Ivory Flame And The Orbis Ringflash Debut

My first shoot of the year is finally under my belt, hurrah!

I had recently purchased the Orbis Ringflash but had not used it apart from playing with it at home. I therefore felt the best thing I could do is request time from a professional model and give it a mini review whilst I was at it.

So, when I learned that the talented Ivory Flame (aka Holly) was available at a studio day being held by Immortaleye Studio, I got involved J

Off I popped to Stoke Mandeville and with the first half of the hour, Holly and I looked to achieve a lovely headshot using the Orbis. I believe the below is the best effort:

So, what do I think of the Orbis Ringflash considering what I achieved above? I just love the easily controllable catchlight it creates in images and the ease of use to get shadowless photos, without losing any pizzazz.

I have it on good authority that their versatility stretches well beyond this classic use, which I look to expand on with a future shoot. In other words, I am certainly happy with it and will definitely be looking to use it regularly.

As typically me, I felt that perhaps there was more I could achieve in an hour with Holly, so I asked her to bring something along to achieve a further idea. I had been a fan of a few of her images along the lines of fashion nude, where some fashionable items were adorned but the style of shot was a little ‘revealing’, but in an artistic way.

I flipped my camera into monochrome mode and seeked to achieve the shot using a single octobox for lighting. Holly did not disappoint with various fantastic poses, but my particular favourite is:

Jef Photography | http://www.jefphotography.co.uk

Latex, Bracknell And The Big Apple

So, we are halfway through February already… where has the time gone? Thankfully, whilst the last couple of weeks has been quiet on the photography front… no longer! So much is in the pipeline, it’s going to be mental… but in a good way J

I felt it was now time to really focus on a very particular area of portraiture with some upcoming creative shoots, so I have decided it was time to focus on alternative and latex… but I will not exactly stop the rest of the areas which do interest me. As a result, I have been casting for any models, designers, makeup artists and hair stylists to get hold of me if they wish to do some creative projects along the alternative genre. If you are one yourself and would be interested, please feel free to contact me. Teams are forming already so you may be the final piece in a puzzle.

It appears I will be spending a bit of time shooting in a new studio for the time being - Scarlet Door in Bracknell. All I will say on this is “watch this space”… I hope that whilst some interesting words now might wow you, the forthcoming pictures should hopefully do that for me… so keep your eyes peeled.

Otherwise then, what has my February been about. Three words really in my mind – New York City. I have been gagging to go for years and it is now finally time. I decided to get the Lonely Planet book on NYC to make the most of my time there and I am planning it sometime over the next few months.

There is a part of me that truly hopes that someone might like to share the experience with me, as sadly I seem to always plan big things in my life and it’s always the worst time for anyone else I know.

I do intend on being a bit of a tourist, going to museums and tonnes of the obvious landmarks, so if anyone has been tempted to go to New York City, I’d say join me. More than anything else, it seems that it costs the same to fly and stay there for one person going on their own as it would for the sum total of two, depending on deals and when you fly.

To close, I’m sure everyone might have seen it, but my website has launched, be sure to check it out – http://www.jefphotography.co.uk.

My Website And 2012

I have some news... after some time in development and testing phases, my full website has now launched :) Check it out at http://www.jefphotography.co.uk

I would like to thank my good friend Nick Bishop for taking the time to design it and get it ready, as well as all the creatives who helped me along the way, to get all the content together.

Quite a lot of my shooting efforts for 2011 were focussed on this ongoing project, obtaining content for certain galleries that also fit the whole feel, so with this now feeling quite complete, it is time for a bit of a new approach for 2012.

So, now is the time to challenge myself a little more. Therefore, for my creative work, I am planning on getting across to different studios and working with differing professional models on studio days. I will also look to add the odd location shoot in the middle to keep up the range though.

Whilst I am undertaking these, I will certainly be looking to be available for creative projects otherwise as well as of course being available for paid commissions. I can offer quotes for models - short shoots or full days/tutorials - as well as for lookbooks for designers and the various areas in-between.

So, please do feel free to approach me. You’ll never know how affordable I might be if you don’t ask, right?