Canon G10: Ruby in the Snow

Just thought i would share an image that i grabbed on my Canon G10 whilst walking the dogs in the snow yesterday.

Ruby is becoming quite a poser as she grows up and wanted me to take a couple of photos of her in her new coat, in the snow.

I had left the G10 in the car over night so had to wait for the lens to de-mist when it hit to freezing air!

The dogs were more interested in getting home and sleeping in front of a warm fire!

Squirrel Takes Over Location Portrait Session

Its not often that i get to take pictures for personal use so when an opportunity comes along, i have to grab it while i can.

This week, i was shooting a location portrait session at a local park when we were greeted by this little chap (or chapess).





The squirrel was so bold and had no problem with jumping up asking for the nuts my clients were carrying as well as taking a firm interest in the bread we had for feeding the ducks.

Webinar

I just wanted to thank you to all of you who tuned in to my first Webinar last night.

I was delighted to have been invited by my good friend, Oz, who runs SF Photo School.



For those who missed it, that's a shame but i may be holding more in the future so please keep checking here for news of forthcoming events.



We ran the early booking rate for my March 2011 Wedding Photography Workshop at the end of the Webinar, and as a result interest has been high, so if you are thinking are coming along, please get in touch as soon as possible. Spaces are very limited to ensure delegates get as much out of the day as possible.



To see more details of the 2011 Workshop at the stunning Ashdown Park Hotel, please click here or give me a call on 01323 740741.

Sussex Portraits: Isaac

I had photographed little Isaac before but he's just turned one and so it was time to take some up to date images of him.

I went over to his parent's new home and after a fantastic bacon sandwich, decided to start the shoot outside in their garden.

It was bright but chilly and with the dramatic autumn low angle sun being used as a back light, i captured some informal moments before we headed back inside.

Isaac was really fun and extremely happy though out which certainly helped.

All the images were captured on my 17-55 2.8 Nikon lens by available light. I mostly shot wide open.

Here a few favourite shots.

The REAL WORLD Wedding Photography Workshop 2011

I am very excited about my 2011, Real World Wedding Workshop. Interest has been high and there are only a couple of spaces left so if you are interested in coming along to what should be a superb day of learning, please get in touch as soon as possible!

The seminar offers the complete nuts and bolts of my very successful wedding photography business, from the marketing and pricing to how i use environmental light and composition to produce stunning wedding images.

Its going to be held on Thursday 3rd March at the absolutely stunning Ashdown Park Hotel, in East Sussex. .Situated just south of East Grinstead, Ashdown is the perfect location for wedding photography, having extensive grounds set within Ashdown Forest and a breathtaking interior.





You can get a feel for the scale and drama of the venue by reading about a few recent weddings i have shot there by clicking here.




Description: The Real World of Wedding Photography

Building and running a wedding business, from top to toe in the REAL world.


Topics covered include:

1: Introduction and background to how Peter has become one the leading lights in the UK Wedding Photography Industry.

2: Business: Peter will reveal his marketing, pricing and products.

3: Technical: Peter covers exposure, lighting, composition.

4: Equipment.

5: Walk through a recent full wedding with Peter.

6: Shooting when the going gets tough: tips for winter, wet and difficult weddings.

7: Live Shoot: Peter holds a live demo both inside the magnificent venue and, weather permitting, in the grounds. There should be opportunity for delegates to take some images themselves under Peter’s guidance, so feel free to bring your own cameras.




Who Should Attend the REAL WORLD Workshop:

Aspiring and established photographers wishing to freshen or build up their business and wedding photography. This workshop is perfectly timed to get you up to to speed as the new wedding season gets under way.

This is intended to be a very informal, ego and hype-free workshop. Questions and input from delegates are very much welcomed.




Date: Thursday 3rd March 2011
Time: 10.00 to 5.00pm (registration and coffee 9.30am)

Location: Ashdown Park Hotel, Wych Cross, East Sussex.

Spaces are strictly limited.

Investment: £200 inc vat per delegate.

The fee includes coffee on arrival, a decent hot and cold lunch and afternoon coffee.




Notes:
1: To reserve a place we require full payment at the time of booking and this non-refundable unless we are able to fill your space with another delegate once the day is full.

2: Payment is accepted by cheque, cash, and BACS.

3: To qualify for special room rates at Ashdown Park Hotel, please ask for the Sales Office and quote this workshop.

4: Free Parking is generally available at the hotel.

5: Peter will be available for informal discussion in the bar afterwards, so please feel free to stay on.



For further information or to book your place on the workshop please call on 01323 740741 or e-mail: info@peterprior.com as soon as possible.



Workshop is held in association with:

South West Photomounts
Jorgensen Albums
Snapperstuff

Sussex Weddings: Ella and Jamie at Brighton Grand Hotel

On a blustery but at least dry day for once, i photographed the wedding of Ella and Jamie in Brighton.

They were married at the Church of the Good Shepherd and held a fabulous reception in the Grand Hotel on the seafront. This was the first time i had covered a wedding at Brighton's Grand.

After a relaxed ceremony we went for a walk along the beach and despite the wind, managed to capture the spirit of Brighton's seafront featuring the iconic West Pier.

As ever with city centre weddings, logistics and parking issues came into play, but fortunately, i had my good friend Peter Howlett to thank for looking after these matters.

AND FINALLY....

My next wedding Master Class is going to be held on Thursday 3rd March 2011. Please mark your diaries and keep reading the blog for more details in the next few days.

Spaces will be very limited at what should be a fantastic workshop, where you will get access all areas to my business and method of shooting.

Feel free to email me on info@peterprior.com for priority booking.

Here a few images of the day.

Workflow in the Real World: One to One Training for Photographers

Work flow and post production is a huge part of each wedding you photograph. Over the years, i have received countless emails and enquires from photographers asking questions about how i achieve my signature look and how can they reduce the time they spend in front of a computer after shooting a wedding.

Running a business that shoots in excess of 50 weddings per year, means i need to keep the time spent in front of a computer screen to a minimum.


SO MANY PHOTOGRAPHERS WANT THEIR FAMILY LIFE BACK!

A huge part of my work time is spent promoting and marketing by business whereas it seems for many others most of their time is spent editing and correcting images taken at weddings.

After a lot of requests, i have decided to offer a VERY LIMITED NUMBER of One to One sessions here in Sussex. I will share all of my methods and workflow with nothing being hidden or held back.

1: I will shorten the time you spend processing each wedding.

2: Explain how i edit down the number of images to an easily workable number.

3: How i produce stunning and consistent black and white images.

4: How i produce stunning colour images.

6: How i produce top print quality time and time again.

5: Reveal how i design my albums efficiently.

I will save you time which in turn will allow you to re-direct your time and efforts to other areas of your business or GIVE YOU YOUR FAMILY TIME BACK!

If you outsource your files, i will SAVE YOU MONEY on every wedding you shoot!


HOW IT WORKS

The idea is to work through your latest wedding files from downloading the cards, editing down the images into a manageable number and then adding the "hand printing" necessary to produce top quality prints with the minimal of effort.

I only use a few actions that i have developed over the digital era, of my career, preferring to keep things simple. My methods have been developed from my own experience to meet my needs in regard to print quality, tonality and speed of processing.

My philosophy of "KISS" or "Keep It Simple Stupid" is applied to my post processing and this allows me to focus on vital aspects of running a wedding photography business in today's tough market place.


The investment for a one to one session here in Sussex is just £195.00. If you would prefer me to come to you, please ask for an individual quotation.

Christmas Deadlines: a Reminder

Just a quick heads up to say that its not long to go until Christmas and our deadlines are fast approaching.

Our cut off for albums, parent's books, canvas and fine art prints is 12th November (this Friday). After that, we will try to do our very best but will be unable to guarantee delivery in time for Christmas as all of our products are one-offs and made to order.

Our wonderful suppliers are rushed off their feet at this time of the year so please bear this in mind.

The cut off for print orders that are required in time for Christmas is 11th December and again we will be happy to accept orders after this date but are unable to guarantee delivery dates.

Apart from the weddings i am covering over the Christmas period and any pre booked appointments, our office will be shut from 23rd December until Tuesday 4th January 2011. We will be checking emails from time to time, so if you have an urgent request or enquiry please email the studio on info@peterprior.com over the seasonal break.

Wedding Fairs and Wedding Photographers: an observation

After a number of conversations with couples and photographers alike i thought i would post a few thoughts and observations about wedding fairs from the perspective of a wedding photographer.

Firstly, in my humble opinion there are far too many wedding fairs. The problem with this is that due to massive choice facing couples, there is a huge drop in footfall as each event. Many of my couples can't be bothered to check them out as there seems to be 3 or 4 every weekend! I am sure this never used to be the case and as they were less in number it made them more attractive/important for brides to make the effort to go.

After exhibiting at a number of wedding fairs this autumn, i have noticed a couple of things. Every wedding fair is so over saturated with wedding photographers.

I mean where there used to be just one or two there are 4 or more! I find this difficult to understand when there are never three of four hair dressers, car companies, toast masters etc. its just plain crazy and must be purely down to economics as far as the promoters of such fairs are concerned. It is certainly diluting things to such an extent for the couples and photographers alike, i have to ask what is the point of investing money and precious family time in attending in most case.

A number of couples have pointed to the crazy number of photographers present at fairs as being a turn off and that due to the over saturation they didn't really check out any photographer in detail on the day.

A regular comment is that photographers are "two to a penny" these days and in the short and long run this is doing massive harm to our profession.

For the record, i generally only attend wedding fairs at selected venues who i have been privileged to work closely with over a number of years. Each wedding season i turn down far more offers to attend fairs than i take up.

Even so, you can see me at a few select fairs from January through to the end of March and i look forward to speaking to as many couples as possible.

As an aside here is my old post about choosing a wedding photographer.

Portraits: New CD Albums

I thought i would share with a one of our new CD portrait albums.

After showing a few clients their feedback leads me to think these will be very popular indeed. They hold 20 images as well as a CD slide show of the whole session.

The album itself is 6"x6" in size so perfect to carry around for you to share the collection of portraits with friends and family and complements any wall art that might be purchased from a session. It comes in a matching slip case.

If you are interested in having one of these superb albums, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

You can see more of my portraits here.

Here is one about to be collected following a recent baptism i covered.















You can view my portrait portfolio here.

You can view my wedding portfolio here.

Wedding Images

I have been working on a new AV and thought i would share a couple of new, old images that have made the short list.

As i have shot over 750 weddings in the past decade there are always images that stand out after the event and these may be "upgraded" to appear on my website's galleries over the coming weeks, if i get time.

The biggest problem is that i must have something like 30,000 images from the past couple of years alone to choose from.