Make the right impression in 2013. Review the photography for your business

Make the right impression in 2013.

At the beginning of a New Year, people often make resolutions to change or improve something in their life, this can be also a great time to review your business as well.

Reviewing how your business looks to the outside world is a healthy business stand point.

Recent reports on the challenging and tough times for many retailers and businesses across the UK seem to point to one outcome. Those companies which adapt their business model, embrace new technology or new ways of selling and communicating with their customers are the ones which will have a more positive position in the future.

Online selling or having an online presence is vital to communicating with your customers and clients.

The photographic images which represent your business are the first tool you can use in your online offering.

When people are navigating the web, they are attracted by the visual and the images which catch their eye will be the ones which will keep the interest of the new customer long enough so they can continue to read about you, your business and products or services.

Poor representation of your products or business in general, through poor photography will mean the customer will often skip past your website and move onto the next.

Follow these simple steps to reviewing your business photography.

• How long did you last update the images on your website?.
Images should be updated at least every quarter or when new products or services are available.

• Do the images sell you products well?, do they tell the correct story?

• Using a Professional Photographer will add value to your business, look up it as an investment in the future success of your business.

• Stand out from the crowd. Your competitors will have the upper hand if they use professional photography and you don't.

• Use a Photographer whose portfolio you like and who can advise on your particular need s for the images you require. An experienced photographer will be able to talk you through what you need and what you don't need.


Phillip Shannon is a Professional Photography with over 16 years experience in the commercial sector and a large ranging portfolio, Phillip Shannon can deliver hard working images to you without fuss and to a budget to suit your particular needs.

The portfolios cover Food Photography, Product Photography, Jewellery Photography,  Creative Photography, People Photography, Location & Interiors Photography.


Visit the main portfolio site here: http://www.phillipshannonphotography.com/ All images are ©Phillip Shannon and must not be copied, downloaded, pinned without expression written permission from Phillip Shannon.

Based in Leeds, Yorkshire. Phillip can provide studio photography to clients in the region and also location services here and across the UK.

Your 3 point plan to a successful product photography shoot

The Art of Product and Still life Photography

If you run a retail or product based business, you need to communicate effectively, efficiently and in a lot on online situations, quickly.

Using some simple steps to your businesses marketing and advertising can reap great rewards.

Professional photographers use the experience gained over many years and have a set of skills which are geared towards maximizing the "sale" of the image on your website page, or other printed marketing material.

This can be an area of your business marketing which may be overlooked, as it may seem out of reach for a small business due to budgetary constraints but in the fast moving world of online selling, it is the visual impact of the product which will help your products leap off the page, and more importantly, sell

The ability to photograph an inanimate object is not as straight forward as it first may seem.

The Three main areas to consider are:

1. The actual merchandise in front of the camera, this needs to be assessed by a trained eye, so that the most effective camera angle and lens choice is used.

2. The professional lighting equipment & techniques used by commercial photographers are a vital ingredient in setting the scene and create the right atmosphere to the shot.

3. Background choice is also vital to the successful packshot or product photograph being achieved. The product or merchandise itself will determine a complimentary background, such as a rustic wooden surface for some artistic food image, or maybe a natural surface of stone or such like to contrast a jewellery item. It maybe that a neutral background is used, professional photographers in Leeds and around the UK will use this particularly when shooting for product cutout shots or pack shots as they are often called.

Phillip Shannon is a Professional Photographer, based in Leeds West Yorkshire. Studio and location photography service if provided for all business types across Leeds and the Yorkshire region and the UK.

An award winning photographer with over 16 years experience in the commercial photography business, Phillip has been commissioned for a huge variety of advertising assignments over his career. As a Food Photographer Phillip has produced mouth watering images for food businesses across the Yorkshire region and for multiple uses such as websites and printed brochures.

Visit the main portfolio website to view more of the photographers work. http://www.phillipshannonphotography.com/

How popular cook books use food photographers as their main ingredient.

With the Christmas book market beginning to gather pace, one of the most popular areas will be the cook book.

The ongoing rise of the celebrity chef and the inevitable book make these publications a top choice for a Christmas gift.

Phillip Shannon - Professional Commercial Food Photography

Each chef often accompanied by their own particular TV show will attract a certain section of the viewing public.

If you have ever bought or been given one of these cook books, you are as much buying into the celebrity persona and life view as much as the actual food they cook.

When turning the pages of these books you will note that all have taken advantage of using a professional food photographer.

Turning a recipe into mouth watering image is the job of the pro photographer and almost certainly a food stylist and art director/client too.

Professional food photographers will have many years experience in studio and location photography to call upon when dealing with food products for advertising and publication.

Throughout Leeds, one of the largest cities in the UK, professional commercial photographers and studios offer food shoots as part of their services.

Phillip Shannon, a commercial photographer based in Leeds has over 16 years professional studio and location photography project experience. This experience means that your food shoot will be handled with care and delivered to you on time and to a budget that suits your needs.

After many years in the photographic industry, Phillip Shannon has experienced many, many different kinds of photo shoot, product photography, pack shots, food, jewellery are all aspects of the portfolios displayed on the website.

If you are looking for a food photographer, whether you are based in Leeds or from further afield across the Yorkshire region or UK, Phillip Shannon can offer you an award winning, experienced, straight forward and down to earth approach for your next professional food photography shoot.


Please visit the main food website portfolio here http://www.phillipshannonphotography.com/portfolio/food-and-drink.php
All the images here on the photographers blog, and on the main portfolio website are © Phillip Shannon and no material should be copied, downloaded, reproduced, pinned or saved without express permission from 
Phillip Shannon Photography.

A selection of images to buy in the Gallery

A carefully selected group of images are now available to buy on the Red bubble gallery page.

http://www.redbubble.com/people/phillipshannon/portfolio

As Christmas approaches you may be looking for a photo based gift. There are a range of print sizes available, greeting cards and many other options to choose from.

My work as a commercial photographer has been wide ranging and varied in type of subject and location. This has given me a great perspective to be able to produce a wide range of personal based photography projects, which I hope you'll enjoy looking at.

Some of the images on sale are from the award winning portfolio, so here's your chance to own your very own copy.

Thank you for stopping by.

Leading Jewellery & Watch Retailer commissions Commercial Photographer

The above Images are ©Phillip Shannon Photography and should not be downloaded, reproduced, copied or pinned without express permission from Phillip Shannon Photography

I was recently commissioned to produce a series of projects by a leading jeweller in the UK.

It was a great pleasure in being chosen to complete the work after working closely with the company to formulate a shooting schedule which not only produced the finished images in good time, but also produced a step forward in the image quality which represented the products for the new aspect for the business.

Working with clients to achieve a positive step forward in the quality of the images that represent their business is a key aspect of being a Commercial Photographer.

Many companies need a professional photographer to promote their products and services on their website and as an experienced commercial photographer working in Leeds and the Yorkshire region I have been involved with a great variety of projects covering Jewellery Photography, Product Photography and Food Photography.

Above you can see an example of one of the photographs produced for the business.

The first stage was to produce the product image as a cut out shot, this process of photography is called this, as the original background is removed, or cut out, in post production.

This is how the jeweller required the images for the e-commerce site. I then, in post production as an alternative to the original shot for my portfolio page, added a black background and a pattern to compliment the watch itself.

Cut out photographs and pack shot photography are often words used to describe the type of commercial photography that a business needs to advertise and promote certain products. This may be for a new venture,  or new offer that the business may be running, what's important here is that the final images work hard to promote the product itself but also the business as a whole, as high quality images always succeed in selling themselves and many business report of increased sales when commissioning a professional photographer.

Please take a look at the Jewellery Portfolio to see more examples.

When you visit my main portfolio website, please also take a look around the other portfolios too, Food Photography, Still life & Product Photography, Creative Photography, People Photography, Locations & Interiors Photography.

I am a commercial photographer in Leeds and work in studio and across the Yorkshire region and the north of England on location producing high quality photography for businesses of all types. Please call or email today to discuss your next commercial photography project.

Food Shots for Local Business

© Phillip Shannon Photography - Food Photographer UK

I was recently commissioned to spend the day at a fantastic local food business.

The business is actually a farm and sells much of the things they produce in their own farm shop, the business also has a wonderful restaurant onsite preparing freshly made meals often with their own meat and vegetables.

This kind of location photography offers various challenges to the commercial photographer, and one word springs to mind " flexibility ".

Being able to switch from one type of scenario to the next, with relative ease comes from spending many years carrying out commercial photography for a variety of businesses and clients.

Dealing with changeable location settings, and working with natural daylight and flash too are skills which you'd expect your photographer to harness with good effect.

Working very closely with my client before and during the shoot meant that they could see the images being taken as it happened, advise, and control each scenario as it unfolded so that each image was working very hard to answer each and every design and marketing question the client had set.

Planning the shoot was the key to the success of this project, we held meetings and spoke many times before the camera and flash lights were unpacked. The graphic designer gave valuable art direction, during the shoot to, this graphic input was vital as the website design and other marketing platforms were all considered.

Working as a Professional Food Photographer I have carried out a huge variety of food shoots on location and within the studio too. Please visit my main portfolio site to view the Food Portfolio.

Phillip Shannon is a Professional Commercial Photographer based in Leeds, Yorkshire, UK and can offer a studio and location photography service.

Visit the website to view all the other portfolios too. http://www.phillipshannonphotography.com/

The vital role of a food Stylist for food photography

To produce delicious food photographs for a food product or to display a new recipe for a cookery book, you must enlist the skills of a professional food photographer, that I imagine you already knew, but equally important, when undertaking professional photography is the role of the food stylist.

The food stylist is the key to success when photographing dishes for websites, brochures or publications of the food that you are promoting or seeking to show.

This tried and tested combination of photographic skill and food preparation knowledge is in many if not all the food shots you see in the media.

A food stylist will often have many years of hands on experience in the food industry, maybe as a chef, teacher or producer of food. This wealth of experience and knowledge goes into the mix when the food shoot is being planned and right through the shooting process.

Having carried out many food shoots over the years, one thing is certain, producing shots for cooked food dishes & producing commercial and professional photography of food items for publication is more successful with the added skills of a food stylist.

The final images will always look more polished, sleek and have more impact on the page of your website, or cookery book when this combination of skills is employed.

Take a look at an example of some recent food photography shown here, and in the food portfolio.
(All images are subject to Copyright and must not be copied or pinned or used in any way without permission)

If this is the first time you have visited my portfolio website, take a look at the other portfolios too Still life Jewellery Creative People Locations
(All images are subject to Copyright and must not be copied or pinned or used in any way without permission)

Phillip Shannon is an award winning photographer with over 16 years experience in commercial photography.

Phillip Shannon is a professional photographer based in Leeds Yorkshire UK and can offer full studio facilities or a location photography service at your business address.

Areas covered include Leeds, Bradford, Wetherby, York & Harrogate, and further afield. Location photography is handled across the UK to suit your needs.

Contact Phillip Shannon, Professional Photographer based in Leeds for your next commercial photography project.