Trigger Happy

Wedding Photography Masterclass with Jonny 'The Master' Draper at Heaton House Farm

2013-04-23T11:45:00.000+01:00

This time last week I attended the most amazing wedding photography course with my all-time favourite super-creative wedding photographer, Jonny Draper himself. I'm always keen to learn new techniques and have admired Jonny's work for a long time. So glad I didn't pass up the opportunity. I haven't shut up about it since.

Thank you to Jonny first and foremost for being so open, approachable and insightful. Another huge thank you to the stunning venue, Heaton House Farm - we were so well looked after throughout by Sarah Heath and her colleagues. Thank you to Emma Draper from Love Bridal Boutique for the absolutely knock-out gowns, to Jen Brook (who rocked the HELL out of those dresses as you will shortly discover) and James Taylor - our fantastic bride and groom who have apparently been wed many times before. Make up artist Gemma Hallowell created Jen's initially serene and later edgier look... and last but not least, thank you to Sian from Didsbury Flower Lounge for the gorgeous bouquets and buttonholes.

Here are some highlights from the shoot - Jonny took us through an entire wedding day, from bridal prep and details to bride and groom portraiture, wedding cermony, couple shots, and the first dance.

I have never learnt so much in 48 hours. Super duper inspiring.

Hope you like...

Bangalore - strolling down MG Road

2012-11-19T21:43:00.000+00:00

Some images taken during a recent work trip to Bangalore. Probably my favourite part of India so far - milder (still hot), smaller (still massive), calmer (still bonkers) and friendlier than Delhi and Mumbai.

I was in Assam the week before and was wearing a scarf which some students had given to me, when I went for a stroll down MG Road. I'd forgotten I was wearing it when a teenage boy stopped me and told me, "You've been to Assam!" I'll be honest, I was a pretty freaked out - did I have a stalker?! - until he explained he was from Guwahati and recognised this as his local cloth - he was so curious what this blonde stranger was doing with it - but very sweet natured and wished me well...

Hand-woven Assamese Gamcha cloth - image courtesy of Larsen & Thompson

Anyway, here are some photographs taken after this chance encounter. Let's start with a typical Indian pavement...

View from my hotel:

Token tuk tuk:

I love this image in mono:

... but India is just so jam-packed with colour everywhere you look; it feels wrong not to show it off:

Wedding photography - Oli and Lara

2012-08-17T21:39:00.000+01:00

Oli and Lara were married at The Monastery in early June. What a venue; cosy up-lit corridors leading into the most magnificent lofty ceilings within the 'Great Nave', just bursting with history.

I was thrilled to be supporting the very talented Aidan Murphy - a friend and photographer with a similar approach to me when it came to capturing their big day; don't get in the way :)

Here are some of my favourites from Oli and Lara's special day; be sure to check out Aidan's site to fill in the gaps...!

I only hope I did it justice...! Congratulations x

Candid camera

2012-06-14T21:38:00.005+01:00

One of my favourite parts of the day at a wedding is just after the ceremony. It's like everyone breathes a huge sigh of relief - she didn't trip over, no-one said 'take thee Rachel' by accident, no-one burst into tears - and the fun really starts...!

This is the best time for candid shots of the wedding guests - here are some of my favourites from Pandora and Oli's wedding last month:

A collection of incredibly photogenic guests, no?!

Wedding photography - Pandora and Oli

2012-06-06T18:56:00.000+01:00

My apologies; I've rather neglected this for a while. I have however sold a house, moved house, been to Korea and got engaged, so you'll forgive me if my mind's been on other things...! Over the last few weeks I have however been just as trigger happy, if not even more so than usual:

Last month, I put on a brave face, hired one of these and photographed my first wedding.

Pandora and Oli were married on 4 May 2012 at Manchester Town Hall and took their guests on a bit of a nautical city tour before mooring at the Mark Addy for their evening reception. It was an absolute pleasure and a privilege to be trusted to capture their big day, which was every bit as brilliant as it sounds.

Here are some of my best bits...

I love a good wedding.

Your comments, suggestions, criticisms are more welcome than ever :)

Just while I'm on the subject, a quick plug for the fabulous Khan Photography who are going to be shooting our own nuptials next summer (whoop whoop!) and Aidan Murphy Photography who I have worked with at another fabulous wedding more recently (but more about that next month...)

Presenting photo images

2012-02-05T15:13:00.000+00:00

The second element of our L2 project work comprises a presentation unit - 'Presenting Photo Images'. In this unit we are asked to consider the various ways in which photographic work can be presented, and use one of our projects to showcase this format of presentation.

I have chosen to use my first project; 'Frames in conversation', for this unit. I originally planned to showcase these composite photographs using a Flickr slideshow (click here to view). I liked the way the images were isolated against the black background and felt this was in keeping with the ethos of the project... but then I had a better idea...

Why have you presented your work in this manner?

I was inspired by the original 1850s camera manufacturers who used leather 'bellows' to produce folding cameras. In 1856 Kinnar designed a camera with tapered bellows; these could concertina into a smaller space than parallel sided bellows as each fold fitted inside the next.

I liked the idea of having a string of photographs, just as you produce a string of words in conversation - they flow into each other. As my project is all about a series of similar images, this method of presentation pulls all of the different images together and highlights the similarities and differences between them.

Describe the process for presenting your work.

I contacted a number of local printers to enquire about print costs and capabilities as I suspected requesting ten 7'x5' photographs in one long row and the associated concertina folding might not be possible everywhere. Indeed it wasn't; my first three enquiries came to nothing. I kept at it though and eventually found a printer who would do the job - the wonderful County Print - a company I have worked on commercial print jobs with for a year or so and who agreed to do this job as a favour. Bonus!

Describe other presentation methods considered and give a explanation for deciding against them.

I considered using my blog to present the images, but there's just something about a printed photograph that you can't beat. I didn't feel the images were right for a traditional photo album, and I don't feel I have enough for a photo book. I do plan to continue this project beyond this assessment and will produce a photo book for every 20-24 photographs I compile.

What health and safety considerations did you observe?

I assembled the photographs using Photoshop CS5 and took regular breaks from the computer. As I was using a commercial printer, I didn't personally need to worry about health and safety considerations during the printing process. I guess all I have to worry about now they are printed is the possibility of the odd paper cut.

Me, myself and I

2012-01-29T13:21:00.001+00:00

I always wanted to have a go at this and I finally know enough Photoshop tricks to have a go.

Plus, it's Sunday and I honestly have NOTHING better to do...

Me, myself and I

Cutting edge fruit and veg

2012-01-26T08:56:00.001+00:00

This one time... in photography class... we harnessed the power of Photoshop to make a fruit dude through the power of selection (marquees, lasso, polygonal lasso, magnetic lasso and a wave of the magic wand):

Isn't he wonderful? I love him; he's right up there with my sock monkey.

Katherine Liesl

2012-01-24T21:32:00.002+00:00

I learned three things at this photoshoot:

1. Babies wriggle a lot
2. Nifty fifties are useless for macro details
3. My niece is absolutely beautiful

Here are my favourites so far - I need to select the best ten for my project theme. Your thoughts, comments, suggestions etc. as always much appreciated.

Here she is then, the little love:

Second project theme

2012-01-24T19:43:00.000+00:00

Statement of intent

Candidate name: Kate Aldridge

Title of the theme: Katherine Liesl

Intentions/purpose of the photography to be undertaken
To produce a study in natural baby portraiture featuring my new niece, Katherine Liesl Aldridge. Ideas include close detail (hands/fingers, feet/toes, lips, ears, nose etc.) and more traditional portraits (including shots taken from above to evoke vulnerability, at eye level) and using props (such as blankets, her mother or fathers arms/shoulders, wicker basket).

Reasons for selection of theme (including inspiration from the work of others)
As a child I used to love Anne Geddes but I have grown to love much more natural portraiture, especially for babies and children. Ive never been a fan of posed photographs, as both of my themes testify. I followed Barry and Louise as they extended their work from reportage wedding photography into child and baby portraiture and have long admired their style of photography across the board.

The photo imaging equipment and medium that will be used and why
I plan to use both a 50mm prime lens and a 70mm to 300mm telephoto lens depending on the focal length required for each shot. I struggle sometimes with the limitations of my nifty fifty when trying to capture close detail and hope this is where the zoom lens will help. I will shoot all images in RAW on full manual mode and they will be edited in Adobe Camera RAW and Photoshop CS5.

Techniques that will be used and how they will help convey the visual message
I will produce the images in either colour (varying its saturation) or black and white depending which I feel suits each shot. I will use f/1.8 to 5.6 to create a short depth of field in most of the images, the highlight the subject. I will take a mixture of close detail with the zoom lens, using a tripod to reduce camera shake, and wider, more traditional portrait shots with the 50mm lens.

How light quality can be used to help convey the visual message
I will need to position my subject indoors but in close proximity to natural light, using ISO 200 if possible. If using blankets or other props, these will need to be non reflective textures.

Safety considerations
I will ensure my subject is in a safe environment within their own home.

Britishness

2012-01-16T18:42:00.001+00:00

This week's challenge was to portray Britishness; to me, being British is about embracing - and sometimes coping with - our amazing seasons...

Spring

Summer

Autumn

Winter

Clearly I didn't take all of these this week...!

Final frames

2012-01-08T18:20:00.000+00:00

Three more wonderful willing volunteers have sat for me over the last couple of weeks to complete the assessed element of my 'Frames in conversation' project. I say 'assessed element' because I do plan to continue the project beyond the course; I've enjoyed it so much.

So here they are; the final three frames; Ian, Shannon and Charlotte...

A huge thank you to everyone who has helped me with this project over the last couple of months. Obviously I couldn't have done it without you :)

A change of heart

2012-01-06T21:26:00.000+00:00

So, something happened the other day that has made me reconsider my second project theme...

Meet my new niece, Katherine Liesl Aldridge. She was one day old in the above photograph. She's now four days old and my brother has not touched his iPad since she was born. Yes, she's that good :)

I will be taking inspiration from talented reportage wedding and portrait photographers, Barry and Louise Khan - here are just a few of my favourites:

Khan Photography

I love the natural light and familiar surroundings in these shots; not a studio in sight. Just beautiful.

Family frames

2011-12-26T18:29:00.000+00:00

Stranded in the same house as me at Christmas, there was no escaping my Frames project... a huge thank you to Grandad, Dad and Mum for obliging.

Here are the results...

Three more to go...

Festive custom bokeh

2011-12-21T21:09:00.000+00:00

As you already know, I love me a bit of custom bokeh :)

Here are some festive shots I took this evening with my nifty fifty, a couple of sets of Christmas lights and some new slides for my makeshift hood...

It's easy as pie; read my custom bokeh tutorial and have a go yourselves!

You've been framed...

2011-12-21T19:25:00.000+00:00

Two more obliging models for 'Frames in conversation' - Alec and Vicky - thanks both :) xx

Frames in conversation - progress...

2011-12-19T17:38:00.000+00:00

So, I started my 'Frames in conversation' project this week... and much to my surprise, I have fallen a little bit in love with it :)

I think the reason I love this project so much is that the models who have sat for me so far are some of my closest friends - and the next phase will involve my nearest and dearest family members. It has become a very personal project and I never necessarily intended it to be.

Here are the results of the first couple of sittings earlier this week (thank you Emily and Ruth for being so wonderful):

I discovered a similar project this week called '5 second faces' by Danny St and Fleecircus. This is a street photography project which aims to capture the various characters that roam the streets of Singapore. Armed with an illustration board for a makeshift background, they approached strangers with distinct faces, asking "Can we take your picture? It'll just take 5 seconds..."

I love this idea - it's something I might follow up on in Manchester after the course has finished in the spring. If anyone would like to help me out - I need someone to hold the boards at least - holler :)

Second project theme: Street photography

2011-12-17T22:23:00.003+00:00

I've been musing over what to focus on for my second project theme for some time now...

This weekend I have finally decided on street photography, party because I've spent a prolonged amount of time gazing out of the window at the soggy streets of Manchester, watching people battle the wind and rain and thanking my lucky stars I didn't have to contend with it myself...

Time to get my hands dirty!

I want to go for something quite different to my portraiture theme but am after another challenge; another area I haven't had much experience with for whatever reason... in this case, the reason being I am too timid with my camera in public - I always feel like I've no right to point it at strangers in the street and also worry that someone will come and lock me away for acting suspiciously (!)

I'm definitely going to have to look into the boundaries of what's OK and what's definitely not OK - I took some photographs on the Moscow underground once and got a stern telling off from an oversized guard with an equally oversized gun.

So, in search of some inspiration I did a bit of research into street photography/ers... here are my 'best bits'...

Danny Santos tends to focus on a single subject in his street photography, featuring them head on and throwing the background street scene out of focus - visit his Flickr stream to see some other super examples in the same style. He even has an album entitled 'women being beautiful'; we like this man... we like him a lot :)

'Where the girls are' by Angela Vicedomini - I really like the composition of this shot and the way the photographer has captured the spirit of friendship between the group on the bench. They look like they're up to mischief! This has given me some ideas around groups of friends at bus stops etc... watch this space...

Olivier Raffy took this from the city walls in Dubrovnik; so clever. I've seen shadows manipulated like this before - Steinmetz's famous camels are just brilliant. Really love this effect.

My absolute favourite! An incredible shot by Fulvia Menghi. Priceless timing.

So there you have it. I'm not sure I'll manage to match the calibre of these photographs but they have certainly provided some fantastic inspiration - can't wait to get started!

Poetry in motion

2011-12-12T22:32:00.000+00:00

This week's theme is poetry. I used an old favourite from my bookshelf and took a few photographs creating bokeh from the words, highlighting my favourite lines and manipulating lights in the background of the shot to create a festive glow. I used my nifty fifty lens, set the aperture to f/1.8 to achieve a short depth of field, took the ISO up to 800 and set exposure compensation to -1.

Project theme: Frames in conversation

2011-11-27T19:05:00.001+00:00

After weeks of agonising over different themes, I have finally opted for a portraiture-based theme to try to challenge myself and face my irrational fear of working with models.

'Frames in conversation' will be a study in natural reportage portraiture. I've never been fond of posed photographs.

Statement of intent (DRAFT)

Candidate name: Kate Aldridge

Title of the theme: Frames in conversation

Intentions/purpose of the photography to be undertaken
To produce a series of ten images each consisting of nine individual photographs of each subject engaged in conversation. I will ask each of my volunteers to tell me about an event, person or occurrence that made them feel a strong emotion; any emotion at all. I will take a series of photographs to capture both when they are speaking and pauses of thought in between.

Reasons for selection of theme (including inspiration from the work of others)
I wanted to choose a portraiture as one of my themes to really challenge myself in an area of photography I have very little experience of. I have been inspired by Corinne Day's work; Corinne took a series of natural photographs of her subject - Kate Moss - mid-conversation. Her challenge was to present a fresh portrait of one of the world's most photographed faces.

Corinne Day - a study in conversation

Most people would immediately delete photographs where eyes are shot or a sudden movement has blurred the shot but this is exactly what I'm hoping to capture with this project.

The photo imaging equipment and medium that will be used and why
I plan to use a 50mm prime lens to take the photographs. I will set up a tripod and remote shutter release to minimise the presence of the equipment and allow me to take the shots without hiding behind the camera myself. I will set the camera to manual focus and allow plenty of space around the subject when framing the shot in case they move around - the shots will be edited and compiled in Photoshop CS5.

Techniques that will be used and how they will help convey the visual message
I will produce the images in black and white. My reason for doing this - and I suspect this was the same for Corinne Day - is to remove all distractions and to increase the focus on the subject. I aim to produce a 'stripped back' feel to the images and black and white adds something quite dramatic to the reportage style I am aiming to emulate.

How light quality can be used to help convey the visual message
Light quality will depend on the location of each series of photographs. Where possible I will position my subject indoors, next to a window, to cast light onto one side of their face. I will set up the shot against a light, neutral background, again to reduce distractions from the subject.

Safety considerations
I will ensure my subjects are in a safe environment. Where possible I will photograph them in their own homes, my home or my office. Where I need to conduct a shoot in public, I will seek the necessary authorisation and permissions before proceeding and ensure there are no safety risks in the vicinity of the photoshoot.
_____________________________

So, I now need to find 10 models... who's up for it?! Pretty please!

Colour me happy

2011-11-27T17:30:00.000+00:00

This week's theme is colour. I'm a big fan of colour photography. I've been known to whinge at friends and family for obsessing over black and white shots and leaving their digital cameras on mono mode for weeks on end. I just don't get it.

Don't get me wrong, I love a good black and white shot and one of my projects is going to be shot in mono, but with good reason... anyway, more about that later...

Here are some of my favourite photographs - old and new - which just wouldn't be the same without such fantastic splashes of colour...

India - I have never been surrounded by so much colour; just beautiful, everywhere you look

Indian saris; every single one is a work of art

I love the effect the flash has on this leaf

Double sunflower

Stunning pink poppies in Paris shot with a very shallow depth of field, adding a fluffy softness to their petals

Colour is the heart and soul of a macaron; they have to look as amazing as they taste!

Red telephone boxes on Durham marketplace

Balancing act

2011-11-22T19:30:00.011+00:00

Experimenting with white balance in class this week... I used my 50mm prime lens to photograph a simple plastic cup on a pale grey desk at f/1.8 on aperture priority (ISO 200).

Oddly, my auto white balance (AWB) produces a desaturated image; almost black and white:

AWB

I then toggled the white balance presets to see what effect this had on the image:

Daylight

Shade

Cloudy

Tungsten light

Fluorescent light

Flash

Custom

Bearing in mind the harsh fluorescent lighting in our classroom, it's strange that the most realistic capture (in my eyes) was taken with my (usually horrible) on-camera flash. The tungsten light setting creates a very 'cool' image and the fluorescent setting creates a similar effect to AWB.

Where we live... epic fail

2011-11-14T06:02:00.001+00:00

So this week's theme is where we live. I live in Cheadle near Manchester.

It is somewhat ironic, given that this week we could just mooch around at home to fulfil our assignment, that I am away with work for a couple of weeks. So, I have had to take some photographs of my temporary home instead... perhaps you can guess where I am?

Fireworks fail

2011-11-07T17:01:00.002+00:00

So this week we were supposed to shoot fireworks but I spent the weekend in that London and whilst the rest of the city gazed at fireworks we were enjoying Live at the Chapel near-wetting ourselves at David O'Doherty - if you've never seen him watch this (disclaimer: this has absolutely nothing to do with photography):

So instead of fireworks I am uploading some long exposures I took earlier this year... not using sparklers but using a little torch and some street lights... sorry Dave, mega-fail!

Panoramic photography

2011-11-01T19:51:00.000+00:00

We had a play around in class this week - panoramic photography and using stitching AKA photomerge in Photoshop. Here are the results:

The college canteen - taken with my super wide angle Sigma 10-20mm lens which has distorted the image resulting in a fisheye effect f/9 1/16 sec ISO 1600

Corrected using the transform > warp tool in Photoshop to flatten the bench

The funky lights in the library which change colour every few seconds - I didn't think this would work but it recognises the shapes enough to merge the photographs despite the changing colours f/9 1/64 sec ISO 1600

Edited using the S-curve in Photoshop

Expanded using the warp tool and content-aware fill tools and edited saturation levels