articles - Page 14 of 29 - Nigel Goldsmith photography & film

On site video training

Three day introduction to video course

Through a range of theory and practical sessions, Nigel taught me all the

tips and tricks to shooting my own videos. Specially catered to my ability

level, he customised his workshops to suit my needs.

Kelly O’Connor, Kinneir Dufort

On site video training

Online video is becoming an essential component of the modern website. Video is a great way to convey information about your product or service or to tell a story. With major developments in camera design, software and media delivery methods, high quality video production is now within most peoples grasp and can be undertaken with a minimum of outlay. Video can be used to; introduce your business, describe a product or service, present customer testimonials and inform or entertain your audience. Outsourcing small video projects can be very expensive but recent technical developments mean that with a small amount of knowledge and a modest budget good quality video can be produced in house.

Recording high quality sound for video

We offer on-site training sessions from one to three days which cover most of the skills required to plan, shoot, edit and deliver online video content.

The sessions encourage ‘best practice’ in camera use, lighting and sound recording. This knowledge covered in the course can easily be scaled down to record videos using available resources such as mobile phones and tablet computers.

The content of the course can be adapted to suit your needs.

Our one video training day sessions are;

Planning and shooting a short video

This practical workshop covers planning a shoot, operating a dSLR, framing, composition, camera supports, camera movements (using sliders, jibs, dolls etc)

Lighting for video and recording good audio

During this session we will first look at the qualities of light such as contrast, intensity and colour temperature. We then explore techniques used for lighting products and small areas and lighting larger areas for interviews etc. We also consider the importance of good quality audio and how to capture it during a shoot or add it later as a narration. We look at different microphones and other audio equipment

Editing the video

This session covers the art of editing and how to cut your captured media into a finished video.

I have produced web videos for a number of high profile clients as well as being a qualified lecturer with over 20 years teaching experience both in university and to business.

During the course we will use professional video equipment including Arri lighting, DSLRs, Sound Devices audio mixers, radio and boom microphones and video editing software.

Courses can be delivered as 1:1 sessions or to up to 3 attendees.

The price per session is £360 / person/day or £600/person for three days or £1600 for three attendees.

We are based in the Bath/Bristol area but can deliver the training anywhere in the UK but there may be additional charges for travel and accomodation.

For more information please send me an email mail@nigelgoldsmith.co.uk

Lighting for video

The abandoned car. 12 month pinhole picture of a car park

Extended (12 month) pinhole picture from Ditteridge near Bath

The owner of the car on the left of this picture must have reduced their carbon footprint massively as it has hardly moved over the 12 months of this exposure. On the right, cars appear only as faint, unrecognisable ghosts. One of the fascinating qualities of these images is that they record features which the passing observer wouldn’t notice. How would you know which car had been abandoned if you took a normal photograph of a car park?

The lines in the sky show the passage of the sun across the sky through the year.

Abandoned car at Cheney Court

This image is part of an on-going project at Cheney Court near Bath. More images from this project can be seen here.

Trade union photography

Photography and illustration for trade unions and NGO’s

I have had the pleasure of working with many trade unions since I started as a photographer and illustrator in 1994. I have covered campaigns, mergers, strikes, conferences, festivals and almost every other area in which unions are active. Some of my photography has won the TUC annual awards.

Trade union photography at conferences and AGMs

I have worked on conferences and AGMs for PCS, ACCORD, RMT and ASLEF. The types of shots I have taken include, portraits, delegates and the lecture, guest speakers, reactions from the audience, group shots and informal shots of delegates enjoying the event.

Trade union photography - AGM conference delegate

Delegate at ASLEF AGM

Group photograph at ACCORD conference

Trade union photography - pictures of audience

Questions from the floor – ACCORD conference

Guest speaker at trade union conference – John McDonnell

Images for magazines, journals and publications.

I often take images to go on the cover of the union journal or for editorial images to go inside. These might be documentary, illustrative or staged images.

Campaign illustrations and photomontages

Sometimes a still image cannot illustrate a complex story effectively but an illustration or photomontage made from a number of separate images can create a powerful campaigning image.

trade union photography and illustration

Commissioned Photomontage for CWU created using Photoshop

trade union photography - Jeremy Corbyn at TUC Tolpuddle Festival

Jeremy Corbyn – leader of the Labour Party – Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival

Documentary photography project on medical students at Bristol University

Documentary photography project at Bristol University

I recently had to photograph medical students at different stages in their training at university and at teaching academies in Bath, Bristol, Swindon, Gloucester and Taunton. Through the five year course the students work in several different hospitals in the region experiencing a wide range of real and simulated medical situations. Some of the images in the documentary photography section of this website show students during a simulated medical emergency.

The images have been used by Bristol University in both print and screen form to illustrate the content of the course to prospective students.

Documentary photography project at Bristol University

Medical School

Medical students relax between classes

Taking bloods

There are more images from this series in the documentary section of the photography gallery.

Museum photography using mobile studio

I recently had the opportunity to visit the Carmarthen Museum to take a series of photographs of a new collection of contemporary local ceramics.

There wasn’t a dedicated studio space at the museum so I used my own portable studio which includes a full Elinchrom studio flash system and light modifiers. I also provided neutral grey paper backdrops and blackout material for the windows. The 36 megapixel camera that was used to capture the images revealed a huge amount of fine detail such as the artists finger marks or brush strokes. This level of detail is often of great interest to future researchers or academics.

Colour accuracy is particularly important for images used in the heritage sector. Once the camera and lights were fully set up a reference shot is taken of a GretagMacbeth ColorChecker. This is then used in the Raw conversion to ensure the colour is as accurate as possible throughout the workflow.

Taking test shot of GretagMacbeth Colorchecker to standardise colour before shoot

Colour checking – Carmarthen Museum

Metadata such as artists name, date of manufacture, title of piece or series and information about the media type was embedded into the images as they were imported onto the computer. Images were captured in Raw and the client was provided with 16bit Adobe RGB Tiff files for their archive along with sRGB JPEG files for an online presentation they were preparing.

The objects were all handled by a museum specialist.

Carmarthen Museum – temporary studio

The collection of contemporary local ceramics is now on permanent display in the main hall of the museum.

Contemporary jug and bowl from the collection at the Carmarthen Museum

Detail of jug and bowl showing capture detail of Nikon D800

I worked for over 8 years for JISC Digital Media (formerly TASI) at Bristol University where I provided specialist photographic advice, support and on site consultancy to cultural heritage organisations across the UK. I now offer these services as a consultant. If you would like help in planning or undertaking a digitisation project do get in touch.