On Saturday I went on a photography course in London - it was different. the first difference was that it was focussing on using a particular piece of equipment , my new flash gun, the second was that we were working with a live model. This was something completely new for me and something I didn't feel entirely comfortable with, having strong views about young people, body image and size 0. Our model Mina was, of course delightful, but I still found the process strange and challenging.

After some basic instruction about our flashguns we set our iso to 100 and began to experiment with different shutter speeds and aperture as well as modifying the strength of the flash. It was interesting to notice what effect all of these settings had on the depth of shadows around the model.

Next up was our introduction to 'ghosting' a technique where you combine the use of your flash gun with a slow shutter speed. In general I found directing the model odd and difficult and initially I was unsure about what to ask her to do during these shots.

Off to the great outdoors next - or as good as it gets in this corner of north east London on the first sunny saturday in April. I was amazed at the number of people picnicking and barbecuing on a relatively small green space. We were there to practice using our flash guns for backfill however so limited opportunities for sun worshiping!

Finally as we were on our way back to the studio to finish up, one of the other participants was experimenting with releasing the shutter at the same time as zooming in on the subject - this was my attempt, it was really hard to get the timing right, but a look to play with maybe?

What next? practice, practice, practice!