DIARY 14: NOVEMBER + DECEMBER

A blur of work, travel, and closing out the year on the move

Hello my lovely readers,

I’ve definitely been a little quiet around here. Toward the end of the year, I got wrapped up finishing deliverables and had a few trips (both work and personal). I sadly didn’t make the time to sit down and write my usual monthly diaries. So instead of forcing a perfectly on-time recap, I’m here to catch you up.

Technically, the Chinese New Year doesn’t start until February, so I feel like I can still get away with this, maybe? There aren’t really set rules here.

NOVEMBER

I intentionally slowed down on personal projects and instead focused on wrapping up deliverables from the incredibly packed couple of months prior. Work-wise, I shot a handful of paid tests, three lifestyle shoots, and an ecom shoot at my home studio. On paper, it doesn’t sound like a huge volume, but between shooting, editing, and managing deliverables - plus supporting a retainer client with graphic design during Black Friday season - I felt like I was still working nonstop.

I did get to take a five-day trip out of town to visit my best friend in Chicago, which was very much needed. Since being back from Europe, I have worked nearly every weekend. It always amazes me how simply slowing down can unlock new ideas. In the days leading up to my trip, inspiration hit for a project that’s been sitting in the back of my mind since I started photography: the concept for my first photo book. (Keeping this a little closer to my chest for now, but I plan to start shooting more intentionally for it in the coming months).

One thing I’m really proud of learning this year is lighting. I feel like I’ve gotten genuinely very comfortable with it, and that alone has really leveled up what I’m able to offer clients. I learned about the different modifiers, the terminology, and more importantly, how to actually problem-solve on set. This month of November, I was hired back by a client I worked with only a few weeks prior, who needed very specific lighting. It was such an easy yes to say, “Yep, I’ve done exactly what you’re asking for.”

A year ago, I honestly knew very little. And I may be a broken record, as I’m sure I’ve said this before, but studio lighting, at its core, is much simpler than it seems. You’re plugging things in, directing light at a subject, diffusing it, shaping it, and moving things around until it feels right. It’s about experimenting, observing, and trusting your eye.

Don’t get me wrong, I haven’t worked in massive studio spaces yet, with huge lights and giant scrims, but even so, I feel confident in my foundation. And I know that as I grow and start working with larger teams, that knowledge will only become more important. If you’re leading a shoot or directing a set, you need to understand lighting well enough to communicate what you want.

Lifestyle Shoot for Uplift

My next shoot was a quick Ecom shoot at my home studio with a one light setup. The client wanted really even soft lighting so we kept it very simple, diagram below.

Lastly, and probably my favorite shoot of November was for another repeat client, Honeydew. What felt especially serendipitous about this shoot is that earlier in the year, I had pitched this same location to a handful of brands, but never got anything confirmed. Eventually, I decided to move forward on my own - doing a test shoot there and investing a significant amount of my own money into it.

A photo from that test ended up gaining a lot of traction on Instagram, and I honestly think that visibility played a role in landing this client. They reached out just a couple of weeks later, and since then, I’ve worked with them on multiple shoots. This particular one was for their spring collection so I can’t share too many photos just yet. But it was such a joy to return to the space, this time with the beautiful model, Allie Clark and a team behind me!

Sneak Peek of Spring 26 Shoot for Honeydew

Another thing I’ve been thinking about lately is my camera kit and how it’s evolving as my work evolves. The more shoots I do - especially ones with unpredictable environments - the more I’m really learning the strengths and limitations of my gear. I genuinely love my current digital setup. It’s a bit older and definitely not the sharpest tool in the shed, but that’s actually something I enjoy - it has a softness that feels closer to film, and it pairs really beautifully with my analog work. However, there are limitations. My camera really struggles in low-light situations, and sometimes you arrive on set to less-than-ideal lighting. We’ve all been there - the kind of situation where a client, who doesn’t quite understand light, says, “Oh, natural light is fine,” even when there barely is any. A few recent shoots made this especially clear - including one where I borrowed my friend Cassidy’s Canon R5. Shooting with it reminded me how powerful it is to have the ability to bump ISO and still maintain quality. It saved me in low-light environments where my camera simply couldn’t perform, and it made me realize how nice it would be to have that as an option in my toolkit. I’m currently trying to save up for my move to Paris, so perhaps for now I will rent the R5 from time to time, when necessary.

DECEMBER

December was largely defined by a two-week work trip to London, where I was shooting for a denim brand I work with regularly. We had three full shoot days, plus the usual prep and returns on either end, and even though two weeks sounds like a long time, the trip flew by. Work was definitely at the forefront - I had a few moments to relax, visit a museum or two, and catch up with friends (new and old), but overall the shoot days really anchored the trip.

The first shoot went smoothly. I got to use an ARRI SkyPanel for the first time, which was exciting. It’s a light that’s pretty standard in the film world, but new to me, and honestly, it was another reminder that lighting doesn’t have to be intimidating - it’s just about understanding the setup and plugging things in correctly. Every experience like this builds confidence.

The second shoot was by far my favorite. We rented gear through a site called Hygglo, which is essentially the UK version of ShareGrid, and it was great to experience how another market operates. We shot in a really beautiful house, the model was fantastic, and the styling that day was on point - it really all came together perfectly. We did spend some time moving the light source around, in which I mostly bounced a continuous Aputure 600D light off the ceiling for a soft, natural feel.

Once I got back stateside, I jumped straight into wrapping up deliverables, holiday emails and design work for my retainer client. November and December are such important marketing months for small businesses, so my graphic design workload was especially heavy.

Before Christmas, I was able to squeeze in one test shoot with my friend Thea who was in town. I’ve only ever shot her in Paris, so it was fun to get her in a different environment on my home turf and use wardrobe from my closet. We headed to Malibu and shot some images that I am very stoked about. I’ve mentioned this before, but I always try to approach test shoots with intention - whether that’s trying out a new camera, experimenting with a technique, or creating work specifically to pitch. This one was focused on continuing to get comfortable shooting medium format (in which I intend to bring a few images to the darkroom to handprint) and snapping potentially some images for my photo book.

Christmas rolled around shortly after, and I was able to take a few days off. On New Year’s Day, I went to Joshua Tree with friends for a couple of nights, which felt incredibly grounding and restorative. Two of those friends are Australian, but live in Paris, where we met this summer. They both really believe in trusting the universe. I wouldn’t say I was ever against that idea, but it definitely used to feel a bit more woo-woo to me. Lately, though, I’ve been leaning into that mindset more - not necessarily because I know it’s “true,” but because it encourages a more positive way of moving through life. There’s something comforting about loosening your grip on outcomes and trusting that things will unfold as they’re meant to.

I also had an editorial come out in Glamour magazine, that I had shot earlier in the year. It is still always amazing to see your photos in print - shoutout to my new friend Monika of Slow & Styled by Monika Rosie Young for snagging some copies for me while she was home for the holidays. Connected through a mutual friends, we met in London and it was spooky how aligned we were in our tastes and places in life. This freelance creative life comes with its challenges, but one of its greatest gifts is the people you meet along the way. Ten or twenty years ago, I don’t think I could have imagined having creative friends scattered across the world.

---

Thank you for reading as always. I am here to tell her that I am hoping to be more consistent with this substack this year. I will be posting my January recap next week, and have finished a few case studies that will come out soon!

xx
Heather