``I often get asked this question - well, for me it all started at school. There was an after school club organised for the students in the year above me and I was aked by the teacher if I would be a model for them. I agreed but soon realised that being in front of the camera was not for me and I asked if I could participate in the club alongside the other students - and thats where my interest in photography began.
I loved it! I used 35mm cameras and really enjoyed developing the images in the dark room. I managed to achieve a City & Guilds certificate in photography before leaving school.
Time passed and unfortunately I never really got the opportunity to pursue my love of photography as a career but still always enjoyed it as a hobby. Eventually I decided to go back to university but was unsure what to study. I knew it would be art based so I attended an open day at Wolverhampton University and had a look around the Art Department - it really helped make my decision for me! The photography department was the last one I visited and there I met the Head of Photography who I clicked with immediately. We chatted for ages and she showed me around and in doing so confirmed to me that I was making the right decision and that photography was the course for me! So, I got accepted onto the course and was excited to start a 3 year degree in Fine Art Photography. It was honestly the best decision I ever made. I loved the course, the University and all the friends I made. I learnt skills in both medium and large format cameras and loved all my black and white images I produced whilst experimenting in the dark room. Digital cameras were rarley used and I had very little experience on Photoshop so during my first year I would sit in the computer room surrounded by third years' watching and learning from them whatever I could. They were all so accommodating and happy to assist me whenever I needed help. During the course we were often left to our own devices for long periods of time and as a result I felt that the more I put into the course, the more I would get out. However, I certainly learned a tremendous amount of the technical elements of photography whilst still being able to express my creative side.
I completed the course with a 2:1 grade in Fine Art Photography and I couldn't have been happier. Straight from University I found work as a school photographer for one season and with the equipment I was using started doing potrait sessons for toddlers and also began a wedding photography business with a fellow student from University. Through both these ventures I managed to save enough money to buy my own equipment. I found I enjoyed photographing children a lot more than I did weddings so began concentrating all my efforts into focussing my business towards one genre of photography.
I joined a group of photographers and mentor specialising in Newborn photography - this was something new and exciting and I owe a great deal of my success to my mentor who taught me so much about business (sometimes something creative people can lack).
I have since done workshops with Kelly Brown, Russ Jackson and Lola Melani - all massively inspirational and influential artist in the photography industry. Im so grateful for my journey and to have had so many positive influences along the way.
I love being creative and I am always learning and pushing myself to do better. It fills me with immense satisfaction when I can ultimately create heirloom images for all my lovely clients that they can look back on for generations to come.
I will be approaching 13 years in the photography industry come January 2023 and I love what I do more and more every year. In the new year I will be expanding my business by giving back and setting up an Training Academy where you will learn how to successfully run a photography business and learn how to safely pose newborn babies and create stunning maternity images. As previously mentioned investing in a mentor was the best decision I ever made for my business. Lots of new and exciting things ahead for the new year and I can't wait to get started :)
