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Children's parties are always so much fun to photograph. From bouncy castles to magicians to entertainers, every party I've been to has been different (so far anyway!). The most recent was no exception. Hosted at the birthday girl's home, her party was a sleepover. But no ordinary sleepover; they had hired The Little Tents who transformed the lounge into a glamourous campsite...
I love doing newborn photography, mainly because the arrival of a little one is such a miracle, each and every time. New life is a truly awesome thing and I always feel so privileged to capture babies during their first few days. And never more so than on my recent shoot with little Iona who was just 5lbs 5oz and the smallest baby I'd ever held, let alone photographed.
You can't predict the British weather - we all know that. So for my latest engagement shoot in August, we had just had a bout of rain so I thought the best we could hope for was a dry day. Our location was to be the meadows in The Happy Valley which, despite it being the end of Summer, still had long grass and a few meadow flowers. Well, it did the week before our shoot. We arrived just in time to see the tractor trundling along to the next field having just mown all the grass....
I always talk about how fast time flies when you're having fun. Since having my little ones it's flown even faster. So I couldn't quite believe it when my baby boy's first birthday came shooting round. Already on his feet and clumsily toddling around, curious about everything and determined to carry things twice his size, soft play was clearly the best option.
After a week of the weather forecasting rain (and me planning umbrella and welly shots in July...), the sun changed its mind and came out in all its glory for our photo shoot at Mayfield Lavender farm last week. This family come to the fields every year to mark their little girl's birthday with some photos of her holding a balloon for each year of her age. This year, she is three and so clutching her three balloons, we headed into the rows to find a spot clear of other visitors.
It's lavender season folks! Facebook is filled with pics of family jaunts to the lavender fields to get those beautiful purple backgrounds.
I am fortunate enough to live a few minutes away from the gorgeous Mayfield Lavender fields, so it's something of a family ritual to head down for an hour or so and get a few family snaps.
Watch out for the bees - generally they are busy going about their business so won't bother you. The wasps however... So it was probably a little wreckless of me to let my toddling 12 month old to go clumsily stumbling about. He didn't get stung, and loved trying to walk along the rows. He was also fascinated by the bright colours and of course wanted to touch (although no picking allowed of course!). It's a wonder he didn't get stung and it did provide some lovely opportunities for some photos!
Meanwhile, my two year old, along with all the other children, loved running down the rows and hiding. It's such a lovely setting and only in full bloom for a short time so make the most of it.
Of course, in the height of the season, we are not alone so it's near impossible to get a sweeping view without others doing the very same thing in the shot. But with some clever angles, you can make it look as if you are the only ones there. The fields are that vast. Failing that, Photoshop is a wonderful thing... ;-)
I love it when kids get involved in a photoshoot. However much you try and distract them in the background, their natural curiosity means they can't help themselves. This was particularly amusing in a recent maternity shoot.
My daughter was there since the shoot included another little girl the same age, so the thinking was that when the little girl got fed up of having photos taken, they could play together while I finished off the pics of mum.
What I had forgotten to factor in was how inclusive my little girl is, like most children her age. So we were of course invited to the tea party they were pretending to have and subsequently offered copious amounts of tea and cakes. I'd set up a shot and look up to see a nice little plate with a wooden cake balanced carefully on mummy's knee.
Very sweet, I wouldn't change it, and it actually made for some lovely (and amusing) photos.
Note to self: bring real cake to photoshoots in future...
On a hot summer's day in June, we ventured down to Flower Farm in Godstone, Surrey with two toddlers for some strawberry picking.
I was expecting some idyllic pictures of the toddlers carefully picking strawberries and depositing them in punnets with the rows of strawberry plants in the background. Instead, these two excited toddlers, having picked a couple of strawberries, found it far more entertaining to push each other about and throw hay at each other. So we ended up with squished strawberry covered shorts, hair tangled straw and flattened punnets. Which was far more fun and made even better pictures!
The kids' joy at running down the neat rows of strawberry plants playing catch, jumping over the stinging nettles, their beaming faces when they caught each other with fistfuls of straw, and screams of delight when on the few occasions they did actually look for strawberries and they spotted one, was priceless.
I think that however much you plan pictures, it's the unplanned ones where you just catch a moment that are by far the best.
Now, where's the cream...?
We're having a beautiful sunny spell at the moment (long may it continue!) so we are all out and about enjoying the glorious weather and trying to capture those precious summertime moments on camera. Here are my five top tips for the sunny season based on some of my recent experiences - happy snapping!
1. Sneeze and say cheese... It is currently a gorgeous time for family shoots in the British great outdoors as summer meadows are blooming with lush grass and bright meadow flowers creating a beautiful backdrop for your shots. But, it's also prime time for all the lovely pollen to get your hayfever going. It's one thing going out for a walk, it's something else sitting waist deep in long grass and flowers for a few minutes while your photographer gets the perfect shot. Bring your hayfever tablets and plenty of tissues...
2. Never eat yellow snow... OK, so the wrong season, but you can guess where I'm going with this. If it's a warm day, there hasn't been any rain for a while and the grass is wet, think about why.... We all automatically check for dog poo, but usually if the grass is damp, we just assume it's mildew or dampness from previous rain. So imagine my reaction when, after plonking my 11 month old on a patch of grass in front of a picturesque array of bracken, I noticed the area was wet. And everywhere else was dry. Upon further investigation, I also found a tuft of dog hair caught on a leaf. Having grabbed the little 'un, who had a wet bottom and legs, the only conclusion I could come to was that I had just sat my child in pee... So my advice? Look more carefully. Or use a mat!
3. Clouds are your friend... In summer we often pray for a sunny day with blue skies and not a grey rain cloud in sight for our family shoots. But actually, clouds filter the light so you get a much more even cast, less shadow and better colour. Too much light, like midday sun directly overhead, can drain your shots of colour. So don't worry if you've booked a shoot in summer and it's not a bright sunny day with cloudless skies - you'll still get great photos.
4. Bug spray... Not only are meadows perfect backdrops for your family photography, they are also home to lots of little crawlies. Just like the first point, actually sitting in thick knee high grass is different from walking through it - bug spray at the ready!
5. All scream for ice cream! Sometimes, even with the most fun and spontaneous shoots, the kiddliwinks can get a little tired of being asked (however nicely!) to sit or stand in a certain way or place, so picking a location with a good chance of an ice cream van being present is a good idea as the promise of an ice cream always helps! Ice creams also make good props and who doesn't love a Mr whippy?!
Happy snapping!
I recently joined this family for an afternoon of fun and photos on Farthing Downs and Happy Valley, Coulsdon, Surrey. The sun had his hat on and the glorious time of year meant the grass was green and the buttercups and meadow grasses were blooming, providing a picturesque backdrop for all the fun and games.
In short, this beautiful, fun, happy family were awesome. They got stuck right in, just mucking about and playing together, which made my job very easy! Their energetic boys were happy running around which also gave mum and dad a few rare seconds together, and me the opportunity to photograph some of the lovely moments they shared.
It's always uplifting and refreshing spending an afternoon like that, where all thoughts of any day to day drudgery can drift away, even if just for a few hours.
Just a shame there wasn't an ice cream van...
