Why NOW is the best time to submit your Tax Return Behind the Scenes with Andy Firth

By Lincoln Roth &Perrin Read - Roth Read Photography

Let’s get personal! In this, our new look column, we ask prominent Yorkshire business owners to join us on location for a personal portrait photoshoot. We discover a little more about them and capture a unique collection of portrait pictures. Behind the Scenes takes us behind their business persona and their photoshoot

Behind the consultation

Please meet Andy Firth, director of Ascensor digital agency ba sed in Leeds.

His team of marketers, creative thinkers and optimisation specialists help businesses grow through digital marketing and convers ion strategies. Most of us appreciate the need to relax away from work, but Andy is extremely active in his relaxing as he likes to ski, paddleboard, canoe, climb, hike and mountain bike. And he’s not waiting for fair weather either. Whatever the weather, Andy packs his camper van and heads up a Scottish mountain, down a Yorkshire dale or across a Cumbrian Lake.

All this may sound exhausting but the discipline these sports require, especially in extreme weather, requires Andy to be focussed and in the moment. Consequently, all thoughts of work take a back seat (probably in th e camper van).

Behind the planning

Andy’s favourite sport is skiing but sadly he wasn’t prepared to take us to Switzerland for his photoshoot. With that idea quickly ditched we focused on climbing, hiking and mountain biking.

Searching out an ideal location can take a little organising, but Lincoln and I felt the Cow and Calf rock formation near Ilkley would make a perfect sporting arena for Andy’s shoot.

Occasionally, a location may not appear spot-on at first sight. However, creative camera angles, camera settings, lights and modifiers transport a location into another world.

Behind the outfit

Style, colour and accessories help to portray the mood and scene of a photo. They also ensure the subject fits into that scene whilst simultaneously taking centre stage.

Andy’s ‘what to wear’ conversation was easy as each activity required his specialist gear. For his camper van shot we suggested blue jeans and chose a shirt to complement the scene

Behind the shoot

The weather looked dark and moody with a forecast prediction of heavy rain. Andy has an easy going yet energised view of life, so we were confident he’d be up for fun whatever the day.

The camper van shot was an easy start to the shoot: a strobe (a high-powered portable studio flash) outside the van to light Andy and a speed light (small flashlight, often attached to the top of a camera) inside to add depth. A few adjustments to make sure the strobe did not reflect on the wing, and the first image was in the bag.

Next, we carried our photography gear up to the rocks (whilst wishing we were as fit as Andy).

Rock climbing were challenging shots. Andy had to be in an assertive pose, angled correctly for the camera (his upper body tipped slightly forward to capture his face) whilst feeling safe on the slippery rocks. Lincoln shot upward, without capturing the ground, to create a sense of altitude.

The hiking shot required perspective, so I climbed the rocks opposite valley behind him. As I took the picture, Lincoln stood beneath us holding the strobe on a stand high above his head.

The cycling image is known as a composite image: the process of combining elements from one image into another (which Lincoln achieves in Photoshop).

Firstly, the camera was set up on a tripod to ensure the scene remained static. Lincoln walked ahead of Andy with the strobe light, as I photographed each pose. This enabled both of us to direct and view each shot close up and f rom a distance.

By now the rain was hammering down, gear was getting wet, and we were all slipping around in the rain; although it has to be said, we’d all been determined, cheery and rather brave. We hastily packed up and retired to the little coffee shop to compare our bum ps and scrapes.

Roth Read Photography Portrait & Commercial Photographers