Mollie Makes Magazine
Nice coverage for Mollie Makes of Shevie Moyles work down in Cornwall...
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17 04 13
Wow, its all gone mad now! off to Cornwall for a hotel shoot tomorrow, back to Bath for a hotel shoot on tuesday, then to East Sussex for two days shoots for magazines, then back to Bristol to prepare for four days in Italy... see you on the other side...20 03 13
Ongoing work with Chateau Impney in Worcestershire see here... and many other jobs too.. Homes and Gardens shoot last week in Devon, and some rather smart new architectural clients based in London this coming week... watch this space!17 01 13
Well, the year's turned and I'm mooching around in the office trying to reorganise/springclean and generally do nothing! It was a good year (2012) and you can read a review here... At the moment its snowing here in Bristol, so any excuse to discuss 'not snowing' weather would be gratefully received!15 7 12
Well its 'here we go again' time!... off to Cornwall again shooting for 25BH magazine, then straight back and up the M4 to shoot for a day with Esti Barnes of 'Top Floor Rugs' in London on wednesday. Then another shoot for Route One in the next couple of weeks, and a final shoot for the wonderful National Trust at Powis Castle Gardens ... Blimey...Twitter Feed
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Tag Archives: lifestyle
Beautiful Kitchens Photography
Just completed a kitchen shoot for a well known kitchens magazine… Photography is made so much easier when the light is right, and we took full advantage of the sun at this shoot. The results are obvious to see, but actually balancing the light, indoor and out, is the tricky bit. It’s actually ‘easier’, I find, to shoot interiors overcast conditions, but the results with a sunny day are much more ‘zingy’ and fresh. It helps that the owner has great style, and it helps that the kitchen designer, and maker, Bill Woodroffe of Somerset, made such a beautiful kitchen!
Photography of Bill Woodroffe’s kitchen in Sussex
Boo!
It’s good to get out of one’s comfort zone now and again. So this week I spent a day working with Belle & Boo, which for those of you who aren’t the parents of little people, is a charming and successful children’s brand based around the characters Belle, a little girl and Boo, a rabbit. Think Winnie the Pooh, Beatrix Potter, Enid Blyton, The Velveteen Rabbit, Mabel Lucie Attwell, smock frocks all rolled into one. The shoot involved two little gals, afternoon tea all laid out on proper (tot sized) china, the icing of cup cakes and a toy bunny – as my teenage daughter might say, ‘sweeeeeeeeeet!’. This sort of Lifestyle and product photography requires a light touch and informality so we used natural light mixed with a little fill in flash, and the models were shot quickly and with as little fuss as possible… hope it shows! the company is based in Bristol and the excellent Nicky Owen of White Rabbit Media was stylist supreme…
Lifestyle photography for Belle and Boo, a childrens home ware company based in Bristol
Did you forget Mother’s Day??
Have you forgotten Mother’s Day? why not at least send a free E Card from my website, easy to fill in and send, you can feel better immediately (!)… to be honest, you should have remembered and sent her one of the many beautiful PROPER cards available on the ‘Shop’ page… along with prints and posters for your wall… go on, hurry up and feel better!
March 2013 magazine coverage
Great start to the year for interior photography with some lovely pieces being published… Homes and Gardens have just done two of my features, both houses shot in London towards the end of last year… The cover image is part of a feature we did about Lord David Herbert’s house… a lovely townhouse owned by the proprietor of David Seyfried Furniture, who make beautiful upholstered furniture and are based at Chelsea Design Centre…. and the bottom row of images are part of a second feature about a house in North London owned by Mette Hardie… lovely use of Crittall windows….
Photography for Homes and Gardens, house interiors in London…
Both of the above houses were quite different from another recently published piece, all about the wonderful Silvana De Soisson’s house in Wiltshire, covered for Country Living magazine. We spent a great day there, while Silvana cooked lovely Pistachio biscuits and made us coffee… The house is cluttered and eccentric, and I’m sure you’ll agree, a picture-perfect home, cosy and inviting…. Silvana is the brains behind the ‘Foodie Bugle‘, an online food magazine thats fast becoming a ‘must read’ for those who know their pistachios….
Photography for Country Living Magazine at Silvana’s house in Wiltshire
Autumn in The Garfagnana, Tuscany
Anyone whose visions of Tuscan countryside revolve solely around the undeniably romantic idea of hilltop villas with cypress lined driveways snaking up through the vines, poppies or sunflowers has probably not made it up north to the Garfagnana. The region proper starts about half an hour north of Lucca, its main centre being Castelnuovo di Garfagana with the Apennines and the Apuan Alps rising dramatically to either side and it’s absolutely worth a trip if you have a few days spare.
I’ve just got back from one of my frequent visits – a photographer’s treat to go in autumn when the chestnut and oak trees that blanket the hillsides are are starting to turn, the whiff of woodsmoke is everywhere while each morning, low, single clouds hang over the valley. I wish I was an expert in fungi as there were mushrooms everywhere – our friend Giovanna told me that her children are already experts having learnt from their grandfather but I ended up buying my porcini from a roadside stall. One highlight this time was visiting the tiny village of Sillico where a lovely man insisted we go and see his museum – a crazy mix of scenes from yesteryear complete with spooky models and a dazzling display of – alarm clocks! I should have taken some pics but really, you had to be there….
Photography in the Garfagnana, Tuscany, Italy
The Tasty Ski Company
Tim Maitland is the young owner of a small catered ski chalet company, called The Tasty Ski Company, with places in Morzine and Grand Massif in the French Alps. His idea is to provide luxury accommodation with top quality catering in the heart of the ski country he knows so well. In his own words, “Food is what makes us tick. Our team has a wealth of experience throughout the catering industry, from 3 Michelin Star restaurants to luxury alpine chalet companies. Catering is what we love and what we do best”. Tim asked me to provide new photography for the updated website, and for two days we have been shooting interiors, exteriors, food and ‘lifestyle’. Here is a small selection of what we achieved with the food…
Food Photography for the Tasty Ski Company in France
Food Photography in this sort of situation is a balancing act. We were not in a studio, Tim was cooking, and we only had a dining room table on which to photograph the finished results. We had limited time, and were restricted to using available light. So, using the existing ‘props’ (plates, cutlery etc) and a bit of sunlight we managed to photograph a surprising number of expertly created dishes. It helps that Tim has worked with Heston Blumenthal (note the Butternut Squash ‘Foam’ above!)…
Hotel Photography in Tuscany, Italy
I Shoot Horses Don’t I?
I’ve just returned from a few days hotel photography at ‘Il Borro‘, near Arezzo in Tuscany owned by the Ferragamo family – designers of very beautiful footwear and bags worn by proper Hollywood royalty over the years – Marilyn, Audrey and Angelina amongst others. The estate is vast with its own medieval ‘borgo’ where we stayed, a spa, stables and huge winery. They’ve managed to pull off the trick of respecting their traditional Tuscan roots while introducing super slick, up-to-the-minute design elements particularly around the spa with its infinity pool and Vincafé. I spent my time racing around photographing interiors, charming staff, atmospheric vistas and even the horses!
The next day we drove into Chianti where classic Tuscan views of ancient hilltop estates flanked by cypress trees and surrounded by dusty olive groves forced me to leap out of the car, camera in hand around virtually every bend. Volpaia is a tiny village which sits high above Radda in Chianti where the restaurant La Bottega and bar are both owned by the same friendly family – there can’t be too many better places in the world to have lunch.
All this bucolic bliss can get a bit much so it was time to head into the hubbub of Florence – 92 degrees, many shops and restaurants closed for holidays, swarms of tourists (like me), coffees at 5 euros – but still utterly amazing. Best bits were midnight photography of Palazzo Vecchio and Piazza della Signoria and an early morning trip to the food market at Sant’ Ambrogio to stock up on pecorino and tasty tomatoes.
Hotel Photography in Italy is a tough job, but someone has to do it…. so, if you have a hotel, Bed and Breakfast, Spa or restaurant , and you need some marketing images, please do get in touch…. I’m photographing a ‘Gourmet’ ski chalet in the French Alps next month, and back to do more at the slightly bonkers Hoar Cross Hall in Staffordshire after that… come on, catch me while you can… 
Hotel Photography at Il Borro in Tuscany, Italy
Top Floor Rugs 2012
I spent an enjoyable day photographing the beautiful rugs designed by top designer Esti Barnes recently. Her company, ‘Top Floor Rugs‘ has become a leading source for distinctive contemporary hand-made rugs and carpets, and recently won ‘Best of Year’ at Interior Design magazine’s annual awards. The company were also commended in the Elle Deco awards of 2012 for ‘best showroom’ (at Chelsea Harbour Design Centre). Gorgeous rugs that feel beautiful and look like works of art…
Good Interior Photography relies on a number of factors, one of which is the styling, and in this case, the excellent Claudia Bryant was indispensable, as was Jo Israelsohn of Top Floor’s PR company Portrait Communications….
Top Floor Rugs, product photography 2012
East Prawle Cricket Club
A perfect day for the ‘President’s Match’ at East Prawle; there was sun, there were fours galore and there was a barbeque… everything seems well with the world when watching village cricket from the boundary…
The President’s match at East Prawle Cricket Club
“Personally, I have always looked upon cricket as organised loafing”. (William Temple)
A Country Living wedding
Last week I was priveledged to be asked to do some photography at a wedding for Country Living… I am in no way a wedding photographer, and never will be, its a skill that is as specialised and tricky as any other speciality… but in this case, the brief was to photograph the decoration, atmosphere and mood of the wedding, rather than the ‘nuts and bolts’ of the affair… The bride and groom had chosen the beautiful ‘Trevoole Farm‘ in Cornwall, and Beth, the owner, and all her helpers had turned the place into a fairytale venue.. lanterns, vintage candelabras, garlands and rose arbours, it really was the perfect country wedding. Two days after the wedding, the marquee was transformed in to a sale room and all the cutlery, vases, candelabras and chairs were sold on for charity… a lovely was to start married life! thanks for letting me come along and do the photography!
Country Wedding at Trevoole Farm, Cornwall
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