The shift in seasons gives rise to a colour palette which we only see through a couple of months every year. The green veers to yellows, oranges, reds, even purples before inevitably reaching browns and grey. Each day is slightly different. I dislike the fact that all the trees and plants are going to sleep for the winter but their journey into hibernation en masse is undeniably dramatic.
Sandringham Country Park was our destination. The Queen has some lovely trails through the park. For my future reference the yellow is just over 2 miles long and there's a shorter blue option.
The ferns, the forest floor.




Fungi trees









Magical groves and buzzards soaring.

Take care,
Sophie

Sandringham Country Park, a place fit for a queen.

The weather was a little dull on Sunday with interludes of sunshine but perfect for a leisurely stroll around the local Royal back yard. The parking and entry is free which is ridiculously fortunate considering just how lovely the area is. I absorbed the wonders of the environment and took some pictures to share with you..

It's the kind of place I want to return to time and time again to explore.

Sophie

This is part two of the photoshoot I was lucky enough to be a part of with amazing local photographer Jon Clifton last month. We headed down to the Royal Station at Wolferton which is the most beautiful place, kept immaculately. I can just picture a train pulling up and a few royals hopping off, it is so pretty and made for a brilliant location to get some pictures.

I'm so excited to share these pictures with you after keeping quiet for a few weeks, the pictures are even better than I hoped! Jon made such a great job of getting a great variety of photographs and getting creative with staging.


I chose to wear a two piece suit that I've owned for around three years yet only worn half of once; an ebay purchase I've been too chicken to wear. This light woven two piece reminded me so much of the classic Chanel designs which strike me as so elegant and timeless. Originally from H&M, my suit is not crafted to quite the same standards or attention to detail. The bright yellow and green woven fabric is perfect for springtime with the cropped sleeves and miniskirt being really quite bearable in the warming sunshine.
Shockingly I don't think I'd tried both parts on together before, in my head the skirt was longer and the jacket bulkier. I didn't feel like I had the confidence to wear it as a suit but for the life of me I have no idea why! It certainly reminds me of Cher in Clueless and I even have the perfect bag to compliment the look (which obviously I forgot to bring).

The boots, THE BOOTS! Aren't they amazing? Completely impractical of course, the prettiest do tend to be but at £14.52 these Odeon boots from Amazon can be as useless as they want; they still represent good value even if just displayed on my mantelpiece. You can just about make out my pink socks, the final touch towards the pastel ensemble.

Jon is available on Twitter at @Jon_Clifton78 for all types of photography in the Norfolk area , you can check out his portfolio at http://www.joncliftonphotographyanddesign.co.uk/. It was great to work with Jon and I’d like to personally wish him the best of luck making the progression to professional photographer and hope that the success he deserves comes his way soon.
What do you think? I’m so thrilled with the photographs! You can check out the Sandringham woodland shoot if you missed it first time round.
Sophie

Life has a funny way of keeping you guessing and since I've started blogging quite a few unexpected opportunities have come my way. Taking part in regular local twitter chats has been great fun over the past few months as I love to follow some local faces, keep up with local gossip and discovering local businesses. It's not only been great fun but there is some great support out there with plenty of encouragement and advice.

Through the #NorfolkHour chats I got to know Jon Clifton (@Jon_Clifton78) , an aspiring local photographer and was so impressed with the pictures he tweeted. Jon is currently a hobbyist photographer based in West Norfolk, hoping to turn professional in the next year. He specializes in landscape, portrait, product, marketing and event photography and is always on the lookout for new projects to help promote people/businesses and expand his portfolio. I had a good browse through his website http://www.joncliftonphotographyanddesign.co.uk/ so when he suggested we work together on a mini project together I was rather enthusiastic. How often does a girl get to pretend to be a model? (Ok, it's most weeks for me, but only with my husband Chris, so not scary at all).


We planned to take some shots at two locations and to my great delight the weather turned out to be deliciously warm and sunny, saving me from freezing to death or worse- having to wear frumpy clothes. The first place we used was Sandringham country park, somewhere which for no logical I had never been to before. It was so beautiful, especially in the dazzling sunlight so I will definitely be making a return and next time behind the camera.

I wanted to specifically wear something with a floaty skirt as springtime in the forest calls for something dreadfully impractical in my book. Navy happens to be something of a sombre colour usually but this maxi dress is so unusual, with its sparkly centred flowers and long sheer skirt that to me it fits the bill perfectly, especially when worn with white cardigan (old) and white faux litas totalling £26 in total from Amazon, I can see these coming out again and again.


It was great to work with Jon, he is such a nice guy, very patient and super talented too. The photographs have come out brilliantly and I'm so happy with the end result. I'm excited to be sharing the second lot of pictures soon too! If you are looking for a photographer in Norfolk then I would heartily recommend Jon and would like to say a great big thank you for his time and letting me use these photographs.

Sophie

Don't worry guys – I didn't go alone. I've watched catfish. The good news for Jon was that I didn't turn out to be a creepy old overweight cougar using a fake profile.