So this has been on my mind for a little bit and by the looks of social media I am not the only photographer who is a little sick of being asked to 'collaborate'. Don't get me wrong we all have to start somewhere and to be honest no harm in asking. More than once however, I have had people tell me they don't ever pay their photographer.  Seriously WTF?! I am sorry but I really can not agree with this attitude. Like most photographers I have had training (admittedly I went to university a few years ago), I have been lucky to work in this industry for well over ten years in two different countries and I  have purchased all the necessary equipment (camera, lens, accessories, laptop, insurance & software) to create these images you admire. You are not just paying for my time, you are paying for my creative eye and experience. I understand we don't always have the budget we want which is why if people tell me about their project and I have a personal interest I will be happy to try and negotiate a offer to suit everyone.  I always ask about peoples budgets to try and be as accommodating as possible. 

Another way to approach a photographer is to see if they would be interested in a test shoot. If there is a type of shoot that they have been interested in and haven't had a chance to do. More often than not we might have an idea we would like to experiment with or try a new lighting set up or piece of kit. This means working to their brief rather than yours.  For me it is crucial to keep pushing myself creatively and while it is great to perfect your style people do want to see diversity in your work. So earlier this week Sunny sent me a lovely message asking me if I would be interesting in a test shoot as she was travelling to London and had recently started modelling in her home town of Canada. As a new model you want to keep adding to your books and a little London shoot sounded perfect. I have always loved shooting portraits and something about Sunny's stunning features made excited to get her in front of my camera. Please take a look at some of my favourite images below.  

So when I first moved to London (many years ago) I had a list of activities that I wanted to experience. High tea, tick, Tower of London, tick and now finally a day at Royal Ascot, tick! I had the pleasure of attending the fifth day with thanks to Mariko Kuo and the wonderful people from Lavazza. It was absolutely incredible to people watch and see all the beautiful dresses and hats. I honestly couldn't tell you how many times I've watched My Fair Lady but the Ascot racing scene song was so stylish, it felt slightly surreal to be here and experience it all. Needless to to say I had an absolute blast and can not wait for next year!

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When I was younger I was ill and missed a semester of high school. I will however, never forget the moment my mum bought me my first Vogue magazine to cheer me up as I missed my friends. Kirsty Hinze was on the cover and and I was transfixed with all the fashion and incredible photography. So fast forward to earlier this week and I was beyond ecstatic to read (thank you google translate) an online article about Monihk Dale , "stylist and personal shopper [who] remains one of the most inspirational British influencers" on Vogue Poland. So I was beyond excited to see four of my images online. Please excuse the crude screen shot but I am not going to lie  the Vogue headline sure makes them look better. So this week is a little self promotional but it really isn't every day you see your images online on Vogue so I am going to take a moment to appreciate it ;)


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Always about this time of week I wonder where the week has gone. However, today I am fighting some serious hay fever, please tell me I am not the only one! Anyway, I thought it was about time I shared some images from a super fun video I shot and edited with the stunning Kavita (@kavitacola) for Violette's You Tube channel. We filmed a short video at the picturesque Chucs Restaurant, which I still need to take the boy to  because lunch was absolutely delicious. My mouth waters at the thought of my dish. Anyway, check out our fun smokey eyes summer look for @violette_fr YouTube  channel which is now live. Here are a few cheeky images. Let me know your thoughts. Absolutely loved working on this content and definitely learning a makeup trick or three ;)

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