When I submitted the manuscript for Crochet at Play, there was MUCH celebrating. We'd done it! Written a book! Yeah! High FIVE! It was DONE!
...and then I quickly realised that it wasn't.
The Photography:
After writing the book, came the task of finishing up samples (with help from Joanne, Jacqui, Rita, Elly and Jessica) for the photoshoots.
Preparation for the photo shoots was a more bit fraught this time. The testing process threw up some problems in a couple of the patterns that meant they needed a complete redesign. A women's cardigan had to go as it was too complicated (it was replaced with a shrug featuring in an upcoming issue of Inside Crochet) and a pair of men's socks needed to be resized after it was found I'd used a faulty measurement chart in designing them.
Both items were easily fixed. However, running out of time on the socks, I needed to block them on the evening before I headed down to London. Thinking it wise, I put them on the Aga to dry. In the time it took to put the kids to bed, I came downstairs to find a significant scorch mark on the side of one of the feet (an achievement that recently got me a mention in the Daily Mail!) Thank the stars for Photoshop!
Photographing my own books is at once the most wonderful and terrifying element of this experience for me. It is a privilage to have that level of creative control, but equally terrifying to work with people who work with some of the best photographers in the world.
However, each time I walk into the amazing location houses in London we hire for the shoots, hug my stylist Nadine Tubbs and my editor Vicky, my nerves quickly settle. This time, we added models and a make up artist (GIno D'Campo's makeup artist none the less!) to the mix. I am always intimidated. I am always terrified. I always enjoy it and I am almost always thrilled with the results (I am my worst critic).
Over the course of a total of 5 days of shooting, I took about 2,000 photos which all had to be edited and turned around within a week of the shoot. There are always projects that I wish we could reshoot or edits I would change.
One of the hardest shots to get this time was the cover. Last time, my publisher was very clear that they wanted an older photo of Georgia for the UK edition of Crochet at Play. This time, however, we wanted to show some of the more gift elements of the book, so we shot a number of set ups for potential covers.
The lime green with cushion and booties was very nearly the cover, but it was important to convey the book wasn't just baby gifts, so the photo of our model Chelsea in the Slouch and Bobble Hat was picked.
I am off to pack up all the pre-orders and get them to the post office!! See you tomorrow for launch day!