Fellow Photographers,

**** Stop press **** still two places left at tonight’s Latex Night with Dante Layla. Contact me or book on line if you would like one of the places.

If you have been to my website in the last week or so you will have noticed that I have been making some changes. I have updated the formatting so that it adapts better to you display size, changed the front page to better show what has been updated on the website. I’ve added a few new graphics for the website banners AND I have published details of studio events up to the end of January.

I’d like to draw you attention to the two full length courses which are starting in January – The Comprehensive Studio Course which is a 9 session practical course running on Tuesday evenings. You will get to work with 10 different models over 9 weeks and by the end of the course you will have the knowledge to design and set-up studio lighting for almost any genre.

The other course is my Intermediate Photography Course – this looks at different types of photography and teaches you many of the tricks of trade and professional insights. The classroom based training is backed up by homework assignments which we critique as a group at the start of each session. Attendees on the course also qualify for price reduction for relevant events being run at the studio for the duration of the course.

Also in the newsletter is a blog post from yesterday all about “clients” who have no budget for photography. I’ve also included in the newsletter three “photos of the day” two are images from recent studio events (look what you’ve been missing!) and the other an image from a one-to-one training session. The main reason for including that image is because of the post production notes that I’ve added.

For all of this… please read on….

Forthcoming Events

Friday, 6 December 2013 – Latex Night with Dante Layla

Latex Night with Dante Layla

Location: Ian’s Studio
Time: 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Price: £25

Model Dante-Layla makes a welcome return to the studio this evening with a range of latex outfits. Dante is a regular model at the studio but this is the first time she will be modelling here with her latex wardrobe.

You can find her profile which includes a number of latex outfits on Purpleport: http://purpleport.com/portfolio/dantelayla/?referrer=iansstudio (click on the “more of my work” link to see additional examples of Dante’s laytex outfits.

Price: £25

Please book via my website: http://www.ians-studio.co.uk/events/latex-night-with-dante-layla/

Friday, 13 December 2013 – Table Top : Water Night

Table Top : Water Night

Location: Ian’s Studio
Time: 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Price: £18

The theme for tonight’s event table top event will be water based set-ups. In addition to the ever popular splash tank, we now have a water droplet collisions trigger.

You will need a tripod. If you have a macro lens (or extension tubes) you will find these helpful. I have a macro lens and extension tubes which can be borrowed by Canon shooters.

You can see some examples of the type of water droplet collisions which are possible here: http://photos.imb.biz/studio/waterdroplets2

Price: £18

Please book via my website: http://www.ians-studio.co.uk/events/table-top-water-night/

Friday, 20 December 2013 – Christmas Critiques 2013

Christmas Critiques 2013

Location: Ian’s Studio
Time: 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Price: £0 (If you have been to the studio in 2013)

Every Christmas I run a free event at the studio to say thank you everyone who has supported the studio over the past year. It is a time to meet with other photographers share images that we have taken during the year and enjoy a mince pie and a drink

The event is only open to people who have been to an Ian’s Studio event, workshop or course in 2013 or if you have hired the studio in 2013. Bring along a selection of images you have created this year (please include something you have taken as a result of attend one of the studio events, workshops or courses).

The first half of the evening will be critiquing and talking about our photographs this will be followed by a short shoot. So please bring your camera.

Price: Free (but you must have been to a paid event at the studio in 2013)

Please book via my website: http://www.ians-studio.co.uk/events/christmas-critiques-2013/

Friday, 27 December 2013 – Glamour Day & Night

Glamour Day & Night

Location: Ian’s Studio
Time: 3:00 AM – 10:00 AM
Price: £35 or £60

Two three hour sessions with a leading glamour model. Book for either afternoon or evening or both. We will be shooting different set-ups each session so worth booking for both if you can! The afternoon session will be 3pm – 6pm and the evening 7pm – 10pm.

Our model will be working up to nude at both sessions for this event. It is anticipated that each session will include one room set (eg Boudoir, Office, Lounge or Bed); one paper background set, and one set using other studio features such as the parquet floor or the walls.

I will be announcing details of the model for this event shortly.

Price: £35 afternoon OR evening; £60 both sessions

Please book via my website: http://www.ians-studio.co.uk/events/glamour-day-night/

Friday, 10 January 2014 – Drama through Lighting

Drama through Lighting

Location: Ian’s Studio
Time: 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Price: £25

Tonight’s Friday Night at the Studio event will be led by Rick Bradbury. Rick is known for his use of dramatic lighting in his portraiture work.

For this event we will be looking at all kinds of dramatic lighting, using all types of modifiers from grids to big umbrellas to create images with drama/tension.

Many people think for dramatic lighting you need to use grids or hard light… whilst that works great you can also create drama with light with a larger light source.

Bring your camera and plenty of cards for a dramatic nights shooting.

Details of the model for this event will be release closer to the event date.

Price: £25

Please book via my website: http://www.ians-studio.co.uk/events/drama-through-lighting/

Friday, 24 January 2014 – Full Colour Pin-up

Full Colour Pin-up

Location: Ian’s Studio
Time: 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Price: £27

Tonight’s Friday Night at the Studio event will be on the theme of ‘pin-up’. We will be working with an established pin-up model to create pin-up images with bright and bold colours.

Coloured back grounds will be the order of the day. We have a good selection of colourfull background papers at the studio and we will be augmenting these with coloured gels to increase the coulors we can shoot against.

Details of the model for this event will be published shortly

Price: £27

Please book via my website: http://www.ians-studio.co.uk/events/full-colour-pin-up/

Saturday, 25 January 2014 – Lightroom Training Day

Lightroom Training Day

Location: Ian’s Studio
Time: 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Price: £65

Learn Adobe Photoshop Lightroom in one day. This intensive and extensive training day will equip you to get the best out Lightroom and will help you streamline your photography workflow.

Attendees may wish to be bring a laptop with with Lightroom installed, to follow the through the training on their own screens.

All participants will get printed notes.

Cost: £65.00 (Price includes lunch)

Topics covered include:

The Lightroom Philosophy

Learn to work the Lightroom way.

Configuring Lightroom

Set-up options you MUST change
Where to store your files
Setting up metadata defaults

Library Module

DAM – Digital Asset Management – what is it? Why do I need it?
Finding images
The filter bar
Importing
– Getting images into Lightroom
– Naming conventions
– DNG – what is it? Why convert to DNG?
Setting metadata
– Using the panels
– Using the painter
– Using presets
– Synchronising metadata
– Saving metadata!
Using keywords and keyword hierarchies
Reviewing your images
– Flags and ratings
Collections and smart collections

Develop Module

Understanding the adjustment panels (we go through each panel in turn an look at what it can do.)
Using adjustment brushes, graduated filters and other editing tools
Using presets
Snapshots, history and virtual copies

Output Modules

Printing
Slide show
Web

Exporting Images

Export & Publish – what’s the difference.

Plug-ins

Third party publishing tools – Flickr, Zenfolio, Alamy
Export plug-ins -Adding frames to your images
GPS
Defining your own metadata fields

Workflow hints and tips

Using keyword to mange workflow

Please book via my website: http://www.ians-studio.co.uk/events/lightroom-training-day-140125/

Sunday, 26 January 2014 – Intermediate Photography Course (8 Sessions)

Intermediate Photography Course (8 Sessions)

Location: Ian’s Studio
Time: 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM
Price: £165 (8 sessions) £155 (7 sessions)

Weekly on Sunday Afternoons 3pm till 5.30pm (approx) from Sunday 26th January 2014

The course will consist of eight sessions (session 5 on glamour, boudoir, & art nude is optional). Each session will be two and half hours in length.

Please note this is classroom based training with practical homework assignments to back-up what we have covered in each session. Discounts will be available to course attendees to attend other events at the studio.

Each session will look at one or two related genres of photography. We will cover techniques and equipment, and I will be providing practical advice and where appropriate I’ll share experiences from a professional perspective.

Session 1 : Travel and Architecture
Session 2 : Available light portraiture and Weddings
Session 3 : Off Camera flash and strobist techniques
Session 4 : Studio portrature
Session 5 : Glamour, boudoir and art nude photography
Session 6 : Events, theatre and performance photography
Session 7 : Macro, product and commercial photography
Session 8 : Sports and wildlife photography

Each session will leave you with some homework to reinforce the skills and techniques we have talked about.

Price:
8 Sessions: £165.
or 7 Sessions (omitting session 5) : £155

The course is aimed at photographers who have a reasonable level of photographic knowledge. I have designed the course to be particularly suitable for those who have already completed my “Introduction to Digital Photography” course. If you have not completed that course, you should have an understanding of photographic techniques such as exposure, aperture, controlling depth of field, etc. Experience of using flash guns is useful but not essential. As with any course the time spent on any given subject will be tailored to reflect the current knowledge and experience of those attending.

Printed course materials will be provided to all attendees. Throughout the course there will be opportunities should you wish to have your photographs assessed to help you improve.

Places on the course will be limited.

Please note: The course is designed for users of DSLR cameras. If you have a “compact” camera or a “bridge” camera please contact me to discuss its suitability for this course.

Please book via my website: http://www.ians-studio.co.uk/events/intermediate-photography-course-8-sessions/

Tuesday, 28 January 2014 – Comprehensive Studio Photography Course

Comprehensive Studio Photography Course

Location: Ian’s Studio
Time: 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM
Price: ££299

Starting on Tuesday 28th January….. The Comprehensive Studio Photography Course.

This nine session course will cover all aspects of studio based people photography. Each week we will work with different models to create great images, and learn studio techniques.

Session 1 : Understanding the light – In this first session we will create dramatic head-shots using a single light source and a large range of different light modifiers. By the end of this session you will understand how to set up a studio light, and what effect each modifier has on the final image we are creating.
Session 2 : Multiple lights – In this session we create interesting portraits by adding in additional light sources. We look at ratios and metering multiple light sources By the end of the session you will be able to set up multiple lights, and under why and when you need to add an extra light.
Session 3 : Posing & Fashion – In this session we concentrate on how to pose your subjects. We will also look at how to use grey backgrounds and introduce the use of gels to colour light.
Session 4 : Photographing men & couples – In this session we work with male and female models. We consider some of the techniques for photographing men and how to pose and light couples.
Session 5 : Boudoir & Lingerie – using low-key lighting and specially created studio sets we look at different ways to create boudoir images.
Session 6 : Latex, tatoos and alternative models – in this session you will be encouraged to design and set-up your own lighting to best show off our alternative model.
Session 7 : Glamour – In this session we look at glamour photography. The emphasis will be on hi key lighting set-ups either seamless white or using coloured background papers.

Session 8 : Art Nude – For this session the emphasis switches to low-key lighting as we consider the creation of art nude images.
Session 9 : Working with water and other messy substances – for the final session we we look at some of the challenges of working with water and other messy substances such as paint/slime in the studio.

All course participants will receive full printed full printed notes to accompany the course. The notes will cover topics such as posing guidelines, advice on working with models, and sample lighting set-ups.

Additionally each attendee will receive a voucher for 3hrs fee studio hire (worth £50) – to be taken within 6 months of the end of the course. This is your chance to put in to practice all the skill you have learned on the course.

Cost: £299
If you want help spreading the cost and wish to pay by installments please contact me for details

To be able to run the course I need a minimum of three people to book.

Please book via my website: http://www.ians-studio.co.uk/events/comprehensive-studio-photography-course-2/

From the Blog…

“We don’t have a budget”

Any photographer who has been in any way remotely successful at their craft will, at some point, get an email from someone wanting to use their work for free because the person wanting use it “hasn’t got a budget”. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying never work for free, there are times when choosing to do so is the right thing. I will happily work for reduced fees or even nothing for charities I wish to support. As a small business myself I know just how tight funds can be and I’m always prepared to negotiate with businesses who are also in that position.

However, when it comes to large organisations with big reputations and similar bank balances it is a different story. They DO have budgets, it’s just that they are choosing not to spend it on things like photography. The BBC for example sources a lot of it’s images via vanity means. ”If you submit your photograph we might show it on air”. Manchester Airport not so long ago wanted local images to be displayed in the arrival areas. How did they do it. They ran a competition what was the prize? To actually have the image displayed in the arrivals area! Both of those companies have large budgets for publicity and display. It is just that they choose not spend money on things like photography because they think they can get away with it.

We as photographers need to take a stand against this. There is a temptation for amateurs and hobbyists to not worry about the money, but just to enjoy the thrill of seeing their images used. This is flawed logic. Every time a hobbyist does that it confirms the belief that photography in general is not worth paying for. That makes it harder for those of us who make our living in that in industry to charge. Should we be worried if a few pros go out of business? It probably wouldn’t change the world much if the likes of “Ian’s Studio” went out of business (don’t panic that’s not going to happen anyhow). But the world would be a much poorer place if photographers like Steve McCurry hadn’t created his iconic image of an Afghan girl for National Geographic. If Nick Ut hadn’t taken his icon image of napalm girl how long would it have been before public opinion about the Vietnam war changed?

This morning a friend shared a post on Facebook. It is a letter written by musician Whitey. It is about musicians who are facing the same issues that we as photographers are facing. Exchange the word ‘musician’ for ‘photographer’ or for that matter any other business – my friend runs an app development businessand he sees the same attitudes in that industry as we face in the photography business and Whitey see in the music industry.

I will finish this post with the link to Whitey’s letter please take the time to read it: http://m.imgur.com/r/MusicNews/sOsHnbf

Photo of the Day

POTD 29 Nov 2013 – Material Girl

Model Misha at Material Girl event at Ian’s Studio

One of the images from our “Material Girl” event at the studio. The concept of the evening was to photograph art nude images where pieces of material were a significant part of the image.

I also wanted a little bit of a challenge. Art nude and you set the camera to black and white right? Well yes, possibly but by introducing colour elements in the form of material we CAN do art nude and do it colour. Yes I did do a couple of black and white versions but on the whole when I look at the full set of images created at this event I think the colour ones are the more powerful.

You can see the full set of images from the event here: http://photos.imb.biz/model/shoot/materialgirl – but as you might expect the images do contain nudity and are thus not safe for work.

PLEASE NOTE: This is not a source of free photographs.
This photograph is (c) Ian M Butterfield. All rights are reserved. No use Is permitted (including non-commercial use) without prior permission. If you wish to use any of my photographs please ask first.

Image Reference: FF1129A-G02675

POTD 22 Nov 2013 – Messy Night

Messy Night at the studio with model SoftGentle

This is one of the messy images from the a recent Friday Night at the Studio event with model SoftGentle.

I am posting it at this time to test a facility for linking my website posts directly to Facebook. So if you can see this on Facebook the automatic linking has worked.

Image Reference: FF1122A-G02535

POTD 4 Oct 2013 – Cannon

A cannon in Vernon Park pointing at Pear Mill

I am rather pleased with this image. It was taken while I was doing some one-to-one training. The weather wasn’t particularly helpful, but as is sometimes the case when the weather was bad I come out with good images. Prior to processing in Lightroom the image was a bit mediocre.

The things to note about the shot is that I deliberately exposed it to ensure that there was detail in the sky and it wasn’t completely blown out. This meant that I could use a lightroom graduated filter to pull back the sky and make it dramatic.

Next I increased to the clarity and contrast to give a very punchy feel to it. I tweaked the saturation to make it look a little less vibrant. I dodged and burned a few areas to bring out the details. Finally I added a vignette to draw you into the image.

Image Reference: FF1004A-G00566