Photography tips and techniques
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Tuesday, April 13th, 2010
Stepping aside from weddings for just one mo. As a confirmed DSLR user (this post’s for the togs) had someone suggested a year back that I would enjoy the challenges proffered by a digital camera body featuring a chip that suffers magenta colour cast, no autofocus, a viewfinder with inaccurate framelines (no through the lens technology), painfully short battery life, green ghosting and noisy high ISO above 640, I would have thrown an icy stare that could freeze the Bay of Biscay. Oh, and add to that the cost. This isn’t a cheap camera. Even purchased second hand, brand new flagship Canon and Nikon DSLR bodies are only marginally more expensive. But, boy, this historical rangefinder with updated innards feels good. There’s something very comforting about operating a camera system revered by Cartier-Bresson, Winogrand, Capa and Arbus. See, there’s a traditionalist in me that happily accepts the technical foibles of the digital Leica rangefinder. The Leica M8, not the most up to date of the brand’s digital rangefinder family, superseded by the M9 which addresses many of the reported colour issues and ISO boundaries. It’s been my choice of recreational digital camera since the turn of the year and I have to say, I’m lovin’ it! There’s a satisfying clunk, an initial unhealthy conversion rate, a retro look that leaves the boys clutching grip laden top notch SLRs sniggering with disdain for something only the historically literate would truly appreciate. It’s sadly true that Leica bodies are also the playthings of collectors that will never allow one out of it’s box. I’ll romanticise that this is like an E Type. It doesn’t belong boxed up or in a museum. It needs to be out on the open road exploring and discovering. So for the togs amongst us musing about shooting rangefinder stylee, rent one and try it for a week. I think the uncompromising behaviour of this tool will, if you’ll pardon the pun, focus your creative journey. For me, there’s an air of reinvention when this is in your kit bag. It slows you down, forces you to think composition composition composition. It stops this serial inane machine gunning that has crept into photography. It’s not for everyone granted and neither should it be. But hell, is it fun.
Medium wave moments, black and white grit
Wednesday, December 30th, 2009
Well, this is my ‘goodbye old decade, hello new,’ post. So, as I round off 2009 and begin a fresh decade, I’ll start with giving a little personal detail about myself, an admission if you like – I am, always have been, always will be; an anorak. There, I’ve said it. Not quite so startling as admitting a drinks problem I’m sure and some people may prefer the term enthusiast, but hailing from my early days in broadcasting where anyone with a slightly more than unhealthy obsession in the technical nature of the business was referred to as ‘Anorak,’ it seems only fair to apply that label to yours truly. There was a time where I could recall every medium wave frequency and assign it to a radio station and region – even in Aberdeen (290 metres medium wave – and where Nicky Campbell was ‘born’ – see?) I spent, like many adults will recall, many hours with a radio under the sheets into the wee small hours, ear pressed firmly against a solid state transistor, tuning a dial across a myriad of stations that only came out at night such as Radio Luxembourg. When I clear my late mother’s loft in the next week or so, I am hoping that I find a dog earred, well worn and much loved old edition of the IBA handbook. Mum kept everything, and for all of my teens, that handbook was the most important piece of literature in my life. On my final approach path into actually broadcasting over two decades ago, I was so bitten by the craft, that I even found myself studying the artistic pauses (known as dead air) – trying to find a reason why the broadcaster had used it – reference Simon Bates, Our Tune. I guess now, I can refer to them as my medium wave moments. Magical, at times irrational, most certainly obsessional. And so, a mite over two decades later, and I find myself once more obsessed, not with medium wave crackles and beautiful artistic pauses, but grit, grain, mood and what I can only describe as the guts of a black and white image. Ralph Gibson, Josef Koudelka, Helmut Newton – have captured all my imagination for instance. The guts, the grain and emotion in their pictures drives me in much the same way that the original Radio 1 brat pack used to – I’m far too young to remember pirate radio of course. The buzz phrase at Breathe HQ, seems to be ‘let’s inject some more guts into our photography.’ In the same way that radio throttled my attentions all those moons ago, I’m now re-obsessing – but this time about photographs. I’m obsessing about light, I’m obsessing about form, I’m obsessing about grain, I’m obsessing about the shadows and sheer depth of an image. I’m obsessing about good old fashioned exposure and print values that frequented the lives of the masters that seems to be edging out of existence as people find that button in their editing package marked ‘grayscale.’ I’m amazed that even my professional peers will press that button and believe they’ve created a black and white image akin to the beauty, depth and style produced by the likes of Bob Carlos Clarke. See? Now doesn’t this sound like the verbal wanderings of someone who should ‘get out more?’ Or perhaps, and the real reason behind this final post of 2009, you’ll accept this as my way of wishing everyone who has subscribed to this blog, or occasionally clicks in, a happy new year, with all my hopes that a new decade brings us all what we’re seeking. For me, that’ll be health and happiness for my family – and that ever elusive perfectly toned image – with loads of grit. Anyone who writes a blog will recognise that publishing one of these things can be somewhat of a cathartic exercise. Anyone who has or will be commissioning me over the next year will equally recognise why I get a glint in my eye when the light, mood and moment come together for my photographic version of a medium wave moment. Happy New Year, and I’ll sign off with a handful of good wholesome grit, I hope.
Wedding food photography
Saturday, October 17th, 2009It’s not possible at every venue I visit and Chef decrees the verdict as to whether my macros can come anywhere near his or her souffle. That said, if I have the right access and when working with a documentary album in mind, part of that wedding photography work may be something akin to a cookbook. Now as most of my friends and certainly my wife will testify, I ain’t no Jamie Oliver! So my inspiration for food photography shots comes not from my knowledge of how a dish comes together, but how I can make it glisten on a window ledge, or perhaps more importantly how I can shoot it within 20 seconds before the commi whips it away for the top table. Like most things in a wedding photographer’s day, there’s a limit to how long you have to capture. This is certainly not the life for a commercial photographer! Every year I maintain that a wedding photographer’s work should mature and develop. I’m trying to think back to how this has happened in my own portfolio. My memory being consistent with that of a 40 something year old, I can think back 24 months! Two years ago I was shooting brides under street lamps after tiring with the stark napalmed look of flash – Nikon became Canon in my kit bag. Last year it was fast lenses and close up portraiture. This year has definately been the year of documentary and food. Next year? I may even learn to cook.
Dishes prepared by chefs at Cain Manor, Notley Abbey and Silchester House, venues within the Bijou Wedding Venues group.
Notley Abbey wedding photography
Saturday, August 8th, 2009Quite a story on this one. If I had a penny (etc etc), the most popular question asked about wedding photography is; “What happens if it rains?” Seeing that we don’t seem to be constantly bathed in sunshine in the UK, it does present an issue a few times during the year, though my ‘It can’t rain forever’ mantra rarely bites me on the proverbial. And so the Saturday just gone I was Thame bound to photograph Sean and Laura’s wedding at Notley Abbey. Despite the weather forecast not being the kindest, I thought we’d entered Sunshine valley as I drove up the impressive tree lined drive that leads to Notley’s front door.
You know me, sucker for a window lit shot. And there was plenty of sunshine around during the morning to provide it.
We had a lot of fun on the prewedding shoot, the ceremony followed the same line. The reason for their smiles? It was an outdoor ceremony and as one of the ushers started his reading, a horse started to join in in the background.
And then, the clouds started to gather!
We got through the ceremony before the heavens opened. This is probably one of my favourite shots from the day and it shows something very important. If you accept the rain as part of your day, embrace it and enjoy the occasion, you get magic all day long.
Being a headlining dancer on the Take That tour, the evening studio brought a few surprises…
“Greatest Day” the first dance.
Prime lens shooting at weddings
Monday, July 20th, 2009I’m pleased as punch with my decision a little while back to shoot much of my wedding photography material through big fat pieces of glass minus a zoom. A fast prime lens has become a bit of a signature look of late for Breathe Pictures and it genuinely excites me to see how far I can push low available light photography. In fact the pictures below were taken at yesterday’s wedding (congratulations Jon and Sam) on a day and night where I probably only attached a zoom for ten minutes. I’m moved to mention one phone call I received this week from a prospective wedding photography client who said and I quote; “I’m just phoning around to see how cheap I can get a photographer, because you all do the same thing.” Now it’s all too easy to get a little protective about our own industry and I must admit my first response nearly ran along the lines of; “Are you actually looking at the pictures on the website, or just the price section?” However, I steadied myself, reigned back premature indignance and started to try and explain the meaning of shooting through fast lenses and what a difference it makes to photographic technique. I did get an early feeling that I may as well be teaching someone how to boil an egg in fluent Martian but I persisted, and we settled for the loose understanding of the fact it makes everything look fuzzier in the background and sharp in the foreground. “And F1.2 makes things look fuzzier than the end of a thumpingly good New Year’s Eve do,” I explained. Yes, we will be doing her wedding, thank you Belle! Course some people will ask; “Why don’t you just do it all in Photoshop?” I like to think that it’s because photography is still a creative experience, it’s a here and now thing. Use the kit that enables you to feel the emotion that’s playing out in front of you. Oh, and depending upon the lens, you get a mighty fine lens bokeh. Here we go again… anyone for a Martian omelette?
What to do with your photo CD!
Tuesday, April 14th, 2009Use it as a coaster. Hang several from a string on a branch above your veggie patch to scare those seed eating birds away. A mini Frisbee. Make up mirror. Attach it to your forehead via a loop of elastic to look like a doctor at a fancy dress do. Or… take it to Snappy Snaps of Newbury and let them print the images contained at high street prices. For a long time now many of my local photographic peers have berated me for selling digital images instead of purely prints. And to an extent, I can see the method behind their angst. Traditionally, negatives drove the currency behind a photographer’s life and business. It’s true that many a photographer would more willingly sell his Grandmother to the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal than relinquish ownership of one single strip of archived negative. (That’s one for the Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy fans.) And digital images of course are only a modern extension of the neg. So why do we let our precious digital negs loose for clients to ‘use and abuse?’ Well since I’m quoting verse from the classics, let me reinvent Jimmy Saville’s 80s ‘Age of the Train’ sonnet… this is the age of digital photography. We watch, use and share digital files as daily habit, so why shouldn’t photography be a part of that process? We have been quick as photographers to embrace the advantages digital imaging provides us on a business and creative platform, so it seems somewhat selective practice to only share half of this new technology. There is an argument that clients may well take your image, recolour, stretch, mutilate or sell it for their own gain following hours of your own hard work. But as a business colleague from Planet Corporate used to say to me years ago; “Move on!” Why let files collect digital dust on your server, when they should be doing the one thing photographs were designed to do; share. So yes, I’ll proudly continue to include digital files in my wedding package, and yes, I’ll proudly continue to sell digital files to my portrait clients. I may well guard my rights on a commercial level, but in the social photography field, I believe it’s time to share. In closing, allow me the absolute honour to recommend a digital print shop that all my clients can contact; Snappy Snaps of Newbury. I have access to many print specialists in the UK and use differing skillsets from each, but time and time again I return to my local favourite. The fact they print on site means they are accountable for the quality at a consumer facing level. They use the highest quality papers and employ staff that know how to produce a black and white. (I’ve seen how green a monochrome print can be emerging from a supermarket lab!) More to the point, all staff members own cameras and practice the artform. And here’s proof…
Jay and Katy – prewedding shoot
Thursday, April 2nd, 2009
Jay and Katy
The farm right now (home of Breathe’s studio) feels fabulous. During the winter I rarely use the yard, grounds and fields around us – so it’s great when some kindly weather drops by. Much of my social photography calendar is and will be taken up this year by wedding photography and pre-wedding shoots. A couple of shots from Jay and Katy’s pre-wed shoot featuring some new colour work; textures and the sunburnt look of old Polaroid stock. Boundary pushing is very important in this business, and I’m really trying to edge away from what’s around me, so the post production work being carried out at ‘Chez Breathe’ is entering a new era of development. Hope you like them!
Why I shoot weddings…
Tuesday, March 17th, 2009
This one’s for the photographers; those thinking of lifting a lens towards a bride and groom! When I started shooting weddings, like most ‘togs’ who shoot them, my reasoning was part challenge (a close friend had insisted I shoot his brother’s nuptials) and part financial; there are wolves to keep from one’s doors. Actually, those elements stay true to this day, but a third ingredient has become the ultimate reason; professional, even emotional purpose – knowledge that I’m doing something important in the World, that I make a difference for the split second my finger hovers over that shutter button. The most important side of my photographic work in wedding terms is to document moments. It’s easy to romance and wax lyrical about forms of capture like photojournalism and so on, but for me it’s really very simple. Wedding photography offers an opportunity to make a difference to someone’s life. I whole-heartedly believe that. But in case I stand accused of presuming that I’m solving World issues through a lens, as a colleague from my previous existence in the heady world of broadcasting said; “It’s only radio love, not brain surgery.” Ultimately I still subscribe to that philosophy. I’m not saving lives – I’m only taking pictures, hopefully very important pictures none the less. As a stranger, you’ll rarely if ever get invited to be a part of someone’s most hallowed private moments. When I shoot a wedding, I am witnessing the very essence of a couple’s intimacy. I’m sharing instants that are unfeigned once only, catch it now, you’ll not see this again moments. Pity the hardened heart belonging to a snapper that only sees pound notes and awkward relations to deal with. When I call for the witnesses during a register set up, I sometimes wonder whether it would be deemed a little comedically insensitive and over enthusiastic to pop the camera on a tripod, set the timer and run round to spread eagle myself with all the panache of David Brent upon the signing table. But witnessing a wedding is surely one of the most privileged parts of this job. It’s moments like the one above from Adam and Donna Robert’s recent Newbury Shaw House wedding where I freeze just momentarily before the capture. The ceremony had concluded. The guests in the room were quietly chatting amongst themselves and Adam, sat at the head of the room with his wife, removed his ring. He sat studying it, taking in what had just happened and for that one moment, the room may as well have been empty, bar him, his wife and the circle of gold. Away from all that Hollywood jazz, that, is what I call a real ‘complete moment.’ And that, is why I shoot weddings.
