The Art of Doing What You Want and Your Brides Will Love It!
I attended this seminar yesterday with leading international speaker Dave Beckstead. Dave was voted “one of the top 10 wedding photographers in the world” in American Photo magazine, March 2007. The workshop delivered its promise to inspire, enthuse and help us create the right image in our photography to become successful in the current economic environment.
The course started with evaluating whether to use B&W or colour and what reasons there may be to choose one over another. And asked the question about what ratio of our images are in B&W. This is something I will need to evaluate, although as a rule of thumb my reportage shots are most likely B&W, quite a high percentage of the more artistic shots tend to be monochrome and then any others that will benefit with the abstraction of colour, such as something red in the background.
Next we covered ideas for expanding and contracting depth for composition, as well as the use of lines and negative space. Many of the images Dave showed were very inspiring be demonstrating how simple everyday things such as a drain cover in the foreground or pavement kerb for leading lines, can be used to create dramatic imagery.
Dave then suggested how we can create this wonderful imagery without impacting on the wedding proceedings themselves, which can be difficult when the day has been tightly scheduled. I am not going to give the game away here but watch out for exciting changes coming soon.
Then things got a lot more business orientated with the art of writing business plans. I didn’t own up to having one as the plan I made last year did not completely worked out. Dave’s method is very simple and actually works with the way I have planned tasks, so is really an extension to that.
Branding is very important and I have already made moves in that direction with business logos. Dave showed us how to take that further especially with the evaluation of style and ways to really apply that to our brand. Once we have really nailed down our individual style and what motivates us the next step is “niche” marketing so that potential clients know who we are and what we stand for.
Finally we looked at our personal obstacles that are holding us back now. There is always a reason why we feel things are too difficult and we discussed several and how we may break these down into more more manageable chunks that can be actioned now.
I really enjoyed the whole workshop and am sure other people attending around the UK will find golden nuggets that they can put to good use to further their photography and business, and give their clients even better value for money.
You can see some of Dave’s amazing imagery at www.davidbeckstead.com/.
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PatB Photography offers professional wedding photography across Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and beyond. Our reputation is for relaxed, unobtrusive yet energetic approach to wedding photography that results in a unique and evocative imagery.
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Pat Bloomfield is your photographer / artist. Years of experience and craftsmanship goes into every portrait he creates for you.
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