Winner ! – 2022 Signature Art Prize – (film and photography category)

For three years in a row, my work has been shortlisted for the Signature Art Prize and screened at the gala event in London. In 2020 Passing Trade was selected, in 2021, Procession was selected and it was third time lucky this year as Terminal was selected for the finalist exhibition and was then chosen as the winning piece in the film and photography category. It has been quite a year for this film having appeared at numerous film festivals and exhibitions both in the UK and abroad.

Pictures from the picket line

I was recently asked by Unison to cover their picket lines in Bristol. The weather was wet, windy and cold but everyone was in good spirits and there was a lot of public support for the strikers.

It normally takes an hour or two after a shoot to edit and send the pictures. To speed things up, I took a few pictures on my phone which could be published on social media immediately as the story was unfolding.

Some of the images taken on the day can be seen on here the Unison website.

Over the years, I have done a lot of trade union photography and worked for most unions including; UNISON, Unite, GMB, PCS, CWU, ASLEF, RMT. The range of work I have done for unions includes conferences, issues and campaigns, there are some more examples here.

I am also a member of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the University and College Union (UCU).

Agricultural machinery photography

JCB Fastrac for Farmers Guardian

I have quite a large collection of images of agricultural machinery so it seemed like a good idea to group a few of them together on my website. The pictures in this post have all been produced for editorial commissions.

The JCB Fastrac Icon images were for a story comparing the new model with its predecessor, a lot of the differences where in the technology controlling the vehicle so a lot of the images focussed on the cab.

JCB Fastrac Icon

JCB Fastrac new and old versions compared

JCB Fastrac new and old models compared

The Merlo tele handler was a full electric model and the shoot involved demonstrating the machine undertaking the type of jobs it might normally be given on a farm.

Merlo e-worker

An empty barn was used to shoot the vehicle which provided a less cluttered background and gave me more control over the lighting. I normally have a car full of lighting equipment for this type of picture.

Merlo e-worker

Often there is no time to take posed studio pictures and I just have to shoot the demonstration vehicle at work. The Unimog shoots were taken during a busy harvest. A brief technical problem with the combine gave me a few precious minutes to take a few more controlled images.

Unimog U435

Unimog U435 alongside combine

Unimog U435 on the road

Unimog U435 alongside combine

The weather was so dry that the vehicles were surrounded with huge dust clouds. This gave me the opportunity to capture a few extra atmospheric images of the huge Case combine harvester.

Case 9230 combine harvester

Case 9230 combine harvester in dust cloud

Fendt 516 tractor

To find out more about the photographic services, I offer, please email me at mail@nigelgoldsmith.co.uk

Salon des Refusés at Aberystwyth Art Centre

Shortly after being told that my work had not been selected for this year’s ‘Y Lle Self’ (the art place) at the National Eisteddfod, I received an invitation to show my rejected film at the Aberystwyth Art Centre as part of their Salon des Refusés exhibition.

The original Salon des Refusés was set up in the mid 19th Century by artists that had been rejected by the annual Paris Salon and decided to show their work in an alternative venue. The salon soon became a space where the many of the early impressionists could get their work seen by the public.

The Palais de l'Industrie, where the event took place. Photo by Édouard Baldus.

The Palais de l’Industrie, where the Salon des Refusés took place. Photo by Édouard Baldus.

Despite not making it to the Eisteddfod itself, the work in the exhibition was of a high standard. I was proud to have my film shown in such a great venue alongside a wide range of work produced by over a 100 highly accomplished Welsh artists.

Ffion Rhys, the exhibition’s curator selected Passing trade (Masnach sy’n Pasio) for the show. This work was screened at the John Ruskin Prize and the Small Axe Film Festival in 2019 but hasn’t been out much since so it was great for it to get an airing again in Aberystwyth.

Still image from Passing Trade

I have also included some images of other artist’s work from the exhibition.

‘Cranky’ by Peter Stevenson

Weeping, by David Garner

Gallery 2, Aberystwyth Art Centre

Agriculture and rural affairs

Agricultural Photography

Jess Palmer, student at Royal Agricultural University

Portrait of Jess Palmer, Agriculture student RAU

I had the good fortune of growing up on a dairy farm in Pembrokeshire so love the opportunity to put my wellies on and take pictures down on a farm. I was introduced to farm photography at an early age. As a toddler I appeared in a story about my parent’s farm in the Farmers Guardian. Over the years, I have photographed most aspects of farming life. Below you will see a range of images I have taken on farms and markets across the UK.

Going through the shooting brief with my subjects - cow photography

Going through the shooting brief with my clients

Lifestock

Cows make great subjects, they are naturally curious and with little encouragement will come right up to you in a field. While this makes close-up shots easy, you cannot put your camera bag down for long or their curious noses will leave a trail of drool over all of your kit.

Brown Swiss Cattle, Rancourt Farm near Swindon

Brown Swiss Cattle and Friesians , Cancourt Farm near Swindon, for National Milk Records

Free range hens

Ewe and lamb in field

Brown Swiss Cattle, Cancourt Farm near Swindon for National Milk Records

Piglet, Newton Farm

British Blue bull in field

Turkey

Location portraits

Every visit to a farm requires portrait images of the people behind the enterprise. I always try to provide atmospheric images that give a sense of the day to day working environment though the shot might be taken in the farm kitchen or in the middle of a field.

Ben Reynaldo and his free range poultry unit

Portrait of tractor driver

Portrait of Tim, Kingsclere Estate

Rob Addicott – Manor Farm near Wells for Farmers Guardian

James the Herdsman

Will and Dawn Hawking, owners of Marshfield Farm Ice Cream

Farm Profiles

If I am asked to photograph a farm profile, I normally try to document every aspect of the farm to provide an in depth record of the business and the people behind it.

Gwen the farm dog

Market

Market photography is very different to farm photography. The pace is fast and there are normally people and animals everywhere. Moving around the market quickly is difficult so you often need to find a few good spots to work in before the auction starts, and introduce myself to the auctioneers well ahead of the main event.

Frome Lifestock Market – auctioneer

Sheep at the market

Diversification

Quite a few of the farms I have worked at have diversified into other product lines or services from ice cream and cheese to clamping pods. While I am on the farm it is normally quite easy to pull out a set of lights and set up a temporary studio in a barn or farmhouse kitchen to get some product shots or portraits of the staff or owners of the farm.