Ruby Dee is a Rutland based Vintage solo singer who specialises in singing songs from the 1900’s and up. Whether it be big band hits or jazzy classics, she loves entertaining people and will bring a bit of old school glitz and glam to your event. Ruby is the voice of several bands, you can find her singing with The Rutland Big Band, at weddings and events with a Soul & Funk twist with The Top Banana Band, and also with Midnight City Band, a new female fronted band who play Disco & Soul.
Roo needed some new images for her social media so we got together and one sunny day in Greetham I took these images along with a bit of singing of course. We even managed to find a lovely vintage car to pose with!
I love how the photos turned out, I did add a bit of an old film look on some of the final edits and I don’t always do this, but I think the style works with what Roo wanted so I’m happy. I wanted her to feel pampered and comfortable in front of the camera and enjoy the shoot, which is one of the main things for me, once my client is feeling happy the images flow and it makes all the difference to the final photo.
Becky came to me with a colour idea for her branding session, she needed some new images for her website and she wanted to match her images to her site. She got her hair and makeup done and we shot outdoors in a local public space.
Nerves!
I knew Becky felt nervous, as anyone would be when doing something new! It was the first time we’d met, like many of my clients. We sat and had a chat over a coffee and took some photos indoors before changing outfits and heading outside to shoot. We quickly got into the swing of things and the shoot went really smoothly. Becky was taking my direction in her poses and we tried different ideas, some worked, some didn’t as well but it’s always good to try a pose and just move on if it doesn’t suit. My expertise is in creating these natural and personality filled images that you can’t get with a selfie or a standard headshot
Choosing brand colours wisely can impact how people perceive your brand. In fact, using a signature colour can increase brand recognition by a massive 80%
After a career serving in the Royal Navy, Becky launched her business Your Productive PA. She knows all about outsourcing and that is why she knew that a branding session would enhance her business. Why struggle with things that aren’t your area of expertise when you can get someone else to help you grow? It’s important to put a face to your business, I’ve written about this in more depth HERE.
She already had her website built so these photos were to help tie everything together and inject her sense of humour and personality into the site. She is naturally bubbly and positive and I really wanted her to have a wide range of images she could use, from natural and friendly to the classic headshot type image.
Before our session I sent Becky a personalised Pinterest board with some ideas for her poses so we were both on the same page, it’s easier to show another photo than explain sometimes! You can send me photos that you want to try to copy if it helps you describe what you need. I had also sent her my info sheet on branding and how to prepare for the shoot, my aim is to help you get ready and know what to expect at your session.
After the shoot I edited all the best shots and within the week Becky had her new photos. It’s an uncomplicated process, I resize the images for online use and I can also shoot your images to fit your site easily.
I always ask my clients to tag me on social media or shout from the rooftops if they enjoyed their session, here’s what Becky said when she shared some images on her LinkedIn profile.
Not only did she put me at ease the instant we met, but she made the whole experience thoroughly enjoyable and I didn’t end up with faceache (as a result of holding a fake smile), as I found myself smiling the whole way through.
Thank you, Lucy, for a very enjoyable session and some fabulous photos for the new website. Give her a try, you won’t be disappointed.
You can find Your Productive PA online at the links below.
Mark creates bespoke lamps and other lovely pieces for your home from junk. To you and I it may be scrap but rusty bits of engine, tank parts, even an old jet wing have been transformed by Mark into some fantastic objects that would look stunning in anyone’s home. This is the art of Bear Industries. He is a real life Womble!
I was at the warehouse to record some behind the scenes action while he was getting filmed for a new TV show that will be airing on Quest very soon. The crew were recording the big reveal of his newest work to his client, all very cloak & dagger. He really hadn’t seen it so the reaction on TV will be real.
If you’ve read my blog before you might normally know me as lucytakesphotos, wedding/portrait/boudoir photographer from Peterborough who likes music, but on this day I was doing a different kind of photography I also enjoy, creeping around watching how things work and getting those documentary style behind the scenes shots.
I do enjoy being a wedding photographer, especially here around Cambridgeshire, the countryside and venues are really lovely, I’m looking forward to next year when hopefully all our lives will be back to some kind of normal after this terrible Covid-19 disaster.
There are always projects that spark my creativity a bit more than weddings though and working with other artists, musicians and creatives really is something I enjoy and want to do alot more of!
I remember my partner coming home after rehearsal one day telling me I’d like Marks house because he has loads of cool stuff and Lego, they play in a couple of bands together and often I’d go to the gigs and take photos, but I didn’t know about the amazing lamps he made. So when Mark asked me if I’d help him get some decent product photography for his new website I jumped at the chance.
If you’d like to see more of Bear Industries I’ve done a lot of product photography for Marks new website which is looking fab so please do click through and have a look at his work.
While we are in Covid lockdown I know sadly so many of you have had to postpone your wedding date, so our planning chats will probably be next year.
I thought it would be helpful to share with you a few things I go through with my couples to get organised for the big day. You can search online for planning tips and advice but nothing beats your photographer having experience of a real wedding day.
I have to say as well, you can plan and plan but sometimes things will still over run or get forgotten about on the day so please don’t feel like you’ve failed or that it’s a disaster… it’s unnecessary drama!!
Your wedding photographer/videographer will most likely be with you throughout the whole day, so they will act as a timekeeper, a shoulder to cry on sometimes and a general mood regulator!! We take on anything (well, I do anyway) to keep the day running as smoothly as possible and keeping our brides happy so we get those lovely naturally ‘glowy’ photos, stress shows and we know it! (Don’t stress that you’ll feel stressed!)
So, looking at the timeline and planning your photos is really helpful, basically the more we plan our timeline for the day, the more we can fit in.
If you know exactly which sets of family photos you’d like(or not)we can get them done and out of the way first, they can all go off for drinks and then there’s solo time for the couple portraits.
I love having this time with my couples because it’s a bit of a relief for them to be out of the limelight for an hour and relax together as a married pair for the first time. Some people really hate having to pose and have photos so getting away from everyone and not having them watching is good too!
Family Group photos can look like this:
Couple with bride’s parents
Couple with bride’s parents and siblings
Couple with bride’s parents, siblings and grandparents
Bride with parents
Bride with each parent individually
Couple with both sets of parents
Couple with groom’s parents
Couple with groom’s parents and siblings
Couple with groom’s parents, siblings, and grandparents
Groom with parents
Groom with each parent individually
The list can go on and on…
Even if you gave each grouping two minutes, you will be spending 30-40 mins here, then you have the Bridesmaids and Groomsmen to shoot with the couple as well so add another 15-20mins on top. A lot of people feel like they have to have the family shots but don’t want to spend a lot of time doing them and also underestimate how long this really takes, especially on the day when everyone is excitable, it can be like herding cats!
I do suggest that we do some of these shots in the morning if possible. (Bride with mum, Bride with dad, Bride with siblings etc) These informal family shots before the wedding would be my choice of photo, they always seem to be more relaxed and look less stuffy to me.
If I have time or the Groom is nearby I can usually go over to where he’s getting ready and shoot the boys earlier as well. Having a best man or head bridesmaid on hand with my family shot list is something I always have, they normally know everyone and I give them the job of shouting at people so I can concentrate on taking the photos!
Another factor we have to think about is dinner, the bell normally goes at 5pm for dinner and couples want to enjoy the reception too and mingle with friends before the sit down part of the evening, somehow we have to fit everything in!
If you place alot of importance on your photos then try and work your timeline to fit, chat to your venue, tell them what you need, push dinner out later on.
Time of year can be a major factor as well, sunset and golden hour photos are lovely but in the summertime may sometimes be in the middle of dinner, are you prepared for your wedding photographer to drag you outside?! Later on in the year it will get dark earlier, this is sometimes forgotten about.
My main advice is talk to everyone involved, be on the same page, plan ahead for the images you really want, these things don’t happen without your involvement in the planning process, it is your wedding after all!
A lake carries you into recesses of feeling otherwise impenetrable..William Wordsworth.
I met Jo after taking some photos of the wedding band she sings in The Moog69’s, ( they are brilliant check them out!) she came to me looking for new photos for her website and solo church side of things, so we had a chat over a coffee, clicked straight away and started planning. She was very open to ideas and naturally goes with a bit of a rock chick vibe, I like to try to push things a little out of the ordinary but still stay in that comfort zone so it’s not forced and unnatural, so after talking to Jo I knew Jill would be brilliant at bringing all of our ideas together, more coffee… loads of ideas.. we always tend to go waaaaay beyond the brief, get super excited then nail it down to something not too scary! So off we went to Glendalough one morning, it was an awesome day outside in the cold, wandering around the beautiful lake and playing in the trees, it was really fun! and this is what happened…….
I did share a few photos before but I love them so much I had to show you some more, It would be the perfect romantic spot for an engagement shoot or even a family portrait session with the kids splashing by the water.
Thanks to Jill for her styling on the day and to Jo for being so good at standing in cold water!!
lucytakesphotos 