Stella's Photography Tips: Shutter Speed

Following on from my photography tips from March, this month I am explaining how to use shutter speed to your advantage, to show motion, either to slow it down or to freeze it. This works particularly well for moments that are fleeting, for example as shown here with the flow of water, the same principals apply for sports photography.

Simply follow the steps below and enjoy the experiment!

1. Depending on how close you are to your subject, this generally works best with a 24mm -120mm so you have varied range of focus. A focal range similar to this is fine - remember there are no hard and fast rules.

2. To show motion, select a slow shutter speed 1/15 of a second and below.

3. It is best to use a tripod to avoid camera shake, or make sure you are leaning against something sturdy to support yourself. Alternatively you can stand with your legs apart and your elbows close to your body to minimise camera shake.

4. Select auto ISO as you maybe restricted with your maximum aperture opening. Just to remind you that ISO controls the sensitivity of light on the digital sensor. Auto ISO will increase or decrease the sensitivity by going up to increase or down to decrease, in numbers from 200 - 400 - 800 - 1600 - 3200. If you prefer you can control this manually.

5. Select you aperture at f5.6 and take the shot, experiment to achieve your desired effect and exposure.

6. To show frozen motion select a fast shutter speed about 1/500 of a second or more.

7. Keep the aperture to f5.6 and the ISO to auto. Take the shot and experiment with different exposures to achieve the desired effect.

If you would like more advice to help you understand your camera one to one, I offer masterclasses tailored to suit your knowledge and ability. Alternatively, you and a friend can take a class with me.

Stella

Bespoke Framing Service

A photograph on a screen can never be as meaningful as one on your wall or sideboard for everyone to enjoy. Once displayed the memory is always with you, in your day to day life. At the same time, an art work that you love can only be improved with a beautifully designed frame.

This is why, we are proud to have collaborated with the finest British craftsmen, to offer a bespoke and personal framing service for over 20 years. With our understanding of photography and art work, and our partners natural materials, we can advise you on the best way to accentuate and display your cherished images, limited editions, needlepoint, fabrics and canvases.

We have available an extensive selection of frame mouldings, mount cards and glass. Depending on the complexity of your requirements our turnaround time is between 2 - 4 weeks.

Please visit our studio so we can explain the process and you can finally present your memories and art!

Stella

In Conversation with W.W. Warner...

W.W. Warner Antiques are a wonderful local business, sourcing beautiful antique porcelain and glass from around the world. In this ‘In Conversation With…’ read on for insights and tips from Managing Partner, Chris Jowitt.

Chris Jowitt, Managing Partner, has been dealing in Porcelain for over 25 years, during which time he has helped to develop great collections as well as introduce many new clients to the wonderful world of collecting. Here he explains how he became an antique dealer, what he loves about our area, and the future trends he expects for the year ahead.

1.  How did you become a porcelain dealer?

I always had an interest in collecting precious items, from a young age.  Through my family I had a connection with the industry and I have been working as a dealer ever since. 

2.  What do you love most about our local area?

It has to be the diversity of beautiful things around us to see, from rolling hills to picturesque villages . 

3.  What trends do you predict in 2018?

I predict that, people will continue to seek out the very best purchases for them.  Buying the best is a trend that always pays dividends.

4.  Where can we buy a piece of porcelain? 

From my shop!  We can source the finest antique porcelain and glass from around the world.

5.  What else would you like to tell us about your business?  

As well as offering many unique products through our shop, we advise major collections and museums worldwide on porcelain.  This is another part of my job, and one that I love.  We can also arrange restoration and conservation of precious items, and valuations for a treasured possession you may be curious about. 

This interview follows on from our 'Local Business Showcase' in February.

W.W. Warner can be found in Brasted, Kent.

Photograph above: An extremely rare Meissen Johann Frederich Böttger Hausmalerie teapot and cover of compressed globular form painted in red monochrome. With gilded fluted moulding around the cover, rim and foot. The chain is solid gold. Porcelain dates to c1720 with the decoration slightly later.

Stella

Time to Book Your 2018 Bluebell Photo-Shoot...

Beautiful Bluebell Photo-Shoots

As the bluebells begin to bloom, join me for a memorable photo occasion, with your family and friends.

I am delighted to report that a magical time of year is almost upon us, as the beautiful bluebells begin to bloom in our local ancient Surrey Woodlands.

Each year I use this wonderfully rich backdrop as the scene for exclusive photo-shoots with families and friends. I offer this only when the bluebells are at their very best, and only at certain times of the day to ensure a perfect light. With the right light, it is one of my favourite natural settings.

I am now taking bookings for my bluebell photo-shoots. Please do get in touch to discuss if you are interested on 01883 722282 with further details on our website. This opportunity is only available for a very limited time.

Stella

A testimonial from a happy customer last year;

'We booked our first family bluebell photo-shoot with Stella and we were so pleased we did. Stella was so good at putting us all at ease, particularly our 16-month-old daughters. She was able to maintain their attention long enough to capture some fantastic photographs which reflect the girls’ personalities beautifully.

'The whole process was smooth from start to finish and Stella was able to help advise us on photos to combine and how best to display them. We are so pleased with the photos, they are of great quality and are a lovely memory for us all.'

Cherishing Special Memories with Our Mothers on Mother's Day

As we approach Mother’s Day, our attention turns to celebrating our mothers, or ladies in our lives who support and love us. As a mother, I know how much you cherish time with your family, and when they are not around, how important it is to surround yourself with happy memories of times spent together.

I often work with families looking to reward their mother for everything she has done, with a one-off 'Stella' Family book. A bespoke photography book is a unique way to celebrate family times together, and when given is a much-cherished gift. A book I created ‘For Sarah’ stands out in my mind, where I was commissioned to capture for one mother her home and family over a three month period. She had no idea that I had been working behind the scenes photographing everything she held dear – her herb garden, favourite roses and sunflowers, the housekeeper’s cottage and garden and of course members of her family.

The book cover was printed on a fine linen cloth with gold foil lettering to create a unique present, which she was thrilled with. If you would like to commission something similar for your mother, please contact me for more information.

Stella

My Highlights from this Year's Fantastic London Classic Car Show

On Thursday 15 February, I packed up my camera and headed over to London’s ExCel’s Exhibition Centre for the fourth annual London Classic Car Show. For those of you who have not been, the show celebrates beautiful, classic motoring nostalgia in a dramatic setting and it is one of the highlights of my year!

This year’s show was opened in a dramatic fashion by three well-known TV motoring presenters; Alex Riley (BBC One Show), Jonny Smith (Fifth Gear and Mud, Sweat & Gears) and Quentin Willson (BBC Top Gear, Fifth Gear and The Classic Car Show).  It was clear right from the opening that the show was going to be bigger and better than ever before. 

Once again, an enormous indoor race track, known as the ‘Grand Avenue’, ran through the centre of the ExCel, enthralling visitors and allowing them to see – and hear – some of their favourite classics in action. The car above is a 1907 Stanley H4 Gentleman's Speedy Roadster, the hypercar of its era.

Getaway Cars

The show paid homage to ‘Getaway Cars’.  This was an evocative tribute to those vehicles made famous in movies or used in headline grabbing real-life robberies and was curated by Philip Glenister, aka DCI Gene Hunt from BBC police dramas Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes.  

Alongside the vehicles made famous for dramatic escapes, the show welcomed their very own celebrity drivers with actor Nick Moran of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels reliving various of his film roles at the special display. 

Nick Reynolds, the son of Bruce Reynolds, was reunited with the very Lotus Cortina that his late father used to stake out the Great Train Robbery in 1963. The Lotus has just 3,500 miles on the clock and is still fitted with the same tyres that helped the police to hunt down the gang!

Nick Moran with the Italian Job Mini Cooper brought to London.

Nick Reynolds with his father Bruce Reynolds' Lotus Cortina used in The Great Train Robbery.

RAF Red Arrows and Aston Martin Owners Club

Squadron Leader Adam Collins from the RAF Red Arrows was on the Aston Martin Owners Club stand with a Vanquish S Red Arrows limited edition model, which was recently raffled for a huge £1.5m, earning for the RAF Benevolent Fund. He was joined by Humphrey Bradley from south east London – the lucky man who won the car.

Lister Thunder Launch on the Grand Avenue

The opening evening witnessed a pair of major global car launches with two of Britain's most iconic marques unveiling spotlight-stealing new models. First Morgan took the wraps on its latest +4 Club Sport and then Lister revealed its never-seen-before Thunder. 

This year’s theme was ‘Specials’, which put the spotlight on an eye-catching gathering of road and race cars steeped in history and mystique. No fewer than 60 hand-picked classics were fired up for jaw-dropping, not to mention very noisy, displays on The Grand Avenue.

As the dramatic live show came towards its conclusion, the show opening trio of Riley, Smith and Willson selected four stand-out cars with a combined value of more than £3m to join the parade: a 1931 Bentley 8-litre; a highly-original 1961 Jaguar E-type; a 1992 Jaguar XJ220 and a 2015 McLaren P1 hypercar – a classic car of the future. 

The trio was joined by former Blue Peter and GMTV presenter Anthea Turner for the photograph next to the Lister Thunder.

The Morgan latest +4 Club Sport takes its place on the Grand Avenue.

Presenter Alex Riley with the 1961 Jaguar E-Type and 1931 Bentley 8 litre.

A 1934 Rolls-Royce 20/25 Gurney Nutting - a shimmering silver masterpiece of the coachbuilders' art.

A 1989 Lotus Judd Type 101, Chassis no 3 - an aerodynamically ambitious Camel.

Nigel Mansell CBE, closes the show

On Sunday, the racing legend Nigel Mansell CBE arrived at the show to talk about a special collection of his racing cars and to provide a fitting close to the event.

The 1992 F1 World Champion wowed Sunday crowds with some wonderful driving displays on the Grand Avenue, which included a wheel-spinning entrance behind the wheel of a Jaguar E-type inspired Eagle Speedster.

He later returned in a red Ferrari 246 Dino F1 front-engined F1 car from the late fifties and was also reunited with some of the cars which he raced during his roller-coaster career. 

At the end of his performance on the Grand Avenue, Nigel was awarded the 2018 London Classic Car Show Icon award.

My closing thoughts

All in all, this year’s show was a brilliant experience from start to finish. Nigel Mansell CBE was a real highlight for me, especially his performances on the Grand Avenue, his interview at the Supaguard Theatre and his presentation of the London Classic Car Show Icon award. 

I hear the show attracted over 38,000 visitors and featured close to 700 of the world’s finest classic cars worth more than £300m. Next year’s dates for your diary are 14-17 February 2019 - I am looking forward to it already!

To see a variety of other photographs from the event please click this link to our sister website 'Stella'.

Please follow me on Instagram for new pictures and stories of future events on @stellasms and @stellascordellis.

Thank you.

Stella