Professional Photographer Hinckley

Hinckley Bid's 9th Annual Soap Box Derby Film

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The Soap Box Derby

Hinckley BID (Business Improvement District) organise many social events in the small market town centre in Leicestershire every year in what is now becoming an historic tradition.

I was commissioned to create a short film of the whole event and arrived early on the Sunday morning of the race day.  The first thing I encountered was the huge numbers of entrants hanging around in the pits, tinkering around and putting the final touches towards their carts.

The Soap Box Derby is a timed solo race down Castle Street which is a large hill named after a small Mott and Bailey that centered in Hinckley many years ago.  Castle Street is a long downhill gradient and the course is manufactured with a chicane and a ramp with a large stopping and turning area at the bottom of the hill.

Thousands of people come to Hinckley from all over the UK to watch the derby and this film is a short tribute to everyone that takes part in both the racing and the organisation.

The commission was to create this short film with a focus upon the event and the crowds that flock to watch and for the purpose of showcasing the extent the BID go to, to bring people in to the town centre and to show how good for local business are the BID and the events that bring the footfall.

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Documentary Photography and Filmmaking

Public Relations Photography

Corporate Website Imagery

Landscape Photography

Documentary Photography

Clients: Charities, Local Government, Corporate and SME business

Events, promotion and storytelling visual needs

New Website Photographs

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Corporate Business Photography

Tailored photographs designed for your new or existing company website.

Most of my clients need my services to help them clean up their websites, to help support their brands and to promote their business to their own clients and potential new business.

The SFB Group - New Leicester Offices

The SFB Group in Nuneaton commissioned me to create corporate portraits of every member of staff from all of their UK offices in 2017 and then became a returning client in 2018 when they required new photographs for their website and for public relations in the local media. The above photograph was created so they have a strong photograph to use in their recruitment campaigns.

The SFB Group, Leicester Offices

JJ Churchill in Market Bosworth commissioned me to provide a series of corporate headshots of their Directors, working photographs of staff in situ, on site and operating their multimillion pound machines, which are used to create precision aerospace parts as well as product photography of their machined parts.

JJ Churchill, Market Bosworth

JJ Churchill, Market Bosworth

JJ Churchill, Market Bosworth

Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council commissioned me to produce a series of images for public relations to help promote their tourism partnership project, starting with a new Bosworth visitors map.  The image below shows MP David Treddinick giving a speech to the local tourism businesses and other council dignitaries.

Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council, David Treddinick

Chancellor of the Exchequer Phillip Hammond and Sajid Javid Home Secretary

Chancellor of the Exchequer Phillip Hammond and Sajid Javid Home Secretary

Morris Homes and the Treasury commissioned me to provide a natural candid style of public relations photography to help them promote the new Homes England campaign to support house builders throughout the UK.  These images were used in social media blogs and on their website, all in aid of supporting positive direction.

The commonality of my image making:

These are just some of the commissions that I've been working on during 2018 and the common theme between all of them is the platform in which the images will be published, as well as the fact that most of my photographs are about people and place and always with promotion and a positive end result.  

In the near future, I have a large commission for local government to produce a year-long series of documentary films promoting how the Business Improvement District support local businesses.  This will be heavily focused on the footfall of the town centre, the busyness and how the BID bring business to the businesses.

I'm a passionate photographer and filmmaker that specialises in storytelling and promotion. Check out my client list and services here, along with great examples of the finished product of my assignments.

This is just a small snippet of my client list:

If you're considering hiring a professional photographer to create brand-specific photographs for your website, social media or for newspapers and magazines, then make an enquiry to discuss whether your assignment and my skills & availability are compatible.

Alternatively, call me now on 07854 956 970

My phones in my pocket on vibrate, I won't miss your call.

Email: paul@paulhands.co.uk

PR Photographer, Midlands

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Public Relations Photography Midlands Service

All good leading brands need to self promote

How my PR photography service can help your brand?

I'll answer that question easily enough, I'm great with candid photography.  I'm a street photographer at heart and this genre of photography is a very fast paced pictorial style that can't be done well by just anybody.  The snapshot is often and incorrectly disregarded because of the quick nature in which they have to be created.  It actually takes great craft, skill and observational techniques that can only be grown by a practicing and experienced photographer.

Sajid Javid (Home Secretary) & Phillip Hammond (Chancellor of the Exchequer) at Morris Homes, Leicester.

The story is always the important part of the picture and in the image above, Sajid Javid who was at the time of this photoshoot, was the Secretary of State and Phillip Hammond who is still the Chancellor of the Exchequer.  They both visited Morris Homes in Leicester as part of a PR stunt aimed at boosting the new Homes England campaign by the government.  In this picture Hammond and Javid spoke with house building apprentices in one of the show homes.  They were genuinely interested in what the apprentices had to say.

I had to light this image with a speed light in order to bring out the details of the people with this being inside a fairly dark room (for photography).  The PR shoot was mixed and based both inside and outside, with me moving quickly between environments.  Many lighting factors had to be considered and worked around to get the images clean and crisp enough for professional usage.

Sajid Javid, Home Secretary, Public Relations Photography Shoot.

The above image was made outside and extra lighting wasn't required to get that candid feel.  Lighting always make everything look staged.  I was hired purposefully to create a documentary feel to the images.  

David Treddinick Politician Hinckley & Bosworth MP

David Treddinick visited an event that was held by Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council at The Royal Arms in Sutton Cheney in the district of Hinckley & Bosworth.  The event was a celebration and event for the tourism industry, filled with many local businesses in the district like Twycross Zoo, Bosworth Water Park and Tropical Birdland.  I was hired at the last minute, and luckily I was available and always happy to cater for emergencies and urgent requirements.  

Employees at JJ Churchill Aerospace Engineering Ltd.

I was hired by a marketing agency to provide some pr photographs, product shots and studio styled headshots of the Directors for JJ Churchill Aerospace Engineering in Market Bosworth.  Churchill's required imagery for their website and also for some marketing material at a trade show.  This was also a last minute booking and I was hired urgently with a premium request for the turnaround of the images within 24 hours.  I provide an overnight service that helps companies complete their marketing needs at late notice and with precision.

Diabetes UK, Type One Events.

Diabetes UK, Type One Events.

Diabetes UK booked me to provide documentary styled images that could be used for public relations and to help push focus towards their charity, hopefully gaining support, donations and convince parents to pay for their children to attend their type one events.

What ever your visual requirements are, what ever your budget is and whether you need still or moving images.  I can provide you a tailored service that gives you a service and product that meets your budget.

My diary is very busy but I do have spaces for new business, so if you have any pr photography requirements, then please don't hesitate to get in touch.  

I also provide services for:

  • Website Imagery
  • Marketing Photographs
  • Public Relations
  • Moving Image
  • Documentary Photography and Filmmaking
  • Corporate Portraiture / Headshots
  • Landscape Photography
  • Street Photography

The best thing to do if you think you might be able to use my services is to make a note of my contact details and / or just get in touch now.

 

 

Sublunary - Alien Invasion of Planet Earth

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Fine Art Photography meets Visual Stories

Sublunary - Part 2

As a professional photographer, Father to the most beautiful little toddler in the world and Husband to an equally beautiful Mother; I find it difficult to get out and make personal work.

In 2017, I graduated from University with a High 2:1 in a BA Hons in Photography & Video degree at De Montfort University, where the idea for this project was born.  I began with a long period of time in the library, scouring art books and photographic archives, learning about who, what where, when, why and how specific bodies of work was made.

Surprisingly, I came across some painters and other Fine Art Photographers that worked in similar fields to my research.  One in particular that sticks out in my mind was Photographer Erasmus Schroeter and Painter Max Ernst.

Erasmus Schroeter (2005).

Max Ernst, (N.D.)

I was also heavily inspired by my lecturer (Kosovan) Lala Meredith-Vula who is a contemporary fine art photographer with international recognition.  Lala's ideas about my work and how to get the best out of me was first class and Lala's self confessed crazy mind was a perfect match for the project I had stuck in my head.  She knew just how to get me excited about my own work.

Lala Meredith-Vula

Lala Meredith-Vula

Lala Meredith-Vula (N.D.)

Lala Meredith-Vula (N.D.)

So the body of work for Sublunary began.  I created a series of landscape photographs that followed the narrative of an imaginary alien invasion of the planet Earth.  A tall order you might think?  I just needed the right level of inspiration and a camera.  At the end of creating the work for my degree, I put it all together in a short movie with a spooky sound track that I created myself.  You can watch that below.

I'm now about to embark on a much longer journey that will see me creating a whole new body of work for Sublunary Part 2.  I'll be using my experiences from the first part of the project and will be digging deeper in to my imagination.

Here's a sneaky peek at my first experiment for part 2...

Paul Hands (2018), The Mute.

This is called 'The Mute' and features a landscape photograph that has been manipulated in camera by myself.  I added the red light using the brake lights on my car and chose this location for the crazy tree that could be morphed in to any kind of other worldly creature.  The reverse side of the road sign represents having nothing to say, to be muted and to be stunned by the experience of an alien invasion.  You will see that I've also added a strange shaped metal frame on the right.  This represents an alien being and is the shape of a large humanoid or key hole.  It is hollow and appears invisible with the exception of the outer edges.

The scene is lit like a stage as if the play is being carried out and has undertones of humour, not to be taken seriously.  It's a project that I can literally play and have fun with.  I have a list of locations, that I've been building, so you can watch to see how this develops.

De Montfort University bought the first 5 prints of this project and hold them in their permanent art collection on campus.  You can also read more about this project here.

If you'd like to follow my work then you can subscribe to my emails (below) or follow my social media channels.

Can Street and Landscape Photography Skills be utilised for a Commercial Organisation?

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Commercial Photography in Leicestershire.

Can the skills gained whilst making personal work be transferred to a commercial client brief?

YES!

The end!

Well, not actually the end, this is the beginning and that was a bit gimmicky!

Phillip Hammond and Sajid Javid visiting a Morris Homes building site in Leicester.

Phillip Hammond and Sajid Javid visiting a Morris Homes building site in Leicester.

The image of Hammond and Javid above was a picture that I made while on a recent PR photo shoot for The BJL Group and Morris Homes.  It involved working closely with The Treasury and working to a brief.  This was the cover image used for a blog written by Morris Homes and wasn't really on the brief they gave me.  

As an avid Street Photography fan and practitioner, this was a naturally easy type of shot to get for me.  The rest of the press group were a good 20 feet behind me.  I had a brief to work to and they were just collecting imagery, so I had a free run.  The government ministers walked very quickly and it was a cold February morning.  You can even see Phillip Hammond breathing out some misty air.  The shot isn't perfect but in this kind of situation, perfection isn't what's required, it's the story that counts and with the Morris Homes flags waving around in the background, it was just what they wanted but didn't know about that at the time.

The SFB Group, Leicester

The SFB Group, Leicester

This picture above is of the building for one of my regular clients The SFB Group a nationwide firm of accountants.  It's all too easy to make a picture looking straight on at the building.  I wanted to create something that fitted with their branding which was quite dynamic, hence the acute angle.  This is loosely where landscape photography skills come in useful, I positioned the composition acutely to create a more interesting view of something usually very ordinary.  The angle has given the building form and made it look more three dimensional.

David Treddinick meeting with the owners of Enchanted Bell Tents

David Treddinick meeting with the owners of Enchanted Bell Tents

The above picture uses Street Photography skills because it's candid and the people in the picture are unaware of my presence.  My intention was to follow my brief and collect natural looking pictures of the MP David Treddinick meeting local business owners at the launch of the new Bosworth Visitors Map at a special event held at Royal Arms in Sutton Cheney.

A Street Photograph made in Leicester city centre.

A Street Photograph made in Leicester city centre.

Street Photography in Leicester

Street Photography in Leicester

Mirror Man, Street Photography in Paris.

Mirror Man, Street Photography in Paris.

Commercial Landscape Photography

Commercial Landscape Photography

I've shared a small selection of my street photography to show the similarities to shooting reportage and PR work.  Also the landscape picture that I've included is more of a contextual play with the words and space in the frame.  The sign on the right reads 1 million square foot, so I've framed the image to include lots of space to insinuate that you can see 1 million square foot in the frame.

Giant Chicken Tree, Leicestershire

Giant Chicken Tree, Leicestershire

I've included the picture of the giant chicken tree because I think it's cool.

I've crafted my skills over a long period of time, been judged, examined, won awards and gained a level 3 qualification, HND and a BA Hons in photography through creating this style of work.  I've figured out a way to transfer my skills to a growing client base, who are using me more and more regularly.  

My clients keep coming back to me and won't use anyone else now.  Assuming I can keep this up, yes, street and landscape photography skills are very transferable to a commercial client,.

The trick is to get deep in the minds of the commissioners to learn what they want and to identify with the brief.  Once the purpose is established, I can easily determine what kind of pictures to make and which style to use.

My images now appear on many company websites, marketing literature and newspapers online and in print.  

You can enquire with me about my availability or to get a quote for your business here.

Home to Home

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Night Landscape Photographer England

Home To Home

This series of pictures are part of the experimental stage of what could potentially become a new project.

"I leave home and return, that's the single most repetitive thing I do".

The other night I left home to go and make a series of night landscapes around my local area between Hinckley and Coalville.  My search was for the unusual quirkiness surrounding our towns and villages.  Some man made and some natural with street signs, giant posters in the middle of nowhere and concrete bollards in-between such beauty in the landscape.

February News

New Clients:

I'm pleased to welcome new clients Hinckley BID, BJL Group, Morris Homes, ARO PR and Marketing and JJ Churchill on board.  

Also this month I'll be working on new assignments for two existing clients; Mode Transport Planning and the SFB Group.

More work will also be going in to the application to Grants for the Arts through the Arts Council for a major Environmental Portrait project I'm hoping to work on this year.

If you'd like to keep up with my news or get my blogs and pictures delivered to you via email, subscribe here.  Facebook are messing around with the algorithms for pages and a lot of Creatives are not able to share their art.  So this is one way for artists to stay in touch with the community.

Public Relations Photographer Hinckley Leicestershire Midlands PR

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Public Relations Key Visual Messages

A recently stage managed reportage styled shoot.

Working with the BJL Group Ltd. Morris Homes and The Treasury.

Homes England is a recently formed organisation by the Government to deliver a series of housing targets in the future for England.  They sent the current housing secretary Sajid Javid who launched the agency and Chancellor of the Exchequer, Phillip Hammond to meet with the top brass at Morris Homes; CEO Mike Gaskell and Dominic Harman at one of their large sites in Leicester where members of the press and the BBC were waiting to film and photograph the occasion.

Sajid Javid, Mike Gaskell, Dominic Harman, Phillip Hammond.

The shoot was carefully thought out with instructions from Homes England, The Treasury and Morris Homes PR to create a series of pictures that fits within their thought out narrative.  Each situation was managed with The Treasury tugging on our sleeves to end scenes and move on towards the next stages.  It's quite bizarre assignment in the sense that each creative was hired to give their skills and at great expense, to be directed from behind.

Prior to the arrival of the Government Ministers, each scene was walked through and discussed with careful planning on the direction of light, most preferred back drops and positioning.  In other words even the composition was almost curated before the event.

Morris Homes Leicester Development

Sajid Javid, Phillip Hammond, Three Apprentices

Reportage Styled Scene

CEO Mike Gaskell (Morris Homes), Phillip Hammond, Chancellor of the Exchequer.

On this type of shoot, there's usually a lot of standing around and on this occasion it was no different.  Finding things to do when they party is talking and you've already got a ton of good shots but waiting to move on to the next scene.

Mike Gaskell, CEO Morris Homes.

Mike Gaskell, CEO Morris Homes.

If you're a PR professional and looking for a travelling PR Photographer around the UK, then please get in touch.

Photography Workshops in Hinckley

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Modern Digital Cameras have become computers.

On my workshops, I help my clients to understand how they can use their camera to make artistic photographs using their environment.  Recently I ran a low light urban photography workshop, moving around at night time safely with camera equipment in urban environments.

The following two photographs were made by clients.

© Sabatowski, Lukasz 2017

© Whitmore, Helen 2017

We should remember that cameras only do what we tell them to.

I feel that it's right we develop our creative minds and the best way is to free yourself and get carried away with making pictures that challenge you, is to put yourself in to a position where you're making photographs that you'd be proud to hang on your wall.

© Hands, Paul 2017

I'm running another workshop in January but this time an afternoon on Burbage Common, making landscapes and experimenting with pictures of the environment.

Limited places.

There's more information available below.

To purchase the above workshop as a gift, please click the button below and contact me as well as purchasing via the shop link (above) to let me know and you'll receive a PDF file that is printable for presentation.

During 2018 there will be a varied workshop programme that reaches some distant locations around the UK including some seascape workshops, rocky and hilly landscapes of The Peak District and city life street photography in several UK Cities.  

The best way to keep up to date with news of these workshops is to subscribe to my mailing list.

Why is your business headshot / portrait so important?

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Professional corporate headshots / portraiture helps to put a face to your business and makes you and your employees appear human to your customers.

corporate headshots / portraiture, Leicestershire

Your image 

is so important in business

Did you know that when your customers view your website and come across photographs of the staff, the information they can get from a simple headshot is initially your look, style, type, age, occupation, professionalism, socioeconomic status, personality traits, and of course your brand, you're the brand!

So as you'd imagine it's pretty important to get it right and project the right image to prospective customers and those that already work with your business.

Some people might take their own photos and convince themselves that it looks good and if they've been trained professionally in the visual language of photography, there could be a good chance that it is but usually it isn't.

You often get photographers in my industry that haven't actually trained or qualified in photography, have just bought a camera and then watched some Youtube videos! That puts them on the same level as you, so why should you pay someone like that?  Is that what you think of your professional image and your beloved business?  

Cutting corners is always bad news in any industry.  Image making is no different.

If saving money is your goal, try to reverse your thinking.  Make yourself look more professional, get more work, make more sales and put extra money in your pocket.  That's the same as saving isn't it?  Perhaps better than holding what you have and collecting more instead!

Put the extra effort in to you!

Contact me to discuss my corporate headshot / portraiture service.

  • I have a fixed studio in the town centre of Hinckley, Leicestershire.
  • I have a portable studio and portable professional lighting if you want me to come to your business.
  • I'm qualified, have a Level three, HND and BA Hons degree in Photography & video.
  • I'm experienced and have a long list of incredibly prestigious clients of all sizes.
  • I have solid reviews, awards and fantastic reputation.

Here's some quotes from my clients:

“Our company has used Paul Hands Photography on two occasions now; the photographs produced have been exceptional quality and Paul really helped our staff feel relaxed in order to achieve some really professional looking staff portraits. We will continue to use Paul Hands for his portrait services and in addition we have instructed some bespoke commissions in relation to obtaining high quality material for our website. ”
— David Frisby, Mode Transport Planning
“We used the photographic services of Paul Hands for our Corporate Staff Photographs. We required photos for our new website. Paul was recruited as a last minute booking and he could not have been more accommodating. His attention to detail was a comfort as a client and we received great customer service. On the two days of shooting he was very professional and brought out the smile in every member of staff in his own unique way (a lego car and a gingerbread man helped with this too but I won’t let any further details slip and ruin his secrets to getting you smiling). We had the photographs returned to us within a matter of days and Paul had put each set of photo’s into individual files, per staff member, for ease of reference for us. These little bits of attention to detail really make the difference. The quality of the photographs were crisp and clear and were exactly what we were looking for. We would thoroughly recommend Paul’s services to anybody looking for a photographer, he is fantastic!”
— Rosie Iliffe, Stuart Fletcher & Barrett Wealth Management
Corporate Headshots / portraiture, Leicestershire

This is me, hi

I'm Paul Hands

Let's do business together, contact me using the link below.

Yellow Is The Colour Of Sunshine

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"Of the colour between green and orange in the spectrum, a primary subtractive colour complementary to blue; coloured like ripe lemons or egg yolks."

Often Yellow is a beautiful colour in the Sun and is synonymous with nature, the brightest of all the spectrum and the colour that usually automatically attracts the eye toward.

This is a short body of personal work that is experimental in practice.  Something which I do to keep my eyes trained on the world.  I find work like this is more a test for myself to prove to myself that I see things differently to others and my desire to share my vision of a slowed down world, brings your attention to this project.

This is my personal work that I sometimes like to just go out for a walk to see what I can find.  A test to see what my eyes and mind are looking at, something that puts me in the zone.

I had no brief, just walked and worked with what ever the environment presented to me.

If you'd like to chat to me, click here.