Here are a few images from a recent shoot with Leicester Prep School, Stoneygate College. And yes, they’re of the lovely Claudia (you have to admit she’s a pretty good model and model release is never a problem). I’ve always been a great believer that school and nursery photography doesn’t have to be mottled backgrounds and pasted on smiles – so give the pictures a modern look whilst making it enjoyable and painless for the children – as well as myself. I was surprised to count the other day that I will have done over 30 nursery and school shoots by the end of this year and hope to build on this success into next year.

I’m really excited to tell you that I now have the use of an excellent new studio facility on the Queens Road in Leicester for family and children’s portrait photography. It’s an old school hall with more space than I know what to do with! It can hold multiple backdrops, has a full professional lighting set up, a waiting area with leather chairs and dedicated changing/make-up room. There’s also plenty of private parking behind the building.

It’s absolutely ideal for families in Leicestershire that want professional portrait photography at reasonable costs in a relaxed and informal environment.

I shall be open for business at weekends and evenings when most portrait customers want to book but also during the week (all subject to availability of course). Studio portrait sessions last approximately one hour and please call 07739 035923 or email nick@osbornephotography.co.uk if you’d like a full pricelist or to book your session. You can also see a description of portrait products I offer here.

I’ve been keeping busy throughout November and December with, amongst other things, lots of nursery shoots. To be accurate, 12 nurseries shot over three weeks with over 400 children and 100 staff.

Despite a few hiccups out of my control, like my computer giving up in week one and no post getting to my printers in Mansfield for a week due to snow(!),  we’re on course to get all products back well before Christmas. A big thank you to all of the nurseries involved if you’re reading this. And a special mention to some of the parents at Broughton Astley Tots Group for offering and granting model release to enable me to add to my nursery gallery, much appreciated.

I recently had a great day working with the charity Dore on their brand ePace. We spent the morning in a local school showing staff and children using the new product, followed by team profile shots and capturing general office activity for PR and marketing purposes. For these profile shots I used a two-light set up (main light with large softbox) and Lastolite Hilite.

I’m always keen to try different looks created by new lighting set ups. I was pointed towards this interesting blog by Swedish photographer, Stefan Tell (thanks Mark from Decoder) and had to experiment with the two-light set up with black background – with my first attempts above.

Revisiting this for a second session, we thought we’d made it even harder  by having Kate wearing a black dress and other dark clothes! Getting the separation of the head and clothes from the background proved to be the biggest challenge as there’s the balance between getting your separation and light seeping on to the background. So, it works for some better than others. You can see these and a few more in this gallery.

I think a more directional light (snoot or grid) is probably needed to ensure that the backlight remains on the head and shoulders. I shall try that next time round but for all of these I used the softboxes I have. This simple and effective look would certainly suit corporate profile shots…

The summer’s as good a time as ever to update your website so I’ve started the process by adding to some of the galleries. Good news is I’ve received model release for a few more school and nursery portraits so you now see more of a selection now from formal(ish) school studio shots to the natural nursery playtime images here.

The Events gallery has also been updated to include some recent work for the University of Leicester amongst others. I shall continue to add more work during holiday periods so do come back…

I thought I’d let you know how I was getting on with my nursery photography. I’ve recently finished shoots at two nurseries in Market Harborough and Branston; and have bookings in the summer and autumn for at least four more local nurseries. And a booking for next March, which is pretty impressive planning on the nursery’s behalf!

So far, there seems to be an event split between studio shoots and the natural playtime pictures – both have their place and it all depends on the style and look the nursery and parents are going for. I’m limited with what I can show online as it all depends on parents consent for model release but I shall add images to the portfolio as and when.

It’s always pleasant to hear good things about the work you do. So, I thought I wouldn’t keep them all to myself and share some of the comments I’ve had from happy portrait and nursery customers. And none were paid or bribed…

“Your pictures gave the parents a real insight into their children at play, thanks!”

Katie, Allexton Nursery February ’10

”Thanks for making our decision so hard in that we want to keep all – your pictures are really great, everyone in the family was very impressed.”

Zelda, January ’10

”Nick, we really enjoyed the shoot and were amazed at the quality of the images. Great service, prices and so much fun. Watch out Venture!”

Phil, November ’09

If you’ve got this far into my site I would hope that you’ve already had the chance to have a look at my new portfolio showreel. This started as a new way of presenting my work on the site but its uses have snowballed. I shall use similar techniques (series of stills with transitions set to music) to present work back to portrait customers and also create showreels of chosen images so they can stick on YouTube, show to friends on FB or on their iPhone. My iPhone version has proved useful to show people on the move and I’m sure that all of the new phones which will supposedly trump the iPhone will have the facility to play with music. Worth all of those hours scratching my head over Premiere Pro!

I’ve devoted a lot of time recently to setting up my home photography studio in Leicester and experimenting with factors like lighting, backgrounds and flooring. So, thanks to the Sheltons, Osbornes (Redditch and Stoneygate branches), Vales and Johnsons for their patience and co-operation; and to Mark for his advice and references (especially ZA). I shall include all of my work for the time being on this site (family portraits, individual portraits, events and marketing) until it’s bursting at the seams and I shall then create a separate site for portraits only. So, I’m officially open for business in my home studio on Leicester now so please send me an email if you’d like a price list and to check availability.

The price list covers framed prints, canvases and photobooks and I’m happy to quote on iPhone movies, digital frames and Christmas/birthday cards on request. I encourage a chat ahead of the shoot to discuss likes/dislikes and possible props (although I may have to think twice about feathers!). There’s no cost for the shoot itself and no ‘if you don’t decide today, these files are deleted for ever’. Just quality shots presented to you with the space and time to make a decision.