PHOTOGRAPHER. PEOPLE PERSON. FAMILY HISTORY BUFF.
Hi, Nice to Meet You.
I'm Jen, a portrait photographer based in the East Midlands.
My love of photography began at a very young age while on visits to my grandparents in the 1970's & 80's. I would regularly beg them to let me look through the box of old black and white family photos - my gran would spread them out over the sitting room floor and tell stories about all the people in them.
I come from a family of artists and as a young adult I started watercolour painting and attended my local collage with the aim of learning how to take better photographs to paint from. After enrolling on a short course in 'basic photography' I became instantly mesmerised by the darkroom - the magic of seeing an image slowly appearing right before your eyes on the sheet of photographic paper was just fascinating to me. I enrolled on many more photography courses and never picked up a paint brush again!
Over the years as a photographer, I have developed my art and created my own unique style, photographing weddings, events, portraits, and fashion. My work has been published in both digital and print, including GQ Magazine.
Take a look at my portfolio to view the different types of portraits I love to create, and then get in touch if you would like to chat about scheduling your own photo shoot.
You can contact me here or email me directly: hello@jenmason.co.uk
Professional Membership:
BIPP British Institute of Professional Photography
Photographs are so much more than just pictures, in time, they can become precious family heirlooms helping us to keep the memory of our loved ones alive, long after they have gone.
Some kind words
“I cannot recommend Jen highly enough if you’re like me and feeling a bit old and like you’ve lost your spark. As a makeup artist I constantly get people ready for the camera but never step in front of it myself. I hated, and I mean REALLY hated, myself in photos which then leads you to hate how you look and lose all confidence. This affects your day to day life and mood more than you may think. Jen and I spent five hours in my local countryside, walking and talking whilst Jen took my picture. Being outside, rather than in a studio, opened so many more options without being limited to the usual poses, that can feel unnatural if you’re not used to it.
Seeing myself look nice in the pictures that Jen captured has made me finally see what others see, it has been nothing short of liberating.
It has been like a therapy session and that my mind has been totally rewired. Every previous photo taken of me I've just thought “Look how fat I look” With the photos Jen took my first thought was “Look how pretty I look”. I will still get awful photos of myself, but now I can see it as just a bad photo of me and move on from it.
Low confidence and lack of self esteem, affects your mood and over time, your life. If you feel like I did then I urge you to have a portrait shoot with Jen, it will change your mind-set about yourself completely!”
— NATALIE
"I was quite nervous about having my photograph taken, didn’t really know what to expect, Jen made the whole experience very enjoyable, I felt at ease straight away and continued to through the whole shoot, she made the time we spent together thoroughly enjoyable and I would recommend her whole heartedly, very professional and a lovely lady"
— MICHELLE
"What an amazing experience and day I had with Jen and her make up artist Fern. I had some photo's done 10 years ago by her and thought it would be good to have a 10 years later comparison. Jen has this amazing ability to make people feel at ease with her warm, calm and encouraging personality. I usually dislike posing for photo's, especially so close up but after a few minutes, we got into the swing of it & I felt like a million dollars!! Jen is a consummate professional whilst still being personable and her pure talent and eye shows through in the finished product. I would highly recommend anyone to have this experience, you wont regret it! Thanks Jen & Fern x "
— SUZANNE
"What a great experience. Right from the start Jen put us at ease and made the shoot fun. When we went to view the photos we were blown away. The only problem we had was which photos to choose we loved them all and this is from two people who don’t like having photos taken. Thank you Jen we will definitely be back."
— BARBARA
"My mum has suffered her whole life with anxiety. She wasn't looking after herself very well and over the years I think she'd forgotten how beautiful she was. I wanted to remind her, so I booked her in with Jen for a photo. I knew it would be daunting for mum to go out into the world and feel vulnerable for a moment. But I also knew Jen and how warm she makes you feel, I knew she was the only one who could put my mum at ease.
In the studio Jen was conscientious, reassuring and delicate, bundled with her sheer talent, direction and incredible creative flare. It didn't take long for Jen to get THE shot!
The whole experience made my mum feel special again. It made her feel beautiful again. And to me and my mum, it means the absolute world to have a photo to keep forever that captures it.
What I hadn't expected was the impact it had on my mum afterwards. She has since exercised, stopped smoking and has been pampering herself, as well as showing off her picture to her friends and telling them all about her adventure!
Jen didn't just make a photo feel possible, she made a beautiful photo a reality. It was a dream come true. Thank you Jen for reminding my mum that she's beautiful."
— WARREN