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As a parent, how important is it to you that your child smiles for the camera? I know myself just on an average day I will whip my mobile phone out several times to take videos or photos of my children as they are doing something super cute or funny. Sometimes I will ask my eldest child to smile for the camera. Why I haven’t given up asking I will never know! After potentially 5-10 takes I will have exactly 5-10 photos with either a super cheesy smile where he looks borderline evil; something completely blurry because he  has moved or alternatively he has a ‘strained smile-gritted teeth-eyes facing the opposite direction look’ which I ultimately end up deleting!!

So what’s the solution?

Do we spend too much time obsessing over the perfect picture or a perfect smile? Should we encourage our children to be more autonomous…existing in the here and now and leave them to smile and look at the camera as and when they choose to and not because we have told them to for the sake of a photo?? At the end of the day, is a forced smile really a smile…and if forced…is this a memory we want to preserve? Are we trying to preserve a time in that child’s life for us to look back on fondly, for example their 1st birthday? Or are we capturing a time in a  specific moment that happened without prompting, where they are naturally existing or playing  in that particular moment. Then… ‘click’…(smile or no smile) that memory is preserved. A different kind of memory

I have no definitive answer or advice on the back of these ramblings….just merely thinking out loud…

I love a smile. A smile can say a million different things. A genuine happy smile, a cheeky smile, a nervous-half smile, a polite smile, an embarrassed smile to name a few. However, I’m going to go against the norm and say that my absolute favourite images aren’t the ‘posed’ and smiley ones. I absolutely love the natural images……the frown on a child’s forehead as he’s lining up his toy soldiers or the little fat rolls as he sits there in just a vest! All equally amazing moments to capture for keeps (in my opinion of course). I love too the macro shots that I try to include in my shoots where possible, which are really close up pictures of your child’s lashes, lips, fingers or toes! Little bits of your child you so quickly forget as they so quickly grow.

So here…just for you are some lovely macro shots that I just love, love, love!

Another photographer’s work that I absolutely adore is Bianca’s from Bumps Baby Beyond. Bianca is a newborn, baby and cake smash photographer in Whetstone, Leicester. Check out her page and have a look at some of her wonderful work. 

As a baby and family photographer in Stockport, Cheshire I am lucky enough to meet families with children of all ages. It is especially lovely to be able to form a bond with a family when they bring their very first baby in to the studio. The look of joy and pride on the parents faces, especially in those early days can not be likened to any other life event.  It never ceases to amaze me how much babies change in the first 6 months of life. Clients often send me up to date photos of their babies even just weeks after they have been for a newborn shoot and the change in such a short time is remarkable. 

In the photography world one of the most amazing ages to capture after the newborn stage has to be the ‘sitting’ stage. This happens, or starts to happen around 6 ish months. The muscles in baby’s back are strengthening and enable them to sit and hold their head up.  Once they are able to do this unsupported and confidently they are ready for a Sitting Session. I find this stage one of the most fascinating parts of development. Baby has a real personality by now, watching, exploring, touching and engaging with those around.

One of my recent Sitting Sessions was this little man….he was such fun! Laughing and smiling for his adoring fans. He brought both sets of grandparents with him which meant there was plenty of backstage entertainment for him! 

Lyme Park is one of our favourite National Trust venues. We are forever taking our son, Roman. We love wrapping up warm, exploring the woodland and taking walks right to the top to capture the beautiful views. 

Lyme Park is even more spectacular during the Autumn months. The colours are amazing.
It was a no-brainer really when we were choosing where to meet the Smith family to do their Family Lifestyle shoot which they won in our Autumn competition this year.

​The Smith family travelled all the way from Warrington, Cheshire. Mum, Hayley organised the shoot and brought with her, husband James, Lucas and the two twins…identical I should mention!! Mum Hayley has her own blog about being a stay at home mum, looking after 3 boys. You should check it out http://hayleyfromhome.co.uk/

For now, I will leave you with some of the photos from this beautiful family lifestyle shoot….

 What could make a more beautiful photograph than this little girl running through lavender fields. Meet Phoebe! She was such a sweetie and really loved the camera. Posing wasn’t a problem for her and this made the shoot all the more fun for everyone. As Lifestyle Photographers in Stockport Cheshire we are fortunate to have so many wonderful places nearby to take family photographs. Bramhall Park i a favourite, as well as the Carrs in Wilmslow. This shoot took place in Congleton and Phoebe was the perfect model!

Having my own local business in Cheadle, Stockport is something I am incredibly proud of. However, like with most industries and professions…from time to time I can get stuck in a rut and need to look around for new inspiration.  I love meeting new clients every week and getting to know them and what they are all about. Although working alone can at times be quite isolating, it’s my clients that inspire me and give me a reason to strive to be better every day! It is always my intention that clients coming in to my studio feel relaxed and at home. I want to create a nurturing environment, especially for new mums. At this point they don’t know me very well, so it’s my job to make them feel relaxed and comfortable. Each family or couple that walk through my door have their own story to tell, their own journey that brought them to this ‘here and now’. It always makes me feel so incredibly lucky that so many of them choose to share their journeys and life experiences with me during their sessions. I hear all about their lives and their families. They often talk to me about their fertility troubles, or previous miscarriages. They share really personal and honest truths about their lives and trust me with that information. From that moment onwards I cannot help but feel like I have known some of these incredible people for longer than just a few hours….crazy hey! Quite recently I met a couple who battled with fertility for a long time, faced cancer along the way only to be blessed with a miracle baby after 3 failed attempts at IVF. Hearing their story and knowing that these people had brought their baby to ME to photograph in it’s first few days in this world was a humbling and emotional experience. It’s moments like these that make me realise the true value of the job that I do and the role that I have in some of these people’s lives. It isn’t just about taking photographs, it’s about celebrating with them and capturing memories that will be some of the most special, intense memories for the rest of their lives. Memories that they will share with their children as they get older. Memories that their children will share with their children. I mean…if you want to get to the point here…I’m making history really aren’t I!! (laughing emoji).

So although inspiration comes from many different places in my life, my children, my husband, my friends and family….if I am truly honest…it’s my clients that give me that real drive. I take their stories and I make them something special in return and this gives me true job satisfaction knowing that I was also a special part of the memory that we created. Just the other day I did a session with a couple from Heaton Moor. During the session they happened to tell me that when they were looking for a Stockport newborn photographer they spent a long time browsing at different photographers and their work. They then went on to say that when they found my page they absolutely loved my work and had to book me. As well as blushing…and doing an internal happy dance, this was one of those moments where I reminded myself that this job is flipping fantastic and so are the people I work with! #inspired

As well as my clients another source of inspiration for me has to be other fellow photographers. Some local and others on social media groups where not only do we discuss ‘all things photography’ but also form friendships and share experiences and expertise. It’s lovely to be able to help one another and give each other the confidence to try different things and give each other ideas about new set-ups or ways of achieving a different look. I have many photographers who I follow on social media. Photographers whose work I really love and am motivated by. Every day my Facebook feed is jam packed full of photographers from all over the world, many are also mums who have set up similar businesses and like me have a young family. It is lovely to be able to follow their journeys and acknowledge their fantastic work! 🙂

The images below don’t necessarily relate to any of the stories shared above….but just demonstrate how lucky I am to have such beautiful subjects to make memories with. x x x

Please also take a look at another Baby and Family Photographer in Hertfordshire whose work I love, Jenna Marshall Photography.