Partyshoots and the parent company, Keith Williams Photography have been very busy during March and all our equipment has been well utilised and we are in the process of assessing our future needs.

We’ve been involved with photo shoots for the local Fire Service where a number of students from local secondary schools have undertaken training in rescue operations and very proudly demonstrated their prowess at a passing out parade held at the Fire Station in Burnham on Crouch. This was a wonderful day with the youngsters carrying out the same exercises and drills that trainee fire-fighters have undertaken for many years. The students performed well and we hope our images capture some of the spirit of the day. Burnham’s mayor Carole Noble was on hand to present certificates.

NHS Mid Essex also called open our services when they opened the new outdoor gym at King George V playing fields in Southminster and also when they demonstrated the equipment to local residents of Moat Housing. The equipment was demonstrated by a local fitness instructor and coordinator Tina Vale was on hand to make sure everything went smoothly

The Dengie Children’s Centre was another assignment when we visited to take staff portraits and to photograph mothers and toddlers enjoying the centre. It was a great day and the facilities and atmosphere of this centre can clearly be seen in our images.

We continue to be much sought after for event photography at the better clubs in London and have also recently undertook an assignment for landscape photography on Mersea Island where we made a 6am start to capture the best light on this atmospheric location. We had some fun later with some of the locals and look forward to returning at a future date.

The summer looks to be busy with wedding bookings coming in and if you are planning to tie the knot this year please contact us soon. We offer a discount for mid week weddings and currently have special deals on large size canvas prints.

Don’t forget we are still leaders in the field of model portfolios and portrait shoots and will shortly be venturing into the arena of pet photography.

Many people have asked me what equipment Partyshoots use and what sort of studio setup I have.

For cameras I use only Canon, it’s not because I think they are better than Nikon or that they are easier to use, it’s simply that when I started working professionally I inherited a number of good Canon lens and I already had an EOS film camera so it just made sense to stick with the one product range.

My main camera is the EOS 5D, I haven’t yet upgraded to the mark 2 but find the one I have good for most work at the moment. There are times when a second camera is essential and for this purpose I use the Canon 40D. The benefit I find of using these two models is that the 5D is a true full frame camera and therefore when you use a lens you get what is says on the lens and therefore a 17mm lens does give you a 17mm wide angle. The 40D is a cropped frame camera and it enlarge the range so a 17mm lens would actually give you a view closer to 23mm. This can be a nuisance for close and wide angle work but as soon as you put a 200mm lens then that expands to give you a view of 260mm. You just need to remember which lens to use on which camera. The controls are similar and I just need to remember the slight differences. Both are of professional quality.

The lens is obviously the most important aspect of a camera and I use several different pieces of good quality glass. My workhorse is a Canon 17-55 F2.8 and is the lens that is normally left on my camera. I also quite often use a Canon 70 -200 F2.8 and occasionally add a 2x extender for certain work. F2.8 lens are the more expensive but they do get results and are ideal in any condition especially low light. I always buy the best quality glass I can afford as it’s essential to get that all important clean image. My least expensive lens is the Canon 50 F1.8 but it’s one I am using more and more for portraits or in very low light conditions. If I find myself in situation taking a portrait with uninspiring backgrounds it’s easy to open up the aperture and the background just goes away. I always leave a Canon 17-85 F4 lens on the 40D camera, it’s a general purpose lens and it’s quite good as a back up.

In the studio I use two LK 400 watt strobes with a 100cm octagonal soft box and 30 CM square soft box, various umbrellas, snoots and reflectors. My studio is a large converted bedroom with a variety of back drops and I shoot with a wireless connection to the strobes. I have also recently introduced a Hi Lite back drop which is an amazing piece of kit for portraits.

My name is Keith Williams; founder of Partyshoots.

I’ve been a photographer as long as I can remember and have fond memories of my first Kodak Instamatic that arrived from that wonderful man in red one Christmas.

Of course those were the days of film photography and our household didn’t have any notion of a dark room of film processing. I was rationed to a roll of 36 shots each month and then had to wait ten days for my treasures to come back.

My very first effort was dismal but looking at some of the art photography being displayed these days it may have found a place in someone’s collection?

With my efforts rationed I quickly learnt how to be  more exact in image taking and even though the quantity remained low I was soon beginning to get there with the quality. I was delighted with birthday presents from distant aunts knowing that the envelope may contain monetary rather than material gifts to finance my obsession and was always a little disappointed on receipt of an unwanted toy.

As I got older and into my teens, I worked to feed my habit; paper rounds, milk rounds and even a stint at the slaughterhouse and butchers raised me some cash to cover the processing.

My dad was a photographer who produced fantastic landscapes and would spend days waiting for the right wave formation or the light to hit a pebble in the eclectic way that he liked; but I love people, old people, young people, fat, thin, ugly or beautiful people. It’s seems the best job in the world just to capture that moment and perhaps a little of their spirit. Cherokee Indians believe that a photograph is a way of stealing a soul and perhaps in a way that’s what I do but in a fun and sharing way.

I’ve been told that I am now older and wiser but little has changed as I still spend every penny I have on that “next best thing” and I always seem to need another lens or a new backdrop or I’ll see some gadget that will revolutionise the way I work and invariably ends up in the store cupboard with all the other bits of revolutionary devices.

Photography is fun; it pays the mortgage, feeds the kids and gives me enormous satisfaction. I work with people who have fun and I delight when they see the finished results.

Parties are always a great place for photography and taking images of people and it seems a logical progression to have parties just for taking photos. They really are great fun and suits so many different combinations of people. For a childs birthday treat they are great as the birthday kid becomes a star for a few hours and they and their parents and family get a professional quality lasting memento of the occasion.

We’ve started Partyshoots where a group can come along, have makeup done if they want and just have loads of fun whilst we have loads of fun taking the photos. It’s not just for kids and teenagers, we can do it for a grandmothers knitting circle, hen parties, stag parties, office workers or just about any group of friends or colleagues who want lasting memories of their time together but in a fun and informal way (we can also do the formal if you want).