i have been considering my photographic direction for a while now, and last fortnight’s studio session has gone a long way to solidify my thinking. after completing this artificially-lit, backdrop-draped, 2-hour shoot, where the room was prepared by first drawing every available curtain and shutting all the blinds; i was greeted by a friend whose family i photographed last year. ironically, her words to me were: “yours are the best natural-light photographs i’ve ever seen.”

the thing which really stood out for me during the studio session was that the kids really didn’t seem to want to be there. they were enjoying all the toys and activities of the playgroup downstairs and then were suddenly whisked away to a strange (boring!) black room with odd-shaped objects that they weren’t allowed to touch, and asked to sit still and look happy. how many very young children would actually be happy with this scenario? there were a couple who understood the picture-taking process and were excited to imagine themselves on-camera… but the rest frankly were in a hurry to leave and i totally sympathised with them – and their poor parents who were resorting to desperate bribes and all manner of antics to coax at least one real smile out of them before their time was up.

my favourite type of portrait session is one where the subjects hardly even notice they are in a photo shoot. i love to get outdoors, some distance away with a longer lens, choose a time of day with perfect lighting, in a setting where the subjects clearly feel relaxed and can just enjoy it. not many people would class an artificial studio set in their top ten places to spend an afternoon – especially pre-schoolers!

so i have decided: life is too short for me to spend my time trying to be all kinds of photographer to suit all kinds of client. therefore i am going to be my kind of photographer, and people will choose me because they love what i love and i’m ok with specialist studio photographers attracting the clients who want studio portraits; while i spend my own time behind the camera watching my subjects being themselves and enjoying their time with me – whether we are outside or in their own home, everyone will be comfortable and the photos will reflect that.

i have compiled a small collection of ‘outtakes’ from the last session to illustrate my point. all these children are so gorgeous and engaging, yet the photos speak for themselves: many of them have been caught in the act of attempting to leave the set, while others have made their point with attitude, or the dreaded finger-to-nose look… something guaranteed to put any parent off buying a wall print!