I was pleased that clients DTW agency in North Yorkshire chose me for some industrial photography near Redcar recently.
The job involved an Industrial photography shoot at Lotte Chemicals on the Wilton International Site. Wilton is just 10 minutes from Middlesbrough and is a major process industries complex where security and safety is paramount. As an experienced commercial and industrial photographer I’ve visited Wilton many times so I’m familiar with the detailed safety and security arrangements that every visitor must comply with, and arrived 30 minutes early to go through the briefing.
Chemical plant photography means being around volatile substances so I also had my camera equipment, including a portable, foldable flash kit, gas tested for safety.
The job involved an Industrial photography shoot at Lotte Chemicals on the Wilton International Site. Wilton is just 10 minutes from Middlesbrough and is a major process industries complex where security and safety is paramount. As an experienced commercial and industrial photographer I’ve visited Wilton many times so I’m familiar with the detailed safety and security arrangements that every visitor must comply with, and arrived 30 minutes early to go through the briefing.
Chemical plant photography means being around volatile substances so I also had my camera equipment, including a portable, foldable flash kit, gas tested for safety.
The job brief included
taking pictures of the directors and senior staff, the operation itself and a
series of shots to celebrate the company’s commitment to young apprentices, and
help it recruit more young people. Lotte Chemicals is a long-standing supporter
of apprenticeship schemes, being named North East Medium Employer of the Year
2011, and counted among the Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers of that year.
I arrived at the job kitted
up with a range of different lenses and lights. I’ve got the lighting and
equipment to accommodate any type of job, including a high powered lighting kit
that can light up a large factory floor, gymnasium or school hall.
Although I carry a range of
lights so I’m ready for any conditions, I prefer to shoot using a mix of
natural light and reflectors to keep the images real, over the years I’ve found
this always gives the best results.
With the help of people who
kindly held reflectors and the flash for me, I was escorted around the plant so
I could get a series of shots of apprentices at work in a live environment, studying
plans, putting kit away in the lockers and operating machinery and equipment.
A branded pop up banner
provided some colour and contrast to the clean white environment. A
photographer’s job is to tell the story, and I always like to include some
branding and interiors shots to help to explain what a business is about, and
give the people shots some room to breathe.
The shiny steel pipework outside gave me a chance to bounce light off it, and in some cases use reflections to frame shots. Inside, the factory floor colour palette was great, with the blue of the machines contrasting with the pipes. And where I needed a splash of colour, a bright yellow hard hat worked a treat.
The shiny steel pipework outside gave me a chance to bounce light off it, and in some cases use reflections to frame shots. Inside, the factory floor colour palette was great, with the blue of the machines contrasting with the pipes. And where I needed a splash of colour, a bright yellow hard hat worked a treat.
Lotte’s meeting rooms
presented a light, clean background against which to photograph senior figures
in the business. Corporate portrait photography is not always about getting the
subject to face the camera square on and smile, if a company’s PR agency is
issuing sober news, they need pictures that reflect the tone of the story so I
was careful to get some serious as well as smiling shots.
Switching to the close up product shots was fascinating work. I used the back of a whiteboard as a base on which to arrange differently shaped glass containers and some products in the form of tiny white beads. A member of staff wearing a hint of pink nail polish was happy to act as my hand model, adding some colour contrast to the pictures.
Switching to the close up product shots was fascinating work. I used the back of a whiteboard as a base on which to arrange differently shaped glass containers and some products in the form of tiny white beads. A member of staff wearing a hint of pink nail polish was happy to act as my hand model, adding some colour contrast to the pictures.
The client was very happy
with the three sessions, which generated a good set of pictures flexible enough
for a wide range of uses, and I’m looking forward to seeing the photos being
used in the media, marketing material and across the internet.
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