Header photo: Images by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Jessica Leigh Photography is a hobbyist photographer based in Derby, United Kingdom, with around a year of experience.  

After sharing her shoot (featuring model Sinopa Rin) with the PurplePort community, Jessica generously gave us her time for a quick interview, where she shared how these beautiful images were created, the inspirations behind the shoot, how it was planned, the camera gear she used, and much more.

Fire by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Stairway to... The gift shop by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

SHARE A SHOOT with Jessica Leigh Photography

How did you come up with the concept? Did anything inspire you?

The concept of this shoot came from my wanting to practice more non-studio photography and challenge my abilities to shoot in natural or ambient light. From there, I started thinking about street photography and researching places in Derby that I thought would make good backgrounds. It was at this moment that my daughter asked if we could visit the museum again, and my creative brain went into overdrive!

I have been visiting the Derby Museum since I was a child and have always loved the feel of the Joseph Wright Gallery. The rich tones of the paintings, complemented by the warm lights and wooden floors, just felt perfect for a photoshoot. Especially as I was planning on shooting with Sinopa Rin whilst she was up in Derby for a studio day at The Boardroom.

Part of my wanting to try outdoor photography is because I've been inspired by photographers like WhatMonLoves and EarlGreyHot, who shoot beautifully toned natural light images in and around Derbyshire.

Green Suit by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

What did you do to plan and arrange the shoot?

The first and most important part of planning the shoot (after booking in with Rin) was to contact the museums and ask if I was allowed to shoot there. Once I was granted permission, I could start planning.

I visited the weekend before the shoot, scouted locations and took test shots so I was ready. I also made a rough plan for the day of where I would like to shoot (Art Gallery, Main Corridor, The Library, Museum of Making and the Swing Bridge).

I made a mood board of inspirational images and sent them over to Sinopa to give her an idea of what I was hoping to achieve.

Behind Blue Eyes by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

What was it like shooting at that location?

On the day of the shoot, I met Sinopa at the train station and headed to the museum. The staff were brilliant and allowed us to store Rin’s suitcase so we could shoot without carrying it around.

But first, an important stop. We went for a coffee and chatted about what we wanted to achieve and what outfits would be good and generally just had a nice catch-up as this is our fourth shoot together, so for me, it feels like I am shooting with a friend and collaborating creatively.

Once we were ready to shoot, we started at the back corridor and used the natural light from the stained-glass windows to capture a series of different images using the marble busts and interesting period features of the old building.

One of the challenges was not capturing any other visitors in the images (this was one of the rules specified by the museum), as it was a particularly busy day.

Behind every great woman... is another great woman by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Beautiful Light by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Natural Light Portrait by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

The Corridor by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Looking Back by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

In The Museum by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Our second location was the Joseph Wright Gallery, so Sinopa made a quick change into a skirt and top that would complement the colours of the room and the rich tones of the paintings.

I wanted to experiment with taking deliberately out-of-focus images. For example, I would focus on the painting behind Rin so she would be out of focus and give the images a dreamy feel.

I had to really increase my ISO in this space to ensure the images were bright enough, which previously would have meant I was worrying about the grain, but I really wanted to embrace that grainy image aesthetic for this shoot.

Watching Over Her by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

The Widow by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

In The Frame by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Painterly Lady by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Inner Peace by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

After this, we decided to move outside for a break and some fresh air and then see what images we could get outside the library.

The building is beautiful, with iron railings and warm red bricks. Unfortunately, it was starting to rain, but we managed to capture a variety of poses and moods before it got too wet.

We even shot in a dilapidated phone box (I take models to all the nice places!) before we decided it was a good time to find a café for a drink and image review.

Library Steps by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Come As You Are by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Walk This Way by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Waiting for a call by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

We nipped into a local café called Bear for a drink and to shelter from the rain. Rin suggested capturing images so we did not lose out on creating something because of the weather.

The café itself has a nice cosy feel to it, but with quite a modern contemporary look, and we managed to get a spot right near the windows, perfect for casual images.

Coffee Shop by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Look How They Shine For You by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Our final stop was the Museum of Making.

This museum used to be an old silk mill and has a much more industrial feel than the art gallery, with exposed brickwork and big metal windows. We only had a little time left, but I knew I wanted to focus on taking images in the Italian Mill. This is a ground-floor area often used for events, so it is free of any exhibitions and has big windows that fill the room with beautiful afternoon light.

Within minutes of arriving, we found a lovely spot where the light fell onto the concrete floor that would be perfect for some ‘floor traits’! Rin’s incredible posing skills made taking great images so effortless, and her understanding of light and photography meant every image was spot on.

There was also a pleasant surprise because on the same floor, I found a small room that was displaying an illuminated image from the previous museum, and the way the light fell made for a cool atmosphere, so we quickly captured a few images here as well. I think my favourite thing about this shoot is all the little interesting spots we found that turned out to be great for photography.

We then quickly nipped to the front of the museum, where they had suspended a Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engine! It would have been crazy not to take the opportunity to use that as a backdrop. Unfortunately, I caught some people in the background on this image, but luckily, I had another without, so I had to employ my Photoshop skills to make it a usable image by layering two together and removing the extra person.

These images are the only ones that I have edited in Photoshop. I found working in Lightroom with film effect filters gave me the look I wanted for most of this shoot.

Natural Light by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Peace by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Old Mill Window by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

The Italian Mill by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Captivated by the light by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

In The Presence of Greatness by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Finally, the swing bridge.

We had 15 mins left, but I knew I wanted to try and take some images using the bridge as the location. The sky was grey, and the light was starting to fade, but it still worked out well, and I captured nice portraits with interesting shadows.

I also used one of these images to play around with layering the same image on itself and moving it slightly to appear blurred. I did this in Snapseed on my phone as a bit of an experiment, but I really liked the outcome.

Blurred Lines by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Swing Bridge Derby by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

When The Sun Is In Your Eyes by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Shadows by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Tell us about the gear you used.

This is probably the one thing I don't have much to say about as I don't tend to focus too much on the kit, as I am always working to a budget and tend to spend more on the shoots than on camera equipment.

All I used was my Nikon d7500 and a 35mm lens. In hindsight, I feel the lens wasn’t suitable for all the images I wanted to take, and there are a few from this shoot where it hasn’t worked, but I like this lens because I find it good for natural light.

What's your favourite image from the shoot?

Watching Over Her (see below). I just knew as soon as I had taken it that it was something special. Rin had chosen the pose which worked perfectly with the meaning behind the painting just above her. It is called The Indian Widow, and it depicts the widow of an Indian chief as she watches over her late husband’s weaponry. It is my favourite painting in the gallery.

Watching Over Her by photographer Jessica Leigh Photography with model Sinopa Rin

Thank you, Jessica Leigh Photography, for sharing your creativity, experience and images with us. We loved learning all about your photoshoot with model Sinopa Rin!

We hope you all loved it, too. Don't forget to check out the links below to see more of Jessica Leigh Photography's work!

Here's where you can find more of Jessica Leigh Photography's work

PurplePort: Jessica Leigh Photography

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