Artful images revealing spirit and soul.

In one stunning photograph, Angela Scott gives you a priceless record of a moment in your own history, a piece of art for your wall, and a powerful talking point.

Photographs are no luxury. They are among the most important, valuable possessions you own, for they hold your history and memories. There is enormous pleasure in exploring and revisiting a beautiful album of family images. You see at once the special bonds and connections between you all, and are reminded of the stories that make you a family.

Now consider the even greater pleasure in having just one photograph that is in itself a work of art, and also shows a moment in time precious to you. A photograph of yourself or your family as a work of art on your wall will personalise your home far more than any furnishings and fittings.

Angela Scott is more than a photographer – she is a portrait artist, who offers her clients the profound pleasure of owning a stunning piece of art that is also the image of a single moment in time that is precious to them. The piece of art will be a focal point in its own right. More than that, in one image you will have a story that is precious to you. Every time you see it you will remember your baby, yourself, or the family group, as you were at that time in your personal history.

How do you choose the one image? You will be buying a work of art produced by an artist photographer, so Angela will only show you the shots that she is happy for you to purchase. You will be shown the images in a beautiful viewing room where you may enjoy a great cup of coffee, sit back and relax as you watch the shots on a large wall screen. Angela will be with you as you respond to these images, and discuss with you the impact of each.

Because she recognises that it may still be hard for some to choose just one photograph, she may help you select a series which will make a beautiful art piece when presented as one object. And for those who really cannot resist, the studio can commission for you a custom-made album of a group of images. The exquisite personalised albums can be produced in a range of sizes, beautifully presented to a very high standard, to suit your budget.

Angela sees it as her mission in life and as a photographer to understand and capture the depth of the person she is working with. She is skilled at drawing out the best in people. In appreciating your uniqueness she immediately helps you to relax and perform in front of the camera. She also works with a small team of professionals who are passionate about their work, and always shoots with an assistant who knows how she works and who understands how to assist people to be themselves when being photographed. It is especially helpful, when working with children, that Angela’s assistants are also trained nannies.

“I like to work as part of a small team where everybody is able to work together without thinking. This is an important ingredient in producing high-quality, personal portraits for our clients – portraits that show emotion. If the environment is not right, the person being photographed will not express emotion, they will be wary or even closed down.”

“I always shoot with a small depth of field, which is tricky, especially with babies. But it is important to me to express what occurs in the relationship between myself and whoever I am photographing, and the intimacy of the small depth of field is a powerful way of doing this.”

As a deeply spiritual woman, Angela is committed to honouring the depth and spirituality of every individual. This brings a connection between photographer and subject that makes the difference in her work.

“My work comes from my spirit, my soul. I believe that as a portrait photographer, you must first understand yourself and offer that vulnerability to your clients. This is what allows them to be in a space where they are themselves. I love meeting people, and readily relate to clients, wherever they are at in their lives.”

“I also look outside myself for inspiration. I just love to immerse myself in a book of portrait photography, and also I draw a lot of new ideas and approaches from fashion magazines from the United States. At the moment, I am especially enjoying work that uses lots of movement, colour, and slow shutter speeds.”

Photography is in Angela Scott’s blood. She grew up in Auckland, New Zealand, and her childhood was steeped in the love of photography of her father, Gordon Scott, the prominent New Zealand commercial scenic photographer. Gordon Scott is known for his photographs of the Tangiwai lahar in the 1950s and the Ngaruawahia NZ eruption in the 1960s.

Among Angela’s earliest memories are the many trips in a campervan, savouring the best of New Zealand as her father, tripod always at the ready, searched for the defining images of the country he loved so deeply. The whole family was involved in helping Gordon produce the first colour postcards, calendars and scenic booklets of New Zealand. “We were always dressed in red,” recalls Angela, “for shots of us against the green bush.”

The campervan was important because its height gave better vision of the stunning landscapes; more important, it gave lots of access to the changing light, a critical element in photography. Angela grew up with an awareness of light ingrained into her, as her father was always discussing light teaching them about its delights and nuances almost in the course of natural conversation. Without realising it, Angela grew up learning how to look and really see what is there before her eyes.

“I think my sensitivity to light has something to do also with the deep spiritual input in my work. As a photographer I am acutely aware that a lot of photography is what comes out of you, and your interpretation of what you see of light. I am able to home in on the emotion present, and look for ways to capture that in an image.”

In her photographic work, Angela Scott also draws deeply on the artist within her. She excelled in art at school, and remembers how she always drew a frame around her life drawings. At times this seems to have puzzled her art teacher, but it shows how even then the importance of framing an image was innate to this young artist-photographer.

Angela’s photographic studio began from her home when her son Marco was just six months old. An old sign saying “portrait photography” went up on her fence, and among her first clients was Team New Zealand member Joey Allen, who commissioned photographs of his son. Soon afterwards the work extended to wedding photography, and now includes commercial art photography as well.

Now Angela and her team can welcome you to a very stylish studio and gallery in Grey Lynn, where they take pride in offering you a total experience in keeping with working with you to produce a personal piece of art. What counts is the finished product, and for that reason, your photo session may take place in either the studio, or at a location that is relevant to your requirements.

“It is important to us that you are comfortable throughout your association with us. You will find our studio fresh and inviting and we want you to feel welcome from the moment you arrive. We will give you our price list so you will know from the beginning how to work within your budget, and we will help you decide what most suits your requirements.”

Angela Scott’s work appeals to a broad range of clients. She finds she is rarely asked to do a formal portrait these days, as people are drawn more and more to a natural feel in photographic images, where emotion plays a powerful role. Angela particularly loves to work with design conscious people, because her work has a high design edge. She uses both digital and film cameras, depending on the light and what she wants to achieve. She knows exactly which to choose when, and why, and always has the end result in mind as she chooses.

“I want to produce the best that I can. If I am photographing your child, for example, I aim to offer you an image of your child that you would be unlikely to take yourself. I believe that Auckland families are very style conscious and seek a timeless look that shows casualness and all the warmth in the relationship between family members. When I photograph a wedding, I am looking to produce images that show the very people who are being married, the depth of their relationship, the sense of occasion. I will look for the shots that people expect, but ensure that their personality is shining through.”