Hello, I hope you are all safe and well and have survived lockdown number 2. I had a very quiet start to November with two weeks of virtually no work and then a flurry of jobs in the second half. I wonder how December will pan out for all of us!
Here is my December newsletter which jumps back to look at my jobs from this time last year.
This was my second education photography photoshoot for Lancaster Girls’ Grammar School and I was really pleased to go back and work with Sandra, the development officer, to capture some more images for their website and marketing material. It really is a lovely school, the girls are brilliant and there is such a warm, kind and vibrant feel to the school. As usual with school photoshoots, we dash about the place going from subject to subject trying to make the most of the day and capture as much variety as possible. I always come away from these shoots thinking how fab it would be to go back to school and that I’d really listen this time! Above are some of my favourite shots.
Now I consider myself to be a dog person, I have one of my own and dogs seem to like me. Not this dog. She took against me from the moment I walked in the door and if I got within a metre of her she would growl at me. I tried to win her over with charm and treats. I even tried disinterest – nothing worked, so we just had to do the photoshoot as enemies. It may look like she’s smiling in this photo, but I think she’s just keeping a close eye on me and my ankles. The shoot was for Pets at Home Magazine with owner Rachael in Cheshire. I think Rachael liked me well enough…
One of my regular visits to law firm Mills and Reeve in Leeds, to keep their corporate headshots up to date. The headshots need to be kept consistent in style to previous shots so they all tie in nicely. I also photographed a group shot that was needed for PR purposes (NB this was pre-Covid). I’ve done a few corporate headshot shoots since June and it’s quite frustrating having to keep your distance from people. It feels quite impersonal now. I’m used to making sure people’s hair is behaving, taking shine off noses and straightening ties. But at least it’s making me more precise with directions (that’s if people can hear them through my mask!).
Psychologies Magazine commissioned me to photograph their ‘My Life, My Way’ feature with Celia Gaze, owner of the Wellbeing Farm over in Bolton. The Wellbeing Farm is an amazing place and Celia hosts weddings in a beautiful big barn surrounded by gorgeous countryside. They also do corporate events and parties. Oh, and they have Llamas that wear bow ties for special occasions! I had plenty to go on for this 6 page feature but the weather was utterly against us – the sky was grey, heavy and oppressive. However we didn’t let it stop us taking the Llamas for a little jaunt – sometimes you just have to pretend the sun is shining.
A Manchester based client asked if I could go and photograph their leadership team in London. Cashfac, an accountancy solutions company wanted straightforward headshots on a white background. I had the background delivered to the company and then travelled there and back in one day by train. Travelling by train is a lot less stressful than driving to London, but lugging my own body weight of equipment on and off the tube is quite a workout!
A photoshoot for the Co-op Food Magazine with Gemma the ice-cream product developer. Gemma designed the Strawberry Rose Cones to launch in time for Valentines Day. She researches the latest trends in London and Italy and then spends hours taste testing. What a job! At the HQ in Manchester, I spotted a wall I thought would be the perfect backdrop – unfortunately it was behind three industrial sized fridges. But with a bit of help and determination we managed to manoeuvre ourselves and the fridges to find a little bit of blue sky which left plenty of room for the text on the page layout.
A heartwarming story to end with. I met Katie and Teddy in Rotherham to photograph them for Real People magazine. Katie managed to lose 13 stone so that she could start IVF treatment and try for a baby with her husband Mark. It wasn’t an easy journey but happily Teddy was born in 2015. He is a live wire and we had fun on our photoshoot.
Thanks for reading, stay safe and enjoy the run up to Christmas.
Claire x
Well done everyone, we’ve managed to get through the long, dark, dreary January days and into February, which is at least a little bit closer to Spring and brighter times. Just a warning to anyone squeamish - be careful scrolling down! I’m featuring a photoshoot I did for Red Cross First Aid Training...
Read moreCroBio are a really interesting innovative company that may well make a massive difference to the world. Their goal is to ‘create an environmentally sustainable solution to alleviate global agricultural drought and help reverse the effects of climate change, through durable carbon drawdown’. I met them at CroBio’s lab in Macclesfield...
Read moreI spent a day with a lovely family to create images for MCS Certified, my brief was to capture natural images of the family, in their home, living their lives and to have subtle references to ‘energy’. The star of the show - is such a chilled little guy who takes everything in his stride. We all worked around him, giving him space and down time whenever he needed it - he really is an amazing little person.
Read moreI spent half a day with Joe and his team at Soteria Fire Protection in Huddersfield to create branding photography for their website and general promotion and marketing. Soteria provides expert fire safety solutions across the north. We started with headshots against a mid grey background, wearing branded t-shirts of all the staff. Then moved onto more editorial style portraits of Joe
Read moreI visited a lovely school in my home town of Huddersfield - Moor End Academy. The pupils were really easy to work with and glad to be involved. I worked with Susan, who organised the schedule and helped me on the day. We were looking to get lots of photography of the students working hard, interacting with each other and enjoying the school environment...
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