Ian McGraw Photography

Framed Prints Now Online

admin44 — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 07:14:50 +0000

If you are already a customer of Ian McGraw Photography you may be interested to know that I have been busy adding framed print options to my online proofing pages. Customers can now choose from a variety of frame options such as molding shape/colour, mounting board colour and aperture shape/size, all from the comfort of their computer screen.

There are a lot of options and I am constanly adding new details, so if there is something you would like that is not yet listed online please drop me an enquiry.

Framed Prints Now Online is a post from: London Product Photographer

The Wedding of Liene & Daniel at St Paul’s

admin44 — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 18:25:57 +0000

Congratulations to Liene and Daniel on their wedding at St Paul’s and One Whitehall Place earlier this month. It was a beautifully planned day that they will always remember. I was extra specially pleased that the sun decided to appear right on queue! I hope you enjoy viewing your proof images. Liene & Daniel’s family, friends and guests can click through to the ‘Proofing‘ section on the main menu to see the rest of the day unfold.

Photographers on the day were Ian McGraw & Ben Wetherall.

The Wedding of Liene & Daniel at St Paul’s is a post from: London Product Photographer

Wedding at St Paul’s & One Whitehall

admin44 — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 11:23:21 +0000

One or two initial location images from last week’s wedding at St Paul’s.

I was marvelling at the striking similarity of the staircase at One Whitehall Place, that was originally destroyed in the London Blitz and the one in that was constructed in Aspley House.

You can now read the full story of wedding photography at the OBE Chapel in St Paul’s Cathedral in my new posting.

Wedding at St Paul’s & One Whitehall is a post from: London Product Photographer

Model Releases Come To iPhone

admin44 — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 08:04:46 +0000

iRlease from ireleaseapp.com

iRelease has been developed by a team of professional photographers, designers and mobile application specialists to create the first total digital solution for creative professionals. Until now it has been quite a time consuming and tedious process for photographers and filmmakers to print out release forms, get the model to fill in and sign, write a description of the model or print/attach a photo, scan in a digital copy back in the office and make sure its backed up and secure. iRelease has been designed to make the process as quick and streamlined as possible and take the hassle out of obtaining release forms for everyone involved.

The application makes good use of Apple’s touch screen technology. Firstly it displays the model release form fields that the model completes. It then allows the model to digitally sign the form using their finger. Finally the photographer can complete the process by taking a shot of the model using the iPhone camera, the whole form is then compiled with the model’s details, signature, headshot, then saved and backed up online.

Users of the full application are able to save date/time stamped forms to their mobile device and automatically synchronise the documentation to a secure iRelease account that they create online. It is also possible to email PDF copies of completed release forms.

Visit the app store now to find out more about iRelease.

Notes: What is a Model Release?

Model Releases Come To iPhone is a post from: London Product Photographer

Competition: If we gave you £100, what would you do with it?

admin44 — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 09:32:13 +0000

Great competition from the Home Working website Enterprise Nation:

“Put your thinking caps on, because we’re giving away £100 to 100 businesses who can tell us how they’d spend the money. We want to hear your ideas and how they’d help your business start or grow. Ideas 101 is sponsored by PayPal. £100 for you, what could it do?” Read More and Enter at Enterprise Nation.

Competition: If we gave you £100, what would you do with it? is a post from: London Product Photographer

Micro Four Thirds rumors

admin44 — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 14:00:39 +0000

The new standard - four-thirds.org

Micro Four Thirds has been touted for a while now by some of the major manufacturers – Olympus, Panasonic and Sony to name but a few. The new standard implements the possibility of single camera the size of highly portable compact camera that can record both still images and movies with similar picture quality to an SLR. Manufacturers make this more compact Micro Four Thirds design possible by removing the mirror and using a smaller interchangeable lens barrel.

With this in mind, the possibility of using the new range of adaptors to attach some very exciting retro glass (Voigtlander, Nikkor, Canon FD & FL, Leica M rangefinder) to the camera body and the recent demise of my my Ixus 5, I have taken my own first steps into 4/3rds format with a Lumix G2. I will write a whole article on my G2 experiences soon, but suffice to say for now, ‘I like’!

So with all the buzz around it is interesting to find the absence of a couple of big names in the seemingly endless stream of product launches around Micro Four Thirds, namely Nikon and Canon. So can we expect a Canon or Nikon Micro Four Thirds camera soon or will they staunchly remain out of the fray?

Reuters reported this week that Canon was working on a smaller version of its upmarket SLR camera design in a bid to compete with the Micro Four Thirds products launched by Sony Corp, Olympus Corp and Panasonic Corp. Canon would not confirm whether their new product would include a mirror or not but did say, “It’s not a question of whether or not you have a mirror. There is a consumer need for good-quality cameras to be made smaller, we will meet this need.” So expect the G11 to remain the darling of dyed-in-the-wool Canon Pro’s looking to ‘travel light’ for a while longer yet, but may be we should not be expecting a 4/3 format camera from them.

What of the big ‘N’? Nikon president Makoto Kimura confirmed to Bloomberg, in an article earlier this month, of a “new concept” model that will probably have an enhanced function for video recording and may also adopt the mirrorless structure. Kimura said in an interview on 08/07/2010 in Tokyo. “It could be any time this fiscal year or the following year, as new models are starting to sell,” he said, declining to specify when the product will be available.

With these comments in mind it would seem Nikon the more likely contender to embrace the increasingly popular Micro Four Thirds format over close rival Canon. It will be an interesting few months no doubt, especially come CES 2011 in January. Watch this space.

Micro Four Thirds rumors is a post from: London Product Photographer

Marc Adamus Photography

admin44 — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 15:06:13 +0000

Winter's Fury by Marc Adamus (linked from icpawards.com)

Now that I have a whole blog I can dedicate to photography I thought I would start adding a few articles on the people in this wonderful industry who give me daily inspiration. I would like to start off with landscape photographer Marc Adamus.

Marc has a true passion for exploring the North American wilderness and capturing it in fine art photography. Taking inspiration from his main influences such as Galen Rowell he has developed an adventurous spirit to share the beauty of this wonderful life and this wonderful earth. I think you will aggree his images are truly remarkable

I recently discovered Marc’s work via a posting on the Canon Digital Photography Forums where he explained his love for the genre and his own web sharpening technique – I have included the article on sharpening below.

[Marc on web sharpening]:

“I’ll go over my web sharpening method first. This is very unconventional, but is now used by most people who I’ve showed it to. Use this technique to create ultra-sharp web sized images between 500 and 800 pixels.

Take your full resolution image and reduce its size to between 1000 and 1500 pixels.
Apply a “Sharpen” filter (easy, right?) two times.
This creates a very noisy, oversharpened mid-size image.
Reduce size again to the desired resolution, such as 700 pixels.
And there you have it – ultra sharp appearance. But you have to make this work for each and every image. Some images require the “Sharpen filter” step at lower or higher resolutions, and occasionally, I will even apply this filter three times before reduction.
Sometimes, slight additional adjustment to saturation levels is required post-sharpening. Other times, I will ‘Lasso’ specific areas that could benifit from further sharpening. Additionally, you can do touch-ups with a ‘sharp brush’.

This is the most effective method for web sharpening I have discovered, and basicly tricks PS into applying an ultra-fine USM.

Sharpening for print can require a different process. Here are some tips to keep in mind.

I’m assuming most of you are only interested in sharpening methods for printing to ink papers or traditional photo papers, so I’ll cover these.
Always sharpen for the SIZE OF PRINT you are making. The amount of sharpening used for a 30×40 is not going to be the same as the amount used for an 8×12. When I process an image to print on my Epson at 8×12 inches, the very same image file would be very much oversharpened were I to use it later for a 30×40.
Do not always sharpen the entire image uniformly, particularly if you feel noise or grain could be an issue in dark areas, skies or water. Make sure you are selecting the areas that need sharpening so you’ll maintain a clean look. Click to ‘print size’, and then zoom in another click or two to give a rough idea of how much sharpening is required, and make sure you spot-check before sending it to the printer. Experiment! The fine-tuning of the printed image is a processing art unto itself.
Some additional plug-ins that let you get the most out of your sharpening are PK Sharpener, and TLR pro sharpener (free download). Of course, go ahead and try my web-sharpen method here too. You might just be surprised at how well it works when the image is enlarged to double it’s original resolution, and ‘sharpen filtered’ a few times before printing. Note that there is a full-resolution sample image available on my site in the “image quality” section.

I’ve never been one to take the textbook on PS for granted. I experiment, I invent, I do what works for me – or at least explore all my options first. Ask 10 different photographers and you’ll get as many responses about sharpening for print. These are just some ideas to throw out there.”

Marc Adamus Photography is a post from: London Product Photographer

eduserv Commission

admin44 — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 14:56:53 +0000

View a selection of images below from the 2009 Eduserv Symposium titled “Evolution or revolution: The future of identity and access management for research”. I was commissioned by the Marketing Department at eduserv to document the day at the Royal College of Physicians in London.
Eduserv is dedicated to developing and delivering technology services for education and the public sector. They are a not-for-profit and registered charity.

Photographs by IanMcGraw Photography

eduserv Commission is a post from: London Product Photographer

Rustenberg Interior

admin44 — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 11:48:43 +0000

Second only to my love of photography is my love of all things grape based!

So what better opportunity to combine a few passions in one than a small job at one of the finest vineyards in the Stellenbosh region of South Africa, a short distance east of Cape Town.

This composite image of the tasting room at Rustenberg Wines posed one or two problems in a single image. Firstly the height of the ceiling over two floors, with mixed lighting, daylight and a highly polished floor made for a very high dynamic range to capture.

Needless to say I did this work before the enevitable wine tasting session – I take the sharpness of images seriously enough to delay sampling a glass of Rustenberg Brampton Viognier 2007 until the shot was in the can.

In case you are interested Virgin Wines say: “Springtime perfumery, fresh ginger, peaches, apricots and honeysuckle. The palate is waxy and delicate yet with an underlying strength and focus. Aromas follow effortlessly onto the rich palate.” Mmmm!

Rustenberg Interior is a post from: London Product Photographer

Customer Feedback

admin44 — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 09:00:40 +0000

Feedback from our customers gives Ian McGraw Photography opportunities to learn and
improve. I value feedback about my services and recognise the right of my customers
to make a compliment, criticism or make a suggestion about my services. I am committed to using customer feedback to improve my services and focus on the needs of my
customers.

There are a number of ways you can leave feed back for me:

Join my facebook group.
Use my contact form.
Use the FreeIndex reviews service (see below).
Write me a review on Google.
Commenting on my website postings.

Which ever method you prefer I really appreciate your time in providing your thoughts.

Best regards, Ian.

View our profile in the FreeIndex Commercial Photography Directory.

Customer Feedback is a post from: London Product Photographer