Matthew

Matthew's mum and dad wanted me to take some photos of him out and about. Unfortunately, the weather decided otherwise. It had been pouring with rain and was extremely damp so we agreed that I would turn up at the house and see what it was like. Still a bit damp to venture out to the local park. However, it did manage to dry up.

It's amazing what you can find in small spaces. As I looked around their back garden, I immediately saw a few places where I could sit Matthew, we even used a bit of the front garden next to a line of trees. It looked like we were in the woods.

Matthew was great to work with. A very happy chap and he really enjoyed having photos taken of him. I don't know many four year olds who would let me do that! Here is a small selection of what I captured.

Quarriers Village, the perfect setting

When I was asked if I could recommend a location for a family shoot recently, after looking at their locations where they lived, there was no other option than Quarriers Village. Having once worked in the Village for many years, I had embarked on lots of lunchtime walks and so it's fair to say I know it very well.

I parked up expecting to see Dawn and her family. It turned out they were all cowering behind Sommerville Weir Hall, home of Three Sisters Bake. Why? Because when you walked around to that side of the building, it was immediately clear that you were then sheltered from what can only be described as an Arctic wind. So everybody was slightly chilly and we hadn't even begun yet!

We started on the bridge, but I could see how cold everybody was so I made a quick decision to head down by the river, out of the wind and therefore out of the cold. It was to prove a wise decision and the sun shining did help lift the mood in the camp.

With so many nooks and crannies to choose from in Quarriers Village, every shoot I do there is always very different from the last. And this was the first time I'd done a family shoot down by the river!

Here is a small selection of what I captured that day, I particularly like the shots of the two girls with their dad. Maybe one day my own daughter will still love me this much in years to come.

The chase was most definitely on

The best types of family shoots are those where there's no pre-conceived ideas of having to stand still, face the camera and say 'cheese'!!! I've come to hate that word very much. Because let's face it, pretty much everyone (who isn't a photographer) has more or less that expectation of a photo shoot, right?

Well not where I'm concerned. Kids are kids. They rarely sit still if asked, never smile when you want them to and always want to do whatever the hell they like! Trust me, I have three little rascals of my own, I should know.

When it came to the McDougall Family, the grown ups told me they didn't want to be in the photos and so I just had the kids to concentrate on. Cara and Jaimie were absolutely fabulous with Cara wanting to pose for the camera every time I pointed it at her. Meanwhile Jaimie just wanted to run and run and run and run some more. But he absolutely loved his big sister.

Lunderston Bay, near Inverkip, deep in the woods was where we chose to explore and err...get very very muddy! Here is a small selection of what we got up to.