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Rolling with the BIG Dog - Calum's portrait - part 1 of 1 2

by Damian McGillicuddy Published 01/08/2013

Arrrrghhhhh it's that time again ... I need t be able to bend space and time to fit everything into my day that needs doing. I LOVE being Olympus principal photographer and educator but I genuinely didn't realise that I would need 36-hour days ;0)

Running any business has massive demands on both time and resources and often corners do have to get cut. In all my years of experience the one truism I've learned is that I need to keep practicing. I owe it to myself and my clients to keep pushing, to keep learning to develop my photographic craft - you have to have a desirable product and the skills to pay the bills. There are an awful lot of photographers out there these days, your constant task is to ask yourself how does the buying public see the wood from the trees?

Actually one of the secrets of success in this industry is hidden in plain sight - deliver a product better than most and customer service second to none!

I like to set myself little tasks to keep myself sharp. I'll set myself a challenge to shoot an image with a specific lens, or with a specific modifier or utilising a specific technique...

I think it was the very successful and famous golfer, Gary Player, who said "...the more I practice the luckier I get"!

There's a big lesson there, so instead of continuing my rant I'll do the thing you all love now and finish this month off with a couple of my own 'How it was done' images ... keeping me on my toes.

Please don't forget you can keep right up to the minute with what I'm doing and all the exciting offers by following me on twitter (@ McGillicuddy1) and facebook (DamianMcGillicuddyPhotographyTraining) ... and don't forget to drop in on the blog, you're always welcome - www.damianmcgillicuddy.com

Calum's portrait

PREAMBLE:

The best piece of advice I think I've ever been given was by my Dad! He told me that if everybody was 'zigging' that I should 'zag'.

I've had some really fantastic feedback from you guys and gals for my previous articles so I thought that it was the right time now for 'Something completely different' and to move away for a short while from glamorous and beautiful young ladies and shoot another genre ...

whilst still showing that it's technique and application and not kit that makes an image.

Image Concept:

The concept for this image was to show that quality imagery can be made almost anywhere with the minimum of equipment. I want to encourage all to see picture-taking opportunities abound everywhere if you just prompt yourself to look... Today's 'how it was done' was inspired simply by bath time with my two youngest kids!

Location: my family house in Dromad, Ireland.

Subject: My middle boy Cal.

What was in the bag: Olympus E3 with the Olympus 14-54 f2.8
to 3.5 (set at about 70mm on FF)
1x Nissin Di 866 Speedlight1x Elinchrom Universal Skyport
1x 36" McGillicuddy BIG dish multi modifier.
Sekonic L-758D light meter
Camera settings: Image captured in RAW
ISO 100, f3.5 @ 1/25 sec
RAW file processed through Aperture 3.1.3

So what did I do and why did I do it:

As I explained previously this image was inspired by bath time. I'm very conscious that kids seem to grow up ever so quickly these days so I wanted to capture a portrait of complete innocence with a soft and gentle feel.

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1st Published 01/08/2013
last update 09/12/2022 14:52:06

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