MY JOURNEY
PHOTO
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Bo o k
Hello!
About me
This photobook serves to be a reflective timeline for me to look back on my journey and growth as a photographer before and throughout the Press and Editorial Photography degree at Falmouth University. Over the years of my interest in the field of photography, my focus has shifted over many different areas and a broad range of subject matters. Reviewing my archives though it is clear that there are several standout areas which my practice gravitates around and always reverts to - in this case, it is commercial and advertorial style images - such as product shots and advertising campaigns. I now look back on the years of development and progress with the view into linking my growth and thought processes with my current style of photography including my future ambitions.
Theo Box
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My first experience in photographing a commercial subject was borne from my love and interest in cars and motorbikes. This was before university during my GCSE and A-level studies in photography at Ralph Allen school. The images shown on this spread are of my friends’ car, which we played around with photographing for a while before discovering the technique which I used to capture these images. This technique is called ‘light painting’ and is created by the use of a long exposure of the vehicle - say 15 sec - and using a constant lighting system to illuminate the desired areas of the subject, doing this well can create some impressive lighting effects easily which would be extremely difficult to achieve with a strobe lighting system. This technique was very difficult to fine-tune and I am still working on my methods and tools used to create this effect. As seen in the image above, it is challenging not to create light leaks from the constant source whilst moving around the subject - this can however lead to some interesting effects that add to the composition - to negate this I created my own makeshift softbox from a shoebox, pillowcase, and tin foil! By shining a torch into the back of my homemade tool allowed a much softer diffused light. for illuminating the car without causing unwanted light trails as the rear of the light source was now covered. Similarly this effect can be created but in the opposite way by using uncovered light sources to create deliberate trails. I have done this in the image of the motorbike below - whereby I created a light trail ‘tool’ ny using fairy lights and a tent pole - creating an extremely unique effect for this image.
This image shows the creation of the homemade softbox that I used for the creation of my first light painting images. Made from items I found around the house this tool shows how simple solutions and thinking outside of the box can help a photographer to create some incredible images without spending ridiculous amounts on new gear. The idea for this was created due to the need to solve the problem of unwanted light trails in an image, after previously trying flashguns, and hiding the light source between myself and the camera I realised I would need a new solution. I used this tool that would fit both a flashgun and torch for many years; and it has only just broken - 5 years on.
MICHEAL BOSANKO WWW.MICHAELBOSANKO.COM
Michael Bosanko was an artist that had a large amount of influence on my work especially in the early years of development and creation of my lightbased images. Bosanko was of interest to me because he created seemingly impossible images on camera, with only small amounts of editing. I was incredibly excited about the techniques that he was using and how he was pushing the boundaries of technical production within photography. This caused me to become intrigued as to what I could do to further this ingenuity and expand on the techniques he was using to impact different genres including more polished commercial photography.
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Expanding on the idea of painting figures and trails of colour with light and long exposure, I turned my attention away from the more abstract ideas and focused on one of my major passions - cars and bikes. For me, the most exciting genres of photography are ones that I am already deeply involved with outside of the practice as hobbies or other interests, this way the passion for the subject matter and knowledge of how it should or at least how I want it to come across to the audience can be recognised to the fullest extent within my work. Having played around with light and learned some of the effects that I might be able to create, I began to realise the potential for taking these techniques forward and creating more advanced and layered edits of subjects, products, etc. Realising this, looking over modern commercial automotive photography, I began to realise just how much this was being used already - where I had not noticed at all before. Coming back to shots and created images that previously I had no idea could be created, with the knowledge of the techniques and styles used to create them, is immensely satisfying and drives me to want to learn more and expand my skill set and understanding even further. With the use of light painting and similar effects within the commercial automotive industry and the unpredictability of results from these images from my trials, I wanted to understand how this type of image could be produced without fault on demand regardless of environmental conditions - e.g light pollution etc. After playing around in Photoshop with a number of my images, I discovered that I could make an effective brush that creates the same effect as on-camera light trails and looks extremely realistic - the image above was created using this method. Creating this image was a big step forward for me as this not only reveals a new technique but also opened up another level of photography for me to explore and create new editing styles with - further pushing myself to advance and create new skill sets within my practice.
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Having played around with lighting and starting to investigate how important this is within the creation of images within photography, this became a priority focus for me within my work. My ongoing goal is to push the boundaries of what I can achieve with minimal equipment, this forces me to think outside of the box and come up with more creative ways of achieving new effects within my imagery. From constant lighting with long exposure, I turned my attention to flash. I did this because constant lighting such as light painting is only effective in certain scenarios with completely still life - whereas strobe flash opens up possibilities beyond this in terms of subject matter especially - even just with a simple small flashgun/strobe. For example, these images of water droplets (left and below) were captured with a small off-camera flashgun and a camera mounted on a tripod at 1/200 sec. Researching images of high-speed water photography during my A-levels I wanted to be able to re-create this in my own style - but did not own a flash capable of HSS as I now do. I learned of a technique whereby instead of capturing or freezing the motion with the shutter speed, instead this is slowed down and the motion is captured by the firing of the flash itself. I fell in love with this style of technical photography as with light painting, as soon as I saw some of the results on camera - I was amazed at what I could capture in my kitchen set up in the dark with a cheap DSLR and flash. This then made me want to venture further into flash and commercial style imagery.
I was amazed at what I could capture in my kitchen set up in the dark with a cheap DSLR
Having photographed a lot of still-life subjects in scenes that revolved heavily around lighting techniques and setups I realised that this was definitely an interesting field for me. However, I also have strong roots in extreme sports such as mountain biking, motocross, and surfing. These sports are a huge draw for me outside of my work schedule and I not only enjoy competing and partaking in them but also observing and naturally photographing them. As previously mentioned, it is these hobbies and interests that allow me to communicate my artistic point of view with an audience due to the deeper understanding as not only a photographer but also an athlete and competitor. With most high-intensity action sports, it is hard to combine their world with that of commercially styled and or heavily lighting styled shots due to the nature of the sports. Typically when shooting these subjects you have a window of around 1-2 seconds in which to capture the perfect frame and this opportunity for the shot may only come around once at any event. However, taking what I have learned from more stylized shoots I have attempted to introduce this into some of my action photography by way of using models and using on-location lighting as well as making the natural environment work to my advantage through a number of ways.
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The sequence of the three images above is the evolution of my still-life shots and bringing them into the world of motorcycle and mountain biking. Here I’ve blended my passion for my hobbies and the love of commercial style images - going away from the norms of high-intensity action shots I have re-imagined the sports and brought them into a more commercial setting. I did this so as to experiment with product shots on live models - this then moving towards more fashion than still life. These images were self-portraits due to the fact that I did not have access to any gear other than my own, these were great shots to practice my skills on and build up my portfolio so I might do more shots of this style in the future. Not only this but using creative lighting on new subject matters allows me to further grow my skills and experiment further into the images that I can create. The images to the right of this series are more conventional in terms of sports photography as they are action-based where the image captures the movement of the subject and gives a feeling for the pure adrenaline of the sport. The first image of the mountain biker is the first time I used creative lighting in addition to atmospheric lighting on location. Here there wasn’t quite enough light due to being in a forest area and near the end of the day, the sunlight wasn’t good enough or in the correct direction for me to be able to capture the subjects’ features to the level I wanted. Because of this, I used a remote flashgun under the subject facing upwards in the opposite direction to the natural light, in order to cancel some of the shadows whilst still providing good contrast. With this shoot, I learned a lot about the difficulties and challenges of creative lighting in an outdoor environment whereby the photographer has far less control. This type of shoot was however very exciting in terms of the results, as with a little adjustment and a lot of experimentation on location I managed to capture a shot that I am extremely happy with - this shot also went on to be published in an issue of MTBUK one of, if not the biggest mountain bike magazine in the UK! This success inspired me to change direction and move more towards extreme sports photography for a time, as this was something that is very exciting to photograph and is relatively easy to achieve impressive results with little effort in comparison with shots that demand perfection within the lighting techniques. On the right-hand side of the page above, the image of the motocross rider is something I went on to shoot after a while spent focused on mountain biking and introducing flash to those shots. This event was something I had never experienced before and coming to it with a mind of a professional photographer was a challenging experience. With mountain biking events I could reasonably predict where the athletes would be and how they would react to obstacles in the course -as well as where I would be best placed to capture these shots. However, in this landscape, I had no in-depth knowledge of the sport other than that it would be harder to capture as they are going fast! The event took place on the beach at Western Super Mare and as such there was extremely harsh sunlight coupled with the glare off of the water to contend with. I did however notice some very interesting
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features, such as the way the sand would be thrown around as the riders charged the course. Positioning myself with the sun to my side I was able to let enough light into the frame to allow a faster shutter speed so as to capture the movement of the sand and freeze the action of the riders, whilst also cutting out some of the harsh glare. Here I learned about the importance of positioning yourself as a photographer at events like this where conditions cannot be controlled. By realising my position in relation to the light source and recognising aspects of the scene and details of the subject that I wanted to include within my frame I was able to capture an effective image. Many of my shots at the start of the day were unusable due to poor lighting or too much motion blur etc. Learning these skills was imperative to me, as having a view to becoming a professional sports photographer It is crucially important that I would be able to perform well and react to any given situation without hesitation - and to know what I can do even if conditions are less than ideal in order to get the shots. Without gaining this experience, if I had taken on a live job for an event like this it would have been extremely stressful due to panic and confusion. Sports and action photography will always be something that I have a huge passion for due to the raw excitement and adrenaline from watching and producing images from it - let alone taking part. This side of photography is something that fell into the more personal aspect of my practice due to the lack of job opportunities for this genre at the time. More recently I have become more in touch with this genre and am looking to move forward with a number of business ideas centered around sports photography as well as commercial product images. This type of photography with the fast-paced environment and demanding time pressure has undoubtedly provided me with invaluable skills within the whole field of photography, as with many live jobs the main concern is working well under a very short time frame and still consistently providing the customer with high-level imagery. This skillset enabled me - even before university - to land jobs at both universities in Bath - (Bath Spa and the University of Bath) working in a freelance capacity for Bath Spa whilst retaining a studio-based on-site role at the University of Bath for the Image Design and Print Services unit. Here I was able to hone my professional headshot skills within their studio as the go-to photographer, providing anything from promotional content for the university departments to headshots and passport photos for members of staff - including putting together graduation photobooks for the students.
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This experience was a positive career move for me especially due to having this opportunity prior to starting my studies at university as this allowed me a taste of the ‘real world’ and the standards that would be expected of me post-graduation. Not only this but it felt extremely rewarding to be paid a wage for creating and designing content that I was proud of and would then go on to be published and seen both nationally and internationally by prospective students and postgraduates alike. The image for the Doctoral College Handbook shown to the left was the most challenging yet most rewarding task I was set whilst within this role. Here I was given free rein to come up and execute a front cover idea for this publication outlining the new educational space within one of the biggest universities in the country - the only stipulations were for it to look vibrant and diverse. Drawing on my previous experience with long exposure images and having to photograph a space with low light and no creative lightning options I thought this could work well - letting light in through the roof and behind the lens - lighting the interior well and with a natural aesthetic. In order to complete the brief, I opted for shooting multiple frames of long exposure, creating the blurred movement of people walking past, as well as faster, still frames of ‘students’ enjoying conversation and working. I then took these multiple exposures and layered them to form this final piece.
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Working for Bath Spa University in a freelance capacity has given me a range of skills that counter those gained at the University of Bath nicely. Whilst one role was studio-based and carefully controlled portraits with plenty of time to create a photograph, the other has been on-location working under time-pressured briefs and relying on atmospheric lighting conditions as well as my portable studio flash system. This was an exciting opportunity for me as it allowed me to develop my methods for completing client briefs whilst also liaising with the client to discuss the best possible outcomes. The experience of running my own live jobs and liaising with clients was a challenging task due to dealing with such a large organisation for the first time. This was difficult due to competition for the job and trying to estimate where my pricing would place against competitors without coming in too low, the standard of photography required for promotional material for these higher education institutions is also incredibly high so I knew that the work produced needed to be top quality. To assure this, I requested a location and model of my choice for the ‘gift in will’ advert above as this gave me full control over the scene and styling of the model. I felt it necessary to also scout the location and test lighting prior to the shoot as the images needed to be finalised within three days and the shoot was only half an hour in duration. I was given a very limited brief for this piece which can be ideal due to being given more of a creative license, however, at the time was challenging due to the quick turnaround needed. By completing this job I learned a lot about how to overcome overthinking in terms of setup shoots such as this, as often the simplest and most straightforward ideas can be the most effective. This was proved by using my first choice of location - overlooking the lake. The lighting was very poor for this location as the sun was coming directly at the subject, however, I placed her in the shadows and used my single flash rig to light her naturally so as to remove the harsh shadows - the third shot taken was the one used. This type of commercial/ advertorial freelance photography then combined my enthusiasm for exploring new techniques and methods of lighting for creating different styles and new images, as well as the high-intensity time and reaction to situation pressure that was present in sports and action photography of which I have a huge passion for. Because of this mix of necessary skills for this type of job, I gained a lot of satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment from completing them. I then went after more jobs for these institutions and the ones with greater time pressure intrigued me even more the image below of the lookers vehicle for team GB bobsled was agreed within two hours of the image being taken. Completing these tasks which can often take days of shooting within just a few hours is something I have found to be extremely satisfying, not only this but it has lead to me winning more jobs and repeat business from organisations due to my quick turnaround - which often suits their poor time management and needs for content ‘yesterday’. I’ve since taken on many jobs for Bath Spa including the photography of their theatre production of a Christmas carol - in which I followed the production from beginning to end, documenting each location and set and adapting to different scenes including live spontaneous performances in the town centre - working around not only environmental conditions but also the public at close proximity.
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Starting Press and Editorial Photography at Falmouth University was another huge turning point for me in my photographic career. This course was an abrupt change from how I was previously working, as I was used to picking and choosing the odd job as they came along - and whichever suited my current style and method of working. Suddenly, however, I was pushed out of my comfort zone and into a rhythm of quick turnarounds on a huge range of different assignments and genres. In my first year, I was tasked with a lot of shoots that required me to meet or find new people to shoot which I had no previous rapport with - this was especially challenging for me to begin with as I have never been the most confident person especially when photographing new people. However, my introduction into this type of photography before university really helped me here, as I was able to draw and build on my skills of directing and shooting new subjects a lot more because of this.
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The shoot on the left hand page was of Jaxon - a surfboard shaper in cornwall - as part of the ‘person at work’ assignment. This shoot was one that I excelled at due to the subject matter being based around a sport that I know and love. This not only helped me to become more involved with the image making process, but also immediately there was a recognised rapport with the subject due to his knowledge of the field too. Here I began to learn how important it is to make models / subjects extremely comfortable on set / on location because as soon as I began taling to Jaxon about a familiar topic, he completely loosened up and was able to pretend that there wasn’t a huge camera in his face. The location for this shoot was also unkown before I arrived so I drew on my previous experience of bringing more kit than not enough and brought a wide range of lenses and lighting equipment. It was a bit of a squeeze but I managed to fit a flash and reflector into his miniature workshop and used a super wide angle to capture the working shots. This then was one of the more technically challenging shoots due to the lack of a recon of the location and subject, but managing to take the needed images I reinforced the idea of being prepared for any situation because of this. Due to my work that day, Jaxon is now a friend that has invited me to a number of other photography opportunities for him since this occasion. Thus reinforcing the idea that client rapport, professionalism and adaptability when on a shoot is imperative as you are not only working for the one job - but also for potential future work opportunities with the same client!
Experiencing live on-location shoots with models was a valuable initial experience for the start of my journey in this course an as a professional photographer, as not only has it given me the necessary skills to approach and command a shoot with mor confidence. I have gained the ability to coordinate with models and subject and enable them to feel comfortable when shooti This is a skill that I found hard to initially balance alongside getting the shots, but is now second nature - like talking and drivin The model above (right) and below (right), Gabe is a very good friend from university halls, being an acting student he was ve keen to get some portfolio shots at the start of our study; as this would benefit him as well as providing me with some studio time. Practicing and conducting test shoots with Gabe has enabled me to hone my skills so that I am not consumed by the technical side of a shoot, but rather focusing on how this can be adapted to suit the personality and look of the individual mod
Shooting with a model such as Gabe is a pleasure due to his acting skills which allow him to easily assume a character for a sh - and be comfortable whilst performing in front of the camera. However, most subjects - unless they are professional models not possess these skills, and can often be quite uncomfortable on set. The girls shown in the image below were my housemat that I invited to come and do a shoot. I invited them because I knew that they were not very comfortable with having their picture taken, and I wanted to improve my ability to shoot even the most resistant subjects as sometimes the job requires. Although we are friends anyway, this shoot was difficult to get the two girls to relax and took at least half an hour before the started to act more naturally.
It is interesting how even the most confident and outgoing people can freeze up on set when a camera is pointed at them, s instead of trying to get them to smile and act relaxed, I played on the tense, moody atmosphere, and decided to style the sho to suit. The resultant image below is one that I am extremely happy with and fit into a fashion perspective nicely with bold colours and cold, confident glares of the models. This was another learning point for me whereby if the models are not reactin in the way you might like them towards the theme of the shoot, sometimes it can be beneficial to switch the theme up - a comfortable model will produce far more effective shots than one that doesn’t know what to do with their hands!
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Playing around with portraiture has been a running theme of my university experience, and I am always hungry to learn more skills relating to every genre of my practice. Especially when this type of subject is one that I will most definitely revisit in my working life as a photographer, however, it is not the discipline that most excites me. Portraiture on its own is indeed an art, but my passion has always been with creating a completed package of work, something that comes together with a larger meaning or goal - such as an advertising campaign or a new look for a brand - something that excites and has never been seen before. In this way some of these images that I have taken are indeed exciting due to their uses within fashion campaigns and surrealist design, however, I found myself moving away from this genre somewhat after my experimentation in it as studio portraiture particularly, does not excite me enough. Whilst there is still a lot for me to learn, I prefer situations in which there is less control of the atmospheric conditions and more unexpected scenarios. This possibly comes from the tedium of working for the university studio before starting this course.
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With this being said about portraiture, it is also a major component of many other disciplines and genres within photography, and as such is very important to my career and skill set as a photographer. For example, over the first COVI Lockdown in 2020, I was looking for opportunities to shoot new content whilst still staying within my local area. My first p of call was returning to product photography and playing around with motion and lighting, but as the house was too sm for three people and a photography studio, this became problematic. I couldn’t create these images outside either due to harsh daylight sun that would be directly overhead - and without any inspiration or new items to photograph I avoided genre for a time. Instead, I came up with ideas with which I might be able to dabble in a new to me genre of photograp - news media. This is something that we have carried out exercises around due to the nature of the course, but I have ne really been personally invested into the point where I’ve actively tried to create media for this purpose.
With this in mind, I came up with the idea to photograph my neighbours - as this would not breach the UK lockdown rules at the time, but would also provide me with a new challenge and opportunity to improve my photography and people skills. My neighbours were not the most friendly, so asking and persuading them to take part in this shoot wa not the easiest task, however, the boredom of lockdown swayed a lot to help out. This idea would bring the communi together through everyone dressing up in their ‘finest dress’: a fun idea I thought since not only would most of my elde neighbours rarely dress up in these clothes, but also since we were not allowed out, this would be a bit of a dystopian ‘ t me out to the garden’ styled news shoot. Asking my neighbours to dress up, and also choose an activity to perform wh I would photograph them, I was unaware of what they might choose to wear - so this would be the first challenge as th styling of the shot would be a pure chance on the environment, clothes, and activity they had chosen. I did this so as t give a fair representation of their personalities as I was framing this as a news media shoot - I didn’t want it to become manufactured.
For me, the interesting elements of this shoot were the unknowns, creating an image with only an idea of what the scene would look like, combining the small details I could find out of the front of their house to be able to show what w happening, along with the pure out of the normal dress sense as if this is partly a fashion shoot. What I draw from this is t enjoy capturing clear undeniable meaning within the imagery that I produce. Photographs that do have hidden features nuances embedded within them; colours linking, small props, items in the background that give context. But images t have clear, concise, meaningful viewpoints or ambitions - not something that is left to be interpreted by the viewer.
This showed me then that new photography was something I enjoy, but my need to shape the scene and style the subj to some extent gave me an idea that I prefer to combine multiple genres of photography into one final image, and perh not sticking to clear boundaries between subgenres like news, fashion, advertising, portraiture, etc.
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Understanding that combining subgenres of photography can be advantageous to my image creation, I moved back to focusing on areas of photography in which I could achieve and build on this. Due to being stuck at home during this time, I turned to everyday objects and the world around me out of necessity. Realising that I wanted to create more product and branding/advertorial shots - as this would allow my imagination and hunger for using new skills to run wild - I began investigating what I could photograph and market as a product or experience. Without much inspiration here, I began photographing nature within the context of advertising - flowers, insects, patterns - anything I thought might be a marketing or sellable image. This is when I really started to become invested in stock photography. Of course, I had known about the existence of stock photography websites and the ability to access these since before the start of my university course, but I had previously lacked the required skillset to be able to achieve sales and valuable assets to upload to such sites as Adobe Stock, Shutterstock, Getty, etc. Honing my skills over the lifetime of the course - as well as greatly during this lockdown period - I was able to set up accounts with Getty, I stock, Shutterstock, Alamy, Adobe stock, and Dreamstime images. The process of getting approved as a contributor for these sites requires you to meet a certain standard of photography, but also requires you to understand the target market for each of these stock image platforms. The knowledge of these target markets and audiences is something that can be quite tricky to understand, but once the knowledge has been acquired it is invaluable for use in being able to place imagery in front of the right markets and the most likely clients to purchase. For example, Getty is far more focused on news-based editorial and high-level clinical-looking images that are predominantly used for news and editorial media - whereas a site like Shutterstock or Adobe Stock is more focused on providing content centered toward the graphic design and illustrator markets. Other stock sites will try to encompass a broad range of clientele, but as such command smaller commissions and less influence with their audiences. Knowing where my digital content should be directed if I’m looking to sell it is the most important aspect to the stock photography market - as uploading landscape scenery or studio images of water droplets to Getty will not net nearly as many downloads and therefore commission as if it were instead targeted at Shutterstock. It is also important to remember that it may not always be beneficial to sell imagery through stock websites, as this may not produce the maximum net profit from your images due to commission taken by stock sites, as well as the ever-lower prices they charge clients due to the huge competition between these companies. For example, if a client buys a full license to one of my images through a stock website, they would pay a fraction of the price compared to if they bought it directly from me - and the stock site would take a chunk out of my commission at the same time.
There are a number of other technicalities to be aware of when getting involved with stock photography. When I first started submitting images, I tried to simply use images that I was already shooting for projects and other assignments, however, quickly realised that this would throw up more challenges than this was worth. Whilst the occasional shoot may be used for stock imagery, I was finding increasingly that model release forms were needed, and certain advertorial shoots that were otherwise perfect would need branding removed from the images. As such, I realised that it would prove far easier, in the long run, to simply shoot with the sole intention of use for stock. With this being said, I have taught myself - with the help of my father - over a number of years to be proficient in Adobe Suite - most notably Photoshop and also Lightroom. This has given me a hugely in-depth knowledge of the mechanics of photographs, but also how a lot of content in modern media is created - including a lot of stock and advertorial pieces. I used to think that all of these crazy images that would pop up were made directly on camera, in fact, it is the case that most if not all images are somewhat processed and tweaked with editing software - and modern technology can do some incredible things within photography. The use of photoshop has been an imperative part of my more recent projects due to the fact that this is the new norm - and this opens up a world of possibilities in terms of new edits and styles that can be created. The images above are the first two stock images that sold individually for over £30 each, whilst this isn’t a huge amount, it was extremely rewarding for me that after I put a lot of effort into researching and directing my styles of photography into the correct markets - that this, in the end, paid off. not only this but most images such as one I have for sale will only grant 10p, etc. at a time - this image has sold over 70 times for single-use, and my profits on it amount to £35. However, if I had hundreds of images all earning this amount, this could then equate to a decent profit. As such I believe that this learning experience in stock photography has been an important and extremely useful one for my professional career as a photographer - especially post-university. Not only have I learned about the skills and images required to sell to these markets, but I have also learned to differentiate and target between different companies and audiences in order to achieve better results with my images. This then is directly transferable to other areas of my photographic practice, and in fact, anywhere I might need to pitch to clients or direct my style towards a particular brand that I might want to get involved with. With this in mind, I started to explore more opportunities within the realm of stock photography - which ended up leading me to experiment once again with more products and still life. With this, though I wanted to strive to create exciting still life images, media that would entice and excite potential customers and brands into wanting to use ME over every other competitor.
With my experienc ability to create a nu image already, I starte things to make a stil my ideas of the w before, I remembere and enjoyment I got image using this. The the first real produc university - on the de my flash to capture a from splashing a wat then stitched the var in order to create a to say that without t both of these subjec be so effective and w Using Photoshop tec backgrounds of the i so as to isolate the sub more interesting bac I find it important to an image that makes made, this is the reac quite often get, as mo the concept of comb this looks as though i is it important for th also have a consiste run throughout and complemen
ce in Photoshop and the umber of effects within an ed to play around with new ll-life image pop. Revisiting water droplets I had shot ed how much satisfaction t from creating an effective e images (left and right) are ct style shots that I took at esk in my dorm room. I used a sequence of water drops, ter bottle at the subject and rious components together final piece. I think it is fair these elements of motion, cts on their own would not would look rather stagnant. chniques I also removed the images and faded to black bjects - as well as creating a ckdrop to add to the image. add interesting features to s people wonder how it was ction that the water droplets ost people don’t understand bining multiple images as it is a single frame. Not only he image to stand out, but ent theme of colours that d not only works with but nts the subject well.
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Revisiting commercial product shots once again in my photographic practice, I realised just how much work inspires me to create new imagery in this discipline. Commercial and advertorial photography is an immensely broad genre as it uses the best elements from all other genres in order to create popular material that speaks to vast ranges of audience - this is due to the necessity of selling an idea or product that this genre was created. Being able to draw from all of these sources, as well as anything going in terms of editing and after effects, makes this something that I can easily express my creativity - whilst still creating work that is down to earth and concise. Experimenting with other genres such as news media was exciting, but due to the constraints within, such as unspoken rules like no editing of images and moving away from a styled scene, is something that is understandable but not the direction I wish to move in as a photographer. Commercial and Advertorial photography has taught me a new way to advance my skills and allow me to explore and play around not only in my free time but as a part of my professional practice, this is something I feel necessary to my profession, as, without the hunger and drive of creativity and freedom, my work would become bland and tedious - instead of constantly growing, advancing and evolving into new areas - as is required with the modern industry. This excitement into commercial photography has allowed me to start to have a deeper understanding of the workings of this specific industry. Much like stock photography platforms, there are countless different agencies and clients that are all looking for a particular, unique style, where and how my work is directed toward these audiences is a vital aspect of gaining live work in the future. Learning the nuances of the industry has been difficult, and I am of course only just starting, but there are many aspects that have become clear and I have been working on to further my position into working here after university. The main aspect of infiltrating the commercial and advertorial market is to be aware of existing brand identity, the style and consistent looks of clients and brands, and most importantly the interests and values of the target market. For this reason, I have been calling on previous experience and investing my time working on various projects that I already have a passion for on a personal level - the theory behind this is using what I have learned about the amount working on a passionate subject can influence and improve my work is extreme. Not only this but also having a prior deep understanding of the target market - due to being THE target market - gives a clear huge advantage when it comes to recognising the values and ethos of the brand, as well as what the consumers will expect from such a company. For me, this happens to be surfing. Living in Cornwall and being 20 mins from a beach, I have developed a love for the ocean and for surfing in particular, this is something that I and my friends and family do up to five times a week. Because of this huge amount of time spent surfing, not only do I have an understanding of the sport, it is something that is the complete opposite of work, something that just clears the mind and allows me to reset when in the midst of a stressful day to day work.
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Advertising media agencies such as Horton Stephens shown here, represent a wide range of photographers that cover many of their various client’s needs and requests. These agencies are the ‘middle man’ between the photographer and the client, and as such use their knowledge and expertise of the markets to direct clients to the perfect practitioner for their campaign needs. This is a prime example of how much knowledge it takes to learn and control the commercial and advertorial markets, as these photographers are at the top of their game - but are still using agencies such as this to gain clients due to the skills required to do so. Not only this but due to the reputation of the agency itself, this can gain new photographers that join the team jobs far more easily due to the clients going off of the tried and tested reputation of the agency, as opposed to a new photographer that they may or may not have heard of. Due to the direction in which my interests have taken my work, I would currently like to explore opportunities working with an advertising agency such as this. WWW.HORTONSTEPHENS.COM
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Having an act in hand with happen to ha the drybag pi beach or kay other surf ge that is not yet way. In this w an item th company. This advertising c ideal outcome is unpreceden accepted wa that if I can c looks as well a
By allowin products, as likely purchas to have achiev is always plen to find profess and advertori take decent p this commerc
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tivity such as surfing that I am so invested in also means that I have a wide range of kit and accessories that go hand h the sport - as well as a complete understanding of how, and in what setting, this gear would be used. In my case, I ave a lot of Northcore surf products readily available due to them being the leaders in certain technologies - such as ictured on the left here. This item is initially marketed as a dry bag to store clothes and other belongings when at the yaking etc. However, I am aware that a majority of surfers including myself, use these to transport wet wetsuits and ear in when returning from the beach - and they are perfect for this use. Understanding this feature of the product t marketed - I designed an image that would show off alternative uses for the product in a creative and eye-catching way, I think that my desire to learn and produce new images and techniques has come through in trying to market hat is proven to sell in a new way - thus creating a potential to reach a completely new sector of the market for this s was proved to be successful due to the company asking permission to use my imagery as part of their social media campaign. I agreed to this on the proviso that I would be accepted onto the list of their ambassadors. Of course, the e is to become paid for each individual shoot, but I am becoming increasingly aware that in this current climate there nted competition for photography jobs and therefore I must find an edge wherever possible. The traditional and most ay to gain work with brands is to approach or get noticed and then agree on a deal for a shoot etc. However, I figure create impactful imagery that suits their current aesthetic of the brand, whilst also pushing the boundaries into new as in doing so reaching new and increasing audiences for them to target - this would then be an extremely effective way to become noticed among the competition.
ng Northcore to use this initial image, I managed to secure paid work opportunities photographing more of their s well as being able to keep said products - this is doubly a bonus for me, as these are items that I would have most sed anyway - due to being their target market. Creating images for a brand such as this is extremely exciting for me ved whilst still studying at university as it proves to myself that my work is up to an industry standard. Of course, there nty of room to improve and I plan to do exactly that over the coming weeks, but this reassures me that I will be able sional work after my experience at university. This then is perhaps another factor that draws me towards commercial ial photography as in this industry there is a living to be made. In a world where it is becoming possible for anyone to pictures, and to become a photojournalist by simply grabbing their phone, I know that the professionals that practice cial and advertorial photography relies mostly not on their equipment, but instead on their knowledge of the markets and audience, and their skills in lighting, design, and content idea generation.
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Shown on the right-hand page is a mood board of Northcore surf’s Instagram and social media channels. This was something that I researched before creating the imagery which I pitched to them leading to my opportunity to photograph for them. It is clear that this company has a few very strong ideals that they stick to throughout not only their product design but also their visual content. The mood board shows an adventurous mix of athletes and models braving the elements and harsh conditions for the love of the activity they are doing, the colour palette is mostly pastel and washed out oranges and yellows and blues. These have been thought out extremely well as to me they represent the ocean and coastal living. Within their branding is also a clear reference to California culture and the origins of the sports - this is a timeless look. These aspects for me are the most interesting, as it is simple to create a good-looking image of a model wearing a jumper or carrying a skateboard etc. But they would look completely out of place and have such little impact if they were not stylized to match the existing brand theme and colour palette. As such my image shown on this page is closely matched to the style and colour schemes of Northcores current branding and layout. However, I do not have access to as many props, cars, models! So I opted to be slightly more creative with this shoot and create a still life image with multiple products featured as well as using a cornish beach in the backdrop. The theme of this image is clear and the effect of the washed and muted colours in the background have worked well here. This was a shoot that I enjoyed doing a lot as it has proven to me that I can effectively research and produce an image that fits smoothly into the existing marketing strategy of a brand - whilst also proving again that this is made much easier by being personally invested and passionate about the subject matter.
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Having completed a number of different assignments for Northcore, all being centered around commercial product shots, I have realised that this subject, being an area that I have kept coming back to throughout my career as a photographer so far, is something that I seriously enjoy and am becoming more skilled at - to the point where I believe that I can bring this to the next level. My passion for learning new skills is my main drive for my involvement in product photography, as I have mentioned throughout this book my passions for subjects are the reason they have been successful - without this drive it is impossible to become fully involved in the work. For example with news and portraiture photography, it is something that I can happily do, but this does not push me to create my best work. Looking back over my work during this process has allowed me to review where and how my career has progressed and changed into taking different routes as a photographer. I started out creating mostly sports and long exposure commercial-style images, went through many different genres, and have come full circle to being personally interested in sports and professionally in commercial
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Shown above is a selection of a few images which I have gone on to produce for my work, imitating and presenting the styles of some of my favourite brands - in the form of advertisement and commercial product shots. These are a continuation of my idea to create images that would fit into a brand’s theme in order to gain work and recognition from them - these are also projects which keep my motivation up whilst improving my portfolio. Commercial shots then, are what I would like to build up to practicing and selling professionally. However, Surfing and the ocean are still very close to my heart and I wanted to make these more than just subjects I may photograph in my free time. Because of this, I have started putting a brand ‘Surf Pics’ together in order to create a business modeled around capturing people enjoying the water in their favourite discipline, locals, and holidaymakers, and selling their image back to them as a memento. This is something that I would have jumped at the chance of buying as a surfer myself. The research I have done shows there are many similar organisations around the globe, I believe this will be a perfect business model to shape around my career, whilst also allowing me to shoot the subjects I am most passionate and excited about. With my knowledge of how to reach and engage the right markets due to my work in stock photography, my awareness of the consumer’s demands and needs due to my participation in the sport, lighting skills as well as the composition that I have gained through countless hours spent photographing still life and portraiture, and the fast-paced atmosphere of sports photography, this then - along with my commercial work - is something that not only combines all of my skillsets throughout the years but also allows me to continue working on the most important genre - my passion.
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