The KHS Blog
What to bring to a boudoir photo shoot
What should I wear for my boudoir shoot? Apart from 'what is a boudoir shoot', this is probably the next most common question that I get asked and the answer isn’t as obvious as you might think. What kind of woman are you? A woman’s relationship with her body and her...
How Boudoir Photography Boosts Women’s Body Confidence.
A Boudoir Photography Experience Boudoir Photo Sessions are truly healing, empowering and confidence boosting. But hearing it from the female boudoir photographer is not the same as reading the heartfelt, honest words of a young woman so positively transformed by...
What is it like to have a boudoir shoot?
Many women are intrigued by the idea of having a boudoir photo shoot but have no real sense of what the experience is actually like. I do find it hard to get across in writing what a special thing a boudoir shoot can and should be. I have always said that I...
How to Style Your Boudoir Shoot
Creating stylish boudoir shoot images has everything to do with the location and decor. Choosing the right boudoir photographer for you is about trying to match your 'aesthetic' or style with theirs - both in terms of the photography style but also the location and...
2018 International Wedding Trend Report
2018 International Wedding Trend Report - Will Brent and I be following any?! I always look forward to the International Wedding Trend Report at the start of a year because it gives me a sense of what I might see at the weddings I shoot. The 2018 report has just...
Time to give up on Professional Photography?
Have you been thinking it is time to give up on professional photography and all of your dreams? Discouraged? Overwhelmed? Frustrated? Full of self doubt? Then you are not alone – all photographers who run businesses will reach a point (or points) when...
Isabelle and her Simply Stella Ambassador Competition
How we helped Isabelle become a Simply Stella Ambassador I know that it has been months since I blogged....from the outside it must look like I'm not busy....the opposite is actually true and I really must try harder to find time. I do also have to work around the...
Sharing the love for Croatia, camper vans and taking some time out.
Work – Life – Balance. Hmmmm – that old chestnut. I’m not the poster girl for getting it right but luckily I live with someone who is trying to improve my form in this area. Normally I wouldn’t consider taking a week off during the ‘season’ but Brent found very...
Portrait Photography and the importance of teamwork
The best and most experienced photographers know that the success of portrait photography is down to teamwork. Over the last few years working in professional portrait photography I have learnt that the success of my endeavours is not solely down to me. It is all...
A blog for all photographers {people who create memories and make people happy}
Kate Hopewell-Smith reflects on 10 years of her photography business and how she gets to give back. Over my 40 years I have learnt much about friendship and typically along the way I have experienced times of stormy seas and there has been the odd casualty. Thankfully...
Roman Baths Wedding – Winter Wedding Photography Challenge!
Roman Baths Wedding Photography: Phil and Madeline, 2016 I have been lucky enough to shoot some lovely wedding venues but I have to say that a civil ceremony Roman Baths Wedding (in Bath) is really something special. It is an incredibly romantic setting with...
Training byLUMIERE and #60secs2changeyourlife
Sorry, sorry, sorry for not blogging more. From the outside it must look a bit like tumbleweed across your screen. The reality from this side of the glass is quite different because as well as running my photography business I have been working on launching a new and...
What is Boudoir Photography and how should you prepare for a shoot?
What is Boudoir Photography and how should you prepare for a shoot? A Boudoir Photography session is a very emotional experience and a gift that keeps on giving for the women, and their loved ones, who have the courage to book a shoot. The benefits go far beyond...
Plagiarism and Pandora’s Box
This is an article written for Creative Light Magazine and should be read after my earlier post on the subject. It took me a while to write this and get across how I feel about the issue. The issue of plagiarism in the photography community has crossed the pond and...
Plagiarism, sigh.
I’m sure many of you were aware of the plagiarism ‘scandal’ that hit the US industry headlines (Doug Gordan & Jasmine Star) last year surrounding the written word. I would have thought most people would have learnt that stealing content or intellectual property is...
A month with the AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR prototype
I was honoured to be chosen as one of the 2 photographers to work with the newly released AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR. The introduction of Nikon’s powerful Vibration Reduction (VR) and a brand new optical construction breathe new life into this photography...
About Kate Hopewell-Smith Photography – Student FAQs
The most frequently asked questions about Kate Hopewell-Smith Photography I get contacted regularly by students asking me to fill in quite lengthy questionnaires about Kate Hopewell-Smith Photography and whilst I wish I had the time to write back to you all...
Practical Photography Column – October 2015
During the last month I have had to fit a house and office move into my summer schedule – not really advisable during wedding season but we all do what we have to do! Oh – I also turned 40 and had a week off with my kids – so I will be honest and say that I haven’t...
Branding for Photographers
The term ‘brand’ is one of the most misunderstood words in marketing so don’t be surprised if you struggle with the concept of branding as a business owner. What matters is that you try and understand why it is critical that you have a brand and accept that it takes...
Practical Photography Column – September 2015
There’s never a dull moment – that’s for sure… Sometimes I don’t know quite how I fill the endless hours with my business but I certainly do. Each week comes and goes at speed and I only ever feel like I am ticking the very top of the ‘to do’ list. The irony is if I...
Practical Photography Column – August 2015
One of the things I most love about being a professional photographer is that there is no typical week or monthly cycle. Of course this can be daunting if you have been fully employed and make the jump to the world of freelance but generally it means that you learn to...
Practical Photography Column – July 2015
The last month has been as busy as ever – as well as wedding season starting again, photographing families and running training courses I have also been working on my website. Once Google announced that they would be penalising non-mobile optimised sites it became...
Practical Photography Column – June 2015
There is a well known saying in life that ‘the only constant is change’ and this is particularly true of running a business in this century. Within the photography world specifically there is a common debate surrounding the future of stills due to advances in video on...
Practical Photography Column – May 2015
In my last column, I mentioned that most of the time I shoot to a commission which can leave me a little bit creatively stale. Because of this, I was determined to find time to shoot for myself whilst in Las Vegas for the annual WPPI conference. Before I left the UK I...
Practical Photography April 2015 – Adventures of a lifestyle photographer
All adventures begin somewhere and for many lifestyle photographers that place is home. That is certainly where it started for me and it all began with a desire to take better pictures of my kids – to be able to capture some essence of their character in a defining...