Professional commercial, portrait photographer West Yorkshire, covering Wakefield, Barnsley, Huddersfield, Pontefract

Wakefield commercial photographer: Redrow

November 4, 2013

Wakefield commercial photographer: Today I was back at the Redrow development in Wrenthorpe but this time to photograph the company directors. The brief was to shoot mostly outdoors but with a couple of portraits done inside the show house and to capture individual headshots and also a large group shot. The weather was perfect for the shoot and I was on site in plenty of time for the 3pm kick-off but unfortunately, the shoot didn’t get underway until nearly 4pm due to an overrun of a meeting up at the main Redrow office at J41 industrial park. The delays meant the sun had dipped behind the houses by the time we began shooting, so my using the winter sunlight went awry as the shade became darker and darker by the minute. The sunbounce did its job and salvaged what light it could to use as fill but in the end, a little judicious flash was required to boost the shadows before heading indoors to finish off with. What made the shoot harder was the fact that the foreground and lower sections of the frame were in heavy shade while the very light upper sections of the houses were still catching the warm winter sunlight and the exposure difference between each was at least 2.5 stops. Still, these are just part of the everyday challenges as a photographer and I think the results should fit the brief :¬)

by John

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Oulton Hall wedding photographer: Hannah & Stew

October 27, 2013

Working as an Oulton Hall wedding photographer is always a pleasure as, rain or shine, there’s always somewhere to shoot even if we have to work entirely indoors and I have to say, I was expecting to not get out into the grounds today as the forecast was grim! Not only was there chance of rain but also hurricane winds gusting to over 100mph were on the cards. In the end though, we dodged all but a few light showers and got away with shooting in the grounds albeit briefly. Hannah and the girls got ready in the Bolton Abbey suite which is large and spacious and absolutely fabulous for some prep shots and bridal portraits with oodles of room so that we can shoot candidly as the events unfold as well as posing formally. Once in her dress, I photographed Hannah using the daylight fill from the large windows and softening up an SB800 in a 24″ softbox as key light then it was outside to catch up with Stewart and the boys for their photos ahead of the ceremony in the Repton Room.

Straight after the ceremony, we managed to get everyone outside for a big group shot but the confetti shot proved far more tricky with the petals being blown into oblivion in the stiff autumn breeze and I don’t think a single one was caught on camera! We dashed in and out between a few light showers but on the whole had a not bad run in the grounds for the photos, including a nice rainbow over the couple at one point. It’s amazing how quickly the time goes and shoot gives way to a bit of guest mingling time before the wedding breakfast followed by the evening’s partying in the Claret Jug but I’m pleased with some of the shots and I hope Hannah and Stewart are too. Here’s a selection of images from the day amd if you want to book me as your Oulton Hall wedding photographer, just call the studio on 01924 229800 for a no obligation chat.

by John

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Wakefield boudoir photographer: Suzy

October 26, 2013

I had my Wakefield boudoir photographer’s hat on today for a shoot with Suzy who had travelled all the way from Bridgewater in Somerset for the shoot! Suzy saw some work I did for another client from that neck of the woods and had been saying to her boyfriend Joe how much she’d like to do something like this. As a birthday suprise, Joe organised a shoot for Suzy and they traveled up this weekend to meet up. Some of you will know that my studio is part of a large house and during the weekdays I have free rein to shoot throughout the building while everyone is at work but today is Saturday so I was restricted to shooting just in my regular studio space. This isn’t a problem but it means I have to work harder to create different looks as I don’t have access to all the sets such as the bathroom. Still, I think we came up with some great images that I am sure Suzy will like and she kindly allowed me to post a few here so that all the other ladies out there wanting a boudoir shoot will see just what we can create. if you’d like a boudoir shoot like Suzy’s, just give me a call on 01924 229800 for a chat.

by John

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Wakefield glamour photographer: Laura

October 21, 2013

Laura found me through an internet search and loved my work so much she drove up from Birmingham in the heavy rain for me to shoot her portfolio today. She’s just been signed to an agency and decided to get a portfolio update as she’s feeling a bit fired up about modelling again after a break from the scene. Previously, she did commercial and lifestyle modelling but has since decided to have a tattooed sleeve, the first of many tattoos, and has now decided to turn her hand to alt modelling. We began in the studio on a white sweep and did some fashion shots before hitting the bedroom set and the bathroom set for lingerie images but we ended up on the spiral staircase and in a gorgeous corner of the studio where the sunlight was creating beautiful shadows on the walls through the wooden blinds.

As soon as I put Laura on the stairs, and having seen the sunlight and shadows on the walls, I knew straight away that I wanted to shoot some black-and-white Hollywood style portraits of her. I rigged up a couple of 500w redheads aka ‘hot lights’ and used the Fuji X-Pro 1, shooting in mono, as weapon of choice. The Fuji has been hailed by all and sundry, including some of the world’s most renowned photographers, as a DSLR killer and I fell for the hype hook, line and sinker and splashed the hard earn cash on a full kit. However, I can only assume all the reviewers of this camera have never shot with a high-end Nikon DSLR because there ain’t no way on this planet that the Fuji can hold a candle to my D4! There, I’ve said it! I’m going against the flow I know but hey! It’s no DSLR killer in my books. Having said that, it’s pretty darn good and the images I shot with it gave me a warm tingle as I viewed them on the back of the camera. In this post I’m showing only the images from the Fuji, just because it’s a different style to what I usually shoot. All the images are taken using either the 35mm f/1.4 or 55-200mm f/3.5~4.8. I have a boudoir shoot on Saturday and I suspect I may do something similar :¬)

Wakefield glamour & boudoir photographer shooting high end black & white images for clients in Wakefield and West Yorkshire including Leeds, Huddersfield, Halifax and Bradford | Boudoir photographer within easy reach of York | York glamour photographer | Leeds glamour photographer | professional boudoir and glamour photographer Wakefield

by John

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Wakefield wedding photographer: Bespoke albums

October 20, 2013

So, I’m getting lots of emails asking why the blog has been quiet of late; the answer is not that I don’t have any work, but the fact that I am so busy with wedding albums that I have not always got the time to update. I think it’s getting to the point where I need to take on an assistant :¬o I am shooting on a weekly basis for a client in Leeds and I am also trying to update some of my websites, especially my wildlife website that I have neglected these past few years while I established myself as a wedding, portrait and commercial photographer in West Yorkshire. But, it is that time of year when I am busy with albums.

Every wedding album I produce is designed by me and each one is unique as I don’t use any special template driven album software. Many photographers farm out the album production to the printers themselves but I prefer to do it myself so that I can provide a bespoke service and not limit the couple to how many images they can have in an album. So, although it takes up a good deal of my time, I prefer to deliver a unique album that will give lasting pleasure to the couple.

by John

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Party shoots for teenagers: Katie & friends

October 12, 2013

Party shoots for teenagers are always a challenge and good fun- controlling a group of excited teenage girls on their first professional photoshoot keeps me on my toes to say the least. The excited party atmosphere means that we’re always going to shoot some fun images as each of the girls plays off against the others. Katie came over from Batley with five of her friends for her 14th birthday and while mum went shopping, Katie’s dad and I got the shoot rolling. I shot individual beauty headshots on black before moving onto the white corner and ultimately ending up shooting on a barley background using a leather settee to create shots similar to the title scenes on the hit TV show ‘Friends’. The girls all had a great time and a CD of images from the shoot is winging it’s way to Batley in the post. To book me for your teenager party shoot, just call the studio on 01924 229800 – it’s a great fun present.

by John

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