We discovered Stuart Leche’s work on our Flickr stream. Here the photographer explains how he transforms the ordinary into something of grace or beauty.
“My photography is a a form of escapism both for me and the viewer,” Stuart Leche tells us. “I enjoy creating images that transform the sometimes ordinary things around us into something of grace or beauty, or at the least has the ability to grab and hold the viewers’ attention a while.”
Stuart Leche is a midlands based photographer who has achieved a high level of expertise whilst also having an eye on the artistic. Largely self-taught and having only pursued photography in the digital era, his focus has been on trying lots of disciplines and experimenting both in-camera and in post processing techniques.
He tries not to be too fixed in terms of genre or techniques he uses. “It’s the process of creating images, from start to finish, that I enjoy,” Stuart explains. “By not restricting myself to a genre I think I can keep if fresh and ensure I continue to learn.”
Creating images using HDR processes is something he has tried to embrace. “Whilst I’m actually not a great fan of the bright, garish and ‘in your face’ HDR images, I’ve always considered it as a process that is great for making some images possible where normal techniques won’t really give any striking results,” he says.
Stuart uses a Canon 5D MkIII with pro class Canon lenses ranging from Macro to wide angle. In terms of processing, his workflow starts and finishes with Lightroom 5. Other software to help him with the tidying up and final look includes Photoshop CS6, and the NIK filters set and Photomatix for the HDR work.
Stuart has an emphasis on creating as much as he can in-camera to allow him to strictly limit my time in post-processing. “In general, I don’t tend to spend endless hours on any image,” he says. “It’s more like 30 minutes, for a quick clean-up, a few basic tweaks in Lightroom and a bit of time in with the NIK filters to give me a finished look.”
About printing his work he says: “For the muted colours and mono long exposure images I love the finish I get from the Hahnemuhle German Etching paper. The matt finish just seems to be a perfect match with the slightly textured finish. For printing my HDR images I prefer the Hahnemuhle Pearl paper, as I find it best for colour accuracy and showing off the detail.”
Can can see more of his portfolio on Stuart Leche’s website and follow him on Flickr and Google+.
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