Here is beautiful baby Maximus, or Max, at just 6 days old.
What an absolute cutie he is!!

If your interested in having some professional baby photographs taken please contact me to arrange a newborn session.
I can work around your due date, as we know babies come along in their own time. I like to photograph newborn's as soon as possible, ideally in the first 7 days.

Remember my special offer for all newborn sessions booked in April, you will receive 20 complimentary announcement cards.

I look forward to hearing from you...
Claire

Book your newborn portrait shoot with Claire during April and receive 20 complimentary baby announcement cards.

Just one condition, baby should be 7days or under.

If you are expecting your baby during April and would still like to take advantage of this offer please contact Claire to book your session around your due date. We can always re-schedule when baby arrives.

To book your session, quote 'ft4' and call Claire on 0845 0711178 or email claire@level11.co.uk

I recently visited Elise and her two gorgeous children for a portrait session.

I first photographed little M when he was 8mths old, he is now 2 years and 3 mths and his little sister is now also 8mths old.
I love re-visiting my clients and love seeing how children have grown. I just remember how they looked in the original photographs so to see them more grown up is always a pleasure.

M looks exactly like he did when he was 8mths old, except with gorgeous longer blonde curly hair.

I had such a lovely time with them both, M was full of fun and T was full of beautiful smiles.

Here are a few favourites....

Meet Archie...he's 5 days in these pictures, and he's my great nephew!

Here's Thomas...he's 16 days old in these pictures.

I love photographing newborn babies, it's always best to photograph babies as soon as possible - I like to do it within the first 10 days.
This way, they still have their natural curl...I love it.
However as Thomas was born over the Christmas holiday's he had to open his presents and spend time with his family. But, he was still so tiny it was possible to capture the cute baby pictures that I like to do.

I always get asked how long a newborn shoot will take, my answer is however long is needed. My average is around 2 hours but it really does depend on the baby. I've been with a baby for 4 hours before, feeds, changing, quick naps.

To book your baby shoot with me please do so before your baby arrives...just so you are booked in. Please do not leave it until baby arrives as I may not be able to fit you in, at least if you are booked in we can re-schedule. I've had a mummy call me from the hospital bed the morning after delivering her baby to book in her shoot - I have to say, that's determination and I had the biggest smile on my face all day because it was something that was so important to her to have done. Newborn's are not newborn for long and you forget how teeny tiny they are, how tiny their features are.

Call me now for more information on my baby packages or to book your newborn shoot.

How cute is this little man...

I also offer a variety of birth announcement/thank you cards...a perfect keepsake!

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of photographing 7day old baby Aaron.

I love photographing newborn babies, they're so scrummy!

I was called on Thursday by a nice lady and asked to 'pop along' to her home for an hour or so on Sunday to photograph a large family group plus the little family groups. Something a little different from my everyday norm but still, well within my capabilities so why not?!I charge £75 for a location portrait session (plus travel if outside a certain radius) which is payable at the time of booking.

My fee is broken into different elements:

• My time, which actually means up to 2 hours with you for a portrait session (if we need it)
• Travel to and from location (time and petrol)
• Electricity to charge my camera kit
• Wear and tear on my car and camera kit
• My time (and electricity) editing and processing the pictures so they look they're absolute best for you to view
• A viewing session with me or an online gallery
• Insurance (PI, PL and car)
• Tax
• Accountancy
• Marketing/advertising
• Kit servicing/maintenance

This is without mentioning my 13 years experience and skill involved in taking the beautiful photographs that I take and of course living costs/wages.
When I list it out like this it actually makes me think that I should indeed increase my fees.
All products are additional costs, i.e beautiful frames to display your beautiful photographs, gorgeous desktop acrylic blocks, photographs to display proudly around your home or gifts to send to family.

The lady called me the next day to cancel the session. Why?? She told me it was too expensive so I asked, out of interest, what she was expecting to pay.
She told me that she was expecting to pay around £45 inc CD and just wanted someone who knew what they were doing behind a camera!

There lies the problem. My husband knows how to work a camera, it's not that difficult. BUT he doesn't know about lighting, where the best light is coming from, does the photograph need extra light, how the eyes are looking, where the best background is, group positioning, composition, colour management etc etc.

If you go to a restaurant and had steak and chips....you kind of know the price of the ingredients and how you cook it but you pay a much higher price for it because your paying for quality ingredients and for an experienced chef to cook it for you amongst other things.

I have heard so many stories from clients, friends and friends of friends about how they wished they'd hired a professional photographer - be it for a special occasion (the latest was for a 40th birthday but she thought that at the time it was an extravagance however a couple of weeks after her best friend died and now she regrets that she didn't have a photographer!), for baby or childrens portraits or more commonly, a wedding. 
I find it amazing that some couples getting married choose to scrimp on the photography but yet spend hundreds on things that are thrown away after the day.
I had a lovely couple come to see me for a wedding consultation last week who admitted that they're wedding was going to be 'done on the cheap' but the biggest expense was the photography because they said that they wanted memories captured and beautiful photos of them on their wedding day, together with their children and family that they can look back on at their 50th anniversary! Such a great way of looking at it and one which I think everyone should look at it!

Unfortunately, the professional photography industry has been 'cheapened' by what I fondly call 'weekend warriors' - those who pick up a digital camera and think they can earn a few quid at the weekend!
Most lack basic training. Some do actually know what they're doing and are trying to break into the industry - I appreciate we all have to start somewhere - but can they cope with the pressure, particularly on a wedding day!! I'd like to know how many 'newbies' are still working and established in 10/15 years time!

A few times I have had a bride or groom call me a week or two weeks before their wedding asking me if I am free because the photographer they had booked couldn't make it - once, the reason was because he was called to cover a shift at work!
This is so wrong!! Professional Photography should have some kind of registered trademark. We have the Master Photographers Association, and although the professional photographers who pay to join the MPA are all recognised by their peers and undergo what I call an 'assesment', in which you submit a certain number of photographs of a certain quality for assesment, there is nothing like 'Corgi' or the such like. There should be!

Without sounding like a cliche, this is my passion but is also my full time job. My clients come to me because they want me to produce beautiful photographs for them. Many of them become lifelong clients and friends which is an honour for me. I love it when my wedding couples come back to me for me to photograph their babies, children, families....who knows, maybe I'll be photographing the children's weddings in years to come. I get a warm, fuzzy feeling when I visit a clients home and see my work proudly on display!!

I have huge respect for my clients; past, present and future. They are investing their hard earned money in me and expect me to produce photographs of exceptional quality and with a level of service and professionalism that they both expect and deserve.

My work will be remembered by families for generations. I still look at my parents and grandparents wedding albums and wonder who the photographer was and what was s/he like, obviously my parents and grandparents can still remember what the photographer was like - my mum's had to stand on his box to take the groups as he was a short man.  I wonder if me and my work will be remembered and admired in future years, I certainly hope so!!

A few weeks ago I went to visit Justine and Chris at their home to photograph their beautiful 4 day old baby girl, Matilda.

Matilda is taking part in my Tiny Moments package which is where I photorgaph your baby 5 times from newborn to their 1st birthday, including a maternity session for mummy to be.
After baby's first birthday I design a lovely book containing your favourite photographs throughout baby's first year.

Matilda seemed to like having her photograph taken, she was awake in between milk top-ups but fell alseep during her feeds....I love milk drunk babies, so easy to work with.

Here are a few of my favourites...

Meet Jemima, 5 days...

Here is baby Sophia,11 days old...