Ellie Clinch- Street Style and Michelle Obama … and how this applies to you
From Love Stories, to Michelle Obama as a client, to London Fashion Week to street style to supporting emerging creatives in Creative Mornings and now Soapbox … Ellie Clinch is an unpretentious mainstay in Edinburgh’s creative scene, finding what works for her.
This set of tips will help you to shoot what you love, identify your themes and bring them together. I love her edits and the genuine human warmth and joy she conveys with her photos.
Ellie’s Tips
1/ Shoot what you’re interested in- let curiosity lead you and don’t worry about making mistakes. I’m always fascinated by people- what they wear and how they express themselves; body language, posture and stance. It makes capturing street style a lot of fun!
2/ Learn the basic guidelines so you can break them. There is a lot of information out there on composition and what makes a ‘good photo’... but it’s all subjective! Learn the basics so you know what they are, but trust yourself and take the photo you want to take and not one because it ‘follows all the rules’. It’s your photo first.
3/ Chat with strangers and ask to take their photo, most people are happy to and usually just want to know why (I always say if it’s for a personal project and tell them a bit about it, or whether it’s for something more), and the few that say no are usually kind about it. The brief connection or conversation you end up having is a lovely by-product, you never know who you’ll meet!
4/ Find the light. Photography derives from the Greek words ‘photos’ meaning light, and ‘graphos’; drawing. Drawing with light. Find your light source and go from there, nothing too bright, nothing too dark, a slightly overcast day is your friend!
5/ Have a main character in your photo, is it the light, the colour, a person, or something else? This helps to draw people into the photo.
About Ellie
I love running and going for coffee and spending time with friends and family. I love to capture people. My photography follows a somewhat documentary style as I’m fascinated by how people express themselves and endlessly curious.
I’ve spent many seasons capturing street style at London Fashion Week and have worked with brands such as The Caledonian Sleeper Train, St James Quarter and The Leith. My most famous client was Michelle Obama and my favourite project was one I did a few years ago titled Love Stories; where I spoke to someone every day about something (or someone) they loved.
I currently co-host, and co-founded, a creative community gathering called Soapbox which is about to celebrate it’s first birthday. I’m insanely proud of that. Throughout my career being part of a community has been instrumental in helping me grow, but it’s also helped inspire and energise me. After covid I felt like that was missing from my life, and Soapbox came from that space.
This year I’d love to do some more personal projects documenting and capturing some more street photography, and weave in some more brand campaigns too. It would be amazing to have my own book one day!
Maybe of interest?
We also have these photography tips from other brilliant photographers:
Mike Guest’s article - featuring his glorious water and surf work - his advice focuses on joy, photographing friends and seizing the moment.
Or begin at the very beginning of this series- join James Robertson’s photography advice - framed in his ultracycling work - looking at different kinds of portraiture, the importance of patience and lateral thinking!
Kenny Gordon’s tips - showcasing advice on wild weather, getting up early and just asking!
Rachel Hein’s photo thoughts - Rachel’s skill at capturing beautiful moments between people shines through in her 8 practical tips.
And John Summerton’s advice- built from reviewing thousands of photo stories in his role as magazine editor.
Each article is as individual as the person. Take from this series of tips what resonates to you and enjoy playing around.