The last wedding of 2011 was down in Cheshire with Andy and Claire – a great couple and a top bunch of friends and lovely family… but enough of the eulogising… They had deal where they got a disc of photos from the day and Claire put them on Facebook – which …
Facebook feedback from Claire and Andy’s Wedding Read More »
We are now working with and recommend Paula and Jackie at Bello Matrimoni for your specialists in wedding planning. Bello Matrimoni… “offer you a one-to-one, first class service that caters to your individual needs.With designer luxury weddings at affordable prices, you can have all the stress taken away from your special day, making it a perfect occasion …
Ferrari Cars are amazing things – beautifully designed, powerful and a joy to photograph. Where better to take them than to a bleak moor on the Lancs/Yorks border and create something dark and brooding, like the sound of the engines in these super cars. This is the california, a car that can hit …
McFade Photography‘s friends down at Audi Bradford liked the A5 shots we took in August so much, they let us loose in a brand new, £60K A7! It’s one hell of a car to be fair – feels like you’re in a cockpit with all the controls around you… even the boot opens automatically! Again …
Photography in bright sun is a bad thing…. right ? Well it can be – it’s not ideal for landscapes, can make a wedding dress impossible to shoot without blinding your self and creates really harsh shadows. But like any light, it has its uses – so here are a series of shots from a few weeks …
I’m not sure where my fascination with cooling towers came from – maybe the few around Padiham when I was a kid caught my eye? They’re just so incredibly huge and un-natural looking that I’m quite drawn to them. So when I got to Leeds and started discovering the county of West Yorkshire (andy …
Had a trip out to shoot the stunning new Audi A5 Sportback yesterday. Must confess that I’ve never driven an automatic before, so I did hit the break thinking it was the clutch a few times – having massive brand new break discs, I can report that it does stop pretty darn fast! Lovely car and …
Leeds Band Photography by McFade Photography! As well as photographing everything and anything, I also play piano and keyboards in 2 bands – one being the Blues Brother’s tribute band “Sweet Home Chicago”. The Band got a fantastic brass section comprising of Greg, Sam and Chris, and they seem to be in about 1000 bands between …
Click here to see the McFade Training Promo After teaching, coaching and running workshops on Photography for the last few years, we’ve created a new branch of the McFade Photography business called “McFade Training”. Our philosophy is that to become a “creative” photographer, you really need to understand how you camera works, how to get …
There are some quite amusing things that people say to photographers from time to time, often when you show them their image on the back of the camera, or present a few prints or a recent book, or even just see the shots on the web. Things like :- “Wow – that camera’s awesome” or …
Perspective and Lines…. I’ve always liked vanishing points and perspective, not only photography but in art, and just in life when you’re wandering around the countryside. You can find them in arable fields, where the farmers leave long rows of potatoes or lines in the wheat. If you have an old Roman road …
Stylist and makeup artist Saadiya invited me to shoot a session with models Krishna and Mahera last week. Though I’ve not really had much chance to process the shots, I’ve edited a few of Krishna which I thought I’d share.
I’d finished creating my latest wedding book the other day so decided to get some fresh air by going for a shoot on the moors between Manchester and Huddersfield. It’s really gritty up there, not beautiful like the Dales, but more imposing, like a Gothic horror novel or some 80’s werewolf movie. Wandering down to Scammonden Dam, the …
If you’re looking to get married you’ll no doubt be in the market for a photographer to cover some of or all of your big day. A little research will probably show you that there’s a huge range of prices, from the £250 “shoot and burn” type, to the £2000+ mega wedding packages. You’ll also …
I don’t usually just link to other people’s site in my blog, but I discovered this lovely set of 40 self portraits taken in the late 50’s and 60’s – shows a real sense of innovation and lateral thinking on the self-portrait genre. Most to the ones I like are where you see her and …
My friend Hash Parmar recently started up a beauty treatments business in Leeds. We did a few shots of Kat, who’d had a Hash make over, down by the Aire at Kirkstall Abbey. A lovely location, leafy and green, with the added bonus of a 12th century abbey in the background. The shots here are …
A new dawn in Bradford Networking Rob and Jag – the guys behind Bradford Switch Yesterday, a new networking group was born – the brainchild of Jag Panesar and Rob Ives, Bradford Switch is a relaxed, friendly way to meet new business contacts and build relationships. The first meeting was in The Sparrow, a …
One of the most useful “rules” in photography is the Rule of Thirds The best way to describe it is to imagine a noughts and crosses grid over the scene when you look through the view finder on your camera. Put your subject (or a point of interest) on one of the lines – or …
….making Hull look great! The latest AimSpace project is to transform an office space with inspiring photography, for a newly acquired building in Hull. Our clients need the photographs in the show office to look fantastic and local to the city, so out with the camera and around Hull I went – with my trusty …
I like a photographic challenge – in fact, I had a project called “something from nothing” in the past, where I’d go to places with seemingly no photographic interest and then diligently crawl around looking for something interesting. They usually ended up with really dark skies and became broody and moody…. it’s easier to make dramatic dark …
How much difference does “location” make to your images? Obviously landscape and architecture are totally reliant on location, but with subjects such as portraits, products and cars, you can choose to shoot in the studio or choose a location to create something totally different. Getting outside with the camera and lights is definitely a technical …
What does social media profile shot really say about you? Does your business benefit from meeting new contacts and networking? McFade Media shoots combines networking with business people and creating fantastic profile shots for ALL your media use:- Twitter/LinkedIN/Facebook – your online presence your website your promo work – also send them to clients for …
Here’s a short film of the shots from Jason and Jo’s wedding consultation and engagement shoot. Jason and Jo\’s engagement shoot Everyone who books a wedding with me gets one of these shoots, they’re my chance to:- get to know the couple better, talk about the day and any special requirements the couple would like, check out …
Here’s a really handy online tool to help you work out how things like Aperture, Shutter Speed, Focal Length and ISO all work http://camerasim.com/camera-simulator.html Well worth a look if you own a DSLR
Its that time of year again – the UK’s biggest business show the Apprentice takes to the air once more. Another batch of sugar-fodder comes forth for a summer of challenges, back stabbing, grilling and talking in cringe-clichés. As I’m going to be talking about the visual impact of the apprentice on the Apprentice Lover’s …
With the dawn of the new “The Apprentice”, John Thompson of Metropolis NLP has started up a new BLOG to both learn from and sightly ridicule the new series. http://barraboybusiness.wordpress.com/ I’ll be making contributions to this with as the Visual Consultant, looking at how the photography and lighting are used in the series, seeing what …
Just thought I’d share a review by Mark Carline, who attended my HDR workshop down at Salford Quays. http://www.markcarline.co.uk/2011/05/salford-quays-welshot-imaging-hdr.html
Portrait Photographers – Come Clean! The first time I ever took a portrait it was pretty awful – horrible confession there! How about yours? Actually, the first time I met a piano, I made a terrible din. I’ve got better at both I’m glad to say, and it’s all about practice. Natural Light If you …
5 Things Every Portrait Photographer Needs To Know Read More »
Sunny day photography Make the most of these tricky conditions Bright days are great for many things, walks, days on the beach, beer gardens etc. but for Photography they cause a lot of issues:- very high contrast scenes too bright for a flash to work washed-out colours in landscape scenes etc. Here are a few …
Unlocking the Secrets of Yorkshire Landscape Photography: Where to Start? Yorkshire is not just a county; it’s a canvas for Yorkshire landscape photography. With its towering coastal cliffs, rugged limestone formations, ancient stone walls, and mesmerising waterfalls, Yorkshire is a haven for photographers. But where should one start their Yorkshire landscape photography journey? To guide …
Man’s best friend… but not always the photographer’s easiest subject. Here are a few ideas for the dog owning photographer to play with . Get some assistance, 2 or more people are ideal – they can call the dog, get it running around in more predictable directions than just one person can. Get lots of …
When you start getting interested in photography and look to improve, there are a few “rules” which help – things like the Rule Of Thirds or ensuring you’ve got a Single Focal Point/Subject in shot are very useful. The rule I like best is “lead lines” – these are what they say on the tin really, lines …
I used to work on dairy farms, so am pretty used to cows and their general demeanour – inquisitive, curious and usually pretty friendly. Just move slowly and they’ll hang around you for a while – feed them a bit of grass and you’ll get a nice tongue photo like this! Here’s a few shots …
F stops, shutter speeds and ISO can be confusing. I like to think in terms of things I understand when trying to explain difficult concepts, and it happens that beer can be roughly equated to exposure… F-Stops So the F stop relates to how fast a beer flows from the pump:- Guinness takes ages, that’s …
McFade photography are happy to announce that we will be putting on an exhibition at Abbot Hall in Kendal in November 2011. The Abbot Hall website is here http://www.abbothall.org.uk/coffee-shop-exhibitions for directions. The title of the exhibition is “North East-West”, taking photographs from the west coast to the east coast of northern England. These will include …
Out of your comfort zone Unless you are a model, you are completely out of your comfort zone. No one has a camera pointing at them, like a sniper, in normal life. You will be uncomfortable. So the photographers adds in all the lights flashing, other unfamiliar gizmos like reflectors, snoots and softboxes, and then puts you in …
Everyone hates having their portrait taken…… at first Read More »
Chris Rae is a multi-musician, playing jazz on both Piano and Guitar with equal skill and dexterity. As with many areas of life, the internet has come to the musician’s aid and Chris is now partnering up with people across the world to create new and exciting tunes. There are many of Chris’ tunes on …
HDR’s (High Dynamic Range) a very much maligned and misunderstood beast, most people associating it with eye popping colours and cartoon like portraits. Well yes, you can very easily end up with images just like Loony Tunes if you want, but there’s not much use for them out there in the big wide world, so I’ll take you through …
It may be heading towards Spring now, but there’s still time to make the most of the dark evenings with you camera. Here are a few ideas and tips…. You really need a tripod for all but the most creative “camera moving” shots – this is because the low light means you need long shutter …
LINKED IN – TWITTER – FACEBOOK – all need a great profile photo We all social media – we’re all on Linked IN, Facebook and Twitter, they all use profile photograph to identify us. In most cases, this photo is the first impression people have of you! So what impression is your profile photo giving? Recognise Yourself – The 10 Profile …
The Power of Off-Camera Flash in Photography Introduction When it comes to photography, understanding the impact of lighting is essential. One powerful tool that can transform your images is off-camera flash. By taking control of the light source and positioning it away from the camera, you can unleash your creativity and capture stunning photographs. In …
I guess the traditional “Family portrait” is usually thought of as:- a visit to a shop on the high street where you sit in a little room with umbrellas, choose a slightly mottled blue background get posed in a traditional way feel awkward and have to calm the kids down get a few shots taken …
Dull days kill landscape photography, transforming fantastic scenes in to flat, boring ones. Here are a few ideas on what to do when you get a dull day
We all take photos of people these days, be it on the phone, a little camera or a £5000 pro camera. Here are a few ideas which apply to any camera and any skill level… 1 – Don’t put the person in the middle of the shot, but slightly to one side 2 – Get …
I don’t know about you, but with the prices of parking in Leeds and Manchester going up and up, I always want to make the most of my daytime trips there. One of my favourite ways is to wander around the centres capturing life as it goes by. Both cities are in a state of …
Here’s a video I created, with original music created on the Triton Extreme, to promote the Aim Space end of my business. Its a teaser… Aimspace teaser video
hi Folks, Salford Quays, Media City and the Lowry are an amazing place to spend time with the camera, if you’ve never been it’s well worth a trip down. I was there last Friday, meeting with Lee, Eif and Paul from the Welshot team, and we managed to get some great shots to promote the …
Welcome to my new blog. Check back soon for more content!
