A portrait session gift voucher

This family had been given one of my portrait session gift vouchers as an present. They were looking for a selection of casual family portraits and a individual photographs of their daughter.
The lifestyle daylight black and white style photography is lovely for the mother and baby photographs and the father and child pictures.  I like to show the closeness of the baby with her parents, make the viewer feel they are glancing in on the situation,  in both pictures here everyone is  looking away showing contact with someone or something else, rather than straight at the camera.
Below are some examples of ways to display your pictures.

A pair of 10 x 8 inch prints in a dark wood frame.

Born to Rock and Roll!!!  Playing her favourite toy piano.
Prints framed together can really tell a story.  It makes me smile every time I look at this set of 4 7 x 5 inch prints in a multiple aspect dark wood frame.

The modern MDF block mounted prints or Box framed prints are very popular and have a contemporary feel but the same impact can be made with a timeless large black and white print.

Pre School photographer Haslemere

Photographer Haslemere - Pre School sibling photography

It is very popular when taking Nursery portaits to allocate a time for younger siblings not at the school to come  and join their older siblings for a portait. The photographs can be put in the same password protected online album for easy print package purchase. 

This little boy was just delighted to see his cuddly brother and gave him the biggest hug.

 

Portrait photographs by Nursery School Photographer Guildford

I really do look forward to taking  Nursery and Pre Schools  portrait photographs.  I have developed a candid style that shows the children in a casual less formal way, which suits both the vivacious and the shy quieter child. I don't want them to feel rushed and constrained by the studio set up, but to relax and show themselves in a way that will melt their parents hearts.

These twins just brightened your day with their funny antics and approached life with such enthusiasm it became infectious.

 

This beautiful little girl shows how cute can be so adorable.

and boys will be boys.

A Surrey photographer working in the Guildford area, also in Farnham, Haslemere, Godalming, Dorking, Reigate
            
Angel face  for a contemporary, school portrait photographer.

Toddlers Photography – Lifestyle black and white photographs Guildford photographer

I do fun casual portraits at toddler groups with popular print packages and special offers. This is where I first met this cheeky little boy, he had such a great sense of humour , everyone was laughing at his little expressions.
His mum contacted me after seeing the Toddler group photos. She thought that large photographic canvases would be great in her new house and asked if I could do some individual and group photos of them, being just two years old her son was changing so quickly.
When I arrived he was a little shy but soon he was introducing me to the rabbit in the garden and his new watering can. I have to say we did do quite a lot of flower, path and shoe watering just to make sure it was fully operational. The Wendy house was one of his favourite places so I thought it would be a really fun shot to get the two of them playing Peek-a-boo. 
As you can see from the photograph below he definitely entered into the spirit of things.

Boo!

After a biscuit and drink, everyone was ready to go again.  I finished the shoot with some lifestyle photographs inside.

Taking pictures in the Snow

Techniques for digital photography in the snow. It can be a great  disappointment when you have been out on a glorious snowy winter's day or away on a sking holiday and return home to look at your pictures and find they are too dull and dark.  Snow scenes can suffer from the syndrome "you should have been there it looked amazing".

A camera has a built in metering system that assumes the contrast range is normal with a wide range of tones from black to white. It takes an average from this reading and makes that mid grey. When the subject is predominantly white, such as snow, the camera is fooled, the light meter stops down to balance the tones and causes the file to be underexposed. Changing the f-stop to allow more light into the lens will make your photographs bright, punchy and vibrant.

Check the histogram at each f-stop adjustment as this can give you an idea of what is really happening to the file; the highlights should be just inside the right end.

A white balance adjustment may be needed when processing the pictures as winter light is quite blue.

Top Tip
Remember that the batteries in the camera will not last as long in the cold so take some spares and keep them warm in your pocket.

Good ideas for winter photographs.
Early morning frost covered plants and leaves, spiders' webs twinkling with frozen dew or graphic abstract patterns from the haw frost, rocks against the snow, icicles and reflections in water. Many images will also lend themselves to black and white conversion later.

How to take great children's portraits - Guildford portrait photographer

Techniques on taking a child's portrait photograph

When in a studio setting, remember that the whole environment can be very overwhelming. The child has never met the photographer and didn't request the photo shoot so there is no reason why they should just perform instantly in front of the camera.  If the children are very apprehensive about the studio setting, take a picture of a toy they have brought along or take a picture of them with their parent or guardian, so they can see how the lights will flash, that it does not hurt, this is very useful during nursery and pre-school photography. Also, they often love seeing themselves in the image preview on the back of the camera – although don’t fall into the habit of doing this every picture every time you press the shutter button.

To save time on image retouching in the post production stage, check for clean faces and hands, before you start taking the photographs. Try to get the parent or guardian to bring a clean tee-shirt in case of an accident early on in the shoot, and watch out for noses.  It is far quicker and more effective to get it right in the camera than try to correct things in retouching after the event.

Don't rush, crouch down to their eye-level and talk to the child; find out the toys they like, talk about a film or television programme they enjoy watching to get them chatting.

Once I have started the portrait session I find that keeping the conversation going helps to make them animated and forget their shyness, getting them to recite their favourite song can often produce the most endearing mannerisms.  Place your helps that are interacting with the child near you and at the camera angle level, so that eye contact from the child is towards the lens.

Tips and Techniques for Location Portrait photography – Guildford Photographer

Portrait photography is very popular on location for families.  Choose a favourite location where the children and adults feel relaxed.  As a photographer in Guildford the area has a great many picturesque places available.

This portrait of a family shows the beautiful autumn colours in the carpet of fallen leaves.  The autumn morning is captured by the long shadows and the sun streaming through the trees.  The magnitude and age of the Surrey woods is emphasised by the height of the trees in proportion to the people in the portrait. The ambience is accentuated and the attention drawn into the photograph by the family holding hands and walking into the lighter trees at the end of the path.  The whole scene evokes a memory for the people in the portrait.