On The Cliffs

I seem to have a knack for organising photoshoots where everything that could go wrong, goes wrong. But hey, it doesn’t get in the way!

The vision I had for this story was completely different to the images you see here. Up on the cliffs of Poly Joke, near Newquay, during the month of June, are fields and fields of Poppy Flowers. They’re stunning, and it’s literally a sea of red as far as the eye can see.

After visiting the fields during a hot, sunny afternoon with a friend and our dogs, I instantly felt inspired and knew I had to make the most of the flowers while they were there. It was Tuesday, so I promptly got organised, checked the weather forecast, and Friday was looking stunning - blue skies, and not a cloud in the sky.

Oh, how things would change!

Come Wednesday, the winds had picked up, and we were met with a storm we’d normally expect in the months of February or March, certainly not late June! I didn’t pay much attention, and got to work on my shoot.

Friday came around quick, and the weather wasn’t great in Falmouth (south coast) but Newquay (north coast) was predicted to get a lovely sunset - great! Model was organised, clothes had been sourced, assistant booked, I was ready. I got in the car at 7pm, ready to drive up to Newquay for 8pm where I’d meet my model and have two hours to shoot in the sunset….

It wasn’t until I began to drive that I got a message from a friend (whom I’d told about my shoot plans) saying: “The wind has blown the poppy petals off of them! There are no flowers left!”

heart sinks

So there were no poppies left… oh well. I drove on, and when I got to Poly Joke, it was clear that I would not get a sunset. No, instead, we’d get thick sea mist, and eventually even spitting rain!

Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to doing photoshoots in Cornwall! Nothing ever goes as planned…

But honestly, I’m still thrilled with these images. I’m lucky in that I’d prepared extensively: I had a storyboard planned out, I knew what mood and feel I wanted to give off in the images, I knew what emotions I wanted my model to portray.. the only difference was the surroundings and the light.

The emotion you get off this editorial is certainly more sombre than I’d intended. The light makes SUCH a big difference in the final feel, but I’m all about embracing what the universe throws my way, and it had been a long time since I’d shot something so moody. Really, I’m not going to complain at all - I love these images. And I hope you do too.

Model: Emily Airton

Assitant: Anna Clark

How To Plan A Photoshoot For A Magazine

I don’t know about you, but when I got into fashion photography, all I ever wanted was for my images to be featured in magazines. It remains, to this day, one of my biggest goals. I'm lucky enough to have been featured in a few magazines by now, and I've learnt a thing or two about how to get published. 

Not only that, but I spent 5 years working on Atlas Magazine, which I am a co-founder of. Therefore, I've been on both ends - the photographer, and the editor.

I think this definitely gives me an advantage, because I'm able, more than most photographers, to put myself in the shoes of an editor. 

So today, I'm going to share with you how to plan a photoshoot for a magazine. 
 

1. Research the magazines you want to shoot for:
 

So of course, the first step is to do your research. And I mean, really do your research. You need to spend time looking up magazines, researching what's out there. You need to know if your style of photography will suit them. What kind of photographers do they feature? Are they more classic and romantic, or are they quite edgy? You need to be sure that your style will suit them. 

If you're wanting to shoot for magazines which take submissions, check in advance whether they have any themes. At Atlas, we have four different themes per year. Photographers are free to interpret those themes however they like. A lot of magazines follow a similar structure, so be sure to check.

That being said, some also don't have a theme; their theme is open. 

Some magazines are very seasonal (i.e. most magazines you buy on a newsstand are going to be seasonal!). And some are commission only (commission means that they need to pre-approve your idea before you go out and shoot). 

Spend time making a list of magazines you'd love to shoot for. Make notes about them. I keep a Trello board with a massive list of magazines that I dream of shooting for, and whenever it comes time for me to plan a new editorial, I pull that list up and will use it to plan my shoot!
 

2. Create a strong moodboard

Once you know who you want to shoot for, and you have your theme, it's time to put together a moodboard. I like to start off all of my photoshoots with detailed moodboards. I tend to start on Pinterest, where I'll create a new "secret" board, and I'll begin to pin ideas. Sometimes I just pin whatever I'm drawn to. If I do that, I'll go back to the board after a few minutes, and look for a pattern or theme. I'll delete the pins which no longer suit the theme I'm moving towards, and continue pinning based on my chosen theme. 

Other times, I'll start my moodboarding with an idea already in my head. 

Pinterest now has the ability to split your boards into multiple categories, like "Styling" and "Lighting" and "Make Up." I LOVE this feature, because it makes it so easy for me, and for my team, to keep our ideas organised. 

When you have a more solid idea for your photoshoot, I'd recommend moving your moodboard from Pinterest into Photoshop. I like to save the image to my desktop, and then create PDFs out of my moodboards so that they are easy to send to team members, model agents, etc. 

To make everything very clear and easy for your team to understand, I encourage you to create moodboards for the overall mood and feel of the shoot, for hair, make up, styling, and even locations within your shoot. This will help to make it very clear to your team whoo needs to do what, and what you're hoping to achieve with your shoot. 

3. Find your team

Finding a team can be really tricky, but once you've got a few people that you know you can work with, it gets easier and easier. I've worked with a lot of different people over the years (make up artists, hair stylists, wardrobe stylists, etc) and I now have a list of people that I know I can turn to whenever I have an idea (and they can turn to me too!). 

I get asked often how to find team members, and it deserves a whole blog post in itself, but to get you started, I encourage you to look within Facebook groups, on Instagram, Google searches, and look within agencies as well. 

The most important thing though, is that when you do find people who are up for collaborating with you, that they understand your vision. This is why moodboards are so crucial; they need to SEE what you want them to do. 

Whenever you're collaborating with someone though, keep in mind that they will want to get something out of it too. If they want to create something for themselves, I like to have discussions about it, and remain open minded. I don't like to hold too tight a grip on the shoot, because that's no fun for anyone. 

But that being said, make sure that you are the one who gets the final say on whether something will work in the images or not. Remember that you're shooting for a magazine, you're the one who has done the research and planned the whole shoot... if what one of your team members is suggesting isn't going to work, be open about it. 

Lastly, make sure that you show the team members the magazine that you're shooting for. Let them do their own research, and get excited about the possibility of being featured as well!

4. Cast your model

Whether you're casting a model who is signed with an agency or not, you need to keep in mind whether she will be a good fit for your editorial or not. Will she/he work within the story you have planned? Does her/his look suit the magazine? Take time over your casting, and be sure that you've got the right model. After all, they're going to be the focus of the image... so if she isn't right, you're going to fall at the first hurdle! 

5. Styling

Styling is so tricky, and if you can, I encourage you to work with a wardrobe stylist. However, good stylists can be really, really hard to find. If you live outside of a big city, they're even harder. 

If you can't find a stylist, all is not lost! You can style a shoot yourself. You just need to have done your research into the magazine, and have a solid plan for your shoot! Here are the most important things to remember when planning a shoot for a magazine with regards to styling:

• Check how many looks they require. Many magazines will need you to feature at least 6 outfit changes for it to make it worth it for them to feature your editorial. 

• Are the clothes you're choosing going to suit the magazine? Take a look at previous issues and see what kinds of clothes the editors tend to feature. 

• If you're shooting for a magazine which has adverts, do you need to shoot with the brands that advertise with them? Believe it or not, a lot of magazines are restricted by the brands they can feature based on who advertises with them. 

6. Email the magazines in advance
 

This is something I'm mentioning, because I don't feel like enough photographers do this (or think that they can). You don't have to, but sometimes it is worth sending a quick email to the magazine that you're hoping to submit to, and asking them for advice. You can show them your moodboard, show them the model you plan to shoot with, etc, and see what they say.
They may come back with a few adjustements, or they may even offer you a commissioning letter (which will then allow your stylist to "pull" clothes from PRs and designer showrooms - always worth getting if you can). 
 

7. Shoot!
 

Last but not least...you need to shoot! When shooting for your editorial, whether you've been comissioned or you're submitting, just keep the magazine in mind. It's so easy to get carried away with the day, and forget your core mission (I know, because I've done it). Pin your moodboards up on the wall, or keep them close. If you're on location, have them on your phone. Reffer back to them often, and remind yourself of what you're doing. 
 

There we go :) I hope that those tips on how to plan a shoot for a magazine was helpful! If you're interested in learning more, one of my most recent podcast episodes was with Megan Breukelman, the current editor of Atlas Magazine.You can listen to it here!

What Should Your Subject Line Be When Pitching?

Recently, I’ve had a bunch of people ask me the same question: What should I put in the subject line of my pitch emails?!

I hadn’t ever considered doing a blog post about just this, but seeing as it’s clearly causing so many of you doubt, I’m here to help :)

My theory with pitch email subject lines is simple: I want the person who receives the email to know exactly what to expect before they’ve even hit “open.”

Why?

These people are busy! I don’t want to be seen as someone wasting their time.

Have you ever received an email from someone, or even a newsletter, which has a subject line along the lines of: “RE: coffee on Thursady?” You open the email because you feel confused: “Did I have a coffee meeting planned with this person? OMG have I forgotten about something?” queue panic Of course, this is just a “click bait” tactic. What these people know is that they’re catching your attention, and making you open their email.

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Sign up here to my free 5 part email course! You’ll learn step by step how to begin pitching yourself as a fashion photographer to the brands you’ve always dreamt of shooting for.

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Sure, you’ll open it. But when you realise that you’ve been fooled by them, you’ll feel angry. I certainly do! I ge annoyed, feel frustrated, and actually dislike that person who sent that email quite a lot!

So coming at it from that point of view, I decided to always keep my email subject lines very obvious. They do what they say on the tin!

So what kind of subject lines could you use?

It’s up to you to experiment, but subject lines which have worked fo me include:

• Fashion photographer who’d love to collaborate

• Fashion photographer sharing her portfolio with you

• UK photographer with an idea

things like that…

I hope that’s been helpful, and will clarify any doubt you’ve had over what to send as a subject line in an email pitch.

Pricing Yourself As A Fashion Photographer

Ok, here goes...

I'm gonna be honest, I've avoided this topic for a while. Pricing is THE MOST ASKED question I get, but it's also the topic that I find the most difficult to talk about. 

The reason?

There's no right or wrong answer. I'm sorry to tell you that, but freelance photography rates are something which is always going to be a bit vague. 

That being said, in the last few years I've definitely learnt a thing or two about how to price photography, so I'm going to share what I know with the hope that it will help you.

Knowing Your Ideal Client

Working out your price is going to come down to a lot of trial and error. I've been in both the position where I undercharged, and overcharged. Now, I've found my groove, and I'm currently charging a day rate that I feel happy with, and that my clients are also willing to pay. 

What you charge does matter to an extent, because it sends a message to your potential clients. For example, if you're wanting to work with very small businesses, charging premium prices won't work. If you're wanting to work with mega big brands, charging little also won't work. You need to know who you want to work for before you can even begin to put a price to your work! 

So spend some time researching your ideal client, and take into account what kinds of budgets they have. If you can't find exact figures, it's ok to make a guess. 9/10, you'll be pretty accurate. As I said, this is all trial and error, so don't be afraid to tweek as you go, until you find your perfect price. 

Let's Get Logical

Before you can do anything else, you need to work out how much you need to earn to cover your business' costs and your time. 

There are loads and loads of resources online which can help you to work out your business expenses, and I recommend taking a look at "The Independent Girls Club" as an amazing resource. 

From there, you can work out how much time you spend on each of your projects, and you'll come up with an idea of your price. 

When it comes to photography remember to take into account:
- your kit
- your website costs
- your software costs
- tax (you need to put aside 30% to cover tax!)
- how long you spend in pre production
- how many hours you shoot
- how long you spend in post production 

I encourage you to spend a lot of time working out what your business costs are, and do this over a few days. Things will constantly pop back into your head as you work on this, so write them all down, and add up how much it costs you to run your business per month and per year. 

If you're looking for a more "formulaic" approach to working out your price, then I recommend reading this blog post by Karen Rosalie, or downloading Jenna Kutcher's pricing guide (note - this isn't for commercial photographers, but will probably still help you none the less). 

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Freelance Fee's

A few years ago, I came across this website, and it is really, really good if you need help working out what to charge as a photographer in the UK.

Should you charge by the hour, or by day?

This is a frequently asked question, and the answer is: it's up to you. I personally charge by half day, and full day although I do know my hourly rate, should I need it. 

Typically, a shoot rarely lasts ONLY an hour with me, and clients usually need a lot more of my time, so I quote half and full days for that reason. 

Its good to know what your hourly rate is, just so that you can be sure that you're not working for less than minimum wage when you add up your total hours working on a shoot (pre production, shooting, and post production). You'd be surprised by how many hours you ACTUALLY spend on a shoot. 

How Can I Work Out My Hourly Rate?

I recommend using the formula's I shared above, but one exercise I did a few years ago was note exactly how long I was spending on a project from start to finish. From the moment I sent the first email (replying to my clients enquiry) right up to sending them their final images, I jotted down how long I was spending. I included the hours I spent driving to and from the location, I included hours I spent speaking to other team members, I recorded every. single. thing. 

I spent a total of 22 hours on that shoot!!!

When I realised how long a photoshoot actually took me to produce, it helped me to justify my hourly rate. 

I encourage you to do the same exercise if you're struggling to explain your hourly rate to your clients... or even just to yourself! 

What about usage?

This is again (as is with all of it) personal, but you have the right to charge additional fees for certain things. For example, I charge a usage license for my images depending on what they're going to be used for. At the moment, I include "global online usage" in my day rate as a standard (at the moment). However if a brand said that they wanted to use the images I take in their shops, or in a catalogue, there would be an additional licence on top of my day rate. 

That is standard practice within the industry. Working out usage is a topic which deserves a blog post of it's own, but you can use calculators online like Getty Images or The AOP.

What do I charge?

I'm going to put you out of your misery, because I know that this is always the biggest question on everyone's mind. What do other photographers charge?!
I charge £450 for a half day shoot (4 hours max), and £600 for a full day (8 hours max).

That being said, please don't base your prices on mine. You may want to charge more, or less. Whatever you end up with, is YOUR price. But I hope that me sharing what I currently charge (in February 2019) is helpful to you in some way. 

What Should You Include In Your Day Rate?

Again, this is for you to decide, but I personally include: pre production communication (emails and phone calls), pre production team sourcing, the shoot itself, the kit I own, and the post production of up to 2 images per outfit.

That being said, what ends up being included in the shoot is always up for negotiation. For example, if the client wants me to scout a location, I will charge a location scouting fee. If they want me to hand over all my RAW files, I will charge them a processing fee. If they want me to hire equipment, the client gets invoiced for the cost of the equipment. The list goes on and on. 

It's up to you to have an open conversation about your costs with your client, and be very up front about what is included in your fee, and what is going to cost them more money. 

The Most Important Point 

Like I've said throughout this, there is no right or wrong answer. Pricing as a photographer is incredibly personal to you and your own business. You can speak to as many photographers as you want, read as many articles, watch as many Youtube videos, but the way you want to do it may differ from everyone else.

That's ok. The most important thing is that you feel confident and comfortable with your price, it covers your expenses and is able to pay you a wage, and also provides you with a profit... because what's the point of it all if you can't make a profit and enjoy your life?! 

If you want to learn more about money and managing your money, I HIGHLY recommend the book "Profit First*" (affiliate link). It changed my life!

S1 Ep4 How To Use Instagram To Gain Fashion Photography Clients

Listen on Apple Podcasts // Listen on Spotify // Listen on Stitcher

Instagram is a HOT topic. It has been for almost 5 years, and honestly I don't think it's going away any time soon. I knew that people would want to know how to use Instagram for their business, so here is my take on that! 

You'll learn:

- Why your follower count doesn't matter as much as you think it does

- How to come up with your Instagram Goal

- How to use Instagram Stories effectively

and loads more.

I hope you enjoy it!

For more advice like today, sign up to my newsletter! I share weekly inspiration and tips for fashion photographers straight to your inbox. Sign up at www.oliviabossert.com/free-resources

Take my free pitching course: www.oliviabossert.com/free-pitching-course

Or read the blog: www.oliviabossert.com/blog 

Come and follow me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/oliviabossert 

How To Feel Confident As A Fashion Photographer

If you're in my Facebook Group, you'll have seen that this week I shared a survey. The basis of this survey was simple: to understand your worries, and figure out how I can help you more. 

To say it was a success would be an understatement, because I truly feel like I know you better than I ever could have before. So thank you all for being so open and so honest with me about your fears, and showing me how I can help you.

There were a few recurring themes: 

1. You all desire creative freedom
2. You all desire increased income
3. You all suffer with self confidence.

That last one really hit me hard, because I struggle with self confidence too. Self confidence is incredibly difficult to find, especially in the era of social media, when you're constantly bombarded with the successes of everyone we follow! 

Over the years, I've learnt a thing or two about confidence, so hopefully these tips will help you to feel a bit more confident in yourself, and your work. 

Comparison Is The Thief Of Joy

You've heard it before, but I'll repeat it, because it's so so so true. Comparing yourself and your work to someone else is a one way ticket to feeling crap! So instead of comparing yourself and beating yourself up about "how you're not good enough," turn that comparison on it's head. USE IT. 

Whenever you see an image, or someone "doing better than you," take a minute and ask yourself why you're feeling like that. Is it the image you're feeling jealous of? Clearly you've identified something in that persons work that you like, that you feel drawn to. So rather than put yourself down, analyse it. How have they shot that image? What work went into getting them to that point? Is there anything that you can take from what you're seeing, and apply it to your own work? 

When you analyse your jealousy in this way, it frees you up. It helps you to grow, and learn. No more jealousy, it becomes inspiration!

Know That Everyone Started Off As A Beginner

I think its really easy to forget that, at some point, everyone you admire was a beginner. Paolo Roversi was a beginner. Henri Cartier Bresson was a beginner. Richard Phibbs was a beginner. Each one of these photographers (that I personally admire) will have started out by taking AWFUL photos. They had to start somewhere and learn from that point on.

The difference between them and a lot of other very successful artists, is that they pushed through. They kept going. They kept learning, and proving to themselves that they could improve.

I guarantee you that the photographers you admire are STILL always learning and pushing themselves further. 

Everyone is More Concerned With Themselves Than They are With You

Sounds harsh, but no one really cares about what you're doing. Everyone is more worried about their lives, their work, and what they are doing. You could look at this in a negative way, but honestly I think its great, because it means that we can power on through. We can make mistakes, and no one is likely to notice. You can shoot something, and not love it, and no one else but you will care. 

When you're feeling intimidated by "what other people think" please remember that most of the time, they really don't care.

Weird Fish // Visual Content Creation for Black Friday 2018

Weird Fish asked me to create some visual content for them, ahead of their Black Friday 2018 sale. The brief was to stick to an “outdoor, scandi vibe.” I sourced a local model, who I felt fit the brand well, and headed to one of my favourite local spots to capture the collection. We were blessed by gorgeous Autumn sunlight, and I feel really captured the essence of the collection.

Model is Sophie Parsons

Adobe Lightroom Workflow for Fashion Photographers

Ever wondered how to cull, select and export your images after a fashion shoot? This video will walk you through exactly how to do all three of those things in just 15 minutes. I hope that it’s helpful. Feel free to ask further questions in the comments below!

Do You Need To Go To University To Be A Photographer?

This is a questions which lands in my inbox extremely frequently: Do you think I need to go to university to be a successful photographer?

There’s no easy answer to this question, because honestly, I don’t believe that anyone can tell you what to do. You’ll know what works for you, and what doesn’t. But I’m hoping that in this blog post I can give you a bit of help on making that decision.

My Story:

I went to Falmouth University and studied a degree in Fashion Photography. It took three years, and I came away from it with a “First Class Degree.” I was pretty happy with that result, if I do say so myself! I went to school in Switzerland, and quite an academic school at that. Never was it once suggested that university was something I could skip, if I wanted to. Everyone was going, no questions asked!

So when the time came for me to choose, I chose what I loved the most: art. Falmouth has an incredible reputation for the arts, and it sounded like a dreamy place. I’d never been to Cornwall before (or spent much time in the UK at all), so we visited, and I loved it. I did a foundation degree for one year, and then went on to take the very first BA(Hons) Fashion Photography course that the university offered.

Its hard to sum up three years into a blog post, but I’m going to break it down into the good and the bad.

The Good:

Independence: Uni to me is all about becoming independent. Before I left for uni, I’d not really spent much time away from my family. It was a chance for me to explore being an adult, living on my own, looking after myself, without the full responsibility of having a job yet. I didn’t have to fully fend for myself, but I go to get used to being on my own, and doing life on my own.

Time to explore: Especially with creative degrees like photography, you do get quite a lot of free time. I used to this explore, get creative, shoot lots and lots of photos, and start Atlas Magazine. I’m so grateful to the time I had at uni to explore my interests, because I know that if I’d skipped uni and gone straight into the world of work, I wouldn’t have had so much free time.

Technical skills: Uni is definitely where I got to hone my technical skills. I knew how to shoot manually before arriving at my degree (although many people didn’t, and were taught how, so you can be a total newbie and still do a photography degree), but I’d never set foot in a studio, experimented with lighting, or even that many lenses. The experts at my university were always on hand to help me, and I learnt so much. I’m certain that if I hadn’t gone to uni, I’d have taken a lot longer to experiment with studio equipment.

Access to kit: I’m not sure what all universities are like, but Falmouth has an incredible amount of photography equipment. There are also 8 industry standard studios that students can use (and external photographers as well - for a price). This access to kit and studios FOR FREE is incredible. I’d go back to uni just to have permanent access to this all over again!

Time to collaborate: One of the best things that I took away from uni was the collaboration and working with my friends. I’d always been quite a lone wolf in my work, but once I was on my degree, I had no choice but to learn how to work in a team. We all helped one another out on our various shoots, became incredible friends, and still help one another out today.

Access to resources: The university I went to has a huge library filled with books on every topic you can imagine. It also gave me access to many different subscription websites like WGSN, which are amazing, but expensive for a small business owner to have access to.

Experts in the field: This didn’t happen very often, but once in a while we would have visiting lecturers come and talk to us, look through our portfolios, and share industry experience with us. This was always incredibly valuable.

Friends all interested in the same topic: I don’t know about you, but while I was at school I found it hard to make friends with people who were interested in the same things as me. When I get to uni, and found that I was surrounded by people my age who loved fashion and photography as much as I did, it was incredible!

The Bad:

Inexperienced lecturer: This isn’t always the case with degree courses, but sadly we were the very first cohort of students to go through our degree. We were the guinea pigs in a way, and were also given a lecturer who was most definitely not experienced enough. We learnt very little from her, and much more from one another/visiting lectures/the technical instructors at the university.

Being far away from the industry: Falmouth (where I still live now) is 5h away from London. This makes access to the industry quite tricky, so we did feel a bit “cut off” at times. As I’ve spoken about in the past, you don’t need to be in London to make a career as a fashion photographer work, but you do need to be there sometimes. I wouldn’t let it put me off attending a university, but I would take into consideration how far I’d like to be from “where it’s all happening.”

Lack of in depth business training: If there is one thing I feel highly critical about universities for, it’s the lack of training in business. It’s all well and good setting photography brief after photography brief. If students are not taught how to actually run a business, they will never succeed. Everything I know about running a business as a photographer I have learnt AFTER my degree. I’ve read books, attended workshops, bought online courses, watched hours of Youtube, and done a lot of trial and error. Don’t go to uni expecting to be taught how to run a photography business, because it’s highly unlikely that you will.

Too much free time: I mentioned free time as a bonus earlier, because I used my free time well. I spent it shooting, learning and building the start of my career. I know that some people aren’t that disciplined, and struggle without more structure. The cost of a degree these days makes it seem silly to me that so little time is spent in lectures or with tutors. If I was to apply again today, I would check how much time per week will be spent in lessons, throughout the three years of the degree.

Cost: I mean, it goes without saying that going to university is VERY expensive.

My Opinion:

Honestly, different people will always give you different answers. In my case, university was well worth it. I learnt a lot, made great friends, became a real adult, and started my business. For some, it might not be worth it. You can learn everything you need to learn about photography through Youtube these days. You could attend a few workshops lead by photographers in the industry, and you’d learn just as much.

But everyone learns in different ways. Everyone is so different full stop. I think the best advice I can give to anyone considering studying a degree in photography is:

do your research. Ask lots of questions. Think about how you learn, and what you’re hoping to achieve.

I hope that this was helpful, and if you have any questions about this topic, leave a comment below or email me at info@oliviabossert.com

Essential Camera Gear for a Fashion Photographer

Please note that this blog post does contain affiliate links. This means that if you click on any of the links with * next to them, I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you. Thank you for your help and understanding :)

I’m the first photographer to admit that I like to keep my kit bag light. I like to be as minimal as possible. However, as a fashion photographer, there is always going to be a certain amount of essential gear that we need. So rather than leave you guessing, I’ve created a whole list of exactly what I use every. single. day.

No more guessing.

Camera:

Nikon D750*

Nikon D800* (out of production, now the D850)

Olympus Pen F*

Film Camera:

Nikon F100 (out of production, but you can find them on eBay)

Nikon F3 (Out of production, but you can find them on eBay)

Lens:

Nikkor 24mm-70mm f/2.8*

Nikkor 50mm f/1.8*

Nikkor 70mm-200mm f/2.8*

Reflector:

InterFit*

Flash Gun:

Nikon SB-700*

Laptop:

Macbook Pro*

Graphics Tablet:

Wacom Intuos Pro*

Software:

Adobe Lightroom*

Adobe Photoshop*

Presets:

VSCO Pack 1 and Pack 4

Mastin Labs Portra

AlienSkin Exposure X4

SD Cards:

SanDisk 32 GB*

Studio Flash Kit:

Neewer Studio Kit*

Backdrop Paper:

Calumet

Backdrop Stand:

Lastolite Background Support

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5 Things I Wish I'd Known Before I Started My Photography Career

I’ve been a fashion photographer for a very long time. In fact, I’ve had a camera in my hand for over 10 years now! That’s a lot of photos. In that time, I’ve learnt a few things, which I wanted to share with you today.

Here are 5 things I wish I’d know before I started my photography career:

The images included in this blog post were taken at the Lara Jade fashion photography workshop in August 2018. I cannot recommend Lara’s workshop enough!

1. It Will Take You Years To Feel Comfortable Behind A Camera:
I first began studying photography when I was 15. I say "studying" because that's still what I do now! I still learn about the technical side of photography very regularly. There's always more to learn. However, I do now feel like a camera is an extension to my body, more or less. When I see an image in my head, I now know exactly what I need to do to take that photograph and make it a reality. 

To get to this point has taken years! I think that when I was first starting out, I assumed that I'd "know it all" very quickly. That really wasn't the case. Even though I understood how my camera worked manually, for years I had to think really hard about what I was doing to get the shots I wanted. 

Now it's much more intuitive, but yes, it's taken a very long time. I wish that I'd let myself learn patiently, and not told myself that I was "a bad photographer" as many times as I did, when all it was was lack of practice. 

2. It's Ok To Change Direction, And You Will
Oh my goodness, the amount of "genres" of photography that I've tested out is madness. At my core, I've always been a fashion photographer, but I've tried and tested so much more. My stint as a wedding photographer, I've done kids portraits, I've considered launching a pet photography business, I've done family photos... I've done it all. 

Each time I did one of these things, I thought: "This is it. I've found my direction."

That never lasted. I've changed direction many times in the last 10 years, and I've come to realise that that is normal, and it's ok! I'm someone who finds change quite hard, so I resist it, but the older I get, the more I realise that change is sometimes inevitable. My creativity will change, my inspiration will change, I will change. That's ok. 

3. Women are fewer in this business
I don't talk about feminism much, because I honestly feel like there are enough people out there discussing it for me, and I'm not very good at articulating how I feel when I bring it up. 

However - the photography business is SO masculine. Especially the fashion business. I don't know why, I can't explain it, but when you begin to pay attention to who is at the top of the chain, it's most often men. That can be hard, and it can feel discouraging. I just wish that I'd known sooner that I might have to be up against a lot of male energy. 

4. It's hard to make money, but it's also not
There are times when, as a photographer, money feels like it's so far out of reach, that you'll never be able to earn a proper living. There's so much doom and gloom out there about "being a starving artist." The amount of times I've spoken to photographers and they've been negative about the business because "it's so hard to get paid." 

I honestly believe that a good income can be made from photography! You just have to be willing to work really hard to make that happen.... just like you do in any other career, really. I think for a really long time I was telling myself that as a photographer, I'd never have much money and that if I wanted to do something creative for a living, I'd have to be broke. 

I don't believe that anymore, and I'm so glad that I managed to push that limiting belief away. 

5. You Don't Need To Go To University To Be A Photographer
This is a controversial one, and a topic that I'm actually going to write a whole blog post about, but the reality is that you don't NEED to go to university to be a photographer. You can learn and do it all without a degree. I didn't know that when I was at school. In fact, I was never really even told about any option OTHER than university. 
I don't regret going to uni one bit. It brought with it many other benefits. Did I learn the business of being a photographer from it? No. No I didn't. I've learnt more about the business of photography in the last 6 months than I did in three years of study. What I did learn was the technical side, which does have it's benefits, but I could certainly have learnt that on my own. 

There you have it! Check back in another 10 years, and I’m sure that I’ll have a host of other lessons I’ve learnt to share with you ;)

Illuminate // An Editorial

One of the big goals I set myself for the second half of 2018 was this: To get up to London more, and shoot in the city. I’ve spoken in detail about how I don’t believe you necessarily need to live in a big city to make it as a fashion photographer. You don’t. I’ve been working well in Cornwall with brands, and loving it.

However, I reached a point in the last few months where I was ready to take things to the next step. Cornwall will always have a huge place in my heart, and I adore shooting in that environment more than anything, but I know that if I want to take my career to where I know it can go, London is unavoidable. It’s where the models are. It’s where the brands are. It’s where the industry is. And it’s where I need to be much more frequently.

This photoshoot was the first step in that direction.

I booked a weekend in my diary where I’d be in London, found a team of people to work with, sourced a model, and came up with a concept. Safe to say, I’m thrilled with the results! I had an incredible weekend, and loved every minute of it. It made me hungry for more, and I’m excited to say I’m off to London in a few weeks time for more photoshoots of this nature.

I’m so excited to see where the next step in my career takes me. I’m open to anything, and ready for it. I hope you like these images as much as I do!

Make Up by Georgina Yates
Hair by Viktoria Toth
Styling by Georgina Roberton
Model: Tinka @ The Hive Management

Dress, and shoes are stylist's own , Earrings by Christian Dior and Tassel cape by Lucky Sixpence Bridal

Top, Platforms by Peony Vintage, Shorts and ring are stylist's own, Beaded overcoat by Lucky Sixpence Bridal, Earrings by Christian Dior

Bustier is stylist's own, Knitted skirt and Earrings by Peony Vintage, Pearl Overcoat by Lucky Sixpence Bridal

Dress by Aneberry, Earrings by Christian Dior

Shoes are stylist's own, dress by Aneberry, Earrings and Pearl Arm Cuffs handmade by stylist