Stella's Photography Tips: Shutter Speed

Following on from my photography tips from March, this month I am explaining how to use shutter speed to your advantage, to show motion, either to slow it down or to freeze it. This works particularly well for moments that are fleeting, for example as shown here with the flow of water, the same principals apply for sports photography.

Simply follow the steps below and enjoy the experiment!

1. Depending on how close you are to your subject, this generally works best with a 24mm -120mm so you have varied range of focus. A focal range similar to this is fine - remember there are no hard and fast rules.

2. To show motion, select a slow shutter speed 1/15 of a second and below.

3. It is best to use a tripod to avoid camera shake, or make sure you are leaning against something sturdy to support yourself. Alternatively you can stand with your legs apart and your elbows close to your body to minimise camera shake.

4. Select auto ISO as you maybe restricted with your maximum aperture opening. Just to remind you that ISO controls the sensitivity of light on the digital sensor. Auto ISO will increase or decrease the sensitivity by going up to increase or down to decrease, in numbers from 200 - 400 - 800 - 1600 - 3200. If you prefer you can control this manually.

5. Select you aperture at f5.6 and take the shot, experiment to achieve your desired effect and exposure.

6. To show frozen motion select a fast shutter speed about 1/500 of a second or more.

7. Keep the aperture to f5.6 and the ISO to auto. Take the shot and experiment with different exposures to achieve the desired effect.

If you would like more advice to help you understand your camera one to one, I offer masterclasses tailored to suit your knowledge and ability. Alternatively, you and a friend can take a class with me.

Stella

Stella’s Photography Tips

Introducing....’Stella’s Photography Tips’

If you would like more advice to help you understand your camera one to one, I offer masterclasses tailored to suit your knowledge and ability. Alternatively, you can take a class with a friend.

1. Get used to operating your camera in manual mode. Once you are familiar with this then you will have the confidence to use shutter priority or aperture priority.

2. In manual mode you can choose the ISO, shutter speed and aperture to control the desired exposure.

3. Aperture priority is how the photographer sets the aperture. This is in the lens and operates like the iris of the eye. Make it larger to let more light in and smaller to allow less light in. Once this is set the camera then adapts the shutter speed to allow the correct exposure.

4. Shutter priority is how the photographer sets the correct shutter speed. The camera automatically sets the correct aperture for the correct exposure.

5. On both of the above, automatic ISO can be selected, or set at the desired setting to suit the lighting conditions, such as 200 for bright sunny day, 400 for overcast and 1600 for low lighting.

6. At Spring time on a sunny day I suggest using ISO 400 - Shutter speed 125 – with the aperture set at f11. Use this as a starting point and adapt the shutter speed and aperture accordingly to get the desired exposure.

Stella

In Conversation with W.W. Warner...

W.W. Warner Antiques are a wonderful local business, sourcing beautiful antique porcelain and glass from around the world. In this ‘In Conversation With…’ read on for insights and tips from Managing Partner, Chris Jowitt.

Chris Jowitt, Managing Partner, has been dealing in Porcelain for over 25 years, during which time he has helped to develop great collections as well as introduce many new clients to the wonderful world of collecting. Here he explains how he became an antique dealer, what he loves about our area, and the future trends he expects for the year ahead.

1.  How did you become a porcelain dealer?

I always had an interest in collecting precious items, from a young age.  Through my family I had a connection with the industry and I have been working as a dealer ever since. 

2.  What do you love most about our local area?

It has to be the diversity of beautiful things around us to see, from rolling hills to picturesque villages . 

3.  What trends do you predict in 2018?

I predict that, people will continue to seek out the very best purchases for them.  Buying the best is a trend that always pays dividends.

4.  Where can we buy a piece of porcelain? 

From my shop!  We can source the finest antique porcelain and glass from around the world.

5.  What else would you like to tell us about your business?  

As well as offering many unique products through our shop, we advise major collections and museums worldwide on porcelain.  This is another part of my job, and one that I love.  We can also arrange restoration and conservation of precious items, and valuations for a treasured possession you may be curious about. 

This interview follows on from our 'Local Business Showcase' in February.

W.W. Warner can be found in Brasted, Kent.

Photograph above: An extremely rare Meissen Johann Frederich Böttger Hausmalerie teapot and cover of compressed globular form painted in red monochrome. With gilded fluted moulding around the cover, rim and foot. The chain is solid gold. Porcelain dates to c1720 with the decoration slightly later.

Stella

My Highlights from this Year's Fantastic London Classic Car Show

On Thursday 15 February, I packed up my camera and headed over to London’s ExCel’s Exhibition Centre for the fourth annual London Classic Car Show. For those of you who have not been, the show celebrates beautiful, classic motoring nostalgia in a dramatic setting and it is one of the highlights of my year!

This year’s show was opened in a dramatic fashion by three well-known TV motoring presenters; Alex Riley (BBC One Show), Jonny Smith (Fifth Gear and Mud, Sweat & Gears) and Quentin Willson (BBC Top Gear, Fifth Gear and The Classic Car Show).  It was clear right from the opening that the show was going to be bigger and better than ever before. 

Once again, an enormous indoor race track, known as the ‘Grand Avenue’, ran through the centre of the ExCel, enthralling visitors and allowing them to see – and hear – some of their favourite classics in action. The car above is a 1907 Stanley H4 Gentleman's Speedy Roadster, the hypercar of its era.

Getaway Cars

The show paid homage to ‘Getaway Cars’.  This was an evocative tribute to those vehicles made famous in movies or used in headline grabbing real-life robberies and was curated by Philip Glenister, aka DCI Gene Hunt from BBC police dramas Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes.  

Alongside the vehicles made famous for dramatic escapes, the show welcomed their very own celebrity drivers with actor Nick Moran of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels reliving various of his film roles at the special display. 

Nick Reynolds, the son of Bruce Reynolds, was reunited with the very Lotus Cortina that his late father used to stake out the Great Train Robbery in 1963. The Lotus has just 3,500 miles on the clock and is still fitted with the same tyres that helped the police to hunt down the gang!

Nick Moran with the Italian Job Mini Cooper brought to London.

Nick Reynolds with his father Bruce Reynolds' Lotus Cortina used in The Great Train Robbery.

RAF Red Arrows and Aston Martin Owners Club

Squadron Leader Adam Collins from the RAF Red Arrows was on the Aston Martin Owners Club stand with a Vanquish S Red Arrows limited edition model, which was recently raffled for a huge £1.5m, earning for the RAF Benevolent Fund. He was joined by Humphrey Bradley from south east London – the lucky man who won the car.

Lister Thunder Launch on the Grand Avenue

The opening evening witnessed a pair of major global car launches with two of Britain's most iconic marques unveiling spotlight-stealing new models. First Morgan took the wraps on its latest +4 Club Sport and then Lister revealed its never-seen-before Thunder. 

This year’s theme was ‘Specials’, which put the spotlight on an eye-catching gathering of road and race cars steeped in history and mystique. No fewer than 60 hand-picked classics were fired up for jaw-dropping, not to mention very noisy, displays on The Grand Avenue.

As the dramatic live show came towards its conclusion, the show opening trio of Riley, Smith and Willson selected four stand-out cars with a combined value of more than £3m to join the parade: a 1931 Bentley 8-litre; a highly-original 1961 Jaguar E-type; a 1992 Jaguar XJ220 and a 2015 McLaren P1 hypercar – a classic car of the future. 

The trio was joined by former Blue Peter and GMTV presenter Anthea Turner for the photograph next to the Lister Thunder.

The Morgan latest +4 Club Sport takes its place on the Grand Avenue.

Presenter Alex Riley with the 1961 Jaguar E-Type and 1931 Bentley 8 litre.

A 1934 Rolls-Royce 20/25 Gurney Nutting - a shimmering silver masterpiece of the coachbuilders' art.

A 1989 Lotus Judd Type 101, Chassis no 3 - an aerodynamically ambitious Camel.

Nigel Mansell CBE, closes the show

On Sunday, the racing legend Nigel Mansell CBE arrived at the show to talk about a special collection of his racing cars and to provide a fitting close to the event.

The 1992 F1 World Champion wowed Sunday crowds with some wonderful driving displays on the Grand Avenue, which included a wheel-spinning entrance behind the wheel of a Jaguar E-type inspired Eagle Speedster.

He later returned in a red Ferrari 246 Dino F1 front-engined F1 car from the late fifties and was also reunited with some of the cars which he raced during his roller-coaster career. 

At the end of his performance on the Grand Avenue, Nigel was awarded the 2018 London Classic Car Show Icon award.

My closing thoughts

All in all, this year’s show was a brilliant experience from start to finish. Nigel Mansell CBE was a real highlight for me, especially his performances on the Grand Avenue, his interview at the Supaguard Theatre and his presentation of the London Classic Car Show Icon award. 

I hear the show attracted over 38,000 visitors and featured close to 700 of the world’s finest classic cars worth more than £300m. Next year’s dates for your diary are 14-17 February 2019 - I am looking forward to it already!

To see a variety of other photographs from the event please click this link to our sister website 'Stella'.

Please follow me on Instagram for new pictures and stories of future events on @stellasms and @stellascordellis.

Thank you.

Stella

Celebrating 21 Years of SMS Creative Photography 'In Five' Photographs

To celebrate 21 years of my SMS Creative studio, I have picked my five favourite shots. It was a difficult task, so here goes! 

Girls in front of String Quartet.

I took this photograph at a wedding in 1999 of a little girl who was running around until she came across this wonderful string quartet where she stood mesmerised, giving me the perfect photo opportunity.

Husband and wife on Mother’s Day.

I was commissioned by this couple’s daughter to make a surprise appearance at a family gathering on Mother’s Day five years ago. I just love this photograph because it shows a wonderful moment between husband and wife in their garden - their expressions say it all.

Twins together at Christmas.

These twin sisters I photographed in 1998, aged four, were so close and their unique understanding of each other comes through so clearly in this image to make it a beautiful expression of their partnership.

Little girl behind the flowers.

I photographed this adorable little girl in 2016 with her three brothers at home in their garden with beautiful spring flowers. After photographing her with her brothers we had a little walk around the garden. This photograph wasn’t posed, she just peeked through the flowers and this is the result! I loved it from the moment I clicked the shutter.

The Queens Golden Jubilee June 2012.

This photograph outside Buckingham Palace was the result of me waiting amongst the crowds for over three hours on the Mall for the Royal procession to catch a precious glimpse of the Royals. After the procession, I was jostled along with the crowd and found myself in prime position to take this photograph, at the same time as a Red Arrows Fly Past!  On the balcony are the Queen, Prince William, Kate, Prince Charles, Camilla and Prince Harry.

Stella

Local Business Showcase - W.W. Warner Antiques

This month, my showcase features W.W. Warner Antiques, a wonderful and beautifully rare local porcelain, pottery and glass dealer. 

Meissen Bottger Teapot

I am proud to say that I have been working with W.W. Warner Antiques, photographing their beautiful porcelain pottery and glass since 2010. 

Bow Fortune Teller

W.W. Warner Antiques are located in the small Kent village of Brasted, just a short train-ride from London, and have been dealing in porcelain, pottery and glass for over 50 years.

The majority of their stock consists of ceramics from the 16th to 19th centuries, with particular emphasis on 18th and 19th century British porcelain, including the Chelsea, Derby and Worcester factories. They also have a substantial collection of Continental porcelain including pieces of Meissen and Sevres.

W.W. Warner Antiques’ Managing Partner is Chris Jowitt, who has been involved with the business for over 20 years and prides himself on providing an excellent service to his clients. Chris regularly advises and sells to renowned museums, and is happy to provide a restoration service and valuations.

Tournai Madonna and Christ Child

Coming next…..

In our March newsletter we will be ‘In Conversation’ with Chris Jowitt to learn more about his work.

Chris worked with Cometa Warner, wife of the original founder, Walter Warner, who ran a successful shop in London, before retiring to Kent. Cometa handed over the business fully to Chris in 2000 and since then he has managed and built the Warner brand. Chris will give us his unique perspective on this unique business and industry.

Stella