Inspiration, Nature & Wedding Lamps!

I'm going to be posting a blog about my re-brand, new website and the lovely people that have helped make it happen in the next few days!  But first, I wanted to write about my big light bulb moment, when everything clicked, when I saw everything clearly and the direction I should be heading!  Plus, a few more treats......

The biggest factor in my re-brand has been the growing realisation that nature and the seasons have always been, and continue to be a constant source of inspiration for me.  I wrote a little bit about my formative years growing up in the Yorkshire Dales on a blog post late last year.  We always seemed to be walking amongst the trees, heads craning skywards, eyes squinting to look at a bird's nest or an acrobatic squirrel!  Many of my contemporaries chose dolls or teddy bears to carry around with them.  For me, there are very few photos without me holding some twig or other closely by my side!  Still now, when we go for a family walk, Dad will 'test' me and my sister Katy on our tree knowledge, unleashing an unhealthy competitive streak in me!  (At the moment, I'm ahead....)

I'm using trees more and more as my backdrop to shoots.  We're a bit spoilt for choice round here!   Me and my friend Hannah often go out for early morning walks amongst the trees, catching the golden light and taking photos to inspire future work.  

After meeting properly at the beginning of the year, when I took profile images for Hannah's book Illuminate (out in November), we chatted about our shared passion for nature, and in particular everything woodland!  Hannah designs & makes beautiful paper cut lighting.  I love what she does and I've been a big fan of her work for ages.  AND, she gets to be shopkeeper too in her wonderful lighting emporium Radiance!

So, the thermos was dusted down, and on went the hiking boots! It's so refreshing to walk with someone who, like me, will also randomly stop to take pictures of something that has caught their eye!

I've discovered lots of new locations for future shoots -

 Seen shape and form in nature

 (image by Hannah Nunn)

And seen the light!

Walks, thermos tea and chats have led to future collaborations in the making.  Hannah makes exquisite personalised lamps for weddings, partnerships, birthdays, anniversaries - you name it!

We are currently planning a wedding shoot to showcase the beauty of these bespoke lamps, probably out there amongst the trees somewhere!  I love the idea of taking the indoors outdoors where the inspiration initially sparked.

That will have to be in a couple of weeks as Hannah's jetting off for an adventure in Japan.  A wonderful, inspiring trip, full of cherry blossom, bamboo and new ideas.  I'm sure she will have some tales on her blog soon!

I'll always be searching for new backdrops and looking out for that magical light we have in this beautiful valley.  When everything collides to give us something a bit special out of those things we see everyday....

My new website is now up and running if you wanted to take a peek!  More words on my re-brand & new look site on here in the next few days.

I'm On Brides Up North Today!

I'm so, so excited to be on the Brides Up North blog today!  I've been trying to keep it under wraps, but now, at last, I can shout it from the rooftops!

I've been following Julia's blog from the start.  I've watched it blossom and grow into a wonderful resource for all things 'wedding'.  It's insightful, friendly, packed full of information, and a jolly good read!  If you haven't paid it a visit - go on!

I will be photographing Amy & Grant's wedding in a matter of weeks.  I'm always fascinated by a couple's story about when and how they met.  Amy & Grant met when they were both performing in Romeo and Juliet (I know!)  You can read about their wonderful story on the Brides Up North blog - Amy's words do it a lot better justice than mine ever could!  We discussed the engagement shoot and decided on a Midsummer Night's Dream theme.

The featured shoot was a collaboration with the delightful Fiona from Firenza Floral Design.  She approached me with the idea of working together on a shoot.  She's a visionary in all things of the floral persuasion!  Knowing how exquisite Fiona's work is, this helped me to visualise the shoot.  I wanted to give it an ethereal, dreamlike quality and immediately knew the perfect location.  I love to shoot in the ancient woodland found in Hardcastle Crags.  There is a real sense of history, of something magical, and it never ceases to inspire me!  It's a great location and even has it's very own wedding venue in the shape of Gibson Mill.

On the morning of the shoot, I opened my eyes tentatively, hoping they would be greeted by warm sunshine.  I wasn't disappointed!  Now we just had to make it last until late afternoon!  Myself and Fiona went into the Crags a little bit earlier to set everything up - she had all sorts of pretty in the back of her trusty van!  We have renamed our location The Glade - it was just the perfect spot.  All set up, we just needed Amy and Grant.  Over the brow of the hill they ambled towards us, giggling & hand in hand.  With the late afternoon golden sunshine streaming through the trees, I think we all knew we were going to have a very lovely shoot.

So - here is the blog post link with a few words from Amy and myself and lots more photographs.  And now I'm really looking forward to the wedding! x

Musical Musings

Recently, I've been noticing that listening to music has been influencing my workflow.  When I'm editing, I'll always choose music that seems to fit the shoot somehow.  For weddings, I'll sometimes choose albums that have the track a bride walked in to, or when the happy couple walk back down the aisle together.  The music I've been listening to whilst editing then makes it to the viewings I have with clients.  I find it incredibly emotive - beautiful moments being played out to a soundtrack. 

Music has always been a big part of my life.  I love the emotions it can evoke and the memories it can jolt.  At family parties, when I was growing up, the table would be cleared, washing up would be done and the music would start.  Whether it was all of us round the piano, or being thrust under the tree at Christmas to sing Away In A Manger, a get together was never complete without a bit of music at the end.

The 80's came and went in a flurry of fashion blunders.  I never really got the Duran vs Spandau thing.  I was listening to Kate Bush and Blondie and electronic stuff.  Then, off to college, and along came lots of gigs.  I loved seeing live music.  Something inside me clicked, and I decided I wanted to sing in a band.  I was in a couple in Liverpool & London with varying success stories.  We didn't reach super-stardom, but I loved it.

 For the last couple of shoots I've done, I found myself listening to music whilst I was in the planning stage.  I was choosing music in my office and for my iPod when I was out and about.  Both shoots had an ethereal dreamlike quality to them in my head.  Ideas for images started racing, listening to Euan Atkinson (more of this young chap in a bit), and Jo Hamilton.  I stumbled on her beautiful music by chance.  She was brought up in the Scottish highlands and just seems to magically connect with this landscape.  The description of her music on her website "Björk and Sarah McLachlan singing Robbie Burns, backed by Sigur Rós” - works for me.

To Euan - so musically accomplished for his years.  He writes big, powerful, yet tender and emotive pieces of music, each one an individual soundtrack.    Think Michael Nyman, Thomas Newman (American Beauty, Revolutionary Road) or Rob Dougan's contribution to The Matrix.  His tunes are so thoughtful and atmospheric (just take a listen to Neon Scope), they really struck a chord with me.  So much so, I've commissioned him to write a tune to accompany a promo piece for my launch.  I had a little listen to it in progress the other day and to say I'm chuffed is an understatement!  If you've been thinking about music for your website or a promo video, he is your chap.  After hearing my track progressing, I then had the pleasure of taking some promo shots for him. 

 I do believe we'll be seeing his name on many a film credit in the future.

And so to my own musical adventures.  The guitar stares at me, willing me to give it another try, as do the borrowed ukuleles.  But I think I'm quite happy to keep listening to those far more accomplished than me!

Holiday Inspiration

The Easter weekend was a lovely mixture of seeing family, walking, and copious amounts of chocolate consumption.  I also wanted to give myself some time to just sit back and relax a little, read, and watch those films I've had on my list for a while!  I have a table in my office where I keep a selection of books and magazines that have inspired me, or I'm saving to read on a rainy day.  One of these is 'A Book Of Britain' by Johnny Scott.  It's a beautiful hardback about the countryside, the people that live in it, their customs, and traditions.

 I've realised more and more that nature and the seasons inspire my work. This is a book I can dip in and out of, and I always see or read something new.  The book comes to life through Cristian Barnett's photography.

 Along with the Easter eggs, the big kid in me also needed feeding!  I bought 'The Boy In The Oak' a few months ago.  It literally fell onto my foot in a bookshop and when I picked it up,  I loved the cover and the images inside.  It's both written and illustrated by Jessica Albarn.  It's a fantasy about a boy who discovers an oak tree in his family's back garden and how his world collides with the enchanted one the fairies inhabit, who protect the natural world.  I only recently found out that it's also been made into a short film starring Jude Law. 

I've had the DVD of 'Where The Wild Things Are' for a while, just waiting for the right moment to watch it, and I wasn't disappointed.  The photography is stunning and use of light is beautiful.  For an hour and a half, I was completely enthralled as the film follows the adventures of a young boy named Max as he enters the world of the Wild Things.  If you haven't already seen it, I'd highly recommend it!

Whatever you were doing over Easter, I hope you had a lovely, and inspiring time.

Amy & the Teddy Bears' Picnic

I've been lucky enough to have taken photographs of Amy over the past few years, ever since she was a baby.  I love seeing personalities and characters forming and growing, and documenting these through my images.

For this year's shoot, I asked Amy what she'd like to do, and she told me she'd love a teddy bears' tea party in the woods, so we started planning!  As a location photographer, I'm always on the lookout for new, interesting backdrops.  Formby Point seemed to be the perfect place, with those amazing trees straight out of a storybook!  In the late afternoon sunshine, we laid out everything we would need for the picnic, waited for the teddy bears, and this is what happened....

We couldn't believe that the clearing we had chosen was equipped with a ready made den - perfect for a bit of reading!

After the picnic, there was time for a spot of dancing!

And hide and seek...

And as the sun lowered in the sky, we said goodbye to a perfect day.