Olympus OMD for Wedding, Location and Studio Photography: West Sussex Photographers

Good Afternoon Folks,

This is my second post featuring images from the Olympus OMD and today I am going to talk about the 12-35mm and 25mm lens that I have now purchased for the camera.

When I first purchased the body it was priced such that to buy a kit, which included a lens was just as cost effective as buying the body only so I obviously plumped for that.  The only other agonising decision was the choice of a silver or black body. I went for the black as they were taking delivery of those first, so no contest!

Anyway back to lenses; the kit lens was a 12-50mm (24-100 equiv) 3.5-6.3; it also had the benefit of a 40mm (90 equiv) macro.  I am going to be honest I do not like the varying range of aperture for the photography that I like to do so the range was too much for me personally, I do however use it for its macro element.  I do love a plain an simple 50mm prime lens and I decided there and then to purchase the 25mm (50 equiv) Panasonic/Leica 1.4 and I have not been disappointed.  I also like the fact that the lenses are supplied with hoods; the Olympus ones are not and have to be purchased separately and this irks me somewhat.  I think I am used to buying lenses for my work cameras and it would be unheard of to not have a hood.  So Olympus this is something that I think you should address.

In my work I really love my 24-70mm 2.8 and it seemed so strange not to have one with the Olympus.  Panasonic came up trumps again with the 12-35mm (24-70 equiv) 2.8; it was not cheap but again was worth every penny and when the camera comes with me to weddings or pre-wedding shoots, this is the lens of choice.  I do love using the 25mm in the studio though.

In my next post I will chat about my zoom lens a little bit and provide an image to show the Olympus OMD working at a higher iso.

So today's image was taken just as the sun was setting; such a beautiful time of day and Tony was looking out to sea just enjoying the last of the sun's rays.  Technical information iso 250, 1/250 @f4 using the Panasonic 12-35mm 2.8 at 29mm.

This was taken whilst we were on holiday where the same gang gather together every year; ahh happy days :)

Claire

Wedding Photography Swallows Oast Ticehurst East Sussex - Rachael and Patrick: East Sussex Wedding Photographers

Good Afternoon Folks,

I recently had a lovely location shoot at Swallows Oast, Ticehurst, East Sussex with Rachael and Patrick.  I am due to photograph their wedding at this lovely wedding venue later in the year.

We had a stroll around the grounds and a good old nosey in the Oast itself, which is just gorgeous.  They are having two lovely venues that will be featuring in their wedding day, and their pre-wedding shoot will take place at the other venue a little nearer the time.

I am very familiar with the East Sussex area as it is just a stone's throw from my hometown, Tunbridge Wells and most of my childhood holidays were spent on the East Sussex coast.

Today I am posting four images from the shoot.  You can't beat a bit of running with beautiful background views, a heady mix of laughter and drama!  I love this second image as Rachael and Patrick try to sneak a quick kiss before laughing at some of my silliness!  There is a lovely lake that I am looking forward to using on their wedding day and last but not least a lovely shot of them looking happy and probably clinging together for shared bodily warmth!

I really cannot believe that it is almost the end of January, I think I must be getting old as the time is going faster ;)

Have a great week and wrap up warm.

Claire

If you would like to see more of my work pop along to my website Woodland Hill Photography

Emma Tindley Couture at The White Gallery: West Sussex Photographers

Good Morning Folks,

I have some exciting news that Emma Tindley Couture announced in the New Year; she has been invited to launch her 2014 collection at The White Gallery.

I am just thrilled as it is no secret that I think Emma's dresses are the best.  I first photographed her collection in early 2011 and I was bowled over by the gorgeous designs and quality in her dresses.  Emma trained at the London College of Fashion and one of her specialities is period corsetry.  This really shows in her designs as there is that mix of being comfortable and looking absolutely amazing.  Her brides are very discerning and she has dressed many ladies from all over the world; now that just shows how good she is.

I just wanted to say huge congratulations Emma and this now puts you as one of the leading designers in the country, and this is just as it should be.

I have the very great honour of being Emma's official photographer and I just cannot wait to photograph the 2014 collection, which has been in the planning for some time now as shoots of this magnitude often are; how exciting!

So today I am posting an image from the Shakespeare in Love Collection that was taken at our shoot last year in the glorious surroundings of Wakehurst Place.

Enjoy the snow; note to self, must get some snowballing in before it melts!

Claire

If you would like to see some more of my work pop along to Woodland Hill Photography

Olympus OMD-E5 for Wedding, Studio and Location Photography: Photographer West Sussex

Good Evening Folks,

In keeping with what I fondly call geek week, which is the annual international convention hosted by The Societies I really thought that today's post should be about something geeky.

Last year I was on the lookout for a personal camera that I could take with me when having a day off.  I love my work cameras and they really are like faithful friends but I think they need time off too!  Joking aside I did not always want to carry bigger and heavier gear around with me when I was on leisure time, but was there a camera out there that would not limit or frustrate me?

One rare free Saturday and on a whim, my husband and I trotted off to Park Cameras in Burgess Hill, which is quite close to us.  I had seen and heard a lot about mirrorless cameras; and every photographer lusts after a Leica but there are some new kids on the block and the Olympus OMD is among them.  As luck would have it Park Cameras had an Olympus representative with them that weekend, so it really was a good chance for me to chat extensively about the camera and put it through its paces.

My business consists mainly of wedding, portrait and location photography and when I have my wedding and location hat on a camera that is exceptional in low light is a must.  I just couldn't bring myself to purchase something that would not pass muster even when photographing for pleasure.  I spent a long time really testing the low light capabilities of the OMD and I was most impressed at the quality of the imagery at a high iso.  After about 2 1/2 hours of questions, tests, questions and deliberations I took the plunge and made the purchase; have I regretted it?  No, and it was agony having to wait because at that time the cameras were on back order!

This little gem made its way from being a personal camera to being fully incorporated into my business!  I use it alongside my faithful friends at every commission and it is a fabulous little minx in the studio.  I thought that I would make 2013 the year to blog and post pictures from this little beauty.

So today I am starting off with an image I took last summer!!! Yes it was summer folks!

I used the Olympus OMD with the Panasonic Leica 25mm lens; although the weather was awful the light was good and I was able to use iso 200.  I will try and vary the imagery so you can get a real feel for how this baby works in varying light conditions.  I will also chat about the lenses I decided to buy and why.

Enjoy your week and now things have settled down from Christmas and the convention I am hoping to get back to my usual twice a week blog.

Claire

If you would like to see more of my work pop along to my website Woodland Hill Photography and I would love to hear your comments too :)

Buxted Park Hotel Uckfield East Sussex Wedding Photography - Terrianne and Dan: East Sussex Wedding Photographersrs

Good Afternoon Folks,

Just before Christmas I photographed the festive wedding of Terrianne and Dan at the gorgeous Buxted Park Hotel, Uckfield, East Sussex.  I was very excited to be photographing a wedding at Buxted Park and I was particularly pleased that the wonderful Marc was on hand; he is so lovely and nothing is too much trouble.

Terrianne stayed in one of Buxted Hotel's wonderful suites and she was very relaxed when I arrived; I then popped down to find Dan and Best Man Dylan who is their little son.  He is such a sweetie and did everything I asked; in fact he was wonderful for the whole day and did not flag at all, despite staying up until 8.00 pm!

The whole day was very relaxed just as Terrianne and Dan wanted and I loved being amongst the festive surroundings of Buxted Park Hotel, as Christmas is one of my favourite times of the year.

Today I am posting five images; the first was taken after their reception meal, light was at a premium this time of year so is does help to be comfortable with photographing in any light and any experienced wedding photographer will not be fazed by this at all.  The second image is always a favourite with me and this was taken at 3.50 pm two days after the shortest day!! Being able to mix the remnants of natural light with introduced light to create a natural shot is something that an experienced photographer will do as second nature at this time of the year.  The third image is a quirkly little number taken in Buxted Park Hotel's cinema and what else does one watch during the festive season but It's a Wonderful Life!!  I just love the image of Dan and Dylan, he was such a cutie. So to the final image, the pond with the magnificence of Buxted Park in the background with two people so in love enjoying their wedding day.

Have a great week folks, I am off to the annual international photographers convention that I affectionately call 'geek week'; I love it and it is a great way to talk all things photography and catch up with friends and colleagues from all over the world...Geek me up baby; love it!!!

Claire :)

To see more of my work pop along to my website Woodland Hill Photography

East Grinstead Baby Photography - Charlotte: West Sussex Baby Photographers

Good Morning and a Happy New Year to you all,

So I am starting the new year with a real cutie called Charlotte; I photographed her Mummy and Daddy's wedding four years ago so I was lovely to see Catherine again.

There is something really special when you have a job that enables you to share in the joy of the happiest milestones in your clients' lives and I often think that the profession I am in must be one of the very few to enjoy this.

Charlotte is 12 weeks in this image and it is quite incredible how little ones change so rapidly from newborn to little babies.  I do love the newborn stage,  this is so short lived and the ideal time to photograph your little ones is in the first two weeks after birth.  Once this very brief stage has passed, your little one's muscles will start to develop and their neck strength will develop day by day. Their eyesight will also start to develop quite rapidly too, so capturing those serene images does become harder because they have the ability to observe much more the world that surrounds them.  It always amazes me how short a time being newborn really is and when I see these little marvels for their next session it is hard to believe they were ever that small; a little bit sad but lovely at the same time,because they are developing and growing into bonny babies!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Year;  I spent time with my family and friends, some who I have not seen for quite some time due to work commitments so it was really good to kick back, eat chocolate and be merry :)

One last thing, it's not raining....hurrah!!!!!

Claire

To see more of my work pop along to my website Woodland Hill Photography