Biography
Mark Cleghorn's distinctive images have won hundreds of awards since he started professionally in 1983, including the Kodak European Gold Award 17 times, as well as being awarded four Fellowships for his outstanding images. In 2009 Mark launched PhotoTraining4U.com, an online training resource for photographers using streaming video in its knowledge bank to show photographers not only him at work but a vast selection of teaching and technical films.
Mark was one of the first in his field to fully embrace digital technology in the late 1990's and has not shot film since 2001. His digital workflow methods have helped to get photographers back behind the camera instead of sitting at a computer.
Mark has written books on lighting, portraiture and wedding photography asa well as Photoshop. He has judged photographer's work in print competitions all over the world and is considered to be one of the major influences of style and technique in the wedding and portrait industry today.
Introduction from Mark
What I love about portrait photography is that every shot I take is different. Even though my lighting and other equipment may stay the same and be set up in a similar way, it is the subject in front of my lens that makes the difference to the portrait. This is exaggerated when I turn my camera away from the studio and point it at a wedding, as none of the elements are ever really in my control on the day.
When I prepare for a shoot, I have to take into account not only who the subjects are and what they are like, but also where the location is and the timing of the event. A winter wedding brings far more flash into the variety of images than a summer wedding does, due to the lower light levels and darker nights, both inside a church and during the reception, as well as outside in the elements.
The great thing about shooting a wedding or a portrait with a DSLR is that there are no boundaries for creativity. I can see instantly if an idea has worked or not, allowing me to re-shoot or change the set up dramatically for even more creative effect, or (more often than not) to bring the image back down to earth and shoot something more tame.
From the start of a wedding day, with all the chaos of the preparation, there is never a dull image, as around every corner there seems to be a better photograph to be take. However, the most important part of my job is to make sure that I capture the wedding how the bride wants it to be captured and don't just shoot what I want to - that's the big difference between doing a wedding for fun or for profit.
There are some key secrets to posing and lighting a subject, however they are preceded by familiarity with my equipment combined with my speed and efficiently during the shoot. making best use of the location and its natural light, where possible, gives an instant variety to the images, not only through the backhground but also in the variety of the poses and the expression of the subjects.
A relaxed subject is always a happy subject and this, I promise you, always shows in the portrait. The secret to a natural expression is just keeping the portrait simple; by that I mean minimising the complexity of the pose and the subject's animation. This also applies to the equipment - keep it simple to reduce the likelihood of technical problems and so that you can focus on the portrait instead of the chosen camera, lens or flash.
Equipment
Camera ~ Canon EOS 5D; Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lenses ~ Canon 24-100mm f/4L; Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L; Canon 28-70mm f/2.8L; Sigma 12-24mm f/4
Lighting gear ~ Canon Speedlite with radio triggers; Quantum T5-D portable flash; Bowens Esprit Studio Flash; Quantum Turbo batteries; softboxes
Accessories ~ Lexar cards; Manfrotto tripod; Sekonic light meter; Lastolite reflectors and TriGrip reflectors; diffusion screens; backgrounds
Bags ~ Lowepro; Billingham
What Mark says about Equipment
The right equipment is essential if you want to simplify the task of shooting portaits and weddings. A fast lens is essential in low light otherwise every other shot may have to have flash applied just to capture something. The 24-105mm lens is wide enough for me to get in close to a group without being in their faces for both formal and candid shots and with the telephoto element at the long end, I can shoot three-quarter length shots at a reasonable distance. The 70-200mm lens allows me to work at a distance and for the depth of field to be crushed for a blurred background.
My camera needs to fire when I tell it to and without any delay if I don't want to miss the expression or moment. A range of ISO settings, especially at the high end, is invaluable to allow me to work in low light without flash. I upgraded to the Canon EOS 5D Mark II, which has an ISO of 6400, and the noise level at 1600 - the maximum of the 5D - is much less obvious. It also has 21 megapixels, giving me a much bigger file.
When I want to use flash it should, again, be instant with enough manual control to look subtle in the photograph without dominating the scene unless required to. When I use Speedlite flashguns, perhaps dotted around the reception room in winter, I have radio triggers, so the sensor sits on the camera's hot shoe and each of the receiver units is attached to the Speedlites. It doesn't make use of the through-the-lens (TTL) function of the flash; I set them on manual so they give an accurate output of flash each time.
Another valuable piece of kit is a double-sided silver/white reflector, which can completely change the look of an image with very little work. The Lastolite TriGrip is a great piece of kit designed to be held in one hand, with the camera in the other. When not in use, it folds neatly into the side of the bag.
My thoughts I what I've read
I can really concur with what Mark says about portrait photography in that every shot you take is different, the equipment stays the same but the subjects are always different. I ave only completed a few portrait sessions for friends and family but each one was as different as the subjects. Whereas Mark it at ease with his equipment and lighting it is the complete reverse for me. Having only been shooting portrait photography for about 4 months everything is stil really new for me and although I'm coming to grips with shooting portraits with my camera, the use of flash and lighting is sometimes a little overwhelming. I relish the thought of being confidence, or at least more confident, in the use of my equipment. Mark stresses the importance of having a relaxed model, that is something that I do feel a little more confident with as I feel my friendly, relaxed personality put people at ease and having a laugh at the same time makes it less of a ordeal, that and bribing the kids I found very useful.
I am hoping to learn some useful trick of the trade from reading Mark's website and books as he must be good at his job to have won so many awards. I think it is important when setting off on a new project that you use those who have gone before me to help me become the best photographer that I can.
Although Mark's equipment will be of a much higher specification that mine I did take some confidence from looking at his equipment list in that I have some similar types of equipment so eventually when I get to grips with how to get the full potential from all the different components I might be able to produce some quality prints like him.
The thing that struck me most from reading about Mark's photography is the importance of having equipment you can rely on and knowing how to use it effectively. That and the importance of the relationships you have with your subjects. These are all areas I am going to work hard at improving.
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