Education Photography

I get to photograph pupils and students through every level of education. From Reception year children learning through play to University students working in robotics. Each level is approached differently, the earlier years of school are usually photographed during lessons or an activity, so I am able to capture pupils naturally (TIP-never try to pose a Reception year child in a mud kitchen!). The later years of education allows me to set-up more technical images, focusing on their work- be it in a lab, or a lecture theatre.

I have been commissioned to produce school trusts to re-brand their websites, University campaigns and prospectuses, County Council education campaigns, college student awards and general school marketing.

Working with pupils and students is always vibrant and energetic and I look to portray this in my photography.

Food Photography

Plants & Grill, who are based in Oxford’s Westgate, have an interesting concept which bridges the polarisation of food choices by providing a clear and simply presented offering which will appeal to vegans, vegetarians, meat and fish lovers without discrimination, consternation or alienation.

Their brand is bright and clean, so we decided on bright and even lighting. Shot from above to display the food in flat lay layout. Shooting from above and styling each dish, helps to show each element. A neutral beige backdrop was chosen, so the colourful dishes would ‘pop’ off the page.

The hero shot shows all of the dishes on offer, ingredients styled into the shot and hands diving into the food, created a food fiesta image. With bright colours and crisp shadows (and a change of backdrop) the image is modern, fresh and fun- which sums up Plants & Grill perfectly.

With new pop-up dishes planned for the future menu, I’m looking forward to see what is created next!

Plants & Grill can be located in The Social, Wetsgate, Oxford, OX1 1TS.

Hero shot for Plants & Grill.

Below is an example of how Plants & Grill have used their images to market their business on Instagram.

Natural & simple florist photography.

Celebrating over 30 years of business in Oxford, Daisies flower shop is very much part of Oxford’s thriving independent business scene. Based in Jericho, the talented team create arrangements with bursting blooms, interesting textures and layers.

I set up a location studio in the very (VERY) handy lock-up, next to the main shop. The natural light was good from the front, so it was the perfect mini studio.I added a side light, softened with a Profoto beauty dish diffuser and a reflector to lighten some of the shadows.

In a previous meeting, the final style was agreed. The images were to portray a warmth and emotion, which echos this family run business.

A natural raw cotton material was used for the flowers to stand on and a hand painted backdrop, which tied in with existing imagery on the website. The flowers were arranged in a simple rustic tall bucket, which allowed the focus to be on the flower arrangement.

The results are simple and soft. With some images concentrating on the details of each arrangement.

Hey honey! Stand out with lifestyle product photography.

lifestyle product photography is an important part of promoting your business, if you want to stand out from the crowd. Photographing your product within a curated and styled scene, introduces the potential customer to the idea of a specific lifestyle or aesthetic promoted by your brand.

White background pack shots do have their place within e-commerce but for brand promotion, lifestyle product photography can give your products personality and helps them stand out on your website and social media.

Here is an example of how I shot two different flavours of honey, in two different ways. The lighting and background were chosen to illustrate the different flavours, giving a different feel and personality for each flavour.

The blueberry was shot in a dark and dramatic scene, with dark and velvety colours which suited the colour and deeper flavour. The lemon infused honey was shot in a light and airy style, with punchy yellows.

The Infused honey company is an independent Oxfordshire business, in Upper Heyford. They produce a wide range of raw infused honey www.theinfusedhoneycompany.co.uk/apiary

Tourism photography

I previously worked in Northamptonshire, for many years. So when I was approached to photograph a new tourism campaign, to be launched at The World Travel Market, I jumped at the chance.

The brief was to show Northampton’s hidden gems in a fresh light. The Town has such a good mix of old and new, it was a real pleasure to shoot. The shoot was done over 4 days and I was pretty lucky with the weather. I knew of many good angles to photograph already but I held a recce day, to seek out new and interesting viewpoints.

Independent Business

That Yoga woman is an independent business based in Bedford. Jules contacted me at the beginning of her re-brand journey. Jules’ brief was to create a new website, which illustrated her services, her products and lifestyle portraiture. The look of the website is fresh, airy and calm. We photographed yoga positions inside her studio, with natural light and some studio flash. We then headed outside to create some yoga portraits in a natural setting, along with some lifestyle shots, which fitted the feel and design of the new proposed website.

Jules’ business also offers activewear. A selection of modern and quirky slogan tops were photographed in the studio. The products were delivered to the studio and shot with a plain white background, so the designs would stand out.

The finished website looks clean and simple. Jules has recently moved her yoga classes online. The website has allowed her to stand out amongst other similar businesses. All the photography on her website was shot to a specific style, which helps her market her business online.

SSNAP John Radcliffe Newborn Care Unit

Last year I provided all the photography for the charity SSNAP’s Annual Report and website. The job itself was a brand refresh, creating images which were light, clean and showed the equipment and services SSNAP help to provide the John Radcliffe NCU with but it had to be approached carefully and sensitively, due to the nature of work in the departments. Extra lighting was used for the staff and equipment imagery, which was set-up but documenting the parents and their newborns had to be taken with available light and we needed to be as unobtrusive as possible. I managed to photograph some very special images for this ever so important charity and I’m forever thankful to the parents, who let us capture those moments, whilst they were with their babies in the high and low dependency units.

SSNAP website can be viewed here: https://www.ssnap.org.uk/

My Cleverbox Product Shoot

Here are some images from a product shoot with My Cleverbox. The independent company produces eco and sustainable lunch boxes. The images produced are simple and fresh, which reflects the client’s website and social media stories.

As well as studio lit product photographs, the client also wanted some lifestyle images and portraits, which would work well as a website banner and also for their social media engagement.

I provided an animated version of the static set up shots, for the client’s social media pages.

Gordon Young's Ealing Rock

In July last year, I was commissioned by Gordon Young; one of the UK’s leading artists in the field of public art. The Ealing Rock is the central feature in Elizabeth Square, a new retail and residential development in Ealing.

The photographs needed to show the sculpture in the new development and also to show human interaction with the piece. The images including people, really help to show the scale of this large piece of artwork.

Milton Keynes Parks Trust welcome sheep back to Campbell Park

As photography assignments go, this is not a ‘baaaaaad’ one.

The Parks Trust wanted me to photograph their sheep being released into Campbell Park, Milton Keynes.

The sheep return to the site, once a year, to help with the conservation of the park.

It’s was a pleasure to photograph the sheep against the Milton Keynes skyline. I managed to capture some fantastic images of them grazing in their new temporary home. The little scamps even made it up to the beacon- I guess they wanted to take in the view!