Pet photography on location

I seem to have been photographing a lot of pets recently. It really is an extension of my location family photography. Most cats, and dogs are imporatant family members as well as being their owners best friend. Animals have their own quirky personalities and it can be as difficult to capture the essence of a pet as it is to capture the the personality of a 5 year old. Each one is just so different.

For instance, take Supertack above. She really displays a lot of curiosity and began our photo session investigating and searching until she was happy with my presence and when she was fully relaxed, played then slept! (Thank you SWPP for awarding this image a silver medal!)

A pets photo session really aims to capture the lifestyle of your nearest and dearest 4 legged friend! For dogs, my aim is to capture casual portraits of your pet on their own as well as with their best friend. I also try to produce some action images and some photos that just show the fun that animals have at play! Of course, if you have a show dog then, I would also aim to capture portraits showing breed characteristics as well.

If you have a cat, well I know who's the boss! I am usually happy to let these noble creatures dictate the session - patience is the most important photographic skill here!

My favourite pet shot this year was photographed last february in Ringsend park and for me, portrays the essence of man and his best friend.

If you would like to learn more about a full location photo shoot for your pet then please let me know.

Executive portraits and beautiful light

Natural light and black and white photography, I have always believed, can produce the most natural and flattering of portraits.

Normally, when I am asked to produce a series of executive portraits, I usually use one or two off camera flash units to help portray a person's strengths or character. However, sometimes when you are faced with beautiful wrap around northern light from a bay window, it makes sense to use it and sculpt it to give the best image possible.

That's what happened when I was asked by Siobhan O'Hare from Keynote PCO to produce portraits of herself and her key team members. Using light from a north facing window, a white reflector and a dark wall as background, we ended up with a series of beautiful portraits. It's exactly the same technique I use to shoot lifestyle portraits indoors.

Off camera flash still has its place in my corporate photography, as this photograph of Alasdar Browne, an associate coach with Harmonics career crafting, made earlier this year demonstrates.

You can find out more about my corporate photography here.

When in Rome!

The Antica Caffe della Pace just off Piazza Navona in Rome is one of Europe's great cafes. Signora Serafini and her staff provide the perfect place to relax after a long hot day. Marble tables and polished wood in the cool of the inside look out on the terrace.  There, I've had the pleasure of spending a few sultry afternoons, reading and people watching when the June heat has overtaken me and I need a break from photography. 

And Rome is a photographers paradise, every step is paved with history. Art oozes from every building - even if much of it is modern graffiti - and you can't help but feel happy and truly inspired.

How exactly do you photograph the Pantheon with fresh eyes?

It's my favourite building in the world! For almost 2,000 years, people have walked through the original bronze doors and admired the first great domed building which is as high as it is wide. As well as one of Rome's most visited tourist attraction it still functions as the Church of St. Mary and the Martyrs.

Slightly less well preserved is the Roman Forum! 

This panorama takes in the Arch of Septimius Severus from the 3rd century on the left and looks towards the first century Arch of Titus and the Colosseum in the distance. Here imagination comes alive and you can almost feel yourself walking down main street Rome 2,000 years ago.

However, it is the people that make a city and one of the best places to meet people in Rome is at the morning market at Campo de' Fiori.

Romans have been coming daily to this food market for 150 years. It's a great place to practice your Italian with the stall holders, have a coffee and soak up the atmosphere.

Talking of soaking!

 

Every time I visit this beautiful city, it seems to rain! It just means shooting at a wider aperture and looking for colour contrasts to make an image. 

Whatever the weather in Rome, I still expect to see Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck speeding around the corner on their vespa, full of joy and laughter. It may be more than 50 years since they made Roman Holiday, but this city still has la dolce vita! I can't wait to come back!

Wiring the Brain Conference in Adare

"The Gods have descended among us!" was how one delegate described the speaker line up at the Wiring the Brain conference that I recently photographed at Adare Manor, in County Limerick.

The conference brought together top genetics and neuroscience researchers from all over the world, to examine how the human brain is wired. 

One of the most important aspects of this conference, was to bring together specialists from differing disciplines, who would never normally have the opportunity to meet in a social setting, to discuss different approaches to solving similar problems.

Another great success of the conference was the location at Adare Manor, which proved to be a very special backdrop in the glorious late spring sunshine.

The rare Irish sun even allowed the delegates to study their programmes on the banks of the Maguire River between sessions.

The Minstrel's Gallery in the manor house proved an ideal setting for the conference sessions and when transformed back to its stunning 19th century self, provided an ideal backdrop for the gala dinner on the final night. The staff at Adare Manor were superb and conference organisers, Keynote PCO ensured that the conference was a success.

As a photographer, it was a real pleasure to record the event. It is quite humbling to be in the presence of so many brilliant minds and I'd like to thank Wiring the Brain chairman, Dr. Kevin Mitchell from Trinity College in Dublin, and all the delegates for their co operation in helping me do my job.

Nice people, beautiful location and great weather, sometimes I get to appreciate just how lucky I am to be a photographer and doing a job I love!

Location Portraits in Sandycove

There is nothing better than photographing people on location. Usually my lifestyle portraits are of families relaxing, but it is nice to photograph people immersed in their work.

When New York Art photographer Bill Storoniak and his wife Linda visited Ireland last week, I had the pleasure of guiding them to some new locations when they arrived in Dublin. It also gave me the opportunity to produce some portraits on location. 

The light in Sandycove was beautiful and one photo opportunity followed another. Here are a couple of samples.

While Bill was concentrating getting the light right and setting up the perfect shot,

Linda got to make some new friends with some of the locals at Bullock Harbour - Life jackets make a great background!

Whenever photographers get together, particularly from different disciplines, the conversation is always good (or as Linda called it, "technical gobbledygook!") and it never ceases to amaze me how much we can learn from each other. In such an atmosphere, inspiration is never far behind. 

So, taking a leaf out of Bill's book, I thought I'd upload one of my own landscape images from the day as well.

You can see some of Bill's images of Ireland on his website and samples of my location portraits at www.noelhillis.ie

Pink snow in Dublin

Woke up this morning to sunshine and the sight of pink snow, as the cherry blossoms on Whitehall Road began their fall. It's such a beautiful time of year as the earth wakes up. 

The last few weeks have been really busy and when I am through the editing backlog, I hope to begin posting on a more regular basis.

Its a long road but we all have to start somewhere!

Hi and welcome to the beginning of a journey through my photography!