Back to Newcastle…. Before moving to Leeds, I lived in Newcastle – great city, bit nippy though! I was shooting some hotels for a client who needed some evening and day shots of their property, so had a while to kill before it went dark. Here’s what I got up to – a walk along […]

5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Going Pro I’m sure many pro photographers get asked “How do I become a professional photographer?“. I have and it’s never a straight forward answer – in fact, the answer would be unique for each person. Every photographer is different (personality, experience, confidence, business savvy,  camera skills etc.),  so there’s

So we set off early for a gig at Sunderland Empire – with the intention of enjoying the beach, maybe popping to the Angel of the North or Penshaw Monument. The weather had different ideas – it was grim, cold and grey. So we did a pub lunch instead – then went to Roker Beach

Here are some tips from EPHOTOZINE on how to take better Macro photos… 1. Make Sure Your Subject Is Perfect 2. Get Up Early 3. Try Backlighting 4. Switch To Manual Focus 5. Try Pre-Focusing 6. Pack A Polarising Filter 7. Avoid Shake 8. Windy Days Are Your Enemy 9. Get In Close Then Add

10 Stop Filters – All the Rage! I’ve got one, have you? Well no landscape or architecture photographer worth their salt goes out without one these days do they ? 😉 It is the current fad – that surreal sky, those misty sea shores… you simply have to use them… They are genuinely interesting to

A New Look Pays Off!   Having recently opened an events space in Leeds, our client needed some fresh shots to promote it. So we created some of our “special HDR images” of Lambert’s Yard – using a mix of angles and styles to show the features, and sell the place as a modern, warm, fun, city centre venue to hold

Shoot to the right… what’s that then? It’s a technique to get better image quality… simple as that really. Why does the “shoot to the right” technique give you better image quality? Well the science is pretty complicated and all to do with how a sensor captures light. Digital cameras sensors are more efficient at capturing the light

Video of 5 Tips for Perfect Journalistic Wedding Photos Through the years shooting weddings, I have found that my favorite photos always tend to be those charming candid moments that last ever so briefly. In this video and article I wanted to talk about my technique in how I set up […] Click here to view original

I learned about flash by using statues as models… they’re more patient than real people, don’t get cold and available 24/7! Just spotted this article about it here so thought I’d share Click here to view original web page at www.ephotozine.com Gear Suggestions: Unless you’re a particular fan of the carvings that decorate the tops

Choosing the right Photographer For Your Project Let’s help you with a few simple steps:- 1 – Think about what you NEED It’s worth having a think about the purpose of the photos before you start. Go online and check out your competition’s websites, see what they are doing – or people in California doing

Last Ditch Pitstop! The Dales Experience workshop was somewhat spoiled by ice – the 3 roads to get to our favourite spots were impassible! So rather than panic, we grabbed loads of great shots elsewhere and on the way back to base, I remembered these trees on the side of the road near Airton I

I need some photos…. fast! You need some photos, something which is going to make you look great for a press release, or your web developer needs something to fill that website.. Where do you start? Be honest – do you get a few photographer’s “day rates” and plump for the lowest? Or do you just

Photography’s Most Divisive Technique Go on any photography forum or facebook group and you’ll get a vocal majority who are not HDR fans. They may have a point in many cases as HDR can turn normal photographers into creatures who love “eye-popping” saturation and massive detail in every nook and cranny. The thing is – HDR is

Who’d Want to do Photography in Leeds ? I’ve heard this said many times – along with classics such as… you’ve not got many great buildings, you’ve not got any sky scrapers costs a fortune to park and they charge you at night its really rough and you’ll get mugged. Ok… Parking is Terrible… Well

Landscape Video… If you’re into landscapes, here are some cool tips in a short video – well medium, it’s 8 minutes long.   Photographer Antony Spencer teamed up with Phase One last year to share inspirational tips on how to shoot better landscape images. But these aren’t necessarily any ordinary tips that you’ve heard before.

Enjoyed this article on EPHOTOZINE so thought I’d some of my Long Shutter Speed shots to illustrate it’s key points! For full details, click on this next link… Click here to view original web page at www.ephotozine.com   Blurry Water Spooky, Atmospheric Shots Northern Lights I’ve not got any of these 😉 Give A City Shot

  Europe’s Biggest Waterfall! Europe’s biggest waterfall was the highlight of day 2 of our Austria trip, a trip through the usual “breathtaking” landscape (not hyperbole, it really is!) found us at the foot of this monster 1200 foot tall fall. It’s not all in one giant cascade – but over several smaller cascades, many of

A Wealthy Town If you’re into classic sports cars and wealthy old german people wandering around streets, this place is for you. Its a playground for the rich, with E-Type Jaguars and classic Porsches along the litterless streets. We did look at property priced and it’s more like Mayfair than Leeds! But as this blog

Poland’s Blackpool? Sopot is a resort in Poland with a pier, sand and seagulls – yes, it’s just like Blackpool! Actually, it’s more like Penarth in Wales – a more subdued, classy affair than the coastal towns of northern England. Its centre street is spotlessly clean, lots of bars and shops with a bustling student

Lightroom Tips Episode 12 Architecture, Landscape and a Cyclist This week we’ve got a first – more black and white than colour shots! We have some great shots from Hull, Malham and a desert somewhere – with weird plants! Main tips this week are on cropping, reducing “clarity issues” and adding drama to shots Here’s

Free Lightroom Tips and Photo Critique – Week 11 This weeks Lightroom tips…. This week we have a night photo, castle, lake and canal. Main tips are on composition, cropping and focussing. It’s not easy focussing on dark subjects at night – so there are a few tips on how to do this. Here’s the

Free Lightroom Tips and Photo Critique – Week 10 This weeks Lightroom tips…. This week we’ve got Lindesfarne, a fountain, some cool shallow depth of field effects with a toy car and much more. If you want to join in – just send me your email address via any means you can, email to [email protected]

This week’s selection are up and ready for you to enjoy. We have a mix from a US mountain to a Lancaster Bomber

Free Lightroom Tips and Photo Critique – Week 8 This weeks Lightroom tips…. This week we have 5 shots and lots of lightroom tips, including white balance, cropping and using the “whites” slider to correct levels. Free, anonymous Lightroom Tips – Submit now for next week This is currently a free service for people wanting to improve their

Free Lightroom Tips and Photo Critique – Week 7 This weeks Lightroom tips…. Welcome to the 7th instalment of video critique – this week we have a set of 7, from a TVR to portraits, beach huts to classic architecture. As ever, these are uploaded to DROPBOX anonymously and imported into Lightroom so we can

Use Your Time – Don’t Let it Pass You By… Inevitably, you will spend a lot of time in cabs if you’re travelling around (or between) cities in India. The roads are horrendously packed and going 10 miles can take 2 hours if you’re unlucky. So as a photographer you are wasting time – right?

Photography in India…. Got a trip to India Planned? Well here are 5 tips for photographing a most wonderful country for photography…. Take as little kit as you can Its the “people” not the “places” which count Don’t bother taking a tripod Don’t go for the obvious shots Be prepared for MAYHEM! Take as little kit

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McFade Photography Wins Solopreneur Award at the Inaugural BiY Inspired Awards Well, folks, I’ve got some rather smashing news to share. On Friday, 3rd October, at the beautiful Met Hotel in Leeds, McFade Photography was honoured with the Solopreneur Award at the first-ever BiY Inspired Awards. It’s not every day you get to stand in

Free Lightroom Tips and Photo Critique – Week 6 This weeks Lightroom tips…. This week we had 5 photos uploaded, a nice mix of subjects including a lancaster bomber, river and York scene. Main tips are on image editing and losing quality through excessive noise reduction, cropping and vignetting. Free, anonymous Lightroom Tips – Submit now

Free Lightroom Tips and Photo Critique – Week 5 This weeks Lightroom tips…. Week 5 – Elephant, Dogs, church and a huge fountain This week we have a great mix where we see some ideas on:- burning to reduce background distractions alternative crops ideas on processing/sharpness/noise reduction discussion on composition And much more, 19 minutes in

“False Praise” on Social Media I joined my first online community in 2004 – it’s called EPhotozine – and since then I’ve learned an incredible amount from the site, lots of useful tips from more advanced photographers guided me away from common mistakes. However, what has been a perpetual gripe on the site, from me

NIK EFEX VIVEZA – it’s just curves, right? NIK EFEX Viveza is, on the surface, a very simple NIK EFEX plugin, and when compared to Silver EFEX, it looks trivial! But with its 4 sliders and curves control, it is extremely powerful! Add to that the ability to create as many “control points” as you like,

NIK EFEX Define – the Best Noise Reduction Software Available? Direct answer: NIK EFEX Define stands out because it gives you more control over what the software treats as noise, rather than just applying a blanket fix. In this workflow, you can sample a noisy area by hand, help the filter learn the difference between

Sharpening with GOOGLE NIK EFEX Google Nik has to be one of the best suites of plugins for Lightroom and Photoshop available. Many of our McFade Training customers use it, so in this mini series, we’ll introduce the workflow NIK recommend, showing you how we’d use it on a Landscape photo of the lake district.

Here are some great tips on editing a yourkshire landscape shots, just using Lightroom. It’s a tree near Airton. There are before and after shots of the scene – plus a YOUTUBE video showing how it’s done! http://www.mcfade.co.uk/training/lightroom-landscape-lesson/  

What are you Business Photos Telling People ? Business Photos used to be fillers on websites. Pretty pictures would just separate the text and logos, Photos would be bought off Stock Photography websites and have no connection to you Californian models with perfect smiles or sunset shots of the New York skyline would be used to sell

Do NOT Try This at Home! I’ve got huge dust problems with my 5D2, so was excited to find a Youtube clip which shows you how to get rid properly… I really don’t think this is the right way… see what you think! I actually use a little device called an Arctic Butterfly, which uses

If you have a meeting at 11, say, at a place 15 miles away – what time should you set off to get there on time?    Hard to say isn’t it – what are the roads like, is there traffic? Anything else? The “Geeky” Solution… Here’s what I started doing… Get your phone out

The Perennial HDR Photography Debate: Is HDR Bad? As someone who’s used HDR Photography to make a living and has been a fan since 2006, I often get involved in HDR debates. Sigh… The usual comments would be around I don’t like HDR, it looks a bit weird or maybe I like HDR Photos when

Classic Vintage Model Photography Laura’s got that vintage look – her Monroe-esque hair leaves no doubt! She’s even considering working as a Marilyn Monroe lookalike. For this portfolio shoot, we headed to Saltaire. The park provided a wealth of props and backdrops to create a classic feel. I aimed for dramatic lighting to capture that

The Presentation Designer Illiya Vjestica is a great designer – a strong typographic presence, uses powerful images which leave the “message” in no doubt and also happens to be great bloke too. His business takes these skills to the art of “presentation” – he creates slides for people to transform how they present in pitches, talks and seminars.