Digital Photography
- Photography Tuition
- Photographer Service
- Photo Editing and Enhancement Service
- DPE Online Photography Club
- Pricing/ Costs
- Where?
My main genre of photographic study and practice is landscape, but I am also inspired by macro, architecture, abstract and still life. I do not practice nor teach fashion or model photography.
Together with displaying my images, this section of the website details my photography related services including one to one photography tuition. I will also be adding lots of tutorials and articles in the forthcoming months.
Our Digital World
Younger people and those new to photography might consider film to be a deprecated and somewhat archaic format, whilst others may still have inhibitions about going digital.
I've been interested in photography, on and off, from childhood and have owned a succession of cameras comprising of 35mm compacts and SLRs. I first came across the concept of a digital camera in the late 90's and was initially reluctant. Not because I was dedicated to film, but because I didn't get the concept of viewing photographs on a computer that, before the prolific significance of the internet, had been used only for business accounting, invoicing, graphics and word processing.
By late 1999 however, I was a regular user of the internet and my laptop accompanied me everywhere, so it then suddenly made sense to have my photographs on the medium I was spending my time with, rather than as 7x5 prints. Since then, I haven't ever considered returning to film.
For me, going digital made total sense: I got to see my images straight away and give them critical consideration as soon as I transferred them to my laptop. Also, the exposure, focal length and other technical details are recorded in the EXIF data with the image file, so I could easily see the effect these had on my photographs. And I could can take as many photos as you wish - for free! As a consequence of these advantages, my photographic knowledge and ability progressed far quicker with digital than it had previously with film.
Digital photos are very versatile: You can optimise them using editing software, send them via email, display them on the internet, use them with graphics, and much more! Of course, there are arguments in favour of the characteristics and resolution of large format film in certain professional applications, but for most, professional or otherwise, the practical convenience and versatility of digital photography is unequivocal.
As digital photography technology has developed (pun intended!), along with that of computers, the internet and our digital world, photography has now become more popular than ever!
Photography Tuition
I give one to one tuition in most aspects of digital photography ranging from basic point and shoot composition, transferring files to your computer and sending to your friends, through to more advanced photography and editing.
Whatever your experience, I prioritise your potential creativity and helping you to become a better photographer: I don't dwell on technicalities that won't help your photos.
Read more at my Digital Photography Tuition section.
Photographer Service
I offer an on-site photography service, mainly to supplement my web design services. I am an experienced photographer capable of creating well composed and good quality photographs. Optimised images files can be supplied as JPEG, PNG or other file formats.
If you wish to commission a series of photographs (in Greater Manchester or Cheshire) for your business, or for any other reason excluding weddings and events, simply contact me to discuss your requirements.
Photo Editing and Enhancement Service
If you have photos that you wish to use in advertising media, I can optimise and prepare them for your requirements. I can also, in most cases, edit imperfect or damaged photographs.
For example, you may have a photograph of your business premises that you wish to use on your website. Besides optimising white balance, colour and contrast; resizing and sharpening, such a photograph will benefit from barrel distortion and perspective correction, so your buildings don't look as though they're falling over backwards!
The above/ left photo is a good example of what can happen when photographing a building from street level with your camera tilted upwards to get all the building in the frame. Often, obstructions can prevent photographers from getting a clear shot from a better location to eliminate converging lines, so we have to pragmatically work with what we can get. A decade or so ago, the only way to photograph a tall building from below and negate the converging lines was to use an expensive "shift lens", but now we have the benefit of digital editing.
Whilst not a compositional masterpiece, the edited photo on the right now has vertical buildings and better colouring, contrast and sharpness. It has also lost the ugly road signs and other distracting attributes.
Most modern, digital photos don't require as much work as the following image, some of which could have been completed more quickly and easily with the new selection and masking tools now available in my recommended photo editor, Photo-Brush.
The damaged print on the left was just 3 inches tall and several decades old. As you can see, as well as being faded with age, it had severe damage from ink spillage.
The restored image on the right was printed as a 10 x 8" mount for the client.
The main subject has been fully restored, and damage from the ink drops and smears have been removed. The iron post in the foreground has been straightened, and contrast, sharpness and detail have been restored to important elements of the image. Whilst it wasn't possible to recover detail in the boy's face (leaning forward from the railing) or the people sat on the distant bench, it's now a worthy image with a prominent main subject and coherent composition. Notice I've slightly widened the image to fully accommodate the strong converging shadows that lead the eye down the promenade to the building and distant Blackpool Tower, strengthening the theme of this early twentieth century photograph.
If you wish to discuss my photo editing and enhancement services, or enquire about lessons in image editing, please contact me.
Digital Photography Enthusiast
Digital Photography Enthusiast is an online photography club that I co-own and run. Our main activity is the monthly photo competition and membership is free.
DPE started as a Yahoo group founded by Dylan Howell in 2003. I joined in August 2004, and in January 2005 added the group website to extend display capability and functionality. DPE now has approximately 400 members from the UK and around the world.
Pricing/ Costs
Appointments - 2 hours
My call out charge is £50 to £80 (depending on your location) and includes up to two hours of my time.
Appointments - 3 hours
My call out charge is £75 to £105 (depending on your location) and includes up to two hours of my time.
Payment - appointments and on-site services
I collect payment in cash on conclusion of each appointment and forward a receipted invoice by email on my return. Other forms of payment, such as BACS, or cheque, are available by arrangement.
Remote editing services - costs and payment
If I am to edit your photo remotely, having first estimated the time to complete the task, I will require full payment in advance.
No VAT to pay
Because I work from home, I have low overheads and do not need to be VAT registered.
Discuss your requirements
Feel free to contact me to discuss your requirements and arrange an appointment.
Where?
I am based in Irlam and cover most areas of Greater Manchester and Cheshire including Glazebury, Hollins Green, Cadishead, Irlam, Eccles, Worsley, Monton, Walkden, Swinton, Pendlebury, Salford, Trafford, Urmston, Flixton, Carrington, Stretford, Sale, Altrincham, Wythenshaw, Cheadle, Hale, Lymm, Culcheth, Warrington and Leigh.
Further afield, I also cover areas of Bolton, Bury, Heywood, Rochdale, Oldham, Aston-Under-Line, Hyde, Stockport, Wilslow, Knutsford, Northwich, Runcorn, Widness, St Helens, Newton-le-Willows, Wigan and Skelmersdale.
