Outdoor Portraits by Hamilton Kerr

As the seasons in Scotland are forever changing, it's great to use outdoor locations as a backdrop for portraits. The changing light also provides great opportunities for more creative images.
The Spring presents a beautiful carpet of bluebells, a perfect soft backdrop as seen in these 3 portraits of two young brothers. This was a great location, no too far from our studio in Angus. It was a great afternoon out for the boys and it produced some really sweet photos.

We were recently asked to capture the character of a fun 9 year old girl - Caitlin. Caitlin loves the outdoors and has such character that we knew the studio wouldn't show off her personality to it's best. After a chat about her favorite hobbies and places, she chose her local woodland and her favorite outfit (wellies included!) and we set off on a Summer's afternoon of fun in the trees.
Her Mum Jo came along too - and kindly sent us some behind the scenes snaps from her phone. In these three photos, you can see how we used off camera flash. This helped fill in any dark shadow areas as the sun was quite strong.  This also created side lighting when extra tonal detail in the shadows were needed.

Caitlin and her parents came in to the studio and chose their three favourite photos. We presented them in one frame as a triptych. Below is the finished design.

The recent introduction of Autumn colours makes for a beautiful, rich, red background for this dog portrait. The rusty tones of the Labrador against the foliage makes for a very striking result.

With winter now just around the corner, watch this space for some new shots, possibly even some snow scenes with families wrapped up and rosey cheeked.

For more examples of our portrait work, please visit the galleries on this site, we also have one dedicated just to dogs too!

Landscape photography by Hamilton Kerr

Capturing the scenery of the great outdoors can be a rewarding experience. Landscape photography is an excellent field of study that can be as creative or as simple as your own individual style. The majority of the landscapes here at Hamilton Kerr are by Kyle Hamilton. Kyle grew up on the Angus coast. He frequently visited the beach and coastal villages up and down the Montrose area. He often revisits favorite haunts from his childhood.  I (Louise Kerr) was brought up in Edinburgh, and still find myself drawn to townscapes and more urban landscape images. We are now based in Angus and are fortunate to have gorgeous glens not too far away. We plan to capture these throughout the changing seasons.

This is Kyle, perched on a rock at Loch Lee, Glen Esk, Angus, Scotland. March 2013.







What's in the bag? There are a few essentials in our kit bag when planning a landscape photo-shoot. A tripod is always top of the list. This not only ensures your images are as sharp as possible whilst out in the elements, it also gives you greater options for small apertures and slow shutter speed and ensures you can achieve broad depth of field. A wide angle lens will allow you to capture more of the landscape in one single frame. A polarising filter is great for both skies and water shots. It can make a fairly plain sky really come alive. It is great for both colour and black & white photographs. It also can help with water reflections. A neutral density filter will cut down the amount of light passing through the lens and give you more control if you require a slower shutter speed, essential for slow moving water and more creative images. Other that that, the rest is usually down to the location, weather and lots and lots of patience.

Using the rule of thirds in landscape photography really does elevate your images to a greater level of interest. It encourages you to be more considerate of composition. It makes the eye roam around the image more pleasingly, plus keeps viewers interest longer. Keep this in mind next time you venture out.

This is another behind the scenes shot from a recent shoot at Loch Lee.  You can see there is a dead ram on the right, with the Loch in the background. We came across this unfortunate sight along our walk. Although this was a particularly unusual subject matter, Kyle felt that this captured the true tale of the harsh winter that both the farmers and the livestock have suffered this year.

This is the final image, exactly as it was shot - in one single frame. 

We will post more landscape images throughout the year. We are happy to visit places of interest that are special to you and your family and capture an image especially for you. If you have somewhere in mind, then get in touch. 

1920's Style Photograph

We were asked recently to produce an image with a very different kind of feel. The brief was for a 1920's style, with an up to date, fresh feel. The hairstylist producing the hair and headpiece was Louise Chrystal. She layered up the floral head pieces and created a shape similar to that of a traditional synchronised swimming cap, typical of the era we were aiming for. The different size and texture of the hair pieces added great shape and tonal value to the over all feel. We initially began setting up the studio as you would for a standard white background shoot.

Red gels were added on either side of the back lights. Initially these created a deep red, not what we were looking for, but it made for a funny test shot - this is Kyle at his best!

After a few tweaks we matched the tone nicely with the models skin tone and generated a lovely peachy/pink tone. The background could have been dropped in later in post production, but when working on a shoot like this, we aim to get the photographs as close to the brief as possible in camera.

Traditionally, make-up of this era was quite heavy and chalky. We asked the Make Up Artist Margaret-Anne to use an old English rose colour palette but with a fresher dewy finish instead. The rose pink cheeks and pale undertones work really well with the over all style of the image. Everything came together nicely.
I converted the file and only did a very small amount of post production. Whilst initially we were happy with the way the image was shot in camera, when I had processed it, I thought that perhaps it would look better desaturated to produce a more vintage tone.

The Saturated Image

This is the original photograph as it was shot to let you see the lighting techniques and the balance between the  background and the model.

The Final Image

If you would like to book your next shoot with us, please get in touch and follow this blog for up to date information and more creative photography blogs.

Red Squirrel Playing Peek-a-Boo!

We are lucky enough to live at the foot of the Cairngorm mountain range in Kirriemuir. Kirriemuir is known locally as the gateway to the glens.  As well as the lovely hills and glens we have gorgeous woodlands full of wildlife, including these furry friends:

Whilst in the woods on Saturday, I managed to capture a funny video - here is the link in blue:  video of a squirrel playing Peek-a-boo with me. It was amazing how close it came and how inquisitive it was.
Have a look for yourself, it's so funny. It was taken on my mobile phone so the quality isn't perfect but it came so close to me that the camera and tripod with 300mm lens was far too over the top!

This photograph on the left was shot (I mean photographed - no squirrels were harmed in the making of this blog!) in the low evening sun back in March 2012. I frequently walk the dog through Caddam Woods and I am delighted to say that the red squirrel population is definitely thriving in this area.

My favourite squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) fact: They are mainly solitary creatures but when the temperature drops they can often be found in relatives dreys/dens huddling together and having sleepovers to keep warm.

If you would like to find out more information about the conservation of these animals and what you can do to get involved, please check out the Scottish Wildlife Trust or Saving Scotlands Red Squirrels.

As many of you will know, my other passion for photography is capturing red heads of a different kind - Hair photography. Have a look through our various galleries and please follow our blog for more squirrel activity updates, photography tips and recent projects.

Photographers in Kirriemuir

Hamilton Kerr Studio is an award winning photography studio owned by Kyle Hamilton and Louise Kerr, based in Kirriemuir, Angus, Scotland. We specialise in Scottish landscape photography, fashion photography, creative portrait photography, pet and family photos.

We have been working from Kirriemuir since 2009 when we took a dilapidated, listed building in the high street and turned it from a disused hardware store (thanks B&Q!) into a beautiful gallery and studio (and our wonderful flat up above!)

We are going to use this blog to keep our customers and "likers" updated of our day to day work and new photoshoots. You can contact Kyle and Louise if you want further info or to book a shoot or drop by our studio for a free sitting.