All the Autumn feels

A family photo shoot always starts with the same conversation. We’re not photogenic. We hate having pictures taken. Dad is very self-conscious. Etc. Etc.

So let me reassure you - we’re going for a walk. Nothing more, nothing less. We will chat and the kids will play. And whilst all this is happening, the photographs will magically appear without anybody realising it.

On this occasion, RHS Harlow Carr was enormously helpful, with her abundant colour and endless choice of routes. The Japanese Acers were in the full flush of vibrancy, and the family had helpfully coordinated their garments to match. Not much room for black and white here.

Siblings, instead of offering hesitancy or shyness, were in full energetic and rivalry mode. All good for me.

Three can be the magic number. And sometimes not. The trick is patience, and finding a location that offers so many opportunities that the kids’ interest is retained, and no-one feels they have to out-do the others for the best shot.

I don’t think mums and dads usually anticipate that this occasion will have anything to do with their own relationship. It’s about the kids and, at a push, the family unit. But this is a story which began with a romance, so why not capture that too? It is, after all, the linch pin here.

Carry, walk, piggy-back, sit on a bench, pick up a stick, straddle a fence, hunt for pine cones, run, climb a tree, or just talk. As long as it’s natural, I can capture it.

November has been wet, so getting out and about last weekend (for the first time in a while) was fun and refreshing. There is still time to squeeze in an autumn/winter shoot this year, so get in touch - they make great Xmas presents.

Family Photos

Late winter and early Spring is a quiet time for weddings, so I usually make the most of the off-season to explore my own family a little, through the lens.

OK, so she’s not one of my family, but she was awfully cute!

Our early Spring walk route took in a series of local footpaths which we often frequent with our two mutts. Everything is just beginning to look a little greener right now, and the air tastes different somehow. Fresher.

As usual, we stopped for a few snaps. It’s just one of those occupational hazards. The rhododendrons in this case helped out.

Spring is just beginning to show its face. Little buds are everywhere.

Somehow the buds seem less reluctant to be photographed than my kiddos.

And not everything is green, I discovered. The brazen cerise of these new conifer buds were so eye-catching. If you look closely you can find things that you have never even noticed before.

I think this may have been just one too many photos on this occasion.

Autumn in Miniature

This is the most popular time of year for family photo shoots. It’s the perfect setting, all that leafy colour, and the perfect timing to create something worthy of Grandma’s festive stocking.

It’s also my favourite time of year for Mini Shoots with kids. Helpful for me because I can fit several shoots in to one day, and helpful for the families who only have to afford the £99 shoot cost in order to have the raw material for some awesome Christmas presents. It’s also only half an hour to hold your breath and hope the kids behave in front of the nice lady with the camera.

E arrived on a pastel pink and blue scooter. I didn’t get the memo, but she decided to let me be her friend anyway. Gorgeous AND forgiving.

Harrogate’s Valley Gardens was our meeting place, and its multitudinous nooks and crannies provided us with lots of opportunities to mix it up.

When the low autumn sun refuses to play ball, and the late afternoon throws you only dingy shade, the mood of a shoot changes. No bad thing, though.

Frankly, E and I had a rather lovely time hiding in dark corners and exploring the park whilst mum and dad looked on.

Choose a photographer who is comfortable and experienced with children. A mini shoot rarely lasts more than 20-30 minutes, and as such there is little time to waste on acclimatising or gently growing a child’s comfort in front of the lens.

My 30 minute Mini Shoots are available now and include 5 free high resolution digital images and a half-size online password-protected gallery.

Contact me at eyesomephoto@gmail.com or on 07957627217

Being One

Kate's parents decided that their gorgeous daughter's first birthday was one for commemoration. Maybe a party? Perhaps a particular gift? Maybe a special day out? Maybe all of the above, but more than anything else they wanted to ensure it was captured for posterity. That's where I came in.

One of their favourite spots happens to be Fountains Abbey near Ripon, North Yorkshire, so where better for a relaxed walk and some photographs?

We took a turn about the empty ruins and a romp across the grand lawns, but there were really only two things that engaged Kate's attention in a deeply pleasurable way. One was her little lion teddy bear. The other was a brown puddle. 

It gave me serious joy (although from the expression on Kate's face, not quite as much as it gave her) to watch her creating a Jackson Pollock-like mess on her perfectly manicured outfit as she jumped and stamped gleefully in the mud, and it soon became clear that extraction was going to be problematic.

Being one, it seems, is to enjoy life's simple pleasures. Walking unaided. Lingering for a while to enjoy one of nature's great wet gifts.  Getting up high (with daddy's help) to admire the view. Sharing a snack with best friend, Basil. Pointing at birds. Maybe we could all learn a thing or two about pausing from time to time, from the our pre-schoolers.

Kate has already grown since we made these images, and by the time she's two, or four, or ten, she will quite probably have changed beyond all recognition, not only in features, but in actions and taste for those small pleasures which gave her so much joy on this day. So her parents have done her a huge service in investing in my help for the laying down of this record of her very first year.  In years to come they will be able to look back and enjoy exactly who and how she was in this moment in time, and leave that legacy for Kate's future.

Family photo shoots are available from just £150, and all inclusive packages (with and online gallery and a full set of high resolution digital image files) from just £399. Please enquire to Helen at eyesomephoto@gmail.com.

Easter

The wettest I can remember for a very long time, that's for sure, so making the most of the great outdoors has been something of a challenge.

Not to be bullied into hibernation by the climate, me and mine headed to the North Yorkshire Moors for some dreary sightseeing. 

Are we nearly there yet?

Even Dalby Forest, in all its majesty, could barely summon daylight for us. If we parents were to suffer, then we might as well make sure the kids suffered too, so a 5 mile walk provided the perfect antidote to a fun day out for them.

Even Mister Rabbit set aside his vegetable plot-induced differences with Mr McGregor, as a result of the incessant downpours. And lets' face it, if a rabbit is miserable at Easter, what chance do the rest of us have?

We loved the gardens and the tour of the house at Nunnington Hall (and not ONLY because it was dry inside).

The one and only saving grace for the week was the presence of an indoor swimming pool at our holiday cottage complex. It was just another form of wet, after all, if a little more pleasant.

Whilst the misery of cold, damp and downright spooky forests were less than tempting for the youngsters, they did provide a moody backdrop for some portraits.

The elegant lady below was by far the most happy and well-dressed member of the general public we encountered all week. One must appreciate the attention to detail of Treesa's (not her real name) lipstick, beads and nipple combo. Outstanding.

Happy Easter. I do hope yours was better.

The best of Autumn 2017

It's been a busy one! Always the most popular time of year, the British autumn wove its magic once again, tempting plenty of families outdoors to make the most of the colour and late sunshine of October and November.

Here are a few of my favourites from this season.

Glorious ladies, of all ages and nationalities, making life behind the lens much easier.

Families took to the woods, often with their pooches, for either a 30 minute walk and a relaxed mini-shoot, or for the full experience. 

It's not too late to book a full or mini session, this time with a Christmas tone. 30 minute Mini Sessions are just £99 and include 5 digital image files, and Full Sessions start from £150.

Summer Holibobs

When your appetite for plane fares diminishes, as ours did this year with the prospect of hauling our oversized, expensive brood to the continent once again, go Old School.

The lure of the British seaside was made all the more attractive by the idea that we would be saving thousands of pounds by not 'hiring the sunshine' for a fortnight, and made yet more tolerable with knowing that the kennels bill could also be eluded if we stayed in Blighty. 

Two cars, two dogs, two suitcases, four body boards, one funeral, four kids and seven hours later (the earlier we gloss over the latter items, the better), North Devon was in our sights.

Our locations didn't disappoint. Wetsuits went on quickly (and came off much more slowly), dogs drank sea water (yes, they ARE that dumb), sand got in knickers, the badminton kit stayed firmly in the boot, and the Sponge Bob Square Pants theme tune became a distant memory. Bliss.

And whilst our tans were more due to the burn of the wind than the sun, I could feel my omnipresent tension beginning to subside as the days progressed. Nature had begun to provide her magical therapy and relaxation furtively slipped into our veins like a warm draft of whisky.

The sound of wood on metal brought the idyl to an abrupt end. Let's just say I wasn't driving and leave it at that. Ahem. 

Somehow these British based holibobs always stay more firmly in our memory banks than our more exotic ventures. The fondness with which I hold my own childhood rock-pooling, flip-flop filled days is irreplaceable. Nostalgia rocks.

An Elf-free Christmas Mini Shoot

This is the most popular time of year for family photo shoots. And I can see why. The foliage, the clean air, the low sunshine and the enticing countryside all make for the most alluring images.

Add in to the mix two enchanting children and a not-too-shabby-in-the-looks-department set of parents, and the perfect autumn image ingredients are complete.

Freddie, aged 7 was impressive in Tweed, missing only a brace of pheasant to complete the country gentleman's attire for this shoot (pardon the pun), whilst baby sister Amelie, like a snuggly winter fairy in layers of tulle and fur, was fighting off a chest infection with grit and determination. 

Our location was tree heaven. Birk Crag nestles unobtrusively alongside the RHS's Harlow Carr Gardens, concealing a wondrous 27 acres of deciduous woodland, ripe for a photographer's picking at this time of year. Steep slopes lead visitors down to the waters of Oak Beck, where the shallow lapping stream is benign enough to allow children to wade in their wellies whilst parents can drink in the colourful surroundings.

Fallen trees and giant rocks provide excellent climbing opportunities for a betweeded boy, and the procurement of a crocheted blanket gave little Amelie's bottom a dry, warm resting place for a few snaps.

This was a Mini Shoot. Approximately 30 minutes long, it provides families a low budget way to capture some lasting memories which can be utilised as Christmas presents for loved ones, or simply as a way to capture a moment of this impeccable season, in all its glory. 

As you can see, you don't have to dress as an elf for a Christmas Mini Shoot, so if this £99 budget option appeals to your needs, get in touch before the moment is gone. The shoot includes 6 digital image files of your choice.