Tag Archives: Bride

Shadow Photography’s Autumn Campaign

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Shadow Photography is the business John and I started almost 2 years ago and, at the risk of sounding self-indulgent, John and I have worked hard to develop it into a viable prospect.  Not many cats have the opportunity to learn new skills and meet interesting people from all walks of life so I feel quite proud to be part of the project.  I try to make sure John feels like he’s in charge and I have to admit I couldn’t do it without him – he can lift heavy loads and he has opposable thumbs!  Don’t worry, he’s used to my cheek!

The Sussex Bridal Planner – Shadow-Photography

 

The Sussex Bridal Planner   Issue 7

Check out Page 35

I thought you might like to see the Shadow Photography advertising campaign that has been designed this year.  Am I sounding executive enough yet?!  It may not be an international conglomerate, but its mine and John’s baby and as managing director I’ve decided to share with you a couple of the ideas we’ve had to promote the business.  Do you recognise the cat in the background on one of the ads?  Its a good-looking ginger-striped old mate of mine.

Shadow-Photography Pets

Ginger

 

Shad does a wedding at the Inglenook

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The Inglenook Hotel in Nyetimber (near Chichester) is a family-run 16th century Grade II listed building and boasts good food, a welcoming atmosphere and a stunning patio and gardens.  The bride and groom had organised a beautiful wedding ceremony at the venue along with a reception and hired Shadow Photography to capture the occasion on camera.  John packed the gear into the boot and I bounded on to the front seat of the car, eager to start work on this warm sunny day.  Then John appeared with my travel basket which I’m supposed to stay in for safety reasons so I hopped in and we made our way to the Inglenook.

Shadow-Photography

The happy couple were so friendly and the mood throughout the day was relaxed and enjoyable, probably because the groom kept making faces and messing around making everyone laugh!  At one point, he stuck his tongue out just as I was about to take a shot, and he seemed to find shaking paws with me highly amusing.  For reasons of dignity and self-respect, I usually don’t perform tricks like lifting my paws or rolling-over, after all I am a professional.  But decorum goes out the window when there’s a prawn vol-au-vent involved and unfortunately the groom discovered my weakness.  By the end of the day I was completely shattered, having been a photographer, entertainer, food-taster and cat extraordinaire for the day!

Shad’s bridal photo-shoot – behind the scenes

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The whole idea behind this shoot was to promote Shadow Photography and broaden our portfolio of work.  We recruited a fab team of helpers (family and friends) and plenty of effort went on behind the scenes in the preceding weeks to arrange for the car, dress, bouquet, model, hair, make-up, transport, venue and good weather.  The day before the shoot, John and I spent our time cleaning, re-charging and organising the various bits of equipment required to turn a pretty lady in a beautiful location into an impressive image that people want to look at and buy.  And it’s expensive gear that has taken lots of saving and bargaining to acquire, so it must all be kept safe and secure.

 

 

When we arrived at the venue and had taken a moment to soak up the stunning scenery, we got into position and started taking pictures.  It soon became apparent that there were too many creative directors in the group as we all gave Fiona (our model) instructions to adjust her posture and her expression.  “Chin up please”, “Turn your head please”, “No, tilt it to the right”, “Sorry I meant my right”, “Now, the other way please”, “Chin up”, “No, not literally”.  To avoid confusion, we decided to put all requests through John and we quickly got the hang of it.

Time flew by and soon our tummies were rumbling and brows glistening, so we decided to take a break and enjoy the blankets, refreshments and snacks we had brought with us to keep the workers happy.  I yelled “Take 5 people” and Nathan (the chauffeur) shouted “Bet you’ve always wanted to say that” and I have to admit, I did rather enjoy it.  Wishing that I had one of those Hollywood movie clapperboards, I trotted off with my tail up high, had a slurp of water, grabbed one of my meaty sticks, and sat in the shade of an oak tree, watching a colourful male pheasant sashaying along the driveway, feathers on display.  While I contemplated my potential new career as a movie director, tiredness washed over me and I drifted into a gentle slumber.  From a distance, I heard John calling me, keen to finish the job we had started, and no amount of throaty purrs or cute whiskers was going to get me off the hook!!

 

So I moseyed on over to our latest spot and we continued our task in earnest.  By this time we imagined we were working like an elite team in field ops, efficient and organised to the core, although I’m not convinced that a crack team of secret agents would have burst into laughter at Natasha ‘getting her groove thang’ which involved a silly face and a shimmy wiggle.  What a pro!  The atmosphere was relaxed and we had loads of fun, making amusing comments, laughing at each other’s funny poses, taking selfies and not taking ourselves too seriously.  If you’ve ever wondered what’s underneath a bride’s wedding gown, it’s a pair of black wellies!

 

Photos for this Blog supplied by John’s daughter Natasha

Shad’s bridal photo-shoot

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My stomach had been churning all morning to the point where I couldn’t eat, and regular readers will know that it’s not like me to go off my food! But my nerves disappeared the moment John drove up the long winding driveway and my eyes came to rest on the emerald green and sunshine yellow fields of grass and daffodils spreading all around us. The meadows were framed with trees of all shapes and sizes and at the top of the drive stood the Rookesbury Park School, a former stately home hidden in the Hampshire countryside. A cat could live an excellent life in a place like this, far away from the hustle and bustle, the dangers of busy roads and angry humans who don’t have the time or the inclination to appreciate the complex behaviours of the feline species. Lucky for me, I’m surrounded by kind-hearted humans who understand my need to rub legs, scratch sofas, nip toes, lick plates, sniff floors and purr manically when my neck is caressed or my fur is fondled.

More Information at Shadow Photography

John pulled up outside the house and started emptying the car of all the camera equipment while I bounced over to the edge of the field and gazed contentedly across the landscape. I started to picture myself running in slow motion to the sound of Chariots of Fire, leaping majestically with my paws outstretched like Marty the Zebra and Alex the Lion running towards each other on the beach in the movie Madagascar. But I couldn’t spend all day dreaming of frolicking in the prairie, I had work to do! The model was dressed in her bridal gown and the hairdresser was providing a few finishing touches as the glorious spring sun smiled down upon us. The wedding car was in position and lenses, tripods, flashguns and quantum cables were set up and ready to go. The photographers were John, myself and John’s daughter Natasha who kept making me laugh. She knows full well that my belly wobbles when I chuckle and it’s hard to keep the camera still!!

More Information at Shadow Photography

We worked hard for over 3 hours, perspiring in the heat and getting stiff muscles and trigger finger (or trigger paw in my case) from holding awkward positions and the multiple button-clicking involved, but it was worth every moment. It was a great opportunity to support the model and the hair-stylist who are both at the beginning of their careers and appreciated having some pro shots for their portfolios so my thanks go to them for their skill and endurance. Thanks also to Brides of Sussex in Bognor Regis for the loan of the gown, and Nathan at BB Executive Travel in Bognor Regis for his posh car and ribbons and his upbeat style. Thanks also to Natasha for her patience, jokes and comical body movements that kept everyone amused. Well it kept me amused anyway, although as John knows, I’m easily pleased!

More Information at Shadow Photography

The Wedding Shoot

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Its not all fun and games for the team here at Shadow Photography.  We do have to work from time to time!   And although John and I enjoy our work, we worked hard to earn our pennies at the weekend with a wedding shoot on a particularly hot day in 3 venues – the church, the woods and the evening reception.

We were lucky enough to have a really good assistant (John’s daughter who is also a photographer) to help us and we managed to pull it off without a hitch!  It was a beautiful traditional wedding and once the bride has approved the shots I will share some with you..

Events became more relaxed as the day progressed and the bride and groom looked stylish and happy throughout.  We were invited to take part in the hog-roast dinner which was delicious and finished the day off perfectly.

Checkout the photo’s from this shoot at

http://www.shadow-photography.com/Weddings/Linda

W&L-151-2