Hi I'm Josh, welcome to my first ever blog, something that is completely out of my comfort zone, but hopefully it will give you some insight into the person behind the camera!
This might be a slightly lengthy post so I'll be sure to add plenty of photos for some colour! I'll start at the beginning...
In 2010, fresh out of college I headed off to Derby University to study Film & Media Writing so no excuses for bad grammar here! Honestly, I had no idea what I wanted to do beyond University and I struggled to stay motivated with my studies, but thankfully my parents talked me into sticking it out and I graduated in 2013.
Shortly after moving back home I found a job working freelance for an Asian wedding photography/videography company. I was hooked immediately by the vibrant colours, atmosphere and emotions. It felt so rewarding at the end of the day, having captured so many magical moments, that I knew I’d found my calling.
For the next 5 years I was a second photographer for hundreds of Asian weddings, being lucky enough to shoot in Norway, Portugal, Morocco & Tanzania!
Weddings weren't the only thing I was photographing, coming from an outdoorsy background of weekend camping and hikes through the Peak District, I took every opportunity to get the camera out and capture some landscapes with my best mates. At the time of writing this I'm so excited to be going to the Peak District at the end of the month just to unwind and sample some normality after the last 12 months we've all had to endure!
Landscape photography was where I learned the beauty of shooting at sunset/golden hour, something I love to incorporate into my wedding photography as well!
It wasn't long before I started to daydream about creating my own business...
In 2019 I took the plunge and started to build my business. Firstly I needed a website. Now this isn't something I have any experience in, nor did I have much of a portfolio due to not owning the copyright to most of the images I had taken whilst being freelance. Luckily a few brave clients took a chance on me! Special thanks to Jack and Georgie for being my first couple, booking me before I even had a website to show my work!
I'd also like to thank my brilliant better-half Gemma for putting my website together, as it was probably the most frustrating thing I've ever tried to do. I knew then (actually long before this) that I had a keeper, and I proposed in 2019 after tricking her into a selfie on the beach at sunrise.
In 2019 I shot a handful of amazing weddings, and subscribed to be a supplier on Hitched.co.uk . This is when things really started moving, I found myself meeting with potential clients, getting bookings and filling out my calendar much faster than I had anticipated. Then...well...you know...2020 happened.
COVID-19.
2020 has been a bit of a trial-by-fire for a new wedding business owner. Suddenly I was having to move dates around, getting a knot in my stomach whenever a client proposed a new date and I had to check my availability. It was even more upsetting hearing of my clients’ stress, disappointment and loss during the past year. It's been tough.
Despite the year-long setback to the business I know I have been one of the lucky ones... I’ve been able to keep myself afloat financially with a second job, continue to take bookings, find appreciation from the smaller things and focus on where I want to be in the future. I also got to spend time sharpening my photography skills on my two feline models Ron and Nelle!
2021, Spring is here and I'm so excited to be able to share these experiences with my clients and give them memories to cherish forever...starting this month with two weddings!
If you got this far, thank you for reading, this has been something I've wanted to do for a while now. I feel like this is the right time and it'll hopefully inspire me to do more (the next ones will be less about me and more about the weddings I promise)! Until next time I'll be sure to keep updating my social feed with the amazing weddings I have coming up!
