Many people may see me as a photographer, someone who takes pictures for a living. In fact, I probably saw it that way too when I first started out. But I don't see it that way anymore. The creation of my portraits is a lengthy process that begins from the moment I take the booking and discuss with my client their needs and preferences of style. It is from that moment that I begin to plan the session, first in my head, and then on paper.
Once the plan is in place I work out the lighting set up required to achieve my vision. I choose the appropriate backdrop and any necessary props. And before a single shot is even taken, I know what software editing will be required for the final piece. I even know what frame moulding will best suit the image. This is not merely a photograph I am taking. This is a well thought out portrait I am creating, every detail intentional. With that in mind, I like to think of myself as a portrait artist and not just a photographer. And to be honest, this is why I love what I do. I love being creative and I make sure that I get to be creative in as many ways and as often as I can.
I always have a clear vision in my head of how I want my finished portrait to look. In each of these sessions shown here the finished results matched perfectly the vision I created at the planning stage.
Abbie and Mitchell are great clients to work with and I love the fact that I got to work with them twice. It was so nice to talk to them as first time parents before the baby and to see how well and happy they are as new parents.
I was lucky with these sessions in that I heard the words I love to hear from clients and that is 'we trust you to create something beautiful'. Apart from saying they liked the baby weighing scales against a dark background, I basically had free reign to create what I wanted. It gave me great freedom which is a huge factor in being creative. Thankfully I'm hearing this more and more which is only spurring on my creativity even more.
Now the image below, Ellis in the pram, is one of my favourite images I've ever taken. Its actually a vision I had even before I found the pram, which I stumbled across at an antiques fair last October. I finally had the chance to use it here with Ellis. Its exactly what I had hoped it would be and is being printed as a sample for the studio. I can't wait to have it hanging on my wall so I can look at it every day. It will serve as an inspiration for creating more such pieces. The hunt for new props has already begun. And a tidy up mission in our garden sheds is the next step as I'm going to need a lot of space to store these things. Of course that's a task that needs to wait until spring finally arrives, whenever that may be.
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