Hugh has been photographing fine art, paintings, sculpture and three dimensional objects for more than twenty years. Over time this work has evolved to provide a service that can be invaluable to the artist. The aim is to provide a friendly, supportive and prompt photographic service as and when the artist needs it. Testimonials from satisfied artists are something that is rewarding.

The studio is set up for the photography of paintings and small objects. The lighting is digitally controlled flash that has an accurate repeatability to ensure that exposures remain exact from photograph to photograph.

The camera used is a digital Hasselblad. The same as is used by museums and major collections, the controlling software is similarly dependable and provides an accurate reproduction of the art work without any ‘in camera’ enhancement. Collaborating with one or two major museums and their processes for photographing art works ensures that the studio is kept up to date with developments and latest thinking in cultural heritage sector photography.

The process for photographing Fine Art, or its methodology relies on a consistent work flow from taking, processing, on-line delivery and finally archiving. Archiving is part of the service offered, and enables artists to contact the studio at a later stages as necessary to assist by sending images on to galleries, clients or providing prints. This service removes much of the anxiety for those who do not have confidence in the digital and technical aspects of image handling.

In the development of new techniques, we have at the studio formulated a way to make peripheral photographs of both objects and living subjects! It was gratifying to overhear a British Museum photographer at a workshop being held at the Victoria and Albert Museum that someone called Hugh Gilbert had managed to make peripheral photographs of glassware that is well in advance of their capabilities.

Keeping in touch with new developments means that Hugh is a regular contributor and participant in cultural heritage conferences organised by the Association of Historical and Fine Art Photographers. Talks given have been on the tradition and scope of 360˚ panoramic photography, the history of the panorama and the contribution that ‘optical investigation’ makes to researchers in the field of studio practice of fine art. Hugh’s panoramas of artists studios have been the subject of a solo exhibition at the Royal Academy. In April 2015, Hugh has been invited to the Rijksmuseum to run a workshop on the development and making of 360˚ photographs to be used as Virtual Reality tours.

Ronald King

A recent project with publisher and artist, Ronald King, here is a link to his Issuu page showing several of his books photographed and uploaded to this book viewing platform.  Have a look at the Song of Solomon and Turn Over Darling, http://issuu.com/ronking.

Nicola Hicks,

Recently asked me to make a composite.  She often draws on brown wrapping paper.  This occasion she had drawn on white paper and she asked me to extract the drawing which was 1.2 metres x .9 metres from the white paper and ‘apply’ it to brown wrapping paper.  I did this by photographing the drawing and separating the artists marks from the paper.  Then by photographing the brown paper at the right scale so the small pinstripe was the right size.  The two images were then composited together to make a limited edition print for her.