Hey guys!

So today I decided to log into my (completely neglected) Flickr account to clear out old work and freshen it up but then I realised just how much old work was on there!

I often get DMs asking how long I've been taking photographs (and although I'm a big believer that it doesn't matter as everyones journey is different) I thought this might be a good way for people to see how much you can grow and change over the years!

Let's start with one of my first photographic projects ever... in 2006...

Yikes.
And another (still 2006)... 


Also yikes.

From 2008-2010, when I was at college studying photography...

So here's a real heavy post to ease us into the working week, eh! It might be a long one so if you want to grab yourself a cup of tea, now is the time to do it!

Alright? Are you settled? Comfy? Let's go! ♡

I have a deep-seated need to create; to photograph a moment, to make worlds exist, to tell stories. But I guess that's not really the *why*, is it?

I have an obsession with beauty. Yes that sounds shallow, and conceited, and probably suggestive of a need for personal reflection and therapy, but I promise it's not as literal as it sounds! Hear me out.

(Side note: if you remember me mentioning this briefly in my 'exploring inspiration' post then I guess today is the day we delve further in!)

I create because I want you to feel the beauty I see.

And please don't think I use the word beauty to suggest physically perfect people in a physically perfect existence because 'physically perfect' doesn't exist, and how dull would the world be if it did?

What I mean is that I create, for example, to show you the beauty I see in the vast painterly skies when I'm out of the city. I create to show you the opportunities for magic I see in the everyday. And yes, sometimes I create to show you the beauty of a moment, of a fleeting moment in time, even if it's entirely fictional.

I shot this image as part of an editorial for a stylist a couple of years ago now, and it's still one of my absolute favourites. Yes, it depicts two stunning models in well picked clothes but that's not why I find it beautiful. I find it beautiful because it depicts this moment between two completely fictional people; a softness, a romance, an emotion.



To me it doesn't show the reality. I don't see two professional models who only met on set that day, lying on the damp (and definitely not crisp) old autumn leaves in the freezing cold, at the end of a shoot as we were losing the light, with me precariously balanced on a ladder over the top of them beside a car park off the busy road. It instead shows the beauty of a moment created, a fictional world, inhabited by fictional people.

And I know when I bandy around the word 'beauty', it's all entirely subjective. What I find beautiful, others may not, and vice versa. When I read F. Scott Fitzgerald's opening line of 'The Offshore Pirate', I marvel at what I consider to be the beauty of the scene he sets:

'This unlikely story begins on a sea that was a blue dream, as colorful as blue-silk stockings, and beneath a sky as blue as the irises of children's eyes.'  
(link)

Yet other people, I have no doubt, find it needlessly wordy and ostentatious.

I also have no doubt that some people don't like what I do and that's a-okay too. We all find beauty in different things.

I create because I want you to feel the beauty I see.

Why do you create? I'd love to hear all about it!

With love,
Rachael ♡

The internet is incredible, isn't it? As a photographer, having the ability to watch other people work behind the scenes is awe-inspiring and invaluable.

My last post about technical perfection and the Cheap Camera Challenge [post – here ; Cheap Camera Challenge – here] got me thinking about just how mind blowing it is that we have this constant resource at our fingertips.

There is something magical about watching other people shoot. For me, it's not just about what kit they use, or how they've set up their lights, but it's about seeing the awesome little tricks they employ; the creative little flairs that make their work their own.

For this weeks Weekend Inspiration, I thought I'd pull together some of the videos I love to look to for inspiration in the hopes of inspiring you too.

Here is the incredible Paolo Roversi shooting into mirrors for Vogue Unique


Sølve Sundsbø shooting with smoke for 'an up-to-date elegance' for Vogue Italia

Tim Walker shooting with paint splattered backdrops for Lady Dior

Lara Jade shooting through crystals on her CreativeLive workshop

and Emily Soto shooting a mix of digital and polariods for Composure Magazine

Do you watch behind the scenes videos for inspiration? What are some of your favourites? Please leave a link or suggestion in the comments, I'd love to watch them!

Have an incredible week.

With love,
Rachael♡

We all can feel overwhelmed by this idea of being perfect. In a hundred different ways I'm sure this is true. In a heavily saturated industry surrounded by incredible talent it's especially tough.

I've never considered myself to be one who strives for technical perfection; pin sharp, crisp light, counting every eyelash; it's just never been my thing. And that's alright.

Yes, I know, I can almost hear some of you cracking your knuckles, stretching your fingers, ready to blitz out a comment telling me otherwise but I think it's true. Hear me out.

We all fall in love with photography (or our respective fields) for a reason that's particular to us; something that drives us, or captures our imaginations, or just generally gives us the warm fuzzies.

For me, it's always been the idea of a story. There is something magical about peeking into the world of a fashion photograph, for me anyway. It's probably something to do with my bookworm escapist nature but I've always been mesmerised by the fashion story, the tale of the girl in the shots.

For you, it could be purely technical. You could have fallen in love with the shutter speeds, and apertures, and lens choices; you might love creating the world in print exactly as it's seen before you in minute detail.

That's just never been what's driven me. I don't think that makes one desire more valid than another, or one's art more worthy than another; that's just the way it is.

Over the last year however, I'd started to doubt this. I'd started to worry about technical perfection, I'd began picking apart my images, my kit, my choices.

This year I'm taking a step back. I'm consciously avoiding the pursuit of perfection. I'm going to break rules, and push boundaries, and try not to be swallowed up by the technical stuff.

With that in mind, I leave you with this.



The incredible Lara Jade for DigitalRev TV shooting fashion on a cheap children's camera.

It reminds me of the love I first had for photography; for the capturing of the moment, for the telling of a story, for the genuine fun of it.

I hope you guys are as excited for 2017 as I am. I can't wait to see what we all create this year.

Let me know what your thoughts are and your plans for this year! I want to hear all about them!

With love,
Rachael♡

Alright so, I have to ask, is it possible to be in love with a body suit? Because I'm pretty sure I'm in love with a body suit.

Hey you.

So recently I had the absolute pleasure of working with these two amazing ladies from Superior Model Management; Rebecca and Amy J.


Not only are they're both insanely talented young women, they're genuinely lovely too. ♡ In fact, the entire team on this project were incredible.

Hair- Kimberly Logie
Make up- Stephanie Milne
Fashion styling- Kayleigh Swan
Photography & retouching- Rachael Sammon

Now I know I've been away for a while but I loved this shoot so much I thought I would show you a little look behind the scenes- and the lighting details if you're into that sort of thing! If you are, grab yourself a cup of tea and let's get going! If you're not, I'll see you in the next one.x

--

Alright, so, talking about it beforehand, we all decided that we wanted to shoot something quite slick and editorial. We pulled together our ideas and started building mood boards and each set about deciding what we would bring to the shoot.

I usually love to keep my light soft and natural looking so being the nerd that I am, I wanted to keep true to this but still have the light pop. Highlight-y, soft light, but with an editorial edge... Not that that's asking a lot of myself or anything!

Playing around with the lighting beforehand I decided on one of my favourite lighting set ups of the moment.


Does this make sense to you? I hope it does! This is how I find myself sketching out lighting diagrams, in a sort of aerial view, so hopefully you can see what I mean.

Shooting like this makes a nice big tunnel of light in front of the models, more than enough to illuminate the two perfectly, and it's feathered so you get that lovely glowing highlight. Of course I still wanted shadows and depth so that's where the black v flats come in. I genuinely don't know how I ever worked without them.

I also feel I should tell you that the white v flats were really, in this instance, two white walls. My living room, where I shot this, is teeny tiny so I just utilised the walls instead of cluttering up what little space there was.



Why those settings? Well, for aperture I never shoot more than 6.3 because I'm a sucker for softness, but since we wanted that crisp editorial look 6.3 is, for me, a good balance of soft and sharp.

In terms of studio light, 1/125 is a good starting point for flash and anything not requiring a specific shutter speed. And, if you didn't know (which I didn't, even after three years of formal photographic education) you can't, in general, go higher than 1/250 with flash. That's when you get the black stuttering bars on your images because you're shooting too quickly for the bulb and you're out of sync- or something.

For ISO, 100 is really low for me; I love noise and grain. Since we were talking slick and clean I didn't want to go all out, but I couldn't help adding a little back in in post.

Oh and yeah, this is the background I painted myself, if you recognised it! I still love it. If you haven't seen it, you can check out how I made it here.

I had so much fun on this shoot- I think we all did!

It was so great to work with Amy, Kimberly, and Steph again; it was amazing to work with Kayleigh and Rebecca for the first time. I cannot recommend these ladies enough. ♡

--

Well, I think that's everything! It definitely was a long 'un, but I hope it was informative. If there's anything else you'd like to know, please don't hesitate to ask. 

I'll leave you with the final images; I hope you love them as much as I do.

I'm in the midst of a wee portfolio refresh so if you could let me know your favourite(s), that would be amazing; I'd really appreciate it.

With love,
Rachael♡

Hello my love,

I'm sorry I've been gone for far too long but I've had a number of weeks of trying to sort my head out. I think we all need to step back sometimes and organise our thoughts and our plans; it just took me a wee while longer than usual this time!

I've been keeping an eye on this little blog while I've been gone and I can't believe how many page views there are each day, even with no new content! If you've been popping in by to see what's going on, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting! ♡

As you can imagine, I've been thinking a lot about goals and the future on my little breather from social media and I thought I would share them with you today to not only hear your input on mine but hear about yours too.

So grab a cup of tea (it's a long one!) and let's get going!

--

*Professional Goals*

1) Create
An obvious one, I know. But this year I want to create. I want to create more quality work by creating more personal work.
The first year I was out on my own, I felt like I had to be constantly shooting; I had to say yes to everyone and everything. I learned the hard way that this is just working for the sake of working and I don't plan to repeat it.
Last year, I was much more selective about the work I took on and do you know what? I was doing projects I was seriously excited about; I was working with incredibly talented people, I felt I was getting better with every shoot I did and I kept my integrity as an artist. The only thing was that I was being so selective, and so professional, that I forgot to focus time on playing around with personal work.
This year my goal is to create; to create professional work, to create personal work, and to get better with every shoot.

2) Get published in print
     If you're one of my usual team or if you follow me on other social medias you'll know I've already been published in a couple of magazines (I know, ner ner ner) but they've all been online publications and although that's still really amazing, this year I want to get published in a print magazine. Ideally one that prints in the UK... and is stocked in the likes of WHSmith... so I can just pop in by and casually buy it... That's totally realistic, right? Lol.

3) Give back
     This year I want to dedicate time to giving back to you. I feel like so much of what I post to social media at the moment is just 'hey, look at this photo I'm super proud of!' and 'check out the incredible work the team did on this shoot!' which is great, don't get me wrong; it's great that I love what I'm creating and love the amazing people around me but I feel like I'm not giving you guys anything. Not really. Not in terms of important things. Which is where this blog (and possibly videos) come in.
I want to give you guys something back; whether it's lighting tips, or shoot set ups, or how to talk to models, or even the good olde Q&A, I want to open up and share what I know with you. And, look, I am by no means saying that I'm the best photographer who ever graced the planet but what I am saying is that I have learned a heck of a lot over the years and there is so much I didn't know starting out; if I can help even one person by sharing what I know, it would be worth it.
I talk a lot about lifting each other up, and not just viewing your peers as your competition, but I'm going to start actually doing something about it.

What would you like to see? Is there anything you want to know? How would you like to see this going forward? Please please please let me know.

*Personal Goals*

4) Look after myself more
     I'm most definitely a 'throw myself in at the deep end' 'all or nothing' sort of person. Which is both fantastic, and horrendous. If I'm working on a big project it's all I'm doing until it's over and done with. If I'm doing a big retouching job, I'm sitting at my desk for eleven hours a day. My dedication is great. My lack of healthy habits is not.
This year I'm going to set restrictions, schedule things like breaks, and make time not only to keep myself healthy but to do the things I love. Which brings me to...

5) Read
    There's a chance that you laughed when you read that. And yes, you're right, I already read. A lot. This year, however, I want to read more and allow myself the time to read more.
I want to go back to dedicating the odd afternoon to spoiling myself sitting in a coffee shop devouring an entire novel and not just reading a few pages here and there before bed as I battle to keep my eyes open.
I'm also in desperate need of some new reading material so I would love to hear which books you would recommend in the comments!

6) Go to the gym/swim every day
     Ahahahahahahaha. Okay, sorry. I'll be serious.

7) Visit art galleries
     When I was studying I feel like I made a point of visiting galleries often but it's sort of fallen to the wayside.
I've already got a trip to London planned in the Summer (for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child; I know, I know, I'm big ol' nerd) so I'll definitely be having a dreamy wander around the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery when I'm there. I also need to visit the Scottish ones more frequently and maybe even venture to a few I've never been to... One day, The Louvre, one day.

8) Travel 
     My wanderlust is atrocious; if I could take off tomorrow and travel the world I would. My dream trip is across the United States and Canada but since this isn't really a 'just hop on a plane' sort of journey, I'm going to take time this year to make this a reality. In the meantime, I need to see more of Europe. *cough* See above. 

--

So that's my goals for this year! I'm really excited to look back this time next year and see how they turned out!

What about you? What are your goals for this year? I would love to hear about them below!

Lots of love,
Rachael♡

I think you know by now that I am extremely passionate about empowering other creatives. Being a creative is a strange vice; we are our work. We put so much of ourselves, our time, our energy, our passions, our fears, into our work that it can often feel like a piece of our hearts has gone into it. It's strange then that we know the feeling of proudness, the fear of rejection, better than anyone, and yet we're often the first to tear each other down.

I could go off on a tangent about when to give criticism and when to keep schtum but I won't. I think we all know when we should hold our tongues even if it's easier to know than to follow.

Instead all I'm going to say is to remember to have courage and be kind. Put your work out there, be complimentary of your peers; get back what you give.

With love,
Rachael♡

--

P.S.- I'm sorry if you now want to go watch Cinderella.

People are often surprised when I tell them that a lot of my tests are shot in my teeny tiny living room.

Don't get me wrong, I've been shooting from here for a year and a half or so in various forms and using various set ups; sometimes they didn't work, sometimes there simply isn't enough room but it's definitely manageable!

I think it can be so easy as a photographer to say that we can't create studio work in our spare time. We don't have a spare room to set up a studio in, we don't have the space for a make up artist to set up, we don't have runner rails to sort out wardrobe options... But just make what you have work for you.

If you like natural light, set up a background by a good window. Heck if you don't have a background drape some fabric. Just please don't do what I did when I was 17 and tape it to the walls/roof! Sorry Mum.

If you like studio light, great, clear a space! If you know me well enough to have heard my enthusiastic light ramblings you'll know I like soft natural looking light that's dewy and glowy and lovely.

For a long time I thought this was completely impossible in my tiny space. I didn't think I could get enough distance to get the diffusion I wanted, I didn't have tall enough ceilings for V flats, I just didn't have enough room; my living room is literally the width of a backdrop stand for goodness sake.

But after trying, and finding a knack to piling my sofas on top of each other(!), I've found a way to make the space work for me and how I like to shoot. It's not perfect but it does the job!

Usually, I shoot with my lights bouncing off the walls, usually in front of the subject creating a huge light source or at either side in front of the subject making it all feathered and highlighty; the white walls at either side create a perfect white tunnel bouncing the light around.

For my most recent shoot I decided to try out a black V flat tunnel instead!




Yeah it was a bit tight, and yes I had to chop off quite a bit to make the V flat's short enough and okay so the V flat on the right is leaning against the table for the make up/etc but hey, needs must, and it works!

I am just smitten with the results.


Images of the incredible Georgina Castle ; make up by Zoë Louise ♡

If you're interested in the textured backdrop I made a post about it here!

I think black V Flat tunnels may just be my new favourite thing. Is that sad or what!

How do you guys get around shooting in small spaces? What is your favourite tips & tricks?
I'd love to see your set ups!

With love,
Rachael ♡

Hello lovelies,

I don't know if you can relate but I have this terrible habit of putting things off. Just silly little things really but of course it doesn't take long until these silly little things blossom and grow in the background until they've become disproportionately big things. *cough* Tax Return *cough*

So this is just a little one today to remind you that it always seems impossible until it's done. Break down what you need to do; just do a little at a time and I'm sure you'll be surprised as to how quickly you complete the thing you're putting off.

I hope you have a great week. ^.^

With love,
Rachael ♡

--

P.S - Rachael if you're reading this in a month's time and you still haven't submitted your Tax Return, just bloody do it!

Hello lovelies,

I think we all know that the best way to stay inspired is to create. By creating, we feel inspired; it ignites that burning desire to create again which fuels the inspiration to create  and yada yada yada so the cycle continues. Sometimes however, we hit a snag in this little circle; sometimes we doubt, we stop creating, we lose that inspiration. It can be rather difficult to recover.

I know that often I find myself so uninspired that even other photographers' work fails to get me out of the rut. It's easy to limit yourself to only looking at the work you aspire to create but sometimes I think you need to look elsewhere for inspiration, limiting yourself to only your field of expertise is to limit your creativity.

I thought today we could talk about some of the things I like to do to rekindle that spark of inspiration! I hope it helps you if you need it. :)

--

Work with other creatives 
Surrounding yourself with creative people is often inspiring in itself but if you can go as far as to let go of control with some incredible creatives you trust you can create something that will definitely get the cycle going again.

There was a while where I was struggling and nothing seemed to be working so I got together with some insanely talented ladies. We just tried some things out to see what would happen... This is the result, I just love it. ♡



Models: Lucy Philip and Lauren Scott
Make up artist: Steph M Artistry
Photography: Rachael Sammon

-- 

Read books
I'll let you in on a secret: I'm a sucker for beautiful prose. I just can't help it. If I could spend my days wrapped up in the heady sentences of F Scott Fitzgerald I would in a heartbeat.


Oh, escapism, isn't it great? If you're like me escaping into a fictitious world can fill you with the inspiration you need to create your own.

I've read a few rather silly little stories recently that I've really enjoyed so here are a couple of my favourites:

* The Offshore Pirate - F Scott Fitzgerald
* The Canterville Ghost - Oscar Wilde
* Honeysuckle Cottage - P.G. Wodehouse

--

Watch aesthetically interesting movies
For me, it's all about beauty. I'm sure that says something very telling about my psyche but let's not delve into that today. I find beautiful movies so inspiring, or maybe I just look for the beauty in movies? I'm not sure. Either way if I'm feeling artists' block watching some stunning cinematography usually helps greatly. Animations, old movies, new movies, horror movies, tragic movies, whatever you love the aesthetic of; take some time and indulge in your favourites. ♡

Here are some of the ones I feel inspired watching:


Funny Face (1957) - Shall We Dance (1937) - Marie Antoinette (2006)*rubbish movie but very pretty
Cinderella (2015) - High Society (1956) - The Theory of Everything (2014)

--

Listen to music
I know this is something that doesn't stir everyone but I love music. I'm not just talking about the angsty metal and pop-punk of my youth (that Fall Out Boy gig though, swoon). I mean all sorts of music. At the moment I am smitten with this playlist of random classical tracks on YouTube, I seem to have it on in the background all the time; it's just so magical and we all know I love me some magic. ⚡


--

Find where you feel most inspired
Okay this really is an artsy-fartsy thing to say but I love rainy days. There's something about being wrapped up inside watching the rain fall, it just makes me feel insanely inspired. So much more than hot summer days, yuck. I think it's best to just take inspiration where you can find it and know where you feel it most. For me it's the seaside, pretty parks, cosy coffee shops and book stores/libraries. Side note: do you ever just say something and realise you're a cliché? Wow.

--

Phew, that was a bit of a long one but I hope it might help!
Where do you usually get your inspiration? I'd love to hear about it! ♡

Lots of love,
Rachael.x

Oh how I love Autumn! Yes, I'm being a little premature here; after all August isn't over yet but even as we speak the rain is falling in sheets and it's all grey, dull, and stormy... So let's just pretend, okay? Ohhh-tay!

Pretty much everything about Autumn is up my street. The cold air, wood fires and crunchy leaves; the layers of fine shirts, thick wool and cosy coats; the thick stews, hot chocolates and pumpkin spice... Oh it's what my dreams are made of.

Here I've picked some of the lovely pieces I've been lusting after recently; I've tried to keep them quite light so they're not tooooo autumnal just yet... They're just enough to keep you cosy as the weather turns but still be quite pale and transitional. Yay.

1.  Black Poppy Floral Jacquard Mini Skirt - £19.99 - New Look

2.  Wool Blend Wrap Coat by Boutique - £195.00 - Topshop

3.  Lambswool Round Neck Jumper - £85.00 - Johnstons of Elgin

4.  Lace Trim Ankle Socks - £3.50 - Topshop

5.  MARR Leather Ankle Boots - £75.00 - Topshop

6.  Big Dial Grey Lilac and Rose Gold Watch - £80.00 - Olivia Burton

7.  Saffiano Leather Top Handle Bag - £1240.00 - Prada

8.  Embroidered Collar Blouse - £39.00 - Eastex

I didn't intend to make it an outfit build but apparently that's where it ended up! Also it seems that you can take the girl out of Topshop but you can't take the Topshop out of the girl!

What have you been loving recently? Are you looking forward to Autumn as much as I am?

Lots of love,
Rachael♡