Photographer Clicks His Way To Top Honour

A clever photo of a family inside small boxes has helped a Nottingham photographer pick up his first national award.

Stuart McIntyre from Photo Nottingham worked with the Chester family from the city to develop the image which led to him being named Click Group Family Photographer of the Year.

The family of five helped him beat off competition from thousands of entrants from across the country to be named photographer of the year and win £500 for themselves.

The imaginative award winning shot was taken using the studios signature box.

The family, mum Dawn, dad Dave and grown up children Nick, Ryan and Leah had individual and group shots taken within the box – climbing in, climbing out, sitting inside and even kissing.

The studio has just one box measuring 1.5 metres square which the family posed in.

Stuart then compiled the photo digitally from the individual shots to create a unique memento of their session.

Dawn Chester said she’s thrilled with the pictures and delighted for Stuart.

“We had a lot of fun having the photos taken and really enjoyed the session with Stuart. We didn’t see the shot entered for the competition until after the shoot was over – we saw the others on the day – and were really impressed.

“I was surprised at what Stuart had been able to create from a few snaps of us in boxes. It all looks very set up – but it wasn’t. These are just a collection of natural photos of me and my family having fun.

“These photos are something for us to look back on and cherish. Although we all live, work and study in Nottingham, it can be difficult to get us all together. This was a really nice way for us to spend time as a family, have fun and get some great photos out of it.”

Stuart set up his city centre portrait studio, Photo Nottingham, in 2002, specialising in portrait, commercial and wedding photography.

Stuart said: “I’m chuffed to bits with this award as it’s my first national title. I wanted to enter something different and a photo that would really stand out from the crowd. The one of the Chester’s was ideal.

“The Chester family were very relaxed in front of the camera and clearly enjoyed spending time together. They came up with some great ways of expressing themselves within the box and made some great shapes through posing. Before they came in I had an idea in my head of how I wanted the finished piece to look. Because they were so creative, the finished photo was better than even I expected.

“The box is our signature style and we have used it on a few occasions. Whenever we do, it never fails to help us get some great photos.”

The Click Group Family Photographer of the Year Award is run by the Click group and open to over 200 of its studios which are based all around the UK.

Stuart concluded: “This is a real honour for me as the business enters its tenth year and the Chester’s were a great family to snap. They made it a really pleasant shoot and I’m delighted they’ve won something too – as well as getting some terrific family photos.”