We’re well and truly into the wedding season now with our wedding pre-sessions forming a good chunk of the diary which is always a laugh. I like the pre-sessions as they’re meant to be nice and chilled without any real pressure – the whole idea being for everyone to get used to each other so that the photography doesn’t feel like it gets in the way on the Big Day itself. Because of that, it’s a real pleasure just to relax and chat with our clients and grab shots in a very informal manner which I love.

I photograhed Jane and Matt at their home in High Wycombe which is a converted Mill and is simply stunning! We had oodles of very welcome sunshine and just wandered around the garden picking interesting locations and angles – including me balancing on a step ladder in the middle of the stream to try and get a shot looking back at them and the garden. A precarious but ultimately successful shot! The things we do to get the image.

They were exceptionally easy to photograph as they seemed completely relaxed in front of the camera. We chatted, we shot, we chatted, we shot, we drank coffee, we ate biscuits (always a good idea!) and we shot some more. Perfect Sunday morning. The only fly in my ointment one of the feet of my stepladder getting stuck and then detached in the bed of the stream. Bugger. However, Matt kindly donned his wellies – possibly an image in itself I might add – and fetched it out for me the next day.

I really love the images we’ve caught during this session. There’s something really appealing about them – possibly that both Matt and Jane didn´t stop grinning and mucking around. I do have a real thing for this kind of picture – full of light and laughter. Come to think of it, if I ever produce a book of our favourite images, maybe that would be a good title – “Light ‘n’ Laughter”. What do you reckon?

We seem to have spent a lot of our time recently out and about so it was really nice to be back in our village for Helen and Keith’s session. One of the challenges with photography is always finding new and interesting angles on what you’ve done previously. The great thing about our village is that it changes completely depending on the light, the time of year and the time of day and it was no exception for this particular session. The place is simply beautiful!

This was a really chilled session – the last of this week – and was lovely. I know Helen was feeling a tad apprehensive about being photographed but she really needn´t have worried: the shots we have caught are gorgeous. There´s a really mediteranean feel about the images which probably stems from the stunning light we had that was pinging around between the various walls and cobbles that we were using as a backdrop.

Both Keith and Helen have a really strong look about them which makes for great images. It was a surprisingly warm afternoon and so that summery look suited both of them perfectly. I think my favourite image is the two of them in the alley as it just has that slight edge to it and the location leaves you wondering where they were – my kind of image!

If our season continues like it´s begun with fantastic sessions like this one, it´ll be utterly stunning! Here´s to beautiful weather and gorgeous photos! Happy days…

Ah bliss.

The sun’s come out again.

I hadn’t met Amanda and the guys prior to this session and I have to admit to I do get the teeniest apprehension each time I meet a new client. Shouldn’t have worried though as this turned out to be one of the friendliest (and funniest shoots) I could have done. Couple that with the fact the whole family (and I’m including the family Shetland Pony) are really easy to photograph, this couldn’t have been any better.

Their garden was absolutely perfect for a family session with different nooks and crannies to get shots and plenty of shade (we’re an inconsistent bunch, photographers. We want it to be nice and sunny but when it is nice and sunny, we ask our clients to stand in some shade!) With pools of light and interesting bits of garden furniture (and the odd stable or two) everwhere I looked, the hardest part was trying to work out what to miss out in the time we had!

Bella and Alex were brilliant and pretty much up for anything – though Bella, in particular, was fantastic. She had made it perfectly pretty much as I arrived that she hates having her photo taken. Yeah right. From the very start she was absolutely brilliant and totally at ease in front of the camera – the shots are gorgeous! Both she and Alex photograph really well and look very natural in front of the camera.

One of my favourite images from the session (though, for all you purists out there, I do admit it’s technically flawed) is the shot of Alex and Bella killing themselves laughing. It says an awful lot about how close they are as brother and sister in that one shot. Beautiful!

I’ve finally discovered the right time to hit Wendover Woods for a photo session – roughly the same time as the FA Cup kick-off. I’ve honestly never seen the place so quiet. Admittedly it would reduce our shooting season a tad but it was nice not having so many people around! True, the weather wasn’t wonderful either, but I still suspect Portsmouth and Cardiff’s clash at Wembley was the greater factor.

This was a session we’ve had on our books for a while, ever since Dominique arranged a very quick shoot of Ellie and Ben as a Christmas gift for James. We’d arranged that first shoot at short notice and it was, essentially, to get just one shot – something I’m never entirely comfortable doing as I always feel our clients expect (and always get!) a bit more from us. I really like to take time over capturing a variety of images which means, ultimately, our clients have plenty of choice so I had only agreed to the Christmas session on condition we got back together at a later date to continue where we had left off – and hopefully to include James!

I love Wendover for its variety of scenery and locations and, on Saturday, it was a really good job as the light had dropped completely and so we had to move out of the woodland cover, where I’d anticipated doing most of the session, into the open just to get enough light to work. I don’t like using flash – though i’ve spent many happy hours making sure it’s second nature – as i think you lose some of the magic of being in the great outdoors with hard, unnatural shadows. Much better to find a pocket of daylight, no matter how drab the day is – we also use a 6ft reflector which allows us to provide just enough reflected light to fill in any shadows.

Well, it was all worth the wait and perservering with the weather! We have a load of lovely images and Ellie and Ben were truly brilliant! There are some gorgeous “canvas-friendly” images from this shoot – you know the kind of thing where the kids are either running toward or away from the camera. Always looks fantastic on a wall! And at the end of the session, the cafe in the woods served up a very welcome (and according to the younger members of the group at least) a perfect hot-chocolate. Fantastic.

Let us know what you think of the images!

I guess if you tracked how many times I write “I love this time of year” it would probably work out there isn’t much of the year I’m not into. Nonetheless, I really love this time of year!

Maybe it’s the (admittedly somewhat misguided) anticipation of a summer to come or maybe it’s just that we have a few more hours in which to schedule daylight session or maybe it’s just that it’s the beginning of the festival season at this time of year (big fan of live music – did anyone see the Pendulum and Editors sessions from Radio One’s Big Weekend? Stunning!) Whatever the reason, I’m enjoying this particular bit of the year.

It was surprisingly warm over the weekend and it had that welcome summer feel about it – particularly up at Wendover Woods where we were.

The setting up there is absolutely stunning for woodland photography – provided, of course, you can find a spot that doesn’t already have several families, a pack of dogs, a barbecue and a couple of teenagers with a bottle of WKD. Ah, in my day it was Student’s Choice Cider that did it for me. Those were the days…

Anyway, we did find a beautiful, quiet spot with patches of gorgeous light – the sort of light you only get in amongst trees – and we settled in for an hour or two. I know it may seem a little self-indulgent, but we always take tea and coffee with us to a shoot like this. I think caffeine always helps and the cookies don’t do any harm either!

Kathy had asked us for a shoot similar to one we had with her sister, Cary, a year or so ago as she loved those pictures. We did have it scheduled for earlier in the year but had to move it when we had another one of those predictable cold ‘n’ miserable weekends when even I was struggling to see how we’d get outdoor shots – at least ones where everyone looked happy! Still, in the end, that may have turned out to our advantage as the light we eventually had in amongst the early summer foliage has helped us create some gorgeous shots!

With sunshine, tea, biscuits, willing and very capable subjects (who were great company), I could happily have shot all afternoon! Admittedly I’m biased, but I reckon Kathy, Ed, Tom, Kelly, Katie and Harry look fantastic!

If you’d like to let us know what you think, why not post a comment? (see the link below). Otherwise, enjoy the photos and here’s to the onset of summer!

So I have to admit, I’m having a pretty good time at the moment. Sure, it would be nice if credit weren’t so crunched and fuel prices were a little less hilarious but all in all, we’re having a fairly fantastic season.

This shoot adds to the ever growing list that I’ve really enjoyed this year. Julie asked us a while ago if we could get some shots of Emma and Billy and their elder cousins, Carly and Mark, as a gift for her mum (their nan). Incidentally, if anyone who’s in on the secret is reading this blog, please don’t tell her – not yet at least! It’s meant to be a surprise!

As with many of our sessions, we started out having been asked to get just the one shot, and inevitably ended up getting a load with various combinations of people and backgrounds. Even Tracey, Carly and Mark’s mum, who had made it abundantly clear that she would not be taking part in any of the photos succumbed to the persuasive talents of her two teenagers.

Once again, we used the beautiful backdrop that is our village for the shots – if it’s good enough for John Nettles (Midsommer Murders), Felicity Kendall (Rosemary and Thyme) and Kermit the Frog (The Great Muppet Caper movie – the pond they land in when hurled unceremoniously from the plane they’re in is the duck pond in front of the church) then it’s certainly good enough for us! And so it proved – again.

I’m particularly loving the telephone box shot which, while possibly not quite what nan might be expecting (or wanting for that matter) is definitely one of the most unusual grandchildren shots we’ve ever taken (and the only time I’ve taken such a shot before 11 o’clock in the evening!)

Spring is well and truly sprung and it’s lovely. I enjoy shooting all year round but there’s something about Spring and Autumn that I find really appealing. Maybe it’s the colours that seem to change so much in such a short period of time. In the Autumn it’s the familiar gold and bronze of leaves and grasses on the turn and in the Spring it’s the rich greens of new leaves and the flashes of colour from blossoms, Daffodils, and Bluebells and the ridiculous lemon yellow of Rape fields. Oh, and in the Spring, we dust off the ol’ barbecue again!

Last week I photographed Sue, Peter, David and Sam up in the woods above Bryant’s Bottom. Sue had asked if we could capture her family in this type of scene and so we’d had people looking out for good locations for a couple of weeks (thanks in particular to Jess and Dan!)

The location I went with in the end was one that Sue herself had recommended. When I went out and checked all the different scenes I there was something about this location that I really loved. It’s also very quiet which means we spend much less time worrying about people getting into the background of a shot etc. In fact, we didn’t meet anyone at all until we stumbled back down the hill and encountered a very determined group of ramblers panting their way up.

I wouldn’t say our style of photography regularly involved floral scenes – I am far more familiar with urban and street scenes – but I do love a challenge! Anyway, as we’re in the UK and it’s Spring (actually, you can substitute any season you like in here – it’s a consistent them) it was absolutely tipping it down when I arrived. Great. Now don’t get me wrong, we can shoot in almost any conditions as the cameras and lenses are well sealed, but it still doesn’t make it the experience it should be if everyone is damp and uncomfortable.

Thankfully, though, once we’d trudged up into the woods the rain abated and we had almost perfect conditions – except for the fact that everything was now damp. However – and there’s photographers for you – the wet conditions mean the light skips of the petals and leaves which is gorgeous. Every cloud etc. etc…

So we spent a very enjoyable couple of hours chatting and capturing images – the Bennett family were just great company which makes my job an absolute pleasure. Sue is after a really nice shot of the family together but I wouldn’t want it to be me having to pick out that one shot – we have loads! There are a couple in particular that I think will make beautiful framed images or canvasses particularly with the rich violet-blue tones from the Bluebells. Really looking forward to showing them all of the images!

Blogs are like buses (you spend ages waiting for one… etc. etc.) I’m on a roll now – got lots to write about!

I am acutely aware that I must sound pretty sycophantic on the blog most of the time – I actually joke about it with our clients – but I can’t help but love what I do and the people we seem to attract to be photographed. Seriously though. Who wouldn’t? I meet loads of really cool, interesting people, I get to chat, take pictures, drink coffee, take pictures, chat, take pictures, laugh, take pictures, drink more coffee, take more pictures… I am aware that there are better ways of making a living (film star, rock star, being Prince William) but, given I can’t act, sing or land a Chinook in our back garden, I’ll stick to what I know (and love.)

I had looked forward to this particular shoot ever since Alison had booked it – I really like working with Alison who is the most amazing florist (www.anthuriumfloral.co.uk). We’ve been working together for a while ever since bumping into her at a wedding fair we were both attending.

Now, I don’t know if you’ve ever been to many wedding fairs but, and believe me here I mean this most sincerely, they are not that much fun as an exhibitor (and from what I’ve heard from our brides and grooms they’re not much fun to be a guest at either – lots of people trying to sell them things they didn’t even know they needed! Things other than flowers and photos, obviously…)

Anyway, at one such fair Alison had a stand directly opposite us packed with the most exquisite floristry – her complete approach to the detail and quality of her product (as well as her relaxed and friendly nature) seemed to fit perfectly with what we have always strived to be photographically. Consequently it seemed like a logical thing to do to see if we could work together in some way. So if we’ve ever presented you with flowers as part of your wedding package with us – Alison is the magician who created them!

Anyway, as usual, I digress. My point is that I’d looked forward to this shoot. Alison had booked it for her and Jess to celebrate Jess’ imminent 18th birthday. I am not sure how much Jess had a say in it as she didn’t seem quite so keen to be in front of the camera, at least initially. However, the session turned out to be everything I’d hoped it would be – really entertaining and relaxed (obviously once we’d got over the usual I-really-hate-having-my-photo-taken introduction!) and we have load of gorgeous images.

I love this kind of session and the images are just stunning – there are definitely a couple in here that sum up everything we’re about and will no doubt form part of our ever-developing portfolio. Very cool.