Master Photography January/February 2016

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Cover: by Erich Caparas FMPA. Erich won the 2015/16 Awards Epson Black and White trophy, as an Associate of the MPA. Subsequently, he qualified at Fellowship level with a related but different series of images in dramatic colour. The colours used needed individual correction in a couple of cases just to render properly in a CMYK litho magazine, but we still can’t come close to how vivid they look on screen – or printed by high-end inkjet.

4 View from the Chair – Paul Wilkinson FMPA

6 News and Awards Update

10 Best of British Commercial The Awards of Excellence and Merits for UK Industrial,

Commercial, Architectural and Advertising.

14 Pets & Livestock UK Awards of Excellence Meet MPA’s new President – Steve Walton FMPA

16 Steve’s Sea Change From panoramic film to full frame digital, from mountains

to beaches and shores – and a crofter’s memorial. Steve Walton’s new directions.

23 Book Review – Mastering Portrait Photography, by Paul Wilkinson and Sarah Plater. Review by David Kilpatrick.

26 Advertising Feature: Genesis Imaging and Fujifilm Crystal Archive

29 Rebirth in Venice – the SymposiumClare Louise reports on the 2015 Graphistudio/Yervant professional symposium in Venice and presents selected images taken by the star speakers.

36 Winter Blues: portrait lighting conceptStephanie Ann Thornton styles an icy beauty set with simple but effective lighting.

42 FELLOWSHIP: Erich Caparas Two tribes, one princess – a storyboarded FMPA panel created with a volunteer cast.

50 LICENTIATESHIP: Phil PaineStories of the street, tradesmen, shopkeepers and travel.

54 Reciprocity with Richard Bradbury: Too Many Pixels? Richard Bradbury FMPA wonders whether bigger files from

35mm format DSLRs are his future – or will the faithful 5D MkIII remain his weapon of choice?

58 MPA Graphistudio Wedding Album of the Year The full layout which won Scott Johnson his title and a ticket to Venice.

64 Regional News

Vol 12 No 5 • January/February 2016

Master Photography

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Icon Publications Ltd can accept no responsibility for loss of or damage to photographs and manuscripts submit-ted, however caused. Responsibility for insurance and return carriage of equipment submitted for review or test rests with the owner. Views expressed in this magazine are those of the individual contributors and do not necessarily represent the views and policies of The Master Photographers Association, Icon Publications Ltd or its advertisers. All technical data and pricing information contained in news and feature articles is printed in good faith. While all advertising copy is accepted in good faith, neither Icon Publications Ltd or the Master Photographers Association can accept any legal responsibility for unjustified claims or the quality of goods or services arising from advertising in this publication. All contents including advertising artwork created by Icon Publications Ltd are copyright and cannot be reproduced by any means without prior permission. ©2016 Icon Publications Ltd. E&OE.

MASTER PHOTOGRAPHY JAN/FEB 2016ISSN 2042-0234 Vol 12 #5 published for the membership of

The Master Photographers Associationsix times each year

Icon Publications LimitedMaxwell Place, Maxwell Lane, Kelso, Scottish Borders TD5 7BB

www.iconpublications.com

Publisher/Editor in Chief: David Kilpatrick Hon. FMPATel: 01573 226032 Mobile: 07971 250786

email: [email protected]

Ad Sales: Diane HendersonTel: 01573 223508 email: [email protected]

On the Road: Richard KilpatrickMobile: 07979 691965 email: [email protected]

CEO

Clare Louise FMPATel: 01325 356555 e-mail: [email protected]

President

Steve Walton FMPATel: 0116 2994901 e-mail: stevewaltonphotography.info Management Team

Paul Wilkinson FMPA (MPA Chairman 2015/16)Tel: 01844 290054 e-mail: [email protected]

Steve Ramsden LMPATel: 01904 479063 e-mail: [email protected]

Ray Lowe Hon.FMPATel: 01992 636152 e-mail: [email protected]

Directors

John Parris FMPATel: 01450 370523 e-mail: [email protected]

Paul Cooper FMPA (Qualifications)Tel: 01904 416 684 e-mail: [email protected]

Dave Thexton LMPATel: 01229 835035 e-mail: [email protected]

Collin Davies LMPATel: 01792 883274 e-mail: [email protected]

Paul Inskip LMPATel: 01243 861634 e-mail: [email protected]

Head Office Contacts

MPA, Jubilee House, 1 Chancery Lane, Darlington DL1 5QPTel: 01325 356555 Fax: 01325 357813Website: www.masterphotographersassociation.co.ukMembership: Amanda Buckle – [email protected]: [email protected] Direct line: 01325 952259

Well, here we are up to the ankles in 2016 and wonder-ing where another year has gone! So we recover from the festive spirit and one by one break the usual

New Year’s Resolutions… eat less, exercise more, less time at work, more time with family. Who knows – maybe this year I’ll achieve at least one of those? As I sit and recover from the annual seasonal onslaught, it’s an opportunity to look back at an incredible year to see just how far things have come and to use that to put plans and ideas together for the coming year. 2015 was one of change, no doubt about it. For those who made it to the AGM (thank you by the way!) you’ll know that we have returned the MPA to a profitable state – something that has been a combination of some very very tough cost-cutting (the MPA historically wasn’t renowned for its financial efficiency!) and a drive to push up the membership, something that will be continuing for the next few years. We have the beginnings of a new website after our old one was hacked and, when we tried to fix it, turned out to be irreparable. We know there are glitches in there but hopefully you can see where it’s headed which is hugely exciting. The 2015 awards were the best I’ve ever been to (I’ve been a member since 2008) with the most incredible photographers and images that truly captured what the MPA is about. I have never felt so proud to be standing on a stage as I was that night as Chair of the MPA.

Qualifications and mentoringQualifications are at the very heart of the MPA, whether you are a Licentiate, Associate or a Fellow, those letters of accredita-tion are something that are hard won and you should be fierce-ly proud of them. I know the MPA is occasionally considered elitist and that’s a shame as I have always thought it to be one of the most open and friendly of the various associations in our industry, yet paradoxically, when you sit and think about it, we should be elitist. Those letters we award are never given lightly: each panel, each image, each profile, every single part of it is judged by a panel of professional photographers who have achieved Fellow-ship and beyond – many of them holding those letters with multiple Associations and in multiple categories – so you know, when you are awarded your qualification, you truly do deserve it. To support this, we have needed to look long and hard at the mentoring process to make it both more efficient and more available. To that end, a new platform is being rolled out in 2016 to help both mentors and those being mentored, provid-ing a place where feedback can be captured and monitored, where images can be critiqued and shared, where you can both receive and give feedback with your mentor and to Desi Fontaine who is going to be overseeing mentoring: I cannot tell you how excited I am to have someone with her skills and experience keeping an eye on things! We are also working hard to get the message to prospective consumers, whether they are looking for Bump-To-Baby, Por-traits, Weddings, Commercial or Fashion images, they should be looking for a qualified photographer so that those hard-won letters have some real-world value to you as a business as well as a photographer. And yes, I guess that is a little bit élitist. Long may it continue!

Á

Ringing in the changesMPA Chairman Paul Wilkinson FMPA


Phone 01482 588 037 Email [email protected]

gfsmithphotographic.com @GFSphotographic

Visit us at the SWPP Convention 22–24 January, Stand no. M91–94

Hilton Metropole, Edgeware Road, London

Memories are special. Look after them.

A well crafted photograph deserves a well crafted home.


NEWS send your news items to [email protected]

EVENTS DIARYJanuary 20th-24th 2016The Societies ConventionHilton London Metropole Hotel

January 29th 2016Online Qualification Judging

February 22nd 2016Baby & Child Portrait Retouchingwith Michael ShillingHinckley Island Hotel

February 23rd 2016Newborn Photography with Melanie East Hinckley Island Hotel

March 15th 2016Awards 2016 open for entries

March 19th-22nd 2016The Photography ShowHall 5, NEC, Birmingham, UK

March 21st 2016Qualifications Day NEC Birmingham

March 25th 2016Online Qualifications Judging

April 5th 2016Kelly Brown Hinckley Island Hotel

April 19th 2016Photovision Roadshow Edinburgh

May 17th-18th 2016Newborn Photography ShowCoventry

May 27th 2016Online Qualifications Judging

June 22nd 2016Licentiate Qualifications DayMPA Darlington

July 29th 2016Online Qualifications Judging

July 31st 2016Awards Online Entry deadline

August 8th-12th 2016Master Photography AwardsInternational Online Judging

August 26th 2016Awards Print Entry deadline to HQ

September 6th 2016Photovision Roadshow Dublin

September 8th 2016Open Print Judging Darlington

September 9th 2016A&F Judging Darlington

September 30th 2016Online Qualifications Judging

October 16th 2016Meet the Masters Open DayHinckley Island HotelAwards Dinner & Presentations

November 19th 2016Photovision Roadshow Epsom

November 25th 2016Online Qualifications Judging

SRB PHOTOGRAPHIC has an exclusive offer for a Lee Filters 100mm foundation kit with a choice of hard or soft ND0.6 (two stops) graduated filter and one lens adaptor ring, standard 49-86mm or wide-angle 49-82mm. The holder accepts up to three filters, and the kit is priced at £139.95 including VAT, saving around £20. See: http://bit.ly/1kacQtc

Lee 100mm kit deal

down to an unprecedented 1.4m (twice as close as most 300mm lenses) for 0.48X subject scale, al-most equal to having 1:1 macro on full frame. It is only 227mm long, takes 77mm filters and weighs 1270g. An optional 1.4X tele con-verter retains the fast silent linear motor autofocus, which can also be manually controlled with optional preset focus distances allowing pull focus video takes to be pro-grammed. The optional tripod col-lar fits directly to Arca Swiss tripod heads. www.olympus.co.uk

WITH major dealers like B&H show-ing images of the original Olympus Zuiko 300mm ƒ4 PRO lens six months ago, its launch was de-layed to allow a new type of image stabilisation to be added. Finally launched on January 6th, the M.ZUIKO DIGITAL ED 300mm 1:4.0 IS PRO is the first lens to use the Sync IS mechanism that coordi-nates with the 5-axis system fitted to the OM-D E-M1 and E-M5 Mark II models. The result is claimed to be enhanced compensation by 6 EV steps. This stabilises handheld still EVF composition and video alike. The £2,199 lens is equivalent to a 600mm on full frame, but focuses

Olympus finally releases new 300mm ƒ4 IS

Glass with new specs

A NEW super-hard optical glass is set to change the performance of filters – and no doubt, viewing screens, watch glasses and your spectacles in due course. The Sigma WR Ceramic Protector features an advanced new material, the Clear Glass Ceramic, which is made using newly developed crystallized glass from glass manufacturer Ohara Inc. Available in sizes from 67mm to 105mm, those up to 82mm are in a super slim wide angle rim. The new glass up to 50% thin-ner and weighs up to 30% less than previous Sigma filters – at the same time, it offers over ten times the strength of a conventional pro-tective filter and over three times the strength of a high-strength protective filter made with chemi-cally hardened glass of the same thickness. The Ceramic Glass incor-porates microcrystals of spinel. It is less brittle than sapphire crystal glass and harder than the ‘gorilla’ type protective glasses now widely used in photo equipment. The new Protector is WR coated, in common with Sigma’s current premium filter range – this coating actively repels water and reduced smearing from moisture or grease, allowing fast cleaning with a simple wipe. No price has yet been given – or indication of whether this ceramic glass will find further uses… www.sigma-imaging.uk.com

Hoya achieves Fusion

HOYA’S new FUSION Antistatic professional filters – look out for the box shown here in ads and at your dealer – feature a new 9-layer Super Multi-coating that greatly re-duces or eliminates reflections on the surface of the glass and yields very high light transmission rates, while also being water and dirt re-sistant. They claim the coating can even resist ink and marker pens. We’re told that these filters under the Fusion name in Europe are a later generation than those sold in the USA under the same name. Be sure to buy the right item! Fusion filters are available in UV, Circular Polariser and Protector and in sizes from 37mm through to 82mm. Prices start from £26.99 for a 37mm protector filter. www.intro2020.co.uk

THE PHOTOGRAPHY SHOW has confirmed the line-up for The Live Stage and Behind the Lens for the show taking place at NEC Birmingham from March 19th to 22nd. March 2016. The Live Stage – in which MPA has played an important rôle – will tackle everything from posing newborns to capturing the illusion of magic and fun at the circus. Food Photographer, William Reavell will reveal styling and lighting tips for creating beautiful food photogra-phy. Street photographer Matt Hart will show photography as therapy; Steve Howdle will sync flash at high speed and Vicki Churchill promises to turn the everyday into the spec-tacular. Melanie East will share her tips on photographing babies. At Behind the Lens, Ram Shergill will delve into working with fash-ion designers; Paul Colley will dive into underwater photography; Ian Cook will look at sports photogra-phy. Photojournalist Tom Stoddart will share his photographic journey and Emma Drabble will explore what makes a photograph more than just an image. For registration and tickets see: www.photographyshow.com


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NEWS

Cassandra Grant of Future Publishing’s The Photography Show presents the International Master Photographer of the Year 2015/16 Award to Jason Banbury LMPA.

Calum Thomson of Loxley Colour presents the Overseas Master Photographer Award to Johnson Wee FMPA (right, in groups, is guest of honour John Stoddart).

Fujifilm UK’s Jon Cohen adds a prize of Fujfilm X-system body and 56mm ƒ1.2 lens to Lisa Visser FMPA’s award as UK Master Portrait Photographer of the Year.

Martin Baynes of Graphistudio congratulates Paul Fowler LMPA as UK Master Wedding PoY. Paul also won UK Classical Wedding, sponsored by Loxley Colour.

The balconies of the Hinckley Island Hotel give an overhead view of John Stoddart, above, in conversation with Paul Wilkinson and an informal audience. Below, Elinchrom’s studio with models and Steve Howdle FMPA – and a 3D custom designed background installation from Mark Bushkes of Magic Bean, www.magicbeanstudio.co.uk

EL Skyport Plus HS

The Meet the Masters Open Day at the 2015 Awards was the first public demonstration of the new Elinchrom EL Skyport Plus HS wireless trigger system, used on the Nikon platform (also for Canon, as fitted above – Sony to follow).

THE FLASH CENTRE brought the latest Elinchrom light shapers, and Pentax the new 645Z 50 megapixel CMOS medium format DSLR, for visitors to try out at the October 18th event. Just arrived in the country, the EL Skyport Plus HS was there taking control of all the different Elinchrom flash heads – from the camera position, with a full readout of the various settings and power for every head (photo above). This sub-£200 trigger is dedicat-ed to Elinchrom heads with built-in wireless or accepting a plug-in RX module, whether the latest pow-erful ELC, the everyday BRX, port-able Quadra RX and ELB, or even the entry-level D-Lite 4 shown on the display here. Its backwards compatibility with every Elinchrom head or pack to have used the Skyport wireless triggering makes this single purchase able to up-grade any studio with a set of these

lights going back over a decade. However, its real value lies in be-ing dedicated to the Nikon ‘FP’ or Canon High Speed Sync functions, enabling the camera to work at shutter speeds faster than the nor-mal X-sync limit. It is possible to use speeds up to 1/8000s and still get a fully exposed flash frame, using the precision advance-delay HSS function of the trigger. Elinchrom calls this Hi-Sync to distinguish if from Hypersync, which is normally a simpler method for catching the peak of electronic flash output. A readout on the trigger lets you time the exposure for the best plateau of light output, avoiding the typical ‘graduated exposure’ effect which hypersync methods can produce with focal plane shutters. For further information, visit www.theflashcentre.co.uk – or use the QR code (on camera) for Elinchrom’s YouTube promo.

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Xianbin Li’s entry validated as the winner

The Master Photographers Association has announced Xianbin Li AMPA as the winner of the Overseas Wedding Art Fashion 2015/16 and Overseas Wedding Photographer of the Year 2015/16. After the original winner was disqualified, due to an unintentional breach of the rules of entry, Chair of Judges Peter Ellis

FMPA and members of his judging team, Trevor Yerbury Hon FMPA, Dennis Orchard AMPA and Roy Wooding FMPA rejudged the Over-seas Wedding Art category from the remaining finalists and awarded Xianbin the title for the photograph above. The Overseas Wedding Photographer of the year was then re-judged from the winners of the following wedding categories, Wed-ding Day and Celebration, Wedding Classical and Wedding Art Fashion. As a result Xianbin Li has also been awarded the title of Overseas Wedding Photographer of the Year 2015/16. Members are reminded that pictures taken at seminars or workshops, whether by a delegate or by the organiser, are not eligible for entry into categories which require the work to be from a commissioned or paid wedding or bridal fashion assignment. A revision and update for clarity of the rules of entry (which already stated this) will be printed in the next Master Photography edition before the 2016/17 Awards open for submissions.

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photovalue.com LO CALL 0800 0845 750 [email protected]

Martin Baynes of Graphistudio was also on hand to give Scott Johnson the news that he’d won the MPA Wedding Album of Year award and a prize trip to Venice.

Roy Meiklejon of main awards sponsors Towergate Insurance presents Alexandra Lord AMPA with her certificate and trophy as best Associateship of 2015.

Melanie East of The Art of the Newborn Workshops and Martin Baynes of Graphistudio give the Newborn Photography Award to Hazel Irvine LMPA.

John Parris FMPA accepts Cherubs Photographer of the Year from Loxley Colour’s Calum Thomson. We also thank all the sponsors of other awards not featured here.


The best of British commercial

Though dominated numerically by brides, babies and beautifica-

tion there’s a category in the Master Photography Awards for industrial, architectural, advertising and commercial work. With the budgets al-located by large corporations to everyday photography now unattractive compared to the sums ordinary families spend on a wall print or an album, it’s a threatened sector but still produces a great variety of diverse imagery. On this spread, the Awards of Excellence – top left by Richard Bradbury FMPA, whose overall winner appears in the Masters of Photography 2016 Annual (he was also honoured for a vertical variation of the above picture); right, by Phil Ingles AMPA. Top right, by Paul Walker FMPA; and bottom right, by David Taylor FMPA.


Six entries also reached the level of Award of Merit. On this spread, we find three which have a connection to transport in one way or an-other – and three which are interiors. Above, by Andy Hook LMPA, whose entries in other categories following this theme of editorial-style environmental portraiture certainly caught our editorial eye. Right, by Grant McKelvie LMPA – and we have to hope that David Taylor’s further entry below has only a tenu-ous link! David, a Fellow of the MPA, is one of the very few senior photographers remaining in British industry, portraying how oil keeps the wheels of the economy turn-ing for Lubrizol Ltd. Facing page, top left, by Julia Holland AMPA. Top right, by Andy Hook LMPA. The architectural shot, bottom right, is by Giles Christopher AMPA. Perhaps with the end of many years of recession in which no new architecture has appeared in the UK, we’ll one day see the art of archi-tectural photography deserve a category of its own.

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My career as a professional photographer has taken many turns to arrive where I now stand as 2015-16 President of the Master Photographers Association.

Throughout all the ups and downs, I owe a great deal to pho-tography. I have travelled extensively and doing what I love has brought me into contact with many inspiring people along the way. Most members know me as both a landscape and travel photographer and as a wedding photographer, probably two of the most difficult areas to carve a living from these days, so I’m fully aware of the challenges most of us face in our businesses. To take the place as the public and industry figurehead of our Association is a huge honour and I take the role very seriously. I once sat in a seminar where the speaker said that he would never press a shutter release without being paid to do so. It’s of-ten said that a seminar is worthwhile even if you can take away only one piece of useful information. In this case, that was exactly what I did. The useful information I took away with me from that seminar was that I had no intention of following the same path, but I was resolved to do the exact opposite because I absolutely disagreed with his comment! Personal work and projects are a rich vein of creative devel-opment and, from my own experience, often lead to new direc-tions, drive, ambition and business growth. My landscape and travel photography business is now on course to be my main income stream. As with any business, it’s up to me to reach my goals but I am determined and my personal work has been very influential in this direction. My Presidential year will involve regional visits, I’m already booked to visit the Central and Wales Regions and I’m look-ing forward to meeting those members who I have not yet met and those who I already know. One of the messages I will take with me is to keep your mind and your eyes open to new ideas, directions and opportunities. Search, try, learn, practice and adapt. You may not always be paid every time you press the shutter release, but that is not the end of the story. It may well be the beginning of the next chapter. – Steve Walton FMPA FBIPP FRSA National President

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MPA’s new President –Steve

Walton,triple

Fellow

At the annual awards day in October outgoing President Faye Yerbury was specially thanked – along with her husband Trevor who has shared the workload – for her diligence in visiting regions and reaching out to the membership. She passed the President’s Badge to Steve Walton, new President, with the admission that it was the first time she had worn it as it’s been away for renovation. We look forward to seeing more of the gong along as Steve promises to follow Faye’s example.

Winners go to the dogs

Pet portraiture underpins many successful studios. Here are the three Awards of Excellence from the 2015/16 exhibition – top, by Belinda Buxton LMPA; below, by Tracy Clements AMPA; and bottom, by Trixie Hiscock LMPA.Start thinking about your 2016 entries now!


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In 2014, Cameracraft ran an eight-page portfolio of Steve Walton’s black and

white work – mostly pano-ramas. It was all about film. The accompanying biographi-cal profile didn’t even men-tion digital. Now two years later, Steve’s new task as President of the MPA prompted us to ask for newer images, having seen many examples of recent work in the Hebrides, where he has been exploring locations for the photo tours he leads. This new work is all captured with the Nikon D810 and the resulting files are as good as any scan from medium-format film. We wrote for the Camer-acraft folio – “As a wedding photographer, he’s used to coping with everything the British weather can throw at couples and cameras.” That certainly also applies when you make your hunting-ground the fringes of the Atlantic in the far north west of the British Isles.

STEVE’S SEA CHANGE

Steve is a Fellow of the MPA, BIPP, and RSA and much in demand as a speaker and judge. He is the author of Contemporary Wedding Photography (David & Charles, 2006), one of the most com-prehensive and original wed-ding photography textbooks, now translated into seven lan-guages and selling well. Social and commercial photography are as important as fine art to Steve’s business. He’s also an expert digital printer. Steve is a tour tutor and a regular workshop leader. In 2015 Santorini and La Gomera were added to his favourite shooting-grounds. Harris and Lewis, however, remain responsible for turn-ing this mountain man into a keen visual beachcomber. You learn more at: stevewaltonphotography.co.uk wildlightphototours.co.uk or make sure you catch one of his MPA regional dates in 2016. –DK

Á

Steve won many awards for his monochrome views with the Fujifilm GX617 panoramic rollfillm camera system he used for many years alongside his Leicas. Digital capture joined these some time ago – but he uses the same degree of tech-nical control once required for film, metering for manual settings rather than rely-ing on automation. He likes to get everything right ‘in camera’ and controls sky and land tones using Formatt and Lee filters, with a Manfrotto

tripod always at hand to en-sure sharpness. The aim is to make the scene look natural without exaggerated filter and time exposure effects. He also avoids the use of HDR processing, as when recording the deserted time capsule of ‘Rachel’s Croft’, a discovery he has documented without disturbance. Access to this is controlled Steve worked light – no tripod, just the excellent ISO 3200 qual-ity of the D810 and a single Nikon lens, the new 20mm ƒ1.8.


Recent work in the Outer Hebrides – with a beautiful dawn at Callanish, below.


Above: Luskentyre Beach, one of the most popular locations for year-round photography.Steve uses fast, top grade prime lenses with his Nikon D810 and his kit includes the 20mm ƒ1.8, 24mm ƒ1.4, 28mm ƒ1.8 and 85mm ƒ1.4.Below: The last light of day, after 9pm on a May evening – Inch Beach, County Kerry, on the west coast of Ireland.


‘JETTY’Jetty was photographed by Mark Bauer using the Lee Filter’s Little Stopper and 0.6 ND Hard Grad filter.

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Rachel’s Croft – a time capsule of a unique way of life in the remote Outer Hebrides, the contents of decaying cottage left as they were found.


All photographs by Steve Walton FMPA.Nikon D810 with 20mm ƒ1.8 lens – outside view at ISO 320, interiors at ISO 3200.


- THE EVENT FOR EVERYONE WHOSE BUSINESS IS PHOTOGRAPHY -

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TEAMING UP TO TEACH THE ART Paul Wilkinson FMPA joined forces with Sarah Plater

to produce a definitive new portraiture manual

If ever a book deserved a hard cover and long future of reprint runs, it must be

the new Ammonite Press title Mastering Portrait Photography. Paul Wilkinson provides the portraits, while Sarah Plater as both a photographer and writer pulls the content together in the usual editori-ally-planned manner. This approach – from synopsis to finished softback with 176 inner pages – is how publishers have worked since the 1970s. The book must have a multiple of 16-page sections, the topics must fit neatly on to spreads, the il-lustrations will go with the text and cations, and each spread is like a mini-article in its own right. It contrasts to the old way of writing a book in chapters which could vary greatly in length and often ended up with pictures divorced from the relevant text. What this book is not about is business. You might ask why a chairman of the MPA, a Fellow and totally committed professional, would give away all the se-crets of portrait photography, one of the two great pillars of the social studio’s structure. This book doesn’t even go there – it is entirely about creating portraits, on a tech-nical and creative level. The examples used throughout the eight chapters and 57 top-ics are relevant to personal, student, salon (competition), and commercial work. The book does not attempt to de-fine its readership as amateur, professional or otherwise. It’s just a blow-by-blow reference study. You can open it at any spread and learn something. The picture of Peter Adlington (right), for example, appears with two others on a spread all about Eye Contact. Hiding in the text is a small gem of great value to any pro-fessional designing an album,

a portrait book or a multi-pic-ture frame layout. Of direct eye contact, the authors say – “It also demands more of the viewer, so a whole set of images containing eye contact can becoming tiring and repetitive”. One of the other two ex-amples on this spread is also used on the cover of the book (left) and combined with a third shot of a couple where the woman looks at the cam-era but the man kisses her with eyes closed from the side the point is made perfectly. Do you think about the direction of gaze, and the way direct eye contact is used in your layouts? Many similarly vital points are made throughout this book and they bring a profes-sional’s perspective to the general topic of portraiture. Amateurs can benefit too, even film-makers can pick up plenty of tips from Mastering Portrait Photography. If there’s any criticism to be made, it is that the topics are only extended beyond the two-page spread format when absolutely necessary and this tends to happen with hard-ware and technical stuff. You can’t deal with Exposure in a single spread so it gets two; Aperture gets a second spread (mostly one image) to cover that annoyingly misused Japanese term ‘bokeh’. Shut-ter Speed only gets a single spread. Lighting, in contrast, gets an effective six-page intro which is necessary for the single subject which has most effect. The book is written for a transatlantic market, so ‘color’ finds its way in to replace ‘colour’ but nothing jars. Somehow the writers and editors manage to avoid any major culture clash. In the past, publishers had to use picture libraries to add examples taken in the UK for US books, or in the US for UK

This shot of world-famous architect Peter Adlington OBE has the subject’s gaze looking slightly off-camera, at something the viewer can’t see. This creates intrigue, as the viewer tries to guess what the subject is looking at.


books, or anywhere except Germany for German ones… today things are different as much of the world dresses and looks the same. Even so, it’s essentially a Northern Hemisphere manual. The pictures on this page illustrate quality of natural light rather than just find-ing a solution to a downpour (left), and exposure lock with an off-centre subject rather than the pleasures of shoot-ing outdoors in winter (above)

but we have selected them as they will remind you that January and February do not force you to work only in the studio! Below is a great illustration showing the use of two off-camera wireless speedlights from the section on Portable Flash. Mastering Portrait Photogra-phy is available at £19.99 from www.thegmcgroup.com or findISBN 978-1-78145-085-7 – David Kilpatrick

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

The Travel Photographer of the Year Competition (TPOTY) is one of the

biggest events on the calendar for professionals in this sector of the business and for enthusiasts who are documenting their journeys to, and experiences in, fresh and interesting parts of the world. The award event was conceived by professional photographer Chris Coe (right) in 2002 and launched the following year, and it was designed to create a showcase for interesting travel-related photography and to broaden the general perception of this area of photography. “Travel photography requires photographers to show the breadth of their skills as it embraces so many different genres,” says Suffolk-based Chris. “People, landscape, wildlife, reportage, advertising, architecture, food photography etc – and I don’t think that was generally understood. “TPOTY has always sought to promote photographers, and back then there weren’t many photographic competitions around and even fewer focused on travel. Those that did exist were generally run by publishers with the objective of sourcing free images for their publications. TPOTY was designed from the outset for photographers and it’s always taken a strong stance on protecting copyright.” Fujifilm was one of the founding sponsors for the competition and Genesis – the lab that Chris has personally used for over twenty years – became a supporter because he felt their high quality service made them the perfect partner. Genesis prints all the TPOTY exhibitions and, in addition to providing prints as

Why Genesis and Fujifilm Crystal Archive Paper are miles ahead at the Travel Awards

‘Crystal Archive prints that Genesis produce offer a tonal range and richness that’s hard to match with any other type of printing’ – Chris Coe of TToPY

prizes the lab also offers a Fujifilm Crystal Archive printing service – at 50% discount – for shortlisted entrants, since TPOTY’s final judging is always done on prints rather than online. “We needed a lab that could provide master printing and the attention to detail that’s expected of a high profile photography award,” says Chris. “The Crystal Archive prints that Genesis produce offer a tonal range and richness that’s very hard to match with any other type of printing, and the various silver halide papers offer different characteristics in much the same way as film did.” TPOTY is as much about prestige and exposure as it is about winning prizes, and it’s thrown the spotlight on a number of rising stars over the years, while more experienced photographers have cemented and enhanced their reputations. “One young winner’s images were spotted by a London ad agency and TPOTY negotiated a five-figure fee for their use by a major aircraft manufacturer,” says Chris. “The fee paid for a college course and a new camera system and the image use was renewed the following year. “Meanwhile for the overall winners there’s the benefit of extensive media coverage and the chance to be part of a high profile UK exhibition. The last one welcomed 51,231 visitors in six weeks – and the show will now start to tour internationally.” The winners of the 2015 TPOTY competition have recently been announced and the exhibition of work will be touring shortly. Full details of how to enter for the 14th awards can be found on www.tpoty.com from April 2016.

Top – by Jakub Rybicki. Above – by Johnny Haglund. Both courtesy of Travel Photographer of the Year (TPOTY) 2014, copyright of the photographers. See: www.tpoty.com

Kids just want to have fun. So does photographer Janine Stow.

Children are simply world-class when it comes to letting off steam, having temper tantrums and making noise. So it’s interesting that so many professional photographers choose to produce pictures that show them in stiff, formal poses. Anything but relaxed. For London-based Janine Stow the instinct was always to let the children she was photographing do their thing around her, and to win their trust and confidence by effectively becoming a child

herself. She joins in their games – hunting for lions and making daisy chains. She stimulates their imagination, wins their trust and then takes her pictures in a relaxed style while the children play happily around her. “I work quickly and take whatever the children will offer me,” she says, “and just capture what’s there in the most natural way possible.” Self-taught and with a natural eye for composition, Janine previously had a busy life as a criminal barrister. Then eleven years ago her husband’s job took her to Singapore for what was

From a life of crime (as a barrister) to a life of just kidding round

JanineStow


meant to be a two-year stay and the opportunity was there to take her photography more seriously. “I could see an opportunity for child portraiture since the style in Singapore was very formal and studio based,” she says. “My lifestyle approach particularly appealed to the ex-pat community who favoured a more natural look.” The two years in Singapore ended up being six, and Janine returned to the UK with two children, two dogs and settled in a new house. Now she needed to find a lab she could trust and so she asked her wedding photographer for a

recommendation. “She suggested Genesis,” she says, “and I’ve been with them ever since. The Fujifilm Crystal Archive C-type prints they produce for me not only look amazing, but give me something extra that I can tell my clients. The pictures of their family will go to become an heirloom, and I can tell them that they’re archivally really stable and could last for up to a hundred years.” One of the most pleasing aspects of photographing children is that once Janine has completed her first shoot she will often go on to become the family’s regular photographer. What starts out

as a shoot with a new baby turns into shots of the Christening, then pictures of the first birthday party and other significant family events way into the future. “It’s such a pleasure to watch these children growing up,” she says. “We get to know each other and that leads to very relaxed and successful sessions. I still have plenty of contacts in Singapore and go back there twice a year to catch up with the clients I still have there. “It’s a privilege to be involved in this way and it’s definitely one of the best aspects of the job.”www.janinestowphotography.com

ADVERTISING FEATURE

It was necessity that first encouraged Australian-born Tarquin Millington-Drake (right)

to pick up a camera in earnest. Having spent over twenty years to date working for sporting travel company Frontiers, he’s found himself travelling to some of the remotest places on the planet on a regular basis, and it felt only natural to record the fascinating people he was meeting. “I had no training,” he says, “so I benefited from the arrival of the digital era. It gave me the opportunity to teach myself the basics of photography through a process of trial and error. I produce pictures for our brochures and web use, to support my blog, and increasingly I have written for sporting magazines, supplying photographs to support the articles.” Tarquin was born in Sydney in 1965 and moved to the UK the same year, being raised alongside the River Thames at Shepperton. Along its leafy banks he learned to fish for pike and then taught himself to cast a fly using an old rod he’d found in his parents’ garden shed. “Over the years I’ve fished almost all the great rivers of the world,” he says. “Shooting began while I was staying with friends in the country and I quickly developed a love of dogs and dog

‘Face mounting enhances the colour and depth of the print, and gives the photograph a beautiful contemporary finish’ – Tarquin Millington-Drake

output on Fujifilm’s silver halide Crystal Archive Paper and then face-mounted, a process that sees the print mounted between a sheet of perspex and an aluminium or di-bond backing sheet. “Face mounting enhances the colour and depth of the print, and gives the photograph a beautiful contemporary finish,” says Tarquin. “It becomes a complete work of art and it’s perfect for clients that are looking to hang pictures in places where a more robust finish is required.” www.millingtondrake.com blog.millingtondrake.com

From ‘A Year on the Moor’

work. I’ve been fortunate to be able to combine my passions with my career.” Cotswolds-based Tarquin is now considered one of the top country sports photographers in the UK, and this summer his book A Year on the Moor was published, celebrating life on and around a grouse moor in Northumberland. Many of the pictures inside

were gathered together for an exhibition and event, A Celebration of Grouse, which took place in silversmith and fellow grouse enthusiast Patrick Mavros’s gallery in London earlier this year. It was the need to have large-scale prints produced to a high standard for the exhibition that first led Tarquin to Genesis, and it was Patrick Mavros who recommended the lab to him. He was immediately impressed by the results and he’s been using their services ever since. Fulham-based Genesis has been supplying Lambda C-Type prints for Tarquin, which are

Captured – the sporting life

For information on Fujifilm Crystal Archive papersor to request a sample print please call Peter Wigingtonon 01234 572138, email [email protected] or visit www.fujifilm.eu/uk/products/photofinishing/photographic-paper

Ken Sethi of Genesis shows off a face-mounted acrylic display print on Fujifilm Crystal Archive paper


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It had been such a long time since MPA was first invited by Graphistudio to

go out and visit their factory and castle – two years in fact. We couldn’t do it at the time. So when their latest offer to join them at the Venice sym-posium came – the time was right, and I accepted. Getting to know who our sponsors are and have greater insight into the core of all they do, and strengthen our relationships, is an area I have focused on. Graphistudio bring such a wealth of oppor-tunity to both our members and the Association. Invest-ing the time getting to know the key people who support us, meet up with some of the icons in our industry, whilst rekindling and creating relationships with speakers and members for the MPA was the main purpose of the visit. When I came away also filled with creative passion and inspiration I certainly took home a lot more than I expected.

A lovely cityI arrived 36 hours early to prepare for a very busy sched-ule, knowing that I would not be able to spare time to explore Venice itself once the large group of speakers, del-egates and organisers assem-bled. I wanted to understand the culture of Venice having never been before, so armed with my journal and pen I spent Sunday walking, just going with the flow seeing where my steps took me. As I explored Venice I understood just why Yervant and Anie choose this city as the loca-tion for their workshops. The creativity that is celebrated in every nook and cranny of this beautiful city made it feel like home. With no cars rushing past, no phone pinging because some-thing else needs my atten-tion, it became easy to slow down the mind to a leisurely walking pace and absorb all around. So by the Monday morn-ing I was both refreshed and excited about the week that lay ahead of me – and soon

lost in the magic of the open-ing speeches as the passion from every single speaker filled the room with a spiral of energy that propelled me to a whole new world of inspiration. You could not help but feel the sense of love, respect and genuine friendship that flowed from the people stood before me.

Telling it how it isDario Righetto from Graphis-tudio opened the symposium with a speech that moved me the most as he spoke about their ethos of creating a com-munity for sharing passion, knowledge, expertise and experience. His values reso-nate with our own to create a home for photographers, and perhaps the biggest lesson I was reminded of was to ‘trust yourself enough to take responsibility for your life so you can listen, learn and do’. Yervant followed! His hu-mour filled the air, bringing a lightness to the laughter in the room which somehow floated up to the ceiling and draped itself from the art that adorned time and space. Add in his passion for photogra-phy, sharing knowledge, his pure admiration and love for his wife Anie, and you could feel the secrets of his success with every word that flowed. Anie, Rocco Ancora, Jeff Ascough, David Bastianoni, David Brenot, Nik Pekridis, Michelle Neal Celantano, Salvatore Dimino, Vicki Papas Vergara, Kelly Brown, Keda Z and Jerry Ghionis all took their turns to fill the room with insight into the delights of the week ahead, and my feet tapped excitedly with each wave of passion that made its way through the sea of silent listeners sat before them. As I write this article for the magazine, I realise that in my space allocation there is no where near enough room to share what I have collected from each speaker, so I will create a series of on-line blogs to follow up this article and share all that I brought back with you.

REBIRTH INVENICEClare Louise finds out why the Queen of

the Adriatic is the number one destination to revive your photography

From the top, a welcome to ‘La Serenissima’ – the Grand Canal; Tullio Tramontina, founder of Graphistudio; down to business indoors at Ceconi Castle with an enthusiastic delegation; and making notes in the sunshine.


Intensive immersionThe week became a blur of walking from class to class, absorbing more information than I knew what to do with, my notebook quickly filling up with creative inspiration, technical information and the wisdom of other people’s experience. Within the first three days what I had learned or been reminded of was now beyond a price-tag – the value of what was flowing through me priceless, inspira-tion, passion, creativity and as I looked around the halls watching people on their way, I know I was not the only one feeling that way too. It was as if a magic wand had been waved and we were all given permission to just be, just play with life, our creativity, and think not of yesterday, or tomorrow… just today, no questions asked… to just listen, learn and do. To do something just because we wanted too, not needed to or were asked to, simply wanted. My goodness was that food for the soul, something I have missed since I put down my camera and concentrated on my management role, yet something I urge every pho-tographer to make the time to do. Creative days, no matter where or when that is! We were broken down into smaller groups and I made friends with people from around the world as well as on my own doorstep that I would never have had the opportunity to meet, who enriched the trip beyond measure. Midway during a week of creative overload, the groups were taken out on a variety of locations with models and gear to test, to take photo-graphs, to explore all that they had learned from the days before under the guid-ance of the speakers. Ahead of leaving for the shoots we were treated to the unveiling of Anie’s new burst of creativity as a fashion designer. She watched the models parade in front of us in her stunning designs – I looked over to see her tear filled eyes and was both


touched and inspired by her humbleness, excitement and awe as she watched her own dream take shape in front of her. I am a big believer in dreams, I always have been, and live by my own motto ‘dreaming is the imagina-tion’s guide to all things pos-sible’. As we were driven out to the Graphistudio factory and Count Ceconi Castle, Graphistudio’s education centre, I was shown just how much the power of believing in your dreams, against all odds, can achieve, and it is here I am moved to tears.

Ceconi CastleWhen you stand at the foot of magnificence – and are stood next to a man no different to yourself when he set out on his journey of unleashing his creativity, armed with a vision, passion and determination – you stand in the power of your own dreams, your own vi-sion, your own passion and determination. It is here you understand that no matter how big or small your dream is you can achieve it if you believe in it. I do not think for one sec-ond that Tullio Tramontana, the founder of Graphistudio, ever imagined that he would own a castle that sits amongst the peaks of mountains when he started out working from a converted garage producing those first books by his own hand. It’s as if the journey to castle is symbolic of the road Tullio and many others take when following their dreams. The excitement when you make that first step to a destination unknown. The road is long, with bends that you can not see around and positioned on the steepest of inclines… and as you brace yourself to make it round those tight corners with the never-ending drops, you see the beauty those tight corners can bring, and just when you wonder how much further there is to travel, the road opens up to an expanse of serenity, accomplishment

Photographs from the event – facing page, top, by David Bastianone; bottom, by Michelle Neal Celantano; this page, above, by Jerry Ghionis. See also the story overlead about Jerry’s presentation and his ‘Hockney’ wedding album design. Left, Ceconi Castle under the changeable skies of the Veneto, photographed by Clare Louise.


and beauty. And as you stand in that peace amongst those peaks, they too speak as a reminder that there is always more to climb, always a new dream, a new vision to be had borne from the wisdom of the road less travelled. The Graphistudio factory is the size of what feels like 15 football fields, and whilst I’m sure that isn’t quite right you definitely feel you are in the creative photographer’s version of Willie Wonka’s chocolate factory. If ever there was a company that wanted you to explore your vision of creativity rather than stop-ping at theirs, here it is. As you walk around listen-ing to the who, where, what, when and why of it all, it is clear that Graphistudio's investment in their product is about giving today’s profes-sional photographer the tools to explore their own creative vision. They provide choice to create products that enhance their work, choice to create uniqueness that is not only reflected in the images you shoot but in the products you sell – choice to brand you and your business in a way no other can. They become another tool to help you, the professional photographer, stand out above the crowd as you wrap your images in

their quality, elegance and creativity. As it came to an end, the week felt like a year, the strangers had become friends, the dreams reality. Nothing had prepared me for what I would come away from on this trip, and no words can sum up the magic and inspiration that was ignited within – not just within me, but in those around me. Life is what we make it, that message came through loud a clear from every speak-er we were fortunate enough to hear. Opportunities can so often go unseen and buried in so many excuses that we forget why we are here, doing what we do. For anyone thinking of doing something for them-selves this next 12 months, consider making your way over to a Venice workshop or simply taking a trip to the castle, where the doors are al-ways open to photographers. Invest in yourself, invest in your skills, your creativity and your dreams – and like me and so many others be inspired to aim for greater things. – Clare Louise FMPA

ÁSee: www.graphistudio.comPictures: top, by Vicki Papas Vergara; centre by David Brenot; below by Kelly Brown.


More pictures taken in the Castle Ceconi settings by speakers – above, by Keda Z Feng; below left, by Rocco Ancora; below right, by Nik Pekridis. The outfits worn by the models are all from the Anie Z label collection, created by Yervant’s wife Anie Zanazanian in her new venture as a designer.


Jerry Ghionis revisits his ‘Hockney’ album design

During his presentation for the Venice week, Jerry Ghionis told the

story of an album he created a few years ago for a WPPI competition. It was inspired by Hockney and others who have used Polaroids, contact sheets or sliced-up images to create large artworks. Since then we’ve seen the arrival of concepts like the Lytro Illum lightfield camera which give the impression of a subject frozen in time yet moving, and seen from more than one angle. Of the original design, Ghionis says, “It created a sense of movement in each spread. It makes a 2D image almost appear 3D. It was like creating a puzzle from the inside out with no knowledge of the final image. “The album was one of the most ambitious, challenging and difficult album designs of my career. Each image had to be placed individu-ally and carefully. It took me six long days with very few interruptions to produce this album. I called my good friend Andrew Funderburg from Fundy Software Inc who created the base templates for the book and made it easy for me to position and adjust all the images faster than I could have in Photoshop.

“My inspiration came from the master of Polaroid col-lages, David Hockney. For the WPPI competition I try to dis-guise my entries so the judges don’t assume it’s a ‘Jerry Ghionis’ album. Well, I was rewarded! I won the album of

the year award for the eighth time with that very album! “It was a love or hate al-bum. It’s deliberately chaotic and it was a huge risk but it was designed with purpose. It is truly one of my favourites and it is the most difficult de-

sign I have ever attempted. “I have featured the design on my web site ever since (sample spread shown top) and thought it was like the ‘Fer-rari in the showroom’ – most will stop and stare at it but will most likely never buy it. “Well, last year a couple booked me for that very album. Before the Venice presentation for Graphistudio, I put the final touches on the album and presented it to the couple. I was so excited that a couple had the guts to order this kind of album. “The moral of the story? You sell what you show. Don’t believe that the industry forc-es you into a particular style of photography. Love what you do and put it out there. People will book you for your unique perspective. Unasham-edly and unapologetically be yourself. “Put your heart on your sleeve (and your web site) and you may not be the most popular photographer but people will book you for the work you love rather than the work you have to do.” The lower image shows a spread from the client album created using the concept from the competition album.

ÁSee: www.jerryghionis.com

Concept for WPPI contest, above – client album sample spread, below

You can read ƒ2 Freelance Photographer incorporating Cameracraft on your mobile device or Mac/PC

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Over the past few years I have gained a repu-tation as a ‘Fantasy

Photographer’ which is not something that I particularly set out to do and it is only one part of the styles of work I shoot. I like to create im-ages with more of an artistic feel using colour, shape and textures and some simple narrative. Before starting any of my creative shoots I take a mo-ment to consider the mood and feel that I am aiming to achieve. During this time I create a mood board and discuss the ideas with my creative team. Although I always have an idea of what the final image should look like I appreciate the input of my team consist-ing of hair stylist and makeup artist and sometimes the designer. In the example here for instance I knew I wanted a cold, icy style shoot, feeling both wintery and edgy. While this sounds like I do a lot of initial planning I must confess that I actually put little thought into the lighting, pose and styling at this stage, preferring to leave this until the day of the shoot. While the model is in hair and makeup it is easier to evaluate how the final im-age may look and my model had the perfect face for me to light in such a way that would accentuate her cheek-bones and collar bone, which is something I always aim to achieve in my work.

Dress codeMy original clothing ideas can also change quite dramat-ically at this point to ensure they still match the hair and makeup styling. With hair and makeup complete I decided a less is more approach to the cloth styling would be needed. The model was dressed in a tutu which was turned upside down from her waist to make a top which was then tied around with more netted material. The material was chosen to complement the icy feel I was looking for and to work much better than tailored clothing. The hair was set to one side of the head to give the impression of a slightly wind-swept and frozen appearance and to make it just that little bit more unusual a pair of sil-ver horns were added. These were positioned at an angle to produce an asymmetric look. Over time I have built quite a collection, for my cre-

WINTER BLUESStyling and lighting a creative portrait with Stephanie Ann Thornton

Stephanie’s lighting (see details in story) used two blue filtered narrow strip boxes either side of the subject position to produce a rim light accent, reflectors, black panels and a single 44cm unfiltered flash head providing a well defined face structure. Make-up, hair, props and fabric were all chosen to fit the winter theme.


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ative shoots, of head pieces, tutu's, corsets, dresses, various pieces of material and quirky items and more often than not I use these rather than high street fashion cloth-ing. For my hair and beauty shoots I prefer the outfits to be either non-descriptive or not seen at all to produce a more natural and real feel and far as away as possible from just ‘another pretty girl in pretty clothes’ image.

Tuning the lightI wanted the lighting for the model to be soft but also to be sharp with lots of defini-tion and contrast. I started by positioning two Elinchrom 600RX heads with 130 x 50cm strip soft boxes, each with a blue gel filter fitted inside, on either side of my background. My background was a mid grey Colorama paper roll from Creative Backgrounds, which is perfect for producing the best colour from my gels while at the same time allow-ing me to control the depth of colour though the power output of my lights. In this case the angle and position of the strip lights was set to tint the back-ground but spill slightly on to the subject, to accent the edges of the hair and bleed gently onto the skin. Two 8' x 4' black poly boards were placed either side to partly flag the background, and shade more definition on to the model’s cheek bones. Finally I used my Elinchrom Quadra ELB 400 fitted with the 44cm square ‘mini hazy light’ rigid reflec-tor, deflector cap and grid for a more direct focused light. The grid not only creates good contrast while main-taining a beauty dish look but also makes this front light easy to control and position to prevent spill onto the background. Incorrectly po-sitioned ,or used without the grid, it would have reduced the colour of my background. During shooting different poses and styles develop as you go but I always favour the simple look, not over ex-

aggerated or messy. I look for smooth lines and shape that allow me to make best use of my lighting to add shadows and define the body. Expres-sion is also a key element in any image so I tried to main-tain a feeling of innocence but still have a slightly fierce edge, keeping the eyes soft and dreamy and contrast that with tension in the eyebrows. Most of the images during the session were shot under the same lighting conditions the only difference being the

model’s position between the strip lights and moving the flags slightly to allow more or less coloured light to fall on to the background. For a more contrasty and dramatic effect (the first and final pictures here) I simply moved my originally central front light, the 44cm reflec-tor, to one side creating deep-er shadows and darkening the background. Occasionally I would bring a small reflector just under my models chin to reduce the contrast slightly

and make her eyes stand out, especially when shooting close-up head shots. All the images were shot at ISO 100, ƒ4 @ 1/125s on a Canon 6D and 24-70 ƒ2.8L.

Á

Model – Sian, Pose Elite ModelsHair – Sam ArnoldMakeup – Nikhita M Patel Stephanie works from studios in Leeds and Essex in collabora-tion with Steve Howdle FMPA. See: www.thorntonhowdle.com


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E R I C HCAPARASIT’S PORTRAITURE, BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT, JIM…

TWO TRIBES, ONE PRINCESS – A FELLOWSHIP STORY

This is a photographic essay about a princess and her six suitors. The princess lives between two continents with suitors from both sides: the eastern tribe and the western tribe. Princess Shekie is a very modern princess. She is loved by her family, admired by her people, and worshiped by many. Her colorful personality is matched only by her creative flair and impeccable taste for fashion. She glows and she gleams wherever she goes but she’s lonely. Often she is seen reflecting on her life and daydreaming about her future. She has come of age and is ready to embark on the next chapter in her life. She has to choose a mate for life. The day has come to present her to her suitors.



Awarded a Fellowship of the MPA for this story-telling portrait panel,

Erich Caparas already has an international reputation. He started in the 1970s in reprographic art for the print-ing industry, transitioned to the emerging DTP and computer graphics field in the

1980s, was a beta tester for Photoshop and in 1990 set out on a ten-year career in photo imaging as the new technol-ogy progressed with him. In 2000, as the dotcom revolu-tion changed the economics and technoloigy involved, he moved with it but became disillusioned with the sudden

collapse in standards and pro-fessional status. From 2002 to 2011 he left the industry and became a real estate profes-sional in Florida. Then, at the age of 51, he was drawn back to photography and realised things had moved forward to the point he could pass on 38 years of experience to others.

See the front cover for the fifth image in this set.


Although most of Erich’s strongest past period in photography involved commercial and advertis-ing, his passion is portrait photography. “I just got burned out and felt that the true craft of photogra-phy was forever lost when digital cameras became affordable. I always had a studio to do my personal portrait work, and I decided in 2011 to pick my cam-era up again, but this time I would just do the type of photography I wanted to: Portrait, Fashion, and Editorial. “I occasionally accept commissioned work but my photographic involvement recently is through teaching. I mentor advanced photographers. I was coaxed into it – I started posting my work on Face-book and soon photo enthusiasts started asking me questions, following me, and asking more of the same questions. I realised that most of the people getting into photography, post film era, were lack-ing in basic fundamentals. Speed, aperture, and ISO were just numbers that made their images lighter or darker. When I checked books about post processing and online tutorials I was shocked to see the lack of quality teaching materials. Authors concentrated on workflow, workflow, workflow… keyboard shortcut commands, and plug- ins. That’s not teaching! It’s like learning the piano through notes and music sheets. Take away the music sheets and the pianist can’t play. Whereas a jazz pianist can play with his eyes closed and ad-lib to his heart’s desire because he understands the instrument and how it works. “My original plan was to use past images for my panel. I after consulting with a mentor I realised that, to have theme and continuity, I had to create new images for my fellowship panel. The 20 images were from two different sittings as a requirement for

continued on page 49


The Suitors from the Eastern Tribe (above): The King, the Herder, and the Lover. Each one possessing the qualities of a future leader, these suitors have travelled far and prepared well for this day. King is the young king with no queen and spends most of his time working to chisel his body. Verge is the oldest son of a herder whose father is a herder and so is his father before him. Verge will continue his family’s legacy. Vin is a soft-spoken intellectual who loves to write and document the history of their tribe. Vin may not be able to offer expensive gifts to the princess but he makes up for it with his wits and charm.

The Suitors from the Western Tribe (below): Likewise, the east is matched by an equally able western counter part. Presenting Dada, Bobi, and Hamid. These men are fierce. Being on the west side exposes these men to harsh climate and wilderness. Dada, the


best candidate of the tribe, is a leader and a hunter. His Tiger marking is for courage. Bobi is a son of a shipwrecked merchant. Raised by the tribe, he has proven himself a worthy candidate for the princess’ hand in marriage. Hamid is Dada’s brother and is just as cunning and fierce as his brother. Not to be outdone, he is painted with the markings of a leopard, an equally smart, cautious, and calculating cat.


Decisions, Decisions, Decisions: As the princess laments on a very difficult decision, the tribesmen square off on an intimidation match. What to do, the princess sighs? Decisions, decisions. Oh what a headache. It is getting dark. Few more days and she must make the tough decision.Facing page: The Courtship – see over.


The Courtship: Thus the princess spends the next two days deciding for a suitable mate. And for two days she has six suitors at her feet willing to do anything to win her acceptance. As soon as she decides, a ceremony will be held, followed by more festivities. But for now, she has the luxury of choice but not time.

The Final Selection: The princess has reached a decision! Well, almost. She has narrowed down the selection to two men. One from each tribe. Vin, from the eastern tribe and Dada, from the western tribe. And so, the ceremony continues as each and everyone is readied for the ceremonial attire. Impressive show of colours and ornaments. And each suitor is taking one last time to make an impression.


continued from p43Portraiture Fellowship. These were the portraits of the prin-cess to showcase her colourful personality. The tribal sitting was several ssittings. I only had a few minutes to get my shots. Each lighting setup is different, paint is drying and cracking… I used four to eight lights, four mine, the rest, never seen before. I used a Nikon D810 with 16-35mm, 50mm, and 85mm lenses. I have been lucky to have many talented people take part on this – 30 people of-fered their time and talent free – six makeup artists, six body painters, seven models, two hair stylists… whatever reward I get from this series will be equally shared with them.

ÁSee: www.erich3D.com

The Tie- Breaker and the Ultimate Choice: The lover or the hunter? Both very eligible. A tough decision indeed. In a rather unorthodox tribal tie-breaker, the princess takes her suitors for a ride to test their patience, obedience, and endurance. The hunter wins easily. Had it been a test of wits, Vin may have won. But for now… Dada wins.


Phil Paine became a regular GP photogra-pher, with the usual mix

of social commissions and around 20 weddings a year, after many years in film and television. “I had a camera from the age of eight”, he says, “as my dad thought I needed something artistic to enjoy! How right he was. “Since that time I have always had a camera with me either for the job I was doing with TV news or just to docu-ment my own travels, people I met and things that made me smile. “I worked in war zones for approximately 29 years and when I left that arena of news and current affairs I took up my camera and began my own business as a portrait and wedding photographer. I absolutely love what I do, the people I meet and the very fact that I get to see people in the best of days and the best of ways. There is generally a time to chat and be with people but I do love to document what I see and as such I rarely use any external lighting, flash or

fixed. Occasionally I use off camera flash and have helped other photographers with off camera flash to help them produce stunning images. “I love faces, people, sto-ries, chatting and just getting that one image which sums up a person for me. “My view on the world is more documentary style but there is a great need to interact with and see the per-son first and then to become invisible whilst they talk and tell me about themselves. “For the last few months I have been documenting around my area up to a two mile radius in order to put together a book of all the different people, places and changes that have happened and continue to happen within that area of my post code.” He’s also been taking the same kind of documentary portrait further afield – and his endeavours have earned him an Licentiateship. Phil gave background stories for the images, and we’ve chosen a few to reproduce here.

Á

STORIES OF THE STREETPhil Paine could have been humming Leonard Cohen as he approached a varied

cast of characters to take their portraits and note down their stories – “lost among the subway crowds, I try to catch your eye…”

This is the man who services my car – he always has the time to be nice.Met in the town, a great face and a fabulous laugh. Nice chap.

This is our local corner shop man, Ramesh, from Sri Lanka. We always talk and have a joke about the world and I asked if I could take his picture. He was a Tamil Tiger when he was 19 (he's 26 now) and was picked up by the Sri Lankan army, they wanted some information so tied him to a chair and pulled his thumbnails off, then burnt his arms in many places with cigarettes. He left Sri Lanka and hasn't seen his family in a while, when I printed this picture for him to send to his mum he was very happy. He hasn't spoken with his mum for a few years, when she received the picture she called him and said how beautiful he looks, she cried! Ramesh is a lovely young man, with a big smile and a gorgeous laugh, he closed his shop for an hour to look at all these images set up on the newspaper racks so he can see what I have done. It's powerful that a photograph can make a difference – I'm glad his mum called him.


I met this chap on the canal path in Cambridge, he was enjoying a can or two of ale and was sat watching the world go by. I joined him for a while and he was kind enough to allow me to take this photograph.

Whilst visiting the area around Boston we met with this lovely lady in the local bait shop in Hull, MA. What a fabulous person and what a great store.

The Restoration Man. From a series of 20 images, this is Clive the furniture restorer. Clive loves anything in wood especially old and antique.


From the Luton carnival in 2015, a colourful affair, with a light drizzle of rain as always. This man stood out as I walked down the hill he was guiding an elephant (not a real one!) through the street. He was so calm amongst the noise of the carnival.

Another from the carnival in Luton – as I turned away from the man guiding an elephant, I spotted this man in the archway sat in a wheelchair. He was watching the noise and the spectacle and didn't look part of the day.

I visit the woodmen of Ayot Green for woodworking and various timber parts. Theirs is an old business in a really lovely old barn, it's cold with masses of wood and machinery and they are skilled carpenters who make old style sash windows, doors and anything you can fashion from wood. Their skills won't be passed on as there are too few who are interested in the traditional methods of making things from wood.


Grand Rapids, Michigan – this hot dog stall has never advertised in all their time, just word of mouth. Great retro-looking place with graffiti on the walls, posters of bygone days and probably THE best dogs I have ever eaten. This is the young man who served us with a great smile.

We met Ron on the I75 going to Mackinaw City – he pulled us over because of our tinted windows! We all got chatting and throughout our chat Ron never took his hand off his pistol. A large man at over 6ft 5inches and with big hands, he was polite and a great advert for the Michigan State Troopers. Really enjoyed our meeting, thanks Ron.See: www. philpainephotography.co.uk and follow Phil on Facebook for his regular new portraits and stories

I pass the Berlin Doner in Luton most days – and one day decided to call in to ask if I could take a photograph there for the project I am working on. These are great chaps working hard and producing delicious food… just had to try it! Yummy!


In the early 1900s there was a growing feeling of personal independence

throughout the modern world. A new sophisticated populace required a means of affordable, personal transport that wasn’t reliant on a garage full of expensive, bespoke craftsmen. In 1908 Henry Ford launched the ubiquitous Model T Ford. The Model T came with the benefits of mass production, a rolling concept first introduced by the Venetian ship builders of the 1300s building a galleon a day, in kit form, for the warmongers of the world. Everyone could enjoy the Model T’s sleek lines and 2.9 litre, inline 4 cylinder mo-tor at an extraordinary top speed of 45 miles per hour. After breaking all known sales records the Model T was replaced by the Model A now boasting a top speed of 65 miles per hour and so the ob-session with motorized speed began. Speeds increased with eve-ry new model and it became the all consuming feature of every vehicle. In time it became evident that a regular person was only able to travel so fast before reaction times and the practical restrictions of the public road system made it unfeasible to acceler-ate more. Speed limits were introduced around the world and the idea of travelling faster and faster on a daily basis became superfluous as most cars could accelerate to over 100 mph but were rarely able to do so. We had reached the limit of usefulness for that particular feature of mo-tor transport. Cars are now judged by the quality of the features that are essential for the modern driving experience. Engine smoothness, interiors, road holding, ride quality as well as navigation and en-tertainment systems are now refined with every new model and the top speed has become almost irrelevant. In short the market has gradually become sophisti-cated and requires more from its vehicles than just a high speed blast down the tarmac.

the shutter. Finally we had a camera that professionals could call their own. It took Nikon nearly two years to create the almost-comparable full frame D1X and the crop frame 12 megapixel D2X by which time the Canon 1DS MkII was offering 16.7MP. At that time I was using the 1DS for location portraits and editorial assignments, a 6MP EOS 10D for site progress and reccy work and a Phase One or Hassleblad system for the big advertising stuff, usually with a separate operator. But our obsession with file size was not over. We needed more pixels to hold in our hands. The invention of the “prosumer” was to finally seal the deal. As technology advanced the amateur and profes-sional markets were growing ever more similar and the prosumer concept created a much larger customer base. The liberated enthusiast was demanding more and once again it was Canon that led the way with the launch of the EOS 5D MkII in 2008. The techies were finally able to feed the hungry mouths of a world of pixel-starved photographers both amateur and professional with 21.1MP. Nikon quickly gained ground with the D3X boasting a 24.5MP CMOS sensor built by Sony. Sony themselves now also entered the professional market place with the Alpha A900 using the same sensor. Nikon soon started mak-ing their own sensors and by 2014 megapixel freaks had a choice between Nikon’s D810E at 36.3MP, Sony’s Alpha 7R at the same level, with Canon lagging behind with the 5D Mk3 offering just 22.1MP. It’s worth mention-ing that Leica launched the 37.5MP medium-format S2 way back in 2008. It is the Ivanka Trump of the cam-era world being staggeringly beautiful, quite brilliant, but bloody expensive. With a price tag of over £12,000 it was designed for kings rather than clickers. As 2015 rolled around you could not fail to notice

The history of professional digital cameras is a little more difficult to track but the exponential rise of the digital image has been led by one thing, megapixel count. Sci-entists had been using digital systems for some time and a few enthusiast or amateur cameras became available to the general public around the early 1990s. In 1993 Canon launched the first proto-type EOS SLR camera with a capture capacity of 1.3MP. This was never going to be usable for the professional market but it was an exciting milestone. Various scanning backs came onto the market with compatibility to existing studio camera systems but ob-viously these were only usable for still life photography. In 1994 the AP/Kodak NC2000 and NC2000E became the first cameras to be marketing directly at photojournalists. Based on the Nikon F90 and F90S they offered a resolution of 1024 x 1280 pixels and cost £11,200.

My first foray into the digital world was a Phase One Lightphase back with an output of 6MP (my current iPhone has 8MP). It was used with my Mamiya RZ67, cost more than the entire camera system put together and could only be used tethered. The lenses from the RZ system were totally unsuitable for digital capture and the results were questionable at best. Various digital backs ar-rived to fit large and medium format studio cameras but we were screaming for more megapixels in a hand-held camera. Most of us, me in-cluded, were still using film for professional jobs but we were moving ever closer to a useable professional pixel count. The great leap forward came in the shape of the Canon EOS 1DS. Launched in 2002, it gave access to up to 50 dedicated Canon lenses and a full frame 35 mm sized CMOS sensor pumping out 11.4 magnificent megapixels in RAW with every press of

TOO MANYPIXELS?In this regular column Richard Bradbury FMPA – MPA Creative & Commercial Photographer of the Year – wonders whether the megapixel

race benefits 35mm format DSLRs

Canon’s 5DS and 5DSR – kings of the pixel pile


arguably the most significant camera launch of the decade, following hard on the heels of Sony upgrading the A7R to a MkII sensor-stabilised 42MP version. Canon’s EOS 5DS and 5DSR (with low-pass cancel-ling technology) are the world’s first 50 megapixel DSLRs. Like thousands of other pixel freaks I placed my pre-order the day that I heard the news. By now you will have read a million words written about the 5DS so I promise you that this is not going to turn into another camera review column. Before my order was due, I was able to test the camera, and decided to stick with my 5D MkIIIs for 35mm-SLR style work. The 5DS and 5DSR hit the hire counters the moment they were available, I already use medium format for major commission work needing very large reproductions, and I can hire one of the new Canon bodies should I have a specific job which needs it. Even I find that decision a strange one as I am forever yearning for more quality in my images and nothing adds quality like more pixels per square inch…or does it? I’ve now used the 5DSR on several occasions and it does indeed pump out 50.6MP unless you opt to use the 28MP medium or 12MP small raw sizes. But the sacrifices they have made to achieve this goal, in my

You would not normally retouch young skin and it would be very difficult as the 5DSR image (full sized 300dpi section, left) reveals almost microscopic skin and hair detail.


300dpi reproduction from a section of 50.6MPCanon 5DSR full size raw8688 x 5792 pixels

The same section of a 28MP MRAW(medium sized reduced raw)6480 x 4320 pixels – printresolution 225dpi

The same from a 4320 x 2880 SRAW(small sized reduced raw) capturewhich is just under 12MP and a file resolution of only 150dpi – a settingour print process flags up as belowthe threshold for a sharp reproduction


opinion, are simply too great. The low pass cancellation fil-ter gives bitingly sharp results but handling this amount of pixels is very tricky with anything other than a good solid tripod. Even my stabilised lenses, which can claim two to four shutter speeds in safety margin, now offer only one to two. The claims made for Canon stabilised lenses can only be based on a final print size, the 10 x 8/12 the industry still uses for depth of field. Obviously with the 5DS image over twice the linear size of the original 5D – half the pixel pitch – a stabilised lens needs to offer one step more in effect, be twice as precise in correcting shake. The dynamic range offered by the 5DS models is also limited. Offering an ISO rate of up to just 6400 the cam-eras do not handle low light situations well. Its not a good choice for videographers ei-ther, as it doesn’t offer HDMI output or headphone sockets and doesn’t shoot 4K. The other thing about the 5DS is that it looks and feels exactly like my 5D MkIII. This obviously has a lot of functional advantages but for something north of £3,000 I expected a newer experience. I for one am happy for now to stay with my 5D MkI-II – great in low light, easy to handle in the field or in a studio and basically 22.1MP is enough! We have reached the point where additional features are worth more than megapixels. I regularly sell A1 sized prints to my clients and I have never had one rejected yet. How big does a file need to be? I shoot commercial ad-vertising with it as well as my private portrait clients and my storage drives are always full to bursting so the idea of

more megapixels is just not that appealing. Canon will tell you that this camera was designed for studio photographers or tripod carrying landscape photographers – and they are right. I think that 50MP is about enough to satisfy pretty much any brief but there are more important things in photography than megapixels. Low light capability gives you options that are far more useful – and I need cameras that I can use all day every day for most of my clients. The 5DS didn’t fit that requirement – the 5D MkIII or the 1DX certainly do. I remain a dedicated fan of Canon cameras and never felt an urgent need to switch systems just because others had 24MP, 36MP or 42MP. My little EOS 10D way back in the day had just 6MP but it also had a pop up flash. Why don’t any full frame Canon cameras have that? I used it all the time to brighten faces or fill in a shadowy corner of a room. I must now carry a chunky Canon Speedlite with me on every location portrait shoot (about 150 per year)… Come on Canon, Nikon and Sony – I want a 50MP camera with stabilisation, that shoots at ISO 24,000 with no visible grain or col-our shift and the option of a pop up flash… that’s all! And by the way, available in any colour you want as long as its black. – Richard Bradbury FMPA www.richardbradbury.com

ÁIf you would like to comment on this issue please email Richard – [email protected] – or go to www.reciprocity.photo… for even more stuff that photogra-phers like to talk about

Richard Bradbury FMPA is an award-winning advertising and editorial photographer best known for his Guinness World Records set-pieces. Richard is now offering a helping hand to photographers around the world with a programme of seminars, mentoring and business coaching event. To find out more please go to:

www.reciprocity.photo

This Canon 5DSR image shot as a full sized raw would enlarge to a little over 61 x 91cm at 240dpi, the default resolution for high quality inkjet display printing. At 300dpi, the recommended setting for magazine reproduction or the best quality photographic output, the overall print would be around 48 x 72cm, or 17 x 26". This is larger than four pages of this magazine, or A2. We have printed very detailed A2 reproductions from 24 megapixel files in the past, and as the examples on the left show, the 5DSR full sized files should stand very close inspection at A1 poster size and look excellent from a normal viewing distance at A0.

A wide open ƒ2.8 is needed on the 24-70mm L lens when shooting action, to secure 1/1000s at ISO 800, and blur the busy background a little at 54mm. At a full 1.5 metre wide wall print size, lens quality, subject movement, stabilisation, noise levels and dynamic range to survive post-process treatment, and depth of field become critical (200dpi clip below).


ALBUM OF THE YEAR BY SCOTT JOHNSON

Scott Johnson, of The Edge Photography in Chelmsford, Essex, is the Master Photography Awards Graphistudio Album of the Year winner for 2015/16. Scott, who is an Associate of the BIPP and SWPP, wins an all-inclusive trip to the Italian album and art printing company’s

headquarters near Venice and photographic training academy at Castle Ceconi. This is the complete album design, with cover, which was

judged winner by a live panel at the October awards event.See: www.theedgephotography.co.uk


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William Ng Tong Hng Hon FMPA was a gentle gentleman, whose

inspiration and determination encouraged Singaporean photographers to achieve qualifications and success. He gave so much time mentoring, helping other photographers, encouragement and guidance. He made a tremendous contribution to the MPA in the Far East. His quiet determination to perfect his photography and his passion for knowledge from his peers led William to travel to the UK to present his Associate panel for qualification. Twice Overseas Master Photographer of the Year and a recipient of many awards,William strove to raise standards in both Singapore and Malaysia. He received the MPA President’s award in 2003. His dedication to professional photography will always be remembered. Ryan Wong FMPA, MPA Ambassador to the Far East, writes this of him: “Without William the Far East chapter would not be as glorious – without William there would not be the rising stars among the greats of photography. William is a giant to many photographers of Far East. “A humble and passionate Master of Portraiture, he had an enormous keenness to share with young generation and spent much of his time working for the betterment of photography in Singapore. “He was a true master, teacher and a true friend.” Our condolences to his wife Soon Cheng. William’s health had deteriorated over recent years but he never complained. His passion for photographic knowledge led to a sincere friendship over many years. He will be sorely missed. – CB

Á

In memory:William Ng

CENTRAL REGION

March 15th 2016 – Jenny Johnston from 3XM will be com-ing to the usual location, look out for the emails and keep on eye on the Central Region Facebook page. Jenny is going to be talking about using social media tools to pro-mote your business – those of you who have been to one of her semi-nars will know just how useful the information is, and we’re thrilled that she’s going to take the time to come and talk to us!

May 11th 2016 – Steve Walton, the MPA President, will be coming down to for a joint meeting with London and Essex – something we’ve done for the past few years very successfully – and it’s the turn of Brentwood to be the location. Really looking forward to both wel-coming Steve and seeing some of his stunning photography!

NETHERLANDS

HENK VAN KOOTEN, who has looked after MPA’s members in the Netherlands and acted as a judge and speaker at many events worldwide, was presented with an Honorary Fellowship at the an-nual awards dinner by Chair Paul Wilkinson.

NORTHERN REGION

February 29th 2016 – Just when you wondering what to do with your spare day next leap year, we’ve gone and booked it out for you already! The Northern Region presents a day with Gary Walsh at GF Smith, including a tour around the G F Smith Production Unit in Hull. Gary is known for both his amaz-ing wedding photography and his environmental portrait photog-raphy, his work can be viewed at www.garywalsh.co.uk He will be leading an environ-mental photography portrait ses-sion in the vicinity of GF Smith’s base in Hull, and will follow this up with a fascinating talk onhow he works with his clients. Delegates will enjoy light re-freshments supplied by GFS, and each photographer can have a print from the shoot downloaded and printed during the course of the afternoon. We expect to finish early even-ing, and retire to a local bar for fur-ther refreshments for anyone who wishes to join us. Everyone is welcome, see your email and the regional Facebook page for timings and prices, which will be released in the New Year. Our thanks go to Tim and Lee at GF Smith for very kindly looking after us, and helping out with the factory tour, refreshments, and use of their premises.

Á

New LicentiatesCongratulations to those who achieved their Licentiate qualification recently:Jo Pickering LMPA – PortraitFiona Mckean LMPA – PortraitStephen Reid LMPA – PortraitPhil Paine LMPA – Portrait DocumentaryRebecca Barclay LMPA – PortraitDarren Facinelli LMPA – WeddingMollie Hosmer LMPA – PortraitSamantha Black LMPA – PortraitAndrew Weild LMPA – WeddingJordan Fraser LMPA – General PracticeSasha Wright LMPA – PortraitNeo Ni LMPA - WeddingDavid Tham LMPA - Illustrative & Pictorial

REGIONS

SCOTTISH REGION

MIKE WARD received the President’s Award from Faye Yerbury, outgoing president, for his hard work mentoring and help-ing many qualifications aspirants across the whole of the UK.

FINDING YOUR REGION ON FACEBOOK

REGIONAL news, discussion and updates can be found on Facebook. To find the main MPA page, type ‘Master Photographers Association’. For re-gions, type ‘The MPA’; for special groups including China, Malaysia, Cherubs, Qualifications, type ‘MPA’ – in each case you’ll get a list of options. Here are the full URLs of active regional UK Facebook pages: https://www.facebook.com/MPA.Central.Region https://www.facebook.com/The-MPA-London-Essex-Region https://www.facebook.com/MPANorthernRegion https://www.facebook.com/The-MPA-Welsh-Region https://www.facebook.com/The-MPA-West-Midlands-Region https://www.facebook.com/The-MPA-Scottish-Region https://www.facebook.com/The-MPA-South-East-Region https://www.facebook.com/The-MPA-South-West-Region

GF Smith (above) host Gary Walsh’s seminar for the Northern Region – Gary took one of the top images of 2014, right


Melanie East Newborn Photography SeminarFebruary 23rd 2016at the Hinckley Island Hotel

The day will consist of the following:Preparing the parents and managing the parents’ expecta-tions. The psychological aspect of a newborn photography session is huge, and many photographers do not realise that the parents are usually very very tired and emotional – and to some extent it is necessary to step on eggshells while still ensuring that you control the session.How to set up for the session. Working with textures, tones and colours. Shooting to sell.Safety.Composites and when to use them.Safe use of props.How to pose baby safely at all times.How to wrap a newborn baby neatly and effectively. Lighting using strobes – teaching using one simple lighting set up. So many photographers are terrified of strobes for newborns and it really doesn’t need to be anything too complicated.Learning to recognise lighting patterns.Posing: Baby on beanbag – to cover the following poses:1. Simple “bottom up” pose.2. Taco and semi taco. Plus wrapped taco.3. Side lying pose.4. Wrapped side lying pose.5. Head on hands/arms pose with assistant support for safety.In props:1. Baby on log with assistant support for safety,2. Baby on posing stool with assistant support for safety3. Baby in bowl lying on back. In all of the above poses, delegates will be shown the best angle from which to photograph and to gain the maximum amount of images without over-shooting to produce a gallery for the parents of around 25-40 highly saleable images.This event is observational ONLY, Lighting set ups will be photographed on the day and supplied to MPA members after the event Please bring plenty of paper so you can make notes. All day at the Island Hotel Hinckley for Just £120 plus VAT. Limited numbers only 25 spaces available. Contact [email protected] or call 01325 356555 to secure your place today.

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RiskAlliance Insurance Brokers Limited are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in respect of general insurance business.

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MPA REGIONSCENTRALPaul Wilkinson FMPA6 High StreetHaddenhamBucks HP17 8ER01844 [email protected] EAST MIDLANDSSteve Walton FMPA13 Juniper CloseLeicester Forest EastLeicester LE3 3JX0116 2994901stevewaltonphotography.info LONDON & ESSEXRaymond R Lowe Hon FMPA123 Crossbrook StreetCheshuntHertfordshire EN8 8LY01992 [email protected] NORTHERN REGIONSteven Ramsden LMPA10 Gillingwood RoadClifton MoorYork, North Yorkshire YO30 4ST01904 [email protected] NORTH WESTDavid Thexton LMPAT&J Photographic111 Ramsden StreetBarrow in FurnessCumbria LA14 2BW01229 835 [email protected]

SCOTLANDJohn Parris FMPA13 Hislop GardensHawickScottish Borders TD9 8PQ01450 [email protected] SOUTH EAST Paul Inskip63 QueenswayBognor RegisWest Sussex PO21 1QL01243 [email protected] SOUTH WESTContact MPA HQ for news of new regional contacts for 2016 WALESCollin Davies LMPAHigh Society PhotographyCaecarrig House15 Caecarrig RoadPontarddulaisWest Glamorgan SA4 8PB01792 [email protected] WESSEX Anthony Von Roretz LMPA22/24 Trinity StreetSalisburyWiltshire SP1 2BDTelephone: 01722 [email protected] WEST MIDLANDSSteve Walton FMPA13 Juniper CloseLeicester Forest EastLeicester LE3 3JX0116 2994901

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Master Photography January/February 2016

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Transcript of Master Photography January/February 2016