NIALL BENVIE

Niall Benvie was born in Arbroath, Scotland, in 1964. He spent the first part of his working life running his family's fruit farm in Angus. After the farm was sold in 1989, he studied for an Honours Degree in Geography at the University of Dundee, during which time he began to turn a life long interest in the natural world into a business based around writing and photography. He has worked as a professional photographer and writer since graduating in 1993, becoming particularly well known for his work in Scotland and the Baltic States. He has made an enviable reputation as a thinking photographer and writer working on wildlife and environmental projects. Niall has written a number of fascinating books including Creative Landscape Photography, The Art of Nature Photography and most recently a comprehensive work at Scotland's wildlife for the National Trust for Scotland. He is also a regular contributor to photography magazines such as Outdoor Photography and BBC Wildlife.

Niall also runs a thriving stock photography business and scanning bureau. He has a vast knowledge of digital imaging from capture through manipulation and optimisation in Photoshop to calibrated output. Nial has been associated with digital imaging since 1999 when he wrote the first book book for outdoor photographers featuring a substantial digital section (The Art of Nature Photography: perfect your pictures in camera and in computer). He has shot digitally for almost two years now and in that time has developed a "near-to zero" workflow which prevents backlogs of unprocessed, uncatalogued files from accumulating. "Right now, " he claims, "I have 6 unprocessed RAW files, 10 conversions awating finishing and 15 for archiving. And this in one of the most productive spells of my photographic career. The system seems to work." In our Digital Workflow workshop, Niall will not only share his methods but also show you how to achieve the same degree of luminance and saturation in your digital captures that you once enjoyed in your Velvia slides.