I've been quite quiet on social media this week. Although it's been busy with a few commercial shoots, there has been something on my mind and I've been quite contemplative. There are new questions, but there's a clarity emerging from the fuzziness.
Last Monday, me and Suzi went to 'A Greater Story' workshop in London with Jonas Peterson. If you don't know his work, make yourself a cup of something and take a look. He has an amazing gift. He's a storyteller. His ability to show connections between people in his photographs just blows my mind.
On Monday morning, we made our way from the hotel to the workshop location. Rush hour in Hoxton. Everyone clasping a coffee, trendy attire, white earphone leads, determined faces. I can sometimes feel disengaged from a scene like this, but we were walking with purpose too, being carried along with the Monday morning buzz to our workshop location. We climbed the stairs to a light airy apartment, wooden floors and exposed red brickwork, our home for the day. Jonas started to talk. He's a humble man, and he speaks in a gentle tone. He's incredibly engaging. As he told his story there were moments I held my breath, laughed out loud, and wiped tears from my eyes. He opened his heart, and words resonated. Jonas also introduced us to Brené Brown, and I'm really looking forward to reading more and listening to her work and talks.
'Once you start to connect with people, good things start to happen'.
Bang.
This is it. This is what it's all about. This is what we try to achieve on our shoots. We like to connect with you beforehand, so we can tell your story with honesty and truth. For our family shoots, we like to hang out with you in your family home, and then go out on one of your favourite walks you share as a family. We want to show you the real you, your connections, and how beautiful you are.
I wrote a post the other week about developing a style, and accepting my voice. I can feel I'm on the right path, there were reassurances from the workshop.
So, what next? I want to take photos that always mean something to me. When I'm on a shoot, I want to slow down and listen to my heart more. We're just about to be carried away into wedding season, and we also have our own in a matter of weeks (more of this soon!). We're working with some lovely families and telling their stories in the coming months, and we're excited about making short films as an extension to our portrait shoots. And there will be more personal projects, I'll be making time for this.
We want to share our journey with you, with honesty. To tell our story with our whole hearts. Thanks for being a part of it so far.
