Portait of a Retoucher

A friend and colleague, Peter King who many in the photography industry will know of, decided to have a portrait taken so he could put a name to his face on his website.

Peter is a no fuss kind of guy and was a little nervous in front of a camera lens. I took a series of basic head and shoulder images in my studio mainly going for expression. My lighting as always; was simple, consisting of a Key light, reflector and separation light behind him.

Afterwards, I passed on the files to Peter assuming he would be retouching them himself. In the meantime for a bit of fun, I had a play around and decided to create a montage of images showing the progression from the image taken originally, to a rather Corporate looking image as the end result. Who says there is truth in photography?

It’s playing around like this that can fine tune your skills for the next client.

The image below is the one Peter used for his site which interestingly, is one I sent to him after I had a “play” with it in PhotoShop.

 

Executive Portrait

Just before Christmas, a photographer friend asked if I could photograph a client of his because he was unable to do so.

I decided to use his studio, knowing that he had a variety of backdrops and great window light. I also brought along my trusty Bowens Pro-Light flash unit and various reflectors to produce different “looks”.

The client, Holly was from the USA and like so many Americans, was a patient and enthusiastic subject which enabled me to utilise a variety of lighting angles, poses, and backgrounds.

The required images were for her professional and personal use so she bought along  three different changes of clothing. The outfit in this image suited her professional profile.

I photographed the required corporate images, but particularly like this one because of it’s professional, contemporary and relaxed nature. Perfect for a young switched on Marketing Executive and Public Speaker.

Family portrait session

On the weekend, I had the privilege to photograph Julie and Cameron’s little family. I photographed their wedding in 2007, so it was an added pleasure to be able to catch up again. They now have a new house and a new son and are as happy as can be.

Julie and Cameron have achieved a lot professionally, but they wanted a very informal session which shows them as they are at home in a casual atmosphere. It’s a fine line between producing happy snaps and a professional result in such an environment so in a way, it was a tougher assignment than if it was a studio “shoot”.

Luckily, they were really co-operative and came up with great ideas of their own as well. By the time this image was done I’d photographed many variations and was still lying on my side after photographing their one year old son at “kiddie-level”. Lach ran back to Mum & Dad in front of their favourite and special tree and there was my image. Julie asked at the beginning of the session if the tree could be included.

It’s great to be able to fulfill one’s clients wishes and dreams.

Tristan & Kate’s wedding

Bridal Party

A few weeks ago, I photographed Tristan & Kate’s wedding at Meadowbank Receptions, a delightful Heritage listed property.

I went first to Kate’s mum’s house to take some images of her with the bridesmaids and her parents. Everyone was so relaxed! After this, it was on to Meadowbank for the Ceremony followed by family photos and some of the bridal party before the reception. Tristan and Kate said the food was amazing!

The cloudy conditions provided a soft light, perfect for photography and enabled me to use every part of the lovely gardens there. This image reflects the fun and relaxed nature of the day. All I had to do, was press the camera button and enjoy it all!

Rosemary & Ian’s wedding

I had a great day photographing Rosemary and Ian’s wedding day.

Rosemary is a Melbourne artist who has had several exhibitions, paintings in galleries and has painted people of distinction such as Dame Elizabet Murdoch and Christine Nixon. Her choice of dress reflects her artistic nature and the theme of the day in general which was that of timeless elegance.

Ian and Rosemary wanted the day to be photographed as naturally as possible and also wanted some images to have an artistic appearance if the situation presented itself.

The locality was in the grounds of Trinity College at Melbourne University where they had their ceremony. This image was taken at the Cloisters and captured a natural happy moment.

Australian Nursing Federation Conference

A couple of months ago I photographed The Australian Nursing Federation’s annual EBA Conference at the The Melbourne Docklands.

The commission was to photograph the various speakers including the current Victorian Minister for Health, the Leader of the Opposition, various legal and insurance speakers and Federation dignitaries. Additional images required were audience participation, questions and any other aspects of the event.

The venue was large, painted black and presented a considerable technical challenge. Black simply “sucks” light. There was some ambient light coming through doors and windows and some interior lighting which enabled me to hand hold my camera on a slow shutter speed. Canon’s image stabiliser lens system was a welcome “friend” allowing me to move around discretely and capture moments as they occurred.

Some direct flash and the little bounce card on my 580EX2 Speedlite helped fill and illuminate where necessary.

I really enjoy these assignments, not only are they fun to photograph, but I get to hear interesting people presenting their views in an in-depth way which is not possible on radio or television.

I also get to meet some great people and realise more than before, just how much work and dedication nurses apply to their profession. It’s a nice thought, considering we will all need them at some point in our lives.

Oh, and the food served at lunch was yummy also : )

Corporate Portrait

Boardroom Portrait

It’s unusual to have a request for a  Black and White Corporate Portrait these days, so it was great having the opportunity to do so.

Fortunately, I had a bit of time with the subject who is the President of a Melbourne based Golf Club and was able to find out about his interests and professional background which was extensive.

Whilst chatting, I was able to get some idea about his personality and how he perceives himself which is helpful. After all, this was going to be a framed print in the club’s boardroom for many years, not a PR image for promotional purposes.The requirement here was to convey something meaningful about the person behind the photograph and a Black & White image is a great way to display this.

Lighting as always, was paramount to create the “look” required so I used my trusty Bowens Pro-Light with a medium sized soft box. Fill was a reflector and the separation light was a little Morris “slave”- flash unit. Keep it simple but good.

I believe the end result has worked; we are looking at a man of achievement with a sense of warmth and humour behind the eyes. Or was he just bemused by the photographer?