Family Photo-shoots in Edinburgh

One of the many enjoyable things about my job is doing family photo-shoots with couples whose wedding I photographed previously and have now started their own family. Two of the children in this photograph belong to Natalie and Billy whose wedding I photographed at Melville Castle. They booked a family shoot with me just a few weeks ago and we had great fun doing various photos, styles and poses. You can see some examples if you follow my facebook page.

As a wedding photographer in Edinburgh it's always nice to meet up again with my couples and be involved in their family photography. After showing the photos to their family their grandmother then booked her own photo-shoot to get all five of her grandchildren photographed together. I set up my mobile studio in her living room and we did all five grandchildren and then for the parents some individual groupings and combinations. On a family photo-shoot I'm happy to do whatever you want there's no limits on how many photos I'll take or the variety of them.

When we'd got everything we wanted with the children one of family suggested we do all the children with the two dogs. It would have been a bit of tight squeeze in the living room adding in the two dogs so I suggested we move outside and sit all the children on the step and put the dogs in on either side.

I have a lot of experience photographing both children and animals and I knew it is almost impossible to get every single child and both dogs to be looking perfectly into camera all at the same time. Maybe that's why they say 'never work with children and animals!' lol What I do to get round this is a take a series of shots in quick succession, which maintains the consistency of light, and then I can swap a few faces or features around from the four or five photos. For this photograph I used my favourite shot of the five children all looking into camera as my base. I then switched in the dogs faces from two alternate shots to make the final image. Click link for more information on: Family photo-shoots in Edinburgh or for learning Photoshop techniques as above: Photography Training Courses in Edinburgh

How to photograph a wedding properly

There's an interesting article in the latest issue of Photo Professional magazine (a journal for Professional Photographers) which is very pertinent in its summation of wedding photographers. Here's a quote from it...

"A wedding should be photographed as if you were creating a historical document so that future generations can see what happened on the day. This means that as a photographer you shouldn't interfere. Once a photographer starts to direct and to take control of the wedding it becomes the photographers idea of what the day should look like rather than what the day itself actually is."

I'm sure you can identify with that. It's the Bride and Groom's Big Day and therefore everything should revolve around them, not the photographer. Of course, it does beg the question why then do the majority of wedding photographers not work in this way? The article goes on to answer...

"To be able to shoot a wedding without directing is incredibly difficult. The skill lies in the spotting of 'decisive moments' and the ability to capture the flavour of the day. You have to have a sixth sense, and to be able to anticipate what is going to happen, and then be in the right place at the right time. You need to completely understand composition and light to give depth to the pictures. It's safer and certainly for the inexperienced photographer more advantageous to him to direct all the photography which is why so many of them take exactly that approach."

For most photographers who book me for wedding training, particularly those who are currently photographing weddings, these are skills they are looking develop. One of the methods I use is to go through an entire wedding shoot with them explaining the thinking behind each photograph and how it was subsequently achieved each shot. The objective is to equip them and help them feel more confident about simply letting the day unfold naturally and photographing it in a natural, relaxed style. Of course, most weddings will contain an element of the day where the couple want family group photographs and their main bride and groom session. These do need some direction and input from the photographer but it is still possible by using techniques such as simple flow posing, to work comfortably and smoothly and retain that natural feel to the images. This also helps you work much quicker, too, which all involved on the day will appreciate.

If you are a wedding photographer in Edinburgh or indeed anywhere in Scotland and would like to learn more about this style of photographing a wedding you can book me for a one day wedding photography training course and we'll cover all of this and a whole lot more. Details and prices are on my website:
Photography Training courses Edinburgh

Edinburgh Wedding Photograph

Edinburgh is a great city to get married in! Therese and Stephen tied the knot at the registry office on the Royal Mile last weekend at Lothian Chambers. Most wedding photographers in Edinburgh enjoy weddings here as there's such a lot of options for photos. So many nooks and crannies along the Royal Mile and also a short walk up to Edinburgh Castle.

This shot was taken just across the courtyard from Lothian Chambers and around the back of the famous St. Giles Cathedral. There's a looping pathway that swings around the rear courtyard with a series of arches looking out onto the building. The archways make for excellent photos as they allow the light to flood along the walkway afford the opportunity to shoot a large variety of different images and styles within a few short minutes.

For this image I'd initially taken a series of full length and wide angle shots to make the most of the dramatic location and setting but then I wanted to get in a touch tighter to create something a little more intimate whilst at the same time keeping retaining the oldy worldy ambience of our environment. To ensure the bride and groom look natural and relaxed I simply asked them to swing around and for Stephen to lean back against the wall and fold his arms. I then asked Therese to move in and link in with him. It's not as classically posed as the shots I'd already taken but for this image it was expressions on the faces I wanted to lend emphasis to. I got them to move in for a kiss and when they broke apart asked them to look straight at me. The happiness and contentment shown on their faces is exactly what I was hoping for!

Although my priority here was capturing their happy emotions which is done with minimum fuss, I also took care with where I positioned the couple. You can see how the light flooding between the two sets of pillars behind them gives great depth and impact to the picture. I lit the couple themselves with an off camera light that I'd moved into approximately 45 degrees to the newly weds on my right handside. It is the creative lighting and a little post production work that makes the overall image so striking.

This photo was one of 50 taken during Therese and Stephen's bride and groom session all within twenty minutes. As their wedding party was quite small they didn't have many group photos so it took me less than ten minutes to do their requested 20 family group photographs. The majority of photos shot on the day were reportage (or photo-journalism) style so they weren't aware of me taking them as I work as unobtrusively as possible as I want to capture the atmosphere, emotions, feelings and magical moments. This are what makes being an Edinburgh wedding photographer so exciting!

If you would like to know more about the techniques and modus operandi of wedding photography check out my photography training page on my website for more info and prices on photography training courses in Edinburgh.

Family Photo-shoots in Edinburgh

Not only are we well into the wedding season now but with the school hols rapidly approaching many peoples are booking family photo-shoots. Family photo-shoots have also been one of my popular photography training course options as it's an ideal way to get started on the road to becoming a professional photographer. So, I'm sharing a few photographs from the recent Bald family photo-shoot which highlight some of the great pictures you get from a home photo-shoot and also how you can achieve high quality professional studio style images in the comfort of a clients own home.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of being a wedding photographer in Edinburgh is when my wedding clients go on to have a family and I come back to photograph their new arrivals and children. Billy and Natalie were married in 2010 at Melville Castle and their daugther, Freja, was a very small flower girl. Since then Freja has been joined by a little sister and we had great fun doing their family photo-shoot a couple of weeks ago.

I have a small mobile digital studio which is versatile enough to be set up in almost any room no matter how small. Whilst it may be quite compact it is still state of the art and allows me to produce superb high quality photographs all in the comfort of a clients own home, so it ensures everyone is comfortable, relaxed and it's stress free for everyone. It is no problem at all to book clients into a studio for a shoot if they wish, but with children and pets I always recommend doing a home photo-shoot instead as it is far easier to get natural, relaxed pictures where the subject is in their own environment.

I do not apply any strict time restrictions especially with children and pets as I always work to their time frame, but generally around 45 minutes is sufficient to get a good variety of photographs which will include various different poses, styles and combinations.

I can utilise several different backgrounds but for family shoots the 'Venture style' high-key white background is pretty good. Being a digital studio I'm also able to apply different effects and back drops in the post production, too, something which is rarely done in a traditional photography studio. Clients can then choose which styles they prefer, they might keep the special effects, apply the same effect to all of their photographs or go back to the originals. It's amazingly
flexible!

All the photographs here used a four light set-up, however, for those booking a photography training course looking to make money from photography I can start you off by teaching you a very simple one light set-up using a single speedlite or flash gun which is very cost effective enabling you to start earning money straight away without forking out for a large expensive kit. One-on-one training for a professional photographer like this is £125 for a half day course (£195 for a full day) which means even if you set your initial prices at the budget or low end of the market, say amongst the £45 per shoot photographers, you'd earn your investment back in your first couple of bookings. Non-professional Photography Training courses in Edinburgh (Beginners to Advanced) is £90 per half day and £165 per full day. More
details are on the Training tab on my website.

For a family photo-shoot in Edinburgh it is £90 which includes your own private online gallery, your favourite photograph as an A4 mounted enlargement, and then if you wish to purchase any of the other additional photographs you are free to upgrade accordingly.      

Photographing weddings at The Caves

I have been quite delighted at the response to my photography training courses, particularly since the beginning of this year. I received a booking this week from a photographer who is booked to photograph a wedding at The Caves in Edinburgh later in the year and they’re a little worried about how to work in the low light. They photographed one wedding at The Caves two years ago and the photographs did not turn out well, hence their apprehension about this one.

One of the advantages with offering One-on-one training is that I can tailor make the day to give clients exactly what they want. So we don’t waste time covering things they already know but instead concentrate on learning the specific skills they are interested in.

I thoroughly enjoy teaching and I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the range of clients that have booked courses with me. I’ve had many kinds of photographers from complete beginners with no knowledge of photography or their camera’s whatsoever, keen amateurs looking to improve and even turn professional through to semi-pro’s and full-time photographers wanting to take their photography up a few levels so they can move into a higher price bracket.

The One-on-one training days are so far the most popular but I’ve also had a couple of groups book photography training days and tours. One was in and around Edinburgh and the other I took them through Perthshire for some scenic Scottish landscapes.

The photo spreads on the blog today are from the last wedding I photographed at The Caves. I know many wedding photographers in Edinburgh fear The Caves as it is so dark inside. The photographer mentioned above showed me some of the photos they’d taken last time here and basically they made the classic mistake many photographers make when light levels are low of panicking and believing the only way out is to blast everything with flash.

One of the main things we’ll cover on the training day is learning to relax and be comfortable in your environment rather than being frightened of it. You need to learn to work with what you have and make the most of the atmosphere otherwise firing away with a flash gun will only destroy the ambience and feel of the venue. You can see from the mixture of shots here how I have used the lighting to dramatic effect in many instances but at the same time retained the mood and feeling of this unique venue.

As well as the photography training courses in Edinburgh I’ve had a lot of commercial work the last few months, too. This has included a few fashion shoots for bridal and beauty companies, some hotel brochures and a couple of magazine shoots which won’t be published until later in the year. The wedding season is already underway which I’m always happy about and which you can keep up-to-date with if you follow my facebook page.

Being a busy Edinburgh wedding photographer I also get a lot of spin off family photo-shoots, especially when a new baby comes along. It really is nice to photograph the children of couples whose wedding I photographed. I’m really looking forward to three of these which I have booked during the next few weeks. More details on any of the services I’ve mentioned can be found on my website. Here’s the links:

Wedding Photography in Edinburgh
Photography Training and Courses in Edinburgh
Family photo-shoots in Edinburgh
Baby photo-shoots in Edinburgh

Simply Bridesmaids Photo-shoot

A couple of years ago I was commissioned to do a photo-shoot for a well known fashion chain. It had a two day budget of £800 per day. When I initially met with the market manager to discuss the brief and saw what it was they were looking to achieve I told them that instead of hiring a large studio for two days along with all the lighting and ancillary equipment I could do the shoot in one of their own stores (they are all huge!) and use my own portable lighting and because I work quicker than most we could get everything done in one day. This would save them £800. They looked at me like I was mad! I honestly think they didn’t believe I could produce the type of shots they wanted at half the price and in half the time. And so they decided to stick to the original plan and budget.



I know a lot of photographers think I was silly saying what I did as I was doing myself out of half my fee. But the way I see it is that in the long term people remember you not just because you are good at your job but they also appreciate simple honesty and integrity. When the average life of a new photography business is said to be only 2-3 years I think my basic concept and principles are one of the reasons I’m still going strong after 30 years. I’m pleased to say that the above company have hired my services several times since that shoot!



Anyway today I thought I’d tell you about a recent shoot I did for Simply Bridesmaids where we ended up with virtually the same amount of shots for a fraction of the budget and in a fraction of the time. We had picked an afternoon when we knew the shop would be fairly quiet. However, as it turned out the shop was bustling all afternoon! So that meant I had to resort to commandeering one of the changing rooms and doing all the photography in there!



The secret to achieving studio looking shots within virtually any environment is how you work the lighting. I was using Canon speedlites with shoot-through brolleys and used a simple four light set up. Two for the background, one for the foreground and the main light for the subject, which in this case was the dresses. The background lights were predominantly what we call high-key, but you can attach coloured gels to them to change and give different effects. The foreground light I deliberately over powered by around two stops in photography speak in order to keep the foreground close to a high white for the majority of the photographs which could then easily be blended with whatever effects I chose for the background.



That may sound a little complicated but it isn’t really. The most complex part was in lighting the dresses. If this was a regular photo-shoot or a wedding I would set the lights for the subject or model so that we get good skin tones and that the lighting sculpts her face in the most striking and flattering fashion. However, for this shoot the subject was the prom and party dresses and naturally they want the photos to show off the colours, textures and details of the gowns. Because of this it meant the lighting had to be changed and adjusted for each set of images. For some of the dresses, to achieve accurate results, I had to switch off completely the main light and utilise window light instead. It’s quite unorthodox using three studio lights on the background and foreground whereas at the same time employing simple window light as your primary source but that’s one benefit of experience, you often times know what will work even if it’s a bit unconventional. 



The results were everything I wanted them to be. They are every bit as good and as striking as if they’d been done in an expensive studio and at a much higher budget. Dee, the owner of Simply Bridesmaids, was absolutely thrilled with them! Which of course is the most important thing!

Modelling the dresses is the gorgeous Natalie whose wedding I photographed back in 2010 and who now models part-time for me together with her husband Billy. If you follow my facebook page you will recognize her as she’s modelled in a couple of other recent photo-shoots for me, too.



If you like photography and would be interested in learning some of the lighting techniques used on this shoot why not consider booking one of my one-on-one photography training days. You can find details on the ‘Training’ tab on my website or click this link: Photography Training Edinburgh. I run several options for beginners, intermediates and anyone looking to break into professional photography. If you are a low-end or part-time wedding photographer in Edinburgh looking to move up a level I also offer training together with portfolio building. Feel free to give me a call and discuss your requirements.



If you would like to keep up with my latest work and images it is best to check my facebook page. Philip Hawkins Photography on facebook. I’m afraid I do not always have time to put together blog posts on a regular basis so it’s much easier simply uploading recent photos to my facebook page.

Please remember you can click on any of the photo spreads to open up the gallery viewer and see them at a larger and better size.

A Norton House Wedding, Kristen and Glenn

I knew Kristen and Glenn’s wedding at Norton House Hotel was going to be a good one because I’d had such a great engagement shoot with them a few months ago. You can see some of their photos from this session when I blogged it back in the autumn: Kristen and Glenn’s Engagement Shoot - Norton House Hotel weddings.

If you wish to jump straight to their wedding photographs just double click any of the images and it will open up the gallery viewer to see them at a larger size.

I arrived at Norton House around 10.30 and had quick coffee before starting the photography at 11am. Kristen was wanting some getting ready photographs so we headed straight up to her room where she was just beginning having her hair and make-up done. After knocking I was let into the room by Kristen’s sister, who was one of the bridesmaids, and as soon as Kristen saw me she leapt from her seat with delight, threw her arms around me and gave me a great big kiss! How’s that for a brilliant start to a photographers day!

I declined the offer of a glass of champagne (as I always do on a wedding day) as it’s no good having a tipsy photographer during the ceremony ;) and started with some details photographs of the wedding dress, bouquets, shoes, etc. We also included some natural, reportage images as Kristen was thrust back into the hairdressers seat to have her hair and make-up completed.

When she was ready I got a couple of head and shoulders shots just to show off her make-up and hair before she started getting into her dress. Because I work quite quickly I was able to get a couple of photographs utilising the natural window light as well as a couple with our mobile studio lighting. The effects would be quite different, both equally dramatic, and Kristen has chosen one of each for her album. The first one shown here is the high-key studio portrait, although it was simply done against the plain hotel room wall with one back light and one front 45 degree front light, which I have converted into high-key black and white.

The second photograph was taken when all the girls were ready and just before we were due to head along for the ceremony. I’d taken photos of the girls doing up the back of Kristen’s wedding dress, which are always good fun to do, photos of Kristen when she was fully ready and also some shots of her with her father, too.

The ceremony was take place in the Ballroom. This is a room familiar to most of the professional wedding photographers in Edinburgh but today it was set out in a new configuration which has never been tried before. Glenn and Kristen came up with this idea themselves and at first Norton House were a little unsure but when running it passed the chair cover company they were all for it. Usually the ceremony is set up for the couple to stand at the head of the room in front of the stage with a central aisle. However, if you have a look at the last photograph you can see the layout Kritsen and Glenn went with. Very different but really chic!

Myself and Diane worked from the corners of the room throughout the ceremony and got a great range of images; the declarations, vows, ring exchange, etc. All totally natural and spontaneous that make for great storybook albums. After signing of the register there were a couple of readings and a presentation for the newly weds from the children and then we were heading out for the drinks reception.

The weather wasn’t looking too idyllic and rain was threatening but we had time to do the requested Big Group photograph and their family shots before the heavens opened up. I deliberately shot the Big Group in panoramic format as Kristin and Glenn have ordered a beautiful 12 x 8 panoramic Bellissimo Perfetto album and I wanted to give the Big Group shot a double page spread in the album as it will look particularly impressive!

For the bride and groom photographs we went back inside as the rain was now pouring down. We did shots in the conservatory, the gorgeous ornate staircase and the main entrance, which is undercover. We ended up with over 60 different photographs from a twenty minute session, which was on top of the 150 I’d already taken so far. I mention this simply because it highlights one of the key differences with magazine style wedding photography. I can take a large amount of photographs in a very short space of time and with minimum fuss to the couple and guests and most importantly they will all be stunning. See what you think of the five I’ve included here.

Finally may I mention that I've just updated my website Wedding Gallery with fresh photographs from recent weddings. I have always been an advocate that a photographers work should speak for itself so in the first instance I would invite any couple currently planning a wedding and looking to decide on a  wedding photographer to have a look at my photographs and then compare them to any other wedding photographer in Edinburgh. Selecting the right photographer for your wedding can be a daunting process, however, having internet access now allows you to check on a photographers skill level and expertise simply by comparing their photographs from their websites. A good question to ask yourself is, Do their images have impact and do the people in them look good? At the end of the day that is what you want from your own photographs.