Vision Of You - Creating Memories

Urbex

Paul — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 17:06:55 +0000

These are a few images from an explore of an abandoned farmhouse. A criminal waste of a lovely property that has been allowed to fall into disrepair. It currently teeters on that fine line where in a few short years it will be beyond repair.
My model for the day was the lovely Stacy. The shoot was two fold in that I wanted to see how the property photographed for a future shoot and also I wanted to test with Stacy with a view to a future biker style shoot we had discussed.
The morning had started off with lovely blue skies peppered with fluffy white clouds and as we arrived at the shoot location this had been replaced by grey overcast skies and a significant drop in temperature matched by a gentle breeze…
Today marked the death of a second of my 7dayshop umbrellas, however it’s death was not in vain as it cushioned the landing for the flash heads and pocketwizard that was behind it!
One day I will learn my own lesson that no matter how light the wind seems an umbrella is perfectly made to form a very effective kite!!

By Water and by Rail

Paul — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 10:07:57 +0000

Pretty much the first day of Summer saw Charli and I heading to Birmingham to try and take advantage of the weather. The light was pretty unforgiving it was harsh, bright and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. One of those days when you envy photographers who have the huge scrims and portable shades – the ones you only need for 5 days a year in England and today was one of them!
We started off at the Canal Basin behind the Mailbox, and took a couple of quick snaps:

As the light was getting harsher and harsher we dived into the nearest subway for a quick bite to eat and a throw away comment lead to us heading to Coventry Railway Station, yes the backdrop to many an expensive fashion shoot…..

Whilst we were shooting these we were approached by the station staff and asked if we were shooting for Virgin Atlantic as Charli was ‘wearing the uniform’

Credit where Credit is due

Paul — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 09:34:46 +0000

Through out my time taking pictures I have met a number of people who have inspired me, taught me and pointed out my mistakes. Hopefully as time has progressed I am making less mistakes but I do believe that once you have mastered every single aspect of a skill it is time to find another. Surely the pleasure comes from the challenge, the determination to produce something ever better?
I am sure that if you ask any great artist about their work, they would point out the flaws, how they would just change that little bit there…
So I thank the models that I have worked with, some would say that models are the blank canvases that we work with but in reality a good model brings so much more, they will interpret what you say, add little nuances and interest.
The photographers that I have had the pleasure of working alongside (and whose techniques I have unashamedly stolen!), the studio’s that have allowed me to use there facilities, the designers who have loaned clothing, the venues who have put on shows or loaned rooms, and of course the make up artists who with a few pots of powder create flawless faces or amazing fantasy creatures.

Studio Shenanigans

Paul — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 14:18:27 +0000

Once again I borrowed the lovely Charli Lambert for a quick shoot in Andy Baines studio B72 Imaging we were joined by Dave Piper and had a play with Andys new striplight and Dave bought along the Nikon D3s and the Sigma D15 for us to have a look at. Both very different camera’s (none of the pictures below are taken with them). The Sigma produces lovely sharp images and is an excellent studio camera returning crisp realistic tones and if you have not already bought into one of the existing brands is well worth a look. Remember the previous comments I made on the Sigma 50mm?

I shot a few images of Charli with the Striplight either camera left or boom mounted above, with the light feathered to accentuate her features. The striplight was from Bessel and is a cracking piece of kit and very affordable – a lot cheaper than the OEM equipment and of a similar quality. One word of caution and this applies to all makes, the striplight is a large softbox, and boom mounted it does sway a fair bit – make sure you counterbalance it (and remember to attach the power lead before putting it in position!)

I want that dress!!

Paul — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 19:26:54 +0000

Charli had been sponsored in the Miss Every Model competition by i-want-that-dress.com. She asked me to shoot some promo pictures for both her and their use and as Charli is a total pleasure to work with I agreed.

We used Spencer Park in Coventrys’ Earlsdon area, and whilst the sky was a glorious blue it was bitterly cold. I had of course read the weather forecast and was wearing my shirt to bask in the promised 15 degrees of heat…..note for future – do not trust BBC weather forecast!!

almost Summer

Black and white gives drama with the clouds menacing in contrast to the carefree image portrayed by Charli

Of Stripes and Bars

Paul — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 20:13:04 +0000

I would love to say that the day started off with gorgeous sunshine and a blue sky littered with fluffy white clouds. However this is England and it rained, not just rain but that heavy driving rain that starts off by soaking you and then sucks the life from your very veins…..vampire rain, yes it is vampire rain.
My model for the day was the delightful Charli Lambert who is an absolute treasure to work with and a natural fashion model, requiring very little direction and is one of the politest people I have ever had the good fortune to work with.
The shoot was styled by, and make up provided by Leanne Hume of leanneelisabethstudios.

Shot outside the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum

shot in Priory Place, Coventry city centre

again shot in Priory Place

Coventry (old) Cathedral

So youve seen the stripes, why the reference to Bars……nope nothing to do with windows, merely the location we chose for applying make up was a bar in Coventry

Through The Wardrobe

Paul — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 21:12:28 +0000

lies a land of ice and show, with ice queens and characters from faery stories…it’s real you know. You just have to believe..You know you want to believe ..
But without imagination – what do we have left??

Siberian London

Paul — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 20:44:43 +0000

On a bitterly cold February I was fortunate enough to spend a day with the lovely Jeanine who is an Argentinian fashion model who was visiting for a few days. I think the bitter cold was a surprise even though she was studying in Switzerland at the moment!!

50mm landscape? are you sure?

Paul — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 18:00:24 +0000

a lens, a lens, my camera for a lens….

Paul — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:06:04 +0000

Once many years ago I had a lens and it’s name was 50. It was a very groovy guy and cost me £50 for a 50mm lens. It was made of plastic but had an aperture of f1.8. It was known as the nifty fifty.
Then one day as it sat on its shelf it looked longingly at the world beyond and stepped hesitantly into the abyss betwixt shelf and floor….fleetingly it caressed my hand before landing with a sickening thud onto the carpet. Its front and rear elements went in separate directions and alas it was a lens no more…
Recently I decided that perhaps it was time to replace that little workhorse and had a look at the various offerings. Canon were now selling the 1.8 for around £90 which for such a sharp lens is pretty affordable.
Sigma also sold a contender but a little voice in the back of my head whispered f1.4….
Canon sold this for around £350 and researching it told me that it was a very good lens for the money, however Sigma also offered the same lens but around £370 or so…decisions decisions…
I was able to sweet talk Sigma into lending me the lens for a few days and so spent this lunch time wandering the arctic temperatures of Birmingham.
This was to be a scientific test so I ensured that I didn’t have a tripod with me and had made no forward plans.
I wasnt interested in how good it was in a controlled enviroment, I wanted to know how good it would be in the real world.

I also tried shooting buildings with lots of hidden detail, for example on this picture I saw the vapour trail from the plane but only when editing did I see the bird flying high over the roofline.

So far the little Sigma lens is performing remarkably well. It also comes with a little petal hood, not sure how much use this would be in reality as it is quite small – but it is not offered with the Canon version…

As a totally unscientific test I wanted to catch some lens flare, I was interested in the way it presented itself across the lens. I think you will agree that it is quite pleasant?
So after a couple of hours play what did I think?
Beautifully sharp lens, cute lens hood AND has a 77mm front element – which matches the filters I already own…
Its about £30 more than the Canon equivalent but I would probably spend that on a new filter for it….it also has the lens hood…
Dear Sigma I appear to have misplaced your lens……I think I may be raiding the piggy bank!!!