Arty Teeshirts BHS

My friend Viviana now designs arty teeshirts.

She is in the fashion business and to destress and for fun started painting little paintings she was soon selling on the internet.

Through her connections from work in China, she found a client who wanted to put her artwork onto tee-shirts.

This is where I come in. Her husband Andrew was going to photograph them and I was going to do a BHT (behind the scenes). Also some short videos of examples for the website.

Viviana had 2 models for the day. One was a very lively Italian girl and another a Chinese girl who was really into traditional Chinese dance.

At the end of the day, I did some quick shots of her dancing and actually rather liked the results. I had done some post-production effects In Davinci Resolve which worked rather well.

The event was an excuse to experiment some more with my Blackmagic Pocket Cinema 4K camera. It now has a new cinema-style lens and takes some getting used to.

I have done 2 jobs recently and realise I need an EVF to make the camera usable. In many situations a monitor in bright light is useless.

Anyway back to the shoot. all went well and behind the scenes was not too bad, but I personally really like the little video I did of Isabelle (Qing Zhang). I found a look I wanted that was subtle and she sent me some music which was the icing on the cake.

What i like about shooting film is that I gravitate to a lighting style that is distinctive from the photography style I drift into. Because I use flash the look can end up being very dramatic and saturated.

It’s good to tone it down a bit.

‘Arty Teeshirts BHS’ first appeared on the Lee Harris Photography website.

Decor Video Editing

A job for Decor. During lockdown, I decided to learn more about video editing and postproduction.

I had started with Apple’s Final Cut Pro, but after being burned when they dropped Aperture, I decided to switch to Davinci Resolve.

I have often been asked to shoot videos on jobs and decided with all the free time to learn more about the process.

Editing video is quite different from editing photos. More more involved and time-consuming.

When confronted with the raw footage, a sense of desperation is not uncommon.

Once you dive in the hours just fly by, which is kind of scary.

A friend of mine got a job for Decor, an Italian fashion company to shoot a video.

The original plan was to do this together but the budget did not allow for us both to fly there.

So I got the editing part. It is fair to say I was still pretty much a novice but what the hell.

It was August and there was not much else to do.

The beginnings of the project were kind of fraught. Realising that you have to be a mind-reader sometimes when dealing with clients. They think they know what they want and ergo therefore so do you.

I spent a lot of time searching for stock footage and the like to fill in the gaps.

I admit in the beginning after our first meeting with the client I was thinking I wanted to quit. It seemed so difficult to figure out what the client actually wanted.

But I stuck with it and in the end, it was a challenge but enjoyable. Of course, the client’s desires often clashed with what I preferred so here is my version of the edit which has a slightly different intro. 

He originally wanted a nostalgic black and white look, but I convinced him the Super 8 look was better.

I also liked the effect at the beginning but that was not included in the client version.

‘Decor Video Editing’ first appeared on the Lee Harris Photography website.

Professional Headshot Photography on a Budget

Single-Light Portrait Photography Techniques

Advanced Lighting Effects with Minimal Equipment

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‘Home Studio Photography: Cost-Effective Portrait Setups for Professional Results’ first appeared on the Lee Harris Photography website.

I walked into the meeting as a photographer and left as the production manager. I should have been more suspicious. Basically they handed me a budget and then did the equivalent of running to the hills… taking the images was the easy part!

The thing with budgets is that they always  look bigger than they are, and being in sole control of production makes for a lot more work as well, as you are now sourcing everything… and everything costs money.

So after it was all done and having spent so long looking at and working on the images, I needed a break and did not return to them for maybe 6 months. With all the madness now behind me I realised they were not bad and promptly put some on my website and Instagram.

They proved popular and may have landed me another jewellery shoot which by the looks of it will be a much simpler affair; if they try to hand me the whole budget I’ll hand it right back, I have been upping my game in pass the parcel.

For this jewellery shoot I had a story in mind for 3 different scenarios, involving spoiled little rich girls, cat burglars and bohemians . I started looking for appropriate models, the clients said they did not want normal types, but interesting and edgy ones; after a lot of casting and emailing they, in the end, got cold feet and erred on the side of caution.

The story got kind of lost as well.

The models and hair and make-up people (special shout out to Elena who works for Barcelona Hair Academy) were great to work and the actual shooting was fun, so I guess the moral is, delegate as much as the budget will allow and then perhaps a little bit more!

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‘A Jewellery Shoot, 3 Stories and a Lot of Drama’ first appeared on the Lee Harris Photography website.

‘And God created woman…’ is a famous film starring Brigitte Bardot and one uneventful day I got a message from a girl who could quite easily reprise the role.

I quite often get messages from models looking for collaborations of some sort.

If I don’t have something in mind I often rely on my next response to determine whether they might be good to work with or not; I ask them “have you got any ideas?”

An awful lot give a response that basically says “but I’m a model!” meaning they just expect to turn up and pose… This is Barcelona people! There are lots of models here and it does not hurt to get a little more involved in a project and pull your weight, especially if its not for a paying client; we all have to sometimes wear more than one hat, at times like this, if we want to get something done.

I have several bad experiences of models and make-up artists cancelling for ridiculous at the last minute for work like this and even had a no-show one time for a job with for an accessory company that actually paid good money.

Anyway… Asia sent me a text and when I asked the question she had it all planned out, so hats off to her and the job was on.

We met at her hotel and headed for the beach, first stop was Mamarosa near the W Hotel, I had used this spot before, last summer, but on this day the wind was ferocious and without an assistant setting up my preferred lighting was impossible, I ended up hand holding the flash a lot of the time, regardless of the compromises we got some decent shots, but decided to find something with less hurricane season ambience, so next stop Bogatel which tend to be more sheltered from winds sweeping in from the interior.

Asia was determined to take the dress into the sea even though it is still quite cold this time of year, the only trouble was she wanted me in the sea as well, so camera in one hand, a flash in the other and trousers rolled up as high as they would go, I waded in hoping not to take a plunge.

We got a few shots and then decided on a little break she promptly lay down and dozed off. At first I was restless to be doing something, but soon settled into beach life and chilled out.

There was a bunch of riotous Spanish girls nearby having a good time, bravely plunging into the icy sea, the fun was infectious and even if the sea was cold the effect was kind of heart-warming.

Eventually her majesty awoke and we got down to work, The light had improved I felt and again I was satisfied with what we had, at the very end, when we packing up, I took some impromptu shoots which I quite liked, she was looking the most sweet and innocent I had ever seen her; Bardot had finally left the building.

‘A White Dress, A Windy Beach and A Modern Day Bardot’ first appeared on the Lee Harris Photography website.

One of the unexpected outcomes of hosting this event is that it is quite a  good networking tool, I never think of this when there, but slowly getting to know people over a period of time leads to a very natural way of connecting: slow networking if you like.

Anyway, I got to know a girl called Alessia, who is a stylist and blogger and we kind of fell into doing a shoot together.

I like doing fashion these days, much more than I used to in the past, but the usual problem is getting things organised and finding reliable models and collaborators.

I met up with Alessia a couple of times with a view to discussing this and admit that, having done a few shoots in the past I know often they can come to nothing. With Alessia however she was very much on the ball and before I knew it the whole thing was set-up and ready to go, what a luxury!

The actual shoot coincided with another one with a regular client I love working with (Barcelona Hair Academy), so it was a kind of frantic day.

I got to the location early enough to have something to eat and relax a little, which was great as we were doing this at a very cool restaurant on the beachfront called Gallitos, they were very kind to let us use their space and generally get in the way of the very efficient (and patient) staff. Also with us was Eneritz Rojas, who was doing hair and make-up, she did an amazing job and was a fun person to work with.

We planned to do maybe 4-5 different looks and we worked right up to sunset. Our model was Violeta, a real star, lots of class and no attitude, so a joy to work with, the only minor hitch during the shoot was the over-zealous security connected to the W Hotel who claimed some nondescript wall was actually their wall and private property… Really? It was as public a thoroughfare as I have ever seen… So a little cat and mouse fun ensued.

‘Bohemian Beach Fashion Shoot, in Barcelona’ first appeared on the Lee Harris Photography website.

Where Oh Where Will All My JPEGs Go… Apple Photos or Capture One Pro?

This is the title for my latest article about Capture One Pro 8 on the website PhotosApps.Expert. It was meant as a jokey working title but it seems to have stuck.

Read the full article here.

‘My latest article about Capture One Pro’ first appeared on the Lee Harris Photography website.

The idea was to have some models in the street interacting socially and naturally, one model in particular acted so naturally he did not bother to turn up, which considering this was a paying job in a city where such things are a rarity did seem a little cavalier. I remember jokingly saying to Philipp when we were looking at the model’s portfolios that he looked like a party animal and was sure to arrive late… Luckily the agency owner sent her own son over to cover and he did a great job.

Philipp set up the shoot because he was visiting Barcelona and realised that it had certain characteristics similar to Buenos Aires, Argentina and Uruguay are the spiritual home of the Gaucho), also, as I never tire of telling people, December and January here can be brilliant weather-wise, almost always sunny and not really that cold.

So, once we got started after the delay of the no-show rock star model we headed out and looked for locations.

In this city there is maybe less problems regarding doing such shoots in public spaces but even so, given the choice between putting a flashgun on a stand or having someone hold it, I choose the latter; the carbon based life-form light stand is so much more agile.

At that time of year you have great light, but it goes quickly, the park shots were mid afternoon and the images against the wall started with a nice natural light, but in the end I was using flash to get the look I wanted.

‘Fashion Shoot, Gaucho Style Belts’ first appeared on the Lee Harris Photography website.

Return to a Professional Beauty Photography Location

Lighting Setup for Professional Hair and Beauty Photography

Capturing Finished Styles in Beauty Photography

Portfolio Development for Beauty and Lifestyle Photography

‘Beauty Photography: Behind the Scenes at Barcelona Hair Academy Workshop’ first appeared on the Lee Harris Photography website.

I’ve been getting my hair cut by Emma for years now, and she’s recently teamed up with Cecilia to launch their new venture: the Barcelona Hair Academy.

A Cool New Space in Gracia

Cecilia invited me to photograph their new location—a stylish space in Gracia. This former industrial building now houses various start-ups, and it was the perfect backdrop for a grooming workshop.

The event focused on male grooming, and let me tell you, beards were definitely mandatory! These kinds of shoots are always fun because they combine glamour with an informal, almost reportage-style vibe. The venue was filled with natural light, which made capturing the shots even more enjoyable.

Lighting and Technique

I used the space’s abundant natural light but added a bit of my own touch with a flash mounted facing the windows. This created a nice crosslight and helped fill in shadows. I also experimented with gels and colour balance to give the images a bit of flair.

The Switch to Capture One Pro 8

This project was originally edited using Apple’s Aperture, but since development was discontinued, I’ve made the switch to Capture One Pro 8. I wanted to test some new techniques, so this shoot ended up in both software programs, giving me the chance to explore their different features.

A Zen-Like Approach to Shooting

When it comes to shoots like these, I find that staying detached is key. The more you let people focus on what they’re doing, the more natural the images turn out. It’s similar to photographing interiors—there’s little interaction, so you can get into a creative flow. Time flies by, and I often end up staying longer than planned, but when 3 hours feels like 2, who’s complaining?

‘Barcelona Hair Academy: A Creative Shoot in Gracia’ first appeared on the Lee Harris Photography website.