However, I was very happy to be behind the camera again on Monday, doing what I enjoy most. This recent snowfall felt incredibly photography-worthy, and luckily my friend, the other Roz, (who lives nearby) was on hand to be styled by and pose for me in -8C for an hour and a half!
We decided to do a little shoot in a local beauty spot. We were both remarking on how Narnia-like the scenery looked. Suddenly a common branch, when struggling under the weight of snow, takes on the guise of a fairy tale.
I like to come up with back stories for photo sequences, and in this instance I devised a little Russian style tale about a princess. I'm sure this was inspired by the fact I've been reading Anna Karenin, and have also recently rewatched Doctor Zhivago!
This red haired beauty sleeps for the majority of the year, missing out on the picnics of summer or running through the leaves in autumn. Instead, she likes to wait until the first snow fall before emerging from her cosy, green hollow in the foot of a tree. It is then that she is ruler in her own land. Hers are the first footprints imprinted in the fresh snow - and her fingertips brush the icy branches before anyone else.
I wanted Roz to show a mixture of elegance and childish wonder at the scenes around her. We had a lot of fun wandering through the trees, (getting lost a few times) and finding suitable locations for each shot.
Clothes-wise, I decided on a palette of greens, golds and muted oysters with hints of black. My new favourite fabric is velvet - I have rediscovered it after several years of disliking its texture - meaning I used it a lot in this shoot.
The first ensemble was made up of a green sixties velvet jacket that used to belong to my mum, belted over a thrifted full skirt. The hat is from a charity shop.
The second outfit was comprised of a raw silk thrifted green skirt, a charity shopped gold cardigan and belt, and the other Roz's fur coat. The leopard print gloves were given to me, and the two necklaces belonged to my grandma. I loved the idea of styling Roz like a glamorous Russian heiress from the past.
For the third I put a green velvet skirt (matching the jacket) with one of my favourite cable knit jumpers from the Big Chill. The faux fur hat belonged to my paternal grandfather, the gold gloves from my dressing up box, and the purple velvet shoes are the other Roz's. Necklaces as above.
I thought these snow-filled photos were appropriate to post just before Christmas! The process of this shoot felt like another healing step. I proved to myself that I could do it, and had the required stamina needed. And today I only lay down once or twice! Hopefully the next few days will be full of laughter, love and good food - although unfortunately not for my dad, as he has just come down with a nasty sickness bug..
And if I don't post again before then, Merry Christmas!
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