A year to the day since they booked me to shoot their wedding day (totally unplanned and so quite freaky actually!), Erika & Justin hit Ventnor Botanic Gardens with me, which they chose as the location for their pre-wedding shoot because that's where they're getting married this week!

Whist making our way around the gardens, we talked about their wedding plans, their beautiful new home that they've put so much hard work into (I've been admiring it and following their progress on Instagram), about running your own business and even badminton. Maybe we talked and shot for a bit too long because we got locked in and had to find our way out along with a small group of elderly men and women! So we moved onto the Spyglass Inn for a bite to eat and to go over last minute plans and paper work.

Thank you both so much for the meal that was a lovely treat! Also thank you for choosing me as your Wedding Photographer, you are such a great couple and such great people, I'll see you in a few days - eeeeek!

The day before I went to France on holiday, Steven Holly and I shot their Pre-Wedding photos, almost a year to the day since they had their initial meeting with me and chose me as their wedding photographer. 

It was the first shoot that I had done with my brand new second camera body (which wasn't just test shots around the house, of my husband, or my dog..) and I absolutely loved it! Really helped by the fact that Steven and Holly we're really relaxed, up for a laugh and also just lovely people. They also said the magic words to make any photographer who likes the more candid documentary style stuff like myself, "If you want to try anything new feel free!" I really love collaborating and working with my clients, throwing around ideas and also letting them be themselves in front of the camera. 

Both Holly and I (maybe it's a name thing) we're disappointed to find there we're as many sand worm trails on Appley Beach as we both remembered growing up, please tell me we're not the only ones who loved squishing the tracks with our toes?! Also no ring shots I'm afraid because Holly's friend is making her engagement ring into her wedding ring, how awesome is that?! 

Steven and Holly have told me to be prepared for a "super laid back" wedding to come - Lana and I will be there, only a few days to go and we can't wait!

Even though the sun did not come out to play and most of the leaves and flowers had not started to bloom (apart from the daffodils of course), Paul Tracey and I headed to Osbourne House for their engagement session. 

Since our first meeting I knew that Tracey and Paul are a great couple and that their wedding day will be fun and enjoyable for me to work at. Between talking about Harry Potter and how members of Tracey's family had worked at Osbourne House over the years, and also managing a quick cup of tea in a very busy cafe, we managed to dodge the rain and take some natural snaps. 

Thank you both for choosing me as your Wedding Photographer, I'm so pleased you're happy with your engagement photos and I'll see you in a few months time!

It seemed fitting that we went to Arreton for Kirsty & Adam's engagement shoot, as they are getting married there in June this year. Kirsty & Adam booked me over the phone, so it was great to meet them in person and have a shoot before the big day.

A huge mass of black clouds descended on the Isle of Wight about an hour before our meeting, and I was worried we would have to cancel the shoot because of them. Thankfully they scooted away and we managed to have a walk round Arreton Barns and went to look at the church they will be saying "I do" in. (It was a little odd walking around there as a "Photographer" because I used to work there when I was nineteen. I sometimes would have to feed the ducks at the pond in the morning before starting my shift).

It's funny what you get to know about people when you do a shoot with them and when you talk wedding plans. I learned that Kirsty's engagement ring had gone through a whole wash cycle in their washing machine, but thankfully they managed to get in back and in perfect nick!

Thank you both for choosing me to photograph your wedding, and I'll see you in a few months.

So around New Year I decided to give away a family or portrait session to one lovely winner picked out at random on my facebook page, and Helen was that winner.

Helen decided to have a family photo shoot with her partner Ben and their two beautiful boys. It was a very cold Sunday afternoon in February, but everyone was great and braved the freezing (but sunny) weather. I was told the boys were really looking forward to it and had been "practicing their smiles" which really made me smile actually  - It's always nice to do a shoot with anyone who's looking forward to it!

Thanks for entering Helen and I hope you and your family enjoyed the shoot, didn't get too cold and like the snaps I got!

I've wanted to meet Charlie & Reuben (of Glass House Productions) for quite a while.

It sounds a tad creepy, yes, but in the wedding world sometimes you know of other people in the industry, but you somehow never work the same jobs together, and so it's difficult sometimes for your paths to cross and for you to actually meet in person. I absolutely love their wedding films and their Instagram stories always make me chuckle and so I asked them if they wanted to meet up in person and have a chilled shoot and chat (with smoke bombs, as you do..)

What I didn't expect was to be asked to be the first guest on their brand new podcast. I like many people hate the sound of my own voice, and the introvert in me wanted to run as fast as possible in the opposite direction, but I took a deep breath and agreed - evidence of which can be found here.

Seriously, if you're looking for people who are talented, will get the job done and have a good laugh while doing it, give these two a call.

I've had quite a huge time away from being in a photography studio, and to be honest it's partly because I didn't want to go in one. I personally feel I am better and much happier when I do shoots on location with natural light, but I had itchy feet at the end of last year and really wanted to do more work and experimenting in the studio. 

​They lovely Sidonie agreed to once again be my model and have a little experiment with me. I knew full well that asking her to bring along a black polo neck, combined with her short hair would look very 90's Sinead O'connor-esque, but hey I don't think that's a bad thing.

I'm very happy with the results, I am so glad that Sidionie is as well, and I hope you guys like them too. A successful trip to the studio I think, maybe I should do more of them?