Dave Charnley Photography: North East Commercial Photographer: Corporate Art Proves Boardroom Bliss

If you are looking for great location opportunities for commercial photography, the North East is far and away the best place to visit. We have some of the most beautiful castles, coastlines, bridges and buildings in the UK, so I’m spoilt for choice when it comes to venues for wedding photography as well as commercial photography.

A recent job came about following a conversation with Karl Pemberton, Managing Director of independent financial services company Active Financial Services. I did Karl’s wedding photography at Rockliffe Hall near Hurworth in County Durham so he had already seen some of my other work at www.davecharnleyphotography.com

When we got chatting about my experience as a commercial and PR photographer, he asked me to photograph three of Teesside’s famous bridges, reproducing them as high quality canvas prints. He was looking for something with a local link that could be used as centrepieces for the company’s meeting rooms, following a move from Guisborough to prestigious new Active Financial Services offices in Thornaby, Stockton on Tees.

The deadline was tight, with little time to get the photos taken and mounted in time for the new building’s launch. Sadly for me, light and weather are oblivious to photography deadlines and I had to make several visits to each bridge before I was happy with the light conditions. The ideal time for a commercial photography project such as this is either what I call the ‘golden hour’ of dusk, or early morning when the light is soft. For all three photos I used my favourite Canon 5D Mark III which takes fantastic pictures in near darkness, on a slow shutter speed and balanced on a tripod to get nice clean images.

My first visit was to the Grade II-listed Victoria Bridge, which was built in 1887 to celebrate 50 years of Queen Victoria’s reign. Its wrought iron arches give it all the majesty and grandeur you would expect from Victorian architecture, and the resulting 6-foot wide print of this stunning piece of architecture has incredible impact and now forms a great talking point in the client’s largest boardroom.

To get the shot I was determined to have of this bridge, I had to balance in the undergrowth on the river bank while trying to avoid creatures around me – just one of the perks of the job they don’t share with you at photographer school!

My next visit was to the Teesquay Millennium Footbridge, which links Teesdale Business Park with the University of Durham’s Queen’s Campus. The result of a design and build competition held by Stockton Borough Council, its 40-metre high mast and cable-stayed design results in clean, delicate lines that belie its tough steel construction and which gave me some great linear perspectives to work with.

Finally, I went to the award-winning Infinity Bridge, which stands downriver of Stockton town centre and was opened in a blaze of publicity. The name derives from the infinity symbol formed by the bridge and its reflection, and having seen the spectacular sound, light and animation show at its launch I was keen to capture the same atmosphere and bring it to life for people who have never visited Teesside.

Lit by the same company that designed the lighting for the Burj Al-Arab luxury hotel in Dubai, the blue and white LED lights change as pedestrians cross, and it presents a fantastic sight against the night sky. I reflected as I put away my camera kit that any professional photographer who can’t get a decent picture of this bridge should pack in the job.

Back at the studio I removed some of the small distractions such as ‘for sale’ signs on nearby properties, adjusted some small details and quality-checked the images before sending the electronic files off to be mounted and finished with a low sheen lustre. I prefer to support local companies where possible but this time I had to use a firm outside the North East to get the professional finish I needed.

Karl was very happy with the results, and several people at the office party included my twitter handle @charnleyphoto in tweets about how much they loved the photography. There is nothing nicer than unsolicited client feedback – love it!

I really enjoy using my skill as a professional photographer to meet challenges like this one. Karl knew exactly what he wanted so this was a very specific commission but I’m always happy to chat about ideas, find out what the client wants the images for, and suggest locations and shots for them to consider.