Ask

“I passionately believe that everyone has within them the ability to take great photographs. My job is to help enable that.”

Jon Busby, Co-founder – The Portrait Kitchen.

At London Hat Week 2020, Anjee and I were invited to give a talk about millinery photography. We shared some easy to do tips as well as constructive critiques of hat images that our audience submitted to us. We have recently done a similar talk to the Milliners Guild in the USA.

We had nearly 100 milliners attend our three talks from all over the world. What was really interesting was the interaction with many milliners submitting additional questions via chat. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive and we enjoyed helping milliners improve their photographs.

There is clearly an appetite from milliners to learn and develop their photography skills which got us thinking. How can we share our knowledge about hat photography to help the global millinery community? So we created ‘Ask.’

Imagine having access to the knowledge and insights of a professional millinery photographer. Well now you have.

‘Ask’ is a community knowledge and skill share, designed to help you take even better photographs of your hats.

Our service provides a 60 minute one to one Zoom call. This will give you the chance to talk to me and explain what you want to achieve. If you are struggling with your photography I will help you overcome that struggle.

‘Ask’ is tailored specifically for you and delivered in a way that is easy to follow, whatever your knowledge level.

Anything and everything to do with hat photography whether you are using a smartphone or want to develop your digital camera skills. For example;

• You may have a number of images you want to have me review and then walk you through fixes and suggestions to help you improve them.
• You may be thinking about being more adventurous with photography. Maybe you have a digital camera and your mind is a bit overwhelmed by aperture f stops, shutter speeds and ISO’s? That was me, I’ve been there so let me help demystify that for you.
• Perhaps you want to learn about what equipment you need, where to source it to ensure that you get a good deal? Not just cameras and lenses but stands, flash, light modifiers etc.
• A check list on how to get the best shots from a hat stand set up or a model.
• How to set up a simple one light shot for drama or a three light set up to get that perfect magazine white background.
• There are models and there are millinery models. What is the difference and what should you be looking for in a millinery model?
• What apps to use whether that be a phone’s native Photo tools or stepping up to Snapseed, Lightroom or Photoshop.
• How can you create consistency in your images so you start to create a brand identity?
• And how do you do all of the above without spending too much money.

The choices are infinite but what will drive your Zoom will be me getting a better understanding about what you want to achieve. Prior to your Zoom you will be given access to a form to complete. This will give you a chance to tell me a bit about about what you want to achieve, allow me to prep in advance to ensure that you get maximum value from your hour.

I passionately believe that everyone has within them the ability to take great photographs. My job is to help enable that.

I have kept the cost low so it is affordable to all. There is a suggested price of £30 with a minimum of £15. You are welcome to name your price over and above £15.

Each Ask call is followed up with an email that summarises what we discussed. You can also ask additional questions later and if you like the additional advice I give you are welcome to put a tip in our Tip Jar.

In theory yes but in practice that can become a bit clunky as you may both have different objectives.

What makes ‘Ask’ unique is the one to one approach, ensuring that you get a focused Zoom and maximum value.

Not at all. Hello Zoom! I can set up a call wherever you are in the world. For example, if you are in the USA then I can book you in for afternoon/evening GMT.

I work to a time that suits you however for our initial launch all slots will be at weekends only. All you need is wifi, an appetite to learn and a cup of your favourite refreshment. Then let the learning begin.

All you need to do is click the button below and that will take you our ‘Ask’ product page, make the payment and I will be in touch to arrange a time that works for you.

I will send you all the Zoom dial-in details and a short questionnaire for you to complete in advance of our call.