I had a great day photographing Rosemary and Ian’s wedding day.

Rosemary is a Melbourne artist who has had several exhibitions, paintings in galleries and has painted people of distinction such as Dame Elizabet Murdoch and Christine Nixon. Her choice of dress reflects her artistic nature and the theme of the day in general which was that of timeless elegance.

Ian and Rosemary wanted the day to be photographed as naturally as possible and also wanted some images to have an artistic appearance if the situation presented itself.

The locality was in the grounds of Trinity College at Melbourne University where they had their ceremony. This image was taken at the Cloisters and captured a natural happy moment.

A couple of months ago I photographed The Australian Nursing Federation’s annual EBA Conference at the The Melbourne Docklands.

The commission was to photograph the various speakers including the current Victorian Minister for Health, the Leader of the Opposition, various legal and insurance speakers and Federation dignitaries. Additional images required were audience participation, questions and any other aspects of the event.

The venue was large, painted black and presented a considerable technical challenge. Black simply “sucks” light. There was some ambient light coming through doors and windows and some interior lighting which enabled me to hand hold my camera on a slow shutter speed. Canon’s image stabiliser lens system was a welcome “friend” allowing me to move around discretely and capture moments as they occurred.

Some direct flash and the little bounce card on my 580EX2 Speedlite helped fill and illuminate where necessary.

I really enjoy these assignments, not only are they fun to photograph, but I get to hear interesting people presenting their views in an in-depth way which is not possible on radio or television.

I also get to meet some great people and realise more than before, just how much work and dedication nurses apply to their profession. It’s a nice thought, considering we will all need them at some point in our lives.

Oh, and the food served at lunch was yummy also : )

Boardroom Portrait

It’s unusual to have a request for a  Black and White Corporate Portrait these days, so it was great having the opportunity to do so.

Fortunately, I had a bit of time with the subject who is the President of a Melbourne based Golf Club and was able to find out about his interests and professional background which was extensive.

Whilst chatting, I was able to get some idea about his personality and how he perceives himself which is helpful. After all, this was going to be a framed print in the club’s boardroom for many years, not a PR image for promotional purposes.The requirement here was to convey something meaningful about the person behind the photograph and a Black & White image is a great way to display this.

Lighting as always, was paramount to create the “look” required so I used my trusty Bowens Pro-Light with a medium sized soft box. Fill was a reflector and the separation light was a little Morris “slave”- flash unit. Keep it simple but good.

I believe the end result has worked; we are looking at a man of achievement with a sense of warmth and humour behind the eyes. Or was he just bemused by the photographer?

For many years I have photographed members of the Liu family and their relatives’ weddings and family portraits. On Sunday night I had the privilege of photographing Dr Liu’s  70th birthday celebration at the Yarra Yarra Golf Club in Melbourne. Clearly Dr Liu is a much loved man and deservedly so.

I enjoyed a great evening and a pleasing opportunity to catch up with everyone.

Although it was a birthday, it was very much in the Event Photography genre consisting of posed portraits as well as candid and editorial images. Typically, such photographic assignments present many technical challenges. I had to use direct flash, bounced flash, drag the shutter and finally, during the fireworks display, hand held my trusted Canon 1DN on aperture priority.

The image displayed is a montage of an image I’d taken of Dr Liu and his wife with a black background (night sky and flash) together with some of the firework bursts. I think it captures the festive nature of the occasion.

On July the 27th, I had the good fortune to photograph an event put on by Zurich Financial Services whose guest speakers were former British Prime Minister Mr Tony Blair and General Peter Cosgrove. Both inspirational men who have made their mark in history and contributed to making the world a better place.

Photographically it was a little tricky because the room was a warm ash colour dimly lit and therefore hard to bounce flash off. Discretion was required, but there was not enough ambient light to prevent image blur from movement. I resorted to using the little pop up card on my Canon 580EX Mk2 Speedlight which worked quite well.

When using flash however, it is difficult to be discreet, so the pressure was on to be quick and get the right expressions during Mr Blair and General Cosgrove’s discussions whilst trying not be intrusive. It must be uncomfortable trying to have a discussion or deliver a speech when a lens is pointed in one’s direction; so as an editorial and event photographer, I’m always mindful of this.

One of the reasons I enjoy event and editorial photography, is I get to listen to many interesting speakers which is always good for expanding one’s horizons.