Despite still licking postage stamps for Issue 1 of Trickbox, which was published just last week, work is underway on Issue 2 which is due out at the end of March.
I'm currently assembling the graphics for the front cover which I'm hoping to have finalised this weekend. Then it's on to sequencing the images in the correct order and pairing.
I could get into this publishing malarkey.
Trickbox Issue 1
Following last week's fantastic launch of my first self published issue of Trickbox photozine, I have now opened a new online paper shop. The shop will initially sell copies of Trickbox but I'm hoping to sell prints of my work in here eventually.
If you want to buy a copy of the first issue of Trickbox, you had better get your skates on as it has nearly sold out.
I'm taking card payments at the moment but will also be accepting PayPal soon. I want to start shipping internationally soon as well. Please contact me if you want me to send one overseas and I'll look into this on an ad hoc basis for now.
Follow this link to get to my new paper shop: https://www.johnmorganphotography.co.uk/papershop/
Logo produced using a Dymo label maker
Before Christmas 2017 I made an announcement that I was going to commit a considerable amount of time in 2018 to finally getting around to publishing my first photobook. I've been umming and arring about doing this for a while now. My good friend Matt Peers suggested that I should ease myself into publishing more gently because of the energy and commitment required for such a big endeavour. He suggested that I should look at producing a series of zines in the first instance to get some experience on a smaller scale and build up my experience of sequencing and editing and other tasks involved in laying out and publishing a book.
At first I was resistant to Matt's suggestion. I saw it as another time sucker and an obstacle towards my path of producing my book. However, I said I'd consider it and started doing some research. Matt provided me with some website and YouTube links including a terrific short series of tutorials by Nick Exposed. Here's a link: https://youtu.be/GMtDwU4D5_I
The upshot was that I got hooked into the whole idea. Matt usually talks a lot of sense, and I don't always listen at first. And so for most of January I have been putting together the first issue of my new photozine which I've called Trickbox.
The name Trickbox is a word I've wanted to use in some context for some time. A while ago I read about how native Americans refused to have their photographs taken by the early travelling photographic pioneers. The natives said that the camera was a magic box of tricks that stole the soul from the subject, or sitter, of the photograph. That description has always stayed with me. I also believe the camera to be a box in which 'magic' tricks happen, albeit supported by scientific and technological explanation (more on that subject another time).
So, I had a name. Not being much of a graphic designer I struggled with a logo design for a couple of days before another good friend, Philo Sinnett, showed me his Dymo label maker. I asked him to produce a label for Trickbox. I photographed the resulting label, tweaked it a wee bit, and lo and behold the Trickbox logo was created. Not being a lover of perfection I liked the kerning error between the letters R and I and the little full stop/blob at the end.
The first issue of Trickbox was to focus on the work I have done over the past few years for Bristol 24/7, a local online events website that has some kudos in the city as it is the successor of Venue magazine which we all bought back in the days of paper magazines and listings.
I gathered photographs of all the gigs that I've shot for the organisation (36 all together), and printed my favourites onto ordinary inkjet paper. All the photographs were laid out on a table and paired into complimentary images. The images looked great. I could see things taking shape but there was something missing, words.
So, I contacted the music journalists who wrote the accompanying gig reviews and asked them for permission to use some of their words. They were up for it and suggested a couple of lines from the reviews. They sent them over and we were away.
The zine would be A5 in size and black and white, and produced in Adobe Indesign (a software package I've never used before). There would be two images per two page spread. I knew what images I wanted for the front and middle spread, John E Vistic for the front and John Fairhurst for the spread. I've photographed these two local musicians many times over the years and a couple of times for Bristol 24/7.
I thought my image of John E Vistic photographed at the Thunderbolt venue with his index finger pointed to the sky (suggesting 'Number One'), would make a great cover image. Similarly, the image of John Fairhurst giving it some welly at the Golden Lion would make a great middle page spread.
Front Cover of Issue 1
The first issue was sent to the printer 2 days ago and I'm currently waiting to approve the proof. It will be published at the end of January 2018. A special launch party is planned on February 1st.
Issue 1 photographs
I'm currently working with a few potential distributors but more ideas and leads are welcome. Please leave me a comment below, or get in touch if you are interested or have ideas that may help me.
Issue 2 will be available in April/May 2018 to coincide with the second Ramblin Roots festival in Bucks. It will feature photographs from last year's inaugural event.
My photobook idea looks like it may be stalled for a little time longer.
John E Vistic Rock n Roll Soundsytem at the Thunderbolt, Bristol
It's been a great week for me with regards to album artwork being released. First up was the public and press release of the cover of the new BWP full album release. You can read about that here: https://www.johnmorganphotography.co.uk/blog-momentum/2018/1/10/bwp-album-cover
That was closely followed by the release of the King Ambulance live EP from the John E Vistic Rock n Roll Soundsystem which was recorded at the Thunderbolt in Bristol. And there on the back cover is one of my photographs of the band playing on the night.
For such a small venue with a small stage and a tall group of musicians, it was a struggle to get them all in especially the back line. Vistic kindly complied with his trademark ceiling claw.
I also dug out the album cover from last year's In Glorious Ruin Release, with Vistic giving me a Joey stance on stage which I was pleased with.
Joey Ramone..... I mean John E Vistic
At a sunny Truck festival in rural Oxfordshire in July 2016, I was asked to take some promo pictures, and potentially an album cover, for a new musical combo by the name of BWP. BWP was a recent collaboration between Robin Bennett of the Dreaming Spires, Danny Wilson of Danny & the Champions of the World and Tony Poole of Starry Eyed & Laughing.
Both Danny and Robin were on the bill for the weekend festival and were on site. As the weekend went on it became clear that there was a chance that Tony wouldn’t make it, and so I was told the photo shoot might not happen.
Despite this, I spent some time scouring the festival site looking for suitable spots to shoot them should the opportunity arise. Potential locations were numerous considering it was a working farm with plenty of cow sheds, hay barns and other atmospheric and rustic places.
The place to go to at the festival is the Saloon venue. It’s fashioned on an old cowboy saloon and I pretty much camp out at this stage every time I go to Truck festival. It’s a hang out spot and live music venue that’s devoted to all musical things Americana, played predominantly by quality UK and North American artists.
Both Danny and Robin had already played at the Saloon stage that weekend. Late on Sunday afternoon as the festival was winding up, I got the word from Robin that Tony had arrived and was in the crowd at the Saloon stage.
Time was pushing on and we didn’t have much of it left. Where were we going to take the photos? There was only one possible answer given the time pressure, the Saloon porch. There were two vintage leather armchairs on the porch that were currently occupied. We kindly explained to the occupants our purpose and they were happy to oblige.
Eighteen months later in January 2018 and the sleeve cover for the soon to be released debut album by BWP has just been released. I’m thrilled to see that my photograph made it onto the front cover.