It's been a while since my last blog post, on the basis I've actually been very busy lately! In the past fortnight, I've had three separate shoots, which means three lots of editing of photographs afterwards.
This particular post is about a personal project I've recently completed. The reason I'm writing about these photographs is basically because I really like them, and also because I like to keep working on all sorts of photographic projects whenever I can. Sometimes the influences from a shoot like this can end up being used for a bridal or portraiture shoot. I like to keep working at my photography, whether someone else plans the shoot, or its one I create myself. At any rate, personal projects keep me out of mischief.
This photoshoot has been on the cards for a while now - it's something I've wanted to do, and as with all my most successful shoots, took a fair amount of organising, planning, and researching before I could even click the button and take the first photograph. I must admit, I was hugely nervous about this shoot. Why? Because of all the people involved, the planning, and organising, and even the weather, absolutely everything had gone perfectly right. When everything else goes right it does leave me to get on with the photographic side, and I always reserve a little nervousness for something going wrong during the shoot. I think it's simply because I care about what I do - I want to get it right, I want to exceed my own expectations, and I want to deliver success back to everyone else involved in the shoot.
Outdoor photoshoots in Scotland can be hit or miss, in terms of the weather. Autumnal photoshoots are never a certain thing, and I spent the best part of ten days leading up to the shoot watching the weather forecast online, much like watching the lottery to see if your numbers appear. As it happened, we were exceptionately lucky. The entire week was blighted by bad weather on and off, but our shoot happened on the one day in weeks when we had unusually good weather. Being in Scotland, I do have to come prepared for a shoot. So I had some lovely colourful brollies in the event of a shower, and some nice fleecy blankets to keep the girls snug between shots.
The dresses and all the clothes used in the photoshoot were provided by Wendy from
Flossy and Dossy. I was keen to work with Wendy when I saw her clothes, as I had a particular shot in mind that I wanted to create. I thought that they would be perfect in this setting.
As with any shoot I work on, I usually end up with more props than I end up using - but mostly tools and props that I can and do end up using again.
I was working with Kathryn Hughes the make up artist. I've worked with Kathryn quite a few times previously. I must admit, when I find a great make up artist, I make a point of working with them again. Kathryn and I started by comparing ideas and research as to the look we wanted for the shoot. I'm inclined to leave more of it in her hands, mostly because I know she delivers a good quality service and I trust her. But also perhaps because I occasionally have a tendency to see every idea and think "yeah! lets do that!", and if we actually went with every idea, the girls' faces would end up looking like they'd been dragged through a make-up counter backwards.
My assistant for the day was Laura Hughes (no relation to Kathryn), who I know from my student days as a fellow photographer. Working with other photographers enables me to have someone to bounce ideas off, and someone who understands how the kit works, and can see the things I'm trying to create.
The lovely models are Lainey Virginia Brown, and Melanie Long. Although this was my first time working with them, they were both very professional in their work, despite the long day!
Without a committed team, I don't think the shoot would have gone as well as it did. I felt afterwards that the photographs produced met exactly to the original plan, and if I'm honest, I feel they've exceeded my own expectations.
These photographs are currently featured (alongside more photographs) on my commercial photography website:
Viewpark Gardens was a fantastic venue for this shoot - although now closed to the public for the winter, it's still available for bridal parties throughout the year. I think it makes a wonderful wedding photography backdrop particularly where the budget might not match the cost of a country mansion with beautiful grounds to wander round in.
