Michael & Crystal | London engagement shoot with red balloons

Love is what you make of it.

That’s what shooting in London city centre reminds me of. Big city, millions of people, cold, windy and often wet weather. But I think that’s part of the thrill of shooting in London. Waking up extra early, going the extra mile and feeling satisfied at the end when you’ve managed to dance with the elements.

I watched the Directors Commentary of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind by Michel Gondry recently and in it he talks about how he vowed never to let any of his films succumb to the weather. He would always use the weather to enhance and bring more life out of his films (obviously he said it in his words).

I really resonated with what he was saying and that’s how I like to work on my shoots. If it rains, great! … the rain will make the shoot more romantic. If it’s a gloomy cloudy day, no problem, let me add a splash of red to contrast the gray. If the wind decides to go crazy and starts blowing away my beautiful balloons, no problem, that’s fine … Crystal and Michael will just have to start hugging the balloons – which they did for most of the shoot!!! (we actually lost 3 balloons in the first 10 minutes of shooting because the wind was howling!!).

But it’s all part of the fun and it makes my job so rewarding!

About the Couple …

Crystal approached me with her and Michael’s story. They are both from China and met while studying at university in London. They have been living here for quite some time and although they both have amazing jobs in London, there will come a time when they’ll both return to China.

Crystal and Michael really wanted an engagement shoot that would capture the essence of London so they could ‘bottle it up’ and take it home with them and remember this special time in their lives. They wanted a mixture of big historical London sites mixed in with every day living … such as riding the tube, catching a cab, walking and talking. There are some really subtle tender moments throughout this shoot that I love : ) Enjoy!

I have to admit this ‘in action’ shot below is definitely one of my favourites! I can build a whole love story / scene around this one shot alone!

These pics were taken just as the sun was rising (even though you can’t see any sun in the pictures – welcome to London lighting!). This was at about 7am and we had about 10 mins of slightly coloured lighting – it was worth every second!