Oh hey, hello, hi! This is me. I’m a follow your heart-er, one time Carbonara eating champion, and for the past eight years I have been documenting love and life stories in all their forms. The journey so far has been so special, and I’m so thankful to everyone who allows me into their lives to capture their memories.

Grief and difficult times have tangled their way into my life over the years, and those losses have shaped how I approach photography. I know how important those memories will be, both for you and for generations of people who love you, and yearn to feel close to you. They’re heirlooms, ways to truly time travel. My passion for capturing other people’s love comes from how fortunate I am to have a life filled to the brim with my own examples of it. That handsome dude up there is my dad, who died very suddenly in 2018, when I was 23. He was fiercely loyal, played pretty much every instrument you can think of and, even as an adult, would lift me off the ground when he hugged me. He was a rockstar. Dad loved an adventure, and took his beloved little camera (which became covered in duct tape over the years) and camcorder with him on all of his travels. So in the thick of grief, what began as a way to try to feel closer to his life, and less adrift in my own, became this.

The beautiful lady you can also see up there is my wonderful mum, Ellie. She gave me the gift of real magic, a direct route back in time that I can experience through a childhood so lovingly documented by her. From road trips to the coast to McDonald’s birthday parties (kids of the nineties will know what a treat this was!), first days at school to naps with soft little pals that I still have now, from friends I’ve grown up into adulthood with to family I wouldn’t have been able to have clear memories of in my own mind - she made sure she captured it all. My mum went through years of extensive treatment for breast cancer, beginning in 2020, and so alongside the present, overwhelming emotions at the time, I also looked ahead at the very real possibility that I could lose her. This made me realise that the number of pictures I had of us together, both as adults, were so few, and the same was true with my dad, which affirmed something I had already felt about photography, but perhaps needed a reminder of - its ability, and necessity, to keep people and memories alive. My mum made it through her treatment and I cherish every year that passes that I get to giggle and cook and hug and watch whatever new Scandi drama she’s found - and all the pictures I sneak of her, and us, too.

I think that I could write for the rest of my life about my friends, and still not truly feel I’d done them justice, so I’ll just say this; I believe that the loves of our lives can be so many. What a joy and privilege to have people who have known, and will know, so many versions of you, and choose to show up for each and every one. I love them, like, heaps.

Outside of capturing your stories, you’ll usually find me watching a film, peeking through charity shops, saying ‘ooh, big stretch’ to the nearest dog, or in and around the sea. I love swimming and being close to the water, and I always find myself at complete peace when I’m there. Within my work, I feel like the best version of myself. I’m drawn to capturing the bonds between you and the people you cherish, the love between you, and surrounding you. I always want to capture your story from the most honest and heartfelt perspective, creating beautiful photographs that align with the feelings you experienced. I believe in observing, rather than staging, in creating the space for you to simply be present in each moment, while I preserve it for you. My aim is always to make you feel safe and seen, offer comfort and confidence and, as one of my lovely brides Esther worded it, be ‘quietly unobtrusive and joyfully present, all at once’.

I’m able to take the lead and guide where it may be needed, and try my best to help in any way I can alongside capturing your memories; I’ve held toddlers on my hip whilst their parents get ready, fixed dresses, delivered buttonholes, calmed many nerves, picked up stranded family members, tracked down lost purses in cabs, helped serve cakes (and tiramisus and pizzas and pies!) and tried my best to show up as a true friend. The me I am with the people I love and know most, is the same me who replies to your emails (lots of !!! in those, I get very excited!), listens to your voice notes and is there for you from the moment you first reach out. This ‘business’ can be so deeply infused with kindness, and I have only been able to spend all these years being myself within it, because of the trust and grace you have given me to do so. Thank you so much.

I approach every story with my whole heart, and am lucky enough to create genuine friendships with my couples and clients, that have gone on to take me from cosy evenings teaming up to play Super Smash Bros, fancy dress parties and babysitting, all the way to spending a holiday together celebrating my thirtieth birthday in Philadelphia, being shown all the sights (and trying all the food!). Each time I capture a story, I go in without expectation. Every moment, and timeline of life and love, is unique to the people I’m photographing - you are your very own story.

Love always

Tilly

she / her

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i love

Peonies, pistachios, the sound of the tide going out, old dogs, hot chips on a cold day, soul music playing in a candlelit kitchen, the smell of campfires, birdwatching, tight hugs, dappled light patches, everything about Autumn, cows, accidental naps, not at all accidental naps, brass bands, Wallace and Gromit, dance floors, lavender, garlic bread and tearful giggles.

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‘MY LIFE IS A SONG FOR YOU’

In 2019, I responded to a filmmaker called Bertie Gilbert reaching out online for people who were grieving, and had found that, along the way, their loss had led them to create something. One day in Autumn, I met with a group of other people who had this in common with me, and we each were given the time to talk about who we had lost, and what art it had led us to. We also all brought an object to represent our person. The footage from that day went on to become the music video for the incredible Tom Rosenthal’s beautiful song ‘My Life Is A Song For You’. You can watch this video below, as well as the full length film on Bertie’s channel. This was a privilege to be a part of, and a lasting tribute to my wonderful Dad.