This summer…….

September has rolled around and autumn is nipping slightly at the days beginnings and ends, whilst the glow of August lingers a little.

I gleefully always seem to be on catch up, on the back foot when it comes to sharing and posting photo work and jobs and berating myself for not posting in a timely manner or at all.

Its not that i dont want to, often i am caught between waiting for clients to post first then i share OR another reality which happened last night. I got home from a fabulous full days shoot, downloaded my images, checked them over, imported them to Lightroom and fell into bed. Knowing I had to drive 3 hours to a glorious destination today for a photo session tomorrow.

I'd love to pretend I have all these people, all these teams doing all the things that ensure smooth sailing of a small business but it's not, it's all me and if I'm knackered and dribbling then it's best I step away from a screen, put myself to bed and gear up for the next day. I'm certain you understand and it really helps saying it out loud.

So a snippet, shared from the gram of a recent epic 2.5 hour session in London with wonderful Lisa Berkovitz. Finding the light, the joy and the moments, laughter, positivity and connection….more on the gram, or here or both. Here's to a happy September x

Saturday Evening Confessionals.....

What’s not to LOVE about pink beetroot!!!!

Friday Night Confessionals.......September you're here!

Feeling grateful…….

So as I sit here Friday Sept 17th, FINALLY writing a Friday night confessional for what feels like the first time in forever (I realise I have started and not completed about 3 others over the last 3 weeks!! - Not from lack of wanting!) I am thrilled to share just a snippet of recent work which will be updated in the galleries soon and in the meantime here is a sprinkling of the fantastic clients I’ve had the pleasure to create imagery for :-)

OK, short and sweet :-) Happy Friday everyone xx

International Women's Day 2020

Celebrating ‘Friendship’

March 2020

I couldn’t let this year pass without celebrating - every year I capture portraits of women which then become an exhibition with the idea of inspiring younger generations.

This year the arts project in Croydon is taking a break + I thought it would be great to do something a little more casual with the end results being shared online during the day of International Women’s Day. I set about thinking of friends who work in central London so I could be in one spot and it wouldn’t be too tricky for them to come to me with the theme ‘friendship’ + ask them for their own interpretation, feeling, word, colour - whatever it was that resonates with them.

• so Friday 6th these gorgeous ladies below swung by for chatter, tea, pictures + let me take their photo.

I also had in my mind that I’m trying something new….challenging myself + stepping out of my comfort zone to shoot in a different way, to step back slightly, to allow the images to sit together, to continue for the month of March, to include portraits where the sitter isn’t smiling - I CANNOT even BEGIN to tell you HOW HARD that was!!! + produce a lovely project + as it turned out, was a very poignant theme.

Above a screen shot of my final selection of images, Below the final cut (or so I thought!)

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I loved how everyone’s response was very different.

I wanted to bring people together with this project, to share their individual interpretation of “friendship” + to create portraits where I challenged myself in the image making. I am really good at getting right up close to people and in to their space to capture their essence + to be honest this has turned in to a process of challenging normality for me, for sitting on my own hands when I wanted to move in closer or select the happiest photo in the selection + publish on socials only my finely curated selection of happy.

What transpired was me forcing myself to choose images I loved but were perhaps a little more sullen than my usual work. Not soley to challenge myself but to look at the images with a different perspective, a different vantage point. That in itself challenged me to let go and reconnect to being happy with the images myself, whichever ones I chose + trusting the ‘process’.

It’s also been about a conversation Tanya and I had about the viewers experience and ‘seeing’ as the artist or photographer was at the precise moment in time and layering on top of that what we bring in the form of our own interpretation/feelings/emotions/life events to any art at any given moment.

My normal way of working is interacting, observing, creating ease between me, my camera and my sitter, recording just the right representation that I see in any given moment that I feel is an accurate representation of them - on Friday, I stepped back, I deliberately created space to see if it impacted the images I created, if it brought something else forward. So a project based on friendship and exploring how we see.

It’s interesting that looking through the selected images of each of my friends , the versatility of their emotions and our conversation serves as a great mixture to capture slightly different feelings in each picture + the selections below are to appease my controlling mind and show the fun we had!! :-) They also work really nicely as a set of images.

I’m continuing this project and excited to capture more friends through March - over on instagram you can also hear everyone’s interpretation of ‘friendship’ . Have a fab March + enjoy x

Friday Night confessionals....Dublin + once home, a trip to A&E.......

On set at the beach in Ireland

Well now, it’s been a week and I really could start with “Well now Universe, enough playing around, this year you’re really whipping up a storm”….and just like one of those books you can get where there are two or three story lines you get to decide upon which ending you’d like - I feel like it would be possible to write that out, although that would be rather dramatic.

Last Thursday (I skipped last weeks confessional as I was standing in the rain in Dublin, merrily working on a film set) so last Thursday I flew in to Dublin for work. My friend Patricia who I met 19 years ago on a feature film had written a short film and hired me to take the stills photos for it so off I went.

I was full of excitement to head home, a city I had lived in for 2 years, where I met + made the most amazing friends, created an awesome life for myself, fell in love + discovered photography was my thing.

Working with Patricia again felt like I had come full circle and wandering around Dublin between being on set enabled me to take trips down memory lane, to ponder how life had gone over the last 19 years and see how Dublin had changed, evolved and like old friends we had catching up to do.

Seeking out The Gallery of Photography I smiled so broadly!! (It hadn’t changed a bit) It was here I would bring my rolls of film to develop and make contact sheets and then prints of the film I worked on and cut my teeth on. The film that propelled me in to a new career, a new direction + an enormous amount of opportunities I never imagined existed. 2000-2002 was a time of growth and change in Ireland + everyone was so friendly + helpful. I love that I can walk around now and have such fond memories, I can see where shops have changed and new ones take their place or the old ones exist + have weathered the storms of the past years. Breathing through the kinks of some memories, I set some of my own ghosts free.

The BEST place for an ‘Irish Black Russian’

Ahhh Captain Americas!!! A wonderful accompaniment to a Thursday evening :-) + a good place to start a night out! The MOST epic cocktail ever circa 2002 was The Irish Black Russian

Part Kalhua, Tia Maria + Vodka, 4/5ths cola + a smash of Guinness - well worth trying!!! :-)

So back to the film…..A wonderful two days photographing the stills for a great film with an amazing cast + crew and being back in the thick of it all was great fun.

Now, what started as a cough tickle on Thursday went full blown by the time I got home on Sunday evening and by 10pm after calling 111 three paramedics were on my doorstep. I’d had difficulty breathing and called 111 to ask for some advice, by the time I was chatting, well I’d like to say I was chatting but the fact is I was drawing heavily for breath + in quite a lot of pain by the time I spoke to “Katie” the lovely call handler - she was great + could hear I was in trouble, I always feel like I’m making a fuss or wasting their time so must have apologised about 15 times before she said she was sending out the troops.

It was a bit scary, they ran tests when they arrived and asked me to pack a bag as they were running me in to hospital for extra checks. After a series of blood tests + an ECG I was allowed home + diagnosed with a Viral lung infection - delicious! Not delicious. I discovered this week, even when really sick I am a rubbish patient and for two days was fighting with myself and my virus until Wednesday when I finally gave in, lay down and slept. I’ve been reading, colouring (a new one on me) + drinking so much juice, squash + tea it’s amazing I’m not just a puddle right now. Anyways, it’s been a week of delights and leaning in to being ill, giving up and surrendering and waiting and allowing whatever is next to come along. I feel so blessed to have been part of the film crew in Ireland and I am excited to see how it develops and what the future holds for it over the coming months. As for me, I’m off to lie down again and read, hoping that this virus disappears very quickly!

Have an amazing Friday everyone + super weekend!! xx

Croydon August 22nd 2018

How awesome is this blast of yellow and fabulous smile!!

Creating and capturing portraits and head shots is always such fun (I think) + it was so much fun working with Saffron yesterday capturing new ones for her professional profile and as a Trustee of LKN - Lives Not Knives for their annual trustee report!

Gorgeous Brighton & Hove

So this week saw me head down to Hove to photograph the amazing Mary + Caroline of Skinirvana and spend a couple days creating their new brand portfolio. I LOVED every second AND working outside got a little bit of sunshine and the start of a tan, so excited and MORE than delighted to share these gorgeous pics....more to follow :-) 

This week.......I've been working on......

This week has been a joy combining my photography with passion for fitness and loved every second on this photo shoot for a Personal Trainer and London Gym. (Plus LOVE the colour of the lipstick here!!)

Love stumbling across my images!

Training Points, Crystal Palace, July 25th 2017

It's always fun to do a double take when I recognise and see images I've taken #beaming 

This is what happens when your two loves merge!

Last week on one of the hottest days of the year I had a great time photographing for a wonderful Yoga centre in the middle of the countryside. We were bathed in great vibes and amazing weather and had such fun!

I'm so excited to share the final re-brand and images when they are ready!

International Women's Day

WOW WHAT a day! x

This morning the amazing #Ladiesfirstcroydon exhibition opened in Croydon and there was a buzz throughout the building!!! 

It was incredible to be a part of such an amazing project and meet so many incredible women!

Jackie King is a renowned professional photographer, speaker, mentor and workshop host. Her striking photography, from portraits to commercial lifestyle photography, is praised within her industry and published internationally. 

Jackie King's career took her to Italy, Ireland and the USA and covered many fields of creativity before returning to the UK and within one year of setting out as a freelance photographer, won the top honours at the 2005 professional awards as 'Photographer of the Year'. In 2006 Jackie gained a scholarship from QEST to study for an MA in Fashion Photography at the London College of Fashion.

Jackie rose through the ranks of the BIPP (British Institute of Professional Photography) and ended up sitting on the Board of Directors whilst studying for her MA, the first female and youngest photographer to hold this position whilst also running her own photography business. 

Jackie’s work has been exhibited in an array of international locations from New York to London to Sydney and her portraits and lifestyle work printed + featured in a myriad of media outlets, including The British Journal of Photography, Digital Photo Pro magazine, The Sunday Times magazine, Damon Albans Honest Jons label as well as showcased as the front cover photo on Your London Wedding magazine.

In Celebration of previous 'International Women's Day', Jackie has photographed 100 Women in Science & Technology for Imperial College, London which was also exhibited at City Hall. She moderated a panel discussion in NY after approaching B&H Photo Video in Manhattan with the idea of celebrating women photographers.

"I am so thrilled to have been invited to particulate in this amazing project and meet such inspiring women, who each left a foot print of motivation and positive energy on me after photographing them".

Head Shots, Professional Portraits...raising your game!

If I had a £ for everyone who had said to me "I hate having my picture taken" I would seriously be a millionaire by now! In fact I am thinking I should start carrying a piggy bank around with me and demanding £1 from all the future people I am going to photograph lol

I digress, but seriously there are very few people who aren't terrified by having a camera pointed at them, but it is really important to keep your pictures updated and freshen things up with great representations of who you are and the direction you would like to go in.

Clients approach me for a variety of reasons,

• Linkedin profile pics,
• Bio head shots,
• dating profile pictures,
• actor head shots, 
• Social media handles
• Company profile updates

I TOTALLY get the thought of having your picture taken brings you out in hives (hopefully not) cold sweats or night terrors BUT I promise, it won't hurt AND you'll have fun, I work to ensure you feel comfortable and almost forget you're having your picture taken - I talk A LOT so you'll probably be more relieved when our session ends that your ears can have a rest! lol :-) 

Prices range from £175 for an hour and includes 5 digital images, edited and ready to upload/print/share

A new favourite place.........

I think I might move in.......

LOL NOT because I'm a lush and love a drink but whilst photographing a portrait session for the local NCT Crystal Palace magazine on Friday I kinda fell in love with this place - it's light and airy and feels really inspirational just being there, #greatvibe #friendlystaff #compfyseats 

Definitely check out 'The Crystal Palace Market' on Church Road, Crystal Palace!!

Green & Lean HIIT Sunday wake up!

Yesterday morning I had the absolute pleasure of starting Sunday high up above London at the Sky Garden photographing whilst sunrise broke and the day started + it was so incredible and inspiring!!

These images are snap shots taken from my phone, photographing my work station screen as I edited the images from the Honestly Healthy event.

Afterwards everyone sat down to breakfast and feasted! It was super delicious + a spectacular view from the top!! 

LOVE seeing how clients use the images we create!

I'm always so thrilled to see how our images integrate into a clients promo and these beauties made me beam!!!

Ernest and Matilda and I worked together on their lifestyle and fabric ranges and had great fun creating these images below and many more gorgeous ones :-) 

In session with......

Last weekend I had the complete pleasure to hang out...I mean work...in a studio in North West London photographing my cousin's recording their new album...they're AAAAMAZING!!

They are also playing in Islington, East London Sunday December 11th, 2016 at the 'Old Queen's Head' at lunchtime...perfect accompaniment to your roast!

Check them out on Facebook with the link below :-) 

https://www.facebook.com/heavyonthestrawberries/

Small Business Saturday!

Happy December!!!! YeHa!! Gearing up for #smallbusinesssaturday ! It's such a super exciting time of year + keep a peak out over the next week for #photography #xmasgifts#photosessions #prints #giftvouchers #headshots#familypics Have a great day!! xx — feeling energized at Jackie King Photographer.

It's been an amazing 10 days....

Talking, chatting, demonstrating, acts of kindness, smiles, laughter, photography, yoga....

Sometimes you go along and you're super aware and engaged with your surroundings and sometimes you're just not, life is hectic, things get in the way, weeks fly by in what seems a blink of an eye or a sneeze and whoosh! it's gone.

I've just gotten over the flu and it was not pretty AT ALL...I was a sneezing, snivelling germ bag walking around in a cloud of garlic....how people came near me I'm not sure, my cough alone sounded like I smoked a million cigars since I was 2 years old and well it's amazing I feel better at all ...lol ok, ok...perhaps I'm tipping in to man flu territory now lol...I digress...

Amongst me feeling absolutely dreadful were wondrous moments which made me sparkle (I knew I was sparkling but I have a feeling the snot hid it for a while!!)  I'm wondering if I noticed them more because I wasn't racing at a million miles an hour and my brain couldn't do its normal multi tasking thing or the universe was just delighted I'd slowed down...I'm not sure BUT I wanted to share these moments because they are so lovely and too good not to share and pass my smile on...share it around, feel the love and delight, warm up on it, beam...

FIRSTLY....I had an AWESOME photo session in London with Aparna & Jayesh...such a wonderful couple, super cute together and so much fun and not only really natural in front of the camera, super playful too and busted out some fab dance moves and brilliant lifts! 

The very next day still delighted with the session in London I headed to the beach! I am happiest like a little piggy in do do when in my shorts and wellies with my camera in hand AND I was doing all this AT. THE. BEACH. sooooo cool! Above is the last shot of the day where Ellen made a funny face and whilst it's soft focus I love it because she is such a live wire. 

This is our annual photo session and I was so delighted when I approached her car to meet her and her daddy, she saw me and just lit up, excited for pictures and to run around on the beach I think..it's really special to photograph little people and watch them grow + I think this is our 5th photo session....so precious.

Wednesday came around that week and I participated in a fabulous night of Photography as part of Photomonth London. Luke Dodd of the Guardian and Observer spoke about the influence of Jane Bown for our 'Girl Town' residence + we followed with a panel discussion on influential women in the industry. The panel comprised of an awesome line up : David McCoy, Creative Imaging Manager at the Guardian, Karen Harvey of ShutterHub, Dan Gaba, Photo editor of the Wall St. Journal, Maggie, Founder of Photomonth, Becky Warnock, Projects Manager at Photovoice and me (Me in action above!!) 

Some of our FAB speakers in action (photo courtesy of Kate O'Neil)

Images: Top: Melanie Eclare, Wendy Ewald, Jane Bown, Bottom: Mary Ellen Mark

OK, so that was just a few days.....I rolled on with the flu.....edited, photographed..AND THEN.....the weekend rolled around and a few amazing things happened. I didn't really tell many people what was on the horizon as to be honest I was a little nervous! I have spoken about photography and taught photography for years so I can stand up and chat away BUT this weekend I spoke for the first time on Yoga. (my other passion!) I was so excited and delighted to be asked to join my wonderful friend Yvonne Bishop Weston and discuss stress and how yoga can assist in managing it. Yvonne is a nutritionist and so these two talks complimented each other perfectly and enabled us to form pieces of a jigsaw puzzle when it comes to healthy ways to tackle stress, OH and the talk was at OLYMPIA...yes the one in London, the big venue lol

IT. WAS. AMAZING.a whole room doing alternate nostril breathing, chair yoga + being given tools to help manage their stress. The goose bumps I had as I left carried me all the way home and well in to the following week. I guess now would be a good time to confess that when I'm not photographing, I teach yoga + I love the combination of this dual career :-) My yoga instagram snap below.

OH + whilst I was traveling by train to the venue, hacking like an old women about to loose a lung, the guy next to me offered me a mint...how kind and what a lovely gesture....for a few seconds I hesitated worried it was drugged or laced with something nasty (because that happens so often right!!! omg!!) + then I quickly thought, it's a packed train, I'll be ok and accepted his SUPER KIND offer and we started chatting. so lovely+ so rare to have a whole conversation on the train, but it was so wonderful, such a lovely act of kindness that I really treasured and appreciated.

Two speaking events, on two of my fav subjects in one week was just incredible. So inspiring and uplifting. London, the beach...photographing in great locations AND......

My dad surprised me too - I've been looking (this is not photo related at all) but I've been looking for a bench to go with my dining room table, a well loved, bashed up a bit, shabby chic number..we've had a few chats about where I could find one and my hunt has been consistent......that was until visiting my parents last week they suddenly said "Oh, we found you a bench"...oh my goodness what a find! What joy...when I asked where, Dad just said he bought me one and as mum led me to the garage she tutted," he didn't buy it, he MADE it"!!!! So in time for my birthday next week, my dearest dad has made me a wooden bench + I love it! No pictures yet as he's still painting it, but what AMAZINGNESS!

Have an awesome week everyone! Smile at everything (without looking like a nutter) + enjoy the incredible array of colours Autumn is blessing us with this year xx

In Print...

So thrilled and excited to see the Crystal Palace, Autumn edition of 'pip' magazine!

I had the absolute pleasure to photograph the front cover and inside portraits on one of the hottest days of the year BUT everyone looks fabulous and Emily has recently welcomed her baby in to the world :-) So amazing and delightful!

Congratulations Emily xx

Inspired & Delighted & Beaming - Thank You Erika

It's amazing to make a positive impact or difference in someones life or create or enhance an amazing experience for them + I am thrilled - I'm not sure that adequately gives justice to just how much I'm smiling, or how much my heart feels really full with delight, but, I had such fun with Erika and reading her story after our session made it even more special! Thank You so much Erika for taking this trip, grabbing Europe with both hands and making me smile xx

"Jackie was so AMAZING to work with! This trip to London was the first stop on my first International Solo Trip. I was also celebrating my birthday. Jackie captured the happiness and joy that I was experiencing on this trip! The entire Flytographer experience was fantastic! I highly recommend to any to take advantage of working with Flytographer...you will not be disappointed!!

Flytographer has elevated my trip to the next level. i hope my pictures inspire other solo travelers to experience Flytographer! If they do, I hope they work with Jackie! She is fantastic!!

I was inspired to take this vacation for several reasons. In 2015 I had a very tough year. My world seemed to spinning out of control. I went through a breakup, I had a major surgery and on top of all that I was feeling stressed out with work. One day, late last year, I decided to take my life back and steer it the way I want it to go. So, on a whim, I bought a plane ticket to Europe and planned a 2 week vacation with my travel agent!  

As a first time solo traveler I knew that I was going to have to breakdown and buy a selfie stick to capture myself in precious moments on my trip. But through a quick Google search I stumbled across this little gem called Flytographer! I instantly knew that I had to book them for a photo session in London and Paris when I visited! This concept is so brilliant! Working with Jackie (photographer), Danica, and the rest of the Flytographer team was so easy and, overall, a fantastic experience! Borough Market was the perfect place to bring out the best of me on this trip!  

It's funny, I bought a selfie stick for this trip and I haven't used it once! As I was on my photo shoot I notice people taking selfies of themselves with their phones and I thought to myself, "they are so behind the times...Flytographer is so 2016"! Ha" Erika - April 2016