Want a busy week? Here's how ...

I have had another tremendously busy week and one that is varied, interesting and immense fun.

 

It started with a shoot at a Solicitors in Leicester. Lovely people I have photographed them before but as they have taken on more staff and refreshed their website they felt it was time for an update.

Solicitor Portrait shoot using the peeling paint door backdrop

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Next I was in Derby to shoot Alive Fitness. Particularly Susan Booth who is a wonderful woman. She and Debbie are planning a very interesting sounding day (9th April) called Va Va Voom a day for women over 40 to discuss what the changes in life mean to our bodies and how we need to deal with them so that we can continue to be who we are and who we want to be. I have signed up for this day and am really looking forward to it. Susan's energy and straight forward way of delivering information means I will enjoy the day. Debbie's wonderfully clear sighted and relaxed approach helps you clear your mind so that you can be who you want to be.

Susan with her team planning the Va Va Voom day

Debbie and Susan - the terrify twosome

Food will help

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The Easter weekend had me running around in the rain capturing delightful images of a group of children taking part in an Easter Egg Hunt - on horseback. I loved every minute and wished I had done things like this when I was a kid.

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I belong to a couple of brilliant networking groups and this week I was photographing my Friday morning network so that they could have some new images for the website. The 10 minute session was a great surprise as Stewart talked us through his hobby - rather than his successful Drainage business. As you can see his hobby is brass bands and he brought along an instrument for us to have a blow.

Kevin seems to have done this before

Sally loving having a go and making us all giggle
 

 

I love my job, particularly the variety of jobs I do. My clients are pretty impressive too.

 

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Tips for you when being photographed

You will see many posts about how to take good portrait photos - I know I offer them myself when training people. Any good photographer will absorb and learn from these tips to develop their own style. However it occurred to me the other day that there are never any tips for what to do when you are the subject. You need to get the very best out of your session and have confidence as you meet with your photographer. They should be considering and planning for all of these things - but it is worth having them in your head - that way you will go home with some great images from your shoot.

If these are a bit too much for you then let me take the hassle away and come to me. I always consider all of these points and I will definitely put you at your ease.

If you are using a different photographer then please take with you my top tips for things to do, look out for and ask about during your head and shoulder portrait shoot:

Top tips for Great Portraits

And getting the best out of your photographer

 

Stand with your feet at 45 degree angle to the camera and turn at the waist towards the camera. This gives a more flattering body shape – for men and women. Even if you are just doing head and shoulder shots. 

Do not stand close to the backdrop/background/wall stand at least 1 metre away - more if possible. This will avoid nasty shadows being cast particularly if your photographer is using flash. 

Don't look down at the photographer. If they are shorter than you then you need to sit or get them to stand on a chair or ladder or up some steps - whatever is available.

Back lighting is very flattering so if you can position yourself with the main source of light being behind you that always looks good and provides a highlight on your hair.

Find out how they like to shoot – do they prefer shallow depth of field using a large aperture – ask them because if they do then this will nicely blur out the background and make sure the focus is all on you. Your eyes, or the leading eye, must be in focus. The danger with large aperture and extremely shallow depth of field is that your nose might be in focus but the 2cm to get to your eyes and they are out of focus. So if they are showing you images as they work always check the focus on your eyes is sharp and crisp.

Don't let them use on-camera flash pointing straight at you – there-in lies red eye – not a good look. Make sure they have a swivel head flash and bounce it off wall or ceiling or they are using an alternate light source.

Look at the camera but look just above the lens not straight down the barrel of the lens.

Try some shots where you are looking off camera - perhaps laughing or chatting with someone standing to the side of the photographer. Some candid shots can be really quite lovely.

Remember to get some where you are smiling: teeth showing. And some where you are being approachable but not with a toothy smile. Also have a couple of different jackets or scarves so that you can have different looks. This way you get more out of your shoot.

Ask if you can have your images processed in colour and black and white – this way you can have many different looks and styles all from one shoot. 

If you are sitting remember to lean forward slightly so that your chest is over your belt buckle. Don't overdo the movement just make subtle adjustments.

It's always better to have a slight double chin rather than look down your nose. That way you look snooty. Looking up through your eyelashes is must nicer, glamorous and quite sexy. This is why your photographer needs to have their camera at least at your eye level, if not higher.

Make sure your photographer cares you want someone who will straighten a tie, adjust a jacket, flick dandruff off your shoulder or smooth down your hair. It shows they are bothered about how you are going to look and it will put you at your ease. The more time they spend with the camera away from their face the more you will relax.

Make sure you like your photographer. If you love your images make sure you tell everyone who captured them for you.  

 

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Writing a Book

In the past I have written 'top tips' on photography on this blog and I use those as a basis for answering questions when I give 121 training. I was thinking, as I woke up this morning, that it might be a good idea to get all those top tips, thoughts, ideas and issues concerning photography all written down. If I make them all available in one place ie a book, then people who ask me photography related questions will have a resource to dip in to.

I will consider this over the next few weeks and put together an idea of how this can be achieved. I can see me making a book and needing the creative ideas from my brilliant Graphic Designer friend Redroo Creatives.  She is a whizz with typefaces and I can see that this book will be a typographical masterpiece.

One thing to consider is do I offer this as a gift when people have had training - or do I sell it at a 'covering my costs' level? All things to consider.

Will keep you informed of progress.

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Top Tips #9

Something very odd has happened here. I noticed that the admin side of blogger changed recently and it seems it took my top tips about portraits away with it. I shall re-write and report very soon.

That has made me lose my stride. Never mind, sure I can remember what I said.

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Photo Tips #8

Top tips for you and your camera

# 8 - LANDSCAPES

We all love capturing a stunning landscape image don't we? After all they don't move around, they don't say they don't want their photograph taken and they usually always look beautiful! But they can be tricky blighters - tricky to get that stunner.

This week I'll share with you a few tips to help your landscape images really shine.

• Really? - First you need to get to the bottom of what it is about this view that is really worth capturing. Have a look around, move around, view it from other angles, think about squatting down.
• Composition - Think about composition - create a shape, with your thumbs and fingers or create a 'frame' and carry that with you. use it to hold up and frame the shot you are after. Do all this before you get your camera out. How does the scene look through your makeshift frame? Worth capturing?
• Is it there? - Don't let your camera do all the work - pre-visualise the result in your head - then look hard, is that idea you have in your head actually there?
• Emotion - Are you drawn to this image you have framed. Do you have an emotional response to it? If so - get your camera out.
• Control the Light - Don't think about landscape photography on bright sunny days - they are not good photography days. Think about changeable weather. After a rain storm is perfect. Or the golden hours (hour after sun rise or hour before sun set)
• Conclusion - See what you want to capture - don't just be happy with what you got.

Next top tip - Portraits  - next week.

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Photo Tips #7

Top tips for you and your camera

# 7 - SNOW

OK I know I said this one would be landscapes but as it snowed over the weekend I thought you would like some ideas about capturing the snow. There's loads - here goes:

1. Don't start shooting as soon as you go outside. You must let your camera acclimatise to the cold. Your lens will probably mist up. Also your batteries will run out very very quickly so make sure you take lots of spares with you, warm and snug in your pocket.
2. Remember your camera is not as good as your eye and it will see everything as 18% grey. This is because the highly reflective tones of snow confuse your cameras metering. It can cope when an image has everything from black to white but when its just white your camera will underexpose - hence grey snow.
3. Override your cameras automatic settings using exposure compensation or by switching it to manual and taking control yourself. Set to plus 1 or 2 stops - depends on how much snow. Some compact cameras have a "snow" setting - use it. It will have already made those adjustments for you and you'll get much better results.
4. If you are not sure how many stops adjustment you should make then capture the same shot again and again - make half stop adjustments on each shot. Review them on the spot to help you decide which is the best setting and use that for future shots. Or leave it till you get home when you have downloaded them to discover which is the most pleasing. With a full range of exposure settings you could try and HDR them - I will discuss this on a future top tip.
5. Avoid getting your digital camera wet, so don't go out whilst it is snowing. The snow quickly melts on your camera and the water can easily get into those delicate digital/electronic parts. If you do go out cover up your camera using a plastic bag and put an elastic band around the lens. Perhaps it's time to get your old film camera out!
6. Make sure you have details in the shot - trees, walls, hedges - or it will be a bland wash of white. Spiders webs looks great on a darker background, but make sure you get out there before the sun melts the frost.

Quick tips:

• Dress warm - protect your fingers.
• Avoid photographing snow when it's an overcast dull day.
• Remember shadows will help you and add depth and interest.
• As always - look for patterns.
• Put sun 45 degrees behind you it will create nice shadows.
• Batteries will run out fast - take plenty of spares.
• Use filters if you have them - graduated ones can give lovely results.
• Take your time, be careful and have fun.

Next top tip ... Landscapes (I promise) ... Next week

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Photo Tips #6

Top tips for you and your camera

# 6 - PRINT YOUR PHOTOS

Here we are with our digital cameras busily snapping away, downloading the hundreds (or thousands) of images and uploading them to our Facebook or Flickr accounts or sharing them with family or friends via email. In the days of analogue, when we had to put a film into the back of our camera, we had to wait for our film to be processed and then collect the prints.

What seems to be missing in this digital age is something to hold in your hand, put into a frame or stick into a treasured family album.

Let's start printing some of our favourite images. You can do this yourself, if your printer is up to it, or find an online print monkey to sort them for you. Jessops, Snapfish, Boots, Photobox, Truprint all offer deals and offers for anything from 6"x4" prints to large canvasses. Now you just have to decide what to do with these lovely images:

*  Make a Wall of Achievement - Collect images from trips, epic weekends, and the time you met your favourite celebrity. Dedicate a wall in your home and adorn it with a framed display of all the cool things you've done so far in life. Mix and match frame styles for visual interest. Make your images into posters and postcards and stick them to the wall in amongst your framed images too. 

*  Make a Journal - If you want somewhere to keep a record of your ideas and memories think about making a journal. There are a number of tutorials online showing you how to turn your printed photographs into a journal that you can use for notes or doodles or inspiration.

*  Make an Album - Instead of having magazines, newspapers and remote controls on your coffee table - make a flick through photo album and leave it laying around the when your friends call round they can pick it up and start flicking through and start giggling at the memories.

*  Make a Calendar - obviously this tip comes a little late in the year - but perhaps it will give you inspiration to work on images through this year to create a calendar ready for 2013. There are tutorials to make your own calendars available online as well as a variety of printers who will take your images and turn them into and print your calendars for you. Check out Snapfish, Vista Print, Photobox, BigHugeLabs - there are many.

*  Make a Portfolio - If you love your images you will want to show them off at their best and be able to carry them around to show others. Think about creating a book (Blurb, Snapfish, Lulu, Jessops) full of your stunning images using their layout options to be creative. Or think about a traditional portfolio. Silverprint offer everything from clam boxes to leather bound A3 portfolios.

Celebration PhotoBook

Whatever you decided - set your images free - get them off the computer and out into the big wide world. What is better than having fun showing off your images and sharing your memories.

  

Next top tip - Landscapes - next week.

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Photo Tips #5

Top tips for you and your camera

# 5 - SHOOTING STAR TRAILS

If you get as excited about the night sky as I do - then you will love this tip. If you watch the Stargazing show three nights last week you will have seen some quite spectactular star trail images. Well now you can try it for yourself.

There is so much to see in the night sky on a clear, cloudless night that I often cant resist getting my camera out and having a play. Astrophotography is an exciting area of photography and star trails are an easy introduction to this field.

You need your camera on a tripod (or a solid surface); your lens wide open (f22 or as high as it'll go); and have some way of being able to control how long an exposure you can capture with either a cable release or remote shutter release.

You can use a telephoto lens and try shorter exposure times, but a wide angle lens will give you more of the night sky in your capture - but you will need a longer exposure. Anything from 10 seconds to a few hours - depending on the effect you are after.

This might be an easy technique but you do need to experiment - making notes of your settings and your results. This is the only way to improve and develop your own style.

Light pollution can give you all sorts of problems - so a trip out into the countryside away from the orange street lights is recommended. If you live near the sea then point your camera out to sea it is usually darker that way!

Here's the technical stuff you need to consider. Try starting at ISO 400; focus you lens to infinity; set the lens to the widest aperture and point your camera to the sky. If you want to see the stars circling around a fixed point then you will need to point your camera to the North Star (easy to find - edge of the plough and 2.5 times above). However if you want to see how your favourite constellation moves across the sky then point your camera at that.

30 seconds of Sirius above the trees

Your experimenting will determine how long you set your exposure for. A recent 30 second exposure resulted in this tiny amount of movement from Sirius across the sky. You might need a cable release or a remote release if you decide to do exposures of minutes or hours.

The beauty of this technique is that you determine exactly what look you are after. Your abilities will improve with experimentation and you will develop your style and look.

This 10 second exposure taken in July at 11.30pm captures a satellite (top left)

If you think you'll wait until the summer and do your star gazing then when it's warm - then that is fine but be prepared for different problems. The image above was taken at 11.30pm and it's not really properly dark. I captured a satellite (top left) and the mist rolling in down the dale. It wasn't what I was after but it was a lovely capture none-the-less.

If you choose to capture shorter exposures you can stitch them together in photoshop (in a similar way to panoramas) try investigating Chris Schur's Star Trail Action. You will get the equivalent of a single long exposure.

The looks, idea and beautiful results are limitless.

Have fun capturing your stargazing masterpiece.

Next top tip - Print your Photos - next week.

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Photo Tips #4

Top tips for you and your camera

# 4 - HOW TO AVOID CAMERA SHAKE

Just captured a lovely shot and been disappointed when you zoom in to see it's blurry? If you focused correctly on the subject and all other settings are correct - then it might be that you moved the camera whilst squeezing the shutter release. Here are some tips to avoid that happening in the future:

• Use a tripod - the most common cause of camera shake is your movement. Shaky hands, breathing, moving, excitement - all these have ruined an otherwise perfect shot for me in the past. Get your camera onto a tripod then your shaky hands will not be the cause.

• Shutter release cable - even on a tripod you might get some camera shake because your hand still needs to be on the camera to press the shutter. A cable to trigger the shutter is ideal, some cameras have a remote trigger. Check out what options are available for your camera.

• Timer - if buying a cable seems like a silly thing to do then find out about the self-timer settings on your camera. Read through your manual to understand how to operate it, set your camera down somewhere safe and stable and let it do its thing for you.

• Make yourself stable - if you don't have a tripod or the situation is inconvenient for a tripod then make yourself become the tripod. The easiest thing to do to make yourself more stable is to pull your arms into the side of your body. Squatting down and resting your elbow on your knee is also a stable position. If you are near a solid object lean against that to give you stability. All of these will help stop your body movement causing camera shake.

• Make the camera stable - think about putting the camera onto solid objects - a wall if you are out in the landscape, a table if you are indoors, your camera kit bag if you want to get down low, think about using the ground (as long as it is not wet). Avoid using things that have suspension - so don't use the roof of a car or a seat of a motorbike.

Hopefully these tips will help reduce blur in your images caused by camera shake.

Next top tip - Shooting Star Trails - next week.

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Photo Tips #3

Top tips for you and your camera

# 3 - COMPOSITION

Understand the 5 rules of composition and why they work will help you capture better images but more importantly you will learn how to break them and create your own style.

Simplicity

Many of the best images have very little in them. You are asking your viewer to focus their attention precisely where you want. This does not mean you have to remove all items from your shot you might be able to achieve it by changing the angle you are shooting from, reduce the depth of field so the background is blurred or get in really close to the subject to make sure it gets all the attention. Also think about putting that item off centre. (see rule of thirds)

Balance

Not only should you think about balancing the components of the image but also think about balancing the colours present in the shot. Images with primary colours in them will be more eye catching and dramatic. Remember red and orange are foreground colours (no matter where they are in your shot) so avoid red in the background if you can.

Rule of thirds

There are two lots of thirds in your image - ONE: the foreground, middle-ground and background - all need to appear in landscape shots and you can be clever about where you want your viewer to focus their attention. TWO: image your image with a O and X grid across it. Your images will instantly look better if you place the item you want attention on on one of the intersections of the lines.  

Lines

Lines appear in every shot you capture but you can use them to your advantage to lead your viewer to draw their attention to the focal point of the shot - they are called leading lines. They create tension and drama horizontal lines can split up the image in interesting ways, diagonal lines create visual paths, repetitive lines are interpreted by the eye as background and can be useful to bring the main subject into sharp relief.

Framing

Every time you put your camera to your face and look through the viewfinder you will be thinking about framing. You will decided which items you don't want in your shot and what you do - you are framing your shot and editing it. You can also use items in your shot to frame the scene you wish to capture - have a frame within your frame. This technique can produce powerful images.

Which of the rules does this image follow?

Now you have the rules you can go and have fun using them to improve your images or breaking them to create your own style.

Next top tip - 'how to avoid camera shake' - next week.

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Photo Tips #2

Top tips for you and your camera

# 2 - IMPROVE YOUR IMAGES

We all need a bit of inspiration at times. I often ask my photography buddies to set me a challenge - that way I keep stretching my ideas and step outside of my comfort zone. Here are some to get you going: 

• Read your camera manual and try out one of the special features. Each camera has its own special talents and you need to find what yours is. Sometimes you might need inspiration on using this feature - to do this you can buy a book covering the topic, find a lesson online, or book me for an hour to go through it with you.
• Get online and take a look at what other photographers are doing - this might spark your ideas, interest or enthusiasm. There are many sites that can help you with this: Flickr, deviantART, Zoomr, Fotki, Shutterfly, SmugMug, PhotoBucket and photo.net. Also there are forums where you can discuss issues and ideas and they sometimes set challenges - I quite like Talk Photography.
• The key to improving your images is getting to know your camera. Get to know what it does best and what is struggles with. The only way to do that is to carry it with you all the time and practice, play and enjoy. Set some time aside to download and review your images. Keep them all - take the good along with the bad because all the images you take help you get to a point of improving your techniques and capturing better images.
• Share your passion - organise to go out with fellow photographers on adventures. Day trips out will give you all the chance to look at the same thing in different ways. Then review all your images and compare and contrast. Learn from your friends on how and why they did what they did. I have a group I travel to Churches and Cathedrals with - we love the iconography and the peace and quiet and also this cannot be spoilt by the weather. We have learnt so much from each other.

Chester Cathedral Stained Glass Window

Hope this has given you some ideas.

Next top tip - 'composition' - next week.

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Photo Tips #1

Top tips for you and your camera

# 1 - CAMERA LENS

Let's start with your camera - first things first let's protect the lens. Your lens is an expensive piece of equipment buy it a filter and protect that expensive glass. If you always keep it on you will protect your lens and avoid having to replace when it gets scratched or damaged. A simple UV or skylight filter is a good starting place and wont effect the finished look of any images you capture. However if you have a particular interest then the following might be interesting alternatives:

• If you do lots of outdoor photography then a polarizing filter might be more your thing and will give you images that have beautiful blue skies and lush green trees.

• If you like your water to look misty and smooth then think about neutral density filters - these will allow you to shot in lower light levels and lower shutter speeds and slow down water.

• If you are a colour fiend then you might like to add a colour filter to your lens - every colour in the rainbow is available.

Whatever you decide look after your lens. Buy a filter for each one. I have a UV or skylight filter on each of mine.

Next top tip 'improve your images' appears next week.

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