Chamber of Commerce mixer at Altrincham Football Club

The end of summer means that the mixers put on by the Altrincham & Sale Chamber of Commerce have restarted, the latest one being hosted by Altrincham FC.

The great thing, from a photographic point of view, about the mixers is that they are all held at different venues, so presenting a completely different set of opportunities and challenges each time.  At Altrincham FC the first obvious observation, once you arrive, is that there is actually very little 'inside'.  The pitch dominates, so it seemed only natural that I should take the Chamber President, Chief Executive and Chairman of the Football Club out onto it for some portraits.

The networking itself was being held in the executive suite.  There were talks from Tony Collier, the Chamber President and Managing Partner of Milner Boardman , Jake Harrop who runs Safety Net It, and Peter Foster from the football club.

The Club had opened the ground for tours, so I was able to visit the changing rooms and take these shots of the kit all set out ready for the next game.   It's a part of my job that I love, being able to see places and things that very often are not seen by the general public.  On any job I always look out for an unusual shot - something that isn't usually seen, or an unusual angle of view of something familiar.  

The next Chamber event will be the Autumn Lunch held at the Cresta Court hotel on 19th October.

If you have a forthcoming event and would be interested in me photographing it for you then please give me a call at the studio on 01565 777186 or contact me by email.   More examples of my event and other commercial photography work can be viewed on my website.

Commercial photography in Altrincham

The beauty of commercial photography is that no two jobs are ever the same.  

I was contacted recently by Ian from Bluebird Care.  He got my details through the Altrincham and Sale Chamber of Commerce, for whom I do a lot of work.  He's opened up a new office in Altrincham and is preparing a press release to announce the company's arrival in the area.  He contacted me to photograph him and his staff, to provide images that could accompany the press release.  

Bluebird Care provides home care for the elderly, the sick and people with disabilities.  The purpose of the press release, aside from announcing the company's arrival in the area,  was to enable people to match names to faces, and to convey the company's branding, as displayed on the staff uniforms worn by the care workers.

These shots were taken in the building where the company has its office.  To begin, a team shot: 

The branded uniforms that the care workers wear.

 Simple portraits that have a multitude of uses; to go out on press releases, social media profiles, the noticeboard in the office, a website page, etc.

Many thanks to Ian for asking for my help in promoting his company.

More examples of my commercial portraits, along with the other commercial photography I shoot, can be found on www.commercialphotographynorthwest.co.uk

Commercial portrait photography on location

Commercial portraits, as I said in my last post, lie at the heart of my photography.  In the studio, on location, at your office, on the factory floor - I've photographed people in all kinds of places, doing all kinds of things.  But every portrait has one thing in common.  I'm making the subject look their best!

Triplar Limited are a shopfitting company in the West Midlands.  They work for some companies you may well have heard of, like Levi's, Nokia and Nike.  They win awards for their work, and they work all over the globe.   Their MD, Tim Rodwell, saw some of my work and invited me to spend a day at the company.  They were revamping their website and wanted some portraits of the staff, both in the office and on the factory floor, and some 'lifestyle' coverage of what went on in the business.

They were, in many ways, the perfect client.  I was shown around, introduced to people, and then allowed to move around photographing whatever caught my eye.  The brief for the portraits was that they were to be 'environmental', that is to show people at work, rather than in the studio, and doing typical things they might do during the working day.  There was also some talk of using (whisper it!) black and white images on the new website.

The beauty of photographing people in this way, from a business perspective, is that they aren't distracted from work to go and pose in a studio or a setup location.  In fact, they are encouraged to get on with their work, and my job is to record them doing it! 

A factory floor is a great place for a photographer.  Fantastic machines, marvellous shapes, symmetry, order and chaos all in one place!

Shots like these will be used on a website, in a brochure, on advertisements, flyers and so on to give a flavour of the company.  

If you're interested in getting some photographs of your business done, whether portraits, or some more general images, please contact me to discuss your requirements.  I can be phoned on 01565 777186 or emailed at info@martinhambleton.com

Headshots - or commercial portraits to you!

Taking someone's portrait is the absolute basis of my photography career.  Whether I'm shooting a wedding or doing commercial photography, somewhere along the line I'll be photographing a person.  And each time, no matter who it is, no matter where we are, I have to make them look their best.  End of story.

If it's a wedding, then it's called a portrait.  I guess it sounds better.

If it's a commercial portrait, then the technical term is a headshot.  Doesn't sound quite as good I guess.  In fact, it's actually a bit sinister isn't it?  After all, the only other people who spring to mind that take headshots are assassins.  So perhaps we ought to stick to commercial portraits.

The secret of a good headshot  ahem commercial portrait has very little to do with the technicalities of photography.  Sure, I have to know how to use a camera correctly.  I have to have chosen the right lens for the situation.  I may have had to rig some studio lights, or set some flash up in order to light the photo the way I want it to look.  But all this is secondary.  The real secret is to build up a rapport with the subject.  That's when the technical stuff kicks in.  Because I build up the rapport, then I get the shot.  It may only last for a few seconds, but the subject will look how I want them to, and I'll seize that moment, capture it on the sensor.

My oldest friend Iain has just set up a new business and wanted some commercial portraits doing for his new website.  He came along to my studio at Arley Hall for these.

Iain works in Digital Media, so we could show him a little more relaxed, and not so formal.  He'll use these for flyers, on his website, to send to conferences he'll be speaking at, and so on.

These days the commercial portrait is ever-important.  Even if you just want something to use for your LinkedIn profile, or even your Twitter avatar, it's worth showing the world you at your best.   Give me a call at the studio and I'd be happy to talk commercial portraits, or even headshots, with you.

Chamber of Commerce Business Showcase at the Point

At the end of June the Altrincham and Sale Chamber of Commerce held its latest business showcase.  These are starting to come along thick and fast every few months now, such is their popularity.  On this occasion it was also being held for the first time at the Point at Lancashire County Cricket Club.  What a great building!  It's a fantastic new conference and event centre, with a stunning view over the Old Trafford pitch to boot.  What more could you ask for?

This was also the biggest business showcase the Chamber had put on, with over seventy local businesses exhibiting and plenty more attending during the day.

I was there in two capacities; one, as the owner of Martin Hambleton Photography I had a stand promoting the range of commercial photography I offer.  I was also letting people know about my new, exclusively commercial website, www.commercialphotographynorthwest.co.uk.  And two, as the official Chamber photographer, I was covering the event, taking photographs that will end up being used by the Chamber in forthcoming editions of the magazine, Altruism.

As such, it was a rather busy day, to say the least, but I did get the chance to chat briefly to a few familiar, and some new, faces.  Among these were the nice guys at Juiced Orange Marketing, who have recently joined the Chamber, the wonderful ladies from Ice Cream Dub (who, as a fellow owner of a VW camper van, I'm a big fan of), Paul from Premium Collections Ltd, who was sponsoring the event, and others.

Here are a few shots of the day.

Among the speakers were Chris Barry from The Business Desk and Mark Williams of Inusers, who provided some very useful tips on using LinkedIn.  

Already looking forward to the next one! 

Martin Hambleton Commercial Photography

When I began Martin Hambleton Photography eight years ago I decided to build the business on people photography.  Quickly, that meant that I spent most of my time photographing weddings and portraits of individuals, couples and families.  Working with people is what I do best, and enjoy.

But I've been asked to do an increasing amount of commercial photography over the years, so just before New Year I took the decision to set up a separate commercial photography business, to run alongside the work I currently do.

The result is Martin Hambleton Commercial Photography.  Okay, not the snappiest name going, but it tells you what you need to know doesn't it?

On the website, you'll see that people still form the basis of the commercial work I undertake.  Portraits, events and promotions occupy a lot of my time on commercial assignments.  Although I'm doing an increasing amount of work shooting product, buildings and interiors too.

My other website will contain examples of my wedding and portrait work only, while all commercial photography and information will be contained in www.commercialphotographynorthwest.co.uk.  Similarly, if you enjoy reading about my wedding and portrait work on my blog, this will now move to www.martinhambleton.wordpress.com, while this blog will become dedicated to my commercial work.

I'll end by giving a mention to David Bellin of Software Assistance, who designed and built the site for me.   Thanks David!

Wild animals at Arley Hall

Here's a lovely little job that I did recently for Arley Hall, where my studio is based.  This was something a bit out of the ordinary, which is one of the reasons I love my job so much.  While I'm principally a wedding photographer, I can never resist the opportunity to shoot a different subject.   While Arley Hall is a great wedding venue, and I've photographed many weddings there and captured some lovely images of couples in the grounds, I was really looking forward to shooting something different in an environment with which I am so familiar.  

At the end of May the Hall was playing host to a collection of sculptures by South African sculptor Dylan Lewis.  Dylan has won worldwide acclaim for his work, and his latest collection, entitled Predators and Prey II, is garnering similar praise.  It's a series of studies in bronze of wild animals from his homeland, many of which are life sized.

They were on display in the grounds of the Hall before being transported down to London where they will be auctioned by Christie's on June 16th.

The juxtaposition of wild animals from another continent with the formality of the gardens shouldn't work should it?  But somehow, it seems to come together rather wonderfully I think.

So, a beautiful spring day, award winning grounds and gardens of a splendid stately home, and thousands of pounds' worth of sculpture by a world famous artist.  A pretty good combination for creating some great images!

If you want any more information about the auction, visit Christie's website at www.christies.com.  If you decide to put in a bid please let me know.  I'd love to photograph the sculptures again in their new home!

For more information on Dylan and his work go to www.dylanlewis.com.

Arley Hall can be reached via www.arleyhallandgardens.co.uk