Over the last year, I’ve had the joy of getting to know the incredibly talented Janne Ford. We found each other through our mutual love of photography and Instagram! Janne takes the most exquisite images of flowers – she is a true master of light and her beautiful images never fail to inspire me. I’ve attended two of Janne’s floral styling workshops that she has hosted in with Eden Blooms. I’ve learnt so much about working with and photographing flowers and she has definitely influenced my style of work.
Janne has recently started a collaboration with David Austin and is photographing his stunning roses. She invited me along to a Mother’s Day photo shoot to be a hand model. If you know me well, you’d know I’d much rather be behind the lens, but I adore those heavenly scented roses so much that I certainly wasn’t going to decline this kind invitation! I love combining cakes with flowers, so I was delighted when Janne mentioned I could bring along some cake to photograph too.
I was curious about the lady behind the talent, so Janne has very kindly taken the time to answer some of my questions and shared some of her photography tips too:
Have you always been a keen photographer Janne? I was wondering how you started out.
I’ve always loved taking photos since I was a teen, the need to document family events has always been my role on both sides of the family. I didn’t really learn to take my camera off auto though until a few years ago when I took a few photography workshops. And then I discovered the magic that can be created using different lenses and having the camera set to manual
You clearly have a love of flowers, do you feel this passion has come from somewhere? I know it’s hard to pick one, but do you have a favourite flower?
As my children grew up and less inclined to be photographed, my interests turned towards nature. We have a dog so it seemed natural to take my camera with me on the walk. I love documenting the seasonal changes. Flowers seemed to follow naturally from that (and they stand still and I don’t have to stand outside in the cold)! So hard to choose a favourite flower and it very much depends on the season. I love hellebores in the spring, garden roses in the summer, dahlias in the autumn and all the textural foliage and berries in winter.
Do you have a preferred time of day to take photographs?
Not really, it depends on the light. Between 11 and 4pm works well now the days are getting longer, but I move from one side of the house to another when the light changes. I love being outside on a summers evening when the light can be truly magical or first thing on a frosty winters morning.
Other than flowers, what else do you like to take photographs of?
I love people in my images so I’d say my daughter is a favourite subject although not always a willing one! She appears in my photos quite a lot. I can’t knowingly pass a shabby, worn chippy door though without a quick snap. I have endless pictures of doorways and windows from my travels.
Do you have a favourite time of year? And do you feel your that your photography changes with the seasons?
Definitely. I love summer and autumn. Light really transforms floral images and I always feel they are a little bit soulless without it.
Your styling for photographs is so gorgeous. Do you have a few tricks that you could share on styling a scene for a beginner?
Thank you for the lovely compliment Vaani. My advice would be to just start with 2 or 3 accessories and don’t try and cram too much in to the image. Start off with the flowers (or whatever is the focal point of the image) and add in an item at a time until you like what you see. Think of different textures, colours and materials that work well together. Don’t stand too close to your work, step back and give the image some space. Alway use natural light.
Do you have any advice that you wish you’d been given when you started out on Instagram?
That’s a tricky one. Don’t worry about what everyone else is doing and just create what feels right for you and your business. Try not to get too hung up on who is or isn’t following you. And don’t be shy, join in a conversation and start getting yourself noticed. Once you find your community, it’s a really fun place to be.
All images in this blog post are by Janne and you can see more of Janne’s beautiful work on her website: janneford.com
