I’ve previously heard of Manfrotto, more so from my other half, he bought one of their camera bags a while back, he got one of the Diesel Street range bags. These bags don’t look like a camera bag and have other uses, I was told more about these styles of bag whilst at the event. 

The event started with a welcome drink and some mingling with other bloggers and Manfrotto staff; I was lucky to know a couple of bloggers at the event so was able to catch up with them too. Lunch was served with some nice sandwiches and crisp along with a brew if you wanted one then we got stuck in with the workshops. 

After lunch we was split off into a few groups for some workshops, my group went into one of the event rooms first. The room was set up with Manfrotto equipment, flatlay set-ups and beauty set-ups; there was lots to take photos of. This workshop started with a couple of the Manfrotto staff talking us through first; the best tripod I’ve seen and it’s totally on my wishlist. The 190Go! is a tripod that in my opinion was built with bloggers in mind, we all love a flatlay and with this tripod that’s even easier to achieve now. No climbing on chairs, walls or whatever to get that perfect Instagram shot, using the 190Go! means you can tilt the camera flat above your flatlay, you can get in close, come further away or just use the head of the tripod to get the best angle. Of course the tripod is lightweight being made of Carbon Fibre and folds down into a manageable size just like most of Manfrotto’s tripods. When I looked at the price of this tripod I was a little shocked but I suppose if your using your photography or blogging as a business then this would be a really good investment.



The second part of the event was a cocktails and food photography workshop with pro photographer Eddie MacDonald, I was super excited about this part of the event as Eddie was using a lot of Manfrotto's lighting equipment which I was very interested in. During the workshop Eddie spoke to the group about how important lighting is in Photography, this brought back my old college days and refreshed my memory about lighting. Weather your using natural light from a window or using professional lights, angles and placement of the product all come into play. It can take a lot of work to get the right shot but working with the lighting you have can help you. I picked up lots of tips about lighting within this workshop and was introduced to some of Manfrotto's lights. Eddie was using the LED Light Lumimuse 3 in the set up, this little light give off a really good light, it's lightweight so perfect for working on location and carrying around, it has rechargeable batteries, you can change the colour temperature and comes with a carry case. I was really impressed with the portability and colour temp that I went ahead and purchased this light, I think it's gonna really help with my photography and will be great for up-ing my phone photography game.


To end the event in style there was a fashion photography workshop with London Fashion Week photographer Nicole Gomes, we was in one big group for this workshop and again I picked up some top tips especially for shooting with models. Nicole has a super fun character and you can tell she really loves photography, looking at her style of work has inspired me and I really like what she does; it has a little bit of an edge to it! We was shown how to direct the model into place, working with the location around you and again working with lighting. Nicole was using Manfrotto's LED Light LYKOS Daylight, this is a powerful light that's a real game changer. The LYKOS Daylight is portable, gives a lot of light for a product it's size, you can change the light levels using the LCD display on the back of the light; theres also a bluetooth option so you can use the wireless controls. Now this light is a little on the pricey side for some of us bloggers and photography lovers but again if your using this for business or work then it's a fantastic investment and much more easy to use and portable than studio lighting. Whilst in the workshop we saw Nicole photograph a model, learnt how to change the position of the lighting to get that shot you want and look you want. Fashion photography doesn't have a standard in my eyes, you can play around with different looks, lighting and locations and achieve something totally different and fresh. If your not lucky enough to have lots of interesting locations around you then Manfrotto also have you covered with their Perspective Background Arch/Grecian, I thought these was pretty awesome, you can look like your out but be taking the photos from your own home/studio; these are also perfect for nervous fashion bloggers because we can shoot in the comfort of our homes. There are a range of designs to choose from and they are super super easy to put up, Nicole demonstrated this in the workshop for us.


Manfrotto put on a interesting and fun event, the workshops were full of information and product knowledge, we was told all about the products from staff who was also very passionate about photography. After leaving the event I was straight on the Manfrotto website to see what items I could add to my photography kit, I currently have an Olympus Pen but use a DLSR occasionally so I wanted to buy something that would work for both of these as well as my phone. I was kindly gifted a small tripod in the goodie bag from the event so I will be using this for my phone and mirrorless camera. I really wanted to get a light to use for quick product shots so I bought the LED Light Lumimuse 3, so far its helped me with my phone photography; I'll be talking more about this on my Instagram soon so check back for that.


Thanks to the Manfrotto team for putting on the event, for my invite, lunch and for all the top tips and product information during the day. You've got a Manfrotto fan for life now! If you want to shop on the Manfrotto site, you can grab 20% off until the 4th of December using code 'Follower20' (this is NOT an affiliate code), let me know what you pick up in the comments.