A couple shoot at castle hill in wild conditions


Yes! It is a great spot. But it can be a bit wild so here are some tips I picked up from my couples shoot with this gorgeous pair: Charlotte and Richard. We met last week, the weather was quite blowy, but we still managed to get some great shots!

  1. Put on your thermal undies! You won't want to wear unflattering wintery coats if you can help it. But, by gum it gets cold up there. So you probably will want some protection against the elements. Your best bet, if you have them, is a set of snuggly thermal undies to keep you as toasty as possible.
  2. Embrace the wind! We got some fantastic shots of Charlotte's hair dramatically blowing in the wind, creating drama and texture to the photos.
  3. Shelter from the wind! We found some shelter from the cold and gusts around the side of the building. We sheltered there for some calmer shots. This also allowed for a coat change to mix up the shots a bit.
  4. Make the most of the views. We started our shoot with some shots of the couple with the dramatic views in the background. If there is a sunset, this is the place to photography it! Even on a cloudy day the views are still spectacular.
  5. Use the tower. We got lots of different shots with the tower in. We got some long shots, we got medium shots, we got shots against the tower wall.
  6. Use the grass and sky. When shot from the right angles there are lots of scope for fuss free photos that highlight the dramatic sky around. I also got some great shots using the expanse of grass up there as foreground.
  7. Travel light. We met at 6.45, but the barrier at the road bottom of the hill closes at 7. Meaning that we couldn't take the car up. It is quite a steep hill up to the top and felt I had carted along too much equipment. Much of which I didn't use.
  8. Plan for a second location near by. The weather was so cold up there that we worked quickly and soon were ready to come back down the hill. I wanted to include a second location for shooting to make sure that I was happy that I had enough photos from the session. We headed back down the hill and parked up at the Victoria at Newsome. We took a few more shots on a wall just above the pub.
  9. Finish with a drink in the Victoria at Newsome! A great pub and wonderful way to end the session!