The latest band shoot with The Deafout for some promo imagery for their latest tunes. The band plumped for some Birmingham town centre stuff which I must admit, didn’t fancy too much as it had pretty much been done to death and would take some work finding some original takes. However, the band had some ideas they wanted to try and that always helps me when clients start thinking creatively. We did some stuff under the pretty illuminations by the Mailbox. Some jobs worth felt it neccessary to inform us that we needed permission to take photos here which wasn’t the case when I did a shoot a year or so back at the same place. Needless to say the man was duly ignored and we continued our shoot. We also took in a few parts around the Queensway, taking in the massive blue hotel thing which name escapes me right now. Anyway, another enjoyable little shoot, pity we didn’t get the sun. Checkout the band over on Myspace. www.myspace.com/thedeafout

I had the pleasure of shooting a wedding over at the Moathouse, Acton Trussell in Staffordshire a few weeks back. The happy couple were (still are I guess!) Carl & Jo Griffin from Sutton Coldfield. The Moathouse is a smart venue which is used often for weddings… 4 star hotel and all that, so it had plenty of features to help me compose the shots I wanted. There was a mix of indoor and outdoor stuff which can sometimes be a challenge but the kind of challenge I enjoy. I’m kind of shying away from using flash for weddings right now, while I’m an advocate of off cam lighting and more creative methods, i’m leaving that for the portrait stuff for now. I’m enjoying working with what light I have at the weddings so if all the shots arn’t as crisp as they could be, i’m fine with that.. It’s never about perfect exposure and lighting and whatnot, it’s about a certain style i’m developing. Well, here’s a few shots from the day… you might find a few more on my main website

Just a quick post from a home portrait session done in May. Thanks to the Simpsons of Lichfield who really made my job a lot easier by making me feel very welcome and had plenty of ideas. For this shot we used the flash thru a white umbrella to create the blown out background.

So here was the bank holiday, just so happened to be Lilly’s 12th Birthday and of course that meant party.. A pink and black themed party. It was good of the weather to perk up and we avoided rain which can’t be complained at. The barbecue took a while to get going as they always do and the girls took a while to get ready too…as they do! Along with the trampolining, dodgy food and and even dodgier music, we also set up a little makeshift photoshoot for them in the lounge. It took the girls well over an hour to spangle themselves up while it took me about 10 minutes to take the photos! While it wasn’t a full on photo party, it was a good bit of fun for the girls and they’ll all get some groovy pics to keep from the day so all in all, a good time was had! Need to get on that tramapoline more often though I think….

I was over at Wolverhampton’s marvelous Light House the other day for a meeting and while I was waiting, checked out the latest photo exhibition. Once Upon a Time in Wales, by Rob Haines, is a brilliant portrayal of life in South Wales in the early 70’s. The portraits are brimming with character and I highly recommend checking out the exhibition. Trouble is, it’s only on till 9th May but there is an accompanying book.

He’s getting on a bit now but we won’t mention that! A good night out with a few ales and food… couldn’t resist taking the camera out too! The pic below is my Godfather, Alan… possibly my Dad’s longest friend.