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Botanic Media Acts @ La Boca Retaurant in Belfast

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Paul Corrigan

Halloween @ Laserforce NI

I was invited along to LFNI to cover their Halloween event and it was a good laugh, calamities aside.

A couple of guys had some great outfits which was good to see as I was judging the fancy dress competition. It was a good night and I did some great networking.

Here are a few of the images...

Pro Show video to follow soon!

Licentiate

So, I have finally gotten round to getting in my application and images and finally by big certificate and extras came through the post.

I am a happy bunny :)

Mike

Belfast Fashion Week Opener

I applied for a Photo Pass for Belfast Fashion Week, to my surprise, I got one. I went to collect it from Victoria Square Underground Car Park, where, that night the opening show would be.

Upon arrival I noticed there were around 20 photographers waiting to get their pre-press shots. I couldn't be bothered with the scrum of it, so just watched amused. One lady photographer had her 9 month old son in a baby sling... Committed!

I went back that evening and took a lot of images. Here are the results... {Watch the video file}

Laserforce NI

Recently I've been looking at ways to provide imaging services to local businesses. I approached a local laser combat company with a view to providing them with new imagery for advertising etc.

The initial talks went well and last week I finally had some spare time (which is not a

bundant for me these days) to make a start. I browsed the internet for sources of this kin

d of imagery and found that there is very little and what there is

amateurish and somewhat cheesy.

I began with photographing some simple interiors, however I soon realised that any flash

would certainly ruin the ambience of the place. Many rooms

/areas were covered with neon or reflective paint and would look quite harsh. In the end I opted for the use of gels to add to whatwas already there.

I went back in the evening to photograph the front of the building, lit up at night the place

looks great. I was then offered the opportunity of photographing a few games in process.

The combat arena itself is quite difficult to photograph in. It is very dark with minimal li

ghting, most of which is UV/black lighting for the neon and reflective strips. My initial plan was to rig flashes in the arena which would hopefully be fired by the SU800 however this failed to fire so I switched to the Pocket Wizards. This fired off one of the flashes. With more time I may have perfected the setup however th

e game was about to begin.

To start with I tried to get in on the action with the hope that the flash with blue gel would provide the extra ambient to my action images. I failed to get a single shot, it was just too dark. I needed a 'Plan B'.

So, with the guys on a debrief, I had about 5 minutes to rig a new setup.

This time I looked for 'action areas' for me to have a good ambush point. A few test shots and I was good

to go by the next game. Even so it was still quite difficult and I adjusted the positioning of the flash a few times to try and get a shot. As with all action you may take many shots just to get the one!

In the end my patience was rewarded with this image.

The job isn't finished though, I plan to practice some more with the flashes to obtain the killer Laser Combat Shot!

INCOMING: Hog N' Bog 2010

A side project Ive been gearing up for lately is just around the corner. I am looking forward to this one so watch this space.

Provincewide HOG: Meet n' Greet Bangor

Whilst covering the Armed Forces Day in Bangor, I came across a group of Harley Davidson Motorbike owners. They were holding a group meet and greet so I asked if I could photograph their bikes. I think this has started a new love affair for me, move over VW Camper I think you may have been replaced.

Slimming World Scale Up to Scale Down

I was recently invited by a friend to walk up Slieve Donard with Moira Slimming World group whilst photographing them for a feature for the Slimming World Internal Magazine. I havent walked a fell in ages and as Northern Ireland has no mountains to speak of it should be a breeze.

Or so I thought...

The Mourne Mountains lie in the South East Northern Ireland and Slieve Donard is its highest peak at 2789 ft.

As we drove towards Newcastle I realised I had totally underestimated it. I watched as the peak loomed before me and said "Ooh its bigger than I thought..."

I enjoyed the day overall, the last ascent was a bit cheeky but I was left humbled by the performance of some of the ladies of the group. One was 64!

Enjoy these images from the day...

NI Landmarks

The final one: Giant's Causeway

Landscapes NI: 2

The second batch of my NI Landscapes:

Landscapes NI: 1

I was busy out shooting Landscape images of recognisable places from around Northern Ireland. Here are some of the results:

The big freeze: NI

When the freeze came to Northern Ireland, Lisburn was relatively unscathed. It wasnt a problem on the roads either, it did get a bit tough pushing a pram though...

Best Overall Image: Army Photography Competition 2009

Downtime

Backround

The image ‘Downtime’ was taken on my birthday whilst I was on the Combat Camera Team in 2009.

In the final stages of Op Panthers Claw, The Light Dragoons Battlegroup had taken objectives around the town of Babaji in the Gereshk district. A Company 2 MERCIANS had taken up residence on at a location where voting registration could now take place for local Afghans. The CCT team went in to cover the voting registration and I was busy filming and gathering and footage.

Once finished I asked my photographer colleague, Sergeant Dan Harmer RLC, for his camera so I could get some images.

The Image

The image itself was part of a wider portfolio of how soldiers spend their ‘downtime’, the time that is their own and they are not on duty.

The soldiers of A Company had made best of their surroundings and had moved into a half built subterranean dwelling.

I was originally brought into the scene by the light coming through a small window and the meagre setup of the soldier who was just making the best of it. Doing exactly what he may do at home, having a brew and reading the paper.

I set about trying to emphasise the light and his existence with the boots and the mess tin, his tea is in a cut down water bottle.

I was tempted to crop the rifle but chose not to as I feel it adds the sense of the nature of Operations in Afghanistan.