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Matthew Kitchen Photography

Wedding & location portrait photographer based in York

From an early age I was given hand-me-down cameras from my Dad, and the joy of running around, photographing anything and everything is something that’s never left me. I started photographing portraits and weddings after discovering that people are just so darned fascinating; I love seeing folk expressing themselves in infinite different ways, putting their personality and charm on display. Getting all that in a shot? It makes every early morning, late night, hour/day/week at the computer worthwhile.

I’ve been learning and experimenting with photography for many years now, and my style has developed accordingly. I love taking photos with beautiful crisp contrast between vibrant colours, and between shadow and highlight. I use light to tell a story, whether it’s finding a sunbeam pouring through a window, or bringing my own portable lighting to highlight the drama of an image. I’ve spent hours upon hours photographing people in a variety of locations, learning how to capture expressions, how the light will change the mood of a scene, and how to react as things change throughout the day. I’ve made it a point to thoroughly practise anything that I’m going to use in a real-life situation ahead of time; this gives me the mental space on the day to focus on whoever I’m working with, and capture every emotion and detail.

I love being involved and invested in whatever I’m shooting, as getting a good connection between myself and my subject is important for great images. My main goal is to have people as relaxed as possible so that they have a great time working with me, and to achieve that I avoid micromanaging poses; I much prefer to arrange people more casually and let images develop naturally. I discuss a plan for the shoot well in advance, but if things change on the day, I’m quick to adapt, and always willing to try something new to get the right shot. On a wedding day, I tend to step back to get unobtrusive photos of people sharing every emotion. I’m also capable of stepping to the front to organise groups; when it comes to big family shots on a wedding day, I’m loud enough to make sure that every last relative is well accounted for, and once wrangled, I’ll have everyone swiftly photographed; I try avoid keeping people hanging around in the scorching heat/freezing cold/force 5 hurricane.

 In short, I love photography, and I love new projects, so if you’re looking for someone to cover your wedding, or to work on something a little different, take a look at my portfolios, and drop me a line!
Wedding, Location and Portrait Photographer - York