Will and Louise .....

I met a wonderful lady a good few months ago now, called Louise, who won a competition I was running at the time for a discount photo shoot. I went along to meet her and her three children at their grandparent’s house and it was such a lovely photo shoot. They had a wonderful garden for the kids to play in and it was a great place to shoot as it was something personal to Louise and her family. 

I was then asked if I could do a couples shoot for Louise and her partner Will, who have just recently got engaged and I jumped at the chance. We had the date set for months and then the day of the shoot I looked out of my bedroom window to be greeted by the thickest fog!!! I must say I did freak out a little as I have never shot in fog before and this was really my very first shoot that I had worked on with only adults apart from the weddings I have done. 

I am so pleased Louise and Will were still up for the shoot and so I went along to Thorndon Country Park to meet them. We had a stroke of amazing luck as the fog was pretty much gone in that one area and the sun was out to play, spraying rays of sun through the trees that gave us a perfect backdrop and setting for our shoot. 

Here are some of my favourite images from there shoot, they are a wonderful couple who are very much in love. 

I have now started to offer Beloved Session's for 2012 so if you would like any information regarding these please do get in touch karen@klouarts.co.uk orklouphotography@hotmail.com 

 

If your just starting out...............

For a long time, I use to look up photographer's that I admired and that inspired me and I use to ache inside. Why was my photos not as stunning, not as emotionally charged, why do my photos lack those amazing colours and that professional pop. I was hoping it would be as easy as to pop a little pill and then way hey....I am this amazing photographer I hoped and wished to be.

 

Sadly not as easy as that, if anybody does find a pill though please let me know!!!! Hard work and that dreaded work practice is what it takes to become the kind of photographer you inspire to be. I have recently purchased Jasmine Star's very first magazine, she is, for those of you who don't know her, an international wedding photographer and somebody I really look up to. Not just because her photos touch me, but because she is a very open person, and really puts herself out there, you either love her or you hate her but by her own admission, either way is ok. She has also given a huge amount back to the world of photography and those first starting out in the industry. 

 

When I first started out I emailed a ton of photographer's, some in my area and other's all over the country. About 3 of those actually got back to me, and even then I never really got any real advice or help. People are scared of new photographers, scared that they will be better than them, scared that they will steal their ideas and style, scared they will be better at the business side of things, scared they are a threat and will steal clients away. 

 

I spent the last two years trying to find 'my style' worrying so much about why my work does not look like these photographers, that I sort of lost the type of photographer I wanted to be in the first place. Your never going to please everybody but that is ok, everybody love's different forms of art and it would be boring if we were all the time. I wont lie and tell you I have found my style just yet, because if I am honest.... I have not. I am very nearly there though! 

 

So my advice to anybody just starting up is, don't worry about competition or people you look up to, pick that camera up, practice practice practice, shoot anything and everything you can, work on editing as editing is your own personal style, your own stamp on that photo for you to make that little piece of art of your client. 

 

Keep clicking....... K Lou xx 

Libby's 1st Birthday Party

I had the pleasure of being booked to photograph Libby's 1st birthday party, always such a great thing to be asked to capture; a 1st birthday is something you will always want to remember and look back on. Libby had a wonderful time with all of her lovely little friends and family and there was a lot to do with a ball pit, slides, balloons, cake and a giant piano on the floor! Oh to be 1 again :-) 

Below you can see Libby busting some moves once the music started…. 

Here are a little selection of my favourite images of the birthday girl and her friends and family. 

 

1st of December :-)

The 1st of December baby!!!!!!!! Can you tell I am just a little bit excited about Christmas??? Had a little moment this morning when my little darling girl opened the first of her windows on her advent calendar and then proceeded to have a break down because she was not allowed to open anymore!!! Oh the joys of Christmas...........
 
I shot my very last photo shoot at the weekend and I am now taking the month of December off to rest, get my business ready for 2012 and to eat & drink good food. Again I say; oh the joys of Christmas :0)
 
I also turn the big 3-0 this month (yes it has finally happened) and it's really got me thinking the last few weeks. I have spent the last 2 years being behind the camera and capturing lovely memories for other families, and I actually don't have any photos of my own family. I am going to look into getting a family photo shoot booked in for myself in the New Year as I know just how important photos are and I want them so Rose can show her children and then their children and so on.
 
Today is also the first day of my little December project where I will photograph something new every single day for the whole of December. I will be showing you a little bit later what I came up with.
 
Hope your week is going well.....K Lou xx

I have a DSLR.....I can be a photographer

I thought long and hard about writing a post like this for my blog for some time now as the last thing I want to do is come across harsh or bitter, but I read a story this morning from a photographer friend of mine regarding one of her clients that has left my blood boiling.
 
It's been a thing that has been happening for a little while now, the face of photography is changing and now we have digital cameras on the scene we have a lot of people (sadly) classing themselves as Pro Photographers.
 
I wish for just a second that people could see how much work and effort go into running a photography business, to see how many hours we spend editing and emailing and getting back to clients, making sure we do everything we can to meet our clients’ needs. Working on the actual shoot for 2 to 3 hours, another couple of hours then editing. I have seen people buy cameras and think it is easy money, trust me it's not. If I did not feel so passionate about Photography and had not put sooooo much work in the last two years I would have given up already.  
 
Taking the photo for me is only 30% of my actual business, the rest is then editing that photo to turn it into something you and your clients can be proud of, and then you have marketing, accounts, dealing with clients face to face, over the phone and on email.
 
I just wanted to give you a little insight into how much actually goes into it all, and a breakdown of what you are actually paying for, and to say thank you to all my lovely wonderful clients who have never tried to get my prices down, or expect anymore from me than the service I offer.
 
Have a great Wednesday....K Lou xx

Practice practice practice....

I am going to have to give myself a slap on the back of the hand. I have had so much on with being booked up with shoots and also a lot going on, on a personal level I have had no time what so ever so pick up my second baby (Canon 7D) and play about and practice.

 

I tell myself every day I will pick the camera up or take it everywhere I go but the truth be known, it cost so much money I am scared to death of anything happening to it ha ha.

 

I am going to set myself a little project though, this will help me get back into the world of practicing because as a photographer you never stop learning. I will take a photo of something every day from the 1st Dec till the 31st Dec and will show you on my FB page. I wont just be shooting any ol things though, will try and make it a little interesting :-)

 

Hope your not all too cold and having a fun filled Tuesday.....K Lou xx

New Idea's and heading Forward

This is the time of year I take a good ol look at my business and try and make sure that going forward into the new year I run things even smoother, with new idea's and to be a bit more creative, now remember, I am the women with lists for her lists so this takes a little while to get done.
 
I have a few changes coming up and will finally be getting my new fabbo business cards and fliers printed out, as well as my sample packs for wedding albums for my clients to look through. I am also going to be buying a new backdrop and flooring for my little Newborns and little ones that are not yet on the move, and I will be attending a Newborn work shop on Jan 28th and cannot wait to get learning. I will be offering a very special offer for Newborns in the new year so keep an eye on this blog!!!!
 
A new idea that was put to me recently was introducing a Happy 1st Birthday Cake Smash shoot to the packages I offer now, not sure I could sit there while a good cake gets smashed without some of it accidently ending up in my mouth, but am willing to give it ago :-) I will be running a very special competition throughout Dec for all those little ones turning one in Feb 2012 for a chance to win a FREE cake smash shoot with myself, watch this space for more information :-)  
 
I had a shoot on Sunday with such a lovely couple, a new blog post on them later but I woke up to see thick fog outside my bedroom window. I was all ready to call it a day but so pleased we went ahead with it as I feel the fog just added a little something to the shoot. I will be posting some new photos from Will and Louise's photo shoot very soon.
 
Hope your all having a great Tuesday so far....K Lou xxx  

It's all about Family :-)

I had the pleasure of photographing three lovely families over the last 5 days. I have been so lucky as I always have the nicest clients and the cutest kids!! Sadly I can only post two of the shoot's up for now as one of the shoots is a Christmas surprise but will be able to show you in the new year. Below are a few of my fave images from two of the shoots.

I used my lights for two of the sessions and I have to say I am in love!!!!! I still do however prefer natural light where possibly but sadly this winter weather is setting in now and there is no going back! I have one last location shoot with a lovely couple to do before the end of the year so lets hope the weather stays dry for us, the rest will be using my lights again :-).

Hope you have all had a great weekend and a good start to the week.... K lou xx

2012!!!

Ok..... so I am a little ahead of myself here but I am so excited about 2012!!!! I have been working on getting my packages and prices all ready and finished for next year for both my wedding and portrait work and it's very nearly done..yay me.
 
We are also very close to finishing off the new web site, there will be a few little change's going on and a few new pages added so I can't wait to get that finished and up and running to show you all.
 
This crazy weather has been a photographer's dream, I have shot some lovely family shoots recently and instead of rain we have had lovely blue skies and sun (even though it's cold) Thanks to a lovely photographer friend of mine I have now learnt now to use my new flashy lights, and I can't wait to use them this weekend.
 
I am hoping to buy some wonderful backdrops and floors in the new year which will give the newborn/baby shoot's a little something special to them.
 
Hope your all having a fab Monday....K Lou xx
 

Sneak Peek of Barry and Louise's Wedding

I had the honour of shooting a beautiful wedding on Saturday 1st Oct for a lovely couple who were very much in love, Barry and Louise. The day started off in a bit of a mad rush, with the bride and 9 bridesmaids trying to get ready in what turned out to be a very very hot day for the month of Oct. 

They got married at the stunning St Margaret's Church in Stanford Le Hope, and we could not have wished for better weather. Here are a selection of a few images that I wanted to share with you. A huge congratulations to both Barry and Louise, and thank you for letting me part of your special day.

Sneak Peek of Macey

I had a scrummy yummy shoot with the adorable little Macey who is 4 weeks old. She most certainly kept me on my toes not sleeping at all throughout the whole session. She gave me a lot of frowns and a lot of 'who are you looks' and has to be one of the strongest 4 week old babies I have worked with; holding her head up for very long periods of time. Here are some photos from her session, I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed taking them.

Good fit.....

Now any girl out there knows how important it is to have a good fit, that can be those gorgeous pair of shoes you have been eyeing up, the perfect Mr Right, or those cosy yummy PJ's you bought for rainy days in.
 
Well giving this some real thought, I thought I need to start applying this to my business. I have always been very open to the types of  jobs I have taken on, and the type of requests my clients have put on me. I have had a great time trying them all out and met some fab people along the way.
 
Going forward into 2012, I want to make sure that every client that books in with me is a good fit, a good fit for the client and a good fit for me.
 
My style is very relaxed and un-posed I love using only natural light when I can do and love to have my shoots filled with fun and giggle's and I will make sure I carry that forward into the new year. This will also go for my wedding photography work as my style is reportage, with a small number of posed group shots and I have promised myself not to compromise and be true to the type of photographer I am and only take on jobs that I feel are......a good fit.
 
Hope your all having a wonderful Monday..... K lou xx

Need a button to stop time......

Where has the last few week's gone? I have blinked and summer is over........ Since I last posted so much has happened all good and wonderful thing's, I have been rubbish updating this blog (I say it every time) but I do promise to try and blog at least once a week to keep you all updated.
 
Since I last posted I have had the pleasure to shoot a wonderful wedding for Michelle and Alex at The Old Rectory, a fab venue in Brentwood. They had a stunning outdoor service and the weather could not have been better. I never thought in a million years I would get into wedding photography. The pressure that is on you as a photographer is huge but I loved it, this was the second wedding I shot and I went there feeling very calm and armed with my many lists.
 
I have also just taken my 3rd booking for a Church wedding that will be taking place on Saturday 1st Oct (in two weeks time) and I cannot wait to get started. It's such a honour to be part of somebody's special day and to be able to capture moments for them that will last forever.
 
I am in the middle of giving my website a little make over and will be getting next year prices together and out for everybody to see, so those of you who have asked about weddings or shoot's next year you wont have long to wait ;-)
 
I am still very much trying to spread the word for my blog and get my name out there, so if you could again pass my link onto any friends and family I would be soooo grateful ;-)
 
Have a fabbo day K lou xx
 

The important things in life

 

Good afternoon all, I have made a little promise to myself this morning that I will from now on, post at least one a week to tell you all what's going on in the world of K Lou, and new things coming up. I would be ever so grateful if you could pass on my blog link :-)

 

I recently received some very sad news that my family and I are dealing with right now and this has made me sit up and have a really hard think about things that are important to me in life. I love what I do, taking photos of newborns, families and very recently weddings. I am capturing and creating memories, these people can hold and treasure forever, photos that will one day be priceless.

 

It made me realise just how little I capture my own family, my own child and I have set up a little project for myself to correct that, I will hopefully be sharing that you all very soon on my FB page..

 

It's funny as in life people hold on so dearly to material things that really don't matter much in this world. People think nothing of going out and spending £200 on a new phone but would think that that was way too much to spend on a shoot with love ones, even though those photos will last you and your children forever.

 

I guess I am writing this post to say, get out there, take photos, create memories for you and your children and loved ones so that you can always look back on the good times, happy times, funny times, even sad times.

 

Have a great Tuesday ....K Lou x

A New Start.....

I am sat here at my desk at work a little mad with myself for yet again leaving it ages to write a post. Things have been some what crazy in my little world the last month or so and I am trying my hardest to keep up. It's all about the change right now, so much has changed and is changing but I feel like this is a sign almost, to take a good look at where I am going and what I should be doing. A fresh start should one say ;-)  

 

As some of you may know I also had K Lou Arts Crafts on the go, I set this up the same time as K Lou Photography, it has it's own FB page but thats as far as i ever really got with it. As much as I love sewing and making things, my photography business has just taken up all of my spare time and as a result I have decided to hang up my crafts hats and concentrate on bringing all I can into my photography business and work.

 

I have set up a new FB page called Wedding Art - By K Lou and this page will only have my wedding photography work on there, I thought it was best to try and keep things separate as I have a few projects on the go....

 

I have been looking through other photographer's work, there are some very talented people out there, people that really inspire me to make my work my own and to find my own style. The person right now that I really look up to is Jasmine Star, here is her link check her work out. She is not only a wonderful photographer but a person as well,  she has set up a blog to not only showcase her work, but to help other photographers out there giving lots of tips and advice..........

http://www.jasminestarblog.com/

 

Till next time.....K lou xx 

List, list, list's......

I have a new found love...ok ok....obsession with list's right now. If I don't write it down it just don't get done and I have list's for nearly everything you can imagine, work, photography, editing, Rose, home life you name it I have it. Another list I have on the go right now is my wish list.

My wish list is the lovely, yummy and very expensive things I would love, no sorry, NEED for my photography. It's never ending, I need a new camera bag, new lenses, new filter's, new pc, oh yes and of course a new camera!!!

I am saving up for the fab Canon 7D right now, still have a long way to go but I can't wait till I have enough to get it, I think it would be make a huge difference to my work and would make me oh so happy. I don't see there ever being an end to this wish list somehow :0)

Hope your all having a great Monday so far.......... K Lou xx

Time of Reflection

I have just come back from a wonderful family holiday with my hubby, my little lady and my parents. It was so nice to get away and to have time to spend with my husband and Rose. I got to practice lots with my photography and went to some truly beautiful places while in Devon.

I had a lot of time to reflect on my journey with photography so far and the pressure and stress as well as the joy starting up my own business has brought to me. I never in a million years thought I would be where I am today and I know I still have a long way to go and lot to learn but I am actually really proud of myself.

When I very first started back in March last year I was over keen to get as many bookings as possible, to get my name out there and work all hours I could to do the best job I could do. It was very disheartening when I never got many bookings and there were many times I nearly gave up. I never really went to give it all in but you do  get days when you worry your work is not good enough, do I have the eye for it, am I making people happy.

I am pleased I stuck at it and I hope all the new photographer's out there who are also just starting up or somebody just about to start anything new, that you give it your all and know that there will always be times when things get hard and you feel like you are facing a brick wall, but keep going with it ........it will all be worth it in the end K lou x

Busy time's............

Wow what a busy  2week's !!! Well I shot my very first wedding and I am so pleased the weather held out for us. It was a really tiring day but I really enjoyed sharing the special day with the couple and all their friends and family. I have also just had a busy weekend with three shoots, most I have done in one weekend in a long time. I am loving the on location shoots right now, the weather is lush and they are a lot of fun. I think it makes the children more relaxed and us adults have a giggle as well.

 

I have also had a wave of newborns the last few weeks and I am loving it.

 

I am in the middle of making yet more changes to K Lou, non of these changing will really take place till next year  but you have to start early to get everything sorted. I have now started to offer print's, I am hoping to still keep selling the CD's as I know this is what my clients want the most, however I don't then have control over where my clients get my work printed.

 

Most high street printers are not great quality and can ruin a good photo, so I have found a wonderful pro lab that has a wonderful quality to their prints  and are not very expensive. I try and look at this way, why spend good money on a photo shoot and then get cheap prints??

 

I am still drawing up a price list for the prints that will be put onto my site and FB page very soon. I am also going to be offering a range of goodies using your photos so watch this space........... K lou xx 

My first Wedding :-)

OMG….. Tomorrow I am shooting my very first wedding; I am a mixture of emotions really, part of me is soooo nervous, am not really sure what to expect or how fast paced it will be and another part of me is so excited to be taking on this challenge, to share such a special day with my clients and their friends and family and to get creative.

I am not sure yet if this will be a one off or if this is something that I would like to explore more this year and to just see where it takes me. I would love to be able to capture people’s special day but what a huge responsibly that is.

I have finally had a few newborns the last few weeks as well and I have to say I just love it. I am my most happiest when I get to capture a new little life. That newborn smell, their little fingers and toes, and that little wriggle that they do…..priceless.

Hopefully I will be able to share some photos of the lovely couple with you this weekend ….. K lou x

Getting set up........

Well after finally getting the blog up and running I am now on Twitter too!! Check me out…LOL 

You can follow me on Twitter through this link http://twitter.com/#!/klouarts. 

I have had a wonderful weekend celebrating my husband’s birthday with a family picnic.Lots of good food, a walk through the woods and about a hundred spiders that just seem to want to crawl on me!!!!! We went to a lovely location One Tree Hill in Essex. I have been once before when I was on a hunt for Bluebells, and I am pleased to say I did find some and they looked stunning. I really enjoyed spending the morning taking lots of lovely photos of them. Here are a few for you to see. K Lou xx

My very first post :)

My very first post in my new lovely blog J Exciting times. Hello to everybody who has just joined, I am very excited after nearly a year of saying I would set up a blog that it has finally been done. I have had such a wonderful year, it’s been hard work having Rose, working full time in the city and trying to start up a new business but I have loved every minute of it. I have met some truly wonderful friends throughout my journey so far and have made some lovely friends in some of my clients. I was lucky enough on Saturday to be given the chance to shoot newborn twins Charlie and Chloe who were only 7 days old. This was the first time I had used only natural light and I must say I was really pleased with the outcome, it was also the first time I shot in RAW and I won’t be going back to JPEG anytime soon! Here is a little sneak peak of the some of the photos K-Lou x