When the CEO shoots you...

Normally I'd be very tempted to comment with a health warning like "Don't try this at home", but in the case of Deutsche Bank CEO John Cryan, the man knew what he was doing.

Whilst I was trying various angles during our 30-minute portrait shoot at the company's UK Headquarters, he noticed what lens I was using and commented that he also owned that particular piece of glass. An entirely unexpected conversation about photography ensued, during which he revealed that he is a keen amateur photographer interested in landscapes and trees. So without thinking about it too much, I handed him my camera with one of my favourite lenses, the Canon 24/1.4 II.

He took pictures of me and the reporter in the room, and more importantly, it broke the ice and made the whole shoot pleasant and more interesting. I must say that I liked Mr Cryan, appreciated his curiosity and cooperation, and last but not least, his picture of my ugly mug whilst I was setting up.

So - in purely numerical terms - I am guessing that my portrait at the end of this slideshow, taken by the man at the helm of one of the world's largest banks, earning a six-figure salary, has probably cost more than the entire shoot...

Turkish Delights

It's been more than a decade since I've worked in Turkey - and this time, amid fears of government repression, Greenpeace Turkey did a bold action rigging a giant banner on one of the country's dirtiest coal-fired power plants in Soma. And guess what the banner said? Well, on a play of words, it said 'Grey' and 'Dirty', which in Turkish is 'Gri ve Pis'.

Colleagues in the office may be excused for the funny in-joke, but we weren't excused from climbing the 280-metre high chimney. The international team of climbers was professional, energetic and delightful - see here:

Arctic Norway revisited

It's a good few years since I've travelled the far north of Norway, and this time we were on a research trip during the polar winter. Yes, that's right: no sunlight at all, and about two hours of moody dusk each day, and 22 hours or darkness. Add to that howling winds, lots of rain/sleet/snow and freezing temperatures, and you are roughly in the ballpark.

In the few days that we didn't have bad weather, we made the most of shooting whales in Kvaloya Sound, flew over a giant oil platform in the Barents Sea, and spent lots of time on the road across northern Norway and the Vesteralen islands. I was glad to have my trusty EOS 6D cameras which operate very well in the dark - as this assignment would not have been possible just a few years ago. Even so, the missing light played havoc at times, and this must be the first trip ever where I had to work without sunlight for a prolonged period of time.

Winter Wonderland

It's that time of year again - the winter holidays are long gone, Blue Monday is behind us but until spring, it's still a damn long way to go. Being back in the grey and damp of London, I can't help but reminisce about the crisp, cold landscapes of the Czech highlands during winter. Yes folks, it's melancholy speaking, plus the visual poetry of frozen fog, snow and a little bit of sunshine during a few morning walks. Enjoy the views...

50Cent? Well...

...I don't really know what to say about this gentleman. His wealth is fake, apparently, and he had just filed for bankruptcy protection (strategic, I assume); yet wants to give off this impression of a debonair, sophisticated and clearly posh exterior. I didn't buy it, Bad Boy. Anyway, here's some pics from our cover shoot for Le Parisien magazine: