I thought I would post a quick update on how things are going. Thank you all so much for the texts & emails. My op on Monday went well, although as expected the anesthetic wasn't nice. It never agrees with me and left me feeling quite sick for a few days. Still, I got about 20 hours sleep which was great. I am recovering well, and am back to shooting on the 14th of June. In the meantime I will be working hard on my May proofs & orders. I have a lot to get through, so please bear with me for the next week. Any shoots that took place before the 22nd of May will be proofed and online by next weekend. Thank you for your patience.

There are 3 or 4 session slots left for June and some for July. If you are looking for a weekend slot before Christmas I would strongly advise that you book it now - I have one weekend left for August (22/8), and already taking bookings for September.

Take care, and I will be back to blogging on the 14th!

Only a week left before my op! I have 3 sessions tomorrow, and next week is very busy with 6 portrait shoots, 2 engagements and one wedding....whew , I think I will need the time off. If your session was in April and you are still waiting for your proofs, please accept my apologies. I am running rather behind due to the amount of bluebell sessions I had to squeeze in in addition to my normal workload. I am getting there and you proofs will definitely be done in the next week.

Availability wise, my next available slot is the 17/6 for a weekday, and the morning of the 15/8 if it's a weekend. I have a couple of Sundays (28/6 and the 5/7)  if you are absolutely desperate but it needs to be an early, 9.30 am session.

Thank you for those who read my "models required" post , please keep the photos coming in and I will be in touch by the end of the month.

Tight it's 1.30 so off to bed for me, have to be up early for a shoot in the park.

p.s. I has a couple of email asking how my new diet is going....put it this way - the latte won!

Feeling a little less stressed today. But this probably will not last long, since I have now  actually made a decision to properly start my diet! As I have been so busy, my whole running and healthy eating regime have pretty much been forgotten. But with the weather so lovely, and promises of an hot summer...I must do something ( i.e lose a stone). It's depressing seeing all these lovely slim people in summer dresses, and having had got out my summer wardrobe nothing fits properly. It's just so hard for women isn't it? Trying to to have a career, be a mummy, a wife, a friend, and find time for yourself. In fact I find it virtually impossible... Anyway, enough moaning, off to have a banana...( but what i really want is a nice hot cross bun and a cafe latte!). Be strong...

Well it's certainly been a busy 6 weeks! With the bluebell season pretty much over, it will be a mixture of studio and outdoor sessions for me now, rather than mostly location. This is great news and my hay fever has been getting a bit out of control so it will be nice to let it calm down.

May is fully booked, and apart from a few newborn emergency slots, I am at maximum capacity, with 20+ sessions to go before the month is out.

I am having an operation on the 1st of June so will be out of action for a couple of weeks, and am back to work on the 13/6. Therefore I am now taking bookings for the week commencing the 15/6.  Saturday availability is very limited, with the first slot available being the 4th of July, followed by the 15th of August. Sundays are my only days off so I prefer not to take any sessions, but if you are desperate and are are happy to pay the Sunday premium then please get in touch and I'll see what I can do.

I am looking for a couple of models for a new project but my needs are quite specific - so if you know anyone that fits the brief, please do let me know. I am looking for 4 children in total

- girl and boy aged 4-5
- girl and boy aged 10-12

The requirements are that they need to be children I have not photographed before, and they mustn't be camera shy. I am looking for big, striking eyes, lots of hair ( i.e either long, or lots of curls, or Afro hair) , and of course personality. I also love long hair on boys, and dark or olive skin would also be great ( not essential).

So if you think your child is particularly striking, please send me a photo via email HERE and I will come back to you by the last week May if you are successful. Payment will be with digital files - these are very valuable, as you can blow your images up to as large as you please! A model release will need to signed.

I will leave you with an image of one of my favorite little models - Shea. She is stunning little girl and I used lots of images of her when I initially launched my business.


 

Today is Sunday, and I am sitting in front of my computer with lots and lots of work to do...which made me think. What are the things I can compromise on a little, that are time consuming, and a "nice to have", rather than a "must have"? Many came to mind, with sneak previews being one of them. But I love you to have a little taster from the session, especially as proofs are taking 3-4 weeks at the moment. So, what I have decided to do from now on, is to sneak preview just  one or two images from the session. This means you will be able to see them bigger too!

The other thing that will happen is the watermark will be a bit stronger. Why?

Well...it has come to my attention that often images are pulled from my website and blog, and then used  on Facebook profiles or in photo galleries. I really don't mind if you do that providing you then put a link back to my website, as its good for my business. But it is still nice to be asked. I am more than happy to provide a full set of Facebook files, of any images that have been purchased in the past. These can be freely used on the internet, with a link back to my website. Please remember, unless you have permission to use the image, then you are breaching copyright law.

Which leads me nicely to the last issue I think needs clarifying. Which is, when you buy a print, you buy a print. You are not buying the copyright to it. Therefore any form of reproduction of that print, is definitely breaching copyright. So scanning the print, and blowing it up on a canvas or putting it on a mug, or anything like that if fact, is illegal. The biggest thing that bothers me about this is that the quality of anything blown up from a 10" by 8" print will not be good, and nowhere near comparable to a properly produced canvas. Next thing, my name is then associated with a low quality reproduction. For those of you who know me well, you will know this is my worst nightmare, as quality control and attention to detail is very important to me. My other issue with anyone doing this, is that it directly affects my livelihood. Copying/scanning  others people work is not legal!

This is why several photographers I know do not sell loose prints at all...everything is framed or already offered on canvas. I have considered this route but don't think it would work for me, however some changes will be made soon.

I am sorry if this seems like a bit of a rant, but it needs to be said. Most of my clients are absolutely lovely, and would never dream of doing any of the above. But its a small world and news travels fast down the grapevine. So when I get a call where someone says - "Can I please have a large framed portrait in those lovely frames, same as you did for xyz, you know the one that looks all nice and soft focus" , and I know that xyz purchased 10" by 8" prints, it makes me feel very let down...and the 'soft focus" bit kills me - it basically means it's pixelated and out of focus! Something my images are certainly not...and I certainly don't appreciate my name associated with low quality products.