Urban Photography Edinburgh and Scotland - Tips
Hi Everyone
As a professional photographer working around Edinburgh, I often get asked for advice or to complete surveys for students and recently I was asked by a student at Napier University to complete a questionnaire relating to urban photography, particularly Edinburgh. As a corporate event photographer working in and around Scotland, I enjoy the break from commissioned commercial work to add to my urban photography portfolio. I also tend to double up and do some infrared photography in urban locations such as Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee to name a few. I have also done some urban photography in Germany.
Anyway, as part of the questionnaire, I was asked for advice for urban photography, so here we go:
1. Try different angles, I do a lot of low angle on the ground shots, they work particularly well when puddles are involved
2. Check the weather forecast
3. Decide on whether you want people in the image ie and then plan the time of your trip accordingly
4. Travel light, so you can be mobile, mirrorless cameras are ideal, maybe just a small fisheye lens also
5. Try something different
6. A small tripod is useful, if not, then a gorillapod - make use of fences and railings if you are using an attachment device
7. Ignore people that give you funny looks. It will be worth it if you really get that striking photo
8. Study past masters and Social Media. instagram has some great urban images
9. Urban photography is just landscape photography in the city. All the rules for landscape photography apply
10. You dont always need people for urban photos, check out my portfolio, I hardly ever shoot recognisable faces
Hope this helps.
Until next time.
www.colinwrightphotogrpahy.co.uk
www.edinburghphotographer.com
Kind Regards
Colin
urban Photography Edinburgh
urban photography Edinburgh by corporate event and urban photographer Colin Wright www.edinburghphotographer.com
Bungee Jumping - Event Photography Glasgow
Hi Everyone
Just about to get my gear ready for the final bungee jumping photography event of the season, so I thought I would share a few tips on the do's and don'ts of bungee jumping event photography. As a professional photographer operating in and around Scotland, I always feel privileged to photograph a variety of subjects. Last week I was photographing a major conference in Edinburgh, whereas this weekend, I will be off to the Riverside Museum, Glasgow for some Bungee Jumping photography. So what should we look out for when photographing people falling from the sky. Here are a few do's and don'ts.
Do -
Take plenty of waterproofs, you will be exposed and there probably wont be anywhere to hide
Make sure you have plenty lens cleaning cloths, you will be looking into the sky after all and your lens will get probably wet, especially in Scotland
A speed of about 640 or 800 should do it, your subject wont be moving too fast and that should be enough to freeze things
Try and capture the emotion on the face of the jumper before and after, as well as the jump
Pay attention and don't miss the jump - this can be difficult as you will have to crook your neck to wait on the jumper and some people will hesitate and take a while
Move your position, try and get right under the jumper and move round as they swing down towards you
Expose in manual, if you use auto exposure without any adjustments you will be exposing for the sky and not the jumper
Don't -
Underestimate the weather, especially in Scotland
Ignore safety issues ie not watching for the cage on its way down to the ground, or you could get crushed
Ignore exposure changes. the light will change and exposure is one of the trickiest aspects of bungee jumping photography. Make sure you check your photos regularly to see if the subject is correctly exposed
So, hope that helps, have a happy event photography day in Scotland.
Kind Regards
Colin
www.colinwrightphotography.co.uk
www.edinburghphotographer.com
Key Aspects of Conference Photography in Edinburgh and around Scotland
Hi All
After a very busy, but also enjoyable week photographing a 3 day conference for the Intercontinental Hotel Group in Edinburgh, i thought in this blog I would reflect a bit on the hidden aspects of conference photography ie some of the things you overlook. As a professional conference and event photographer operating in Edinburgh, Glasgow and other parts of Scotland, I have learned a fair bit about conference photography and some of the main challenges are not necessarily related to technical photographic skills. Modern conference events are a bit like weddings, you can't miss key moments of the day, you may also be covering evening dinner receptions, with dancers pipers etc, so make sure you are fully aware of the timings and to keep your energy up. Most of the organisers will feed you, so make sure you don,t skip this, otherwise you will flag, especially if you have been up since 5am. Try and persuade the venue to put the lights as high as they can tolerate, even though modern cameras are great in low light, darkness is still the enemy. Make sure everything is pre-arranged ie your car should be fine, you should know the route, traffic etc and leave an hour earlier than you need to. This is not an office job, lateness will not be accepted and you could be in deep trouble if you miss a key moment. Think about any possible disasters ie have loads of charged batteries, extra lenses, lens cleaning clothes, flash etc, at least 2 of everything. I know a few photographers who only have one camera at events, that would scare the hell out of me and to be honest, it is not very professional.
So happy conference photography shooting.
Until next time.
www.colinwrightphotogrpahy.co.uk
www.edinburghphotographer.com
Conference and Infrared Photography in Scotland
Hi Everyone
As I approach one of my busiest ever spells as a professional corporate and event photographer in Edinburgh and Scotland, for once I had a weekend off and it was good to spend it with the family at a battle re-enactment event in Dunbar. We went too early and had to leave before the battle but that's another story I wont bore you with but I did take my infrared camera and managed a few shots for something a bit different to add to my Infrared in Scotland project. I have been selling the infrared images online and this has been a success but I am also in the process of finding a suitable retail outlet, more news on that front soon. People in costume can often be good to depict in infrared and metallic objects such as swords and helmets can be shown in an entirely different way due to infrared light - see it's not just all about white trees you know. I think there is no subject that is taboo where infrared photography is concerned and I plan to expand my range of subject matter soon. In the meantime, here is a photo from the event. Starting to get prepared for a 3 day conference in Edinburgh next week, really looking forward to this one, as it takes place at various venues throughout Edinburgh, including a couple of top class restaurants. Overall, this will be one of my biggest conference events as an event photographer in Edinburgh, due to the duration of the event, cant wait.
Anyway, until next time.
Kind Regards
Colin