Category: Photography

Christmas Gift Guide

Choosing a unique gift for someone is always tricky, but with a photography shoot, you can’t go wrong. It is the one present that keeps on giving. Whether you book a surprise shoot and include the receiver, or you create a great photograph for them, you’ll put a smile on their face, and that is a guarantee. At Studio8, we offer a range for shoots that are ideal as gifts. While we have a number of different people that book shoots for themselves, the majority of people book a shoot as a gift for a friend, family member or their partner. However, what options do…

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Exeter College Oxford University Drone Filming

Studio8 recently shot a short Aerial Video for Exeter College at Oxford University . The video captures the exterior areas such as the main quad, fellows garden and a wider shot of the surrounding University including the Radcliffe Camera. The interior shots include a never before seen perspective of the college's 156 year old Chapel plus the dining hall built in 1618. We hope you enjoy, please let us know if you would like to speak to us about our drone filming and photography services. Studio8 View More  

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iPhonegraphy

iPhoneography – what does it mean?

There’s an old saying in photography that the best camera is the one you have with you, which goes some way to explaining the massive trend in iPhoneography - using an iPhone to take photos. With the camera getting better with each passing generation, the iPhone is now capable of truly stunning photography. It still lacks the full technical capabilities of a DSLR, but it’s good enough and the fact that owners always have their phones to hand means that more and more moments that simply wouldn’t have been recorded for posterity are now finding their way on to Flickr, Pinterest and Instagram. However, it's…

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The top 8 cameras for home portraits this summer

The sun is in the sky, the burgers are on the barbecue, the cider is on ice and the kids are playing in the back garden. All you need now to commemorate the glorious British summer is a few snaps of you and your loved ones enjoying it. But what camera to use? This run down of the eight best compact cameras for home photography is here to help you decide. 8. Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark II A pricey option it may be, but the Canon PowerShot G1 X Mark II is one of the best point-and-shoot cameras you’ll find. Users of the very…

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Getting your images ‘Retina Ready.’

When the eyes of the world were on Cupertino on September 9th 2014 for the latest iPhone launch, one of the biggest ‘buzz’ announcements was all about the new and improved Retina HD screens that will be included with the iPhone 6 and the phablet-like iPhone 6 Plus - the former is a moderate resolution improvement over the iPhone 5S, and the latter is leaps and bounds ahead of anything that iPhone lovers would have seen before. A better resolution means a greater amount of pixels being visible on the screen, and this has the potential to create a headache for those who are responsible…

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Photography tips for taking portraits on a sunny day

  Have you been taking advantage of all this wonderful weather and been snapping away from dawn until dusk? On looking back at the portraits you’ve taken do you notice any of the following; A lot of squinting Harsh shadows Over-exposed/under-exposed images Flare Bright background/subject in shadow If so, read on and learn how to combat these tricky little issues   Avoid the midday sun  It’s 12.30pm, it’s a lovely sunny day and you pop out into the garden to take some photos of the kids. This isn’t a great idea. Like the weatherman, photographers will tell you to ‘avoid the midday sun’. The harsh…

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10 Reasons to Add Online Video to your Marketing Mix Now

If you are hoping to create some quality contacts and long-term customers, online video marketing the way to go. More people are viewing videos online now than ever before, and companies that use video to market themselves are reaping the benefits. Here are just a few of the many ways you can benefit by adding online video to your marketing mix.   1: People are Using Videos as Search Engines Recent surveys demonstrate that 78% of all internet users watch a video at least once per day, and more than half of them watch a video every day. People are using their YouTube channels like…

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Portrait Photography Gift Guide

Choosing a unique gift for someone is always tricky, but with a photography shoot, you can't go wrong. It is the one present that keeps on giving. Whether you book a surprise shoot and include the receiver, or you create a great photograph for them, you'll put a smile on their face, and that is a guarantee. At Studio8, we offer a range for shoots that are ideal as gifts. While we have a number of different people that book shoots for themselves, the majority of people book a shoot as a gift for a friend, family member or their partner. However, what options do…

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Christmas Photography Guide

With the festive season so fast approaching we thought it might be a good opportunity to discuss the best hints and tips to ensure that you capture as many fantastic pictures as possible. It may sound like a simple thing to do, however with not only the excitement of the day (especially when it comes to unwrapping presents) but also the run up to Christmas too, capturing images that really reflect the emotion is difficult. Here are some of our top tips for getting the photos that you have on your wish list! Be prepared It sounds so easy when you think of it, but…

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Wedding photo

Wedding Photography Tips

With the wedding season upon us and lots of great weather to go with it, we thought we'd share some of our top wedding photography tips for couples to help you capture the best photos possible. Here are 5 wedding photography tips for the bride and groom  . . . 1. RELAX! – THE BEST PHOTOGRAPHS ARE THOSE WHERE THE BRIDE AND GROOM ARE AT EASE. PLANNING YOUR BIG DAY TAKES SO LONG AND YOU HAVE PROBABLY MADE SURE THAT YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY ALL HAVE A JOB – NOW LEAVE IT TO THEM AND ENJOY YOURSELF AND YOUR PERSONALITY WILL SHINE THROUGH IN THE…

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Rule of thirds grid

Composition in photography: Rule of Thirds

A brief guide to composing images using the Rule of Thirds   We’ve all happened across that perfect moment where everything just fits together. We capture the moment and move on. But on looking back at the image we find ourselves feeling somewhat deflated as the scene we photographed lacks the impact that made us take the photo in the first instance, it lacks good composition. Composition is a vital component to creating a visually interesting image and the rule of thirds is one of it’s tools. You don’t have to own an expensive DSLR; whatever camera you use, the rule of thirds can be applied to…

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picture of happy family

5 top tips on photographing your family

5  family photography tips We’ve all been there where we’ve taken photos of our family in the park, only to discover afterwards that the images didn’t turn out as we would’ve hoped. Here are some helpful tips and ideas on how to capture the best family portraits we can.   Location, location, location! Outdoors is always best as you can make use of the natural light available. Your garden, parks and beaches are great places to take photos. The expansive area can give you a lot of interesting settings and props to work with.  Use props Almost anything from toys to benches can be used…

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Easter eggs

Easter Offers

We've got some great Easter Offers for you plus a lovely competition.   Win a Family Photo shoot this Easter We've hidden a Golden Egg on the site - all you need to do is find it and tell us the secret code word written on it for your chance to win. Enter here.   10% off wedding prices until 1st May We think having amazing wedding photographs is essential and we're offering 10% off all our wedding photography packages this Easter - book now for weddings in 2013 / 2014. See prices   Location Family Portraits As well as our popular studio shoots, we…

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photographer

Photography course guide for 2013

DSLR cameras 2013. Photography is now more accessible to the general consumer than ever before. The digital SLR market is so competitive that many entry level cameras start as low as £250. The term ‘weekend photographer’ has grown from an inappropriate name for budding photographers to a worldwide epidemic. All DSLR cameras will have the standard functions of Auto, Manual, Shutter priority and Aperture priority, as will most Bridge cameras. We all know the auto function; it does what we want the camera to do - most of the time - judge the scene, expose and then capture. But we are not in control. It’s…

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Takeing photos at christmas

Christmas Photo Guide

Getting The Best Christmas Photos Even if your camera doesn’t come out for months on end, it’s practically guaranteed to be used over the Festive period - who knows you might even be lucky enough to get a new camera for Christmas! It’s the one time of year when friends and family come together to eat, drink and be merry, and having a photographic record of the special times helps keep the memories alive. With Christmas fast approaching and to avoid disappointment over poor quality photographs, follow these tips. Think Out Of The Box Nearly everyone has hundreds of pictures of the kids opening presents…

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Picture of Present

Christmas Gift Guide

At Studio8 we have a selection of great portrait photography shoots.  Which is the best one for you? Standard Session Of all the packages we offer, our Standard Session is by far the most popular. If you are having photos taken as part of a larger family group, or if you have younger children, this is the best package for you. The hour long photo shoot gives us plenty of opportunity to capture everyone in natural, relaxed poses and once the photo shoot is complete you can view your pictures online and choose prints, frames and canvas displays from our wide choice. Standard Session Plus If you’ve…

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Youtube and Video Marketing

You Tube Analytics You Tube is the world’s biggest video sharing website, and it is estimated that a mind-boggling 8 years’ worth of material is added to the website every single day. Although it was initially private individuals who uploaded their home made videos to the site, the sheer volume of people using the website quickly made it an attractive channel for advertisers and businesses who want to promote their services. However, with the sheer quantity of material available on the You Tube site, how does a company ensure that their videos are being seen by the right people? This is where You Tube Analytics…

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