Don't Be Daunted By Processing (aka Photoshop)

I do not consider myself a photographer, I’m an image maker. I take a photograph with my camera & then process it using software to create an image. I do not put my images forward as reality - they are an idealised, often romanticised interpretation of how I see the subject matter. In short, how it speaks to me.

On the journey from original idea to final image, processing is at least 30% of my workflow - but I realise that for many, processing is a step too far & crosses the line from “true photography”. I fully respect that, but I think there are few who can doubt that processing certain photographs can make a difference in your chances of inciting emotion in your viewer.

Don't be daunted by processing. If you looked at one of my workups, the Photoshop layer stacks might appear complicated with 40+ different things going on - but it's not true - it's probably only 5 things repeated 8 times!  

I have a very logical, repeatable & frankly boring workflow. I do the same thing over & over again - so by practice I get reasonable at it. I would say the first 80% of processing EVERY image is identical. It's only in the last 20% I apply finishing touches specific to that image.

Try this;

1. Pick the photograph from the shoot that strikes YOU as most powerful. Imagine you are a viewer who knows nothing about the subject matter

2. Decide on the story you want to tell to that viewer

3. Look at the photograph for 10 minutes & list (in an ideal world) what would be included, added, removed, to help you tell your story. Don't limit your list to reality, you are going to create an idealised image. For example if (in a sports image) the ball is in the wrong place - well just move it!

4. Write the list down

5. Now, & only now, start to learn in Photoshop how to do the things on your list

That first image might take you a week, even a month to complete - but along the way you'll learn so much you can repeat in future images.  Think of it as your Photoshop tool bag & on each image you learn another tool to put in your bag.

At the end of 10 images (which might take a year) you'll find you'll be very competent at Photoshop.

Here's a few of my YouTube processing videos;

• Workup of a Boxing Image

• Inserting a New Ball into a Sports Image

• Using Dodge & Burn to Add IMPACT

• Creating a Realistic Water Reflection

• Workup of an Underwater Image

• Workup of a Weightlifting Image

If you want to learn more about my processing workflow, details here of my £40 processing course. It contains 22 videos (5 hours 36 minutes of learning material) giving a full explanation of every part of my workflow, plus processing examples. 

Don’t be daunted by Photoshop… learn to do a few things well & repeat them

Photographing Babies Underwater

I recently completed a shoot with the Quackers Swim School photographing families underwater. It was great fun, as you’ll be able to see if you watch the shoot video below.

However, my real interest is in photographing babies because they exhibit the most remarkable response to being underwater. The best description I’ve found of the behaviour is by Anthony Smith from his publication, The Human Body.

”A reflex that seems so unlikely that for years no one was aware of its existence. A baby suddenly immersed in water will seal off its lungs and begin to paddle and kick. The mouth may be open, but the epiglottis (cartilage and tissue which covers the larynx during swallowing, preventing food ‘going down the wrong way’) diverts water away from the lungs. The urge to breathe is suppressed and immersed babies appear content in their watery environment. This ‘diving reflex’ disappears after six months or so, just when babies start to breathe through their mouth. Once this is gone, immersion in water does not come so naturally. But for our first six months, even before we can crawl, many of us are more comfortable underwater than we will ever be again”

I’ve not had the chance to photograph many babies so far, but I’ve captured a few displaying this remarkable behaviour, as you can see below. However, I’ll be working with Quackers baby classes throughout 2022, so I’m hoping to get lots more opportunities fingers X’d.

Das Boot - the Submarine Shoot

Das Boot is a German television series produced for Sky One which follows the fictional experiences of U-Boat submarine crews in World War II. I watched it a couple of years ago & I loved it. It’s not a typical war drama - it focusses more on the relationships between crew members in the claustrophobic, highly stressed environment that constitutes the daily life of a submariner.

Throughout the series there’s some tremendous underwater footage of U-Boats in action which, of course, has to be model boats. I thought the scenes were excellent & I wondered if I could create my own composite U-Boat image. After all I have lots of underwater seascapes already in my archives, all I needed was the U-Boat… and that was my inspiration to seek out a model submarine club & set up a shoot.

I contacted Ron Perrott of R&R Model Engineering and he has been brilliant in contacting enthusiasts and setting up the shoot, which we completed yesterday. We had a few technical problems with some of the models but I still got plenty of good shots. I’ve worked one up so far but I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to composite a few more. The shoot video is below too.

We are going to do it again in June - this time in a boating lake and concentrate on model ships on the surface. Don’t you just love photography!

U2502

U2502 - owned & expertly controlled by Rob Fowler

Our submariners - look at the length of the boat at the back!

We set up a blue background but in reality it didn’t really get used much - the subs were just too large to manoeuvre in tight corners

Alex was shooting video in the water with me (he’s a diver too)

This was a very reliable model.

I’m looking forward to creating more composites with U2502

The Fencing Shoots

I think fencers create fantastic shapes when they execute their moves, almost like ballet dancers. Their tight fitting white outfits give them a sleek outline and their opaque face masks stop you seeing their faces and consequently any expressions. They seem almost alien to me, devoid of emotion, executing moves with a weapon so far removed from modern life.

They fascinate me and it's a subject I've wanted to photograph for years. These shoots with the Sheffield Buccaneers & the Nottingham Cavaliers were designed to capture some of the iconic poses I've admired for so long.

A few images below & the shoot video.

Members of the Sheffield Buccaneers

Table Tennis Shoot

Last week we completed a fabulous shoot with Draycott and Long Eaton Table Tennis Club. It was a shoot that’s taken 15 months to pull off… but it was definitely worth the wait!

I first photographed table tennis at the Nationals in Nottingham (Feb ‘20). I loved the action but found it difficult to get clean backgrounds and the lighting wasn’t great. I left determined to set up a staged shoot to capture some of the iconic shots I’d seen.

I certainly struck gold when I contacted Draycott and Long Eaton Table Tennis Club. They’re a very professional club with an impressive pedigree for producing elite players. Their Head Coach, Phil Vickers, was my liaison and he has been a dream to work with. Our first recce visit was pre-lockdown and we discussed the set up we’d need and how I would light it. Phil was onboard right from the off and he has really made my job easy.

The shoot was put on hold for 15 months because of Covid but when the day finally arrived we turned up to find everything waiting for us just as we’d discussed - plus a list of 20 top players to photograph. Phil was the ball feeder all night and he was also my photography director - he instinctively knew the best angles for the shots. Happy days!

We shot for 5 hours & I took 3,400 images which I’ve whittled down to 1,400 keepers - so many keepers is testament to the quality of the players. The image below is just one of them and it’s one of Phil’s daughter Emma. Emma was former National Junior Champion, 4 x National Schools Champion and 3 x National U21 Champion and is now a Board Member of Table Tennis England.

Alex shot loads of footage and the Behind the Scenes video is below too.

It was a brilliant shoot and Marlies, Alex and myself loved every minute of it… so much so that we plan to return in the New Year and try a few different techniques like second curtain sync on the flash. This should give a nice slow motion effect on the ball up to the point of impact.

Emma Vickers

The shoot

Images like this are only possible with set up shoots.

The Nationals, Nottingham, Feb ‘20 - this was the first place I photographed table tennis.

A Shoot with the Sheffield Buccaneers Fencing Club

I’ve wanted to do a shoot with fencers for years… the shapes they throw remind me of ballet. Couple that with their “alien like” outfits and, for me, they make striking images.

It’s taken quite a lot of pulling together (many thanks to Trevor Upton for the initial introduction & help throughout) but last week we completed the first shoot with the Sheffield Buccaneers & next week we are off to photograph the Nottingham Cavaliers.

We’ll be producing a video of the shoots, so more details to follow, but in the meantime here’s one of the images.

The Sheffield Buccaneers