What I offer - Sarah Sheldrake

advancing dslr

Does your headshot reflect your true personality? Is it the authentic you that you wish people to see? Does it represent you in your professional capacity?

As a professional headshot photographer, I aim to capture an image of you which you feel 100% comfortable with. You’re in the majority if you don’t enjoy having your photograph taken; most people who contact me feel the same. Whether it takes us ten minutes or a multiple of ten, I’m confident that you’ll leave the session having found the experience to be much more painless than expected and, dare I say it, perhaps even enjoyable?

I take a good selection of shots and, shortly after the session, will email a link to view the best images via a gallery and for you to select your favourite(s). This way, you also have the chance to ask your family or friends their opinion.

During our session, I will show you some of the in-camera shots as we shoot to ensure you feel confident the results are appropriate for your needs.

Headshots sessions are bookable at a variety of venues including my natural light studio.

I’m always mindful of the specific business sector and target audience and will bring the necessary attention to detail and creativity to deliver on-point imagery.

Session fee: £145 to include x 3 digital images delivered via digital download

Additional images are available as single image files or bundle options.

Actor headshot sessions are £155 to include x 5 images

Periodically, I run headshot drop-in sessions at various venues. For actors, individuals, sole traders, social media profile updates etc. These are popular, bookable in advance (usually advertised via social media) and a quick and easy way to secure a portrait refresh.

£POA

family session photo package

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beginner dslr

In the beginner workshop, over half of the time is spent considering the importance of light; this is vital to your photography. We’ll learn how to find good & identify good light, and use the light to make interesting compositions. Understanding light will dramatically improve your photography and with immediate effect.

We spend around an hour in total learning the important settings and functionality of our cameras. This will make an immediate difference to your photographs. We’ll think about scene-setting and storytelling. We’ll cover auto focus, white balance, metering modes, f-stops, ISO & file formats. We’ll touch on image stabilisation, connectivity and fps (frames per second).

There’s a lot of potentially off-putting jargon within photography; we demystify it all and very quickly.

I provide notes as a takeaway and a follow-up fortnight of support via our fb/Whatsapp group.

£POA

Headshots package

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one to one photography ( virtual course )

This is a bespoke course which I tailor to your needs following a discovery call & consultation questionnaire to identify your current level.

I will (virtually) handhold you throughout the learning process to enable you to master your camera and its settings. By the time you’ve completed this course, you’ll be confident with your camera and able to take the photographs you wish to capture.

This course will feature and include the following;

x 5 modules in printable .pdf form alongside 6 x 30 minute virtual 1:1 training & practical sessions over Zoom

5 modules

* Training your eye to see
* Finding & understanding light
* Composition, focus & detail
* Your camera & all its functionality
* Presentation & display of photographs

Introductory Offer Price £249

£265

Headshots package

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phone editing

The best camera you have is the one you have with you at the time. That often means the phone you carry with you daily. These smartphones that we now depend on (rather worryingly) have very powerful camera functionality and I can show you how to get the very best out of yours.

I will show you the importance of using the available light; this is vital to your photography. We’ll learn how to find good & identify good light, and use light to make interesting compositions. We’ll think about scene-setting and storytelling. We’ll cover lens options and clever creative techniques to add interest. We’ll talk through some of the best in phone apps available to edit the images we take on our phone and I’ll walk through some editing techniques to demonstrate very achievable and immediate improvements that you’ll be able to make straight away, before you leave the workshop.

I provide notes as a takeaway and a follow-up fortnight of support via our fb/Whatsapp group.

£POA

family session photo package

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*Prints and digital files are not included within this price.

education sector

I think that, as a parent to four children of my own, I very much appreciate how important it is for potential parents to see joy and engagement, curiosity and focus in children photographed for education sector imagery. The photography needs to very clearly convey to parents that their child is going to be absorbed in their education within your setting which also must be as photogenically depicted as possible.

I’ve worked in both public and private sector educational settings, in pre-school, primary and secondary school environments.

I work alongside a videographer on joint commissions where film is also required.
She, like myself, is both locally based and also fully DB checked. Our styles of work complement one another and we’re both adept at capturing candid photography and semi-staged moments which appear candid and natural.
We both seek out the joy and emotion in moments and capture this vitality in our photography.
For education sector commissions, please contact me directly for a discovery call and I’ll provide a price on application.

£POA

family session photo package

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artisan / brand stories

Authentically representing a brand or business in pictures is a talent I possess and enjoy sharing. Your photography will be brand-appropriate. I can do fully groomed and varnished corporate yet am entirely capable of quirky, small brand start-up.

I ensure that, through extensive discussions with you as client, whether we’re talking face to face or over FaceTime and well in advance of the shoot, we identify your brand, the business characteristics, the ethos you’re aiming to promote along with your core audience and, together, we ensure that we clearly communicate your message via the photography.

I’m always mindful of the specific business sector I’m delivering to and bring the requisite attention to detail to the table.

Periodically, I run headshot sessions at various venues. These are bookable in advance (usually advertised via social media) and a quick and easy refresh for company and social media bio portraits.

With artisans, I offer a portraits + process package which allows for a mix of imagery to feature on a website that tells the all-important story behind the finished product, whatever that might be, and features significant tools and equipment along with some staged moments to effectively demonstrate the artist at work, their activities and the products in a semi-raw state. Artisan portraits are included along with finished pieces for sale or sold and in situ.

For wedding and event photography, please contact me directly for a discovery call and I’ll provide a price on application.

£POA

Headshots package

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weddings and events

I embrace and have a love of experiencing all energies; I’m neither a calm person nor a complete high energy girl. I’m both and as befits the occasion. The high octane thrill of a significant birthday or wedding excites me; I aim to have as much enjoyment photographing your celebrations as you do. Equally, the gentle calm and introspection of a baby naming ceremony, that also appeals and floods me with those happy hormones; I’ve had four babies myself after all, I remember how to slow down and savour.

I can drop into the quiet space necessary to bear witness unobtrusively to any event. I’m perfectly able to coordinate your group photographs where requested. In the main, though, I aim to capture your event and tell its story as it unfolds and without interruptions.

For wedding and event photography, please contact me directly for a discovery call and I’ll provide a price on application.

£POA

family session photo package

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new baby session

To honour a very special moment in time for your family with the arrival of a new baby, whether your first baby or an addition to your family. This is a calm and stress free occasion to enable us to gently capture all the tiny, fleeting newborn moments. The little toes and fingers, the first locks of hair, the snuffly faces and first wide-eyed gazes. Along with the all-important Mum & Dad cuddles plus any ( most definitely important ) siblings.

The stylised props, beanbags and deliberately contorted baby posing; I don’t do this so, look up another photographer if this is the kind of photography that you’re wishing for. I’ll capture details from the nursery, special gifts, handmade knits, wide angle room shots and the family dog, bemused or otherwise at the new arrival!

Sessions last 1-2 hrs and always with the understanding that babies sleep, babies feed and they do not initially if at all run on clock time. I am patient, I wait until we have what we need and came to capture and nobody need feel any form of performance anxiety whatsoever! I’d have loved to have even just one of my new babies photographed in this way. The eldest is twenty now and, back then, there simply were not photographers around us with this kind of offer. Instead, I photographed them at home and – sadly – failed to get in shot myself very often to ensure there was any record of me. I won’t allow you to make this mistake; no matter how you may think you look after little sleep, your parent pride and joy will light the pictures and twenty years hence, you’ll thank me for it.

£POA

Headshots package

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family session

These are bespoke and very relaxed sessions for families. I take on a limited number in any given month to ensure that I provide you with both an enjoyable experience and a fantastic customer service afterwards.

The session fee is £240 weekdays and £300 at weekends / during school holidays.

This covers my time and travel on the day of the shoot and the time & artistry I spend digitally perfecting your images for your online gallery after the shoot.

Prior to the session, and so I can find out all about your family, we have a discovery call. A phone conversation to get to know one another, a chat to talk through key members of the family, their likes and dislikes and identify whether there are any pets you may wish to be included on the day. This allows me to properly prepare ahead of meeting you and guarantees I’ll get the very best photographs on the day of our shoot.

Prints and digital files are not included within this price.

The session itself lasts around 1.5 to 2 hours, though there is no real time limit since, with babies and children, I always factor in the disruptions and curve balls that are likely if not guaranteed.

You will have around 40-50 fully edited images in your gallery to view and select favourites from. Most families then spend between £1200-£2000 on family sessions ( including the session fee ) which provides them with a generous selection of products. These include high quality printed albums, lifestyle products and fine art giclée framed prints or – where opting for a digital only solution – photographs are available via digital transfer. Gift prints are available only with the purchase of another product.

A Family Documentary Session is perfect for you if you want a bespoke service from start to finish, and are looking to purchase beautiful products to put on your wall or stunning albums to have as heirlooms to treasure over the years in your family.

£240 – £300*

family session photo package

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*Prints and digital files are not included within this price.

headshots

Does your headshot reflect your true personality? Is it the authentic you that you wish people to see? Does it represent you in your professional capacity?

Session includes ;

* A pre-shoot consultation call to understand your business and your needs
* Travel expenses, public liability and professional indemnity insurance
* Editing and very light natural retouching of your photographs
* A secure online gallery to view, select and digitally download your images
* Licence to use the images in your marketing materials

Session fee: £185

Periodically, I run headshot drop-in sessions at various venues. For actors, individuals, sole traders, social media profile updates etc. These are popular, bookable in advance (usually advertised via social media) and a quick and easy way to secure a portrait refresh.

During our session, I take a good selection of shots and will show you some of the in-camera shots as we shoot to ensure you feel confident the results are appropriate for your needs.

Shortly after the session, I’ll email a gallery link for you to view and select your favourites. This way, you also have the chance to ask your family or friends their opinion.

You’re welcome to bring along outfit changes on the day and I encourage this, so that we can see which clothing works best in camera for you. I bring along a mirror.

from £185

Headshots package

BOOK NOW

what I offer…

artisan / brand stories

education sector

weddings and events

headshots

new baby session

family session

digital images

prints

art