View Post

David Lund – Diamond Shoot

Take a look at some of the work by Visual Education student David Lund for the company “Boehmer et Bassenge”, one of the worlds biggest diamond companies. It was the first time that he had taken on a project that was purely a video commission and during the shoot he filmed over £10 million pounds worth of diamonds!

View Post

David Lund: From Designer to Photographer

From diamonds to fishing rods, fashion to steel, professional liquids photographer David Lund’s nine-year career has been a rollercoaster journey. A Hasselblad demonstration at Falmouth Art College almost 10 years ago proved to be the turning point for David…

View Post

Photographing Products with LEDs and Display Screens

From iPhones to kettles, self-illuminating dials, LCD screens or LED lights are key components of many products nowadays and while many photographers find it difficult, it’s actually quite simple. For our next live show I’ll be showing you how to photograph a voice recorder that has both self-illuminating illuminating buttons and a LCD screen.

View Post

Top Product Photography Tips

When people ask me about product photography, the most common questions I get asked are things like “What is the best camera for product photography?” Or “Which is the best lens for product photography?”. The reality is that the most important thing you can have isn’t the top camera or most expensive lens — it’s a good understanding of light.

View Post

Splash Photography: How to Photograph Liquid Splashes

Splash photography is exciting, fast-paced, messy and creative — what’s not to love? If you’ve never tried splash photography before or if you’re looking for a few useful tips or new ideas, then this is the place to be. I explain the equipment, lighting, important photographic concepts and also share a few creative ideas for you to try.

View Post

Jonathan Knowles’s Most Iconic Work

When leading advertising and still life photographer Jonathan Knowles shot the O2 bubbles, he never imaged the series of 10 images would become quite as iconic as they have. Ahead of his live talk show, we asked Jonathan to tell us a little bit more about this famous series and some of his other work.

View Post

Motorbike Photo Shoot

LIVE PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP
Motorbike Photo Shoot
Recorded live on 19th December 2019
Now available on replay
In this live show Karl will undertake the exciting task of photographing a motorbike live in the studio.

View Post

How to Photograph Flying Food Images

Levitating burgers, suspended salads and exploding tea — the craze of flying food images is taking over the food photography market. But how are these exciting images created? As with most studio shoots, these images can be divided into four distinct stages: pre-visualisation, preparation, lighting and shooting. Each of these stages is crucial if you’re to get the best result possible.

View Post

E-Commerce Photography in 5 Simple Steps

E-commerce is a booming industry, and with it, e-commerce photography. Done correctly, e-commerce photography can be a quick and easy way to make money, but there’s a few tricks to getting it right. Whether you’re shooting fashion or products, I’ve outlined a few important guidelines that will help you produce the best possible results simply and easily.

View Post

A Detailed Guide to Creative Still Life Photography

Abstract images of fruit; colourful collections of books; styled sets of stationery… If you’re looking to get creative with your photography and make the ordinary seem extraordinary, then still life photography is probably for you. One of the best things about still life photography is that you can get creative and test your photography skills using almost anything you have laying around the studio or your house. You also don’t need very much equipment. And if that’s not enough to persuade you, still life images can also be a great way to make money.

View Post

Case Study: Natural Light Product Photography

When you apply the knowledge of light, you can achieve professional photography results with little to no equipment. In this article I explain how I managed to create a close replica of a previous wine bottle studio shot using nothing more than natural light from a window, some diffusion material, a reflector, and two iPhones.

View Post

Product Photography: What It Is and How to Get Started

Product photography is one of the most lucrative genres of photography, but it often requires a good selection of equipment and a thorough understanding of light. By the end of this article you’ll know exactly what you need to get started as a successful product photographer, what equipment you’ll need, what critical skills will come in handy, and much more.

View Post

A Guide to Creating White Backgrounds for Product Photography

Creating a plain white background for a product shot or e-commerce shoot sounds simple, and when you know how it is! Whether you’re shooting packshot photography for an e-commerce website or are looking to refine your technique for commercial photography projects, I’m going to explain the important considerations and necessary equipment…

View Post

Case Study: Speedlight Product Photography

Shooting professional product photography using speedlites isn’t necessarily the easiest way to go about it but it can be done, as I showed in a recent Youtube video where I photographed a clear glass bottle using just three speedlites.

View Post

Pro Tips to Avoid the Most Common Mistakes in Product Photography

I’ve been doing professional product photography for around 20 years now, and as an educator I’m familiar with many of the most common mistakes photographers make when photographing products. I’m going to share my top product photography tips to help you avoid these common mistakes and achieve high-end professional results.

View Post

How to Create a Plain Black Background for Any Type of Photography

Black backgrounds can look very effective in photography, and they’re a popular choice for everything from portrait photography to products. Although a plain black background may look easy to achieve, there are actually quite a few things to consider if you want to get the best results, so I’ve put together a guide to help you, including tips for what background to use, what lighting is best, and where to position your subject.

View Post

7 Food photography mistakes you should avoid

If you’re looking to improve your food photography, you’ve probably seen the same old advice repeated in every article out there. So rather than re-explaining what you should be doing, I’m going to explain what not to do if you want to get more professional results. To help you take better food photographs, I’ve summarised the key points to keep in mind when photographing food so that you can avoid these common problems.

View Post

The Do’s and Don’ts of Bottle Photography

If you’re looking to practice your product photography, bottles are something you can easily get your hands on if you want to try something new or refine your skills. These reflective subjects can be a challenge to photograph, with their glass surface and reflections, but there are a few key do’s and don’ts that will help you understand how to get professional results

View Post

Studio Lighting Setups Using 2 Lights

There’s a lot you can do with just two studio lights — trust me, I’ve shot everything from bottle product photography to fashion photography using just two lights. I’ve put together two different examples of two-light setups for portrait photography, product photography, and fashion photography and I’m also going to explain how you could use similar setups to these for your own photography.

View Post

Top 10 automotive photography tips

From cars to motorcycles, lighting considerations, angles, polarisation, space requirements, assistants and more, I’m going to share my top 10 tips for automotive photography to help you get the best results.

View Post

Speedlights vs Studio Flash for Small Product Photography

Recently I did a live show where I photographed a pair of earphones. The main purpose of the show was to demonstrate how to photograph earphones based on our fourth photography brief assignment, but there was another lesson I wanted members to take from the shoot: that it’s not about the brand or type of lights you use, but more about your knowledge and understanding of light.

View Post

6 Cosmetic Product Photography Ideas

I’ve put together a list of six ideas that you can try next time you’re shooting product photographs. The best part? Most of these ideas don’t require much space and only need some basic equipment. They’re also a great way to practise and refine some important product photography skills while getting creative.