2016 in Seasons

events

Well Happy New Year everyone! It’s a chilly January day and it’s 2017 at last…the children are back at school and it’s time to reflect on the year that has been. 2016 will be remembered by most as the year we voted for Brexit and Trump(!) as well as the year we very sadly lost many talented musicians, artists and broadcasters. I still can’t believe the wonderful Sir Terry Wogan is no longer with us.

It was a tragic year in many ways but there were good things that happened too and I’m pleased to report that Little Olives Photography had a fantastic year. I’ve been busier than ever and had the pleasure of meeting and photographing so many new people over the course of 2016. I was trying to think how best to sum up the year and in the end I decided to present a selection of my favourite images as a collage for each season. Take a look at them below…

What struck me once I’d put together the collages, was the striking differences between the seasons – even more obvious than you would expect. I’ve only done a little basic editing on each of these images and done nothing to tweak the colours, so this is really how they were captured ‘in camera’ so to speak. As we progress through the seasons, not only do the colours of the leaves and foliage around us change, but the light changes as well. As a photographer I’m acutely aware of the changes in the light throughout the year and this of course affects the time of the day that it’s best to get out there with the camera. With longer days in spring and summer, it is best to be out either early in the morning or late afternoon/evening, whereas in autumn and winter the days are shorter and you can photograph later in the morning or early afternoon and still get lovely light. So if you’re thinking of getting some photographs done this year, you might find it interesting to look at the collages below and choose which season you prefer!

I specialise in photographing children and families, which I absolutely love doing and this year I met lots of new families through my photography which is definitely a highlight of the job for me as I love meeting people. In addition to this, I also work with other small businesses and in 2016 I worked with a number of local ‘mumpreneurs’, including Laura and Natalie of Mum’s the Word in Tunbridge Wells, Beatrix from Mytime pilates studio in Penshurst and Claudia of Purple Flour (handcrafted cakes and biscuits) providing photos for their websites and social media. I really enjoy working with other local businesses and it can make a nice change from running around after small children!

I also photographed a Christening, several birthday parties and did some lovely commissions as birthday and Christmas gifts (40th and 70th birthday gifts were very popular in 2016!). Once again I’ve also been involved in the Penshurst Christmas Market where I had a stall this year. The Christmas Market was a huge success again, raising much needed funds for Penshurst Church and the Pickering Cancer drop-in Centre. I met and chatted to so many lovely local people over the course of the two day market. If you booked a session with me then I look forward to photographing your family/children this year.

If you’re interested in booking a photo session with me for 2017 then do get in touch (email claire@littleolives.co.uk). I look forward to meeting you. Here’s hoping for another fabulous year with plenty of sunshine and beautiful light. Happy 2017 everyone!

Spring

Summer

Autumn

Winter


Mamas Meet Up - From Bump to Business Special

events

I was delighted to be invited along to photograph the first ever Mamas Meet Up From Bump to Business Special held at the Royal Wells Hotel in Tunbridge Wells last month. This was to be the first of a series of networking events organised by Laura and Natalie of Mum’s the Word Events.

There was coffee on arrival (someone knows we need the caffeine!) and a chance to chat before the event began. What made this event unique though, was that you could bring the little ones along too. A separate play area was filled with fabulous toys and dressing up clothes, provided by What About the Kids, so that the children could play while the mums listened to the talks and had a chance to mingle and chat afterwards.

Two speakers were invited along to talk informally about the challenges of starting a business with young children in tow. Rebecca and Dominique of Jem + Bea have designed a range of gorgeous luxury changing bags (now available in John Lewis!) while Steph from Don’t Buy Her Flowers has a website selling thoughtful gifts for new mums and anyone in need of some TLC. Her website also hosts the blog Sisterhood (and all that) where Steph writes about motherhood, men and relationships with the aim of making us laugh at the ridiculous things that life throws at us.

It was a really well organised event and it was great to meet so many other mums in the same boat, as they juggle life with a young family and the challenges of trying to start your own business. It was fantastic to hear the experiences of Rebecca, Dominique and Steph as they have developed their growing businesses. The take home message I think was that we all struggle with similar day to day challenges, and perhaps we have to accept that you can’t always do it all perfectly, all of the time!

​Looking forward to the next event already. For details of future events see: mumstheword.online

Below (from left to right) – Steph from Don’t Buy Her Flowers, Laura and Natalie from Mum’s the Word Events, Dominique and Rebecca from Jem + Bea