Last summer I did a lovely family portrait session for a family in Manchester. Mum liked the idea of having a collection of photographs on their living room wall. But she didn’t want one frame with a selection of images. She wanted something that would make a statement and would look outstanding on the wall.Read More
I took these photographs at a lifestyle family portrait session last Summer in Altrincham. Many of our family portrait photography sessions are booked by grandparents. They love to have family portraits as reminders of their family around them. Read More
Back in July I did a family portrait session for young family in South Cheshire. Their two year old son had recently been given a Jack Russell puppy and the two of them played together throughout the session. While I was getting the family ready to do some photographs in one of their fields, I noticed their son and his dog running along one of the tracks in the wheat field. They were oblivious to what he rest of the family were doing and I couldn’t resist taking this picture when I saw them.
This is one of my favourite photographs from a busy summer. Although you can’t see his face, you get the sense of freedom and the innocence of youth… and the bond between one little man and his dog.
You can find out more about our family portrait photography on our family portraits page.
When the first warmth of Spring comes through, it’s time to ditch the coats and scarves for a bit and enjoy being able to run about in a t-shirt again. Dawn and Adrian asked me to do a family portrait session for them and we were hoping for a sunny day. The weather was perfect for a family portrait session for a young family. Warm enough for the kids to run about and not too windy.
After a warm up at home so everyone could get comfortable in front of the camera we went to a local park, complete with duck pond for the second half of the session. Armed with plenty of bread, the children soon forgot about me and had fun feeding the ducks and running about. Mum and dad stayed behind the camera whilst I took photos of the kids doing what kids do.
Occasionally I’d ask them to do things but I was quite to watch and see how things unfolded, taking candid pictures all the while. The three photos below of the children on the park bench took a little bit of setting up and now hangs in pride of place in Dawn and Adrian’s dining room.
Although it’s still mid February and winter is still clinging on, spring is just around the corner. The daffodils will be popping up soon and the cherry blossom won’t be far behind. So, this morning I thought I’d post a family portrait session I photographed in Lymm at the beginning of May last year. Spring portraits are great because the environment has that really fresh look to it.
In July I went over to the Ribble Valley to do some family portraits in Clitheroe for Lisa and Tim, and their two children. Although it was high summer it was a bit cold and overcast and more like Autumn really. Steel grey skies and a strong wind, but that didn’t stop us. I’d met Lisa at an event for the Children’s Adventure Farm Trust at The Mere Resort near Knutsford in the spring.
I love Clitheroe. It’s a great place for an afternoon out with an amazing wine shop and Clitheroe Castle, where I did one of my very first family portrait sessions back in 2009, and weddings at Eaves Hall for Michelle and Andrew and Mitton Hall For Collette and Gary, so it was lovely to be up there photographing again.
As their two children were growing up fast it was a good time to capture them. We spent a couple of hours taking photos with the usual tea break (for people who don’t know me, my portrait sessions tend to be fairly relaxed affairs with stops for a cuppa and cake!). Thats keeps the pressure off and keeps the momentum going. We did a warm up at home where we had fantastic natural light inside with amazing views across the Ribble Valley. Then we ventured out and found shelter from the wind in their garden, followed by a quick trip to Stonyhurst College which is a marvel. It made a fantastic backdrop for the second part of the session.
Here’s a selection from the day.
I took these photographs at the end of June last year when I did a family portrait session at Lymm Dam for Dom and Karen and their two children. The weather very much like today; overcast with drizzle in the air.
It didn’t stop us having a great session though, with lots of lovely black and white photographs. We made it into a big adventure and after a few shots I think the children forgot I was there.
Here are two of my favourites from the session.
A phone call one evening from Switzerland to book a family portrait session took me by surprise. It’s not every day that someone calls from Switzerland to book a photographer in Warrington. Annelise explained that all the family were getting together at her parents’ house in Lymm for the weekend. Her brother and his family were coming over from their home in Sweden so there’d be ten people in total.
The day of the portrait session was a warm and sunny one and Annelise’s parents’ garden was the perfect setting for most of the photographs that we wanted to take, with plenty of colour and space, as well as being convenient for the kettle and a cuppa.
Here’s a very small selection from the session.
Last summer we dodged the showers to do a family portrait session in Culcheth for Jim and Tracie and their family. It was a typically British summer Sunday morning as we dodged showers and brilliant sunshine to capture precious moments. We started the session at their home in Culcheth and then we went to the park in Newton-le-Willows, about ten minutes down the road. Like any young family, they’re a bit shy at first but once they get used to me they’re quite happy being photographed and happily pose for my camera. But they also get bored quickly so we keep the sessions moving along quickly with regular breaks for drinks and biscuits, which keeps them happy and helps keep my sugar levels up too.
People often ask me where I want to set up my lights and backgrounds and sometimes they’re surprised when I say that I don’t use either. The world around us provides so many amazing backdrops that an artificial one seems a bit inadequate. Natural light is so much kinder and flattering than studio lighting or flash, so I much prefer to use natural light wherever I can.
Here’s a small selection from the day. Which is your favourite?
Whether you live in Culcheth, Warrington or anywhere else in the North West, if you’re interested in a family portrait session for your family you can find more more about our lifestyle family portrait photography here or you contact Andrew Collier Photography on 01925 471091 or through the contact page.
Toddler portraits are really cute and this session of James as a toddler is no exception. I’ve got to know James and his mum and dad very well over the last three years and it all started when I photographed Colin and his daughters in the summer of 2011.
Soon after, I returned to photograph Colin and Nikki (and James – he was a bump then) in what has become a long term project to document James as he grows up. Over James’s first year I photographed him at a few days old, at six months and a few days after his first birthday.
This session was photographed on a wet Sunday afternoon a few days before his second birthday in October 2013. As a toddler he’s become quite easy to photograph. He’s happy to play and pose in front of the camera but I keep the sessions short and fun so he doesn’t get bored quickly.
We’ll continue documenting James’s progress each year until either I’m too old to pick up a camera or until James has had enough of me pointing a camera at him.
James’s newborn portrait session
