Category General

31Dec 2012

Portraits & Weddings – Review of the Year

31 Dec 2012 General , , , , Permalink 0

Well its been a good year on both the wedding and portrait photography fronts. It’s great getting to meet well known people and quite often celebrities make for good portraits because they must be posing all the time!

Portrait Photography, celebrity portraits

Main Image: Jonny Brain (Goalkeeper). Top Left: Chris Ramsey (Comedian). Bottom Left: Michael Dixon (Actor). Top Right: Beth Tweddle (Gymnast). Bottom Right: Dorsey Levins (American Footballer).

Among some of the faces we have made portraits of this year are: Tim Wonnacott (BBC Bargain Hunt), Richard O’Brien (Crystal Maze), Chris Ramsey (Hebburn), Perry Fenwick (Eastenders), Daniel Ilabaca (Freerunner), Right Said Fred, Dorsey Levens (Green Bay Packers Superbowl Winner), Beth Tweddle (GB Olympic medalist), Eddie Izzard, Dion Dublin, Steve Claridge, Tony Christie, Guy Garvey (Elbow), Darren Fletcher (Man Utd), Andros Townsend (Tottenham Hotspur), Kevin Painter (Darts), Steve Beaton, Colin Lloyd, Michael Dixon (actor), Rebecca Pitkin (Actress), Jonny Brain (goalkeeper), Charlotte Bradbury (swimmer), Ed Miliband, Yvette Cooper MP and Alan Johnson MP.

But, as I always say, I love making portraits of non celebrities far more. An example of this is the Urban Portrait project. Other than the Sherborne Regeneration Project I undertook with Cruden and Wulvern the Urban Portrait has become my biggest project to date. It never really started as a project but which I did the first portrait and showed it to people the popularity was immense. Before I knew it I had a raft of volunteers wanting to be in an Urban Portrait, and the project was born! I am really loving working on the project and held a successful exhibition back in July. I was really flattered to get a foreword to the project from renowned rock photographer Ian Tilton. Talks are currently underway to turn the project into a book of 53 portraits. We also have a dedicated site www.urbanportrait.co.uk

It has also been a busy year of wedding photography. Tina and I have been lucky to attend a wonderful array of weddings and get to some new venues as well as a few we have photographed at before. We were really pleased to get all our bespoke wedding books over from Italy and delivered to our clients in good time for Christmas. A few of the new venues we photographed at this year include: Wincham Hall, Northwich, Soughton Hall, Flintshire, Old Hall, Madeley, Haslington Hall, Cheshire, Bangor-On-Dee Racecourse, Reaseheath, Nantwich, and St. Oswalds Church, Bickley. We’ve got quite a few weddings booked in for next year and room for more!!

We have plans to launch a dedicated website to our wedding photography in early 2013! We’ll keep you posted!

10Dec 2012

Interception Promo Photography

10 Dec 2012 General, Music Photography , , , , Permalink 0

We recently took a booking from Crewe band Interception. They wanted a set of band images for promotional purposes. They came up with an idea to shoot at a scrapyard in Sandbach which has, of all things, an old Russian aircraft!

Needless to say such an interesting visual landscape led to a great shoot and some really interesting photos!

The images are very akin to the Urban Portrait project. We have managed to photograph several bands now in the Urban Portrait style, and indeed it was this that inspired the shoot with Interception! We’ve done similar shoots with Son Of Shinobi (which appeared on their album artwork) and Human Condition.

The book idea has had a few changes. Initially it had been hoped to produce the book in time for Christmas but it seemed mad to rush it so it’s still under way and will hopefully be available early in 2013. The book will now be bigger in physical size as well as having more portraits inside. The overall product will be much better than the original plan which can only be good!

You can purchase one here: http://www.justgiving.com/Guy-Standring1

The Children’s Adventure Farm Trust charity calendar we worked on is now available and is being snapped up. They are only £6 and it gives us great pride to think that the idea that Simon had to do something worthwhile for the local Cheshire charity has proved to be a huge success. Thanks to the support of individuals and local companies every single penny of profit the calendars make goes straight to the Farm! Nantwich Town FC are very supportive of the calendar and have allowed us to sell the calendars at the Marine game on December 29th. Adam, featured in the calendar, whose mum Lorraine did all the organisation for the calendar, will lead the team out as mascot!

All of our bespoke wedding books arrived in good time from Italy and have been delivered to happy clients! It’s been really good to see the final products and get them to the happy couples in good time for Christmas. All the books were designed by Tina exactly how the customer wanted! We’ve also taken quite a few orders for parent books, which are duplicates of the main wedding books and make ideal Christmas presents!!

And as we get closer and closer to Christmas it’s a good time to let everyone know we offer gift vouchers. If you are interested, just get in touch!!

13Nov 2012

Children’s Adventure Farm Fundraising Calendar 2013

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Well now Boxjam is all done and dusted and the money raised is safely deposited with the local Crewe Oxfam shop all ready to go to work making a difference I decided I wanted to get another charity fundraising project off the ground.

I had long been thinking of a project which helped to raise awareness of disabilities as well as raised some funds for a good cause. I came up with the idea of a charity calendar. I spoke to  my good friend Lorraine who herself has a son with Down’s Syndrome. She loved the idea and within 24 hours had a set of willing models and a majority of the sponsorship needed to make the project a reality.

CAFT Mascot Bobby with Wendy & Wesley from the Wacky Warehouse

We had a meeting at The Children’s Adventure Farm based in Cheshire and that charity will be the beneficiary of all the funds the calendar makes.

We held a photo day at the Farm and all the images have now been taken and the calendar is at design stage and is all set to be ordered this week so we can get selling them in good time for Christmas! They will be priced at just £6 and as mentioned, all the money we raise will go to the good work of the Farm! It really has been a wonderful project and Tina and myself have met some wonderful people along the way!

Even a Polar Bear got in on the action at the CAFT Calendar shoot!

We also have 2 Family Photo Days coming up if you are thinking of getting some photos for Christmas. The first is on 25th November and will be held at Nantwich Town Football Club (where I am of course the official club photographer). There are a few places left if you want to book a sitting! The other is in Crewe at Via Dance studios on Middlewich Street. The slots are available between 10AM and 4PM and you can book by either phoning 01270 581315 (messages may be left!!) or by email on info@sjnphoto.co.uk The photos can be family, pets, kids, whatever you like!!

Family Photo Day at Nantwich Town

All prints and canvasses from the shoots will be delivered in time for Christmas!

09Oct 2012

Urban Portrait Book

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Progress is being made in the Urban Portrait Book project. We have had discussions with a local publisher and we are confident we can go to press. We are looking for sponsors to help fund the initial run so any local businesses interested in getting involved are more than welcome!

It’s been a varied and busy time of late. The traditional wedding season has concluded and we had a very lovely visit to Wallasey Town Hall. Our bespoke books have started arriving from Italy and have been delivered to happy clients! We’ve had lots of comments on the wonderful layout created by Tina using her Graphic Design skills to the full!

As well finishing a last few Urban Portraits for the book we have had a few musician promo shoots. Tim Gallagher is finalising his recording and we had a great, if slightly chilly, shoot in Hassall Green beside a canal. Looking forward to hearing the EP and seeing the final artwork which will be designed by Tina! We’ve also been lucky to visit Whitby Morrison in Crewe for a shoot with Shaun & The Special Sauce. Whitby Morrison are the worlds leading manufacturer of ice cream vans. I’m also pleased to say that the company are sponsoring the Urban Portraits book. By bizarre coincidence straight after the shoot with Shaun I headed over to Nantwich Town for some press photos of Ed Whitby and Nantwich Town Chairman Jon Gold as Whitby Morrisson are sponsoring a stand at the Weaver!

I was also commissioned to photograph the recent Labour Party Conference held in Manchester. I produced a set of press photos covering the event and some of the fringe events. The highlight for me was meeting and photographing Eddie Izzard! I also got to photograph Lord Coe and Jonathan Edwards!

I am available for press work and I have recently been undertaking a variety of commissions for Cheshire East Council. I’ve been to Knutsford, Macclesfield, Handforth, Nantwich and Crewe to photograph a variety of events!

I’m also available for private commissions for Urban Portraits. If you would like to be photographed, please get in touch. I now have a site dedicated to the project: http://www.urbanportrait.co.uk

I am also organising a day of family/ kids/ pets photos in Nantwich. It will be a special event where you can come along and have a set of photos, then order online with delivery guaranteed by Christmas. More info to follow soon!!

03Sep 2012

Beth Tweddle Homecoming & Daniel Ilabaca

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Now the filming has completed on Gridiron UK I have been busy catching up with a few other projects. I am pleased to say that talks are ongoing regarding the possibility of a book of the Urban Portrait project. I will, of course, keep you updated.

Meanwhile I have been fairly busy with Cheshire East Council. I am currently working on a set of portraits for the Local Plan project. I have also recently been hired to photograph the opening of the Nantwich Freerunning Facility, as opened by Daniel Ilabaca. Free Running, or Parkour, is ‘a physical discipline of movement focused on overcoming obstacles’. It all looks very energetic and the facility looks great. It was officially opened by the Mayor of Nantwich and Professional Freerunner, Daniel. I got lots of action shots of Daniel for the Council (despite the huge downpour) and a portrait of Daniel on the apparatus.

DANIEL ILABACA

DANIEL ILABACA, Free Runner.

Straight after I was pleased to say that the weather improved as we had our seventh wedding in six weeks, this time at Reaseheath. A lovely venue and grounds, all made for great photos! Nice to be working alongside local musical her Tom Seals for the third wedding almost in a row!

TOM SEALS

TOM SEALS

RACHEL & SCOTT

RACHEL & SCOTT

Olympic Gymnast Beth Tweddle made her homecoming to Bunbury at the weekend. Cheshire East put on a very special event where Beth showed off her bronze medal won on the uneven bars. Beth was also made a Freeman of the County and had the honour of having a Street named after her! I photographed the event for the Council and got to do a portrait of Beth with her medal!

BETH TWEDDLE

BETH TWEDDLE, With the new street sign

BETH TWEDDLE

BETH TWEDDLE, With her Bronze Medal

20Aug 2012

Gridiron UK

20 Aug 2012 General , , , , Permalink 0

I’m sure most of you have seen all the buzz over the last month regarding the film that has been made right here in Crewe. It is based on the true story of the Crewe Railroaders which was set up in 1984 by Gary Delaney. Well, since then Gary has gone on to set up a film making company, written a script and has directed the film.

I was employed on the film as the official stills photographer. This has involved being on set to get the stills photos for publicity and also some behind-the-scenes photographs!

Michael Dixon, Actor

Michael Dixon, Actor

The film boasts some great actors and has been shot entirely in Crewe. Michael Dixon, Stephen Marcus, Right Said Fred and Rebecca Pitkin are just some of the people in the film. I managed to get in front the camera for a cameo as well!

Rebecca Pitkin, Actress

Rebecca Pitkin, Actress

The cinema release is scheduled for November and the DVD release should be in February next year.

During the filming we still managed to find time for 6 weddings, my Urban Portrait exhibition and the Prom Night for Sandbach High!

Nantwich Town Football Club Squad Photo 2012 - 2013

Darren Fletcher, Manchester United FC

The football season is back as well and we have been to some great games already at The Weaver Stadium. Nantwich Town are looking very strong this year. We have done all the player portraits for the club website as well as the full squad photo and a new manager portrait of Jimmy Quinn. Stoke City are also playing some of their home Barclays U21 Premier League at the Weaver. Manchester United were the first visitors and fielded a team that boasted Scotland international Darren Fletcher who played the full 90 minutes.

Darren Fletcher, Manchester United Player

Darren Fletcher, Manchester United Player

03Jul 2012

Charlotte Bradbury & The Olympic Torch

03 Jul 2012 General , , , , Permalink 0

Well July is certainly the season for weddings. It’s just a shame the weather hasn’t realised yet! We have a wedding at Old Hall in Madeley and if the sun responds to it’s invite we will be outside. If not I am sure it will be a lovely occasion indoors! We are then off to St. Oswald’s Church in Worleston, Nantwich. Its such a beautiful church and we have been along to the wedding rehearsal so we can find the best spots for the photography and meet the vicar in advance of the big day as we like to do!

In May the Olympic Torch relay passed through Crewe. Swimmer Charlotte Bradbury carried the torch through the town centre and I was pleased to get some great shots of the procession and Charlotte as we enjoyed some early morning tunes from Tom Seals!

Charlotte Bradbury carrying the Olympic Torch through Crewe, Cheshire

Charlotte Bradbury carrying the Olympic Torch through Crewe, Cheshire

Charlotte is a swimmer from Nantwich who had hopes of taking part in the Olympics but injury ended her hopes of qualification. I arranged to do a photoshoot with Charlotte at Cheshire East’s Crewe swimming pool. We did a variety of portraits with such a perfect backdrop!

Charlotte Bradbury

Charlotte Bradbury, Swimmer.

Another interesting shoot I have undertaken recently was of Kiss tribute band Dressed To Kill. It was certainly an experience! The pictures speak for themselves!

Simon photographing Dressed To Kill

Simon photographing Dressed To Kill

Dressed To Kill Promo

Dressed To Kill Promo (Click on the image to view the others)

25Jun 2012

Music Photography: Live From Jodrell Bank

25 Jun 2012 General , , , , Permalink 0

Last year I was fortunate to photograph The Flaming Lips and British Sea Power at Transmission 001 at Live From Jodrell Bank. This year saw the festival grow to a 2 day affair with headline acts Elbow and Paul Weller. Sadly the weather ended hopes of the Weller gig taking place.

Guy Garvey, Frontman of Elbow. In front of the Lovell Telescope.

Guy Garvey, Frontman of Elbow. In front of the Lovell Telescope.

I was at the Elbow gig though armed with the camera on official business! A great line up saw Transmission 002 take off where last years event finished! I arranged a portrait shoot with Guy Garvey of Elbow in front of the dish which was a nice little shoot. I’ve got to say of all the backdrops I’ve used in my time the Lovell Radio Telescope is one of the most special!

Elbow performing live at Jodrell Bank

Elbow performing live at Jodrell Bank

The live music itself was really good and not at all ruined by the deluge of rain. It’s a shame that that rain ended any hopes of me photographing the Gomez, Graham Coxon and Paul Weller show the following day! Still, I got a nice set of images which I have shared on the Facebook Page.

Wedding season is truly upon us and I have 5 special days to document next month. I have a few weddings in North Wales as well as one in Crewe, and one at Old Hall in Madely, South Cheshire. I hope the weather is better than for the Elbow gigs as two of the weddings are outside!

As the new season approaches for Nantwich Town I have lots of work ahead getting the new player portraits and the new squad photo. I was at the Weaver Stadium this afternoon to photograph the new kit. A change of sponsorship and a new away strip will be launched very soon by the club. It’s exciting times at the club as manager Jimmy Quinn has assembled a strong squad for the coming season. A lot of new faces bring hope for a successful season. I’ll be at most of the matches providing action shots for the club and local press in my role as official club photographer!

Eventbrite - Urban Portraits by Simon J. Newbury. The Exhibition.

My Urban Portrait Exhibition is really taking shape now, having photographed nearly 30 portraits. It’s been fantastic to have so many people volunteer to be a part of it. The majority of the photographs were taken around Crewe and the exhibition itself will be held at Bar 7 on Nantwich Road on Sunday July 22. As well as the photographic exhibition there will be some wonderful acoustic music to enjoy, all for free! I’m still shooting portraits for the project and hope to have a body of around 50 images by the time the exhibition comes about. I hope you can join me there!

26May 2012

Urban Portrait Exhibition

26 May 2012 General , , , , Permalink 0

My urban portrait project is really taking shape! I’ve photographed 20 models in an urban setting mainly around the Crewe area so far. I’ve been overwhelmed by the amount of volunteers wanting to be a part of the project.

I am pleased that I have managed to organise an exhibition event which will be held at Bar 7, on Nantwich Road. The exhibition will involve a digital display of the images which are still being photographed right up to the event! I’ll be doing a talk about the project as well as a Q&A session. There will also be some great live acoustic music from Nick Bayes (the face of the project so far), Lee Garner, Al Dean & Tom Seals, Phil Maddocks and Sink Or Swim. It’s a free event and all are welcome!

Urban Portraits Exhibition Poster: Nick Bayes

Urban Portraits Exhibition Poster

As well as the urban portrait project I have been photographing loads of bands lately. I am running a special offer on band promo photography leading up to Crewe Live 2012 for which we are the official photographers.

Son Of Shinobi Promo Shoot

Son Of Shinobi Promo Shoot

I am also proud to announce that we have been chosen as the official Mayoral photographer for the new Civic Year. Congratulations to Cllr Peggy Martin and good luck for the new civic year! I attended the Mayor Making Ceremony at the Municipal Buildings in Crewe and I will be photographing the official Mayoral portrait this coming week.

The Worshipful The Mayor of Crewe Councillor Peggy Martin & The Worshipful The Deputy Mayor of Crewe Councillor Irene Faseyi

The Worshipful The Mayor of Crewe Councillor Peggy Martin & The Worshipful The Deputy Mayor of Crewe Councillor Irene Faseyi

I’m also looking forward to photographing the Olympic Torch as it passes through Crewe on Thursday.

To register for the exhibition please visit:

Eventbrite - Urban Portraits by Simon J. Newbury. The Exhibition.

11May 2012

Crewe Live & Band Promo Special Offer

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Summer is approaching and as well as a busy wedding season we have the annual Crewe Live Festival to photograph. We have been chosen as the official photographer for the event for the third year running! This year is shaping up to be an amazing event.

Headliners include Ash, Pulled Apart By Horses and Hadouken! The event will be staged across 10 venues and the town centre and will involve over 100 bands.

To celebrate our third year as official photographer we are running a special offer on band and musician photo sessions. All the details can be found on our site: http://simonjnewburyphotography.co.uk/musicoffer/

We have been busy with shoots this week with Son Of Shinobi, Sink or Swim and Thick As Thieves all having shoots as part of the special offer!


I’ve also started a personal project on Urban Portraits. I am going to photograph a series of people in an urban setting and maybe consider an exhibition at the end. It is proving to be a popular project as I have had over 30 volunteers already!

Meanwhile I have been busy undertaking lots of commercial commissions. I will be photographing some building exteriors for a construction company over the weekend as well as finishing up the hotel interior photographs for Firenze and The Cheshire Cat in Nantwich.