Festive Family Photography at a Christmas Tree Farm
Shooting film in the depths of winter can be tough, but when an opportunity comes up to take pictures in a forest of 4000 Nordmann Fir Christmas Trees... well how could I resist!
This festive family portrait session at Tarporley Christmas Tree Farm was SO much fun. I’ve photographed Sarah on film several times over the years, starting when she was pregnant with her fist baby in Autumn 2015. I’ve jumped back in with my trusty Contax 645 at various intervals as her tribe has grown, because as a family photographer I love nothing more than to build a collection of beautiful portraits documenting a family’s unique journey.
Of course it’s all the more poignant when the subject of my camera’s attention happens to also be one of my oldest and dearest friends.
The light was low, the shutter speeds were slow, but we leant into it and created a gorgeous collection of relaxed seasonal family photographs. Sarah even brought a flask of hot chocolate and marshmallows for the kids and an extra cup for me… she knows me too well!
A few words from Sarah:
"Victoria first photographed my family when it was just me, my (now) husband and our "ready to pop" bump back in November 2015!
Since then she's been our photographer for all our big family moments, like welcoming our newborns home for the first time.
We wanted a new collection of family photos that didn't need the excuse of a celebration; just us four, playing and having fun, and being ourselves.
Like most Mums, I have plenty of photos of my kids and of them with their Dad. But there are a handful of contrived photos over the years of me with my children; either an awkward selfie or an out of focus timer shot where I've left my iPhone precariously balanced on something!
So for me, it was really important to get some new photos of my children with their Mum in them!
When Victoria suggested we do this new shoot at a Christmas Tree Farm in Cheshire we jumped at the chance. Our family loves to be outdoors and this Nordic Fir tree forest close to where we live was ideal.
It was exactly what you'd want from a family photo shoot: relaxed but high energy, happy and super fun! We totally forgot we were having our photos taken, which I think shows in the candid nature of the portraits. And my kids were fascinated by the film camera Vic used to photograph us - my five-year-old in particular just thought it was magic.
We've now got an updated collection of family portraits for our home and to gift to our family. And we're totally thrilled with them. I honestly couldn't recommend the ‘Victoria Phipps Photography’ experience enough.”
I think this collection of photographs demonstrates that you can create meaningful family portraits at any time of year. There is something so magical about winter. In this season Mother Nature offers simple, stark backgrounds which we can use to create elegant photographs in which the people can take centre stage. The light is low and incredibly soft and when making portraits on film the slightest glimpse of sunshine results in the most beautiful glow.
With a chill in the air, winter also gives everyone an excuse to layer up and embrace all the cuddles, which always makes for beautifully emotive portraits.
If you’ve been inspired to make some winter family portraits of your own then I have limited availability in January and February before the Spring season begins, so don’t delay. Get in touch and I’ll be thrilled to setup a call to learn more about you and your family and how I can help you to create a series of heirloom photographs for you.
