Journal, news & useful stuff
(also procrastination fuel – you’re welcome!)
Booking update: September/October 2020
How the days do keep marching past - time's still feeling really oozy and I'm not entirely sure where most of 2020 has got to. However... Here's where things are at the moment for bookings: Glorious Headshot Day - 22 September In response to lots of requests, I'm...
Booking update – June/July 2020
After what feels like a very long three months of lockdown, I am officially (cautiously) open for business properly! Covid precautions are in place following a training course last week, and here's how I can help at the moment:Brand Photography Now booking for August...
Creating a personal brand
Creating a personal brand can be the key to supercharging your business. You might have started your business or your freelance work because you hated working in an open plan office full of people (hi, fellow introvert and HSP!), but your business really is more about...
Business mentoring 101 – how can a business mentor help?
All business owners sometimes have hiccups - starting and running a business is a constant rollercoaster with plenty of unexpected WTF moments along the way. (Though we wouldn't change it for the world, would we?!) Juggling all the hats you have to wear, especially if...
How to improve your online presence
Your online presence is like your living room (or reception desk, if you're feeling formal) on the internet. It's the very first impression many of your clients, collaborators and contacts will have of you and your business, and it's crucial that it's clear, welcoming...
A year of morning pages
31st May marks an anniversary - a whole year of morning pages! What are morning pages? Created (in the form I'm familiar with, at least) by Julia Cameron in The Artist's Way, morning pages are three A4 pages, or approximately 750 words, of long form, handwritten...
Why I won’t be offering virtual shoots
If you lurk or socialise in the entrepreneurial world, you’ll probably have noticed an increasing number of posts promoting or talking about the new “virtual shoots” which are taking place during lockdown. A sneaky behind the scenes snap from an actual in-person shoot...
Support Local: Online Classes
UPDATE: Please check with each provider as many classes are now back in their venues - some are still running hybrid or have online classes, some don't. This was written during lockdown as a guide to online classes. Are you missing your favourite classes? Lots of them...
Small Business Barbie brand shoot
Seven, or is it eight, weeks in, and like you, I'm really missing my usual business life. Most of all, my clients - I love photographing my cats, but they get stroppy about it when it's continuous! So imagine how pleased I was to come across Joss and Fia, an artist...
Support Local: doorstep collections during Covid-19
As the coronavirus pandemic rolls on, it's become even more vital than usual for small businesses to somehow keep going. While tweaking the delivery policies for the stationery company I co-own, I realised there are lots of local businesses which can arrange for...
Take me home, Bothwell gnomes… throwback to real life wizard school!
This time exactly a year ago, I was experiencing crewing my very first Bothwell School of Witchcraft, a real life wizard school larp in Sussex. While I knew going to wizard/witch/witchard school would be, well, wizard, Bothwell was magic beyond my wildest dreams. I...
Ways I can help you and your business during the coronavirus pandemic
Well, shit - isn't this a turn up for the books? Every small business I know is struggling massively, through no fault of their own - and I don't know about you, but I feel a lot like I'm on that scary Willy Wonka ride right now...Here are all the ways I can currently...
March meet the maker: Change
Oof. I was going to write about moving to full time entrepreneur, about how it's taken time to recover from 12 years of working full time employed and shifting to working solely and entirely for myself. I was going to go through the pluses (loads) and minuses...
March meet the maker: self care (and virtual lunchbreaks!)
Oh, hello loves! I have been horribly sidetracked from #marchmeetthemaker over the last couple of weeks so will attempt to have a little catch up over the coming days, alongside my normal posts. I hope you're all ok and staying safe and well - we are living in the...
Working remotely – the best tools for working from home
Working remotely, working from home and generally keeping going without going to your actual workplace is a hot topic at the moment, and is suddenly happening on a massive scale. While it's not the way I'd have chosen for it to...
Community over competition – the Speak Now photography retreat
The Speak Now photography retreat was one of those unexpected magical happenings. You know the ones - they happen almost without warning, and your life is suddenly better for it. Last year it was wizard school, this year it was a retreat with 17 other female...
March Meet the Maker – Hands at work
#marchmeetthemaker day 2 is "hands at work" - my hands are holding my cameras as often as they can, but more often, as is usually the way for small businesses, are to be found typing, writing (by hand, with a fountain pen!) or holding the pen of my graphics tablet...
March Meet The Maker – Story
It's March! Which means #MarchMeetTheMaker by @joannehawker, and I'm so excited to take part this year! Starting with Story, which is one of my favourite things - storytelling, story reading, hearing people's stories... Image by the amazing Anna Pumer 🙂 Once upon a...
Press: The Design Trust, branding advice blog
A fabulous birthday present this year was the publication of my interview on the Design Trust blog - Patricia and Anne-Marie have been instrumental in my entrepreneurial journey, and it's the best feeling to see your words on a site you admire! I was even at the top...
Business & brand photography FAQs: “But I hate having my photo taken!”
If I had a penny for every time someone told me they hate having their photo taken, I'd be a rich woman. But if you run a business, your photos can really elevate your marketing - and if you're putting them off, or not marketing much, because you don't want to be in...
Beyond the logo – what is business branding, really?
What is business branding? Whether you're established or fairly new to business, unless you're a brand expert, the terms thrown around can be really overwhelming and confusing. If you ask three or four different people, you'll probably get five different definitions -...
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I’m Carla – it’s fab to meet you!
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