Category Archives: Places

2,000 Rainbows

June 10, 2020 by admin | Comments Off

I wanted to share one of my lockdown projects with you. This took me about 3 weeks to make, features over 1,700 photographs and involved walking about 60km around the streets of Chorlton. Hopefully it highlights how important community and creativity are in times of trouble and what we can achieve when we come together to support one another.

If you enjoyed this video, and if you are able, please consider donating to one of these organisations (or another of your choosing), supporting some of the people most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic:

Mama Health & Poverty Partnership www.mhapp.org.uk (supporting BME women in Manchester)
Refugee Action www.refugee-action.org.uk (support for refugees and asylum seekers in Greater Manchester)
Refuge www.refuge.org.uk (supporting those affected by domestic violence)
The Trussell Trust www.trusselltrust.org (food banks)
Mind www.mind.org.uk (mental health support)

Big love to the people of Chorlton and to all the wonderful individuals, organisations and local businesses that have kept us going through the past few months

Many thanks to @electromotive for allowing me to use their music for this project.

Keep safe and stay kind xx

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Also posted in Documentary photography Tagged Chorlton, covid-19, film, hope, lock down, Manchester, pandemic, rainbow, windows |

My Favourite images of 2018

January 6, 2019 by admin | Comments Off

So long 2018! The passing of a year is always a good time to reflect on the past 12 months, and for me that means looking back through a LOT of photos. Taking a step back and looking at my work over the course of a whole year, I’m struck by varied it has been – I’ve documented community projects, music events, travel destinations; taken portraits of new-born babies, business leaders, artists and musicians; and I’ve photographed weddings, gigs, poetry readings, conferences and festivals. It’s been a blast!

To save you having to look through a year’s worth of (rather splendid) blog posts, I’ve collected together a selection of my favourite images from 2018 to create a super-duper-blow-your-mind-with-it’s-awesomeness gallery, which you can view below. There’s a mixture of portraits, documentary shots, gig pictures, landscapes and wedding photographs. I hope you enjoy them (please let me know your favourites in the comments section).

Heading into 2019 I’m incredibly excited to see what the next 12 months will bring. Thank you so much to all of the wonderful people and organisations that I’ve worked with in 2018, and to all of my fabulous family and friends for their continuing support. Happy new year everyone, lets make 2019 a belter!

Rachel x

Also posted in Arts Photography, Bands, Documentary photography, Events, Gig Photography, landscape photography, Music Photography, Photography, Portraits, travel photography, Wedding Photography Tagged 2018, best photos, both sides now, Brighter Sound, collection, Concert, dazzley badger, Event Photography, favourite images, Manchester, Music Photography, retrospective, Scotland, Travel, Wedding, year in review |

A Week In Provence

November 15, 2018 by admin | Comments Off

I love my home town of Manchester but it can get a little grey and drizzly sometimes, especially as winter approaches. So, to recharge our batteries enough to see us through the dark winter months , we managed to steal a week away in sunny Provence a few weeks back. The lavender may have been out of season but the region is full of incredible natural beauty all year round. From picture-postcard coastal towns like Menton and Villefranche-Sur-Mer along the Cote D’Azur, to the luscious green valleys of the Gorge du Verdon, we found ourselves surrounded by jaw-dropping scenery almost every where we went. I’ve collated some of my favourite images fro the trip in the gallery below. I hope you enjoy them!

See something you like and want to buy a print? Please contact me for details.

Also posted in landscape photography, travel photography Tagged Cannes, Cote D'Azur, france, Gorge du verdon, holiday, Menton, Provence, South of France, Travel, Villefrance sur mer |

North Of the Wall

November 3, 2018 by admin | Comments Off

We saw out the end of October with a trip up to Northumberland, just past Hadrian’s Wall, and then onwards up to Loch Awe in Scotland, accompanied by friends and the worlds cutest little black pug.

The idea behind the trip to Northumberland was to take advantage of the incredible dark sky park they have around the Kielder area for some stargazing and astrophotography. Unfortunately the weather had other ideas and we only had a single briefly clear night during our 3 day stay. On the plus side, the stormy clouds made for some incredible landscapes during the daylight hours.

We continued northwards up towards Oban and Fort William, where we took a trip on The Jacobite – a fully working steam train that many will recognise as the Hogwarts Express in the Harry Potter films. Scotland was rainy, windy and unbelievably beautiful. It was a long 6 hour journey home but it was worth every second.

You can see a selection of my favourite images from the trip in the gallery below.

(If you are interested in purchasing prints of any of these images, please contact me for details)

Also posted in astrophotography, Documentary photography, landscape photography, travel photography Tagged fort william, harry potter, Jacobite, kielder, landscapes, mallaig, Northumberland, oban, rainbow, Scotland, steam train, Travel, weather |

Dazzley Badger 2018

September 6, 2018 by admin | Comments Off

In July, 2018 two local micro-festivals – Velvet Badger and Dazzley – blended together to form Dazzley Badger, and a legendary weekend was born.

Here are some of my favourite images from this perfect little festival of friends….

Also posted in Bands, Documentary photography, Events, Gig Photography, Music Photography

Both Sides Now, Fatima Al Qadiri Residency

August 31, 2018 by admin | Comments Off

Last month I headed down to the People’s History Museum to shoot the latest residency in Brighter Sound‘s ambitious ‘Both Sides Now’ programme, which aims to support and sustain gender equality on the music industry.

This residency was headed by artist, musician and composer Fatima Al Qadiri, alongside curator and researcher Amal Khalaf. Working with 8 female musicians, artists and performers, over the course of 5 days in the People’s History Museum, they created a unique and powerful piece of work – a combinations of performance, music, video, spoken word and protest art, all inspired by the ‘Represent! Voices 1200 Years On’ exhibition that was running at the museum.

The final piece was performed in a special one off event at the PHM. I joined the group on the final day of the residency to document their final rehearsals and the evening’s performance, all in the beautiful pump room at the PHM. A selection of my favourite images from the event can be seen below.

Also posted in Arts Photography, Documentary photography, Events, Gig Photography, Music Photography, Portraits Tagged Amal Khalaf, Arts, both sides now, Brighter Sound, equality, Event, Fatima Al Qadiri, feminism, Gig, Manchester, Music, Peoples History Museum, Performance, Protest, Pump Room, Represent! 100 Years On |

Beautiful Crete

October 26, 2017 by admin | Comments Off

Visited the Island of Crete in Greece and found sunshine, beaches, mountains, goats and cats, lots of cats….

Also posted in Documentary photography, Photography Tagged beach, chania, crete, greece, landscape photography, nature cats, sea, Travel, travel photography |

Cornwall

June 7, 2017 by admin | Comments Off

Earlier this year I took a short trip down to Cornwall, one of the prettiest counties in Britain. It’s also one of the least built-up regions in the UK so it was a great opportunity for some landscape shots and astrophotography.

Also posted in astrophotography, Documentary photography Tagged beach, Coast, coastline, cornish, Cornwall, lands end, landscape photography, lizard point, minack, penzance, porthcurno, sea, star trails, Travel, travel photography |

My Favourite Images of 2016

January 5, 2017 by admin | Comments Off

I’ve put together a collection of my favourite images from 2016, and what a year it was! I got to photograph Grammy award winners, Premiership footballers and Mercury prize nominees; I shot events in museums, laboratories, tv studios, hidden gardens and amongst giant smoke machines; I travelled half way round the world and saw incredible cultural and natural wonders; and I got to meet and work with some truly inspirational people along the way.

I’ve chosen each of the images in the collection below for different reasons. Some because they captured a unique moment, some because they are successful in terms of technique or composition, and some because they transport me back to a special time and place in my life from the past 12 months.

I hope you enjoy looking through these images as much as I enjoyed taking them.

Thanks so much for all your support in 2016. Wishing you all a happy new year and a fabulous 2017!

Rachel x

Also posted in Bands, Documentary photography, Events, Gig Photography, Music Photography, Photography, Portraits, Uncategorized, Wedding Photography

Science in The City Late – Anna Meredith’s residency with Brighter Sound

August 4, 2016 by admin | Comments Off

Commissioned by Brighter Sound, Anna Meredith’s four-day residency with a group of young female musicians, visual artists and sound engineers, culminated in a special, one-off performance at Manchester’s Museum of Science and Industry as part of Science in the City Late. The music and art they created was inspired by graphene and the incredible Wonder Materials exhibition. The exhibition was open all evening alongside a range of weird and wonderful exhibits and stalls including opportunities to try 3d-printed chocolate and insect sushi.

You can see a selection of my favourite images from the night below.