, 2014 by Tim Gander

high-level photographer

This week I thought I’d talk about what I’ve got coming up because it’s rather big. Next week, the first week in July, I’m taking on quite a challenge. For the first time ever I’ll be photographing the Summer Graduation ceremonies for University of Bath.

This event would normally be covered by the university’s in-house photographer Nic, but he recently broke his collar bone in a cycling accident so I’ve been asked to step in to cover the work he’d normally be doing this time of year. It’s been a busy few weeks taking pictures for the university, but next week will be Intense with a capital I.

Up to four graduation ceremonies a day for three days, including formal portraits of honorary graduates, the procession from Guildhall to Bath Abbey, the presentations inside the abbey and the students and their families celebrating outside after their ceremony. Then I go and do it all again, plus editing and delivering rush shots at the end of each day and editing all the images at the end of the week. I’ll be ready for a lie-down by the end, that’s for sure.

And even before the event I’ve had planning and briefing meetings and today I took a recce to the abbey to see the layout for the ceremonies and also to check out a high vantage point for an alternative shot of the students piling out of the abbey after the procession, which is how this week’s blog photo came about.

After seeing inside the abbey, I was shown up a very dark, winding, narrow spiral staircase (approximate age, 500 years) and onto a balcony above the main entrance to see if the vantage point would work. The lighting and weather on the day will determine if this is going to work out, but in the meantime, here’s a shot I took this morning looking up Abbey Churchyard with the entrance to The Pump Rooms to the left.

A high-level view of Bath Abbey Churchyard, taken from above the abbey door on a sunny day.

A super view across Abbey Churchyard, which will be packed with students and their families next week

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April 22, 2014 by Tim Gander

A Lawson Unto Himself

Two things I enjoyed on this assignment; a challenge and a good debate.

This commission took me to University of Bath where the Institute for Sustainable Energy and the Environment (I-SEE) hosted a talk on climate change by Nigel Lawson. Lord Lawson being a bit of a climate change sceptic (just a tad), I was looking forward to not only taking the pictures needed by I-SEE, but also hearing his point of view on the subject.

Lord Nigel Lawson delivers his views on climate change at University of Bath

Shooting through the audience brings a sense of the speaker/listener interaction

The problem with photographing a talk of this kind is that mentally I can only dip in and out because I’m concentrating fairly hard on getting the exposure, focus and composition right, and this particular venue (a dimly-lit, tightly packed lecture theatre) was quite a challenging space to work in.

But while I couldn’t quite concentrate on everything Lord Lawson said, I did catch the gist of his argument and I definitely detected the mood of some of the audience members who clearly didn’t agree with his views.

Of course I wasn’t there as a member of the audience, but whenever I cover something like this I do need to be aware of what’s being said and what the mood and reactions from the audience are. Likewise I had to ensure my technical set-up would allow me to get photos of Lord Lawson speaking as well as reactions and questions from the audience. Not an easy task when you really only have room for one flash on a stand, but with a bit of jiggery-pokery I think I pulled it off with reasonable success.

A man in the audience asks Lord Lawson a question

A packed auditorium means a busy picture, just trickier lighting

While the resulting images might not win any prizes or plaudits, I always work hard to make sure that even under difficult lighting and in tight spaces my images don’t suffer the ghastly effects of direct flash or extreme digital noise caused by high ISO settings, either of which would detract from the subject matter and would have made the photos less usable.

As for climate change, that’s really a debate for another place.

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November 12, 2013March 10, 2014 by Tim Gander

A Right Royal Installation

Last week I covered the installation of the new Chancellor of University of Bath, HRH Prince Edward. The event started at Bath Guildhall, where the VIPs got robed and ready to process to Bath Abbey for the official ceremony.

I was second photographer to the university’s staff man, Nic Delves-Broughton, and my task largely consisted of helping to record the day and capture some “flavour of the day” images.

Rather than write a long description of how I spent my time running around trying to get the shots I needed without annoying close protection officers, I thought you’d like to see a smattering of the images from the ceremony…

HRH Prince Edward installed as the new Chancellor of University of Bath.

Ceremonial garb meets new technology

Guests and VIPs gather in the Guildhall Ball Room to get robed up

Michael Eavis of Glastonbury Festival fame is happy and relaxed in the procession to Bath Abbey

Arriving at Bath Abbey to receive Honorary Degrees are Rev Peter Price, Bishop of Bath and Wells and Paralympic Medallist Ellie Simmonds

Vice Chancellor of University of Bath, Professor Dame Glynis Breakwell shares a joke with HRH Prince Edward just before entering Bath Abbey

HRH Prince Edward processes through Bath Abbey having been robed as Chancellor of University of Bath

The new chancellor listens as the VC gives her welcome address

The official ceremony over, it’s a quick dash back up the aisle for University of Bath photographer Nic Delves-Broughton

Back outside the Abbey, and this time as Chancellor of University of Bath, HRH Prince Edward gives a smile to the waiting crowds

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May 7, 2013March 10, 2014 by Tim Gander

Growing Groups

Five years ago I covered an event for University of Bath which celebrated the granting of sponsored scholarships to students. Certificates were given and a group photo consisting of around 50 students was organised.

Group of University of Bath scholarship students in 2009

From 50…

Last month I covered the same event which has grown hugely since its inception. This time the group photo was of almost 150 students.

…to 150 in five years (don’t count them, some hadn’t arrived by the time the photo was taken)

It’s sometimes interesting to look back on assignments which have repeated down the years and see how they’ve developed. This scheme grew very quickly, and I won’t bore you with every group shot I’ve taken, but the contrast between 2009 and 2013 is certainly pretty stark.

The first photo was taken using a stepladder, the latest using a mezzanine floor overlooking the foyer of the building where the presentations took place.

I don’t know if the event will grow even more, but maybe in a few years’ time I’ll need a crane lift and a fisheye lens if I want to get the entire scholarship contingent in the frame!

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