Skip to main content

My Eye Opening Work Experience by Chloe Grantham


After my build up of excitement, my week of work experience has really opened my eyes to a whole new level of helpful and interesting skills on how to create and capture a picture perfect photograph. I came to Christina knowing a few things about photography but not a lot and not in great depth at all. Since I have been working alongside Christina I have learnt a range of different things. This included activities such as learning how to process photographs using Photoshop, which actually has been one of the skills I have always wanted to learn about. I have also learnt how to apply the right sort of filters and so there set to the suitable lighting and opacity which is how strong the filter is.



One of the activities I enjoyed the most was when I was lucky enough to take some of my own photos of a close friend of mine using Christina's equipment. I had a lot of fun trying different levels and re-arranging the lighting and so on. I am very proud of some the images I created and it has helped me for future references. This helped me gain a lot more detailed knowledge on what settings to have the camera at and what type of lighting is suitable for certain types of photo's. I feel a lot more educated on the subject of photography and I have gained more confidence with experimenting different ways on how to capture a high quality photo.


The skills that I have gained and the things I have seen and done during this week will be carried with me forever in the future as I will now be able to go on to more photography related events and develop my skills. I can proudly say I am extremely glad I picked Christina to do my work experience because I don't think I would have been able to gain such strong skills with anyone else. The environment I have been working has been so welcoming and I have looked forward to coming everyday.  Before I arranged my work experience I was very intrigued into the style of photographs that Christina produced and took a large liking to them. So being able to see photo's being processed and to know how her images were fulfilled was such a great experience to have been apart of. It has also made me realise that I would absolutely love to have photography as a job and to own the type of equipment that I have seen here. It is a true enjoyable hobby of mine to take and edit photo's so this week has added to that hugely. Here are a few more of the photographs I produced.


I really like how this photo has turned out, I love the use of different angles that Christina introduced me too. Different angles are made by positioning the camera at different levels such as above the subject level or at the bottom of the subject. It's really helped fulfill the image I wanted which was an urban/rock style.


This is one of my favorite photographs, I just love this pose and after quite a few attempts I got the crop much better than the first version I made of this image.


This may not appeal to everyone but it really does to me because I like the facial structure and the basic pose and expression. It gives it an unusual/edgy look.

With this photo it took a lot of decision making to know whether I wanted it to be in black and white but I am very happy and proud with what the outcome of my decision was.

Overall I am extremely pleased and proud of these images that I produced, and I am very excited to try similar things in the future.I will honestly miss being able to come to work alongside Christina and having the opportunity of having the access to the high level of equipment and doing something I adore everyday. I feel honoured to have been able to have attend Christina Lauder's photography studio I am very greatful to have been accepted to for this week. I will always remember it and it will be one of my many loved memories :)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

London in Spring, Whats Not to Love?

Well I know there is still a lot not to love but I'm choosing to see the great things about London at the moment. I am having a ball this year visiting London as often as I can. Which is unusual for me since I usually prefer the comfort of my own home, in rural old Leicestershire. Staying home and avoiding people has always been the easy option. But this year, possibly due to the wonderful weather we keep having, has me longing for venturing out. Again, just like my last trip, I headed out with my good friend Panikos Hajistilly . Living in North London he finds it easy to meet up for our shoots. This time though I had more of an idea of the sights I wanted to use as the backdrops for my portraits. With it being spring I was in search of colour, preferably flowers. Admittedly. I didn't quite get what I was looking for. The white fronted terraced houses with pink magnolia trees we did not find unfortunately. But I did make it to Peggy Porchen's which was a must see on m...

Family Photos with Flair - Vanity Fair Style Family Portraits

This style of portrait continues to be the eye catching success I had always hoped it would be. Once again I created a beautiful family portrait that I am really proud of and I know this family loves too. Over the years I have developed this style through influences such as Vanity Fair and the many photographers I follow, though I hope that there is something in here that is entirely my own. Having my work easily identified as my own was a goal of mine from the start. Getting to the point where people will want not just a portrait but a Christina Lauder portrait is where I've always wanted to be and I'm hoping I'm on way. These portraits were created for the family of two professional photographers who wanted some portraits of their own. Family portraits isn't really something one can do of oneself, at least not easily. So they needed the services of another and I was honoured to be chosen for the job. They chose me not just for my style but also for my ab...

Never Work With Children or Animals

Or so the saying goes. But I have to say that working with dogs has been so lovely. They have been almost entirely a dream to work with. I say almost entirely because we have had a few moments where a dog has needed to settle. And one moment where the dog had settled but one of my cats decided to have a look through the glass door which, as you can imagine, rather quickly unsettled the dog. Still, that didn't stop us from creating incredible work. In fact it was during that shoot with the cat instance when I created two of my favourite pieces, shown below. (It was while sitting on the couch here when he noticed the cat peering through the curtain) I don't know if I've just been lucky or all dogs are just easy to work with. I photographed a french bull dog puppy and I thought that would be tough as he hadn't had time to be properly trained yet. But he did everything we wanted in no time at all. And this included the props we used here (below), which to me...

Teen Portraits - Prom Season is Just Around the Corner

If your child is heading to prom in the next couple of months I'd say there is probably no better time than now to have portraits created of your growing teen. With the purchase of a new (and probably expensive) outfit wouldn't it be nice to capture this milestone with a portrait created by a professional. Across the pond this is a hugely popular time to create portraits, and although I am not American (I'm Canadian) I wholeheartedly agree that this is a special moment to record. My prom was a key memory in my teen years and in fact I myself had professional portraits created also. I think I'll go dig them up if I can, though admittedly I think my mother has them back in Canada. I wonder if I can get her to scan one for me. My daughter is currently making plans for college and in the running is one that will move her away from home, as many others are probably experiencing for themselves, particularly those who are 18. This makes it all the more important to ...

Headshots and Portfolio Shoots: Here's What we Offer

Headshot requests are becoming more frequent so I thought I'd put together a post to share some recent work and explain the packages I offer in greater detail. Headshots are typically a simpler and quicker session so my packages are also a little simpler than what I offer in my full studio sessions. If headshots are what you or your child need its really important that you get good quality headshots that can stand out amongst the crowd. A headshot is a representation of you and often the first impression you are giving out to your audience, whether its casting directors, agents or college officials considering your application. A good headshot is more likely to get you noticed and ultimately get you further along your path. Making your headshots the best they can be should go a long way in helping you progress in your chosen path. I offer 2 different levels of service in order to make it as affordable and appropriate as possible. The first is a simple straightforwa...