Peek-a-boo!

Christmas is a great time for family sessions but it's tough finding time to edit! This session was a nice mix of group line-ups and casual shots. It's great (and the primary brief) to have everyone lined up for a photo but it's away from the studio set-up that the real opportunities present themselves. Space wasn't a big issue here so I was able to get away with a 50mm indoors without needing to go wider and the (relatively) long lens forced me to hang back and observe.

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The "studio" shots were taken with a 24-70, mostly about 35mm. It's good to have the width and versatility of a zoom but at the first opportunity I switched to the fast prime - speed is king with kids so you don't miss a moment and the massive aperture really lifts the subject off the background.

Clodagh & Tom

What better way to celebrate Clodagh and Tom's forthcoming wedding in Powerscourt Estate than a shoot in Powerscourt Townhouse in Dublin. The warm glow of the Christmas lights makes a perfect background, outdone only by the happy glow off Clodagh and Tom themselves. This was a bit of a baptism of fire for Clodagh and Tom: a shoot in a busy shopping centre at Christmas with plenty of by-standers - good practice for the wedding!

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BTS:  5D MkII with a 50mm 1.2L, switching occasionally to a 5DmkII with 24-70 2.8L although the 2.8 had a lot of trouble in the low light. The venue was packed with shoppers so a tripod was out of the question and to get the shots quickly I found myself using the 1.2L pretty much continuously backed up by a Litepanel Micropro for a little fill.

Golden moment

I was getting pretty worried looking around the - not very exciting, to be fair - church interior wondering what I could do to capture this once in a lifetime memory. Literally, out of the corner of my eye I noticed the sun pouring through the windows and hitting a pew half way down the church. What better way to reflect the magic of the moment than a blast of golden sunshine.

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BTS:  40D with 50mm 1.2L(equivalent to about 80mm on a full frame), switching occasionally to a 5DmkII with 24-70L and 430exII on a short TTL cord. It looked pretty bright inside but I found myself switching to the 1.2L fairly regularly to stay below ISO 1000 .

Christmas in Dublin

An idyllic scene, preceded by, and followed by, 20 minutes screaming. From the child obviously. Still, there's a great light show on offer around the city centre. The scene in the window of Beweley's is worth a look.

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BTS: I've been dying to try out this lens with the Christmas lights. The blur is awesome and the big aperture means no flash required (had to go ISO 1000 mind you). 50mm 1.2L on a 5DII.

Snap the snapper!

Strange being on the other side of the lens but I took advantage of a visit from the Irish Times to sneak in a family shot. 

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Rainy day in Thurles

A rainy day in Thurles for our engagement shoot with Caroline, Tom and Grace. With only minutes to shoot it was a quick trip to the gardens of the Anner Hotel between showers. For 10 minutes work we got some pretty sweet shots. They'll make a nice addition to the wall in time for Christmas!

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