“I like to think of my work as contemporary photography using traditional methods. The Portsmouth Naval Base Property Trust (PNBPT) have been amazingly helpful and co-operative in producing the work and it is scheduled to be exhibited at our degree show both in Portsmouth and in London in June of this year.”

His website can be viewed at with more examples of his work : http://www.andrewpaulhayward.com/

Below Storehouse 10

Below Boathouse 4 Sea Channel

Below Lock Gates Boathouse 4

We are now accepting your contributions for the January 2013 page. The ONLY rule is there must be a link of some sort to the local area. You can send your images to calendar@strongisland.co.uk.

Originally we were going to run this as a photography competition asking people to send in photo’s from Portsmouth and Southsea area taken during the previous month. We then decided we’d like to open it up to other diverse art forms such as graphic design, illustration.

For Januarys contributions there is no theme but it’d be nice to see some photo’s taken during New Years Eve/Day. If you have any questions please email us at calendar@strong-island.co.uk.

Keep an eye out on the website as more information about the calendar will be published over the year.

- The deadline for submissions has now been extended to Sunday 4th March. We have had some incredible submissions but want to set aside more time to make the exhibition something really special.

- The competition is now open to up to 10 submissions from each individual. With the ability to capture many photos on your phone over the next two months we we want you to not feel restricted to just three. The same rules apply about the photos conforming to compositions using the primary colours though. If you have already submitted feel free to send more photos over as and when you please.

- The exhibition will be hosted by Albert Road’s own Bonzo Studio who are also partnering up with us in the creation of the exhibition space. More news on this soon!

- Finally, we will be running a competition as part of the exhibition where the best three photos submitted will win some incredible prizes. We will be announcing the prizes available very soon but got to say, these will be the best prize haul we have ever offered.

- We will be putting together a poster for the exhibition that will be on sale on the opening night. The poster will feature some of the best submissions and all profits from the sales will go to a local charity (details to follow soon). Due to this we need to say that any photos submitted to PRIMARY will involve you giving us permission to use them for commercial purposes, if you do not want your photo used in this way simply let us know via email.

Well, that is it for now! We really hope to drum up as much coverage locally for PRIMARY in the next couple of months so if you could Facebook/Tweet/+1 about the exhibition we would really appreciate it. We would love this exhibition to be a real reflection of the whole population of Portsmouth with everyone taking part and feeling involved.

We’ve posted about Harvey more than a few times on Strong Island and his awesome skate photography, and even some of his NYC photographs for his website www.harveymills.com.

As well as being the guy behind the camera for Herbal Skateboards and Skateboarding Photo Magazine, Harvey is an accomplished photographer with 30 years of experience, and his image portfolio presents an eclectic and diverse range of subject matter. Talented chap.

In his own words about the project Harvey says “My challenge was to present an alternative take on vistas and aspects of New York City – a place where, with every corner turned, you stumble across familiar scenes and images. Even first-time visitors feel as if they’ve known the place all of their lives.”

All photographs are tastefully framed and for sale in Sopranos or at www.harveymills.com. And if you’re popping by to check it out you would be bonkers to pass up a bite to eat, especially considering they are running their 2 for £10 lunch menu. Meatballs! Forget about it……

They are always looking for artists to display their work for future exhibitions so get in touch if interested.

We’ll start accepting contributions from everyone next month. Originally we were going to run this as a photography competition asking people to send in photo’s from Portsmouth and Southsea area taken during the previous month. To reflect the wealth of creative talent in Portsmouth we have decided to open the competition to various art practices which include graphic designers, fine artists and illustrators. This will be a great opportunity for you to showcase their work.

The calendars will be available to pre-order from November and available early December.

More information on how you can make your contributions to for Januarys page will follow on Weds 1st February.

You can find out more at the Big Screen Facebook Page.

Photographers Robert Dowling and Perou  have also been featured as part of this campaign. Behind the scenes footage can be seen on Matt’s website.

Mark Pain spoke to me about the incredible shot he took of Tiger Woods with the golf ball heading straight for his camera. Luckily for him it only damaged the camera hood and filter and earned him a lot of PR attention on live US TV. A well deserved award for a great photographer. Thanks to Matt for the invite – always good to see Portsmouth being used for shoots like this.

Below: Mark Pain’s shot of Tiger Woods.

Below: Final image by Matt Sills

Behind the scenes footage from Portsmouth Tennis Centre below

Also, the new gallery space is an incredible new addition to the cultural scene of Southsea and Portsmouth and something Portsmouth City Council and everyone involved should be applauded for making happen. I’m looking forward to seeing many future exhibitions in this new public space.

The exhibition will running until 28th January 2012 during library opening times

First Floor Gallery, Southsea Library, 19-21 Palmerston Road, Southsea, PO5 3QQ

Irma has a series of black and white framed photographs of Portsmouth and Southsea for sale in Capers on Marmion Road.

You can also find her work in Garbos on Albert Road. These are also for sale and are part of a set of 12 framed images that are again one off prints. The full series can be seen here her website. This will be on display for one month only! It’s all part of Nick Forbes new venture to get local artists work seen for free around Portsmouth, you can find out more on the Garbos Facebook page.

I did say Irma has been busy and i wasn’t joking! You can also find Irma’s collection of Hipstamatic images for sale in Bonzo and Flo & Stans. These images were taken during her time living in Southern Spain. The write up about it can be seen here.

You can also see Irma’s photography on jewelry website Unicorn Boutique.

You can keep up to date with her work on Facebook or view her blog.

Fran now works in Southsea Gallery.

What age did you pick up a camera and why?
I picked up a camera (in earnest) at 16 once I’d been accepted to join the Navy in their Photographic Branch. I had to wait 18mths for a vacancy in the Photographic Branch to become available; they offered me positions as either a Telephonist, a Driver or a Dental Hygienist as another option – I turned them all down to train as a Photographer and had the required ‘O’ Level in Maths to qualify.

How did you begin to take photos for the navy?
I joined the Navy at 18 to become a Photographer because I liked the sound of the job! I began to take photos after an initial training period of 12 weeks at HMS Excellent on Whale Island.

What did your job entail?
My job entailed covering everything from sports events to mechanical defects; official portraits of newly appointed, high ranking officers of establishments or ships; visiting ships and VIP visits to the dockyard; passing out parades and ceremonial divisions; PR stories for local newspapers up and down the country – I even danced with Prince Charles as a result of covering a visit to the dockyard of VIP veterans from HMS Kelly – the ship that Earl Mountbatten served on – and have photographs of the occasion (see below).

How has the harbour and the city changed over the years photographically?
I suppose the harbour and the city have changed over the years photographically, as both become busier commercially.

Do you still take photos?
Yes, I do still take photos for leisure and pleasure and am in contact with other ex-RN Photographers in the local area.

If so, what catches your eye in Southsea & Portsmouth now?
I like to see images of the local landscapes and architecture photographed creatively – my work for Southsea Gallery lets me see some great stuff.

Thank you Fran!