Olivia Carrell: Portraits at The Whitworth
On location portrait photography sessions like this are often the most challenging, but equally rewarding. The Whitworth is not only one of my favourite galleries in Manchester, it also has some brilliant nooks and crannies perfect for photography. The huge windows in both the old building and the newly added wing shed an abundant amount of natural light which -on a typical Mancunian cloudy day- provides a flattering light that makes the subject glow from within.
The downside of planning a shoot in a public location like this is that not everyone is comfortable taking photos with an audience. This is where google maps comes in handy. Along with the opening hours of a venue it provides details about ‘popular times’ when people tend to visit. Keeping an eye on this feature and planning the shoot accordingly can be a true life saver. It’s not an exact science, but it’s fairly accurate, so defenitly worth keeping in mind when looking for a venue.
It was a quiet day in April 2019 when we did this photoshoot. Olivia was a student at the Royal Northern College of Music at the time so The Whitworth was just down the road. She had brought several outfits and had a clear idea of what she wanted from the photos which meant that we had a quick and efficient photoshoot, perfect for this location.
