Viking Themed Shoot with Laura
I originally met Laura a while ago when I took some photographs in Plymouth for her clothing brand … we’ve kept in touch over the years and recently she told me she fancied doing something artistic to cheer herself up a bit … a photographic pick me up .. if you will!
Laura used to design and make her own clothing with her company Tentaclehead
These days Laura runs “Decadent Hippie” …. “Creating funky clothing, organic skincare, hybrid dreadlocks and resin art for awesome humans!”
Find out more about her amazing products :
Obviously being a very creative type Laura had already decided a Viking inspired shoot was the way she wanted to go with our shoot.
Before meeting up, we’d discussed the requirements and several locations, before settling upon the area of the moor close to Black-a-Ven.
The weather forecast was for very hot sunny weather, so this location gave us easy access to a small copse, a brook, a river and some open moorland and tors, without a great deal of walking!
Plenty of chances to get all artistic though 😍
After realising that there was zero mobile phone coverage where I’d told Laura to meet me (and she wasn’t well acquainted with the area), I hiked up towards Row Tor carpark (with a sword casually sticking out of my rucksack… like you do).
The petrol heads in their souped up 4x4 gave me a funny look, and the guy I’d seen earlier walking his dog grinned from ear to ear and commented “nice sword” 😁
I explained it was a replica Excalibur from the 80’s movie of the same name and he immediately replied “Oh the one with Helen Mirren ?” … you meet the best people on the moor!
I wasn’t expecting Laura to arrive already fully decked out in her Viking styled garb, but there she was smiling across the steering wheel of her rather outlandish looking Ford Transit (I believe the van is called Barry).
We soon got to work in the little woodland by Black-a-Ven Brook and managed to capture some fantastic results.
Those who know me well, will tell you I’m not best pleased with really sunny fine weather, I’m way happier in the mist and with cloudy skies … so I was worried we’d miss out on something nice and moody … I needn’t have been concerned.
I tried a little experimenting, free lensing with an old projector lens and also utilising my old favourite the Super Takumar 50mm f1.4 😍 … I’ll be honest, the free lensing didn’t really pan out, though we only learn from our mistakes … and who wants to be churning out stuff just like everybody else 🤣
Laura really got into character and made it easy for the photographer 💚📷
After checking if Laura was happy with yomping up hills (especially considering she was wearing a lot of faux fur and it was becoming increasingly hot), we made our way up towards Winter Tor, grabbing a few more images from the edge of the tor, before making our way to the edge of Higher Tor and the magnificent view over Taw Marsh (one of my favourites).
We stopped for a snack at Higher Tor and I bored Laura with a little of the Legend of the Irishman’s Wall 🤣
If you’re interested to know about this odd feature, have a read of this article on Legendary Dartmoor.
It was definitely getting a little hot by this point and after chatting to a lady who asked if we’d got any good shots, we decided to call it a day (still on the edge of Belstone Tor, there was quite a way to walk back to the vehicles).
Not to waste any opportunity, I knew there was a fantastic downed hawthorn about two thirds of the way down 😁 Cue … more photography 😍
Post from Laura’s Facebook Page - We both enjoyed ourselves (even me moaning about the nice weather) and we’re planning on meeting up again, this time as Laura is keen to see more of the North Moor, and I’m happy to get some practise in for my Hill & Moorland Leader Assessment 😁
I might take the camera!
Whilst chatting with Laura as we walked between locations, the idea for my “Not a Boudoir Shoot” was born (though not named such at the time) … Laura thought it would be good idea for me to offer something where people could let their hair down and treat themselves to a little bit of fantasy or fairytale 😍
“I recently had the chance to take part in a Viking-style photoshoot, and it was an incredible experience from start to finish. The shoot was so much fun and really empowering — it gave me a huge boost of confidence and made me feel strong and inspired in front of the camera.
What made it even more special was that it wasn’t just about the photos. I was also treated to a guided tour of parts of Dartmoor I had never seen before. The locations were stunning and added so much atmosphere to the shoot, making the whole day feel like an adventure.
The direction and support throughout the session were fantastic, helping me relax and get into character, while capturing some truly unique and powerful images. I would highly recommend this experience to anyone looking for something different — it’s not only a photoshoot but also an unforgettable journey!
Thank you Paul!
You were absolutely brilliant ”
If you fancy a shoot - let me know.