I'm self taught photographer and have been taking pictures for many years. I had a passion to create a project called Sober Exposure consisting of 13 photographic portraits of people who choose to live their lives without alcohol. I planned the project right down to its objectives, where I wanted it to be exhibited, found my subjects and embarked on taking pictures.
It was at this point that I realised that I needed a mentor. I was lacking confidence and I needed somebody to run ideas past, and most importantly, advise me on which photos were good enough to be exhibited. It was at this point that I found Lucy. I knew some of her work already and respected her artistic style, I also knew she'd had plenty of experience in putting an exhibition together.
As I began to take the photos, Lucy's feedback became invaluable to me. She was there for me 100 percent and I felt that I was not embarking on the project alone. After I had completed a photo shoot I would narrow down my possible shots to use and email Lucy my choices. She would look at my work and we'd discuss different artistic aspects of the prospective shots. Lucy helped me to understand the fundamentals of portraiture, what did and what didn't work, and why. I found Lucy's feedback very motivating. She instilled in me a belief in myself and the importance of following my gut instinct. She gently guided me to produce a body of work that I felt, and still do, feel proud of.
As the project progressed Lucy was on hand for every dilemma I encountered (there were a few!) She advised me on practical issues such as framing, dealing with the printers and financial matters, to name but a few. She also came to the opening night of my exhibition, at Winchester University which was extremely supportive of her.
I would highly recommend Lucy as a trusted mentor/companion on any photographic journey. She is intuitively creative, a natural listener and a great communicator. I have no doubt that my confidence and photographic work has benefitted hugely from her input.