Rob and Amanda

Amanda, ready for the ceremony

The wedding of Rob and Amanda took me to the lovely city of York, and the gorgeous wedding venue of Sandburn Hall. Here are just a few images, on what turned out to be a fantastic day for all involved.  

For this portrait of Amanda, I asked her to stand near the window for an image that was free from clutter. Overexposing the selected camera settings by 1 stop, I was able to create a bright, almost dreamy shot. A reflector was used to bounce some light back towards Amanda, and it can clearly be seen as a reflection in her eyes. Nikon D4 with Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8.

Gorgeous bouquet

I love bouquet shots like this, simple but effective. Shot with a Nikon D3s and Nikkor 24-70mm F2.8.

Just married

I tend to stand at the back of the ceremony room during the service. It can sometimes make for tricky lighting conditions, and this one was no different. So as not to let the camera decide what exposure it thinks I need, I tend to shoot this part of the day in manual mode. I wanted to over expose the image slightly, to create a dreamy effect, while the couple were kissing. Nikon D4 with Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8

The lovely couple

When I get the opportunity to spend time with the couple after the ceremony, everyone, including me, is a bit more relaxed. I tend to guide the couple to an area I would like to photograph them, and let the images 'just happen'. A long lens works well in these situations, as the couple feel as though they have space to breathe. Nikon D4 with Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8.

Amanda and the flower girls

I love shots like the one above. While Julian is taking formal shots, I will search out more candid moments. A quick shout of Amanda's name, has resulted in a completely natural, unposed photo. Nikon D4 with Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8

On East Fleet

On East Fleet

Taken using the Fuji X100, and converted into a digital painting, using Topaz Impression.

Available as a framed and mounted print, (total size 24''x12'')  from the Saltmarsh and Samphire gallery in Wells-next-the-Sea, priced £75.00.

www.saltmarshandsamphire.co.uk

Woodhall Spa 40's festival 2015

Just a quick post from me today. Last year I wandered down to the 40's festival, in my home town of Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire. I had a great time photographing the many characters and activities that could be seen throughout the weekend. I did a couple of blog posts on my time at the festival, which you can view here. Hopefully, they will give you a flavour of this fabulous event.

http://brettgardnerphotography.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/woodhall-spa-40s-festival.html
http://brettgardnerphotography.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/canon-av-1.html

You may also be interested in the official website for the festival, which can be found by clicking the link below.

http://woodhall-spa-40s-festival.com/

This time I went down with the intention of just soaking up the atmosphere, and not really bothering with taking many photographs. However, as always, I did keep a camera by my side, 'just in case', and I'm rather pleased that I did, as I took two images that I quite like.

The first is of a typical woodland scene from the event, where many re-enactors camp out in the woods for the weekend, dressed in full military costume. I love stumbling across such scenes like this, and try and take candid images where possible. The Fuji X-T1 is excellent in such situations, as you can adjust the exposure 'to taste', using the incredible EVF. The camera was coupled with my Fujinon 35mm F1.4, a cracking, sharp lens. 

Home Guard

The second image was taken on Sunday, when we were treated to a magnificent display from three of the BBMF's  fighter aircraft. Two Hurricanes and one Spitfire entertained the large crowd, which had been completely brought to a halt by the plane's low level antics. I had my trusty, old, Nikon D200 coupled with my Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8, and managed to fire off a couple of images as one of the Hurricanes banked in for another low pass. I would have preferred slightly more prop blur, but for a grab shot, I'm pretty pleased. I particularly love the way the light catches the Hurricane's right side. As I moved the camera up to my eye, I dialed in +1 stop of exposure compensation, otherwise the image would have been horribly underexposed, and the plane silhouetted. 

Hawker Hurricane PZ865 (MK IIc), 'The Last of the Many', from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight

The two day festival is a great day out for all the family, with much to see and do. Why not pop along next July, (dates to be confirmed) I'm sure it will be another fabulous event.

Sea Lavender

Sea Lavender

A study of sailing boat, 'Sea Lavender', during low tide, Wells-next-the-Sea, on the North Norfolk Coast. 

Fuji X-T1 with Fujinon 10-24mm F4 lens, tripod and cable release.

Little Gull

Little Gull

A lovely evening at the end of May, and as dusk settled along beach road at Wells-next-the-Sea, everything became calm, resulting in gorgeous reflections in the water. I've not seen the boat 'Little Gull' before, so it was great to capture this scene.

Fuji X-T1 with Fujinon 18-55mm F2.8-F4 lens.

Cley with Snapseed

Cley

A quick snap shot of the boats at Cley, on the North Norfolk coast, a vintage effect added with Snapseed. Just a little bit of fun!

Fuji X-T1 setup with Hitech sunset filter

Wells beach huts at sunset

I've made no secret to the fact that I've switched camera systems for my landscape work. I have always used Nikon equipment, and still do for wedding assignments, but for landscapes, I switched to the Fuji X-T1 over a year ago. I can now walk around with a much smaller and lighter setup, one that doesn't feel as though it's damaged my back at the end of the day. Trust me when I say 16 mega pixels is more than enough resolution for printing A2 and larger prints. Correct technique, as always is key, and when used to its full potential, the little Fuji's X-Trans sensor, is truly astonishing.

  

I have been asked many times in the gallery about my technique when capturing landscape images, so I thought I would share a little bit about how 'Wells beach huts at sunset' was captured.

First up, preparation. Knowing where the sun will rise and set will be key to capturing the shot you want. The photographer's Ephemeris, a map-centric sun and moon calculator will help you plan your shots, and there are apps available, both for Android and Apple devices.

I always carry with me, a tripod and cable release, an assortment of Lee filters, a wide angle and standard zoom lens, and of course my Fuji X-T1.

Knowing where the sun will set and the type of shot I'm after, I look around until I'm happy with a particular composition. Some times it helps to not pick up the camera at this point, as I find it can restrict the way I see things. Once happy with the composition, I will set up the tripod and compose the scene. It's important to remember that the sky is likely to be a great deal brighter than the foreground, and will need to be darkened with a filter to allow the camera to capture information within that area. Things haven't really changed a great deal since film photography, where you may take readings from several areas of the scene to work out what filtration you may need. But it's fair to say, it's certainly easier with digital. You can now take a shot, assess the image on the LCD and check for any exposure issues. I normally take a reading from the foreground, and then a reading from the brighter sky, and decide on which filter/s would be best to use. A 2 stop N.D. graduated filter was needed to control the sun, and still capture the correct exposure for the foreground. The only problem was that the brightest part of the image was near the horizon, where the sun was setting, not near the top of the image. A standard N.D Grad is usually darker at the top, getting lighter towards the middle of the filter. This would have caused the image to look unnaturally dark at the top of the image, with the sun still blowing out. The only answer in situations like this, is to use a sunset filter. This filter is darkest towards the middle, gradually getting lighter near the top. The bottom half remains clear, allowing for normal foreground exposure. Lee don't produce such a filter, but Hitech do. It's quite a specialist filter, (mine is a two stop grad), and seeing as I don't shoot towards the sun very often, one I rarely use. But on this occasion, it was the perfect choice. Getting the transition right was tricky, I had to turn the filter slightly, for it to control the sun and the sky above the beach huts. It took a couple of efforts to get it right, but once in place, it did the job perfectly. Setting the aperture on the Fujinon 10-24mm F4 to F13 to ensure front to back sharpness, a shutter speed of 1/10 sec, I was good to go. A cable release eliminated any camera shake, (no mirror lock-up needed on the Fuji) and I tripped the shutter. The histogram showed no clipping across the frame, and I was happy with the finished image. 

Hitech filter in place midway down the frame

One final note, and something I have found to be incredible with the Fuji cameras, is their jpeg capability. I always shoot raw. Weddings with the Nikons are always shot in raw, and I shoot raw with the Fujis as well. But I also shoot jpeg at the same time with the X-T1, and the jpeg straight out the camera is superb. So much so, this particular image was a jpeg with minimal tweaking, only adjusting contrast and levels, and a slight bit of distortion correction to the left hand side of the image.    

www.saltmarshandsamphire.co.uk

Brett