Louise recently filmed for In Cold Blood, the BBC NI series and Spotlight. She completed a residency with the famous Frantic Assembley through Prime Cuts theatre company and also studied under Bruiser graduate academy geting a crash course in their highly physical theatre style.  She is also a graduate of Irelands premier theatre school, the gaiety school of acting and has her own drama facilitation business, Time to Shine.

We concentrated on head shots for this shoot and again, the main go to light source was the Elinchrom Ranger RX along with the Rotalux 135cm soft box. I can’t rave enough about Elinchrom’s line of Rotalux softboxes as they are very well designed and make my life easier when on Location. When using the larger Octabank softboxes indoors at close proximity make sure to diffuse the light. I often double up diffusion with a deflector in order to minimise hot spotting. As you can see the results are beautifully soft.  I also had a bare 580 EX II behind Melissa for rim and hair lighting. Just enough to add a little separation from the background and to emphasise her brilliant red hair.

Melissa was great to work with and was super enthusiastic throughout the shoot. When I work with a model or individual their participation can make the difference between a good shoot and a portfolio piece.  I had so much to choose from as she was very diverse and worked hard in front of the lens. I will be working with Melissa again on location this week so I’ll post the results very soon.

I will be posting a full review on my experiences indoors and out but for now lets just say the sheer power of this light is ludicrous!  I was debating over quadras and rangers for a good 4 months and I’m so glad I took the plunge.  There’s a setup shot in here for all of you budding portrait photographers.

I wanted to bring a very clean look to the outdoor shots but when we arrived on location I spotted an opportunity to use the gritty surroundings as a different approach.  The crane in the backdrop of some of the shots was a nice addition.  I adopted various processing techniques for the finished images.  In particular, the sky blue shots worked very well with a new style I have incorporated into my fashion work.  It gives an edgy, film-like feel to the shot.

We also did a Superman theme in one of the studio shots.  I think Michael pulled off a pretty convincing modern day man of steel.

I found it a real struggle cutting down his film and choosing the best shots……there were so many I wanted to keep – for me this is a great problem to have as often I find myself worried about the lack of useable shots in a roll of film.

In our short time together (Alan was flying back for a part in a popular TV soap) I was able to shoot Alan in several different styles.  He wanted something edgy and different, and something commercial so we worked outdoors with natural light for his general lifestyle shots and went indoors for edgy and commercial.

I look forward to working with Alan again in the near future.  For a peak at his roll of film see below.

Rick.

The location was decided and we rocked up at 5pm or thereabouts in -2 celsius.  Due to the bitter cold and the style of shoot (if we were shooting winter coats and warm clothes it wouldn’t have been an issue) I wanted to work really fast to keep Nicole warm and happy but the cold never really seemed to bother her throughout and I was grateful for her professionalism.  If I had to switch the roles I would have locked myself in the car with the heating on and told the photographer where to go!

The shots were ordered by Donaghys of Banbridge and they will be using them for their new Ad campaign.  Donaghys have recently had their website redesigned by Karen at Akaihane and it looks great.

Rick.

I worked with Michael Mulholland again for this shoot as he requires little or no instruction and knows how to work with light. He is also extremely dedicated and works hard to maintain his physique so for this particular shoot, he was the perfect choice.  I approached Michael about it and he was very keen on the concept.

I think this shoot summarises the beautiful truth that without darkness, there would be no light.

Rick.

I met with Paul Heasley the other day at Hillsborough Park for a sports portrait as he is a fascinating character and I once had the opportunity to train under him when I decided at the tender age of 32 to take up rugby (whoops!). I was always very sporty in my life and loved pushing my limits on the pitch but my body got the shock of it’s life when I started to train under Paul.  He doesn’t suffer fools and I learned quickly that first night he has a knack of knowing just how much to squeeze out of an individual to get maximum returns.  Paul has been a Fitness Professional for eight years and has been running his own personal training business in Belfast City centre in the last three years.

Known affectionately in rugby circles as Diesel, Paul is one hell of a tackler (thankfully I don’t have 1st hand experience of this) and played senior rugby for a number of years before realising that he could marry his passion for rugby and training and teach others about getting the best results from their body.  Paul is Northern Ireland’s only C.H.E.K. practitioner (Corrective High-performance Exercise Kinesiology), using a holistic approach of individualised exercise program design and lifestyle coaching to help clients overcome common roadblocks to ensure they move and perform optimally, and look and feel in peak condition.  After speaking with Paul on the shoot it was clear how strongly he feels about his work and it’s affect on the lucky few he works with.  One of his favourite tools of the trade is the kettle bell.  You can see a few of his training techniques below in the image gallery.  Paul’s brute strength and endurance are not born of protein shakes and creatine but rather intelligent training and a healthy balanced diet.  When asked once at the club about protein shakes and the best for maximum gains Paul simply replied “None.”  I’ve never seen a fella so confused in all my life…..Paul just smiled and walked out.  End of conversation.

Paul was a senior rugby player for the best part of his youth and still remains very passionate about the game.  More recently, he was given the opportunity to work as a strength and conditioning coach to the Ulster under 19 clubs side who went on to win the inter-provincial championship in September of this year.  Paul also coaches at Lurgan Rugby Club.

To get in touch with Paul to enquire about a training session you can email him here at paulheasley7@hotmail.com.  He is an absolute gentleman and believes in client confidentiality so don’t be afraid to contact him to discuss your requirements in greater detail.

Yesterday I had a shoot arranged with an up and coming Irish rugby player called Michael Allen. I was introduced to Michael through his father Alec at a sporting event a while back and I very quickly realised what separates your average joe (me) from achieving his dreams …hard work and natural talent…and more hard work!

At the tender age of 19 Michael is already pressing 125kgs above his head like he’s fitting a curtain rail on the wall. I hadn’t seen him in a year and didn’t recognise him when he walked in the room. Michael trains 2 times a day on top of his studies and still finds time for a social life.

This kind of dedication is inspirational…..I’m back in the gym lifting “the fives!”