Alter Ego Day one.

 

  

Connie's shoot was inspired by Debbie Harry. 

This was the first portrait shot in Edinburgh for my 'Alter Ego' Project back in February.

High structure monochrome....

Last year I photographed Lindsay in an old outhouse near Buckingham. 

The old furniture, paper and concrete flooring caught my eye with interesting textures in mind.  Lindsay had recently married and I offered to photograph her in her dress again, more casually and relaxed. I enhanced the textures by turning the image into black and white and boosted the 'structure' almost to its maximum. I then merged with the colour version to get this overall look. I think she looks stunning. Click into my Flickr to see 6 in the series. 

Landscape shots through Silver Efex.

I have discovered 'Silver Efex Pro' recently, a plug in for Photoshop, I have been trying it out with lots of different styles. I had a play with some landscape shots today. Each image was edited using different film types, grain, contrast and all have a duo-tone effect. The images were shot in South Wales 2008.  See the rest on my Flickr...

Playing with fashion shoot in PS4.

I am learning more with photoshop... Strokes, Gama, Silver Efex Pro and colour in the above piece.

This is a simple shot taken in the studio, I have been looking at trying out some hard, edgy compositions.

Social Shoot on Calton Hill ~ Edinburgh

Allan and Connie

As part of a location social assignment, I decided to go grand. This twelve column national monument was designed by Charles Cockerell and William Playfair, who were inspired by the Parthenon in Athens. It was the perfect location for a couples shoot. It was very cold and very windy, Allan and Connie (the couple) were really patient and did an astounding job. Carole Burden assisted and was patient and helpful too of course!

I wanted to show off the monument as the location was key to the assignment. I avoided the couple looking too romantic and 'lovey dovey' Instead, the location was complemented with confident personality. Although they are a couple, they are obvious individuals.  Shot on 17th January 2010.

Studio Shoot with Astra.

 

Astra ~ January 12th 2010

A practice shoot for a front cover, shot on Jan 12th 2010 in studio.

The background is lit with 2 flashes reading at f16, 2 stops lighter than the key light on Astra. The key light being a large rectangular soft box, to the right and just above her eye line. 

Carole Burden assists with lights and makeup.  

The final edit was in PS4. One layer is edited for a strong monochrome and the colour image is blended from underneath. I love this saturated style. 

Fernand Fonssagrives inspired shoot.

Fernand Fonssagrives was a French fashion and Beauty photographer.

He inspired a studio shoot, shot on 12th January 2010

Images were taken using a single 1500w modeling bulb. The light was passed through fabric and cast a shadow where the light shone through the gaps in the material. The effect is a more subtle version of Fernand's technique. 
The naked female is usually the subject in his 'light stenciling' images. 

The light (in distance from the subject and/or its brightness levels), fabric distance and and shutter speeds can all be varied to create a different texture on flesh.

Vancouver - December 09

A trip to Canada in December of last year was a good opportunity for some some travel snap shots.

The main destination was Whistler for a spot of snowboarding. With record snowfall for November 09 I was expecting some epic powder. It rained two days before we arrived and the temperature dropped to -15! Still, the riding was good, the scenery was jaw dropping. The two and a half hour bus ride from Vancouver to Whistler brought a tear to my eye and silenced me. Stopping in Vancouver for a couple of nights broke the traveling up nicely. I also got a chance to step out and take some city shots. The low sun and long shadows grabbed my attention. The city had a very welcoming feel, relaxed and clean. There was a buzz about the 2010 Winter Olympics, Christmas and the fresh snow for the season.

Welcome to my world

Hello,

This is my first post. I am happy to get going at last.

My purpose for this blog is to keep an account of my experiences in the world of photography.
I will be uploading anything I have learned, found, worked on or been inspired by. 

I hope to keep this updated as fast as I shoot and upload images. Follow me, it's going to get interesting!

Karen