In 2021 my husband was browsing facebook when he saw an advert for moving to Shetland. Before then, I hadn’t heard of the wind swept beautiful lands of Shetland at the top of the British Isles.
But soon Shetland became an obsession as mine, as we began to search for houses, make visits and finally settle on a bungalow on the island of Whalsay.
Fast forward 2.5 years and I’ve now been living in Shetland 14 months. The first 12 months were super exciting, orca spotting, puffins and the incredible Northern lights. Though the true reality of island living is that true grit is required to live somewhere so remote.
I went from my comfortable studio in Lincolnshire to travelling to all of my clients. The logistics of this involved narrowing down my studio equipment and making it portable. I’ve captured some beautiful portraits despite having a limited set up compared to what I am used to. Slowly, my old portfolio has been replaced by my current work in Shetland.
An average weekend for me now is setting off on the ferry to my clients. I tend to book 2-3 sessions a day unless its a newborn because its more time consuming job to get those specialised poses.
Visting my clients in their houses has stoked my creative mind, and I have enjoyed coming up with new concepts in the home environment.
All the travelling can be tiring though!
When I am not shooting my clients work I love the ability to be able to take the camera out and get beautiful landscapes. It really is something I will never get bored of coming from some where flat like Lincolnshire.
Some of the highlights of my year was working with the amazing Shetland Island with Leah, to capture her engagement and bridal portraits in Shetland. I’ve also loved getting to know Sweaty Mama’s and meeting all of the Shetland mama’s.
When I’m not photographing I am working on our little bungalow, raising our sheep, keeping chickens and looking after my six children.
My photography journey started over a decade ago and lead me on a journey of a life time to Shetland, even though its not been easy it is certainly worth it!
