Creative and business resources for photographers – ProPhotoNut

Beyond a stroll in the park ~ Pictures with passion

20 comments June 9th, 2011 08:43pm damien

For many months now I’ve been researching a new genre that combines my work with ‘Feminine Beauty’ and ‘Shooting Couples’. A product for the brave and beautiful. My customer base will most likely include celebrities plus footballers and their partners. The format is a two to three hour shoot in my studio or their home or a combination of the two. The commission includes a fabulous Jorgensen album containing 30 to 40 pictures printed by me on Hahnemuhle on fine art paper.

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I invited local couple to test for me. We had a fun time on this journey into the unknown. I had created mood boards from the many hundreds of inspiration images I’ve collected online. I acquired ideas from many sources underwear advertising campaigns, movie stills and celebrity portraits. Here are 30 of the many pictures we created together. Every frame was shot on a Canon 5D mk2 with a 100mm L lens apart from the Pool table shot that I took using my 21mm Zeiss lens on the same camera. (more…)

Child Portraits workshop by Martin Oliver

13 comments May 31st, 2011 03:52pm damien

1. Martin Oliver makes great use of an out of focus foreground for this delicate shot.

Photographing children and families has always been a good income generator for me, but I recognise there are photographers out there who just do it a whole lot better. Effortless enthusiasm, combined with the patience of angels are just some of the characteristics required to get top results. Martin Oliver is a master of the art and I invited him to give a workshop at our recent Portrait Euphoria event at Dillington House in Somerset. Here is a small selection of his pictures. (more…)

Jessica pictures taken in Baden-Baden

12 comments May 30th, 2011 09:05pm damien

Every now and then I get the chance to give shooting workshops abroad. This time I was hosted by Keepsakes, both the European supplier of Couture Books and the German distributor of Jorgensen albums. I shared the teaching with the uber talented Martin Hogeboom. A super cool guy and a great photographer. Martin specialises in shooting commercial portraits and fashion. One day when I grow up I want to be like him.

1. Taken using direct sunlight through an open window. 100mm lens.

Here are 50 of my pictures of Jessica. Make up was by Gwen Vermolen Enjoy (more…)

Cherish The Dress™ pictures part 2 ~ The Chris Hanley collection

11 comments May 20th, 2011 11:37am damien

Following on from this post here are the 40 images by my co tutor Chris Hanley. Chris and I did battle at the beginning of the week teaching on the final Cherish The Dress workshop to be held in Manchester. The stage was the fabulous Hilton building on Deansgate. Here is a selection of 40 of Chris Hanley’s shots from the day.

Words and pictures – Chris Hanley

A favourite Chris Hanley shoot location at the Manchester Hilton.

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Cherish the Dress workshop pictures ~ part 1

20 comments May 19th, 2011 11:45pm damien

Chris Hanley and I did battle at the beginning of the week teaching on the final Cherish The Dress workshop to be held in Manchester. The stage was the fabulous Hilton building on Deansgate. Here is a selection of 40 of my shots from the day. Chris will have a bit of time to respond and to re-edit his submission accordingly. I will blog his 40 shots when they eventually arrive with me

1. Apart from a few signature shots, Chris and I agreed to shoot new images in this familiar landscape. I used a pair of barefaced Speedlights to light this shot of Natasha. The principal exercise for this picture was to select a balance of flash to ambient using just the aperture as the adjustment tool.

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Photographing couples ~ Feature article

5 comments May 13th, 2011 05:24pm damien

Shooting couples is like portraiture with an extra dynamic – relationship. Having been trained in television I’ve seen many a director at work cajoling the very essence of a plot out of the actors. Passion to pain all come easily into shot with the right cast and a great director. (more…)

Bridal Fashion workshop pictures by Bella West

13 comments May 13th, 2011 04:59pm damien

1. A bit of vivid colour to brighten our world.

Here is a selection of 15 images shot by Bella West on her recent Bridal Fashion workshop with Lovegrove Consulting at Dillington House. Enjoy…

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Johanna Ormsby pictures from a 1:1 training session

7 comments May 13th, 2011 03:20pm damien

1. Luke has given these pictures an effect in Lightroom. As Prophotonut readers are aware I do like my images to be straight colour or black and white but from time to time I'll let my work deviate.

Here are 19 of my shots from this weeks 1:1 shoot session. Enjoy… (more…)

Pictures of feminine beauty featuring Agata Mazur

9 comments May 9th, 2011 10:46pm damien

1. Sensual and beautiful. Agata shot into the light with my 100mm macro lens without it's lens hood. Convention would suggest focussing on the nearest eye but I prefer a focus line that cuts through the far eye and the all important lips. Especially when there is no eye contact.

The location was the fabulous Dillington House in Somerset. The weather was high cloud with occasional sunny patches. The occasion was the Lovegrove Consulting Feminine Beauty workshop by Damien Lovegrove as part of the Portrait Euphoria event. Here are 59 of my images from this event. (more…)

1:1 shoot training session pictures and techniques

6 comments May 6th, 2011 05:30pm damien

Here are 25 shots from a recent 1:1 shoot training day for a keen amateur photographer and his daughter who is training as a make up artist. The brief was to shoot a variety of fashion style images using studio flash, continuous lighting, reflected sunlight and Speedlights on location. I’ve trained the photographer in the studio before and this was very much a refresher shoot session.

1. This shot was taken at our local beach against the cliff. It was lit with a pair of Canon 580 EX2 Speedlights attached to a Lowel Grand Stand with a Lovegrove Gemini bracket. The behind the scenes shot showing the stand and Speedlight rig is shot 21 of this set below.

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Test shoot ~ continuous lighting portraits with Chloe-Jasmine Whichello

18 comments April 27th, 2011 04:10pm damien

1. A simple set up to get us going. Lit with just a Lupo 1200 on minimum power.

Cat Hepple set up this test shoot with Chloe Jasmine Whichello to establish some new lighting styles and I second shot. We were at the fabulous Hampton Manor, the scene of future workshops, I’m sure. We kept things simple throughout the shoot being led by the ever-changing natural light. Chloe-Jasmine Whichello was our model. Enjoy the pictures… (more…)

Jo de Banzie ~ Child portraits workshop pictures

20 comments April 17th, 2011 12:49pm damien

Jo is wonderful, I thought I’d just get that off my chest. She has amazing clients because she is an amazing person who can use a camera artistically to capture unique images. Her product is way more than photography. It is a lifestyle capture, with a bit of fantasy, a story laced with art. It gives me great pleasure to share 50 of her recent Child Portrait workshop images with you. The first set of 25 are of Poppy and George…

1 A fusion of colour. A mellay of hues within a limited palette. There's way more to a Jo-de Banzie portrait than is first seen.

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Urban Portraits shoot with Johanna Ormsby ~ pictures, lots of them.

13 comments April 16th, 2011 10:47am damien

Last week I had the pleasure of photographing Johanna Ormsby from the Gingersnap model agency in Bristol. I was giving one of my Evolve students a 1:1 shoot training day to bring them up to speed on Speedlight techniques, natural light portraiture and some advanced shooting skills in low light. The session was great fun and generated some nice portraits, some of which I blogged a couple of days ago in my Speedlight post. There were many more that have been edited so I thought I’d share 50 extras with you here…

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A portrait of Man ~ Studio pictures of men

13 comments April 14th, 2011 06:16pm damien

Dudeoir is the catch phrase but I wanted to shoot clean simple images in my studio to see what lighting styles work well for men. I booked Damion from the Gingersnap agency for a two hour test shoot to find out more. Here are my shots…

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A splash of flash ~ techniques and pictures

10 comments April 14th, 2011 03:29pm damien

Here you can see the beautiful light created by the 60cm Lastolite Easybox Hotshoe used in close proximity to the subject. I rigged the light just about one metre from Katy McGee just out of shot on the left hand side.

Using the Pocket Wizard TTL system it is possible to use any shutter speed you choose and I selected 1/2000th second for the picture above to ensure I could use my 70-200mm lens on my Nikon D700 near wide open at f/4. The fabulous soft light and shallow depth of field is a combination that a Speedlight can do so well. By placing (more…)

Art Portraits with Chloe Jasmine Whichello ~ pictures and inspiration

14 comments April 8th, 2011 11:05pm damien

1. That cheeky little look spells mischief. We had such fun on this shoot, a bit of pain and a few interesting moments too. I wouldn't have it any other way.

This was always going to be an amazing reunion. Just over 4 months without shooting together and the team were back for this very special workshop. Vicky Waghorn provided Chloe Jasmine with her make up and tamed her wonderful hair. Clothes were provided by Chloe Jasmine and Cathy of the Handmade Corset Company. There were 4 delegates and myself  shooting in this wonderful country house. The photographs were mostly lit using continuous light from a Lupo 1200 or indeed daylight. The Juke Box shot was lit with an Arri 300 and a Lowel ID light. Post production is by the amazing Marko Nurminen. I hope you enjoy my pictures from the shoot.

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‘Into The Light’ by Damien Lovegrove & Martin Hill ~ Pictures

37 comments April 5th, 2011 11:58pm damien

1. This big flash shot by Martin Hill typified his style for the day's training.

2. I was shooting inside with continuous light, keeping things simple and elegant.

A new era of defining style and beauty began on Monday 28th March. Martin and I had been planning this workshop for some time. Even with all the planning a few surprises presented themselves as we took the delegates on a journey of contrasts. It was like the first night of a big show and wow what a show it was. (more…)

Test shoot in Clevedon ~ Pictures & techniques

16 comments March 26th, 2011 06:59pm damien

1. I shot this frame on the beach at Ladye Bay in Clevedon. I was looking out to sea and had a home made diffusion filter on my 100mm lens. The exposure was right off the scale in my viewfinder. Probably plus 4 stops. Interestingly you have to shoot a Canon 5D2 in Manual mode to achieve this.

Hold onto your hats

Every month I have at least one test shoot where I can try out new ideas, new models and develop my photographic skills without a risk of failure or having to stick to a tight brief. A few weeks back I was fortunate enough to have a day of shooting with former Evolvers Chris & Claire Hanley. Chris suggested a pier shoot and Blaise my PA set about getting the various permisions etc. The plan was to have a leisurely shoot on the pier, a pub lunch and a beach shoot to finish the day. Here are my pictures: (more…)

Minimalist Studio Lighting ~ Pictures and techniques

25 comments March 21st, 2011 11:14pm damien

1. The pictures in this article were shot on recent studio lighting workshops in 2011. They are previously unpublished and I wanted to share them with you. This shot of Marie - Francoise is lit with just one light, in one exposure! How did I do that? Have a think about it.

In lifestyle or reportage portraiture the environment completes the narrative. The story is all around the subject and the viewers eyes can wander the scene reading new information with each pass. In my studio I have abandoned the narrative to reveal just the subject in isolation. I’ve opted for purity of design. A sumptuous immersion into minimalist shape and tone. With everything in control – well, nearly. (more…)

Boudoir 1:1 training session ~ Pictures and technique

11 comments March 15th, 2011 11:23pm damien

1. A simple picture taken with a single Lupo 1200 Fresnel spotlight. Hard light is fabulous light.

It was a cold, dark and gloomy day on the 1st March but my delegate was chirpy. Having flown over from Holland the day before he had ample time to check out the room he was staying in. We were due to shoot there throughout the next day venturing out only to get lunch and to give my Broncolor Mobil a blast. The room was (more…)