References for Fantasy Dabblers

SimoneH

I had the pleasure of working with Andrew and Mikki again after quite some time, this time being at Aura Photographic Studio. And they are both just as lovely as I can remember, very chatty and friendly and extremely easy to work with. Fantastic pre shoot communication and was happy to share any ideas that they may have with me before hand.

We got through loads of different sets and changes and the images look awesome, I'm really looking forward to seeing the pics.

I thoroughly enjoyed working with them and hope to do so again soon.

Highly recommended by me

Thanks again Both for a fab shoot. 😀

Bad Dolly

I haven't seen the delightful fantasy dabblers for some years, due to distance and a certain pandemic, so I was thrilled when they booked me for a 5 hour shoot at JDL Studios. I was excited to catch up of course but also I knew they would make use of JDLs many quirky sets with fun themes including a waterfall!

I was provided some really fun spooky props and as always are craziness worked well all together!

I had such a fun shoot and I really hope you guys enjoyed it too!

Thank you!

Summers Abroad

Another lovely weekend hosting Mikki and Andrew on our most recent event - Mutiny.

Mikki did the full weekend and Andrew did a day and a half, but we hosted them both at the venue for the full weekend. As usual they were great company and fun, got on with everybody else attending and were enthusiastic and friendly when shooting with the models.

It’s always a pleasure hosting them, we’d more than happily recommend them to others and hope to see them back again soon!

Kitty Quinzell

I've lost track of the amount of shoots I've done with Mikki and Andrew now... one thing they all have in common though - they are a lot of fun!

Today we shot several different themes including fae princesses, Capes and fashion outdoors and Velma from Scooby Doo!

I love staying and working with FD, they are genuinely lovely people and the best hosts who I am honoured to call friends ♥️

Nicole Rayner

I was so so lucky to have the wonderful Millie and Andrew to my home for a shoot! They are honestly one of the kindest couples I know! They were so understanding of my circumstances and were happy to change the times last minute so that we could still enjoy a fabulous shoot!

And oh boy was it fabulous! I love how passionate and enthusiastic Mikkie and Andrew are and thankfully they liked the sets I had built for them! We had lots of fun! We chatted a lot about props and I really loved what they brought and love the results! Every shoot We’ve had together has been a lot of fun! Plus It’s always a day full of great and interring conversation too! Time seemed to fly by!

Also love how much effort both Mikkie and Andrew put into getting interesting angles and doing something a bit more out there!!! Lots of weird and whacky shots which is always fun to model! They both listened to my ideas and also had loads of great ones so there was lots of bouncing off one another! Just a brill time and of course I would highly recommend them and look forward to another shoot hopefully xx

Rachelle Summers

I've had the pleasure of working with Mikki & Andrew multiple times this year.

Mikki & Andrew joined us on our Summers Abroad event to Santorini, whilst Andrew was there as a non shooting partner it was wonderful hosting them both and I had a great time modelling for Mikki :) They both attended my UK event 'The Lost World', and whilst I was not a model on the line up it was great hosting them both as always. Mikki then joined us on her own in Namibia later in the year, where I got to model for her in some of the most incredible locations I have ever seen, and we had a great time travelling across the country together! |

And as if all those Summers Abroad adventures did no make for an epic year, I then got to end my year working with them on a 1-2-1 basis. Myself and Mr Summers went to stay with them for the weekend, where they totally spoilt us with a beautiful Christmas meal one night and fondue the next (because they know it's one of my faves!). AND Mikki bought me such a thoughtful gift of cherry drops, which may sound odd but I'd been mentioning them on events all year that I could't find them in shops anymore so it really made me quite emotional as it was just so lovely of her to think of me and get me them :) And amongst all of that we spent a wonderful day at Two Wei together shooting various different looks!

Just a wonderful year hosting them, working together and creating more memories! I am so excited to host them both on my next UK event, Casino Royale, as well as Nevada, but also to travel to Venice with them in February too! Here's to many more memories being made in 2023!

Highly recommended :)

Summers Abroad

We had the pleasure of hosting Mikki on our Namibia event!

She came along on her own to this one but still fit in with the group really well :D

We had such a blast travelling across Namibia together. Visited arguably some of the best locations in the world, and were incredibly lucky with the group getting on so well as honestly it just made for the best memories we have made to date on our events. I don't think anyone will forget that last night sunset - just so magical! Mikki even swayed Rachelle on to red wine throughout the event too :P

I am so glad Mikki got to join us on this event and be a part of it, and we can't wait to host her in Nevada and make even more memories :D

Summers Abroad

We had the pleasure of hosting Mikki & Andrew on our 'The Lost World' event.

This event was very different for us, as instead of being hosting in our usual manor homes it was hosting in a quirky airstream campsite. The whole weekend was simply so much fun! It was so lovely having Mikki & Andrew there and as usual they brought along a tonne of their props that suited the themes and brought their own flare to the sets and location, which all the models had great fun working with!

Look forward to hosting them on again on our next UK event 'Casino Royale' :D

Summers Abroad

We hosted Mikki & Andrew on another abroad event - this time to Santorini!

This was Andrew's first time joining as a non-shooting partner, as the locations weren't suitable, so I'm so glad he got to come along and enjoy the social downtime with us all :D

As always it was a pleasure hosting them both! They both fit in really well and got on with the other photographers on the event.

Mikki hired one of the flying dresses we had for an extra day to work with it at the villa which was a fantastic idea (as we had our own domed roof) and created some wonderful and unique images!

Highly recommended as always!

Clara Sinclair

This was my first time working with Fantasy Dabblers and both Andrew ad Mikki were so lovely, really chatty and friendly and interesting with their ideas. They definitely picked up on my sense of quirkiness and we got on very well because of this! :) we did a range of sets but my favourite was the very end where I was twirling around outside in a beautiful hand made colourful cape and my 'stompy' boots, very much looking forward to seeing more photos and would work with them again anytime!

Summers Abroad

Mikki joined us for another weekend on our latest UK event ‘Artistic Licence’. There were multiple sets running across the weekend all based on reinvention of famous artwork, from high fashion to quirky beauty sets and lots of majestic and painterly styling, we created our own modern takes on the classics!

As always Mikki was a pleasure to host, really great company in the evenings and fit into the group dynamic really well. She got on super well with her shooting partner and they worked really well together on each of the sets/themes.

Cant wait to see some of Mikki’s results from the weekend, especially when just her phone pictures were as good as they were haha!!

Happily recommended and can’t wait to host her again in Santorini next month!

Keira Lavelle

Woohoo! We made it to Aura! 😀

The gorgeous natural light and spacious studio venue with it's endless number of extraordinary posing boxes... What a fun place to add to our long bucket list of venues and locations that we have ticked off over the years. 😊 Aura were hosting a big studio sale as well around the same time that we made our booking which meant we could take advantage of bagging some goodies, eating cake and then having our fabulous day of shooting back-to-back. It meant that it was very relaxed and quite a nice leisurely weekend - which was especially enjoyable since I had quite an ambitious mega-tour ahead of me! 👀

We had quite a specific plan for what we wanted to achieve on this shoot, thus it was very well thought-out and structured. 🙂 Bodyscapes, shapes on the boxes, leotards and colourful masks that had made it all the way from Venice were all on the agenda! Very nice high quality lighting to suit each style, with adaptation when we did an (obligatory!) little natural light set amid the funky studio furniture and props. Had to be done - it's Aura after all! 😆 The day actually went super fast; I remember us checking the time and thinking; FLIPPIN HECK, WE STILL NEED TO GET THE BODYSCAPES IN! One of those shoots where you just got completely lost in the zone. I think we were having too much fun working on mad Keira shapes! 🤣 Alas - we did everything we wanted to do (or the main ideas - with a team like Mikki and Andrew I am certain we could have shot 3 days worth of funky looks there!) The images looked super fine as well with the striking contours of bodyscape work in the low key lighting style, jazzy dance wear to liven up artistic poses that you typically see art nude, and being a kitty cat with one of the Fantasy Dabblers famous dazzling props (a mask)! I mean who doesn't want to be a cat?! #Lifegoals! 💖

It was a fun day consisting of the routine laughs, chatter and creative bounce with the amazing couple! We don't need any prompting when we shoot together now - one of us will come up with the proposal to shoot somewhere, we natter a bit in pre-communications throwing cool suggestions in the mix and getting revved up for the event/day... Then along comes the date of the shoot and it's like one big explosion of craziness. It's the only way to describe my working rapport with Mikki and Andrew (probably why we work so well together!) Innovation gets injected from all angles across all aspects from the outfits/styling to the lighting and environment - the pair are incredibly enthusiastic over every shoot they do and are well known for bringing cases of cool stuff that they acquire at a whole range of festivals/stalls and conventions during their ravels. They own some of the coolest props in the Photography-model bubble! 🤩 And it was no different at Aura... Yep, it was definitely a Fantasy Dabblers shoot! 😁

Professional in their approach, valuing the models well-being and happiness - equally being respected by the models they shoot with, fun-loving and not afraid of trying new things and thinking outside the box... I can guarantee that I'm most likely repeating what I have said countless times in other references, but there you go! 👌

Another "super high recommendation" from their kid! 🤭

Keira Lavelle

And we shoot again! Would you believe it? 🤩 This time with both Mikki and Andrew (double dose of craziness - triple if you include the model! 🤣) And this time, the location of choice was the one and only - VENICE!!! 🇮🇹

It all came about relatively last minute (for a weeks abroad trip anyway!) and I was stepping in unexpectedly. Fortunately due to running themed events at home for the first part of the year I was actually free with mainly local shoots at the time, and OMG I’m glad I was because - it’s Venice! A year previously Mikki and I managed to just snatch (by the skin of our teeth!) a trip to Florence outside of the pandemic restrictions - this lined my passion greatly for stunning Italian cities as it really was an eye-opening experience of culture, vibrancy, stunning architecture (not to mention great food!) Venice is different, iconic of course… But let’s face it: with it’s extraordinary famous waterways, endless number of adorable cobble streets, charismatic buildings decorated further with the true extravagance of the Venice carnival… Well it’s a picturesque and bustling heaven for literally anyone!

I felt really honoured to be getting away with both of these nutters this time - certainly the last couple of years had been a very rocky and uncertain time for them (as it was us all!) but the avoidance of crowded places and just taking all precautions possible was still very important even after the restrictions had eased. I’m really happy that Andrew felt confident enough to take the leap and experience the carnival, granted it wasn’t as busy as it would usually be (probably not a bad thing!) but it’s one of those “must visit” places and he and Mikki had been so careful, missing out on so many of their routine adventures. Such a holiday was very much due for them both! 😃 Mikki ingeniously sorted everything out with her great knowledge from past trips which made things flow with great ease as well; we stayed in a hotel that was right in the middle of all the action and just a few minutes walk from several famous sites of the city. It had great facilities for a very comfortable stay between our explorations too - creature comforts like delicious breakfasts on top of an ideal location! Mikki knows her stuff! 👌

The shooting side of things?! Oh my goodness! Well the phenomenal carnival goers with their attire that had clearly taken the best part of a year to make really stole the show if we’re being honest… But I did my best to pick out the most suitable classic/magical/flouncy/even mad outfits that I had access to in order to hopefully do these gorgeous locations some mortal justice. ☺️ We typically ventured out early doors to catch the pretty low light and lesser crowds which had great benefit (again - Mikki knew all this from past photography trips!) Even early in the morning there was so much to see, and we were mostly highly blessed with reasonable weather, the Venice weather gods were looking out for us! 💗🌞 We got our fair share of sublime picture opportunities as we dodged the crowds the best we could - making carefully thought plans to get to a bucket list of places, and being selective too. That’s very key when you visit a place like this because there are stunning scenes in every direction to be honest - it’s good to go with an organised group and know where you want to go/what you want to do so you can achieve it with a cunning schedule plan. Bridges that look like they’re out of a fantasy princess movie, handsome buildings that seem to break the laws of physics the way they float and look so artistically perfect simultaneously, smart looking Gondolas casually sailing past every few seconds, a literal mosaic of reflections in every square metre of water… We are talking 24 Carat backdrops here! The light just kept on giving and the fantastic Fantasy Dabblers just kept on nailing it, no matter what the hour of the day. The eloquent structures gave rise to some very exciting shadow play, and diffusion into softer light. The whole city was basically packed with clever ways in which the sun could be modified to meet the mood. Mikki and Andrew worked tirelessly to compose fabulous images out of this array of picture-perfect scenes; staying focused and on top of the settings (which changed with every corner and alley that one turns down!) It’s the true location challenge: but they hammered it! 🙌 Street fashion like nothing you’ve seen before!

In addition to the striking photography that took place on this awe-inspiring trip, there was also an endless supply of laughs and memories to take home from it as well. 😆 One morning Mikki and I tried to keep a relatively low profile doing our own thing with me dressed pretty vibrantly in shoot-ready mode (but not really looking too stand-outish when you consider the outfits of carnival goers!) and we ended up catching the interest of other photographers, at first it was just quite funny but then turned out to be quite handy as later Mikki and Andrew got the prime shooting spots for one of the favourite places for people visiting the city to shoot people… I could just make my shapes in the arches and we shot away undisturbed for most of the part in a location that normally gets inundated at that time of day for the quality of the light! ☺️ We kept bumping into and saying “Hi” to the other photographers throughout the week then, it was really funny and goes to show how small and decently accessible the city is! Then there was the gent with his mask shop, we thought we were chatterboxes haha, that’s all I’ve got to say! 🤣 There were many memories like this to cherish, it was a lot of fun and I’m so grateful to have got to go with people I value very highly!

Thank you both for another great adventure to add to the list of crazy adventures we’ve had! 😁📷🤩

Keira x

Keira Lavelle

Another superb shoot with Mikki of the Fantasy Dabblers! This time we had the opportunity to work at a very special and unique venue (to add to all of the astonishing places we’ve shot!) TankSpace!!! Mikki asked me to stand in when sickness had struck for one of the models... Of course I was happy to help/always overjoyed to model for either of my “creative parents!” But it was particularly exciting that it was the incredible (like no other!) TankSpace! Because; despite modelling underwater A LOT, I had never actually had the chance to shoot here!

The group shoot that took place was run extremely well - it was basically a privately organised day which was shared by several photographers who were all familiar with one another and had good professional reputations. It’s the best way to do things if you do find yourself planning a group event. There were also a sensible number of models booked which ensured that there was not too much physical pressure on any one model at any given time. We took it in turns which gave us all a break/chance to get our breath back/energy back up... And that also benefitted the team creatively because the photographers got a whole range of different looks! 🥰

From mermaid-jellyfish to disco butterflies... Enchanted floaty elegance to fashion in a tank! It was an inspired day, and a creative experience to definitely cherish! Mikki threw herself right into the shoot as well and brought some cool bits and pieces. It was great fun to be honest, very hustle and bustle but such a ball! I was familiar with everyone there either having met them before, or meeting virtually which was nice - Mikki also kept us models in the loop before we went so we knew who was joining/what to bring and so forth.

So it will certainly be another high recommendation from me! I know this was only a group event but still - Mikki sorted out and facilitated things brilliantly! If you’re gonna do underwater - do it right! 😎

Thank you for the amazing opportunity!

Keira

Cariad Celis

I had the most awesome experience shooting with Mikki recently on a Tank Space day, I felt so lucky to have been invited along after another model couldn't make it. I had never done underwater modelling before, so I knew it was a risk for Mikki and the other photographers but I hope it paid off for them, after a few failed attempts I finally got into the flow and felt more and more comfortable underwater. It really helps in these modelling experiences to be working with such a great team and Mikki and her team are honestly the best! It was by far one of the best experiences I have had as a model!

It was great to work with you again,I really hope we will work together again soon, either underwater or on land!

Hopefully see you soon and thank you so much for having me on board!

Cariad x

Summers Abroad

The Fantasy Dabblers have joined us on multiple abroad events in the past so we were really excited to have Mikki come along to our Winter Wonderland UK event recently :)

Mikki was booked on the full weekend with accommodation and food/drink. She fit in really well with the other photographers booked on for the weekend which made for a great social downtime in the evenings.

We had various themed sets and models across the weekend and Mikki got some fabulous images of all of them, I can’t wait to see some final results :)

Highly recommended and can’t wait to host her again on our next UK event in April!

Scarlot Rose

Oh what a delight it was to shoot with the Fantasy Dabblers again! Due to recent times it had been quite some time since our last opportunity and having them on my partner acrobatics / acroyoga workshop at AURA was the perfect opportunity!

Mikki joined me for the morning workshop where she captured a whole variety of stunning images, it was such a pleasure to have her as part of the team!

In the afternoon, Edson Caballero & I worked with both Mikki & Andrew to follow up with many more sets, including funky outfit opportunities, a flying squirrel and creative camera props. An 8 hour day of partner acrobatics is what some might call crazy, and I was very thankful that the Fantasy Dabblers were thoughtful about our wellbeing throughout and ensured we had plenty of breaks to stay hydrated and fuelled!

Working with them both is such a pleasure in all ways! I love their playfulness, creativity and passion for photography. It warms my heart to know them and I cannot wait to see the images captured by both throughout yesterday!

Always delighted to work with them and very happy to recommend to others! :)

Thank you, as always!

Scarlot

Kitty Quinzell

I absolutely love working with Mikki and Andrew.

This time they booked me for a full day at Two Wei house.

Oh my goodness what a fun shoot in an incredible place!

We shot so many different sets with amazing props and costumes - I had an absolute blast and the pics Ive seen so far look fab.

On top of all this - they are the most lovely and attentive hosts, and all round wonderful people who I am proud to call friends.

Until the next time! :)

Summers Abroad

We hosted the Fantasy Dabblers on another Summers Abroad event - this time to sunny Spain!

It was a pleasure as always hosting them both, they got on really well with the other 2 photographers on the event and from what I saw on the back of camera/laptop they got some stunning images too :)

Always look forward to having them on an event and can’t wait til next time!

Keira Lavelle

What an 18 months! Several abroad trips cancelled due to dreaded Corona 🙄 (and not the beer - though we'll swing more to Chianti on that topic! 😁) A number of opportunities to shoot closer to home missed during lockdowns, things rescheduled left-right and centre to a point where we didn't know WHAT was going on from literally one day to the next sometimes. There had been the odd occasion where we managed to grab a few hours/a day here or there at safe-practicing venues... Mikki and I even managed to jet off to Florence by the skin of our teeth last year! But generally, it's been such a trying time for everyone - not least those shielding and needing to be extra careful; thus letting go of an otherwise fun-filled life of meeting up with like-minded people and travelling to stay safe. And so; I cannot express enough just how overjoyed I was when a window of, somewhat miraculous, opportunity opened for us to fly away to the jaw-dropping land of Northern Norway! 🏔 The first Arts Voyage event which has not needed to be rescheduled because of this awful pandemic - and I had both Mikki AND Andrew set to come with me! It almost didn't feel real - and they will back me up on this that in the lead up it was very surreal/uncertain for all of us, and then: BOOM! We're going guys - pack your thermals! 😆

So before all else; I cannot thank this pair enough for their patience, willingness to go for it and then of course - the sheer fun we had in quite possibly one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited personally! These are trying times, it's understandable that people might be apprehensive, and ultimately: when the attendance of an event is for the leisure/creativity factor, it is easy to look at something like that as an event that doesn't need to go ahead if people are still airing on the side of caution. But they stood by me, giving their support... All the green lights displayed (quite literally!) and Norway became a stupendous reality! 🤩 We would then spend the next week getting fully zoned-in to epic location road trips, dirty looks from sheep, creative styling with team input, yummy food, and relaxation for Mikki and Andrew between shooting times at our lovely accommodation (they loved the hot tub especially! 😁) It was seriously the trip of a lifetime - and perfectly suited to the exclusive/one-to-one format because we worked at our pace, made gallons of gorgeous pictures across many genres, had free reign of where we went and when we went... You couldn't have done a place like this any other way! One of the nicest things I'll take away from the trip was Andrew commenting on how; being amid the grand mountain ranges had such therapeutic and awe-inspiring impact. Being a fellow Yorkshire kid, I can fully connect with this! Our hills back home aren't a patch on the surroundings of our photo holiday in Norway mind - but that aspect of nature really does reach your soul. Especially when they're thousands of feet high!🌟

It would probably be easier to list what we didn't shoot rather than what we did! 🤷‍♀️ The nature of the one-to-one shooting means we can throw ideas in at our leisure (really getting the collaborative bounce flying) make stops when something just catches our eye. We tackled everything from mountain-ranges, fjord-scapes, lighthouses, lily ponds, sunset beaches, rainbows, woodland, waterfalls... Complimenting with looks galore such as; edgy fashion, ball gowns, catsuits, crystal lingerie, artistic nude! The combinations of things we shot was quite colossal in fact. And of course what is a shoot with the Fantasy Dabblers if they don't come with bags of their own goodies for models to exploit! 😁 They put a lot of thought into what to bring - even in the pre-shoot communications we were chatting about lush accessories they had spotted to bring along. The flow of imagination went on and on... Both photographers have their own notable passion along with interests for the kind of images they would like to achieve - from that it's really nice to help both Mikki and Andrew make their visions come alive. They have always given such wonderful feedback to models, communicate well in what they hope to gain from a trip/shoot... But also: they appreciate what a model can also give in input from their side of the lens. Working together is their way, whilst the individuality shines through for the different creative (and fun!) mindsets on the team.🌟

I briefly touched upon the fun had during our week in Norway, though I don't feel I have screamed about it sufficiently. 😄 From getting VIP access to the top of a lighthouse one minute, or improvising something cool on the rare occasion that it did actually rain, to rocking bling-tastic Viking themes the next! All of this of course fell into our creative adventure, but when you can actually say you've come away with some memories that really make you chuckle too - that's quite rewarding for me as an event host. ❤ I know Mikki and Andrew as my own creative mom and dad of course - so the rapport we have is quite unique... The chatter and banter never ceases, Figaro the cat often jumps in to give his two-penneth, and even just the times jiving to catchy songs in the car that were on the radio the last time we went abroad together! It's the little things that make a big difference to the connections you make in this industry. It just seems like, whenever we do something - the time melts away before our eyes! If that ain't a big that you're having a blast, I don't know what is! 🤷‍♀️

Take it from me - these guys care about their models being comfortable. They care about their models being happy. They care about their models enjoying their own time on an event/shoot; even though they might have responsibilities as a host etc. They have a highly professional approach to working with others which I have seen time and time again on our [INSERT VERY LARGE NUMBER OF SHOOTS] that we've had together, thus I think it's safe to say I can vouch for them and most certainly give my recommendation once again. 🥰

Just don't ask Mikki about me having her chase rainbows! 😂 At least I did find her a nice little roadside waterfall this time! 😃

Thanks a bundle guys! Here's to a less crazy year in 2022!

Your kid! A.K.A. Keira!