Sunday, May 5, 2013

Oh well, y'know. A bit of this and a bit of that

People keep asking me, "What are you doing, what's happened to the blog?"

Ok, I know. I'm sorry. Just for you here's a whistle stop tour of the last few weeks.

The studio. Oh my Lordy Lord. The studio.

It's been battered, bashed, changed, painted, decorated, and generally pulled around so it bears no resemblance at all to how it used to look.

Bob has boxed in the roller shutter door which will make the place much lighter, warmer and quieter. He's also made a dressing and prop room for me. That's going to be amazing. I got the flooring for in there last week and once it's down I can get all the props I'm currently storing in baskets out on display.

The new studio flooring has gone as well and I've been running round and picking up some gorgeous new props while Bob's been doing all the hard manly work.

Carla made me this brilliant cushion. Isn't she clever?


You can't tell how big it is from the photo but I can tell you it's big enough to pose not one but two six week old babies on.

Well, we all know how much I like shoes so how could I not buy this?


I saw it in a shop one day while I was out walking the dog. Obviously I couldn't take the dog in the shop so I practically dragged him back to the studio so I could go and buy the chair. It's not often he struggles to keep up with me, it's usually the other way round.

Then when I was out having a posh coffee with Carla at the Darwen Gift and Furniture Centre (well worth a visit if you find yourself in Darwen ). I'm always in there,  it's just so jam packed full of gorgeousness.

While we were there we saw this:


As you can see, even the dog is worshipping it! It's going to go against my new red rose wallpaper (the chaise longue, not the dog) .

For the 'urban corner' in the studio, Carla got busy again. This time she drew some graffiti for me. As you can see by the hair, the girl she drew is obviously herself.




I can't wait to see the finished result.

While all this has been going on I've been having to hide all the debris every time I've had anyone in the studio so it's been a constant round of tidying up, which mostly consists of hiding everything behind the screens.

We've painted the kitchen and got loads of new samples images to show you. Watch this space for details of an open day with lots of goodies and special offers coming soon.

Aside of all this we've also had a steady stream of Cherubs through the studio and the wedding season is well and truly underway. Our feet have hardly touched the ground. It's been a busy year so far.

Over the next few weeks I'll be posting lots of images from weddings that we've shot recently and keeping you up to date with what's going on so don't forget to keep checking back. These are exciting times!

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Shy guy and gorgeous girl's fairytale wedding


I've wondered many times why it is that makes a couple pick us for their wedding photography over all of the other photographers they could have chosen.

Is it because I'm a bit more *cough* mature and they feel I'm a bit of a motherly figure?

At least one bride chose us because she thought I was 'quirky' and thought that would be reflected in the photographs (umm, can you define 'quirky' please?).

Is it because when we first meet we get on well with them and have things in common?

I really don't know. Maybe a bit of all of the above.

Certainly my advice would be to pick a photographer who you feel comfortable with, one who you 'click' with when you meet them. I mean, you're going to be spending a lot of time with them on your wedding day and wouldn't it be awful if you couldn't relate to them.

I don't know what the reason is  - just keep coming!

Natalie and Caine met us at a wedding fair. I don't think they'd be offended if I described them both as a bit shy.

A couple of few words. Their love for each was very obvious - no words were needed for that. Their love for their family shone from them like beacons, but a quieter couple I've never met in my life.

I can't begin to imagine what drew them to loud, larger than life me - but whatever it was I'm glad it did because they're just lovely.

Here is their wedding album. Enjoy.




































Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Baby, look at you now!


Well what an exciting start to the year!!! 


We have recently exhibited at the 'What Women Want' charity event at the Preston Marriott Hotel. What an evening! Hello again to everyone we met there.

 If you weren’t there, why not? It was brilliant!

There was everything you could think of, shoes, bags, cakes, make up, cocktails, photography, clothes, jewellery and even a fashion show. It was a great success and such a fun evening. Keep watching for dates for the next event.

Have you noticed Mother's Day is fast approaching?

Are you stuck for gift ideas? 

I may be able to help you there.

Why not purchase a photo shoot for Mum? I’m sure she would love a family portrait hanging over the mantelpiece. Well, it just so happens that we are offering a special discount for Mother's Day gifts. Book a shoot for only £25 and receive 25% off all framed prints, acrylics or canvases until the end of April.  Book fast and give your mum the unique gift she deserves. She will love it!  

Our lovely studio is becoming much more lovely, fantastic even! 



We are doing a whole new re-vamp to spruce up the existing sets ready for summer and we've created a whole host of new sets ranging from the cute and cuddly baby girl set to the naughty and nice boudoir set and everything in between. There's a set to suit everybody. Our prop box is over flowing with exciting and glamourous goodies, so whether it is a tiny baby, fashionista teen or glamorous granny, we have everything we need to get those fabulous photos!

These tow teens turned out to be a proper couple of hippy chicks. It was flower power most of  the way with a bit of gangnam style thrown in for good measure. What a laugh. It's hard to take photos with tears of laughter streaming down your cheeks. I love my job!





Since becoming the MPA's Cherubs photographer for this area I've had a steady stream of lovely, squishy, cuddly and cute babies through the studio.

Anyone who thinks that babies all look the same is very much mistaken. I quickly discovered that they have very different looks and very different personalities - even as tiny babies.


It's been great fun getting lots of new backgrounds and props for the studio to pose all these babies on/ in/ under/ over and around. Carla even made a huge heart shaped cushion for me. I've yet to use that- the right baby hasn't come along just yet.






So. Here are just some of the lovely babies who have been to see me this year.  Some of these babies may be a teeny bit older than others!

































If you have a young baby, why not contact the MPA and find out all about the Cherubs scheme. I look forward to meeting your little Cherub soon. 

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Babies, babies and more babies

I love babies!

It's a good job really. There's been a steady stream of them through the studio recently.

That's because I recently became the local MPA Cherubs photographer and I'm loving it. Not least because it means I've been able to go out and get lots of lovely props to make all these gorgeous babies even gorgeouser (gorgeouser? really, Lesley?)

This little lady came in to see me last week and stole my heart clean away. She's obviously modelled before. What do you think?

I know which my favourite picture is, which is yours?