I was recently asked by one of my customers if I could help fund raise toward  The Earleybird Appeal. As this is for a local cause and the fact that I photograph lots of toddlers, babies and families I was delighted to help out.

What we have agreed is that you can purchase a portrait voucher valued at £100 for just £15. The £15 will go direct to the Appeal and for this you will receive your portrait voucher which you can use at my studio. £100 will cover the cost of a session (normal value £25) and will leave you with £75 in credit. Finished portraits start at £60 so you could have one of these with £15 left over to put towards anything else if you wish.

There are no major terms and conditions. The session can be of an individual (baby, toddler, child), couples, families. You can also bring in your pets and grand parents ! All we ask is you must book the session within 1 month of receiving the voucher. However the session can be booked for upto 1 year ahead. Finally, the voucher cannot be used for weddings, corporate and business shoots.

If you wish to take advantage of this fantastic offer you can contact  e mail me direct info@neilpalmerphotography.co.uk or phone – 0118 966 7676. Alternatively you can contact the charity direct (website above) or on e mail tea@earleybird.org.uk Please also visit their Facebook Page for further information. You can pay by cheque or cash only, ideally direct to the charity. You can, however ,pay me direct and I will pass the money on. Your voucher will then be posted or e mailed together with a price and information guide.

Please feel free to contact me if you require further information. Thank you for your time and support.

Neil – 11 March 2010

David has just discovered this in light of the recent stories run in the daily papers suggesting that Jon Venables (who was convicted of murdering Jamie Bulger) was going by the name of David Calvert. Since then David’s photography site has had over 50,000 hits. Normally we’d be thrilled that his site is so popular, but at the moment he is obviously very concerned.

As his colleagues we are doing all we can to help David disassociate himself from this dreadful story. He is in no way  related to David Calvert of Fleetwood, who has also been highlighted in the press and is in no way connected to the tragic case of Jamie Bulger.

David, 46,  is a national award winning photographer and his business David Calvert Photography, based in Hertfordshire, specialises in family and child portraiture. David has our complete support in these difficult circumstances and we hope very much that they pass without impact to him, his own family or his business.

Here are some recent shots I took of Judy who is an excellent Jazz singer and also a past client. These were for a new website and for promotional purposes. I must say she sung beautifully, as expected, during the session which really helped. These type of sessions are always fun to do and are becoming more frequent as people need decent images to promote themselves. Some more favourites can be seen below

Neil Palmer musician portraits in Berkshire

Here’s some recent images from another popular bumps to babies shoot. This is an ongoing promotion which we started last year. So Mum’s to be and their families can have a session showing their bump and then have a follow up session a few months later after the baby is born.

We have some special offers on these shoots so please feel free to contact me for further details if interested. Below are some more images from the session

reading pregnancy photographer

As well as children many like to have portraits of their pets. Here are some images taken recently of a local poodle, Molly.

They say ‘never work with children and animals’ but despite the difficulties this is often very rewarding, particularly if you’ve done a good job which the client is happy with. Molly wouldn’t sit still for long which is quite often the case with dogs so I was pleased to get these, some of which can be seen below. In particular I liked the contrast of the black fur against the white background.

dog portrait photographer in Reading, Berkshire

I’ve always loved the retro look so I was really pleased when a colleague told me about this really cool i phone application – hipstamatic

So I tried this out on a recent trip to London and I love the results and unpredictability of it. Even the most boring looking scene can look interesting. In the 70’s as a child I owned a few crappy soviet, eastern block style cameras and loved to play around with them often processing the film in weird ways. That was the joy of photography and I guess today it has become more and more predictable with camera technology improving at an alarming rate. Its why I see now a lot of professionals (mainly American) who process their images this way as well as the increasing popularity of Lomo and Holga cameras.

Anyway this is a great application which costs a few pounds. In particular I like the square format which in many ways is easier to work with and reminds me of my early days in photography when we used Hasselblads. Below are some more favourites, let me know what you think.

London documentary photographer

Everyone has been moaning about the weather recently. But it does provide all photographers, from keen hobbyists to full time pros, excellent subject matter.

Here are a handful I took during my walk to the studio each day. I’m not one of those photographers who has a camera in their hands 24/7. But I always have my i phone readily to hand which often surprises me by producing some decent images. Don’t worry though – I won’t be using it in the studio for the time being. Some more can be seen below.

Neil Palmer wedding photographer london

January is usually a quiet time for weddings so I thought I’d start of with something different – a studio wedding. I have done a handful of studio weddings in the past so it is quite rare here although in continental Europe it is more common.

Henry and Irene visited my studio before Christmas with their guests straight after getting married at the local registry office. During the session I photographed a variety of different groups as well as some on their own. This is completely different to how I usually photograph as each shot is set up. With studio photography I like to keep the images as natural as possible whilst maintaining a traditional, classical look. Anyhow it was great to do something different to the norm and you can see some more favourites below.

Neil Palmer wedding photographer in Berkshire

Here’s some images from a couple of pregnancy portrait sessions. These have become increasingly popular over the years with quite a few including their partners in the shoot as well. We are doing an ongoing promotion for these type of sessions called ‘Bumps to Babies’. This costs just £20 for 2 sessions – one with your bump and one after the baby is born. We also offer some very good cost saving packages in the promotion. Please contact me for further details. Gift vouchers are also available.

Below are some more favourites

pregnancy photos reading

Happy new year and welcome to my first post of 2010.

Everyone is talking and moaning about the snow at the moment, myself included. However I recently used it to my advantage on a recent business portrait session.

David and Chris run a very successful recruitment agency GCS Ltd here in Reading and wanted some upto date publicity shots. But they wanted something a bit different to the usual formal type of shot (top image below). Their company has a fun, informal atmosphere and where football and music are very much part of the agenda (outside of working hours of course !) They therefore wanted some shots to reflect this. So after taking a few formal ones in the studio I decided it would be great to do a few outside in the snow. Below are some favourites, enjoy

Neil Palmer business portraits in Reading Berkshire