Maybe it's living on the fringes or in the shade of woodland for much of my life that makes me so drawn to it. It's always a source of inspiration. It's grounding; carrying with it the soothing sounds of rustling leaves, hooting owls, chattering squirrels - and has its own very particular smell. I'd know it blindfolded.
If there were any doubt that we're now firmly in Autumn, our woodland garden has transformed into a haven for those otherwordly beings - fungi. Here's an oak leaf nestling inside one.
The fairies were nowhere to be found, but I will persevere.
Look at these appropriately spooky beasts, otherwise known as Wrinkled Club Fungus, often found in scattered groups among mossy woodland footpaths - or at the top of our garden. They take on distinctly ghostly forms.
Talking of strange things, my humble little 2022 woodland photoshoot inspired by all things 1980s and the TV show Stranger Things, got published in a magazine this week. It's online and in print which is very exciting!
Seeing my work in print has made my week. It's always lovely to receive any kind of publicity, but there's really no substitute for leafing through the pages of a magazine. I do often miss life before the internet and really appreciate the time, dedication and cost of getting a magazine off the ground in our online culture.
It received quite the spread and even featured our 70s V8 Rover P6.
Rewinding to earlier this summer, I ventured to Kinver Edge with Ania, a model friend I've collaborated with on a couple of occasions. For some reason, this shoot didn't make it into my blog. So I'll remedy that now by sharing a few of my favourites.
I wanted to an ethereal vibe, so we opted for natural make up, undone hair and a ruffled white dress to give movement and pop against the green and earthy landscape colours.
We were hoping for shafts of sunlight, but in the event, whilst the day was exceptionally hot, the white blanket clouds stubbornly refused to part company. I got a little bit experimental with this shot and created my own sun spots in the edit.
The Petal Bar, a gorgeous florist in the market town of Bridgnorth in Shropshire, created a flower crown from eucalyptus and other green foliage. The eucalyptus aroma filled the air in our home for weeks afterwards.
Despite our early morning visit, we still managed to bump into someone I know, walking her dog. Typical! We chatted briefly whilst Ania was touching up her make-up, although she surprisingly didn't bat an eyelid at our activities. I either give off crazy lady vibes or woodland nymph photo shoots are ten a penny!
With time on our side, I tried out an old photographer's trick of placing crinkled cellophane over the lens. The jury's out on this one.
We also played around with props; Ania living out her princess fantasy. For some reason, I felt this image looked better desaturated.
The Rowan trees were plentiful and covered in berries. For this one, I used a gold reflector, which gave Ania extra glow.
Blair Witch vibes.
Time to hit the forest floor!
I liked the leaf debris stuck to Ania's arm. We decided to leave it... communing with nature.
The crown reappeared.
There may have been some leaf throwing.
Finally, a moment of calm and some forest bathing.
But let's not forget, Halloween is almost upon us. I've been cramming in nightly episodes of the podcast Uncanny (truly spine tingling).
It's my favourite time of year and I usually create some kind of self portrait to mark the occasion. Has it really been two years since the Pumpkin Bride? The late 1960s vintage dress purchased by its original owner for a garden party and never worn was sold to me for a song and definitely deserved to be seen.
So what will this Halloween deliver? Suggestions on a postcard please.
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