Submitted by Darren on
The best of the rest! Warwickshire Photographer
Family, commercial, and school shoots in Warwickshire, 2020
Award Winning Photography Warwickshire
At the start of 2020 I was a wedding photographer. I did the odd family or branding shoot if I could fit it in – usually in January or February before the wedding season kicked off – but primarily it was weddings that were my bread and butter.
It had all changed by March, though, and although I was gutted that most of the wedding work I had planned was postponed or cancelled, I was really excited by the new opportunities that started to open up to me. Family shoots, branding work, and even school photography started to fill up my diary where weddings used to be.
It’s always been really important to me that everything I do fits with my style and ethos. I didn’t want to deviate from the kind of photography I was already doing – relaxed images of people being their natural selves. My starting point was trying to work out how to keep my images real in every context, so clients could see that relaxed portrait photoshoots could work for all kinds of different scenarios.
With family photography the main challenge is getting younger kids to be themselves around the camera, rather than playing up to it or shying away from it. The best way of overcoming this is having them in an environment where they already feel comfortable – and to work out where’s best I need to get an understanding of the family dynamics. Having a chat with the family before the shoot is so important – and that’s why this year I’ve ended up doing family shoots in allotments, woods, and libraries – each location is unique to the family. It’s been especially lovely to do those outdoor sessions in the spring and summer when I’d usually be at weddings, and our beautiful weather this year (not to mention the fact that we were legally mandated to be outside…) made for some gorgeous outdoor family images.
I kept the principles the same for the commercial shoots I did – familiar environments, places that meant something to the clients, capturing them working and creating – to end up with images that told stories about some brilliant local businesses being innovative and managing to grow amidst the chaos of the year. No boring head shots allowed! The commercial shoots I did in 2020 are all brimming with personality.
School photography can be more challenging – a lot of subjects to photograph, and limited environments to shoot them in – but I was really pleased with the images I got this year, and so were the schools and parents. I’m so happy there are some forward-thinking schools out there who can see beyond the hassle they anticipate it might be to change their photographer to the advantages that more personality-driven photos might bring. And parents aren’t just receptive to the different style of pictures, they love them! 2020 showed me there is a real hunger for more innovate school photography out there…
The final thing I want to celebrate is…you guys. Many of the couples I was due to photograph this year moved their weddings back but brought forward their family plans, and I did a few gorgeous bump shoots with them instead. People I should have been shooting walking down the aisle recommended me for their friends’ commercial images. Couples whose weddings I shot back in 2019 (remember that?!) messaged me and asked me if I could fit in a family shoot with them.
It always feels special to get a recommendation – when someone loves your work enough to tell their friends about it – and to have repeat clients, choosing me to capture the growth of their family and special moments throughout their lives, is a real privilege. So if you’re part of my network or you sent me a DM or you tagged a mate in my insta post, thank you, and here’s to 2021!
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