The Shenxana Family
This is what Esther said about her portrait experience that her Mum booked, where their artwork is now in their living room.
“This marks a new beginning for our family, and will be a constant reminder that family, love and support carries far more weight than any materialistic object or goal.
“For years, my two brothers were not on speaking terms, and it really strained our family. Then, following a sudden tragic bereavement in our family, my two brothers started speaking to each other again."
"Now, seeing my two brothers side by side is like witnessing the end of a long, hard-fought battle.
“This not only captures a moment of us being together, but also reflects the resilience of family, a testament that even through heartache, the love we share can always bring us back together.
"This is our symbol of healing, love and an unbreakable bond of family.”
Esther Shenxane
MARED AND FAMILY
"Insole Court holds many memories of my childhood walking my grandparent's dog, Bobi, and the story of the 'Three Little Pigs.'
"My Grandad used to say 'the three little pigs live in that building' - I would always jump as high as I could to see the pigs through the window. Of course, I could never see them, and my grandad would tell me that they'd gone out for a walk!
"I'd try and walk around the grounds of Insole Court to find the pigs, and it was great fun - I loved the story!
"Now, as a Mother to two boys, I tell them the same story.
"Being together with my family in the photograph means a lot to me, as it brings back memories of my favourite time with my grandparents.
"I hope one day my children will tell the same story."
Mared
CORALLIE, MARTYN AND THEIR BORDER COLLIES
“What I’d really like,” said Corallie, “Is a portrait of our six Border Collies together. The pups are only 8 weeks old, but they’re growing so fast. Some of them are going to new homes soon, and I want to have my babies
all together before they leave. Is this something you can do?”
Asked Corallie Recently...
Please Click On The Arrow To Watch The Story Below...
“The finished pictures virtually reduced my wife to tears." Martyn
"They make me smile forever..." Corallie
ALISON, TRISTON AND HERCULES
Alison’s son, Triston, suffers from mental health issues, and a few years ago, Triston bought Hercules as a puppy to train as a support and therapy dog.
To celebrate how far he’d come, Alison wanted to buy a special treat for Triston, which was his and Hercules’ portrait session. Their wall art - something the see every day, is now in their home, giving confidence to Tristan every day.
Says Alison:
“Hercules has saved Triston’s life and has helped him so much. His portrait session was so much fun, and it’s given Triston so much confidence.
“This shows everything about the connection between Triston and Hercules.
"Hercules keeps Triston calm, and these photographs show how far Triston has come with his mental health issues."
Says Triston: "Hercules is my life: he means everything to me."
LAUREN AND HER DAUGHTERS
"The photography experience with Paul was absolutely amazing...he was so patient with the girls...."
"Totally professional...such great quality. I would absolutely recommend Paul to everybody."
SHARON AND KIT
"After 25 years of marriage, the romance, love and joy of being together is still alive.
"We share the load and work together to enjoy all the good gifts we have been blessed with.
This picture sums up our lives together, sometimes messy, sometimes hard work but always with love."
Sharon And Kit
The Hurley Family
Both Sadie and her husband Malcolm were approaching their 70th birthdays, and as part of their celebrations, they wanted to book a family photographic experience, because they didn’t have a portrait of their entire family together.
You can hear what Sadie says in the video below...
"The portrait experience was fantastic...it was just easy.....The quality of the finished product is really high."
"Having my family together was a lot of fun. I don't see my children very often, but it was lovely that we all got together, and it's a lovely reminder of the day and our family connections.
"Good quality work - save your money up's it's worth every penny!" Sadie Hurley
Nia and iolo
Because Nia was going to University in a few months time, Nia’s Mum booked a photographic experience for Nia with her little dog Iolo, a faithful, amusing little Schnauzer who had been with Nia and her family since he was a pup.
Nia wasn’t able to take Iolo to University, so having this experience meant that Nia could take Iolo's photographs with her, making sure he was never far away.
doris
"Im overjoyed, being able to see Doris every day: her spirit and personality shines through, which makes me feel warm and content."
Deborah Hopkins
Zoe and her daughters
Zoe wanted to celebrate her being together with all four of her daughters, but sadly Ava, her third daughter, had passed away very suddenly, just after her first birthday.
"Is it possible to somehow incorporate Ava into a new family portrait?" Zoe asked.
Zoe wanted to make sure that little Ava would somehow be together with her three sisters, so that Ava would always be remembered.
But the only photographs that Zoe had of Ava had been taken on her phone. So how could we transform this for Zoe, so that Ava would never be forgotten?
From a photograph of Ava taken on her first birthday, a silhouette of Ava was made...
...Which brought Ava into the new portrait, so that she would always be close to Zoe and her three sisters.
Zoe Says:
"Paul and I got talking at an exhibition, and I told him I'd lost my daughter just after her first birthday, and would love to find a way of getting a photograph made of me and all my children together. "He went out of his way and made this masterpiece for me, adding my baby girl into it.
"On opening the photo all I felt was joy, love and a feeling that she will always be with us. This is a gift - a gift no one has ever been able to give until now. "I'll be forever grateful because it helped with my healing after losing Ava. On opening the photo all I felt was joy, love and a feeling that she will always be with us."
From a photograph of Ava taken on her first birthday, a silhouette of Ava was made...
...Which brought Ava into the new portrait, so that she would always be close to Zoe and her three sisters.
Rupert and family
Rupert and his family have booked on several occasions over the years, and this is what Rupert had to say about their most recent photographic experience:
“Family, time, and memories are all very precious.
"Modern technology enables us to have thousands of photos in our pocket, but typically on a small screen, and with the most precious ones getting lost amongst so many others.
"Professional portraits - printed and mounted with a high- quality finish - are a much better and long lasting memory of my family (including much-loved furry friends!) at this point in time.”
Rupert
the chan family
Alice, Po and their little daughter came to the UK in the summer of 2022 from Hong Kong, and this is what they had to say about their portraits:
“The photographs capture the emotions of the people... it was very different to what we had in Hong Kong. The experience we had focused on capturing the interaction within our family, and it was really natural.”
Po And Alice
You can see more in the video below:
"This marks the start of our life here, because we have just moved to the UK. You can look at the wall art now, and it’s basically the theme of our house."
becci, olly doug, dora and baxter
"When we went on our first date, we walked around Tredegar Park together eight times - neither of us wanting the time together to end. We both used to walk our dogs separately, and we brought our dogs together on our first date."
"We wanted some artwork to go over our couch, something that celebrates us being together in the moment with our three dogs Baxter, Dora and Doug, and something that reflects us as a couple."
"Our artwork is now in our living room, and this celebrates us being together in the moment...something that reflects us as a couple."
Becci and Olly
joanne, kirk and castiel
Castiel is a much-loved white German Shepherd, and Joanne describes him as "loving, bouncy, stubborn and loyal."
Says Joanne: “Castiel is my best friend and we’ve had him since he was 9 weeks old.
"He’s my everything, my world, and he shows his loyalty by looking out for me on our many walks together, always checking to see that I'm safe."
Ella Haf and her humans
“What we now have on our living room wall is a positive reminder of how she has helped me through such a challenging time.”
“My Ela-Haf is a gorgeous cavapoo who was bought for me by my youngest son following a traumatic work incident.
“At the point we welcomed Ela-Haf into our family home, I was unable to leave the house by myself.
“Fast forward several months and she has changed mylife and the life of my family.”
You can see more about what Ela Haf's humans say in the video below.
Hear What Charlotte Says About Her Portrait Experience In This Video
"Would really recommend a session with Paul..."
"The photographs are absolutely beautiful."
Charlotte S, Pontypool