Manchester Portrait Photographer

Each client has a unique story to capture

Manchester Portrait Photographer

When a plain headshot won’t cut it and you need something that looks more like it was clipped from the cover of GQ or Elle, I will take more editorial-style portraits of you either in our studio or on location. Portrait photography sessions are perfect for entrepreneurs, artists, consultants, speakers, authors, and anyone developing or maintaining a robust online presence and needing a library of social media photos.

First time working with a Manchester portrait photographer?

If you’re like many people, you shy away from getting professional photos taken because you’re anxious about the session itself. Maybe you think it will be like having your old school taken decades ago and barely recognise yourself in the final photos. Or maybe you’ve got that nagging voice in the back of your head:

“I’m not photogenic!”
“I don’t know how to pose!”
“I’ll be embarrassed!”

No matter what’s been holding you back, I’m here to ease your fears about having photos taken. Your shoot should be a fun, stress-free activity that helps you connect with your partner, family, or friends.

It all begins with helping you relax and feel comfortable with me, your surroundings, and the process. I’ll get to know you and your family members, and we’ll chat about locations, wardrobe, props, and your vision for the shoot.

Working with a Manchester portrait photographer will be fun.

During your session, I’ll give just the right amount of guidance and feedback, and I’ll show you pictures as we go so you can be sure we’re on the right track.

I have plenty of patience for unexpected twists and turns – after all, they’re part of the fun!

“Photography for me is not looking, it’s feeling. If you can’t feel what you’re looking at, then you’re never going to get others to feel anything when they look at your pictures.”

- Don McCullin -

What to expect from your portrait session:

Phone consultation:

The first step is to talk through your aims and your goal for your portrait session. I’ll arrange a phone consultation in which I’m able to learn more about your taste, style, and what your aims are for your session. Not sure yet? No worries. I’ll help you figure it out with questions to narrow your focus so we’re both on the same page.

Depending on the experience you choose, I will then work on my end to ensure the best results – whether that’s arranging a makeup artist, or wardrobe consultant, or finding a suitable outdoor location, which isn’t hard in Manchester we’re here for you.

During your session, I’ll offer plenty of guidance through posing and direction, so you don’t have to feel nervous about what to do. I’ll coach you through it–even the most anxious forget their butterflies after a bit and often end up enjoying the whole experience.

Afterwards, I’ll narrow your pictures down and do a bit of post-production work. I do fine retouching that helps you look your freshest self while making sure you still look like yourself. Then, I post your pictures to an online gallery. You’ll be able to select your favourites through my private gallery and make any additional retouching requests before receiving the high-resolution files.

Additional products available for purchase include prints, albums, framed art, and digital file packages. Please inquire for more pricing information.

Street Portraits

To me, the streets of Manchester are paved with beautiful people and architecture both old and contemporary. In my humble opinion, the streets of Manchester are a far better backdrop than anything you will find in the best studios in the world. If I were shooting for my own personal pleasure Street and fine art photography is how I spend my free time.

I like nothing better than seeing a complete stranger who has something about them that I like and stopping them to ask if I can take their picture. Taking street portraits has become a big part of my portfolio, in fact, I started a year-long project in November 2023. The project will culminate with the launch of my first publication dedicated to all the strangers I have met and taken a street portrait which I hope will be published in 2025.

Woking outside with natural light can have its challenges, however, the results can be breathtakingly beautiful. For this reason, I will always encourage clients to step outside and use the beautiful architecture be the areas around the Manchester Town Hall and surrounding buildings. Glass is one of my favourite things to work with, It will provide stunning mirror images and used in certain ways it will allow a bit of artistic flare which can add to the image.

I further advantage of working outdoors is bringing out one of the superpowers of a camera and that depth of field. Depth of field is caused by having the aperture on the camera wide open this gives that blurred background you see in pictures. This works well when taking portraits in the workplace by using a slightly narrower aperture allowing objects in the background to be more visible.

I particularly have a love of film photography, these pictures can be timeless and If you like a vintage feel with a modern twist they will certainly make you stand out. I have a variety of 35mm Canon film cameras and two medium-format cameras that take 6×6 pictures these are a Maniya 645 Super and a Zeiss Ikon Nettar.

In my hands these take truly stunning pictures Ansel Adams said “The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it!” If you want to take a look at my street portraits and photography check out my Instagram profile The Troubled Photographer.

To book me or just discuss your project click contact me button.

I am part of a Manchester artistic collective called Driftwood Studio where knowledge, skills, experience and resources are shared for the purpose of building a creative community.