Faces of Soho.... all different, all interesting in their own way.
Commercial Portrait Photography in London
Its amazing how important that first impression can be of a person you meet for the first time or intend on possibly meeting for the first time. Thanks to business owners wanting to appear more 'client friendly' and interactive these days, I find myself doing more and more Staff Profile Photography shoots, Commercial Portrait photography and even Personal Profile Photography. Everyone has a website, Facebook page, Blog, Twitter account etc etc and so the need to display yourself in your best light has never been more important. People are often surprised how quickly I can rock up with my kit create something striking of them and their team on their own business premises or in a location of choice. London is and amazing and powerful backdrop, so I use it whenever possible! So ... if you feel like you and your team deserve some fresh portrait photography in London or anywhere else for the fresh new year.... give me a shout! ;)
Geek Chic Shoot
My first shoot of the year .... experimenting with a bit of 'ringflash' to give that evenly lit, lovely glow ... my lovely friend Ashley soon got into action and rocked up in geek punk outfit, complete with chocololly and geek goggles! It was great fun .... will be posting more shots soon :)
How to shoot Events Photography
I do a lot of events work throughout the year, and its mostly great fun! The venues are usually quite special, and the people attending are always up for some laughs. Its my job to make them look their best, and also capture the essence of the event and the mood of the occasion. 9 times out of 10 when I'm working at these functions, someone or more than one person, gets talking to me about my job, photography, the kit I use and how I do it. So today I thought I'd share some basics and explain how I approach a night like this. Firstly, I get my running order from the client and do a walk through of the venue so I can work a few things out!
Its going to be dark, so we need additional light/s .... but we don't want to blitz the available light out so much that we kill the feel and mood that's there!?.... So we need to find a balance between the ambient light reading and our flash power. To put this simply... you need to expose for the ambient light (background available light) and then add in some foreground flash to light your main subjects nicely and 'Freeze' the action enough to keep it looking crisp! This is where having a camera with a good low light iso range comes into play. My ever faithful Nikon D3 is still great at low light level performance although its now 4 years old.
I always try to use some form of backlight for these events so its adds some drama and life to the background .... so I look around for the best places to set up shots. There were some key elements to this job that i needed to cover...
- Establishing shots of the venue - in this case The Roundhouse at Camden, a fantastic event space!
- Guests at the reception area - excitedly meeting friends, all dolled up wearing big smiles!! (Time to interact and smile lots myself too !)
- Guests seated at their tables
- Awards if any...
- Dancing and partying
You need to be organised, plenty of spare batteries (as you will be hammering your flash)...... I also like to use a simple 'speed Gobo' bouncer from Honl Photo for my flash so that the light is 'bounced light' rather than direct (its just a bit softer and more flattering) .... experiment!
I also brought along my Elinchrom Ranger Quadra Kit (x2 lightweight, powerful and portable battery packs, x2 flash heads, x2 stands x2 brollies) so I could leave them set up on the top balcony ready for some cheeky group shots after dinner... guests are always more relaxed after a few drinks and then you can start to have some fun with them.
If you look at the info on each image, I have shown the EXIF data settings so you can see my exposure settings ... I hope this has been helpful, but please ping me a comment if you have any questions! Ta. :)
CLICK ON THE IMAGES BELOW TO SEE AT CORRECT SIZE AND SHARPNESS.
[caption id="attachment_3009" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 1100, F4.5, 1/50th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Bounced Flash in TTL Mode +2/3 power
- Nikon D3, Handheld, ISO 3200, F5, 1/30th Sec, NO FLASH[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_3007" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, Handheld, ISO 1100, F5, 1/30th Sec, Flash on Manual Power +1/3.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3023" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 560, F5.6, 1/8th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, 1 light to left front and 1 light to right front allowing even light, bounced into white brollies.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3021" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 560, F5.6, 1/8th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, 1 light to left front and 1 light to right front allowing even light, bounced into white brollies.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3020" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 560, F5.6, 1/8th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, 1 light to right to give side light, bounced into white brolly.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3019" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 560, F5.6, 1/8th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, 1 light to left front and 1 light to right front allowing even light, bounced into white brollies.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3016" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 560, F7.1, 1/6th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Bounced Flash in TTL Mode +2/3 power.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3018" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 560, F5.6, 1/8th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, 1 light to left front and 1 light to right front allowing even light, bounced into white brollies.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3017" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 560, F5.6, 1/8th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, 1 light to left front and 1 light to right front allowing even light, bounced into white brollies.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3013" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 560, F5.6, 1/13th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Bounced Flash in TTL Mode +1/3 power.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3012" align="aligncenter" width="665"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 1100, F3.2, 1/100th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, NO FLASH[/caption][caption id="attachment_3015" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 560, F5.6, 1/13th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Bounced Flash in TTL Mode +1/3 power.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3010" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 1100, F4.5, 1/50th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Bounced Flash in TTL Mode +2/3 power[/caption][caption id="attachment_3011" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 1100, F3.2, 1/100th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, NO FLASH.[/caption][caption id="attachment_3008" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Camden Roundhouse, Event Photography by Simon Harvey - Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 1100, F4.5, 1/40th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Bounced Flash in TTL Mode +2/3 power[/caption][caption id="attachment_3014" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]
Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Handheld, ISO 560, F5.6, 1/15th Sec. Nikon D3, 24-70mm Lens, Bounced Flash in TTL Mode +1/3 power.[/caption]
2 day Travel Photography adventure in Magical Marrakech
I went there with dreams of colour and life... but its was SOOOOO Hard to shoot there! Any of you that have been there, know that taking pictures in Marrakech is far from easy... and not the romantic holiday destination you would think of ... so armed with a hulking great big Nikon DSLR and a long lens, i hardly blended in... and these people are hyper sensitive to cameras! You either get a "NO PICTURE" and a hand raised over the face, or a hand out asking for money the second they see you!! So ....with only being there for 2 days I had to adapt quickly, and learn to be very quick to seize any picture opportunities ... Its still a great place to go to though if you like a challenge!! ;)
Enjoy, share and rate please :)
Tankus The Henge - Music Photography on The Thames
What can I say .... other than I LOVE these boys!!!! ... Everytime I meet them and work with them, I leave with a big smile on my face .... they are just loveable, bonkers, creative TALENT!! They always make my photography look good because they are just so colourful and interesting!! Check out their facebook page here and lookout for a gig soon .... I promise you will LOVE them!
Wet Wedding Photography in Seven Dials, London
I was walking through Seven Dials only yesterday doing a job when i happened across this lovely couple walking up Monmouth Street having their wedding photographs taken!! The photographer was using flash close up with them, and i knew he was missing out on all the beautiful ambient light and reflections... so had a cheeky word and asked the couple if they minded if i took a quick shot of them on the Zebra crossing!! :-)
I hope they get in touch so i can send them the shot .... i think you'll agree, the light is beautiful and it makes for a great shot! :) Good luck to them both!
Sneak Peek - Music Promo Photography with Tankus The Henge
Today I met up with my crazy friends - Tankus The Henge! I've known and been photographing these lovable lads for the last 4 years now and there has never been a dull moment. With the arrival of their new Drummer, their manager thought it about time we got some new promo shots done... so we headed to the wonderful floating Dutch Barge that is 'Tamesis Dock' on the London Southbank of the Thames... Apart from being a great location, Neema the lovely lady who runs this ship (literally) provides some lovely food and drinks....! get down there and check it out! its magical! :)
The Tankus boys were in fine form, even if it was an early start... and we soon got going with some cheeky antics....
These are just a couple of tasters from the shoot. Hope you like them, and if you fancy coming along to listen to these chaps.... have a look at their facebook page here and come along!! I challenge you to not be able to love them!! ;)
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Music Photography by Simon Harvey on the Southbank with Tankus The Henge[/caption]
Upstairs, Downstairs.
Characters on the underground ....I didn't manage to get a shot of this man giving this girl filthy looks for doing her makeup next to him ... it was hilarious![gallery]
Street Photography with 'street13'
yes yes yes .... its been months since i have blogged .... i need another set of arms and legs at the moment, not to mention brain!! I have been SOOOOOOOOOOO Busy for the last 5 months .... and still hectic, but thought its about time i got some stuff up on here to show you where i have been and what i have been doing! :) So ... as many of you know, i am a big Instagram fanatic!! But.... i mean Instagram in the true sense .... so my shots on Instagram are all 100% Iphone and nothing else!! ... I found this dude 'Sam' while on my way to a shoot... he got on the train as cool as a cucumber on his retro hotwheels and sat there in amongst the other travellers without a care in the world ... I quickly whipped out my trusty iphone 4 for some shots (on the quiet of course!) and got some great shots of Sam without him being aware ... ! But when Sam also got off at Willesden Green, my curiosity got the better of me, so i asked him if he'd mind me taking a few shots (i had my Nikon in my bag!! ;) ) and here they are. Sam was a very interesting guy with a story to tell that amazed me and truly makes you realize that we should never judge a book by its cover!! I hope you like!![gallery]