articles/Profiles/sjohn-page1
Published 01/08/2014
Writing a book on creative wedding photography has been a long, hard journey for Simon John, however, it was all worth it when the first beautifully printed copies arrived from Graphistudio. Now he's going on tour to promote his book and is speaking at the Societies' Convention in 2015. All this while still running his successful wedding and portrait photography business and creating unique images for his clients!
Thirty-one years ago, when Simon was just 16 and leaving school he got himself an apprenticeship in a local photography studio. He was working in the darkroom and building frames for pictures which set him up with the skills he needed for when he began his own freelance photography business. By the time he was 19 he had his own studio in Portsmouth that he kept for almost 20 years. Another studio in Fareham followed before Simon made the decision to downsize his business and work from home - a decision that he believes has been key in increasing his creativity and his productivity. "I have a very young baby and working from home means that I get to spend more time with him. He's changed my life, I'm now at my desk by seven in the morning because I'm up early, something which used to be unheard of for me!"
But I wanted to know how downsizing from a studio to working from home has made so much of a difference to Simon's creativity. "Firstly my business has become much more profitable which has helped to encourage me. I tend to shoot portraits in clients' houses now where I can really try to capture the character of a person and that is a challenge compared to studio work." But it's the day-to-day things that have made a difference to Simon's outlook on photography. "I live in a beautiful little village now, so I look out of my office window and it's surrounded by trees and horses, it's a very creative place to live. Just popping out to get something from the local shops and taking a walk is a good way to recharge and the little tea shop round the corner where I meet clients is really quite wonderful."
There are 21 days to get ready for The Society of Photographers Convention and Trade Show at The Novotel London West, Hammersmith ...
which starts on Wednesday 15th January 2025