The 2016 Guild Awards Special Glyn Dewis - Amazing Eyes Digital Marketing - Impression Master Craftsman - Clive Hall Craftsman - Nathalie Rouquette Craftsman - Lisa Scott Craftsman - Mark Lynham Craftsman - Diane Makepeace
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Front Cover “
A cold misty morning in early November, always full of anticipation and just a little hope that something special might present itself for that one unique capture. The rutt was at an end as the very first image immortalised the majestic and totally exhausted prince of the herd, resting and seemingly surveying his hard fought for hareem with royal pride through the dense early fog. Breathtaking beauty captured for all time in the moment�.
heather buns
- Heather Burns
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Contents features 08 42
Clive Hall Master Craftsman
46 86
Jenny Johnston Facebook Advertising Ed Burrows Buddy Groups
68
Glyn Dewis Photoshop Tips
102
Gold Awards January 2017
Laura Hampton Digital Marketing
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Editor “
Starting a new chapter is much like composing the perfect photograph. You must ensure the proper components are there. You may throw out the extra, but without the key elements the story goes untold.” ― Faith Tilley Johnson
In this edition of Creative Light we feature the Guild of Photographers fantastic award winning images of 2016, a stunning collection of four Craftsman panels by Mark Lynham, Lisa Scott, Nathalie Rouquette and Diane Makepeace and showcase Clive Hall’s gorgeous panel of work for his successful Master Craftsman. My picture in this edition of Creative Light is a wedding photograph I took of the little flowergirl covering her face with her flowers, obviously she wanted to be playing than having her photograph taken! I just love capturing moments like this on a wedding day. Don’t forget it is Mother’s Day is on Sunday 23rd March 2017, a perfect opportunity for all Portrait Photographers to promote their ‘Special Offers’ to new and prospective customers. Also, be prepared for those last minute shoppers who will be wanting to purchase ‘Gift Vouchers’ for their Mum’s.
julie oswin
Enjoy this edition of Creative Light, and if you have a story you would like considering for the magazine please get in touch with me direct - julie@photoguild.co.uk
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editors choice Ann Aveyard Awarded Silver - IOM November 2016 Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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Š Mark Lynham
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STEVE & LESLEY THIRSK The Guild of Photographers
T
he February edition of Creative Light is always an exciting edition, as it’s got lots of content from the Guild of Photographer’s Awards night, including many stunning images.
The Guild’s Award night takes place each year in early February at the fabulous Crewe Hall, a Jacobean mansion nestled in the Cheshire countryside. From the moment you drive up the long tree lined drive, to get your first glimpse of the Hall it feels special, and it lives up to that feeling. Crewe Hall combines the charm and features of Jacobean architecture with modern spa facilities. It’s the perfect venue for such a special event. On the 2 days prior to the Awards night itself are 2 days of PhotoHubs training opportunities. There is a saying that you should “never work with children and animals” – well this year’s PhotoHubs did just that offering photographic training with babies, toddlers and dogs (including 2 giant Bull Mastiffs and a Chihuahua). Paul Callaghan flew from Ireland to host some wedding training, and Glyn Dewis flew from Greece to present a creative photoshop session. There was a session on ‘What all photographers should know’ and more. The Training concluded with a print competition which was judged live. During those 2 days the Guild’s judges also met to assess several Guild Qualification submissions. The Awards night itself was a true Guild style celebration – There were incredible outfits, fabulous food, free flowing wine and very genuine delight for all the Award winners! It was some party.. There was a lot to celebrate too - those who passed Guild Qualifications during the 2 days received their recognitions, there were also presentations to those achieved lifetime membership of the ‘Photographer’s Bar’, those who a achieved a ‘Top’ photographer accolade in the various competition genres, those who were selected as ‘Image of the Year’ winners, and of course the Guild’s ‘Photographers of the Year’ themselves were announced. Finally, we had the privilege of issuing some very special acknowledgement and achievement awards. Obviously, there is more about all this later in the magazine so we won’t spoil the read. The only thing we want to explain at this point is how the Guild of Photographer’s has both ‘Photographer of the Year’ and ‘Image of the Year’ awards are determined. Both are directly linked to the Guild’s very popular and fiercely contested Image of the Month competition which attracted around 10,000 entries last year. The Guild does not feel that one image, no matter how brilliant, should equate to a ‘Photographer of the Year’ Title – it prefers those titles to be awarded to the person with the most accrued points from monthly submissions throughout 12 months - a true and very demanding ‘Of The Year’ Award. However, the Guild still wants to recognise the brilliance of individual images, hence it has ‘Image of the Year’ Awards for those spectacular captures in 15 genres. Loxley Colour kindly provided some stunning year books for all attendees at the Awards night. These contained all the Images that were shortlisted in the Image of the Year competition. It is a source of inspiration – the image standard in 2016 was just incredible, as you will get a glimpse of in this Edition of Creative Light. Whilst he winners work is inspirational, for us the winners are a source of inspiration in another way too. The people that won their awards achieved what they achieved through nothing short of hard-work. No one is born an award winning photographer – to rise to the top a photographer has to learn, then master the craft, and invest heavily in both time and effort to get to that level. We are all on personal photographic journeys and can push ourselves to our own next level if we really want to invest that time and effort to do so. One of the best ways to do that is without doubt through the Guild of Photographer’s personal mentoring programme, which is conducted on a 121 basis (just you and a superb trainer). More and more people are taking this up, as it inspires, sets you achievable targets, and lets you work at your own pace. If you aren’t already part of the Guild’s mentoring programme, do consider it. Drop Sabrina@photoguild.co.uk an email to find out more – you’ll wish you’d done it before! Finally, enjoy and be inspired by this edition of Creative Light! Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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clive hall
Master Craftsman
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“
I’m very proud to present to you, my Master Craftsman panel “Sportraits”. After many years of competing in a variety of sports personally, I have come to both admire and gain inspiration from the great skill and dedication it takes a sports person to be the best they can be. It’s tough and requires untold hours of effort, training, dedication, sweat and tears! “Sportraits” is a term I like to use to describe the very specific style of portraiture I provide for sports people. The style was developed from interviewing these people, posing questions about their drive and motivation, their vision of themselves, and more importantly how ‘they would like’, to see themselves. Armed with this knowledge and information my sportraiture evolved to become the integration of sports photography with studio portraiture, to produce an animated/portrait style. This style allows me to input my artistic expression to the commissioned work and everyone depicted in this panel are local sports stars to me and are my clients. These images are presented in monochrome, to remove distraction and enhance the gritty-strength of the style, helping to portray the action, aggression, concentration, pleasure and determination of the competitors. Being involved in sport, no matter at what level, requires a certain mind-set, as well as natural talent and aptitude, it’s about personal discipline and huge daily effort to train and prepare the mind and body. Attainment may vary, but as people doing something they love, there are no disabilities or barriers to being the best they can be. Sportraits capture all of that and for me, that’s what makes them so personal and so special. There are parallels to this in all walks of life and in many ways; this story reflects my own journey in the world of photography and what I believe is required to succeed in becoming the best I can be. It has taken me years of learning, from some great tutors, from critiques of good and bad images to enable consistent improvement as I progressed along my photography path. I studied long and hard and experimented with different ideas and styles, learning, analysing and working to improve personally, technically and professionally. To ensure my chosen pictures accurately represented my vision for them, I experimented with different photographic paper stock and visited a variety of companies and printing experts. However, one person’s passion for printing became apparent and it was this passion that guided me through the minefield of paper and mount choice. I believe it complements the images and completes the work by transporting what started as a vision in my mind’s eye, into the finished panel you see here today. - Clive Hall MCGPP - Website: www.clivehallphotography.co.uk
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Image of the Year - Baby & Toddler
WINNER - Aimee Swatton
RUNNER UP - Gail Henry 14 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
Image of the Year - Birds
WINNER - Gary Jones
RUNNER UP - Ed Burrows Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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Creativity Backgrounds 16 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
6 new designs for 2017 P2530 Stamped Dots Green
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View and order the full range www.creativitybackgrounds.co.uk Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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Image of the Year - Contemporary Portraiture
WINNER - Pip Bacon
RUNNER UP - Maryna Halton 18 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
Image of the Year - Commercial
WINNER - Rob Hill
RUNNER UP - Rob Hill Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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Image of the Year - Classical Portraiture
WINNER - Imelda Bell
RUNNER UP - Roxanne Bunn 20 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
Image of the Year - Creative & Digital Art
WINNER - Simon Newbury
RUNNER UP - Heather Burns Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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“ A photograph is an instant of life captured for eternity that will never cease looking back at you.” -
Brigitte Bardot
“Here at AsukaBook we agree with Brigitte” Capture ‘all the moments’ and then guarantee they are presented in the best way possible – that is surely the mission for every self-respecting professional portrait and wedding photographer on the planet. AsukaBook can’t help with the capture part but there is no better company to turn to when it comes to final presentation. As it heads towards a quarter of a century of producing outstanding photo products for professional photographers, including book bound and layflat coffee table books, flush mount albums, USB and DVD presentation sets and cases, gallery boxes, frames, stands and photo mounts, this Japan-based organisation consistently fulfils its pledge to deliver world-class solutions and a full turnkey service at a competitive price point. Andrew Moorcroft, founder at Everleaf, the Herts-based AsukaBook UK distributor, and his professional photographer wife Emi, have built a thriving business on the back of AsukaBook’s matchless global reputation and now deal with the ongoing presentation product requirements of hundreds of pros across the UK. ‘AsukaBook helps end-users build memories - and its corporate philosophy has always been to listen to customers first’ notes Andrew. He adds: “Bespoke engineering, state of the art print technology, strict colour management and quality control, combined with precision hand binding and mounting, allow AsukaBook to create high margin book store quality photo albums/prints that are simply without comparison.” continued... 22 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
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Why the AsukaBook ‘white glove’ approach is a proven winner with UK social photographers: “Emi and I are total perfectionists so we fit the AsukaBook mould perfectly” says Andrew.” We only sell to professional photographers – but that includes those just starting out on their imaging careers. Supreme quality and peerless service are our watchwords – and our customer service exclusively targets the professional, not the end-user consumer. Our clients get the benefit of working with a company that relentlessly invests in new technology but also focuses on local and personal customer care.” He adds: “We believe in building long-term relationships with customers through our quality product inventory and our meticulous attention to every detail in the process. Every photographer-originated PDF is carefully checked before being sent for printing, as are all album layout/design templates. We provide an extra layer of quality control for our customers – for example, we pick up on borders that might be missing; inconsistency of name-spelling on the cover and inside the book. We make sure the photographer has dates and years correct in the album and Emi carefully checks every design ahead of print. All books are ‘whiteglove checked’ before the customer receives them and any damage or markings will be corrected before despatch. Our photographers naturally expect their books to appear in perfect condition.”
AsukaBook classics for the UK wedding photographer: The best-selling NeoClassic range has been a big hit for years with UK social photographers- and ships with full spread designable, layflat hard board pages with no gutter loss. It’s showcased in a unique, customisable lift-top presentation case – complete with a space to insert an images DVD and with page options now increased to sixty. Explains Andrew: “The NeoClassic book is our contemporary twist on the classic flush mount album. Choose from a modern looking matte or glossy hard cover or cushioned hard cover. The thicker, board-type pages are also available in a laminate matte or glossy finish and are expertly printed using our exquisite six colour process. A 10x10 Neo with thirty slides runs out at a very competitive £282.” He adds: “The Zen Layflat Hard Cover is an entry level book (*compare this with the consumer product you might be using at this point) This book in 10x10 or 12x 12 is a superb product with a high-quality print finish. (A Zen Hard Cover in 10x20 with 20 sides and laminate finish costs just £104)” Yorkshire-based wedding photographer Barnaby Aldrick loves the NeoClassic. He enthuses: “It’s a true heirloom product. With its brilliant new ‘lift top’ case, rather than the former slide-out standard, this book has become an ultramodern take on a traditional heavyweight album. I just love it when you pull out the book – it’s really got the ‘wow’ factor. So often in the past brides have spent fortunes on heavy albums that get passed around the lounge once or twice and then get dismissed to the loft for fifty years.”
Design options: AsukaBook Maker is free to download professional album editing software. It’s easy to use and loaded with functions including layout templates, borders, masks, drop shadows and key lines. AsukaBook InDesign Tool allows users to easily create a book layout and re-size a design. AsukaBook Photoshop templates allow the user to easily create a book layout.
www.asukabook.co.uk | www.everleaf.co.uk | 01992 631 414
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Exclusive offers: (PLUS a special offer for Guild members) FREE parent book album. When you buy one large and two smaller books the second smaller album is completely free. The offer is available for both the Zen and NeoClassic ranges. For Zen orders, the main album must be equal to 8 x 11 or larger and the NeoClassic, any size except 8 x 8. The Zen Layflat parent albums are in sizes: 5 x 5, 7 x 7, 8 x 5.5H, 7.5H and 5.5x8.
Unmissable offer for new customers: Every new AsukaBook client is entitled to a 50% discount off their first product order!
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Image of the Year - Equine
WINNER - Gillian Lloyd
RUNNER UP - Gillian Lloyd 26 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
Image of the Year - Events, Sports & Action
WINNER - John Retter
RUNNER UP - Mark Lynham Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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Image of the Year - Floral & Insect
WINNER - Judith Lawley
RUNNER UP - Judith Lawley 28 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
Image of the Year - Nature & Wildlife
WINNER - Heather Burns
RUNNER UP - Tracey Lund Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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A unique and stunning wall product, the Fine Art Float Frame is perfect for putting fine art prints in the spotlight.
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Image of the Year - Newborn
WINNER - Liz Roberts
RUNNER UP - Nathalie Rouquette 32 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
Image of the Year - Pets
WINNER - Helen Walker
RUNNER UP - Jenny Wilkinson Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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The Newborn Photography School
newborn baby posing
T
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he Newborn Photography School in association with The Guild of Photographers is the first school of this kind in the UK. Held at the premises of Newborn Baby Posing the day will include lunch and refreshments. You will also receive a 10% discount code for all products at Newborn Baby Posing. Each workshop is designed to build and progress your confidence, skills and profile as a Newborn Baby Photographer culminating in a Qualification with The Guild of Newborn & Baby Photographers for all candidates. The Newborn Photography School package also includes one year’s membership for nonmembers with The Guild of Newborn & Baby Photographers. Guild members will receive 10% discount towards the cost of the School - a saving of £120. You will need to bring with you a DSLR and lenses plus memory cards. The School is run by Claire Elliott CrGPP, Panel Member of The Guild of Photographers and an Award Winning Newborn Photographer and Trainer. After each Workshop, there will be a Mentoring Session with Claire, and this will include a ten image critique and insight to Guild Qualifications. Each student will be set a personal goal for their work. If, after the course a student is not ready for Qualification the last sessions will be indepth critique sessions with homework set for continued learning.
WORKSHOP 1 - 1st April 2017 • • • • • • • • •
Safety First Contact & Parent Preparation Lenses, how to make the right choice Session Styling Shooting Areas Lighting, Metering and Colour Balance Simple Beanbag Posing Making the most of a pose Basics of Newborn Editing
WORKSHOP 2 - 10th June 2017 • • • • • •
Beanbag Work refresher Solving recurring posing problems Composite posing Setting up props for safe posing Styling refresher Dealing with Newborn Session disappointments
WORKSHOP 3 - 9th September 2017 • • • • •
Refresher on beanbag and props Post processing Image presentation and products Keeping Clients Preparing for Guild qualifications
WORKSHOP 4 - 10th September 2017 Business Identity & Marketing PRICE £1200. Payment on Booking non-refundable but you can re-sell your space if you are unable to attend for any reason. LOCAL INFORMATION Nearest Airport - Manchester Nearest Train Station - Gatley & Cheadle Hulme LOCAL HOTELS De Vere Village Hotel, Cheadle (1.6 miles) Premier Inn, Cheadle (1.7 miles) Newborn Baby Posing Limited, Photography Beanbag & Props www.newbornbabyposing.com Tel: 0161 428 6174
© Claire Elliott Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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Image of the Year - Rural & Landscape
WINNER - Nathalie Rouquette
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RUNNER UP - Charlotte Bellamy
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Image of the Year - Urban
WINNER - Karl Redshaw
RUNNER UP - Mark Lynham 38 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
Image of the Year - Weddings
WINNER - Pete Bristo
RUNNER UP - Ozzie Malik
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Image of the Year - Members Choice
RUNNER UP - Tracey Lund
RUNNER UP - Mark Lynham 40 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
WINNER - Simon Newbury
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Keep people on your website! Laura Hampton, Digital Marketing Manager at Impression, Nottingham. Impression is a digital marketing agency based in Nottingham and serving clients across the UK and beyond. We specialise in data-driven, return-focused marketing and we do so through innovative and creative use of digital channels and well-crafted strategies.
Capturing an Audience: How to Keep People On Your Website. Creating a great website is only going to help you grow your business if people visit that website. What’s more, you need them to browse around and eventually choose to get in touch.
laura hampton
Dwell time is a term used to describe how long someone stays on your website. It can be a valuable measure of success because it shows how engaging your website is for your audience. You should be aiming to encourage people to stay on your site for as long as possible, so they are more inclined to get in touch and purchase your services. Here are 3 simple ways to increase dwell time on your website:
1) Draw people in Think back to the most recent film you saw or book you read. The opening scene or page was likely an important part of your decision to continue watching or reading. If that scene or page draws you in, you’re more likely to stick with it. The same is true of web pages. If you write in a way that draws people in, they’re more likely to stay. As photographers, we have an opportunity to tell incredible stories - not just through our photos, but through our website content. Describing the services you offer in a way that sounds personable and which leads
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people through a story can be far more appealing than generic, bland or formulaic descriptions that could have been copied and pasted from any old site. So think about how you write and the stories you tell. Ask questions of your audience and make statements which catch their attention. Interspersing this with photos can be a really powerful way of getting people interested in what you have to say.
2) Write digestible content While storytelling is important, remember that website users don’t read in the same way offline readers do. Online, we have a tendency to skim read. We prefer shorter sentences and paragraphs because they’re easier to read. Try to work this into your written content too. That means: • Using shorter sentences • Writing in shorter, less complex paragraphs • Using content chunking techniques such as headings and lists
writing about your wedding photography service and mention within it that you also have excellent experience in food photography, meaning you’ll get some great shots of the cake and wedding breakfast. Where you write ‘food photography’, you link through to the page on your site about that topic. It can be more a part of the design of the website, too. At Impression, we’ve recently updated our own blog to include links to related posts, like this: We also use a ‘related services’ module to help people move around the site more easily and see more of our services, like this: However you choose to do it, including links to other pages on your own site will help your visitors move around more easily, and increase dwell time. There you have it! 3 simple ways to get people to stay on your website for longer. Give these techniques a try and feel free to let me know how it goes; I’m @lauralhampton on Twitter, or check out more examples on the Impression blog at www.impression.co.uk/blog. - Laura Hampton
• Making sure your content is easy to skim over. • It’s also important to have a clear purpose to your page. This is hugely valuable for the user experience and also from an SEO (search engine optimisation) perspective. This is because Google needs to understand exactly what your page is about in order to serve in as a search result for the relevant search query. • For example, while having a page that includes all of your services is a good start, you should also have a page per specific service, e.g. ‘wedding photography’, ‘portrait photography’ or ‘food photography’. • Within each page, be clear yourself on what you want people to do. Do you want them to get in touch? If so, this should be clear to the reader. Do you want them to learn more and therefore, what are the key pieces of information they should be taking away? These pieces of information should be represented clearly within the content and, where possible, toward the top of the page.
3) Use internal linking to keep people on your website Internal linking simply means linking to other pages on your site from the current page. This is a really useful way of encouraging people to move around your website more and to engage with more of your content. This helps them learn more about you and inform their decision to choose your services.
Laura Hampton Digital Marketing Manager, Impression, Nottingham www.impression.com
This can be done very simply within the text, by including a hyper-link. For example, you may be Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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The ultimate folio box for your reveal wall.
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3XM 3xmsolution.com 44 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
Š Diane Makepeace Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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Jenny Johnson
Marketing Manager at 3XM and Photovalue Jenny will be delivering a number of training events for 3XM titled “Facebook for Photographers� throughout 2017. Like their Facebook page @3XMsolution for info & updates.
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A
re you winning business in new areas? Are you relevant to potential customers?
The fundamentals of marketing have always been about choice and rejection. When marketing your business, you want potential customers to choose your brand and reject others. In years gone by, large organisations controlled all of these consumer decisions with big budget and broadcast media like TV and Radio. In today’s world, social media creates more moments of interaction, more opportunities for engagement, and more ways for you to encourage potential customers to choose you.
As someone that runs a small business, you have a distinct advantage Start-ups or smaller businesses tend to have a “what-have-we-got-to-lose” type culture. You should be comfortable with adopting new technologies and remaining innovative. While you might think that larger organisations can outrun you in terms of finance and resources, start to think about how much nimbler and quicker you can be compared to the established organizations of the world.
Encouraging customers to choose you Your marketing strategy should include multiple touch-points both online and offline. It’s not enough to take excellent images and win awards, you need to win the hearts and minds of customers and you can only do this by staying relevant. The CONTENT you publish online across blogs, website and social media channels should obviously appeal to your customers. All of the content you publish should excite, entertain or give your customers information they value. This is the secret to building long-term brand awareness. Once customers start to engage with your content you’ve then got a captive audience. A captive audience is an audience you can convert into customers. For me, the social media channel that remains the winner to promote your photography business is Facebook (Instagram is starting to compete on a more level playing field now too). While the functionality is constantly changing the ultimate selling point for me remains the same; this is where your customers are. Facebook has got the largest audience and the most detailed profiling opportunities for advertisers. You can use the platform to deliver content, attract the right profile of customers and ultimately turn them into customers that spend money with you; the holy grail for every business.
Are you ready to move your photography business up a notch? Do you want to learn all the tips & tricks of how to make social media drive revenue in your business? 3XM Live events are back and they’re covering 5 locations across the UK. For just £40 (including lunch) you’ll spend a day jam-packed with information on how to take your photography business to the next level using social media marketing. You’ll learn how to create content, optimise adverts, generate bookings and pull together a brilliant social media strategy that’s a perfect fit for your business. You’ll leave this event knowing all about: • Audience targeting on Facebook • Using Instagram to build your brand • Creating engagement on social media & turning that into revenue. • Custom audience & Lookalike audiences • Facebook Pixel • Re-targeting & Re-marketing • Video on Facebook • Facebook Canvas • Lead Ads Places are strictly limited so book now to avoid disappointment. www.3xmsolution.com 
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Image of the Year - Judges Choice RUNNER UP - Liz Roberts
RUNNER UP - Simon Newbury 50 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18
WINNER - Heather Burns
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© Lisa Scott 2017 website: www.lisascottphotography.com
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Lisa Scott
Awarded Craftsman February 2017
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Photographer of the Year 2016
“
Mark had accumulated the highest total score from his entries into the Image of the Month Competition in any single genre�.
mark lynham
- Steve & Lesley Thirsk
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Š Mark Lynham website: www.marklynham.com
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Mark Lynham
Awarded Craftsman February 2017
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H
ere at the Guild of Photographers, we are looking forward to exhibiting at our major show of the year, The Photography Show which is held at the Birmingham NEC, and this year is on between the 18th -21st March. Its four days which from 10am-1800 we meet our current members and we look after and encourage to join, photographers looking for something new, be it a camera bag, a new wedding album supplier and a new association. It is always such a busy time for us, for our key judges and panel members who come to the NEC to meet our members and usually our stand is a meeting place, and a very busy place to be. Another stand that is always a hive of activity is the Epson stand, and this year will be no different all down to a very special and first time ever seen in the UK brand new piece of kit, namely the SureColor SC- P5000…and before its arrival, I asked Epson for some information about the newest printer in the range.
A printer to suit every photography application and business The new SureColor SC-P5000 17-inch, 10-colour printer replaces the popular and market-leading Stylus Pro 4900. This highly flexible printer features highcapacity 200ml cartridges, the advanced Epson PrecisionCore® TFP printhead and UltraChome HDX 10-colour pigment ink set to produce outstanding high-resolution images with an increased colour gamut, higher-density blacks, enhanced reliability and twice the print permanence. Not for you, well, the stand will be busy, because they will have a few other printing options you may want to see namely the the 64-inch SureColor SC-P20000, the 10-colour 24-inch SureColor SC-P7000, and A3+ SureColor SC-P400, SC-P600, SC-P800 models. The 10-colour SC-P7000 with Light Light Black UltraChrome HDX ink configuration makes it ideally suited to high-end photographs that require the ultimate in print quality for both colour and monochrome reproduction. The A3+ SC-P400 pro-photo printer combines a lightweight, stylish and compact design with many features for creating professional-quality prints on a range of media. This printer uses a seven-colour UltraChrome HiGloss 2 ink-set with gloss optimiser to produce photos with vibrant colours and a uniform smooth gloss finish. Alternatively, the A3+ SC-P600 and A2+ SC-P800 feature a nine-colour UltraChrome HD. I managed to catch up with our friend at Epson, Phil McMullin, sales manager, Professional Graphics, at Epson UK, who was very excited about this year’s show…”Whether you are a commercial photo business, professional or amateur photographer, Epson has the perfect, easy-to-use and high-quality print solution for your needs and budget. The Photography Show comes at the perfect time to demonstrate the latest additions to our SureColor and Expression ranges.” So, come to the show, come and say hello to us , and make sure you pop down and see the brand new printing options Epson have to show.
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‘Top Photographers - 2016’ OPEN CATEGORY
PEOPLE
WINNER: Mark Lynham RUNNER UP: Judith Lawley
WINNER: Maryna Halton RUNNER UP: Pip Bacon
Rob Hill Jenny Wilkinson Ed Burrows John Retter Gillian Lloyd Linda Johnstone Karl Redshaw Ann Aveyard Henry Ransby Sian Shipley Heather Burns Nathalie Rouquette Tracey Lund
Julie Moult Sarah Wilkes Neil Bremner Rob Hill Imelda Bell Roxanne Bunn Iain Poole Debbie Longmore
WEDDINGS
NEWBORN & BABY
WINNER: Pete Bristo RUNNER UP: Sam Hayward
WINNER: Nathalie Rouquette RUNNER UP: Gail Henry
Victoria Amrose Andy Robinson Susan Swanson
Sian Shipley Julie Moult Hannah Merrett Laura Spence Debbie Longmore Tina Stobbs Lynne Harper Joanne Bradley
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Overall ‘All Round’
Julie moult
Photographer of the Year 2016 - Runner-Up
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All-round Photographer of the Year 2016
rob hill
“
Rob Hill accumulated the highest total score from his entries into the Image of the Month Competition from two different genres combined together�. - Steve & Lesley Thirsk
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1. Develop Your Brand
site navigation is key and should always include an About and Contact page for visitors to learn more and get in touch.
Most successful photographers have an easily recognisable style and approach that helps them to stand out from the competition. Your brand is an extension of your personality and unique approach to photography, and it is what entices customers to hire you over another photographer.
When you’re done setting up your homepage and galleries, consider adding a blog, client portal and any other custom pages you may need. If you’re looking to turn your passion into a career, you’ll also need to set up your storefront and make it clear to visitors that they can purchase your work. The moment a visitor has an impulse to own an image, a Buy button should be just a click away.
If you have yet to determine your area of specialty, it’s best to narrow it down to one or two genres you’re passionate about. From here, you can decide on the style to build your brand around. Having a clear idea of your genre and brand will help establish your business and attract the type of client you’re wanting.
3. Market Your Work A stunning portfolio, beautiful website and stateof-the-art storefront are important cornerstones in building your online photography business, but they won’t get you very far if nobody can find you.
Good design is crucial to attracting clients and standing out in the marketplace, so don’t hesitate to hire a professional designer to help you with key design elements like branding, layout, and colours. It could be one of the best investments you make in your business.
2. Get Online Once you’ve defined your brand it’s time to get online. An online presence lets you reach a far wider audience than traditional marketing methods alone, and building your website is the perfect place to start. Begin by focusing on your homepage, since this will be the most visited page on your website. Capturing your visitors’ attention in the first few seconds is crucial, so showcase only your very best images and include an enticing welcome message. Intuitive
Ensure your site is search-engine friendly by adding keyword-rich titles and content to your pages. Search engines love text, so blog regularly (and share the posts on social media) to increase the chances of being found organically. In addition to providing SEO benefits, blogging also gives visitors a great source of content for social media re-shares and a reason to check back regularly. Write great content and make sharing easy, and you won’t be the only one marketing your site. Zenfolio’s integrated suite of tools makes marketing easy, including Visitor Sign-In to capture email addresses, Triggered Emails to automate marketing, Coupons to drive sales and a whole lot more. Take time to create your perfect marketing mix, and watch visitors turn into happy, loyal customers.
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G
lyn Dewis is a professional photographer, retoucher, and trainer based in England. Glyn’s photography and retouching sees him working for national and international clients ranging from the BBC, SKY and Air New Zealand to athletes, musicians, and other industry professionals. A Photoshop World Dream Team Instructor, KelbyOne Instructor and Best Selling Author of “The Photoshop Workbook”, Glyn has featured in the New York Times for his Photography technique, teaches his own series of courses, provides one-onone coaching and presents at events around the World covering all aspects of Adobe Photoshop from basic to advanced techniques. See his work at glyndewis.com and find his wildly popular videos on his YouTube channel at youtube.com/GlynDewis
Want to get more of these tip sheets from Glyn? Please visit Glyn’s website and sign-up for his email/newsletter!
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TIP SHEET #12 Amazing Eyes
This is my favourite way to enhance eyes, make them sharp and add color. Of course there’s many more techniques we could use especially with the likes of the Adjustment Brush in Camera RAW and Lightroom but I just find this way gives the eyes that extra punch which in turn gives the portrait much more impact. It’s a quick and easy technique that gives you a lot of control and is completely nondestructive so you can always dive back in and make adjustments at a later stage if you want.
www.glyndewis.com
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Step 1: Quick Mask We’re going to use Quick Mask to select the eyes first of all so we’ll need to set it up differently to what it’s default way of working. Double click on the Quick Mask icon in the Tool Bar and then in the properties tick the Selected Areas checkbox and click OK
Step 2: Selecting Eyes Press Q to enter Quick Mask mode. Choose a softedged round brush (about 25% hardness) and a black foreground colour then paint around the inside of the eye. If you paint over too much
Step 3: Selective Colour Press Q to exit Quick Mask and you’ll now see the marching ants indicating the areas that you manually selected using Quick Mask. With the selection visible click to add a Selective Color Adjustment Layer.
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/glyndewis
Step 4: Linear Dodge Change the Blend Mode of the Selective Color Adjustment Layer to Linear Dodge and you’ll see that the eyes brighten considerably. This is a great way also to see what color the eyes are so we know what colors to enhance.
Step 5: Neutrals In the Selective Color properties choose Neutrals from the Colors Menu and then use the sliders to enhance/change the color of the eyes.
Step 6: Contrast Choose Blacks from the Colors Menu and use the Blacks slider to increase or decrease contrast in the eye. Moving to the right increases contrast and to the left decreases contrast.
www.glyndewis.com
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Step 7: Opacity Lower the opacity of the Selective Color Adjustment to around 40% and then add a new blank layer to the top of the layer stack and name it sharpness.
Step 8: Sharpen Choose the Sharpen Tool from the Tool Bar and in the options at the top of the screen choose a Strength of 30% and ensure that the Sample All Layers and Protect Tones checkboxes are ticked.
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/glyndewis
Before
After
This tip sheet is compiled from sample content to be found in my new book ‘Photograph Like a Thief’ published by Rocky Nook and available March 2017.
Click Here to Pre-Order on Amazon.
CHECK OUT MY YOUTUBE PAGE FOR 100’S OF FREE TUTORIALS
www.glyndewis.com
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Bar Winners • Nathalie Rouquette
• Helen Walker
• Gail Henry
• Mark Lynham
• Sian Shipley
• Judith Lawley
• Julie Moult
• Jenny Wilkinson
• Hannah Merrett
• Ed Burrows
• Laura Spence
• John Retter
• Debbie Longmore
• Gillian Lloyd
• Tina Stobbs
• Linda Johnstone
• Maryna Halton
• Karl Redshaw
• Pip Bacon
• Ann Aveyard
• Sarah Wilkes
• Henry Ransby
• Neil Bremner
• Heather Burns
• Rob Hill
• Tracey Lund
• Roxanne Bunn
• Pete Bristo
• Iain Poole
• Victoria Amrose
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PHOTOGRAPHER’S ‘BAR’
“
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© Henry Ransby
A unique distinction awarded to very few photographers who have successfully had images assessed by the Guild over the course of a year’s competition, and attained a score equating to an award for each entry made, thereby evidencing an exceptional level of professional skill and consistency”.
Nathalie Rouquette
Award Craftsman February 2017
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Š Nathalie Rouquette website: http://nathaliefoto.dk/ Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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kevin pengelly
Special Contribution Award 2016
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“
Kevin Pengelly started work with Motoring News and Auto sport covering motor racing events around the country. It was 15 years later he was asked to photograph his first wedding, and what a first wedding it was. It was a double wedding, yes - two brides, two grooms. He enjoyed the experience so much he decided to swap the demands of high octane photography for the demands of brides and grooms. He never looked back .. Kevin quickly went on to achieve two Fellowships in Wedding Photography with the BIPP and MPA. He also went on to win many awards and titles with these associations including Overall Photographer of the Year, both Classical and Contemporary Wedding Photographer of the Year, as well as Fashion and Beauty Photographer of the Year plus much more. He also trained to become a recognised Judge and was utilised by both the MPA and the BIPP as such. Then, thankfully, he found the Guild, which he feels is his home. A Guild ‘Master Craftsman’ he is now our Chair of Judges, committing hours of his time to ensuring the Guild is focused on ‘standards’. Believe me, if you’ve been acknowledged with a Bronze Award or above you’ve earned it! Next on Kevin’s agenda is to establish a Training process for those who want to become qualified Judges. Let’s forget the achievements – Let’s forget the qualifications. What I want to focus on is the fact he ‘Pays it Forward’ in abundance. He is so willing to invest his time mentoring and advising others so they may push their personal boundaries as well as those of our industry and craft. We have the privilege of knowing Kevin well. To say he is one of the industries ‘nice’ guys is an understatement. He is one of the humblest, most sincere people I have ever met. On behalf of all photographers everywhere you deserve the respect you have! - Steve Thirsk
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Special Contribution Award 2016 “
The Guild is a unique community. I am proud to say I have never been part of group that is so supportive and helpful…and as the Guild grows so does that level of support and friendship. The Guild is only special because of the special people within it, so a few years ago Lesley and myself introduced the idea of giving out some awards to some of the special members we have, and this has become a very important part of tonight. This is not just about photography – it’s about giving, caring, supporting, commitment and all the other wonderful things we hear about you on a regular basis. Ed Burrows is a long standing member, a devoted family man who served his country for many years being based all around the world including the Falklands. That commitment to serve or help is apparent pretty much every day within the Guild. I am struggling to think of a day where Ed isn’t helping someone on our Community pages!
ed burrows
On those pages he could be mistaken for being part of the office team, as he regularly answers Guild related ‘How Where or What do I do type questions’ – in fact he probably knows more about how the Guild works than we do! His commitment doesn’t stop there. Behind the scenes he regularly raises suggestions and ideas to benefit members. On top of all this he’s an amazing photographer. He pushes himself, and has been involved in so much Guild wise from training through to Buddy groups to make sure he keeps doing so. Ed, on behalf of everyone we thank-you for what you give and how you inspire.”
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Buddy Groups “Whoot! Whoot!
I couldn’t write an article about buddy groups without saying a public thank you to all the buddies in the group that I am so privileged to belong to. Thank you and love you all! Frickin’ Rockstars all of you!” - Ed
I
ed burrows
am writing this article following a fabulous weekend away at the Guild Annual Awards Night. It was a fantastic occasion and a perfect opportunity to celebrate everyone’s efforts in 2016, to meet old friends and to make new ones. For me, it was also an opportunity to see other members of my Buddy Group so we met for dinner the evening before the Awards, chatted over coffee and drinks, attended some of the wonderful Photohubs training events together and cheered each other on at the Awards dinner. I was meeting some people for the first time, even though we have been ‘buddies’ for almost 3 years. Although we were meeting for the first time, we already had a strong bond as we’d been through the roller coaster of the IoM competition for several years. I wasn’t really that surprised when Steven asked me at breakfast if I would consider writing a piece about the benefits of buddy groups, as the closeness of our group was plain for others to see, and the question “What is a Buddy Group” comes up frequently in the main Facebook group. So I did what I normally do when faced with a creative problem – I asked in the buddy group for help on what makes ours function so well. I also asked members of other groups, both those that work well and those that may have not survived the test of time. What is a Buddy Group? Very simply, a Buddy Group is a group of buddies! I know that some groups are based on geographic areas, some are genre specific and others are less restrictive. They are private groups and most, if not all, will use a Facebook Group to coordinate activities. Privacy is important, as the buddy groups were first started to provide mutual support in entering the IoM competition. To preserve anonymity, you cannot post images into the main Guild groups before entering them into the IoM competition so Buddy Groups were formed to allow members to help one another to improve and succeed; they are in my opinion complementary to and not a replacement for mentoring and formal panel critique. Most groups are relatively small (10ish, or even smaller) – our group has about 20 members, although not all are very active (less than 10 regularly enter IoM every month). We have had members leave, and added a few new members over the 3 years we have been running. Our group is not genre-specific, has both professionals and amateurs and is geographically widespread – and I think it is all the stronger for it as we get a great breadth of views and answers to questions. Why be in a Buddy Group? First and foremost, because it’s fun! The anonymity requirements of IoM make them necessary but frankly, our group is now so much more than just about IoM. We are friends and share a lot in there. In the words of another, it’s a “safe space” if needed and a less daunting environment than any of the main groups to ask for help. This goes for questions about IoM entries, business wobbles or even those life stresses that we all hit from time to time. Mutual trust within the group means that members can moan, or ask delicate questions, safe in the knowledge that it will not go outside the group. But the main advantage and original reason for setting them up
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is that you can get peer review and help on your work, before entering it into the competition. It’s important to emphasise that this is about error correction (highlights, shadows, marks, verticals, etc.), so that the work remains the sole author of the work. If you have ever posted an image in the main Guild Critiques Group, you will appreciate how much easier it is for others to spot any errors when they don’t share your emotional attachment to an image. Here are just a few of the comments from other members, when I asked them what they get from their buddy group: “It has given me confidence, positive encouragement, a way to “see” into my images and a sense of belonging” “The Group is also a fantastic place to have a moan or a laugh without fear of offending anyone” “It’s a safe place where we can express ourselves. It’s being there for each other through the highs and lows, ups and downs.” “My work has jumped in quality since joining this group. You are all amazing and give feedback that isn’t a slam dunk affair. It is done in a thorough and friendly way.” “I find the support of this group invaluable. No judgment, just encouragement.” “It inspires and teaches me to be a better photographer everyday. I consider you my close friends and can ask anything with complete confidence. The talent is outstanding and the help and generosity is endless.” “It is more of a friendship where we can talk about anything and know that we are in a safe place…” How to make a Buddy Group work? This is probably the most important and trickiest element to articulate but there were a few important themes that came out from the discussions with other members. Firstly, if you want a Buddy Group that functions well it’s important to recognize that it takes effort. This is really important in the beginning, as the group will soon fade if the effort is not there. It’s really important that all the buddies contribute, no matter what level. Post your images for help and help others when they post theirs. If only a few provide the critique being asked for, they will soon move elsewhere if they are not benefitting themselves. If you don’t feel confident about offering critique, it’s important to try and for those more experienced to encourage it. I have said it many times that my own photography has improved massively by studying other people’s images and offering my view. Remember “That’s really lovely” is not critique. I’m fortunate that I spent a long time as a fast jet instructor pilot so I’m not shy about offering an opinion in a way that I hope focuses on the learning points, in a way that tries to be constructive. If you’re not sure what to write, then try to work out which elements of the image you like or dislike and you’re a long way there. Look through the comments in the main Critiques Group and you’ll see both good and bad critique. The important bit to take away is that it’s important to participate and critiquing is something that you can learn and improve with practice – you just need to ‘do’. As Yoda says, “Do, or Do Not. There is no Try” Secondly, as with many things in life, Positivity breeds Positivity and negativity will be a downer. Our group is a seriously ‘loved up’ place to be on the 21st of each month when the competition results come out! If you’ve had a bad month, someone else’s results will be reason to celebrate. Keep any bitching and moaning about others to a minimum, but support each other when needed. If you have a goal for yourself, talk about it and buddies will help you achieve it and to celebrate it. Thirdly, be Honest. Don’t be quietly polite, as it doesn’t help. Treat each other with respect both when offering and especially when receiving critique and help. If someone offers advice, it is because you have asked for it and they have freely given of their time to offer it. Even if you don’t agree or like the comment, it’s so important to respect it. If it’s a comment on something that is poor, you can be sure that it was difficult for the other person to write it (few people really get a buzz out of ripping other people’s work to shreds, and you’ll soon find them out). If receiving critique is something that you struggle with, you are probably not ready for a buddy group. Sorry. It’s important that everyone knows they can be honest and disagree without feeling bad, or trust and morale of the group will quickly decline. This builds trust, and without trust in each other the buddy group will wither. Lastly, there may be an element of luck. Collaboration to succeed needs people to get along, and this doesn’t always happen. Bringing a good sense of humour to the group really helps – sometimes there really is no better remedy at a difficult time than a good joke, or some light hearted banter. Practicalities. It’s simple to setup a Facebook Group. Google it. Post in the main Guild group asking for others to join you and you’ll soon find members. If you want it to be genre specific, or to make it local so you can meet up, then spell it out to start with (but look on the Facebook Community link on the Guild Website to see if there is already a larger Group that might work for you). For IoM, it may be useful to have someone familiar with the competition so ask for an experienced member to help you get it up and running. Don’t rely on them for everything and be prepared for them to jump ship early, especially if they have their own group to help in. Remember, it does take effort to make it work. Start with a Closed Group, but make it Secret once everyone is in to avoid too many subsequent membership requests. Post your images and help one another. Keep it positive. Grab a table together at the annual Awards Dinner. Celebrate together. Have fun! Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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“A
s you know Roy Doorbar and Ian Gee who founded the Guild in the 1980’s both recently passed away (aptly within weeks of each other).
They did a huge amount for photographers – in fact they were trailblazers. One thing I found out in the last couple of weeks was that were probably responsible for the fact you have Public Liability and Professional Indemnity Insurance. As part of their desire to raise the profile of (and professionalise) wedding photography they wanted more Wedding Photographers to be insured enhancing their credibility as serious businesses. In that pre-internet decade insurers at that time tended to focus on traditional Professions such as in the construction, financial and legal sectors. Cover availability for Photographers was therefore in short supply and relatively expensive. So they approached their local insurance broker in Altrincham, the Alan Stevenson Partnership. Thus was born the first Professional Indemnity and Public Liability insurance scheme for the Guild and perhaps the first of its kind in the UK. At this time this cover was only available to Guild Wedding Photographers and didn’t extend to cover Equipment, Studios or other genres as the company providing the cover refused to go that far. The Alan Stevenson Partnership wanted to extend the cover so Hiscox replaced the previous underwriters and the insurance we know today was here to stay. About 4 years ago we introduced a new type of photographic insurance for those in business (though those not in business can access great things through it too). This Guild ‘Pro’ cover fills gaps that PL & PI insurance doesn’t cover, offering a new level of support and reassurance for photographers. Amongst other things, this gives members direct access to legal, tax & PR Crisis helplines, provides Contract Dispute cover and a Debt Recovery service. Loss of earnings protection is built in along with Employment protection and even motoring legal protection. The Tax Investigation aspect alone typically costs in the region of £100-£150, and the whole package would cost around £250 if bought independently, yet members get all included within our Pro membership. This too was arranged for us by the Alan Stevenson Partnership, who you will all know as InFocus insurance. The amazing team there have supported the Guild from Day 1 all those years ago. There close relationship with the Guild and the benefits that have resulted from it are evidence of the value of true long standing partnerships and commitment, based on ethics and a desire to help. In our eyes, there is no other insurance company like this one. We would like to honour the Team there for what they have done for the Guild, its members and the photographic industry! Thank-you!” - Steve & Lesley Thirsk
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Special Contribution Award 2016 “T
o nearly everyone in The Guild you are the ‘face’ of InFocus Insurance. When Lesley and myself took over the Guild about 6 years ago, Steve came to visit us at our house to discuss how InFocus could help us rebuild the Guild, promising Infocus would do anything they could to support us personally and our members. We had 80 members at that point, and now have more like 2880. In other words we have grown expediently, and InFocus Insurance have kept that promise. Steve Hewlett suggested the Pro Membership support package, helped set it up and broker a new deal for us every year. Equally importantly, Steve has been there for our members (especially when the wheel wobbles). I’m not allowed to give examples but I know that Steve helps make the small print work and I know he has persuaded the underwriters to assist when they needn’t do. In short, if we ask Steve, you are there! Usually by the bar, but you are always there. Mr Hewlett you are a special person and on behalf of the Guild’s members, Lesley and myself want to say how grateful we are for what you do!”
steve hewlett
- Steve & Lesley Thirsk
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Special Achievement Award 2016 “
A
mongst other things the Guild is about positivity, support, inspiration and learning. Determination and drive are very important too if we are to succeed at whatever we do. Life can be a roller coaster journey with its ups and downs, especially if you enter the IOM! Mark Lynham is not in business as a photographer but he loves the Craft, and that reflects in his attitude to photography and developing their skills. Mark joined the Guild a few years ago and grasped every training opportunity he could, looking and learning from the inspirational, and has challenged and questioned things and pushed with huge determination, getting up from any personal lows, dusting himself off and to fuel his drive. A few years later whilst his drive to learn more and push himself further is still there, THEY are now the inspirational, and behind the scenes we know how he pushes and motivate others. Only around 100 people have achieved membership of the Photographers Bar since we started it.
mark lynham
Only one person has achieved it every year. Not only that, Mark has won many Gold awards, and has been the Runner-Up in the Open Category for the last 2 years. At the Guild Awards he became the Guild’s Photographer of the Year and a Craftsman too! Mark, we salute you, your drive and your determination. You are proof that within the Guild the more you put in the more you will get out. Congratulations! - Steve & Lesley Thirsk
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WWW.3XMSOLUTION.COM
Special Contribution Award 2016 “
Pete the Meat, as it says on his Facebook page, is actually a bit of an IT guru as well as very capable photographer, and I have lost count of how many members he has helped with IT related issues, including myself. Over the past couple of years when members have contacted us to say they have an IT related issue, Pete has been more than willing to help them. When I say help I’m not talking about a line or two of advice. I’m talking about remotely logging into people’s computers, working on the issues they have and putting them right, even if it takes a few hours. As well as being incredibly helpful he is also incredibly committed to learning and pushing his photographic boundaries, by being mentored and attending Guild training events all around the Country.
peter morgan
People who give their time to others like Pete does should be acknowledged. They make the Guild the special place it is... hence it is our great pleasure to acknowledge what you have done for others. Thank-you for your commitment and support Peter Morgan!”
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Diane Makepeace
Awarded Craftsman February 2017
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Š Diane Makepeace website: www.dianemakepeacephotography.com
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congratulations Qualified Guild of Newborn & Baby Photographers Magda Bright February 2017
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congratulations Qualified Professional Photographer Judith Lawley January 2017
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congratulations Qualified Guild Wedding Photographer Ann Aveyard January 2017
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congratulations Qualified Guild Professional Photographers Simon Newbury January 2017
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congratulations Qualified Photographer Gary Bree December 2016
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Gold Awards
Gary Hill
January 2017
Judith Lawley
Rob Hill
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Gary Hill
Ed Burrows
Caroline Bridges
John Retter Issue 18 - Creative Light Magazine :
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congratulations Qualified Professional Photographer Gail Timms February 2017
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congratulations Qualified Professional Photographer John Rampton February 2017
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congratulations Qualified Photographer Sian Shipley February 2017
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congratulations Qualified Newborn & Baby Photographer Sian Shipley February 2017
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114 : Creative Light Magazine - Issue 18