I have a new studio in Kingston upon Thames

I am very excited to announce that Sweetheart Studio has a new studio in central Kingston upon Thames. I will still be doing on location shoots in local parks and in clients’ homes, but having a studio of my own means that I will be able to offer more studio-based shoots such as headshots, newborn sessions and themed sessions. I am very excited about it – the studio is right in central Kingston next door to Heals. I have been busy painting it over the last few weeks and have already done a couple of shoots there. It is kitted out with a very beautiful sofa and it’s light and bright so that I don’t always have to rely on flash or studio lights. And it’s very convenient for a little shopping trip or coffee while you’re in town…

To celebrate I am running a weekend of mini Christmas sessions on Saturday 30 November and Sunday 1 December and will be posting details later today. In the meantime, here’s a gratuitous shot of our puppy, Ted, enjoying the sofa (for the purposes of this photo only).;)

 

pet photography in kingston upon thames

A family shoot in Kingston

Due to the rain/sun/rain/clouds/rain/sun last Sunday, I had to postpone the autumn mini sessions. I’m hoping that the weather will be all rained out before we do them again this weekend, but in the meantime here’s a lovely session from back in the summer (when rain showers were just a distant memory) with a family and their gorgeous baby boy…

baby portrait shoot in north kingston

 

 

 

 

 

Do you wish you had more photos of your children?

A survey this week of 2,000 mums by Venture found that 92 per cent regretted not taking more photos of their second-born child as a baby. Apparently 91 per cent of those surveyed said that they obsessively recorded every detail of their first child from tiny toes to first tooth, while 87 per cent admitted to having noticeably fewer photos of their next child. Juggling a toddler and a newborn was one of the main reasons given for not getting round to capturing those moments on camera. You can see the article in The Telegraph about the survey here http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/10307075/Parents-ignore-second-child-when-it-comes-to-photos.html

I think that having fewer photos of our kids is definitely the case as they get older too. Last week, as I realised that with September whizzing by I need to start picking out photos of our daughter for the calendar I make each year for family members, I noticed that as each year goes by there are fewer photos of her to choose from. A lot of this is due to the fact that after nearly 11 years of being photographed by me, Lola is sometimes less than willing to have her photo taken… But as we hurtle about from here to there, the opportunities for taking photos are less and less. Anyway, it has made me determined to use my camera at home more (although she can’t escape my iPhone quite so easily).

It’s important to get photos of all of you together too as a family. And that’s where I come in… I only have two bespoke, full shoot sessions at weekends left now for 2013 so please get in touch asap if you would like to book one of those. But I’m running several mini sessions over the next couple of months so that you can get some up-to-date family photos done just in time for Christmas – or get some professional photos of your baby or toddler done. Or even get some festive family photos to make your own Christmas cards. Below are details of the sessions. I’ll post further details over the next few days, or please get in touch if you’d like some more info.

sweetheart studio mini sessions

 

 

Summer mini sessions at Mayfield Lavender – part 2

Hmmm. A few days later than planned, but due to an unexpected website blip where WordPress deleted all new content from 2013, I’m a bit behind with blogging etc.
Anyway… on this wet  September afternoon, here’s another of the lovely mini sessions I did back in August at Mayfield Lavender. I will be announcing the dates for my autumn mini sessions this weekend so please keep an eye out as slots go very quickly…
mayfield lavender mini session

 

summer mini portrait session

 

mini sessions with Sweetheart Studio

 

 

Summer mini sessions at Mayfield Lavender #1

Oh dear. I haven’t been very good at keeping up to date with blogging over the summer holidays, despite my best intentions. So since autumn looks like it’s settling in to stay I wanted to share some photos from the summer mini sessions I did at the beginning of August at Mayfield Lavender in Banstead. It was my first time shooting there and I loved it. Not only is the lavender beautiful and the fields make a lovely setting for a photo shoot, but the smell is amazing. If only scratch and sniff blogs had been invented… The lavender is only in bloom for a relatively short time in July/August so the opportunity for a portrait session there is quite limited. However, I’ll definitely be running more sessions there next summer so if you’re interested or even if you’re super-organised and want to book one as a Christmas present (sorry for mentioning that when it’s still September) please do get in touch.

Anyway, here is the first of the sessions I’ll be posting. Tomorrow I’ll add another. There, it’s written on my blog so I’ll have to do it, despite having lots of lovely shoots to edit from the last week or so…

Mayfield lavender photo shootmini photo session in the lavender fields at Banstead