This first photo I think works well for the theme, I love the lighting through the nearby window.

And this is where we get to the advantage of working in such a fantastic venue as the Forbury Hotel. This sofa was at the end of one of the corridors leading to the bedrooms, and the wallpaper really works well with it. For the photographers reading this there is just a single SB900 flash in a softbox high to camera left lighting this.

And another shot, same location but a different pose and a landscape shot. Same lighting again. Sapphire looking great, and getting into character for the camera.

The shoot took place in the Forbury Hotel in Reading which I have to say is a fantastic old building with so much character. I’ll post a second post later with some portraits of Sapphire Elia which are more the normal style you would see from me.

But one of the main parts of the days shoot were high key portraits that can be used for promo shots. But on with the photos…

Here we have Clare Waugh who plays Prince Valiant and Sapphire Elia who is playing Princess Belle, the Sleeping Beauty. More of Sapphire later.

Next up we have Jane Tucker ( AKA Jane from Rod, Jane, and Freddie! ) who is playing Azuriel. Now I was quite excited to meet Jane having grown up watching Rainbow, and I have to say she is one of the nicest people I’ve ever met.

And another of Clare Waugh.

And now meet Jolyon Dixon who is playing the dame of the Panto, Nurse Nanny Nora. Jolyon really is a funny guy, and it’s funny the transformation that happens. As he explains it best “When I put on the costume I can’t help it, her voice just comes out, I can’t help it” And indeed, the moment the costume was on, the dame appeared.

And here is Nigel Nevinson playing King Bumble

Im embarrassed to say I don’t actually know this next guys name, it’s completely gone from my memory. Interestingly it’s one of the best of the character shoots as we explored what the character may actually be like. None of the cast had yet seen a script so it was quite a challenge to portray the correct character in the photos, not a problem with these pros though.

And then finally the last shot for this post, and it has most of the main cast all present. This was one of a series of photos snatched quickly in the main bedroom in the hotel. I say snatched as we literally had minutes to get the photos before we needed to leave the room, as a bride was on her way to use the room to get ready for her big day! You’ll also notice another character in this shot. None other than Justin Fletcher ( AKA CBeebies Mr Tumble ) who is playing Josh the Jester.

Thats it for now, look out for more of Sapphire tomorrow. Feel free to leave a comment.

We’re friends of Cliff & Cat, the best man is my brother-in-law, so we were there as guests. I couldn’t resist taking a few photos while I was there though. These aren’t in any particular order so the post is a mixed bag of shots throughout the day.

First shot one of the groups.

One of Cat coming out of the church.

Love the number plate on the car, which I’m told is a Beauford.

Cliff all scrubbed up for the day.

My favourite shot of the day during the disco at the end of the day.

A couple of shots of the first dance.

The best mans speech. Even after being at the number of weddings I have been, it was still a good speech.

The cake looked as good as it tasted.

The happy couple enjoying a glass of bubbly in the car.

And a few more group shots, starting off with an interesting one, the bridesmaids lifting the groom.

Stuart and Stevie were great fun all day. Stuart had some great facial expressions, and the couple were really after some fun photos of their big day. I think they achieved that as you’ll see later. I think I’ll smile every time I drive through Sandhurst now. Please feel free t0o leave a comment.

At the Church Stuart tried to convince himself he wasn’t nervous.

Then the groomsmen stepped in to lighten the mood.

Then joined by Stuarts father for a quick shot.
A couple of quick portraits, both Stevie and Stuart looking great.

And what would a wedding photography blog post be without a few detail shots?

The bouquets looked fantastic.

Stevie went for a long veil which caught the wind all afternoon, a challenge at times but sometimes it just works.

And veils are great to hide away under too.

OK so this is where the day got a bit crazy. Next to the reception venue is a childrens play park. I’d not paid it too much attention on my reccie of the area as brides don’t generally want to have a go on the swings in the dress. Stevie though was well up for a trip to the playground. Not only that but she was mentioning some rocks. As we got close I wasn’t sure exactly what she had in mind but hey lets go with it. Seconds later she was scaling the rocks to sit on it. Here’s the happy couple sat on the rocks.

What isn’t obvious from that shot is the rock itself. Notice Stevie’s hand in a slightly awkward position, well that was her clinging on. You see Stevie had scaled nearly 10ft of rock face, in her wedding dress, to sit where she was sitting. Don’t believe me?

Not stopping there the next stop was the swing. Stuart gave it some gusto and got the lot swinging with them both aboard. I love the way in this shot the flashgun froze Stevie enjoying the ride.

Sadly the meal was already late so we had to stop the fun, but not before a quick snap next to the sign by the gate… Ooops

It was probably the hottest day of the year so far with not a cloud in the sky ( Every wedding photographers nightmare ) so everyone was in high spirits and enjoying the day. Here are my favourite photos from the day.

Andy scrubbed up well for the occasion

Debbie was looking fabulous.

And my photo of the day.

These were taken very quickly as he slept for a long time, which didn’t leave us much time before I had to go. But he’s so cute it wasn’t difficult to get some keepers.

So you’ve decided on spending a day of photography. Great stuff, but what to photograph? Well hopefully this post will give you some ideas.

Packing your kit bag

So what kit do you need to pack?

- A Camera. Well obviously, but any camera will suffice, you don’t need
the lastest and greatest Digital SLR camera.
- A tripod or other solid support is going to be useful for the day. A sturdy support can come in handy numerous times during the day.
- Supplies. Make sure you carry a bottle of water and a snack. Photography can be thirsty, and hungry work…

So let’s plan our day…

Early Morning

How about getting up nice and early for that sunrise shot?

People may think you’re mad getting up at such an hour, when seemingly sane people are tucked up in their warm beds, on a cold winter morning. But when that sun rises up over the horizon spectacular views can be seen, and photographed. Other than the cold winter is a perfect time to take a sunrise shot as the sun rises much later ( so you don’t have to get up so early )

A trip to your favorite viewing point in your local park may be easiest. Or what about taking a trip to Windsor Great Park – http://www.theroyallandscape.co.uk/ for a sunrise shot of the Castle. Since the dear roam around you may just get the chance to get a photo of a stag dear with the sun rising in the background.

Check before hand for possible locations and obstructions to your photo. Google maps is a great way to check where to be, and know where the sun is coming from in relation to landmarks.

During the day

Places to visit

Virginia Waters
Close by to Windsor Great Park Virginia waters is perfect for some waterfoul shots. I’ve seen kingfishers on a few occasions but they’re almost impossible to photograph without specialist equipment, hides, and many many trips waiting.

Welford Park http://www.welfordpark.co.uk/
This closes to the public on the 28th of Feb this year, so not long left to go and see the amazing display of snowdrops in flower.

Wellington Country Park – www.wellington-country-park.co.uk
Has great woodland walks and nature trails. There is also a range of activities to keep the kids amused so you can make it a family day out.

So some tips on things you might want to photograph.

1. Get down low.
Shoot from a low angle to capture the entire landscape but also to get those snow-drops as a main focal point in the photo. On a sunny winters day the sun streaking through the trees can make a powerful photograph of a woodland scene.

2. Get close
Why not try some close-up or Macro photography. Fill the frame with the details of that snow-drop, or fungus on a tree trunk. A tripod is very useful when doing this to keep the camera steady at such a close distance.

3. Shoot the kids ( with your camera! )
While on a family day out, why not get some photos of the kids for the album?

Evening

Once it gets dark most people will pack up and go home. They are certainly missing out.

Taking night photos is a lot easier than you might think and you do not need lots of special equipment either.

The following equipment is very helpful in night photography, in addition to the tripod I mentioned earlier.

- A shutter release cable or self timer is almost always used to prevent camera shake when the shutter is released. Virtually all cameras have a self timer so you don’t have to go out and buy anything.
- Manual focus, since autofocus systems usually operate poorly in low light conditions. Newer digital cameras incorporate a Live View mode which often allows very accurate manual focusing.
- A stopwatch or remote timer, is handy to time very long exposures where the camera’s bulb setting is used.

The first thing to do is check that you can turn off the camera’s automatic flash. Most Compact cameras have a symbol that has a lightning bolt within a circle with a 45 degree line through it – just like a no entry road sign. This turns off the flash and ensures the camera will perform long exposures. You can check to see what the longest shutter speed is in your camera’s manual.

The best time for low-light photography is when there is just a bit of light left in the sky after sunset or before sunrise for the early rising photographer.

Stephan had arranged to propose to his girlfriend Lori this evening as she got off the train from work. What made this even more special was that Stephan had flown from Canada to propose! They are both Canadian but Lori works over here in the UK ( Talk about a long distance relationship! ) Having never met Stephan I was worried about finding him when I arrived at the station. I needn’t have worried as it was obvious who he was straight off, not because he was Canadian, nope it was because he was the nervous guy pacing up and down the platform practising what he was going to say. Members of the Aldworth Philharmonic Orchestra & Reading University Flute Club arrived soon after to play as the proposal took place.

Things didn’t quite go to plan with all the preparations, specifically the candles which wouldn’t stay lit because of the rain. But the rain didn’t dampen spirits.

So on with the photos…

Oh and I nearly forgot, Lori said YES! The whole thing was very exciting and I thank Stephan for allowing me to be part of the occasion.

The new look is all thanks to the upgrade to version 3 of ProPhotoBlogs wordpress template software. I was a beta tester for the template and as usual the support has been awesome and Jared has worked so hard on this new improved version. Any photographers out there looking for a wordpress template would do well to take a look. Some great new features were added. Flash galleries that I can now use in my posts, and also in my Portfolio pages to show off my work. Also they added the cool sliding tabs that you see on the left of the page. There are two sliders, one showing my last 5 Twitter tweets, and a second one linking to the Stewardson Photography Facebook fan page so feel free to follow me or become a fan!

1. Wrap up warm!

Easily overlooked, but it’s going to be cold out there. If you’re going to be out for a while taking photos, remember you’re not moving about much for a lot of the time while you line up that shot. So gloves, hat, a good warm coat, and some good sturdy boots. Layering clothes is best, and a couple of pairs of socks in some good walking boots will ensure you’re comfortable and have some of that all important grip.

2. Safety first.

Make sure someone knows where you’re going, how long you’re likely to be, and they have your mobile number.

3. Equipment.

Obviously this depends on what you own, and what you’re out photographing. But if you have a tripod, make sure you pack that. Also if you’ve bought some filters for your lenses pack those too.

Also in your bag make sure you have a lens cloth for wiping any water spots off the lens, and some plastic bags plus elastic bands. You can use the plastic bags to put the camera in, and the elastic band to close the opening of the bag around the barrel of the lens as a make-shift barrier from water.

Batteries don’t last as long in the cold so take a spare if you can. For best results keep the battery in your pocket to keep it warm. Try not to keep putting the camera in and out of your pocket though. The change in temperature may just cause condensation on the lens, the best cure for this is to wait until the condensation clears in the open air.

4. Getting the perfect exposure.

It’s time to hit the camera manual for this one. Find out if your camera allows you to set “Exposure Compensation”. Cameras work out the write exposure for a scene using the built in meter. Now these meters are designed to work out the exposure based on everything being roughly 18% grey. Now if the photo you’re taking is mostly snow the camera thinks it’s lighter than it is, so under-exposes. So what you end up with is a dark picture with grey snow. Not the desired effect.

So try setting the exposure compensation to +0.5EV or even +1EV and you should see the results look much more natural.

Some cameras have an option of “snow shooting mode” if so this is the perfect setting to use.

5. Shoot in the “Golden Hours”.

For the best results shoot early morning or mid-late afternoon. In winter this means 8-9am 3-4:30pm for the best results. The light is warmer and gives a scene more colour. Shooting first thing means untouched natural looking snow, also with clear blue skys watch out for some great sunsets! As in the shot below, look for the sun streaking through trees to create interesting shadows.

6. Cut out the glare.

If you have one, try putting a UV filter on the lens. This will help cut down glare off the white snow.

7. Experiment with Flash.

If it’s snowing, flash may be the last thing you want, as the flash bouncing off the snowflakes, so try with it off. But experiment, try with it on for some shots too, you never know what may happen. In fact for shots without snow falling it adds extra light to the closer details in the frame balancing against the bright background.

8. Add foreground interest.

When taking a landscape photo try adding something in the photo to drag your eye into the shot. If you’re taking a photo of a frozen lake, try to get that branch fallen from the tree in shot. Or how about that colourful flower in an otherwise snowy scene? Below is an example of using foreground interest, in this case a fallen branch on the frozen lake.

9. Rule of thirds.

The rule of thirds is a description of the idea of how a photograph should be split to give the best composition. The idea is to divide the frame horizontally and vertically using 2 lines on each equally spaced. This gives 4 intersections. The concept is that you should place significant objects in the photo on the intersections and lines. So the horizon on the bottom line so the ground only takes up the bottom 3rd of the frame. Many cameras allow you to turn on a feature often known as “gridlines” to aid with this. Taking the previous shot as an example, see how the horizon lines up with the top line of thirds and the tree is located around the bottom right intersection of the lines.

10. Nature Etiquette.

The most important rule of photography… “take only photographs, leave only footprints”