What a difference a year makes!

This time a year ago I was asked to do "The way we work" section for the local magazine, Viva Lewes. I had had photographs published in magazines before such as Red and Sussex Life but this was my first commission. 
I had pretty bad conditions, compared to the usual shoots they do. My subjects were all in the dark with floodlights or lack of floodlights. Even in the case of doing the rugby photographs of Billy we had mist and rain. 
Despite this they were very happy with my photographs and so was I. This gave me the confidence to think I could do it as a career. I had been told over the years by many people that I should be a photographer full time. So within the next couple of months I left my job I had been in for fifteen years and set up Mills and King with my cousin. 
I couldn't have done it without the support of family and friends. I am so glad I did as its one of the best decisions I've made. I had always wanted to be a photographer and at last after twenty five years I finally had the confidence to do it.  
It was very daunting and at points it still is. Occasionally I still can't believe I've done it I am not a spontaneous person. I am so scared of change.
As the months went on we got more and more jobs and we are slowly building the business. 
We are very excited for the future and what it holds for us and all the new people we will meet and photograph. 
As they say 'mighty oaks from little acorns grow'. 
 

Remember Remember the Fifth of November

I'm very lucky to live in such a gorgeous, interesting and historic town as Lewes. Never more so than on Bonfire night. Lewes puts on the most spectacular procession and firework displays. 

Lewes Bonfire, describes a set of celebrations held in the town of Lewes, Sussex that constitute the United Kingdom's largest and most famous festivities, with Lewes being called the bonfire capital of the world. 

Always held on 5 November (unless the 5th falls on a Sunday, in which case it's held on Saturday 4th), the event not only marks Guy Fawkes Night - the date of the uncovering of the Gunpowder Plot in 1605 - but also commemorates the memory of the seventeen Protestant martyrs from the town burned at the stake for their faith during the Marian Persecutions.

Lewes is home to the largest and most celebrated of the festivities in the Sussex bonfire tradition. There are seven societies putting on five separate parades and firework displays on the 5th, and this can mean 3,000 people taking part in the celebrations, and up to 80,000 spectators attending in the small market town with a permanent population of just under 16,000. 

So as a photographer, it's the best place to be. I love photographing all the people in their costumes. I'm still primarily a portrait photographer, so I still chose to make the photographs about individual subjects. 

National Trust Photograph competition

As a National Trust member my family and I have visited so many lovely place in Sussex and also in Yorkshire, when we were on holiday. 

One of the places was Petworth House in West Sussex. Petworth was the reason I actually got the membership. After watching it on Landscape artist of the year as a place that Turner would go to paint. I had to visit it. 

As a photographer I'm sure you can imagine that I take my camera everywhere. I am know as the 'official family photographer'. I took many photographs of the beautiful deer and the house. Whilst stopping for a well needed tea and cake ( it would be rude not to) I noticed they were running a photograph competition. The title was Mixed Emotions. How did Petworth make you feel? 

I entered a couple of photographs that I thought conveyed how I was feeling at the time. I didn't enter any of my deer photographs, they were good photographs but they did not really express how I felt about Petworth.  One was of my daughter looking at the grand staircase and admiring the 'Pandora's box' art work. The other one was of the servants tunnels, which run between the kitchen and the house. The tunnel photograph was the one that was chosen. I called it Hidden Depths, as it was underground but also it showed a hidden side to life there many years ago. 

A couple of months later I found out I was a finalist and invited to see my work at an exhibition they were doing of all the final pieces. 

Unfortunately I didn't win but it is an honour to be in the footsteps of Turner and have a piece of my work on show at Petworth. 

Moe and Norbert

I had a lovely day taking the photographs at Moe and Norbert's wedding. 

The day started at a local hotel with the bride and bridesmaids while they were preparing to get ready. It was great being in the middle of the flurry and excitement of their big day. While Moe was getting her make up done and the bridesmaids were doing each other hair and helping with false eyelashes I tiptoed around taking natural shots. Whilst wanting to take the best photographs I was also very aware to not get in the way and allow the wedding plans and excitement to play out without too much disruption. There is a time limit, so you can't take up too much time with photo requests. 

It was the first time I had met Moe and Norbert, they were the most wonderful, warm and loving  couple. They immediately made me feel at ease and created a very relaxed atmosphere to work in. Moe was wearing the most stunning maroon, sequinned two piece outfit and her bridesmaids were wearing a complimentary soft dove grey colour. 

The flowers were a stunning mix of roses and milk thistles, amongst other ferns and buds.  

The ceremony was a the local registry office in Lewes, which luckily is a gorgeous old building that has very recently been restored. The Southover Grange gardens are magnificent to visit in the Summer, as there are so many flowers in bloom. The Dahlia's were still going strong, so we took some photographs in front of them. 

All of Moe and Norbert's family and friends were lovely and it was a joy to be part of their happy day. It's a wonderful thought that my photographs will be a reminder of their day for all the years to come. 

That's one of the best parts of my job is that I'm a supplier of memories of happy, special times

Wedding Dress Delight

I can't believe it's been so long since I last wrote my last blog. It has been a busy Summer and nobody wants to sit in front of a screen when it's glorious weather outside. 

I couldn't wait to blog about our most recent bridal photo shoot. It was in conjunction with a wedding dress maker called Jennie West, bridal hairdresser Jennifer Graves and the location was the gorgeous Lewes Castle. 

Louise and I were so lucky as we had full "reign" over the castle an hour before it opened. The weather had held off, as it had been rainy the previous couple of days. Jennie handmade dresses were spectacular the models (my daughter Harriet and her friend Liv) were so excited to play bride and try them on. We also were joined by Mary who was going to model her own wedding dress that Jennie had made. 

Jennifer had curled Harriet's hair and put a veil on and we were off, climbing the hundred or so steps to the top of the castle. 

The castle has stunning views over Lewes and of the South Downs, as with all castles they're at the highest point. We had such fun photographing gorgeous girls in beautiful dresses and in the most amazing location. We were so grateful to weddings at Sussex Past for letting us use it. 

The girls got to wear a couple of Jennie's stunning creations and get their hair done. They were great because as soon as the castle opened there were lots of visitors, especially foreign students. They attracted quite a crowd, some thought it was their actual wedding day!

We took so many images, it was hard to choose our favourites. I hope you like a glimpse of our work and it shows you how much we enjoyed our day and working with so many lovely people.