Portrait Experience; Erin

Recently, I had another portfolio building shoot with my sister, Erin.
Her and mother had come to visit for the weekend and she needed some headshots for work, so I took the opportunity to also get some images for my portfolio!

We were kind of squished in my little living room, next to the big windows, with my huge backdrop taking up most of the space! But, I'm pretty pleased with the results!
I tried out some poses reminiscent of the Old Masters; paintings that I love. I really want my work to be seen as something resembling the old painted portraits families would have above the fireplace. I want people to see my portraits as something important to hold on to; to be passed down generations and kept in the family as a memento of past ancestors. So using all the fabric and textures and colours and poses which takes inspiration from that period really makes sense to me!

I am in the process of ordering and putting together studio samples and all my marketing. So far I have my premier product as a sample and am constantly working on all the marketing and paper work that goes with running a business! It's a lot of work but I can't wait to get all my stuff together and show you all my beautiful products!

These images were all shot with natural light and I had big windows to the right of me. I also used a reflector to add more light. I did face a new problem I haven't really come across before. My sister wears glasses so there was quite a bit of glare on the glasses which needed to be combatted! I mostly tried to change the angle I was shooting at and then edited out some of the left-over glare. But, I have since read of a trick to use with people wearing glasses, so I'm looking forward to trying it with the next person!

As always, here are a few of my favourites.

I've (re)Discovered Something...

I have been wondering for a few days whether to share this or not, but I've decided I should. It's kind of come at a pivotal moment in my career as a photographer and this story only cements in my heart why I do what I do.

On Sunday, the boyfriend and I were at his relative's with some of his family; we spent the afternoon eating in the sun and chatting about, well, mainly about Game of Thrones… Once the sun started to set and things got a bit chilly, we decanted into the sun room for more conversation. The talk turned to the babies of the family; the ever-growing brood and the newest member, a 2 month old little girl.
A photo was shared around and cooing noises were made.

Then, another image was brought out. It showed one of my boyfriend's relatives with their, sadly, late spouse. The spouse had passed away quite some time ago, a long time before I met my boyfriend and far too young. The photo, all sepia tinged, mottled and framed in a mount envelope, was a wedding portrait. Two faces smiling out; one of whom I had never met. But that didn't matter. When you hold a photograph like that in your hands, you don't need to have known the person to know who they were. The smiles said it all; the love was evident and, as such, the grief still remains.

The room became emotionally charged as conversation turned to this person and the memories and voids they had left behind. Time does not heal all wounds, but it affords us the capacity to accept life as it has become and is becoming.

As people reminisced, it hit me; THIS is why I make photographs. THIS is why I feel the urge to capture people in a frame. A fleeting moment that, in some cases, can be all too fleeting. And yet, that moment - THAT, EXACT moment, will be forever captured. Like a tiny spot of someone, a piece of them, of their soul, forever trapped between the edges of the frame. Forever able to be looked upon and to be looked out of. That moment will never come back, yet it is here, in front of me. THEY are here.

It is these photographs that, when the people we love are gone, bring us comfort and sanctuary. They ignite the memories we hold so dear and in doing so, are kept alive. They watch over us from their frames and, because of these photographs, will always be with us.

Capture your loved ones in their frames - as many frames as you can make - before you no longer have the chance.

This is why I make photographs.