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The Cape Table

Rick — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 01:01:33 +0000

I recently did a portfolio for business owner Rose Wilson at The Cape Table and Rose then asked me back to shoot some product and interior for her new website. I was delighted that Rose wanted to do something different with the shots so that they really stood out. I used a variance of lighting and shadows to achieve some of the looks you see here. The Cape Table showcases tableware from all over the world and is the perfect place to get someone a special gift that you won’t see in our local shops or homes.

Call in for a chat with Rose or her very friendly staff and find out more about the treasures imported from the four corners of the earth.

Here are a few examples of the some of the products available:

Rory’s Story Cubes

Rick — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 17:21:11 +0000

I recently shot the new product shots for Rory’s Story Cubes. They wanted standard white background shots for use in their product placements in major online resellers. You can see a few of them below. Rory and Anita also have a new video advertisement showcasing the Story Cubes in action. The video was produced by Black North in Belfast and fuses video and animation together to create a visual account of a game in progress and also captures the fun and imagination that is central to the product’s appeal.

Here is the video by Black North. Enjoy.

Let it Snow

Rick — Fri, 24 Dec 2010 17:58:20 +0000

Hi Folks!

Seeing as it is the season to be jolly and I love giving presents I thought I would giveaway a frosty high resolution wallpaper for your PC and MAC. Simply click on the picture below and when it opens save it to your desktop and set it as your background. A special thanks to all my customers and those that have helped throughout the year.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Rick.

Gravity: The Beat Poets Video Shoot

Rick — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 03:08:25 +0000

As some of you might already be aware I moonlight as a director of photography for a few local directors from time to time and I really enjoy getting out on set and getting involved in the film/music industry. I recently shot a music video with Marty at Scattered Images for The Beat Poets and their new single GRAVITY. Marty brought me in again as director of photography and I was responsible for the filming, lighting and helping to bring Marty’s vision to life. Marty is a superb director and since we started working together on short film and music videos, we have developed a strong telepathy. Before we speak we generally know what the other is about to say and it’s this bond that aids us on set and allows us to push our creativity. I find that enthusiasm is paramount on set given our dark and moody climate and this is no exception with Marty he really has a knack of keeping things moving. We have also been very fortunate with the people we have recently worked with and I am constantly surprised by their continual efforts to help create new and inspiring works.

The Beat Poets John, Mark, Keith and Paul are today making headlines throughout the province and recently had their music licenced to MTV and can be heard in some of the channel’s new shows. To be honest there’s not a day goes by that I don’t hear one of their songs or see an article in the local/international press and radio hailing their music and for this reason I have no doubt that the guys will eventually reach the dizzying heights of stardom. Besides their obvious talents, you really couldn’t meet a nicer bunch of lads and I wish them every success and look forward to their up and coming band shoot and new video that we hope to start work on in early January.

Have a listen and watch the new video below.

Rick.

A&L GOODBODY Partner Shoot

Rick — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 23:38:57 +0000

Partner shoot with A&L Goodbody Solicitors and their Belfast partners at the Ulster Museum.

Claire McCollum

Rick — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 23:28:05 +0000

Claire got in touch recently to have a new head shot taken for her new portfolio and showreel. She is a well-known freelance broadcast journalist/presenter in Northern Ireland. She recently hosted the BBC’s Children in Need with Eamon Holmes and is best known for her work with UTV as a sports presenter for eight years.

I worked with natural light for the outdoor shots and then changed over to strobes for the black backdrop indoor shots.

Rick.

Finding Your Edge

Rick — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 01:52:55 +0000

Alan Scott MacDonald was back in town for a while and called me up for a portfolio shoot. I had worked with Alan in the past and I wasn’t surprised to hear that he had moved to England and was already getting work on the big screen. At 6ft 2ins Alan is the perfect model but what separates Alan from the others is his very genuine and refreshing personality and acting/modelling ability.

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 New Identity

Rick — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 23:33:22 +0000

It’s been a long time coming (eight months to be precise as I couldn’t make up my mind and all of the attempts were brilliant but never felt right) and boy have we shed some blood, sweat and tears, but the new identity for Red Sky Photography is finally here and I can honestly say I am very pleased with the final result. I had a few designers look into the logo but I recently brought in Steven Fairfield as I met him through a friend and was very impressed with his insight and, like a psychiatrist, he probed the deepest recesses of my mind looking for any inspiration. Unfortunately he found nothing but sweetie mice and he set about creating a new identity for Red Sky Photography from scratch. Steven is incredible at what he does and I would recommend his services to anyone looking for a brand design/redesign.

It needed to be a lot of things. I wanted it to be commercial, classy, contemporary and to some degree a representation of what we do. I think Steven achieved this and I am looking forward to using it for the new website which is currently being designed by Karen a.K.a Akaihane. Karen is an extremely focused and artistic character and is currently working on samples for my new site. Have a look at her portfolio for samples of her most recent works.

The Importance of White Balance

redskyni — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 01:22:00 +0000

I have recently been in many debates with fellow photographers concerning white balance and it’s importance in modern day photography. To my amazement, many of them simply let their cameras dictate the balance automatically…..even when indoors.

Don’t get me wrong, in full daylight this is an acceptable option but lets take the argument indoors. No matter how well your camera balances for whites in a halogen or tungsten (your common household bulb of the noughties) environment you will nearly always end up with amber skin tones and this colour cast is not a pleasant sight. Just try converting this image to grayscale to see what I am talking about….mushy greys. When I quizzed a photographer recently on the subject I was told “I set my WB (White Balance) to cloudy (6500-8000 K) all of the time and correct the colours in post.” This was one comment I could not get my head around. Unless you are shooting in RAW (and in this case certainly not!) it is extremely difficult to remove colour casting on skin with a jpeg. RAW shooters have the flexibility to change their WB in post as if they were taking the shot again. With a jpeg, it is a well-known fact that when a shot is incorrectly balanced it is impossible to recover whites and this in turn can lead to very unhappy clients. Here’s a quick tip on WB: When on location and shooting indoors, keep a white piece of card handy in your satchel in order to set a custom WB and if you’re using flash, keep a set of colour correction gels to ensure you get the right results.

If you like the “warm” look, knock yourself out and throw the temperature up in post but don’t ever rely on ONE WB FOR ALL – Unless you are aspiring to be Frank Spencer! (some mothers do have them!)

Rick.

Red Sky Prints at the Castle Gallery Lisburn

redskyni — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 23:33:00 +0000

Castle Gallery Lisburn is now stocking the exclusive print entitled “Corbet Lough”. The print is a limited edition 20″ x 30″ on an archival metallic finish. There are fifty for sale and the first print went on sale today at the gallery.

I went along today for a look at the finished product and met up with the gallery owner Andy. The gallery has a very relaxed atmosphere and hosts some of Ireland’s finest artists. When I approached Andy a while back about selling my prints I was surprised by his enthusiasm and passion for the arts. Andy is one of Ireland’s youngest gallery owners and has built his business up from nothing. He jokes about his first premises and wonders how he even won business there. When you meet Andy it’s easy to see why his business and reputation is growing rapidly.

Left to right: Richard from Red Sky Photography and Andy from Castle Gallery Lisburn

Castle Gallery Lisburn was Est. in 2002 and to this day is fast becoming one of Northern Ireland’s leading galleries. Stop in if you are in Lisburn next time and have a look at what separates Andy from his competitors.