July 1, 2017
Hey There,
I’m Claire Morris; A professional photographer since 2001. Currently a Luxury Wedding Photographer in Paris.
Yes, that’s 19 years. It’s hard for me to grasp how quickly these years have flashed before my eyes.
You may have read on my ‘about page’ that I took a leap of faith and moved with my wedding photography business to Paris in 2013.
My story and love affair with photography began in the 90’s. I chose to study Fine Art at university – Back then digital photography wasn’t accessible nor decent quality. So I was to experience the magic of film and darkroom practice.
Seeing your images slowly appear on paper through chemicals was magical – it evoked a fascination in imagery that never left me.
Throughout the years I’ve tried my hand to many photographic specialisms but I started out with music photography. This is where my photography career began…
I was obsessed with music and longed to be a part of the music scene – a friend and I began covering concerts together for websites and magazines.
Music photography was amazing and I was shooting on film at the time as digital wasn’t really accessible just yet. The real magic came seeing my images published. I graduated in 2001 and volunteered at the local Newspaper.
By 2002, I was working freelance as their main photographer for their local city magazine.
By 2004 I was now getting commissions from national and international magazines to shoot huge concerts, celebrities, and festivals. I had decided to go back to university to study photography further and so was studying whilst working.
2007. With 2 university certificates behind me and a few years of experience working as a freelancer for national & international magazines. My old university contacted me to go back in to give a lecture on my story so far and run a small ‘music photography’ workshop with a number of interested students. I love it.
The following year I had been lured in to the world of teaching. I secured a part-time position and began studying for a P.G.C.E (Post Graduate Certificate in Education) Basically a qualification to teach photography to post 16 collage and university students. Studying the PGCE was probably the hardest course I’ve ever done in my life.
Whilst studying and teaching I went into partnership and opened a studio in the city center. This opened its doors in 2008. And quickly I quit freelancing for music magazines to focus on running the studio and teaching photography.
Having the studio paved the way to shooting fashion projects and creating full creative sets for interesting band album cover shoots.
In 2010 A previous client asked me to shoot their wedding. At that time wedding, photography wasn’t at all what it is now. It was boring. ‘Stand under the church arch and smile’. So I wasn’t keen. I was too ‘rock n roll’ for that. haha.
But as I loved this couple I agreed. But so long as I could shoot it differently using a more fashion photography style.
So that was the beginning of weddings. I had loved it. I began assisting another lecturer from the university where I was teaching on weddings at the weekend.
8 years later. I’ve since moved from a small town in the north of England to Paris and now to Paris where myself and my future (videographer) husband have set up a home.
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