Blog of Barnsley Portrait Photography by John McIntire

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April 2019 on Digital Photography School – White Backgrounds and Taking Breaks

April has finished and the folks over at Digital Photography School have published two more of my articles this month. One of these is a straight step by step tutorial for studio photography and the other discusses the potential consequences of taking a break from photography.

7 Steps to Perfect White Portrait Backgrounds in the Studio

If you’ve ever wanted to get white backgrounds right straight out of the camera, follow this tutorial to get you there every time.

In this tutorial, I teach you how to get perfectly white backgrounds straight out of the camera. That means that there’s no post processing and no fiddling about afterwards.

The Real Consequences of Taking a Break from Photography

Ever thought about taking a break from photography? Read this first. There may be consequences that you won’t be willing to face.

If you’ve ever felt fed up and disillusioned with your photography, you may have considered taking a break. I did and I followed through with it. This article discusses a fair list of the potential consequences of taking a mid to long term break from photography. Weigh these up before you make your choice.

Onward to May

That’s it for April. Next month’s articles will include a few lighting tutorials as well as gear reviews. See you then.

Positive Image Camera Club – Annual Print Competition 2019

It’s been that time of year again at Positive Image Camera Club. The annual print competition has come again.

There were far more entries this year and I have to admit that they were to a high standard.

Even still, somehow I am pleased and humbled to say that I achieved best print for the second year in a row with this image of my doggo Anna.

Obviously, this image is a lot more personal to me and I have to express my sincerest appreciation to the judge Roy Packer, as well as all of the other members at Positive Image for all of their wonderful and positive feedback.

March on Digital Photography School – Shadows and Useless Rules

This month’s article over on Digital Photography School are of a different tone. Instead of straight tutorials, I discuss some of the aesthetic concerns that we address as photographers.

5 Portrait Photography Rules You Should Probably Ignore

If there’s one thing photographers don’t need, it’s something else in a rulebook that tells them what they can and can’t do. Some people thrive within a set of strict limitations. I am not one of those people and I know most other people aren’t either. Here, I outline some common rules, as they are espoused by some, and discuss why I feel they should be ignored altogether.

The Importance of Shadows in Portrait Photography

This next article is all about shadows; deep, dark, exquisite shadows. It really is easy to fall into a trap where you eliminate any sign of a shadow in your photography. I’ve been guilty more than enough times in the past. However, shadows offer you a wonderful too for depth and mood in your images and this article discusses why I implore you take advantage of them when you can.

Until next time

That’s all for now. Stay tuned for next months topics which return to studio based tips and tutorials.

October On Digital Photography School – Softboxes and HSS

This month on Digital Photography School, I’ve published two very different articles on lighting.

A selection of images created using HSS sync as presented to the Positive Image Camera Club.

Many, many thanks are in order to the Positive Image Camera Club in Sheffield for inviting me to present a talk and two practical sessions (with a third one planned for the future) on High Speed Sync flash photography (HSS).

I thoroughly enjoyed the process of putting together the presentation and the practicals.

In the talk, we discussed the virtues of HSS; including:

What it is.
What effects it can be used to achieve.
How to use it in a variety of situations.
What you need to use it.
How to use it in both Manual and e-TTL modes.

There was also an overview of the equipment available to anyone interested in HSS photography with particular focus on flashguns, the Rotolight Neo II and the PixaPro Citi600 TTL (review).

The PixaPro Citi600 TTL is a battery powered strobe which packs a mean punch on location.

Another huge thanks to the members of the club for hitting me with a variety of questions and interacting with me throughout. I doubt I could have hoped for a better audience than this one.

Thank you all.

This talk will serve as the foundation for my forthcoming HSS workshop. The first of these will happen in spring of 2019.

September on Digital Photography School – Light Meters and Strobe Reviews

Over on Digital Photography School, I published two articles this month. One is a review of the excellent Pixapro Citi600 and the other is a treatise on why I’ve come to rely on a light meter after so many years of avoiding them.

Positive Image Camera Club – Annual Print Competition

Last night saw the Annual Competition at the Positive Image Camera Club. I entered a few prints, but as it’s been quite a few years since I last entered any sort of competition I didn’t know what to expect. The lack of expectations did nothing for my nerves.

The long and short of it is that one of my images (below) was awarded Best Print.

Awarded Best Print in Positive Image Camera Club’s 2018 Annual Competition

I have to say thank you for all the support and comments I received from both the judge and all the members of Positive Image. Thank you all so much. I’ve displayed the trophy quite prominently!

I’m very much looking forward to trying again next year.

Headshots With Romey

This past Friday, I had a short headshot session. The focus of the session, other than the headshots themselves, was an emphasis on a polished simplicity over three separate lighting set-ups. Here are some of the results; a mixture of colour and black and white images:

Romey

Kathy Alexa Take Two

I had the tremendous pleasure of working with Kathy Alexa for a second time. Once again, she brought along some great wardrobe (including a great piece from Malice) and her amazing make-up skills. Together with a concentration on lighting and and technique, I believe we once again got some great results.

Kathy Alexa