THE FINE ART OF PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHY: Creating unique and powerful imagery that is technically flawless is a must for any image maker. This is where I seek to go with my portraiture endeavours. This series of portraits submerges ones senses in an atmosphere of suspended beauty, fleeting moments that can never be repeated are awaiting to be captured. At the same time presenting numerous technical challenges that needed to be over come in the process. I like to use every skill set and technical advantage whenever possible to achieve the most unique of outcomes. Having decades of experience working in the water, in particular in the area of impact surf photography, I am comfortable in this aquatic environment.
“Translating images in to a form of emotional communication in terms of art as a photographer it is the ultimate of universal language.”
I’ve worked closely with Alan Love at AquaTech Imaging solutions for much of my photographic career. I contribute in the research and development of these underwater sports housing in the quest for the best photographic solutions.
I requested a housing for the Leica SL2 and a range of lens to utilise the highest calibre of optics for use in my fine art work. The solution from AquaTech was to create the Reflex housing.
This combination of Leica optics, regarded as the finest in their class with a sports housing that maintained all functions of the camera, was a excellent solution that has expanded my photographic possibilities.
In regard to my fine art photography the ability to achieve a new level of quality is now at hand.
Technology often affords me new opportunities in my work, but those opportunities can only be realised when I combine them with a vision and a appreciation of the potential applications to achieve the unique interpretative portraits.
“New Technology does not make a photographer take better photos! But it can make the photos the photographer takes better. ”
There are no shortcuts in this journey to create original content, one must experience the whole process of the photographic journey.
Testing, learning, experiencing and refining and then testing again and again.
My journey has literally been decades in the making. It’s about understanding all the aspects of this process; the intricate workflow and the technical knowledge lets me create work that is intensely rich in authenticity and integrity.
Selecting suitable talent for my project is an ongoing process spanning years. To find talent that can hold composure in the absence of the ability to breathe is a feat in itself.
To be honest, I am much more demanding in my requirements than just for usual portraits, in terms of movement and composure. Fortunately my models were up to the task of not only being strikingly beautiful but were skilled at maintaining a poise that enables me to be able to create both still and moving images.
Many thanks to Aminah Ada and Georgie Mackenzie who feature in this particular underwater series.
A wider body of work may be fashioned in to an exhibition with additional talent that I have been working for some time now.
While I was shooting this series of still images on the Leica, I also shot slow-motion footage on the same camera that captures the ethereal nature the underwater world that reflects a depth of beauty that is difficult to describe.
CHALLENGES
Lighting is one of the most challenging aspects in such a foreign environment. Recently I have invested significantly in both continuous lighting and multiple above and below water flashes.
The AquaTech system provides the ability to fire flashes from above and below the water. The important part of this is that it is a comprehensive housing system.
This technical side of the lighting is a whole separate blog in itself, but suffice to say it’s like putting a studio setup underwater with multiple assistants on hand where you can’t talk or breathe. Slightly more challenging than normal.
The process, because it is multiplied in its difficulty, always results in unique content when all the elements come together.
This body of work is purely for my own personal evolution as a photographer.
Developing techniques, knowledge and skills in the pursuit of portraits that I am seeking to take it to the next level.
“The beauty of photography is there is always so much more to learn and explore - it is a never-ending journey.”
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MONSTER SURF AT NIAS: The usual suspects, the team of big wave surf nomads that circulate the globe, arrived at a similar time to myself, in time for an 8-10ft swell.