Minimalist Portrait Photography

This new website has afforded me the luxury of going back through my archives, which I’m kind of doing at random, and bringing to light some of my favorite shoots. This was an early pre-wedding shoot of mine with Naz & Brad and whilst it was way back I still think it deserves a place in my portfolio.

When I’m shooting couple portraits it’s very important to me that I shoot the couple rather than any preconceived ideas that may slip in under the radar. Any planning I may do for this kind of shoot is for inspiration or rather that feeling of being inspired.

If I’m weighed down with ideas more than say one or two then what happens is that I’m in my head thinking about those ideas rather than being with the couple and experiencing the moment. I also want to keep things simply when I’m shooting. I don’t want fireworks.

I want a kind of minamalist feel to portraits. I want little of anything that is going to distract from my main focus of attention. If you pull it off then your images will be powerful and have impact. When Naz & Brad turned up at Liverpool Street, London, for our shoot they looked so damn cool that I knew I had the opportunity to get something extra special.

My job was simply not to screw it up. We shot for around 2 hours. I used to work in the City so I’m pretty familiar with Shoreditch and the surrounding areas. There was one particular spot we stumbled across (that is mostly shut off these days) not far from Brick Lane. It was the side of an old house that was dwarfed by a huge glass office building.

The walls of the house were off white and there was this incredible bounce of light coming from the building. The majority of the images you’re about to see were taken there. A few words about Naz & Brad. Well for starters they are a photographer's dream that goes without saying and hopefully the images reflect that.

What I do remember fondly about these two cool-cats is that they trusted me with free rein to shoot my way and capture some magic for them. It’s difficult at times for couples to let go. You’ve spent a long time planning their day and a whole bunch of money on top of that. So I understand the want for everything to work out.

And my experience is that the degree to which there is that trust element is the degree to which the photography is going to shine. It was early days for me as a wedding photographer and I won’t ever forget these guys and how they included me in their lives and made me feel such an important part of their wedding journey.

The confidence I got from working with them informed how I approached future shoots and interaction with Bride and Groom couples and I’m sure it is one of the reasons I’ve attracted such amazing couples and experiences through my work in the years that followed. Love you guys. G x

More Pre Wedding Shoots