Hello! An Introduction...

Let me introduce myself… My name is Neill Menneer and I have been a photographer all my life – a few years! Not bored yet! It’s what one might call a challenging career!

Credibility check: I have worked for many blue chip clients including many major banks (HSBC,TSB etc) , The London Stock Exchange, Royal Science Museum and many, many magazines including Women’s magazines (She, Harpers etc) the colour supplements (Telegraph, Observer etc). I now run, with my wife Jo, one of the most successful studios in the country with a five-star rating and many awards to our name.

The reason for the blog is to share and communicate with like-minded photographers. I have run various training courses for many years on location and have recently begun studio courses in our converted methodist church in Bath. We offer one to one and group sessions and have recently compiled an e-book for beginners which you can download for free. The blogs will act as a pin-board for my various interests surrounding photography including: Light (in all its mystical and mysterious manifestations!), Art (mainly photographic but probably touching on the painterly kind also), Creativity, Commerce (Studio thoughts), Training (a few tips or maybe a few queries every now and again), Life (oh that old chestnut!), Philosophy (probably beyond my pay grade but might touch on the odd musing thought or intriguing rumination!!)

Light

The Inverse Square Law: The only tricky bit of physics I learnt at Guildford Art School. However impossible it is to remember, it is kind of useful and you might go to prison if you ignore the law! Photographers do love talking about it because it sounds technical and clever. If you know the ISL. You must be good! What does it mean in practice? Basically if you move a light double the distance you quarter the light falling on the subject. And…what does this mean in practice?! Well it means that if you move a light a bit (i.e a few inches) it can have a profound effect on the look you achieve. I notice this in the studio all the time, especially when the light is quite close to the subject.

Art

Have you noticed how in many portraits either painted or taken with a camera there is a light in the background i.e behind the subject. From Leonardo to Karsch, portraits often work if there is some perspective or depth included. Why? Most images fall in a spectrum between graphic and pictorial. Images that are more graphic are 2 dimensional, flat and concerned more with colour, line or texture. Pictorial images however try to create a sense of space. They are a close approximation to ‘reality’ as we see it. They imitate a 3 dimensional world by using visual tricks to create a ‘window’ on reality. A light behind the subject draws in the eye and this sense of movement is what we do when looking at a landscape. Our eye is drawn to the light.

Creativity

Experimentation is the key to creativity. You can’t be too concerned with the finished work or even a works purpose, just get on and ‘do’ it! The message will evolve and come out of the work as it progresses. This is certainly one way to work but you can also start with a plan or a concept - but at some point you need to ’let go’ and let your subconscious and artistic instincts flow

Commercial

The customer is always king or Queen. They pay the rent after all! The only purpose of business is to satisfy demand or solve a problem that people are willing to pay for. We will always endeavour to give our customers the very best experience from start to finish.

Training

Training is about sharing. I know some stuff. I have been a photographer for many years but I certainly don’t know everything (and never will!) so training for me is a give and take as some people will know more about a subject than me. At Spirit we can provide the premises and equipment and some knowledge; the rest will be down to the magic of interaction and social information swapping.

Life

“A great journey starts with the first step”( Chinese gentleman!) is a favourite as is Goethe’s

“ Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do. Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it”

Sometimes you just have to throw yourself into the deep end! (Me!)