References for Don Miguel

Miss_C

Well - What a fun, spontaneous shoot I had with Mike!!!

Mike contacted me last week to ask about a few dates in June, unfortunately I was not able to make them work, but, I did have a free date that Friday, which luckily Mike was also able to do!!!

Mike's pre comms where great, he sent me all the information I needed and some ideas for the shoot!

When I arrived I was greeted with a really friendly welcome and most importantly a cup of tea!! - We chatted through some ideas and started shooting. Mike has some great shoot set ups around the house, including a plain white and plain black background which worked really well for the shoot styles we ended up doing.

Most impressively... Mike cooked me a lovely lunch!!! Steak and chips with homemade bread baps!!! WHAT A TREAT!!! Mike is quite the connoisseur!!!

I have SO many amazing images to go through - How I am ever going to pick out the edits is beyond me!! Thank you sooo much for everything Mike - Highly recommended!! Hope to see you again soon!! :D

AshleyJaymes

Well, what can I say! What a fabulous shoot with Don today. He was full of fabulous pin up ideas and we nailed them all! The results are amazing. I can't believe the amazing props and (homemade food) he turned up with! I felt comfortable working with Don and would recommend him to anyone. Thanks for an absolutely thrilling and fun shoot darling! Ashley xx

Caterini

I had my first shoot with Don Miguel few days ago , his communication is fantastic prior to a shoot, I knew we would get along even before we met due to his great sense of humour!

As for the shoot well....everything went was perfect.

He kindly collected me from the train station,put also for another shoting in region and kept in contact to ensure I arrived next destination safely!

Shooting with him was so much fun and didn't feel like work at all!

He is full of positive energy and enjoys experimenting with his lights as well as experimenting with my different look too.

he was also perfect host, I miss him bacon sandwich in the morning and delicious british dinner in the evening.

He take care about me and I feel very well in him home.

I would definitely recommend Don Miguel to other models and will definitely shoot with him again!

Thank you

Katy

Alice Rodriguez

Had an absolutely incredible shoot today! The entire shoot was so lovely and relaxing. I genuinely loved it from start to finish. Pre coms were absolutely amazing and everything was made crystal clear. One of my favourite photographers I have ever worked with for sure! I am really looking forward to shooting together again. Honestly straight 10/10

Debbie_Leema

Where do I start?

Mike is one of the nicest people I’ve ever come across! I can’t tell you how lucky I feel to know this beautiful human.

Mike hosted me for a great part of my midland tour and it was an absolute pleasure to hang out with him after work. We laughed & shared stories, cooked (although I done most of it this time hehe) & he liked my cooking which is a bonus 😁

We shot over two days whilst I was in Nottingham, very relaxed and at a steady pace. Mike is all about quality not quantity, which is what I admire about him.

I can’t express how happy I am to know Mike, I class him a friend for life. Hopefully he’ll have me back in the new year so we can continue our lovely photographic journey together.

An absolute gem to work with, spend time with & know.

Mike you are special - thanks for having me!

Much love from your little South London Pocket Rocket 🚀

Xxxx

Debbie_Leema

I had the most amazing 2 days shooting with Mike whilst on my first ever Nottingham tour.

From the very first moment I met Mike I knew I would have a cracking time. He also hosted me during my stay too which I’m thankful for.

Mike is such a lovely person, Wonderful host & very accommodating:)

That’s not all, he’s also great photographer and retoucher too.

What a lovely bloke & a week I’ll never forget! thanks again Mike, really looking forward to my next trip in a months time.

Much love my friend forever

Debs xx

Jessica Louise Model

Great first shoot with Mike at my apartment location. Mike arrived well prepared for the shoot and knew exactly what images he wanted to capture. Mike is professional, friendly and has great communication. The day was very relaxed and it was great to get to chat in between shooting.

I very much look forward to the opportunity of working with Mike in the future and highly recommend to any model.

tanya modele

Not only an awesome photographer who will take awesome pictures and paint you like a dream, Don in so much more than that. After the years I have been shooting with Don he has not only become a great friend that I will hopefully have for life, he is the most genuine and and giving person you can find! Learnt alot from Don over the years and that's not just in photography! An absolute joy to work with. Any model is lucky to get the pleasure of knowing and shooting with Don! 😘

Keira Lavelle

I have only met Mike literally within the last 18 months or so when I had my first shoot with him on a tour between restrictions last year... I’d say I came back to retrieve a skirt that I’d left haha - but to be honest, he really is an absolute ball to work with! :D Looks after his models well too!

I was on tour again this time also: travelling down via Nottinghamshire, so we got chatting about setting up round two! Mike has his own studio space that he shoots from - but can also adapt a whole bunch of sets around his place to create different setups that suit a variety of concepts. He’s got such innovation that way, and of course just a highly artistic background in all kinds of things! If you ever drop by to work with him - get him to show you some of his paintings... He’s shown me some and I thought they were photographs upon first glance! :P So there we go; he comes naturally with buckets of artistic and creative drive which really does make for a lovely stop on a tour where I’m doing something a little different every day... Ultimately I just love meeting artistic folks, so getting to work with Mike whilst on the road is a real treat.

Your man knows his lights, he takes into account fine details which are actually really important (hair) and has endless tricks at the ready to enhance how his images have that “BOOM” at the end of a shoot. He knows what he likes as well and directs accordingly very well/with the sharpest of eyes haha - I’ve got used to him now so my poses when I come are more Mike-eqsue... But every now and again I’ll pop a pose out from my repertoire as you get in the flow, and don’t think Mike won’t see it haha! We have a good old crack about it, but what I’m trying to say is that this guy is very firmly focused on his work and what he wants to achieve in his photography - which is the stuff of positive inspiration. :) He’s not only shooting for the moment for the sake of it, but maybe because he wants to paint the shot later - body shapes/detail/how the pose talks matter so much in which case. Alas it goes without saying that here is a photographer with great merits artistically. :D

The most recent shoot was relaxed as can be (I mean, of course it was! :P) Mike doesn’t do 65 million shots per second, and he’s very conscious about not having had a cup of tea for 5 minutes haha! Rest assured you won’t be worked into the ground - you’ll probably be fed cake/other yummy goodies though. Mike even made me that DELICIOUS beef stew again that he’d done the last time I was here... NOM NOM! Okay: that’s me busted - I only came for the stew. 😂 Jokes to one side, it’s just another reason why the day as a whole with Mike is a throughly nice experience. I honestly feel like I’m waited on hand-and-foot because when you’re touring especially, you just get used to autopilot mode fending for yourself haha! Then you get to Don Miguel HQ and are so well taken care of that you’re like: “what just happened?” Yup - he’s a good egg alright, and models well-being/happiness on his shoots matter a great deal to him.

Whilst he’s totally respectful/professional and all that jazz... I LOVE the fact that it’s a total ball with Mike in the chatter department. :P We have such a laugh, putting the world to rights in the process - the banter literally carries on as we’re on-set/off-set, and seriously: it transforms the vibe of a shoot entirely! Absolutely it’s a job for me, but what a hell of a bonus when the people I work with make it such a cool day. :P Thank you so much Mike!

Recommended yet again - will definitely be coming back!

Keira

Ariel Taylor

Utterly fantastic first shoot with Mike!

I stumbled across Mike's profile on here and thought 'I have to work with this person'! Within literally a couple of message back and forth we had a shoot arranged :)!

Mike sent me a short list of clothes to bring on the day (which I rebelled against and brought my whole wardrobe instead haha). We worked through a variety of themes: sexy business style, burlesque showgirl, flowing evening dress and implied nude shapes. All of the photos looked absolutely beautiful on the back of the camera and on the laptop which we got up during breaks. Mike was kind enough to even send me home with a memory stick of all the pictures (and a wooden duck haha- side note: I love ducks and Mike had one lying around he wanted to have taken off his hands).

As well as being a TOTAL professional, respectful at all times, Mike is just such a lovely guy and a delight to shoot with. The whole day was really relaxed and enjoyable. Mike was kind enough to feed me lunch AND dinner (all catering to my pesky dietary requirements). It was so lovely to chat to Mike and have the chance to see his gorgeous drawings.

An absolutely wonderful day, couldn't have asked for me. Cannot wait to work with again!!

100% recommended :)

Keira Lavelle

Mike is the bees knees... You know what: his very initial/introductory message blew me away as someone who had a lot of energy/positive-eccentric value, and just generally sounded good fun to shoot with. He was to-the-point, swift and open in his pre-shoot communications; so literally, we had a shoot arranged in the diary for my recent tour in just a short few messages. No fuss, nice and easy... Which is a dream for a model planning an extensive tour haha! I spoke to Mike about styles and ideas for the kind of things he wanted to shoot and he even had an upbeat and fun way to list and describe the type of shots we would do. It worked anyhow - and I was able to prepare things/outfits to bring knowing exactly what to anticipate for our shoot. :)

The day before, I stayed very close by in a hotel chain... Mike kindly offered to put me up, and literally: if we weren’t in a pandemic then I’d have felt very obliged and happy to accept his generous offer (which always makes it easier for a travelling model!) But I was just trying to be uber careful (probably OTT) to ensure safety and precautions through the testing times that we all know well for 2020. Because it’s my job I have to be a little more excessively pedantic... But when I tour Nottingham again in the future and (providing Mike would be happy to have be back!) then I’d feel very comfortable if he did host me during my travels. :) I was just so glad to be back on the road again doing a reasonably significant tour, something which I hadn’t done since March! Mike was very respectful and understanding of the limitations and guidelines to abide by etc. Though in all honesty: it didn’t really affect our ability to have a rock n’ roll day at all!

We shot for the whole day, and I have to say: it’s undoubtedly the most relaxed session I’ve possibly ever done. Mike doesn’t rush - he knows what he likes in his images and approaches with confidence and enthusiasm to get the results when you’re on set. But off set in the breaks: it’s snacks/tea/refreshments and chattering galore haha! :D He’s very high-spirited and lively by character: though not in an overwhelming way. Just in a really pleasant and enthusiastic way which is warming and rubs off. I think I’m possibly overwhelming myself sometimes haha (I’m a bit nuts admittedly) but I literally got on so well with Mike, and he offered me completely sound hospitality and company for the day. Safe to say; that I’m really happy our availability matched to be able to do the shoot because I did really enjoy every aspect of the booking... He’s a lovely gentleman with a heart of gold and will promise you a good laugh and non-stop chinwags if all else. We really put the world to rights - that’s for certain. :P

When we came to do each set (Mike has his own personal studio set up) we got a good system going, whereby Mike could get set up as I changed the look and then we were good to go. He had a plan mapped out for particular shots for us to smash, and the day really flowed well. We did a bit of edgy, a bit of pinup, a bit of classic/artsy... And even more casual/simple shots! Mike knows his lights and setup from top to bottom which allowed us to get straight to business making quality shots. Furthermore: he offers credible directions and has his eye set for very small details in the shots which make mountains of difference. He’s an artist you see (in more ways than one - you should definitely ask to see his paintings and sculptures!!!!) Hence his discipline comes from experience with patience and practicality combined with visual interpretation to get the ultimate beauty in the finished image and/or painting. I just love working with people with as artistic a background as Mike as I can relate in so many ways! But it’s just inspiring to be honest, to see creatives achieve their goal art. :) It could be a certain garment, a prop/bit of furniture or a more complex theme/look that you wind up shooting with Mike... His mind is just epic in the things it comes up with, and his technical know-how to create the image in-camera is rather savvy too. :P He shoots largely with a view to paint, but I actually loved some of the photographs just as they were! I loved what he did with my hair to really light it up and make it shine on-set! 🤩

So yes... I think it’s clear from what I’ve said in my rambling reference that I would happily recommend Mike. :) He is a very kind and considerate person who does everything to make a model feel at ease. Even at the end of the session he was offering to feed me with a delicious dinner to make sure I didn’t go away hungry. I’m coming back back for sure - just for the stew! :D

Thank you ever so much Mike!

Keira

tanya modele

Always a great shoot when working with mike #don

Actually this would of been my 5th shoot with mike! He always arrives on time with a smile on his face no matter what! Not only do we bounce of each other’s ideas, we always create some amazing images. A very talented man and not just behind the camera, if your lucky enough mike may well show his artistic side and paint you also!

I can’t wait to shoot with you again 🤓🤪

Jamie Jones Model

I had a brilliant shoot with Mike at my home studio... and I'm looking to the next one already!

Mike is friendly, cheerful and professional; he arrived well prepared with both ideas AND equiptment! Mike must have had more equiptment with him than i've seen in some studios but we set up quickly and having so many lights and tools close to hand made for a varied, experimental and resourceful shoot. The images we created have a lovely energy, that I think reflects the vibe of the shoot, which was relaxed but also such fun! Mike is just lovely to work with and has my recommendation for sure. Thank you Mike :)

Amy R

What a fab shoot ! Mike is a lovely guy very professional, fantastic photos great day ! Would definitely shoot with him again and recommend to all ! Thanks again mike ! X

Capture a Nomad

Had the pleasure of working with Mike in the comfort of my own farm location at home.

easy and free-flowing with Ideas, we had a lot of fun and appreciate his incredible artwork that I'm now a part of.

He even let me keep an awesome hat to which became useful the shoot right afterwards to thank you!

Hight recommended to anyone and hope to shoot with again in the near future.

Raven Lee

Lovely guy to work with, very polite and knows his stuff. Turned up on time and straight from the start was chatty and friendly. A great shoot with some lovely results.

thankyou raven

theresa louise

Fantastic shoot with Mike today.

He's such a gentleman who knows exactly what he wants when capturing an image.

The few hours we had went far too quick.

Would highly recommend him to any model

Thanks

T x

ChrissyX

After working together for the 5th time I cannot recommend Don Miguel enough! Super easy to work with and always get stunning results!

Look forward to the next one

Xxx

Honour May

I had my first shoot with this lovely man on Sunday and dam, was it a good one. His pre shoot coms were spot on, he arrived on time and was professional and respectful but really friendly and bubbly. We got on like a house on fire from the word go! His equipment is amazing and he was set up and ready to go in no time, the shoot flew by and he ensured I was 100% comfortable with all the levels at all times. He gave direction well but also let me do my own thing and together we got some amazing images! I can not wait to see them turned into drawings! All in all this tog is a talented artist who is professional and a dream to work with but most importantly a truly lovely man. I can't wait to see you again! 100% recommended 5* TOG

M I S S A - R A E - B E R R Y

Did a shoot yesterday with don to create some images for his amazing talent ! ... Drawing!!

Not only is he a tog he's a man of art! I was gob smacked when he turned up and showed me what he does ! His art is mind blowing and it's too exciting knowing he's going to draw me ;)

We did head shots up to nude art focusing on shadows and shapes and the images alone are out of this world!

He's a very friendly down to earth guy ! Easy to talk to , easy to get a long with and is a laugh

Very enjoyable shoot!

Hope to work with him again!!

Highly recommended !!!!

Missa xx