Brett Harkness Photography Training

Every year we make our pilgrimage to this wonderful retreat in southern France. This year we had back to back courses such was the demand for this trip. Working with 4 models over two days with wonderful styling from Zan Atkinson with a collection of clothing to even make VOGUE magazine jealous! As I said Rob Summers from Promo Films came with us on the firs course to produce this great fun film for us.
We spent two days working with different lighting from Elinchrom, shooting in the vineyards, in a local town in the streets and down by the river. We also shot in a production vineyard using the house of the owner as a wonderful castle like background, a beautiful chateau of fairytale proportions! To see IMAGES from this course please CLICK HERE.

I have also put in some BTS images for you to see a little of what went on during this great , fun course. Including  few images of our little baby, Makenzie! She very much enjoyed the course & learnt a lot!

Thank you to Lizzie from Panama who was on the course for these BTS images.

The clap of approval from baby Makenzie!

Mmmm, cake!! A huge thank you to Steve, the amazing Chef at Chateau Rigaud.

Kristie & our little baba!…

Paul. setting up for a group shot on the last night!

Look whats in my hand daddy!

One of the amazing looks from our stylist , Zan, shooting with Elinchrom strip box & Ranger RX speed AS.

Getting down with the Phase & Canon kit, inside the chateau.

One of our set ups inside.

Finding the light in a small town near the chateau.

Mmm, more cake!!

Zan, doing her thing!!

Lighting is a very personal thing and I think everyone should have their own way of doing things. I certainly do and it has taken a while to bring that in and make it my style. Whilst there is a lot of information taught over a 1-1 session it is very important that you take the information back and mold it into your own style, make your imagery synonymous with you. A big thank you to Bjorn for coming over from Norway, it was a pleasure to see you again. Maybe see you in Norway for a wedding course soon!!

If you are interested in our 1-1 sessions then contact the studio for more information or take a look at the 1-1 page on the training site.

Image taken using Elinchrom Ranger RX Speed AS kit & Deep Octa Box

Image shot with Elinchrom Ranger RX speed & Large Indirect Octabank 190cm

Shot using Octabank, with Emma stood against it in the street

Image shot with Ranger Pack & Maxi Spot Reflector 29˚ 40 cm. The same shape as the Maxi Lite Reflector, but produced with brilliant, glossy reflection material for very high efficiency, throws light even over longest distances. A narrow powerful beam creates deep, sharp shadows.

Shot using Ranger RX speed pack, 70cm softbox with grid, 1 – 70 cm softbox bounced & Quadra head with Snood for background.

Taken just using 2 Fluorescent lights above Emma, with K scale input for WB.

Image showing Octabank in use

We had worked on the look & styling with Zan Atkinson , our favorite stylist for quite a while. She brought her magic on this day! The course was all about using Elinchrom Ranger RX Speed packs and a host of different modifiers. We mainly used the 70cm Rotalux softbox & Rotalux Deep Octabox 100, we also gave the High Performance Reflector a whirl with great results. Working with Pocket Wizard Plus II’s, everyone shared the flash love, with a little organizing! We looked at using natural light with flash, overpowering ambiance, working with dark interior ambiance in the form of a loan light & also sunshine, using shapes, lines, textures and working with simple modifiers to get great results.We also used a little of the lovely natural light in one of the corridors to give everyone ample time to shoot some beautiful shots of Amber. We try and keep it as simple as we can when training, using a method that can be used in whatever kind of flash usage you are looking to do. Also this technique of manual flash can be used with Speedlights, Ezy boxes, studio lights etc.. It is a foolproof way of learning flash, making sure that no matter what the situation is , how dark or how light you will always have the METHOD to call on.

A few thank you’s…. A big thank you to Kristie also for helping out with the looks. Models Natasha & Amber worked all day in a total of 5 different looks to satisfy the photographers thirst for shots. We sourced the building from one of our location  companies we work with, a big thank you to Bella at Locationworks. Also a thank you to Will, one of the groundsmen at the location for helping us out on the day, much appreciated. Paul for setting up all the equipment and lugging it around everywhere!  Some of the clothes & headpieces sourced from Ages of Elegance a big thank you to them also. Also a thank you to Beth Hirst in Leeds for some great hats!

We have some great courses coming up this year, please check out our training page / courses for more information. We also have a couple of places left on our France course in October this year, a great way to finish your year! CLICK HERE for more info..

Also if you get chance please share this post on your FB page or Twitter feed!!!

Shot with 24-70, 25th sec @f8. 640 ISO

An amazing way to finish the course.. on the roof!! Don’t worry, it was very strong and had been tested before.

A shot from behind the scenes..

We then got on with with some great shooting, using the venue inside & out. A lot of information was passed on during the days session. As it is on all of our courses. I like to teach in as simple a fashion as possible. Straight talking!! We looked at flash, off camera, first dance, posing, communication! Using daylight! Don’t forget that!! Working with a couple and getting the best out of them in as quick a time as possible. All packed into a great day of learning with yummy sandwiches & shortbread thrown in!!

A big thank you to models, Dan Dewhirst , Gemma & Rosie MacPherson for being great to work with and were appreciated by all concerned. As every a huge thank you to make up , Hair & styling guru Zan Atkinson who makes my images smile!! Also to Danesfield House for making us feel very welcome the entire day!

Dresses by Novakks & headpieces by Victoria Mary Vintage. We will be putting on another course at Danesfield House later on in the year, August time. If you are interested please get in touch now. We also have some amazing courses coming up around the UK & Europe with some places still left on our Fabulous French course in October. For more info on all of our courses PLEASE CLICK HERE.

Here is a little footage from behind the scenes at our wedding training day.

We had a great session looking at off camera flash. We started off using speedlights at the studio and then moved onto Elinchrom lights later on out on location. This may have been more of  a “fashion” type of course but the principal of the way we use flash is exactly the same at weddings, commercial & lifestyle. It just has many applications. I hope all the delegates enjoyed themselves and by the feedback we had they certainly did. We try and keep things as simple as we can when shooting with our flash. Usually the clients haven’t go too much time on their hands to wait around so we have to be quick, know what we want and deliver. Fashion is slightly different. We can afford to spend a little more time setting the lights and getting it just right. Which ever way you work it is vital you know your equipment inside/out and most importantly learn what you want to get out of it!

We have some great courses coming up this year with a new set of June-October 2012 courses being released soon.

Here are a few shots from the day:

Last week saw us Host Ray Tan Photography on his 1-1 session and the week before with David Foden Photography. Both sessions were initially spent looking at their portfolio and their current methods of shooting. We then looked at weddings and the whole process of what goes into one of their own weddings and also one of mine. We spent the pm session shooting with a model , looking at numerous lighting setups in and out of the studio.Huge thank you to Nicky & Laura for modelling for us .Our bespoke sessions are very relaxed and we make sure that we cover as much as we can what you need to know.

If you are interested in our 1-1 or small group session please CLICK HERE or call the studio on 01706 340792 for more information.

Here are a few images taken on the 1-1 sessions.

Shot outside with Elinchrom Ranger, 1 head. 400 ISO 125th sec @f18

320 ISO, 250th sec @ f14. Using Quadra. 1/4 power.

ISO 400, 25th sec @f22, one head shot with Elinchrom Ranger & 70cm softbox.

To read more about the Elinchrom lights please read our last post HERE or go to the ELINCHROM SITE HERE.

No matter what flash situation I am in I still use the same techniques, it means I have full control of my situation and not being controlled by the lights or TTL!  ETTL is great and to be used when the time is short but I love the process of manual flash, I don’t know;  it makes me feel totally in control and on top of what I am doing. It is this process that you will learn if you come on one of our flash courses. After a brief session outside we headed into the Lowry Theatre  and after coffee continued to shoot around the building looking at light, form, posing and getting the most from the simple things! A huge thank you to Zan Atkinson our Stylist who rocks it every time. To Steph & Aaron & also to Alana for being great and for standing in the cold whilst everyone figured out their settings!

Here are some of the images shot on the course:

WEDDING FLASH II

Wednesday this week saw us put on our last flash course, in fact our last course of 2011! What a year it has been! The course content was the same as Monday so we started off at the studio ironing out the technique that has pushed our own wedding flash to another place. After heading out to Manchester for lunch we started shooting in a very cool location. The shoot started off in the back alleys of Manchester, because of the cold we didn’t last too long and then headed off into the very dark & spooky cellars under Manchester streets. We wanted dark and we go it!

After a while down there we headed off upstairs to the club and continued the shoot. Even using the ladies toilets for one of our backgrounds! It can be done! A huge thank you to the photographers for being such great sports even if we had to squeeze into the worlds oldest & smallest elevator! It was worth it! Also to model Emma for being amazing as ever, to Jnane & Stefan for also being great to work with. To our stylist extra-ordinare! Zan Atkinson.

Here are some images from the day:

SHOT TAKEN WITH DAYLIGHT & LASTOLIGHT REFLECTOR

SHOT IN THE BACK STREET OF MANCHESTER WITH A 70CM SOFTBOX

INSIDE THE CLUB, 500 ISO 1/20TH SEC @F16

IN THE STUDIO , 8TH POWER SPEEDLIGHT WITH AN EZYBOX, 250TH SEC @F3.5, 50ISO

WE HAVE JUST RELEASED OUR NEW EARLY 2012 COURSES SO JOIN US AT THE STUDIO AND AT SOME STUNNING LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT THE UK IN JAN-MAY 2012. FOR MORE INFO CALL THE STUDIO ON 01706 340792 OR CLICK HERE.

A big thank you to make up, Laura Cawte who did  a great job throughout the 2 days shooting with Kristie making sure all the models looked exactly as we wanted them to. A huge thank you also to The Flash Centre for the loaning of some wonderful equipment, very much appreciated and used! If you missed PART 1 & PART 2 please click on the day to view the story so far.

We started off with Laure outside just getting her used to use and more importantly us used to her!! She was great and gelled in with the group straight away. Using only a wall we looked at exposure, framing and interaction when language is a barrier.We then moved onto a few different backgrounds , a tree and also some of the vineyards that surround the chateau before heading back to the chateau. We got a couple of lights out , one as a back light and did a few shots before we ventured back.

A few shots from behind the scenes at the set ups up to this point. Thanks to Guy Levine & Ross Holkham for sending in some great BTS shots..

Paul wearing the models hat! Very fetching!!

We then moved inside for a quick coffee & cake! Before starting the second model for the day, Idoiaa. We had two very different but equally great looks going on this second day but because we had gone through a lot of information on day 1 we could concentrate on ironing out any problems people had with their shooting & flash and letting people shoot more.

Here is a little video from the first AM session:

Brett Harkness Training in France Day 2 am session from brett harkness on Vimeo.

Starting off inside we took Idoiia, into one of the darkest corners of the chateau! Looking at creating a more specific shot to match the surroundings. Teaching people how to match the exposure to the ambient surroundings without “killing it”.

A few shots from behind the scenes at this shot showing the equipment used:

We then went back inside using the window in the main dining room, starting off without any flash and again looking at exposure. We then set up one head on the right hand side of the Laure and looked at balancing and over riding the ambiance with it whilst Idoiia got changed for her next session.

Starting off in the Dining room we were looking to shoot against the light using a situation that could easily be replicated anywhere else! As long as you are not on the top floor!

A few pictures taken at this session…

We then headed into the dining room for a great rustic French lunch, chilling out with a few glasses of wine for good measure. A few us got the equipment ready for our next set up in the long room at the chateau.Using a mixture of daylight and our Elinchrom kit everyone got a mini session with Idoiia, un, deaux, trois!

A quick shot from BTS:

Here is a little video from this part of the session:

Brett Harkness Photography Training PM session from brett harkness on Vimeo.

By this time we had had an amazing three days at the chateau, shooting hundreds of images and passing on a lot of information. We had decided to go out on a bang and finish off shooting in a dead sunflower field using the huge Elinchrom Octabank, measuring 190cm across. This amazing light modifier is not for the faint hearted but we knew that the light quality that it would give out would be something very special and different so we couldn’t resist using it. After we managed to erect it we set up our last shot in the field…

The huge Octabank we used for our final image. Invented in 1982, their unique patented construction and design have won these large lightweight softboxes worldwide popularity. A lightweight die cast rigid central mounting for the flash head inside the unit which places the flash tube at the point of focus. The optical result is a light source, which is so even at the diffuser surface, that many famous photographers use the Octa as a single light source for portrait photography.

Me posing with my new best friend!!

Paul with a UFO landing on his head…!

The image produced with the single light source…

A little video clip showing our last set up..

Untitled from brett harkness on Vimeo.

Our last Group shot…

Wow, so what a few days we had this year in the amazing surrounding of Chateau Rigaud outside of Bordeaux. A huge thank you to everyone that made it down to the course. It is one to be remembered that’s for sure. A lot of information was passed on, a lot of questions asked, a lot of wine drunk! A lot of images taken, equipment used and a WHOLE lot of fun had! It was great for people to be able to spend some time together after the training, spending quality time with like minded people is something that not everyone gets the chance to do, it is a big part of our training courses that they are great social events also. We encourage all levels on our courses as we think that everyone can learn, whether full time pro’s or part time amateurs. So make 2012 a special year and book your training with BHP studios.

Here are some video testimonials from the photographers on the course…

The Last supper… Brett Harkness Training from brett harkness on Vimeo.

We are about to release some very exciting new dates for our courses for next year. So if these last few posts have inspired you and you want to take part in some great training next year then watch this space!

Read what people said about this course:

“un, dos, tres!! Fromage!!  Just got back from a wedding (nice sunset but not like France) to find this great email, can’t wait till the next adventure, the only problem you will have is that in the words of Joyce “nobody else can book unless one of us dies” lol.   Think we could make a book of quotes from the trip and the banter was nearly as good as the photography.”

Ross Holkham

“I just wanted to drop you both a quick note to say a huge thank you for the most fantastic few days in France…
I had the time of my life – so much fun with great friends, the most beautiful cool location, fantastic food, wine & great training as always…
Some very special memories & the image of man’s attempts to fly in a sunflower field with an octobox is one I’ll remember for quite some time!
Thanks again so much & I’ll get some photos over to you asap – see you very soon!”
Joyce

Sharon (11.07.2011 | 11:50)

Hello! I’ve really enjoyed watching all the clips !
I must do something with my hair next time! Ha. Thanks again for the best course EVER ! I learnt SO much and am enjoying putting it all into practise. Put me down for next year and i hope to see the same people again… It was great spending three days with everyone. Sharon x