Let Them Eat Cake! (if we can bring ourselves to cut it…)

It is probably evident from the distinct gap since my last blog entry, that I have either been temporarily abducted by aliens (which some might say explains a lot), or just a fraction busy. Well I am happy to say it is the latter to blame for the lack of activity here. To be honest, I did start writing a few pieces but never quite got around to posting them. Why? Well possibly as they were about myself and my business which, being the ever so ‘umble person that I am I find hard to do. But then during the very busy time I have had of late I started to think about other creative people around me.

Running a business and rearing three children keeps me occupied as it is but the six weeks leading up to Christmas are always hectic, not due to preparing for the festivities but the succession of birthdays that I am faced with, all in the immediate family. This year there was an extra special one, my dad turned 80.

Anyone who has asked me how I got into photography will know that my dad is to blame. No let me correct that, he is to thank. His passion for the medium remains undiminished after over 60 years, but it is his creativity that inspired me as a child (this story would be a blog post all by itself). I knew that I had to mark the occasion in some way that he would appreciate, and something creative yet traditional seemed to be the answer.

Now my dad is usually the ‘surpriser’ rather than ‘surprisee’, so I knew that my work would be cut out. Inviting various people to the birthday lunch, finding phone numbers for them, ensuring they did not slip up and happen to mention anything about seeing him soon. Everyone was very helpful and I was particularly looking forward to seeing some whom I had not seen for years. Just chatting on the phone to those who could not make it was lovely. Next I needed a birthday cake. But I wanted something that would be creative, just like my dad.

There is a shop in Chester that really could not be more simply nor aptly named. It is called ‘Cake’. Funnily enough one of the proprietors is called Julie Smith (I promise you this is a different Julie Smith, I am not diversifying into culinary creations). I had often admired their amazingly original cake designs and so started to dream up ideas for them to interpret in icing.

To start with I knew I wanted it to feature my dad doing what he loves, taking a photograph. But it could not be just any camera, it had to be a large format camera just as he would always use if he had a choice. This meant that a tripod needed to be involved. What could he be photographing? I could have chosen all sorts of iconic images of his over the years, but then I realised there was one subject it had to be – his three granddaughters. I took this hazy concept plus one or two other tidbits to Julie (the other one) who built on the idea and asked me all sorts of questions that I had not considered. This weekend I picked up the cake and, well take a look at these images to see how they interpreted my thoughts. The idea had been brought to life and embellished by such subtle yet vital detail. My daughters thought it was cool (high praise indeed) and my dad, now you must understand like many dads he is not one to gush praise, but he was overwhelmed and touched (and somewhat flattered by his likeness I feel).

This experience with the cake from Cake (?) led me to reflect a little on how many creative people I have around me and how passionate they are about their domain. The cake makers (or is that bakers) and decorators who spend such time and attention on their creations. The graphic designer who takes a person’s message and turns it into a personal identity and brand. Cakes and logos are all freely available from supermarkets and online web wizards, but the professional, whose vocation and passion it is to do these things, will give you so much more, because they put in so much more.

Being in a creative profession myself I really appreciate what these people do. I was not buying a logo, I was gaining an insight into my vision and purpose. I was not buying a cake, I was drawing on skill, experience and creativity to recognize a unique moment and secure a new memory. And you are not just buying a frame with some prints in. We are creating a fresh heirloom to be looked back upon for years to come as digital storage formats move on yet again.

I have just one last thought to share with you. At the birthday lunch for my dad, we passed around old family photos from when he was young with his brothers. They were brought by one of my cousins who had found them safe and sound in amongst one of my uncle’s belongings. What would have happened had they found some disks instead? Would they have been so readily shared and indeed would it have felt the same looking at digital images? There was am immense sense of authenticity about the photos we looked at.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I hope not to leave it so long next time, when I may well be writing something about a new arrival in the Smith household. No we are not intent on having our own netball team, but my eldest is intent on having a hamster for her birthday. Suggestions for names gratefully accepted.

Oh and in case you are wondering, the cake tastes as good as it looks.

The Hidden Art of the Baby Whisperer

I like babies. No I love babies. I have had three myself after all and were it not for the practicalities of transport and living accommodation would be very likely to have more. The thing is, babies seem to like me too. I do not know if I just have one of those faces babies like (to clarify – characterful), if it is the voice I speak to them in (it does not matter what you say it is how you say it – I have enthralled babies with my explanation of the offside rule – yes I am a woman and I know this), or perhaps it is simply the practiced manner with which I hold them (often my patented one handed yet secure, never have to drink a cold cup of tea again hold).

But maybe there is more to it than that. Perhaps it is the nature of my contact with the babies that makes the difference? The approach I have to my portrait shoots?

For a start the shoot usually takes place at the baby’s home. A familiar surrounding but more than that, somewhere that means something and where all their needs are to hand (I don’t know about you but whenever I take my children out I always manage to forget something and they always manage to need that exact item despite never in the history of our going out with it ever needing it before).

Then there is the timing. I don’t cram my day with shoots. I dedicate a day to yours. Together we choose a start time that suits the routine of your baby, and because routines can and will change (usually just after you have made the mistake of telling someone you have a routine – they listen you know) we check close to the shoot to see if it needs changing.

The shoot lasts, not an hour, but two to three hours entirely dependent upon the boss, who incidentally is the baby. I learnt that one very early with number one. If the baby needs a feed, change or simply a cuddle, then that is all fine. I love what I do and know what the images mean to the parents so have all the time in the world, until we know the time is right.

It was during one of my recent newborn baby shoots, that I was actually dubbed the baby whisperer. The little man was just a few days old and completely adorable but something was niggling him at the start of the shoot. The mother had to go to do something and his father had just popped out the room so I offered to hold him for a moment. We may never know if it was some mystical powers of mine that did the trick, or whether whatever it was simply went away, but he became so calm and contented from that point we produced some amazing images.

So maybe I am a talented baby whisperer, or maybe it is simply my approach to baby portraiture that makes the difference. Where there is no set schedule or time limit, where the baby is in the familiar surroundings of its home and they are the boss. Baby whisperer? Maybe. Baby photographer, definitely.

Julie Smith Photography – no fuss – no rush – just natural, beautiful imagery.

To Blog or Not to Blog…?

I am constantly amazed at the wealth of information on the internet. That at the press of a few buttons and the click of a mouse you can discover answers to questions that would have otherwise taken hours, learn topics you would need to attend hours of training for, or read the innermost thoughts of the new blog celebrities.

When I started out in my own photography business the need for a blog seemed to have been there from the start. It was almost a given but to a certain extent I felt as thought the only reason to have one was that most other photographers seemed to have one. Was that reason enough? Apparently not to me since I have resisted for this long, but what purpose is it to serve?

I update my Facebook page (www.facebook.com/JulieSmithPhotography) most weeks with highlights of one of my shoots, I am also known to tweet now and then, but was I ready to compose a sensible insight into my life/business? Does such a thing exist even? (the words ‘sensible’ and ‘my life’ rarely share the same sentence).

I know that some photographers use their blogs as their showcases for their work which is great, but I do this elsewhere. Do I want my blog to be more than this? Is it perhaps a way that I could add to the knowledge to be found on the web? (albeit possibly for the world of pub trivia) And this is what finally swung it for me. I love to teach and if by having a blog I can impart some of my knowledge unto the souls that wander in then perhaps the blog can become more than just an excuse for me to witter on (which, if allowed, I am more than capable of doing).

So here we are, the blog of Julie Smith Photography. And I promise the folllowing: -

• My blog will have something to say and not be posted to for the sake of posting to my blog.
• Wherever possible my blog will be informative and teach something new.
• My blog will be fun (well I will try) and I vow to not take myself too seriously.

So should you have stumbled upon this page, welcome to my blog, do enjoy your stay here and please, feel free to leave a comment.