snapz talks

A great Lonely old find

2009-03-24T11:27:00.003Z

Don't you just love it when you have to go through old stuff and suddenly you come across a little gem you'd completely forgotten about?!

Well its that taxing time of year again, and look what I happened across...

This is a newspaper cutting that appeared in the Middy (an East Sussex local newspaper) about 4 years ago. At this time I was working with my good friend Tim Hunt on our first little film, 'The Lonely Walk'. Its a simple idea that caught the imagination and proved quite a hit! Check it out on my website here if you fancy dipping into our peculiar world.

[Click on the image for a readable view]

Slaves To Vanity Photo Shoot Video

2009-03-12T10:21:00.002Z

Check out the behind the scenes video from my recent shoot with 'Slaves To Vanity'.

I didn't even know it was being filmed!!

New Model - Danielle

2009-03-09T15:30:00.003Z

These are the results of my most recent fashion/portrait shoot. This was the first time Danielle had stepped in front of the camera for something like this and I think she did a great job. However, Danielle is an Opera singer, so I think she'd better start getting used to the idea!

Photography © Christopher Perkins 2009

Make-Up by Fiona Shaw

Inspiration from Litza Bixler

2009-02-09T20:20:00.004Z

I don't want this blog to be all about my own work, so when I come across somebody whose work really wows and inspires me, I want to get it up here to show everybody else. This time its the work of Dance Choreographer Litza Bixler. Check out her showreel below and get ready to be impressed!

Swimwear in Sydney

2009-01-30T15:44:00.007Z

Wow, its been a while! Over a month since my last post...but I'm back!!

The main reason for this is I travelled over to Australia and New Zealand for the whole of December, mainly to visit family and enjoy the sun, but I also managed to get in a couple of shoots in the warmer climes during that time and here are some of the results, starting with a contemporary swimwear shoot at Bondi Beach...

Followed by a more fashion based story in Sydney...

Photography © Christopher Perkins 2008

Model: Rebecca Frith

Make Up by Danielle

City Wardrobe Stylist: Samantha Smith

C.A.L.M. Advent Calendar

2008-12-02T12:31:00.005Z

Its Christmas...and its time for pressies!!

Below you will find the CALM Christmas Advent Calendar, where you can check out and download some great music for FREE!

'CALM' stands for the 'Campaign Against Living Miserably'. It is a fantastic organisation, who are trying to help young men in particular who are not happy with life. The stats for suicide rates amongst this section of the population are seriously scary, it is the second biggest killer of men aged 15-35 in the UK. Anything that can be done to help the situation should be done.

So come back every day to get yourself something new and help support this great cause, by visiting their website, The Calm Zone.

Andy Turner - Olympian!!

2008-11-24T17:07:00.006Z

Andy Turner, Commonwealth medalist and Olympic Track Athlete for the 110m Hurdles.

Fresh from the Beijing Olympics, I was fortunate enough to meet and photograph Andy recently as part of the promo shoot I did for 'Slaves To Vanity'.

He's a really nice guy, and here are the images we got together in a very cold old factory in Birmingham in November.

Thanks Andy for being such a good sport!!! (Sorry!)

All Photography © Christopher Perkins 2008

Slaves To Vanity Photo Shoot

2008-11-23T16:38:00.007Z

In my last post I said I had just had a month of working with guys for a change, and that the work that I was going to show couldn't be much more different from each other...well, here is the contrast!!

I met up with the boys from 'Slaves To Vanity' in Birmingham to shoot a promo for their new website.

Somebody had the great idea to shoot this in November in the UK, which meant we spent the day trying to avoid getting a soaking and jumping around to keep warm. Actually, the jumping around wasn't so much myself, as I could keep my clothes on...the models however, could not!!

They say a model's life is glamourous? Not so much on this day...

Photography © Christopher Perkins 2008

Make-Up: Deborah Lawson

Models: Garry Turner, Daniel MacNeill, Leon Knight, Andy Turner, Antonio Balsamo, Dan Eccleston

Dale Y - A new face to watch!

2008-11-22T16:02:00.008Z

Wow, its been a month since I last posted on here, and I've been itching to get some new stuff up.

This month I have been working with the boys for a change, and its been fun too. The couple of shoots I'm going to show from it couldn't have been much more different really...but first up is Dale Y.

Dale is a face that is definitely worth watching in the future. I think he's going to do really well. He has the sort of look that the fashion industry is loving right now, strong features, yet very slightly androgynous!

I only used one light for our first set of shots and made it all about the attitude and actions, he came out with some cracking poses too. Then it was off to the park to try out something a bit different from what I usually do, inspired by The Sartorialist. Then finally back to the studio to play around with colours.

...and my favourite...its got to be that James Dean look you see at the top. Wow!

I hope you like what you see...

Photography © Christopher Perkins 2008

Model: Dale Y

Make-Up: Deborah Lawson

Commercial Photography Manchester

2008-10-24T16:02:00.006+01:00

A new addition to this blog...Commercial Photography!

Everything to date has been following more of a fashion and edgy feel, so I want to make a show of some of my commercial and catalogue work.

Please let me know what you think, or if you have a new collection that needs photographing, give me a call...

...and here's a few product shots too...

How to do Classy Topless...

2008-10-12T16:42:00.004+01:00

...I couldn't think of a better title!

For the current couple of weeks, I have been working together with my long-term collaborator, Deborah Lawson, on putting together some funky creative studio shoots.

We are constantly striving to keep the portfolios fresh and try out new ideas and techniques and this is the first of a small series that will see us pushing on previous concepts.

These Black & White images are of the model Kitty Chu.

The following images are of model Lucienne Perry...

Photography © Christopher Perkins 2008

Make-Up and Styling: Deborah Lawson

Amanda Marsalis Video

2008-09-22T23:04:00.002+01:00

I had to make this post because I just came across a video of one of my favourite photographers, Amanda Marsalis.

Her work first came to my attention just over a year ago, when I was beginning to design my website. I was actually searching around other photographers' websites, looking at what I thought worked well and what didn't, and hers was one that stood out as being very well designed, simple, attractive and most importantly about the work.

I think Amanda has a beautiful aesthetic to her work. It is very distinctive and yet feels so natural. I think this is one of those times when you come across a style that has to be natural, it can't be taught really. Its the way you look at things and its an aesthetic I would really aspire to.

Anyway, take a look and see what I mean...

SLASH The Dress!

2008-09-18T10:46:00.003+01:00

This is the final part of our summer-long Bridal Fashion and 'Trash The Dress' series.

Having shot the dress with our model, Abi, in Manchester in the morning, we then headed along to one of the old mill's on the outskirts of the city (sorry, the location has to remain secret!) to really finish this dress off!

Deb, our Make-Up Artist, had got hold of the dresses at the beginning of summer, and was by this point sick of having the two of them cluttering up her house...so out came the scissors and attack it she did...

I should also point out that the original styling and combination of garments to create this unique look was also envisaged by Deborah Lawson, along with some help from the our very stylish model, Abi.

Thanks to Matt (you know who you are) for his fabulous help in finding and navigating our location for the day.

If there are any magazines out there looking for a contemporary take on the new new 'Trash The Dress' phenomenon with a fashion slant, then you know where to come....

Make-Up and Wardrobe: Deborah Lawson

Model: Abi Lutwyche

Assistant: Matt 'Darkscore'

Manchester Bride

2008-09-16T12:06:00.007+01:00

If you've been following this blog you should be used to these Bridal updates by now. This is the penultimate one in the series, in which we took our latest model to Manchester to look for some interesting street locations to use as a build up for final 'Trash The Dress' extravaganza.

The dress you saw previously in the Crewe Hall shots and Alderley Edge gymnastics images is back. This time though, Deb has been hard at work creating a new look, adding the black floral patterning and cummerbund/belt along with a few other adjustments. The piece that she has created is a dress that is uniquely beautiful and I'm sure many many brides would like to have themselves.

We managed to find some brilliant locations on the day and get some great colour into the pictures. I couldn't believe it when we drove past Granada Studios, I had completely forgotten about the old frontage they have there, and hence I had to spin the car around a grab a few shots, despite the fact it is actually bucketing down with rain and Abi is actually hiding under that small canopy!

Photography © Christopher Perkins

Make-Up and Styling: Deborah Lawson

Model: Abi Lutwyche

Assistant and Location Scout: Matt 'Darkscore'

A Very National Portrait!

2008-09-14T11:32:00.001+01:00

I thought it would be interesting to show the photograph I decided to enter for the National Portrait Gallery's annual photographic portrait prize.

Since it didn't get through to the final selection, you unfortunately won't get to see it gracing their hallowed walls, so you'll have to enjoy it here instead!

The photograph is of Tim Hunt, a good friend and also a Sound Recordist for a lot of the political television news broadcasts for the UK. Hence why I decided to photograph him on Abbingdon Green, in front of the Houses of Parliament.

The above image is my favourite, because I think with such a portrait it is necessary for the viewer to have a connection with the subject through their eyes. However, I have included the other few possible options below, so let me know if you disagree...

All images © Christopher Perkins 2008

The Lord has arrived!!!

2008-09-12T19:58:00.005+01:00

To all you slightly wacky film lovers...

I just found that the short film I worked on last year with Rockutainment is now up on their website for viewing, along with some hilarious out takes. So please go and check it out.

Link to the 'Lord Of Pain' Movie

Trash The Dress Liverpool

2008-09-11T10:16:00.009+01:00

You've seen the video (if you haven't, look below/here) now check out the finished images...

'Trash The Dress' has become a craze amongst wedding photographers and their clients in recent years. It is getting more and more of a buzz about it, as brides want some mementoes of the most special time of their lives that are individual, dramatic and fun.

If you've been following this blog, you will have seen these dresses before. At the earlier stages we were just playing around with them, testing ideas out and doing more of a bridal fashion theme. Now though, its time to TRASH them, and trash them properly. Hence the darling was going straight in the bin on our return.

So it was, that we found ourselves in a cold and torrential storm on a beach just north of Liverpool, UK, making a good old mess. This was August, it was supposed to be summer, but we all know you can't rely on the British weather, though it certainly worked for us.

Photography © Christopher Perkins 2008

Hair, Make-Up and Styling: Deborah Lawson

Model: Kitty Chu

Trash The Dress Beach Video

2008-08-24T16:04:00.007+01:00

Last weekend was interesting!

It saw the third part of our ongoing 'Trash The Dress' project take us to the beaches just north of Liverpool.

The day had been in the planning for over a month with everybody booked, but in the week leading up to the shoot all we were having was bad weather. It was raining and raining and forecast to continue. Now I don't much rate our weather forecasters so I preferred to stay optimistic. However, we did decided to go out and recce some backup locations.

The day came though, and the weather didn't look too bad. We would go for it! We grabbed some studio shots first, cos Deb had done an amazing creative job with the make-up, which had to recorded in all its glory. Then it was off to the beach...at the first location it was very windy but thankfully not wet. The second location though was slightly different, by thew time we arrived it was bucketing it down. What to do, what to do?

Well we'd come this far and the intention was to destroy this dress, we had to do it. I say all this because I need to give huge huge credit to our superb model for the day, Kitty Chu. I cannot imagine other models going to the lengths she wanted to to get the best images we could. So Kitty, THANKS!!

Enjoy this video, the final images shall be up here soon....

(They now are...click here)

(Video editing by Deborah Lawson)

Fierce Creatures!

2008-08-16T22:00:00.000+01:00

Sometimes you do a shoot and you just know from beginning to end you are producing something cooooool!!

I absolutely love this job when everything is coming together and as a team you can feel greats shots coming at ya, wham, bam, thank you mam.

On this shoot our aim was to create some really fierce looking images but that still retained a great, sharp, fashion look about them.

I'd actually been inspired by a set of photographs I saw Tyra Banks taking on 'America's Next Top Model' a few seasons back. I wanted to give the concept a go and see where we could take it. Here are the results...

Photography © Christopher Perkins 2008

Model: Stephanie Hopwood

Make-Up: Michelle Robinson

Emotional Times

2008-08-14T15:53:00.002+01:00

As an extension to the shoot you saw earlier, the 'Fierce Creatures', we decided to keep with the drama but change the scenario somewhat...

Stephanie cranked up the emotion to show her acting abilities, and did a great job of conveying the feeling we were after. It should be self-explanatory, so I'll just say enjoy...

Photography © Christopher Perkins 2008

Model: Stephanie Hopwood

Make-Up: Michelle Robinson

CARNIVAL TIME!!!

2008-07-25T10:49:00.007+01:00

Last weekend I was invited to photograph the Derby Carnival. Specifically, I was there for the 'Mandela Centre', a youth and community centre, working primarily in the Afro-Caribbean community.

Oh, what a great few hours I had there. It may not be one of the biggest carnivals but there was such a great buzz and positive energy flowing. The kids were loving dancing around, dressing up and having fun.

The weather was a bit 'touch-and-go' but in the end the sun shone when it was needed.

It struck me that these guys are leading by example, as a real demonstration of how young peoples' energy should be channelled, in order to avoid some of the crime problems we are currently facing in this country. If they have a positive focus and peers to look up to, then they will embrace it.

Woodland Bride

2008-07-23T10:09:00.008+01:00

"If you go down to the woods today..."

...you might just see a beautiful girl jumping around in a big white wedding dress!!!

Part 4 of mine and Deborah's exploration into the world of the adventurous bride found us in Alderley Edge woods in Cheshire.

This is somewhere I have been visiting (and photographing) for many years, as its a great place to walk and relax, but I've never approached it quite like this...

Photography © Christopher Perkins

Model: Amanda Dabrowski

Make-Up and Styling: Deborah Lawson

Crewe Hall Bridal Shoot

2008-07-21T20:48:00.006+01:00

Its time for some more pictures...these posts are getting quite regular now!

In a continuation of our Wedding Dress theme, we descended on the very accommodating Crewe Hall. This beautiful old hall provided an incredible backdrop for our images.

There is so much history here, from the moment you approach the hall along the long long tree lined driveway, you know you have arrived somewhere special. The Hall even has it's own small chapel, which we were able to use for some of the shots, and there are gothic looking candles to be found dotted all over the place.

Photography © Christopher Perkins

Model: Amanda Dabrowski

Make-Up and Styling: Deborah Lawson

Behind the scenes - Christopher at work:

Urban Bride

2008-07-11T11:34:00.002+01:00

Taking forward the Bridal Fashion theme, we wanted to push the idea away from the fairytale and into something a little more dark and sinister, whilst still retaining the high fashion look and feel...

I give you 'Urban Bride'!

Photography: © Christopher Perkins 2008

Model: Marina Fallahi

Make-Up and Styling: Deborah Lawson

Location: Macclesfield

Bridal Fashion @ Rookery Hall

2008-07-09T11:20:00.011+01:00

Its time to get all romantic... Its wedding season!

The team has decided to get out to some beautiful locations this summer and create some new bridal fashion work.

For the first shoot, we visited Rookery Hall, near Nantwich, Cheshire.

My sincere thanks to Stephen Fearnley and his team for allowing us to use this beautiful venue for the backdrop to our photos.

Photography: © Christopher Perkins

Model: Marina Fallahi

Make-Up and Styling: Deborah Lawson

A new style for corporate headshots

2008-06-22T12:10:00.006+01:00

Its time for a new style for corporate headshots!

Gone are the days of,

"Right then, sit at 45 degrees to the camera. Don't smile, you're a business man. Head up. Look in the lens. I only want your head and shoulders. Here, lets put a nice mottled background behind you, that'll look lovely. 1 2 3..." Bang! "Job's a good 'un...you can pay on your way out!"

Business isn't run like this these days and your images should reflect that fact. You can be professional and business-like and still smile at the same time, in fact you're likely to appeal to potential customers more if you do.

These are some images from a recent shoot I did for Aquarius Equity in Manchester...

Castlefield Fashion Shoot

2008-06-20T10:58:00.010+01:00

Here's a really interesting post for you, its got video and everything!!

A couple of weeks ago I did a collaboration shoot in Manchester, with the biggest team I have yet to work with. The shoot was to be based upon an idea one of the models had come across, a little bit quirky, with the man constantly trying to impress the gorgeous young woman.

We shot it around the Castlefield area, which has stacks of character. It is by the Manchester canal, and you will also see the very impressive Hilton hotel in the background. This was perfect as we were trying to mix the old with the new, bringing in classic style with a punch!

This is a short video of the behind-the-scenes photographs, put together by our brilliant Make-Up Artist, Deborah Lawson:

Everybody was working for free and for their portfolio's, so here's a heads up of the team:

Photographer: Christopher Perkins

Models: CrZ and Martina Goodman-Withers

Make-Up: Deborah Lawson

Hair: Lee Nash

Wardrobe: Rachael Emma Sadler

So if you want to hire us, don't be shy!!

And here then are some more final images....

Click on them if you want to see them bigger and enter a gallery of close-ups.

Comments will be greatly appreciated. Oh, and if you want to see the original inspiration to let us know how we did, have a look at the Celine website.

Retouching

2008-06-11T12:45:00.004+01:00

Yesterday I posted some photos from a recent shoot, and included was the one you see below:

Today I decided to do some work on this image, retouching, airbrushing, colour changes and levels, etc. and so I thought it would be good to show the difference between the versions all side by side.

I'm very pleased with the results. Feedback is appreciated though if you have a view on this kind of thing...

Lydia Shoot

2008-06-06T16:50:00.003+01:00

The results of another photo shoot.

This time, Lydia Holbrow.

Make-Up: Deborah Lawson.

Comments welcome as always!!

My BIGGEST Exhibition!!

2008-05-20T14:57:00.005+01:00

I think this must be the 'biggest' exhibition of my work I'm ever likely to have.

I was asked to photograph Adlington Hall for a huge banner to disguise the scaffolding that has been erected whilst renovation work is completed.

And here it is...My work, 30ft high, the size of a two storey building. It might not be the image I would have chosen to blow up, but its sure good for posterity!!

...the only problem now is...where do I go from here??!!!

Lake Windermere Fashion Story

2008-05-15T17:41:00.011+01:00

I would never have imagined when I first decided to get my photography business up and running, that one of my first paid jobs would see me with such a big team, up in the Lake District, shooting a fashion story, and riding aboard a luxury powerboat but thats what's gone and happened.

The shoot was to promote the new Harris Tweed Handbags, and as such our brief was to create a number of different scenarios, which would make up the day-in-the-life of a beautiful woman, and show the versatility/diversity of the bags.

It was a long day of shooting, as we had to try to cover around 12 different scenarios. However, we had the best weather imaginable, our first blast of summer!

The story was shot around Storrs Hall, a beautiful country hotel with stunning surroundings, on the edge of Lake Windermere. Now this would have been pretty impressive alone, with the history and the views and the possible different locations. But everybody's highlight of the day was to come in the afternoon, when we went to shoot aboard a powerboat.

Now I had a feeling this thing was going to be nice, but when we arrived, it was liking rolling up in St. Tropez, this boat was huge and it got everybody obviously excited, thinking, 'Now this is why I got into this business'. Needless to say, a fun day was had by all... Exhausting, but fun nonetheless.

Now bring on more!!!

The team photo, aboard the luxury powerboat.

From left: Me, Jim (The Client), Jenny (My Assistant), Andrea (Hair & Make-Up), Martina (Model) and Tom (Model for the day!)

Pet Sounds vs. Sergeant Pepper

2008-05-14T16:22:00.004+01:00

I want to take this opportunity to congratulate my good friend and long-time collaborator, Tim Hunt, on the success of his most recent short film making endeavour.

In partnership with Adrian Pinsent, Tim has won the Brighton Festival 24 Hour Film Challenge. The boys were set the task of making a 2 minute documentary about the Brighton Beach Boys, and in particular their one-off gig, which pitted two of the best ever albums against each other. The Beach Boys' 'Pet Sounds' vs. the Beatles' 'Sergeant Pepper'.

Its seems that their conclusion was that there can be no outright winner, but it is a great little film and well worth a watch. And having been a part of 24 hour film challenges in the past, I know all too well how hard it is to produce such a professional looking piece, when at 3 am all you want to do is sleep!!!

Take a look at the film here

and

Read about the experience here

Signed Print Auction

2008-05-04T16:13:00.003+01:00

I recently worked with an assistant, Jennifer Clayton, who is coming to the end of her Photography Degree at Blackpool College.

The students are having a degree show down in London in June, and are trying to raise money for it.

The reason I'm writing this is they are holding an online auction for signed prints from some big name photographers, such as Stephen Gill and Gered Mankowitz...and they start cheap...£30!! So if you are interested in photography, get yourself onto their site and see if you can snap one up.

'One Night In London Print Auction'

...P.S. If you can't find something you like there, why not take a look at my prints!

Christopher Perkins Artwork

Sophie Shoot

2008-05-01T15:09:00.010+01:00

Another shoot on the list, and a few more images for your viewing pleasure!

Model: Sophie Kutay

Make-Up: Fiona Shaw

I thought I'd try some montages of the images we made showing different expressions. I really like them, but please feel free to let me know what you think. (You can click on the image for a bigger view.)

Dancing Inspiration

2008-04-25T12:14:00.005+01:00

On the invitation of my friend, Sabine, I last night visited the 'Dance For Camera' event in Manchester, which is part of the 'moves08' festival.

Now I love dancing in the 'regular' sense, I'm even learning 3 different styles at the moment, but dance for art and performance art is something I've never managed to fully get my head around. The world in which it revolves seemed to me to be quite elitist and less accessible than the genres in which I usually work. A world where you had to know about and understand the whole history of where a performance has developed from.

However, this brief event has been somewhat of a revelation to me, and today I have found myself listening intently to the sounds I make as I wander round the house, opening and closing doors, tapping away on this keyboard, and its like the quiet but powerful rhythm that we all move to.

During the evening we were able to see snippets of some finished work by a couple of artists, Simon Ellis and Rachel Davies, and be part of a discussion about their work and how it was viewed. This got me to thinking about my own work, particularly our early film, 'The Lonely Walk', and the way some people loved it but others were quickly bored, which I had always understood but found slightly frustrating.

What really interested me though, was the second half of the event, when things became much more heated and debate ensued. Andy Wood was showing some rough cuts of a dance piece he had filmed a year previous and wanted to get feedback from the audience on how they viewed it.

These short sections of film brought strong debate on factors that had completely passed me by a first viewing... How the characters interact with the camera and with each other, whether they even acknowledged it existence, the clothes that they wore, the style of the dance (which was compared to a style from the 70's that hadn't progressed), the views of the author and his methodology of working, and his ideological stance (or lack thereof).

This stuff surprised me and yet I could value all of the points that were being made. It just goes to prove that in our creative fields there is always so much that can be read into an image or a piece, whether it was consciously injected by the author or not.

I would also like to present a beautiful piece of work by my friend, Sabine Klaus, and invite you to view more of her work at www.creationeditor.co.uk

New Shoot - Michelle

2008-04-20T19:00:00.000+01:00

Some new images from a shoot with Michelle Robinson.

Self Portrait Tests: DIY Ringflash

2008-04-15T16:28:00.005+01:00

Here are a few self portrait images from one of my first test shoots with the home-made Ringflash.

As you can see, it works, and pretty damn well at that.

For the photography geeks amongst you, I can get up to f/16 out of it at 1/125 sec. (Not bad, eh?)

DIY Ringflash

2008-04-12T18:23:00.000+01:00

Photography equipment is so expensive, especially when you are trying to start a business and have a lot to buy. So when I can, I feel its worth investing a bit of time and creativity and seeing if you can improvise a solution.

Having spent a couple of weeks building and modifying a basic ringflash, I decided to take my lead from Chase Jarvis and let the good people of the world see what is possible with a little ingenuity.

My initial attempts began with a design for use with my Nikon Speedlight. As you can see I built a cardboard frame that would sit on the head of the flashgun and bounce the light up into the ring.

For the ring I got hold of flan/cake tin for about £10, which would allow for the necessary hole in the centre. In order to create a space for the light to flood in though, I would have to use a saw to cut out a rectangle from one side, making sure to leave the metal flaps (edges filed) to use within the cardboard for support.

(P.S. If you are going to try this I take no responsibility for your skills with a saw, get a professional to do it if necessary!)

So, as you can see I then needed to bounce the light around the ring as much as possible and this would prove to be the trickiest part. On properly manufactured adaptors they use prisms to do this, but this would be far to complicated and not at all in the spirit of things...bring out the tin foil. This is 'Blue Peter' style!

Unfortunately, the tin foil alone was not going to get the light bouncing around enough, so I decided a mirror (or bits of it) might aid my cause. I only hope this does not bring the 7 years bad luck on me. You can see though that it has helped to get the light moving around a bit.

...Add a layer of baking paper and the light is spread even more...

And so to my initial tests, and you can see that the system works...wahey!

The above picture was taken with the speedlight at full power, which has produced quite a nice shot, but you can see in the catchlights that there is still a fair bit of fall off in the light being produced from bottom to top.

Also, I was only able to get about f/4.5 at 2 ft from the subject. Nowhere near what I wanted for the studio. So I set about modifying the cardboard frame to now fit my Bowens 500 studio flash head, or more specifically, the 14cm spill kill.

This modification actually proved to be far more complex than the speedlight framework, as I had to build a support ring within the framework that would sit on top of the spill-kill/reflector, and convert it to the octagonal shape that I had based my frame on.

With the setup built I could see if it would actually work. There is always going to be concern over the stability of something that is purely using gravity to hold it in place, even though I had made sure to design the framework to fit very snug to the reflector. I found though, that I was able to incorporate the screw fitting, used to hold an umbrella, to in turn hold a bar which would stop the whole system from rocking off!

Trying to get the light more even is a case of trial-and-improvement again, as I found that layering up the greaseproof paper, as natural ND's could help to even out the inadequacies.

And there you have it...the final product in all its glory!!

...It should however be noted, that it is best to turn off the modelling lamp entirely, as this is what quickly produces heat, and it has nowhere to go but up. Plus, this thing is made out of cardboard and tape and I am not being held responsible for any houses being burnt down.

As you can see the heat of an initial test has frazzled the gaffer tape.

Use it sensibly and have fun with the new possibilities!!

Spring/Summer/Winter??

2008-04-09T12:12:00.007+01:00

What is going on with the weather? Two weeks ago I was out photographing spring, and all of a sudden we hit April and it snows again.

Good for picture taking though!

Photos on the BBC website

2008-04-07T13:16:00.004+01:00

Hello hello,

I have just found out that I have photos on the BBC website.

It is in relation to the 'Not Part Of' Festival that is happening in Manchester this summer. The photos are from the 'Not Part Of New Year's Eve' Festival that I photographed for Gareth and Beth McCann back in January.

Check the BBC page out here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/articles/2008/04/04/040308_not_part_of_feature.shtml

New Shoot Images

2008-04-05T23:18:00.008+01:00

Here are a few images from a recent shoot.

Model: Martina Goodman-Withers

Make-Up: Michelle Robinson

The great new world of pseudonyms

2008-04-04T12:53:00.000+01:00

So then, this is my first post on the newly created blog....

Why is it, in our great new technological world, that we have to spend the first half hour or so, before we can start to do anything, trying to think of a progressively more outlandish way of representing ourselves to those who wish to find us?

The amount of times I have sat at the opening page of web service, typing out my name in different formats...put a number here, a symbol there; switch a couple of letters round...but then you realise you have come up with a new name for yourself that nobody is going to remember and has no relevance to who you are!

But then here we are, in our brave new world, where I can send pictures to my brother in Australia in the blink of an eye. There's a lot of people on the doorstep now, not only competing for your name but that great job too...

...and so to the purpose of this new endeavour of mine. I ramble on a bit from time to time, put up some new work as often as I can, and you get a feel for who I am and what I do. Then you say, "Snapz! I wanna work with you, come and take my picture!" (Or something like that).

Its a blog about life, creativity, travel...and doing your darndest to get a business up and running in a competitive industry.

I hope you enjoy it. Buckle your seatbelts. The journey starts now...

(Oh, as for the name - 'snapztalks' - bookmark it, its gonna be good!)