Drop Outs and Cancellations

The second of my fashion tests planned for 2010 involved 2 models this time. We originally found a great looking model who was fairly local to my studio, but a week before the shoot she contacted us to say she had broken up with her boyfriend and as such couldn't make the shoot because she'd been crying too much! That was definitely a new excuse for me! We managed to find a replacement, but she then cancelled the day before the shoot! We weren't feeling overly optimistic of finding a replacement at such late notice, but we managed to find Claire Randle and Nicola Paul.

I was particularly excited for this shoot because Hasselblad UK had lent me one of their baby H3DII-31 cameras for the day so I could really get to grips with it. It was a long day, but we got some great images and had a lot of fun with our 2 replacement models! Check out the video below and make sure you leave a comment to let me know what you think.

Fashion... Beep Beep!

One of my goals for this year was to shoot more fashion, so last monday, I, along with Leanne Bisson organised a fashion test shoot as we both wanted some cool images for our portfolios. The model was Katy Cee, who has done plenty of fashion modelling before and has a stunning figure due to her dance background. Clothing was donated to us by Bublee Boutique who are based in Cheam, Surrey.

We managed to get through 9 different looks during the day, and we're all pleased with the results. It makes such a difference to have a good team all working together on the same page.

Here's a few more shots and a behind the scenes video...

SHOWstudio

For the last few days I've been watching legendary fashion photographer Nick Knight shooting his '100 Portraits' project for ID Magazine. How have I done this? They're streaming the shoots live over the internet from Somerset House in London! Nick has been shooting a wide range of people from Lady Gaga, to Boy George and Jedward. Watching other people shoot is always a great way to learn, or reaffirm that what you do is right. They've got multiple cameras so you can see both the studio setup, and the final images as they come up on the tethered computer screen.

To see the stream, click here.

Expect the Unexpected!

One of the things I love about being a photographer is that every shoot is different. Sure, you get some that are similar lighting setups, or you'll be creating similar scenarios, but often the people will be different, or something will happen that sticks in the memory. It's what makes photography so interesting.

Well a couple of weeks ago I was booked to shoot some "fashion style" images for a client's portfolio. Nothing out of the ordinary there. She'd sent me some samples of what she was after, and I'd met her previously while I was shooting for another client. Everything was pretty straight forward.

I always have a rough idea of poses and shots in my head before a shoot. They're only rough ideas, and I rarely write them down as I don't like to be too regimented in my work. I prefer my shoots to be more fluid. Anyway, one thing I hadn't planned for was that the client would be 4 months pregnant!

As well as the fashion shots, she now also wanted a few maternity shots, which I wasn't a problem...



The client still wanted the same fashion shots she'd booked me for, that didn't make her look pregnant. I'm not a fan of sitting in front of Photoshop for hours and hours retouching and liquifying people. I find it incredibly tedious! I always prefer to make people look their best in camera. So with a little rethink on posing and lighting, this was the result...

Paige Robbins

Having shot Paige Robbins before, I was very enthusiastic when she suggested we should work together on some less glamoury shots.

We had a great couple of days up in Coventry, and got some really cool stuff!

More Hasselblad testing...

Spent a day in London doing some more tests with the Hasselblad H3D II. This time I got to use the 50MP Beasty...

Hasselblad

Was at the Canon Pro Photo Solutions show today at the Business Design Centre in London. Whilst there I had a good chat with my good friend Mark, who works as part of the Hasselblad marketing team. He encouraged me to have a play with their H3DII 31 Megapixel Medium Format Digital camera. I've always known that the image quality from medium format is far superior to the 35mm professional body I'm currently using, but I didn't realise by how much until today!

Firstly, there's the image size.... The images are big! Really big! I've posted an image below to show the detail you get. On the left is the full image, and on the right is a 100% crop (click to see it full size)



Then there's the tonal range. The images are so silky it's unbelievable! With really beautiful skin tones and ultra sharp definition.

There's way more info on their website so I won't bore you anymore, but to cut a long story short... I want one!

Dear Santa....... ;)

Samantha Vale

I'm usually known for my hard edged portraiture which often features side or backlighting, so it made a change to shoot Samantha Vale, a local dance teacher, using only natural light.

I opted for a more editorial fashion style shoot using the autumn leaves as a backdrop and the main source of colour for the shoot.

Tracy Kiss

What better way to spend a cold afternoon in March than with a beautiful girl, a camera and a couple of off camera flashes.

Near where I live there is a footpath called the "Phoenix Trail". This used to be an old railway which has since been tarmac'd over and turned into a nature trail. There are parts of the old railway visible at certain points, including an old platform.

A great spot for doing urban model shoots is a bridge across the trail which is built from old brick and has graffiti all over it.

For this shoot I used two Canon Speedlites on stands, fired with Pocket Wizards. I used the Speedlites bare rather than with umbrellas which gave a much harsher light.