Reasons to be cheerful....part 1

Its Sunday evening - its been a crazy couple of weeks  and I have many reasons to be cheerful at the moment - Brighton one week for the awesome Burlesque workshop and then a family holiday in Scotland where I conquered my fears of T bars and button lifts on the ski slopes! 


I have had time to do lots of thinking an planning recently, long journeys and having some time out is good for my soul I think, and I wanted to share my thoughts a little. I have photographed all sorts over the past couple of years, amazing weddings, christenings, families, models and even some beautiful (??) electrical components!!! I love photographing anything, its what I do, its part of who I am now but I am starting to identify the bits that give me the biggest buzz, the most fun...and surely thats what its all about??


I am not going to stop photographing all the lovely things I have mentioned.....did I tell you about the cardboard factory shoot.....maybe another day..... but I want to spend lots of time photographing all you gorgeous ladies who I know have a little read of my Blog now and again...yes you.... even the quiet ones who never leave a message! Now I know what you are all saying;


1, I am not photogenic


2, I hate having my photograph taken


3, I look rubbish in photographs


4, Its too expensive


5, I shouldn't spend the money on me


6, Is it not a bit vain to have a photo session just for me?


Am I right? Well, you are all gorgeous, and you have to trust me to photograph you in the most gorgeous way, you have to know that I have all the same hang ups as you and I know just how you feel about your creases, and wobbly bits, but great posing, lighting and a touch of fairy dust makes all the difference...... just look at this image of the gorgeous Vicky - who was very brave and let me do a before and after shot of her

I promise that the image on the right has only been edited very lightly and its the light, pose and make up that has done the rest!!! Doesn't she look amazing?


There is nothing wrong in indulging in some pampering and this is exactly what a portrait photography session is, especially if you decide to have a professional make up artist too, the difference is that this type of pampering gives you something to keep forever - photographs, for you to look at and remind you just how fabulous you are or to share with your partner or family.
As for this being expensive - there is a cost involved of course but there is never a hard sell, I will always talk to you about what you want before we even start shooting, you will know what the cost of everything is in advance....so you might have to save up a little bit but is that so bad? Or you could ask for gift vouchers for your Birthday or for Mothers Day which is coming around soon!!!


And the bit about you not being photogenic - you really have to trust me on this one - yes you are, it just may be that you have never had photographs taken of you that you like, that no one has taken the time to find your best bits, to help you with posing and to take the time to make you comfortable being in front of the camera - thats my job, you just need to turn up and have fun


So here is a little test for you, I asked people on my Facebook page to help me describe my style as I am working on my new website this year, they were brilliant and came up with lots of great words to help me describe what I do, I started to realise though that these same words describe you - my future clients, my lovely ladies who are just dying to take the plunge and be photographed. 
So the test is to find the words that describe YOU in this word cloud and let me know, if you can't find the words then tell me the 3 words that best describe you - and they can only be positive, nothing negative, tell me about you, what you love about yourself!!

Brighton and Burlesque....a cheeky little blog!

I love anything a little 'different'.....I have a little C3PO figure sitting on my desk, I think Zombies are quite cool, and as for Burlesque....well I just love everything about it, ostrich fans, corsets, sequins....what is there not to love!! Deep inside I want to have a go but that might be something for the future! Anyway, I saw a post on Facebook about a Boudoir  and Burlesque worship being held in Brighton and pressed the button to send my payment faster than  you can say frilly knickers and this week I headed down South for a couple of days away.


Brighton was a revelation....just the most friendly place ever, the quirkiest shops including one which advertised Vegetarian shoes for sale! I stayed at a gorgeous Bed and Breakfast about 2 minutes walk from the sea, run by Alan and Ollie, who even sent me a welcome text the day before to check I had all the details! Check their website! I was treated to a fluffy dressing gown, a stick of Brighton Rock on my pillow and bacon butties for breakfast!


Heres some of my favourite images of Brighton ..... just click on the image if you want to see it bigger - they look much better bigger!!!!!

The beach....what a stunning beach - this is where I was stood, checking e mails on my phone(yes I am that sad!!) and finding out that an image of mine has made it through to the National awards run by BIPP - British Institute of Professional Photographers.... so if there are a couple of slightly out of focus images its cos I was crying!!!!!!






So, the day of the Workshop - I am going to let the images do the storytelling - it was decadent, beautiful, stylish and fun.....oh and cold!!!! I met a great bunch of people, got inspired to try new things, drank pink champagne and loved it all !!

I am afraid this has been a photography overload.... I managed to gets migraine at the end of the workshop and still feeling just a little under the weather - but looking at all of these has cheered me up! It was a long way to go .....but was well and truly worth it! 


So....ladies....get those frilly knickers and corsets out, give me a shout and we can get you to star in your own burlesque style photoshoot......come on.....you just know that you want to!!!


Thank you to everyone invovled in putting this workshop together - I certainly know just how much work it takes to put something like this together and I hope that you are all really proud of what you have achieved xxx


Melissa Love Design - www.melissalove.co.uk
The Tea Set - www.the-tea-set.co.uk
Proud Ballroom - www.brightonballroom.com
She Said Boutique - www.shesaidboutique.com
Joanne Fleming Design - www.joanneflemingdesign.com
Gresham Blake Tailors - www.greshamblake.com
Velvet Lifestyle Store - www.velvetstore.co.uk
Tigz Rice Burlesque Photographer - www.tigzrice.com
The Flash Centre - www.theflashcentre.com
Vintage Wedding Car - www.vintageweddingcar.com
Hey Day Honey Vintage Hair & Makeup - www.heydayhoney.com

Pink hair and petticoats!

Ages and ages ago I contacted the lovely Andrea who owns Petticoats a Plenty , a wonderful world of dresses, petticoats, cheeky underwear and lots more! I loved the idea of using some of her outfits in a photoshoot but there never seemed to be a good time, we met a couple of times after that at Burlesque events and eventually we started making some plans! I knew that I had a couple of photoshoots in the pipeline and so I went to meet Andrea again a couple of weeks ago and came away with a car full of the most amazing clothes and a head full of plans!

My first opportunity to use them was last week when I returned to Hallam Mill in Manchester - a great photography studio, with a couple of very good friends, Lee and Neil - we have met up like this a couple of times now to share ideas and pick each others brains and its a brilliant day. 

The lovely Victoria who is shown in these images actually came along as the make up artist on the day but was very quickly persuaded to join in and I think you will agree that she is amazing.

So, over the next couple of months I will be aiming to work with Andrea and her incredible outfits, and will be looking for burlesque models and performers....give me a shout if you are one or know one!

Model - Victoria Thomas


Make up artist - Victoria Thomas!  click here to contact her!



Don't forget - if you are a burlesque performer / model, I would be very interested in chatting to you about future collaborations 

Sue-Lyn model portfolio

One of the areas of photography that I adore is working with established and aspiring models, building up their portfolios. I never thought it would be something that my business would include this area , those of you who know me well will know that fashion and make up are not high priorities for me, ( jeans, t shirts and just a touch of mascara is more than enough!!!) but I adore the escapism of fashion magazines, the incredible beauty of the models and the creativity of the teams that work on them.


Before Christmas I had chatted to Sue-Lyn who wanted to update her modelling portfolio, we discussed when and where to do the shoot and decided to try the area around the Docks in Liverpool, one of my favourite locations, lots of great backdrops and  interesting side streets to explore. What we did not realise is that today was going to be one of the windiest days in recent memory! I always advise models to have a make up artist for shoots like this and the lovely Jenni Henshaw joined us today, go and have a look at her Facebook page - a very very talented lady.


So we headed to Liverpool, and here are just some of the images from today. I really need to thank both Sue -Lyn and Jenni for putting up with the cold and windy conditions, and I also have to thank the lovely Russian man who let us use his garage/office for make up....!!

Now what would be really nice is for you to let me know you have dropped by.... say Hi !!!

And if you are a model or looking to become one and you would like to discuss a shoot like this then please give me a shout 

Liverpool and Love!

Lindsay contacted me towards the end of last year to arrange a photoshoot for herself and boyfriend George. She is a keen photographer , but, as usual, she prefers to be behind the camera and so wanted some images of her and George together. It was lovely working with Lindsay to plan this shoot - she really wanted it to take place somewhere that has meaning for the 2 of them and as they met at The Albert Dock in Liverpool we decided to start there and over a coffee I found out a bit more about them - yes I am nosy but one of the best things about being a photographer is getting to know the people I photograph! 


I have decided that Lindsay has the best job ever - she works for Jaffa Cakes - the company that is - she doesn't get paid in Jaffa cakes! I also found out how much they love to go walking and Ingleton is one of their favourite places to visit - and it looks like I am going to be asked back to photograph them there this year which will be wonderful. Photoshoots should be a special occasion, they should be personal and that includes the location - I am more than happy to travel - me and Tallulah love an adventure..... Tallulah - my SMART car.... I really need to introduce you to her sometime!


So we started at the Albert Dock and wandered along the wonderful river front then headed to the docks area. Lindsay had seen pictures of Bob Dylan sitting on steps in the area when he visited in 1966 and so we went hunting for the same steps! And we found them!  Heres the link to the original images of  Dylan. 


So, dare I say that Valentines day is on its way and also its a Leap year! Lots of opportunities for romance and showing the world just how you feel about each other....... a photoshoot is the perfect way of doing this, celebrating a new relationship, an engagement, an anniversary.... whatever the occasion, I can be there to help to record the moment, wherever you may be......Tallulah is waiting!!!!

Many thanks to George for showing just how much he enjoyed the afternoon - thumbs up !!!!!