Whilst really busy with weddings and the like, it’s always nice to take a day off and head for the studio for a fun day of messing about and trying new ideas. I had recently seen a video shot by Lee Morris of fstoppers.com fame (a most excellent place to hang out for us photo geeks), that really got me thinking. Lee took the equipment he already had and set out to prove to himself that he could create great images using gear that at first thought may not be up to the task. He chose to shoot with his iPhone rather than his DSLR!

I loved the idea, and even as I was still watching the video I knew I had to try something similar myself. I already had the studio time and Mike, Stef, Cara and Lauren were all up for giving it a go. I’ve been using an LED Video Ring Light from eBay while working on VideoJunkie projects with Stef and thought that this could be a chance to use it in a new way with my spanking new iPhone 4. I also have the luxury of having a Profoto Proring available so I could shoot similar shots “with the proper gear” and see how they stack up.

On the left is the original iPhone image (just cropped a little) and on the right is the edited version, I’ve not done too much to these images, just basic Lightroom adjustments and a few tweaks in Photoshop.

This is one of my favourite shots out of the 80 or so we took. We only spent about 30 minutes on the day as we had other things we worked on, but I found shooting with the iPhone really easy, I was left wondering why I couldn’t do touch to focus on my 5D Mk II in video mode I have uploaded the full resolution untouched version of this picture, you can download it here. If you want to have a go at editing it yourself please feel free, post me back your images and I’ll put them up on here for all to see.

I found that sometimes the metering was a little slow in the uptake, but I like the effect that gave. Focus was very quick as Stef moved around. The images are lovely and sharp, I think I am right in saying the iPhone 4 is locked at f2.8 and doesn’t even have a traditional shutter mechanism, impressive stuff in such a tiny space.

So we moved on and shot with a similar setup but with Profoto gear and the 5D Mk II. I was using a fresnel lens off to one side as well as the ring. mainly at first for focus assist but I liked the effect so we kept it on. It was in place for the iPhone shots too, but the ring light is very bright even on it’s lowest setting so you don’t really see it as much.

So, can we all see the difference when shooting with the “proper gear” ??? Of course we can, I’d be bloody upset if I couldn’t !!! I don’t think I’ll be rushing out and shooting weddings with my iPhone, but it has been fun to see that you can get some amazing images from something you carry about in your pocket all the time. It has also taught me that I can manage with the gear I have, and no impressive purchase can hide the fact that it’s the concept, lighting and model that make the shot, not how much you paid for your gear. So I recommend that you get your camera phone or point and shoot out and give it a go.

Check out the video we shot for videojunkie.co.uk for all the low down…

For those of you interested in what I was doing with the iPad, I am using the WiFi grip for the 5D MkII to transfer the images to an app called ShutterSnitch. No other access point or PC/Mac is needed the file is transferred from the camera direct to the iPad, very cool! It’s something I’ll continue to use with commercial clients and kids photography, it worked flawlessly all day, the battery life on the iPad is immense. To edit the images on the day we used Photo fx Ultra, I can’t say I picked that for any other reason than it’s price point and the fact it was in the top ten when I was looking on the iPad apps store that day. It works really well for a quick and nasty edit.

I thought I’d share some more images taken during the day of Cara, quite new to modelling and certainly new to the Ring Flash, but I love the jumping shots we got…

So there you have it, our fun day in the studio. A massive thanks to the whole team, great effort guys

I am slap bang in the middle of the busy season right now, I have so much to blog but so little time!

I used my day off yesterday to squeeze in a little bit more shooting for videojunkie.co.uk This time unfortunately without Stef on set with Kasiuss for their new Rock Video of their awesome track Wonders Prevail. They had an impressive crew and wanted to document the whole process, it was fantastic to be a part of it.

I know it’s going to be a few weeks before I get the chance to see the final video and edit together my Behind The Scenes, so here is a little preview to wet your whistle…

Wow, what a busy week so far!

I’ve spent 3 days shooting for NG Bailey Offsite on a project they are working on in Penrith. I was shooting a corporate video for their website which involved starting at the factory in Bradford and chasing the trucks up the motorway to Penrith to watch the installation at a new Morrisons store.

We were booked in a hotel right next to the lake at Ullswater which I have to say is one of prettiest places I’ve ever seen in the UK.

The last time I was up in the Lake District I was playing the part of Wedding Photographer, in such an amazing location its a real treat to come up and work for any reason. I’m not normally one for landscapes but I gave is a quick go for fun…

And here is the real reason we were there, it was a great crew onsite so we took a quick snap for them.

Some of our crew members were a little more reluctant to b filmed

I’ve got a couple of days editing to do and I’m looking forward to the pre-wedding shoots coming up this weekend as well as the Pan Asian Awards on monday. Mmmmm free curry!!!!

I was recently asked by the Leeds Guide to help out on a cookbook project they were working on. Along with the most excellent Tom Arber I set about the task of visiting many many restaurants and pubs in the Yorkshire area in search of some most excellent food. The Yorkshire Chef’s Cook Book is out now all over the Yorkshire region, and as someone who can tell you with first hand experience I can tell you there are some pretty tasty recipes in there!

A particular favourite was this dish from The Butchers Arms in Hepworth. I won’t even attempt to describe it. Take the trip up there, it’s well worth the visit!

But what’s that you say? You don’t live in Yorkshire? Can’t afford the measly £3.99 cover price? Well have no fear as the good chaps down at the Leeds Guide have given me two copies to give away to the readers of my blog. All you need to do is send me an email with your name on telling me why you’d like the book and my favourite two entries will be sent a copy of the book in the post. You have 2 weeks to enter, so get the thinking caps on…

I’ve been really busy lately, which is fantastic but today I found myself an afternoon to have a little fun in the studio with my new lights. Nicki was our amazing model and Katy did another sterling job on Hair & Makeup. This was just for fun, and that was the only brief. I’ve recently got hold of some fantastic lighting gear and I’m jumping at any chance I get to try them out. This is a real gear shift for me when it comes to Studio Photography as the Profoto lights are in another league to anything else I have used before.

To all you non-photography geeks out there you might think a light is just a light, but as you explore photography more you soon discover that light is the key to great photography and the understanding of it makes you a master! Now I’m not trying to pretend that I have got any where close to mastering this dark art yet but the journey is well underway.

Todays shoot went really well. We tried a few different looks and I played around with a few different setups. I used a beauty dish for the first time and fell out with my Tri-Flector. There were some unfortunate conversations about Cristiano Ronaldo but the less said about that the better

I’ve got a pretty hectic week ahead of me, but I have some great pictures of Vanessa & Dan’s wedding and Laura & Steve’s engagement shoot to blog and will try my very best to get them finished to perfection and uploaded ASAP, watch this space!

Last week I help out my good photography buddy Barnaby Aldrick on a fashion shoot he was doing for The Leeds Guide Magazine. A fun time was had by all, and he has kindly put up a lovely picture of me doing my thing on his blog…

Yea, that’s me on the right. And before you ask it’s already gone on the fridge!!! Check out Barnaby’s Blog for the low down.