Wintry walks with a compact camera (by Cheshire Photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

I've been desperate for some proper wintry weather, a hard hoar frost to transform everywhere into a glittery winter wonderland, or a decent covering of snow just for a few days, preferably over a weekend. Instead it's been mild, wild and wet for the most part, depriving us photographers of any typical winter landscapes to get excited about. If it weren't for Ferb, our Italian water dog (a lagotto  if you want his posh name) I would have stayed indoors waiting for more exciting and photogenic weather to arrive. Our energetic dog lives up to his name and needs his daily splash in filthy water, so we've been out anyway and along with lead, treats and poo bags, I always pick up a camera on the way out of the door.

Occasionally I have a photographic mission in mind and will take a SLR and specific lens along with me, my "nifty fifty" for arty, soft focus shots of forest and fauna, or "big boy" (my super fast Canon 70-200mm f/2.8) for action shots of Ferb haring along woodland paths chasing squirrels. Lately, due to an increasingly painful tennis elbow (or in my case photographer's elbow) I've had to opt for a much lighter load, so it's the Fujifilm X10 that's accompanied me. Not that I'm complaining as it's a wonderful little camera, with a maximum aperture of f/2.0-2.8, beautiful colours and great performance in low light. A whole load of other typically Fuji features make it a joy to use, much more than a point and shoot compact. The zoom is a bit limited at 28-112mm but for general shots of landscapes, close ups and portraits (usually my husband or the dog!) it's perfectly adequate. If you'd like to see more images taken with this lovely camera see my Pinterest Board.

All taken with the Fujifilm X10. I had some fun editing them too with actions in Photoshop Elements.

You might wonder what I've found to photograph on our muddy walks, but if you've got the clicking bug like me, then almost anything can be transformed into a picture if it catches the light in an interesting way, or if you can see a striking composition. I have a thing for trees at the moment, but haven't quite mastered how to shoot them when there's a lot of other trees around them creating clutter. Watch this space for a tree project one day. On our last few walks we've had a few sunny spells and the low winter sun has created slanting shadows through the trees.

Top tip for this time of year

• Wintry light can be quite dull and if you are photographing anything that moves you need to watch that your shutter speed doesn't get too slow. It needs to be at least 1/250th of a second or your moving subject will be blurred.

• Check your shutter speed as you take the picture. As you half press the shutter button it will be displayed on the LCD display or in the viewfinder.

• Or after you take the image and are looking at it, if you press "Display" or "Info" (depending on your camera) then you can usually see what shutter speed you used.

• If it's less than 1/250th then you need to increase it. If you're using the green fully automatic mode then you need to change to P (Program Mode) by turning the dial on the top of your camera. The camera still does the important stuff automatically for you but you can take charge a little.

• Now look up how to change the ISO setting. This might be a button on the back of the camera or in the menus. Increase it to a higher number until your shutter speed is fast enough. You can check your shutter speed by half pressing the shutter down as you focus on your subject and checking what number it displays.

• You can do all of this on any type of camera apart from the majority of camera phones.

Knowing my way around the camera, being aware of what the camera can and can't do on the Auto settings and knowing what to do if the light is tricky is second nature to me now and I can concentrate for the most part on "seeing the image". If something happens unexpectedly I am ready to catch those spontaneous moments (or some of them at least!). Photography is a constant learning process for me, and probably for everyone and that's one of the things that makes it so addictive and enjoyable.

If you'd like to get to grips with your camera then why not book a course or one to one lesson with me. This all becomes second nature very quickly when someone shows you how to do it and it will make a dramatic difference to your photography.

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!

In 2014 I resolve to… (by Cheshire Photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

Is it too late to be talking about New Year's resolutions? It usually takes me a few weeks to work out which ones I'm serious about and therefore have a chance of actually keeping for a while. On New Year's Day I'm usually suffering a tad from the night before (if not from the effects of the whole of December) and I vow to cut down on wine consumption and with that goes losing a few pounds and getting fitter. Yeah well, I know in which direction those resolutions quickly go and it's not up! I have spent a few quid on a phone app that measures how far I walk with the dog and I'm cautiously optimistic that I will get a bit fitter that way.

Now that we've passed the mid January mark I've settled on some resolutions that I've had time to think about a bit more and - surprise, surprise - they are photography related all the way! I've made a few business ones and overall they are focused on making a living from the things I really enjoy about photography, but I'm keeping them under my hat for the moment! I can share with you the resolutions I've made regarding my personal photography:

To be in more photographs. I hate pictures of myself and delete most of them before they have a chance of being seen by anyone else. I do not exist in albums or sideshows and this is sad. I also realised that as time passes we become more forgiving and I now quite like pictures of me that I used to hate and see them for what they are. An image of me looking bloated and exhausted after giving birth to Abigail, is actually a lovely shot of me in the first moments of motherhood.

I hated this when it was taken in 2001. I love it now, especially the way Abigail is doing Phones 4 U with her fingers!

So I took my first selfie late last year and posted it on Facebook. No one wrote rude comments, not even my brother, in fact some people were quite complementary. 

My first (and to date only) selfie

I was even more daring when I included in a slideshow a picture of me slumped asleep on Christmas Day.

The only picture of me Christmas 2014… oh dear.

And again, the world didn't stop turning and I wasn't banned from Facebook for offending public decency. I love my family and I love remembering where we've been and the stupid things we've done together. But where are the shots of me hugging them, laughing with them and being hugged back? So watch this space and apologies if I'm not always airbrushed within an inch of my life! And of course there's a chance that knowing I'm going to be photographed more might drive my never quite achieved fitness and weight loss goals!

Get photographs off the computer and into photo books. I suspect we're all guilty of doing nothing with our digital images and I find it a bit frightening if I'm honest. When we are dead and buried will our children know where to find all our photographs in the Cloud or on our hard drives? They won't have heavy, battered albums with yellowed tissue paper separators to leaf through and reminisce about. So I'm resolved to create an annual photo book, no mean task as I went digital in 2001. But it will be well worth it, as I imagine our great grand kids looking through them and asking who is the blond lady who isn't in many pictures?! (Until 2014 that is, of course!)

I've created lots of photo books for clients and recommend Bobs Books for their quality and colour accuracy. The software is quite easy to use and layouts can be easily customised. Delivery is quick, rare problems are resolved quickly and without quibble. They are not the cheapest photo book supplier but that's because they're good. For everyday albums go for their standard quality but if it's for something a bit more special it's well worth paying that bit extra for "photographic quality" paper. Aside from superb print quality the pages lie completely flat so you don't lose part of the image in the book spine.

Photographic quality book from Bobs Books

I was sorely tempted to add a few more resolutions but instead think I'll store them under Projects I Hope To Do In 2014. I've more chance of sticking to a couple of resolutions rather than a long list. Feel free to challenge me and ask how I'm getting on. If I do well it should be obvious on Facebook. And I'd love to hear if you've set yourself any photography related resolutions.

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!

Baby Harriett's first photo shoot (by Cheshire baby photographer Jane Burkinshaw)

I photographed Harriett back in October but couldn't share many of her pictures until now, as her parents were giving framed images as Christmas presents. The lucky grandparents had no idea that Harriett had even had a photo shoot and were bowled over by the pictures. I'm really happy to be able to share them now as she is a beautiful baby girl.

The name Harriett means "lord of the manor" and this was certainly true of this little lady in the first few weeks. She wasn't easy to settle, preferring to be held in her mum's arms all the time. And when she wanted something she knew how to shout for it! My daughter was exactly the same in the early months and I knew that we were going to have to be patient to get those angelic, sleeping images.

Whilst mum fed and settled Harriett I made cups of tea and photographed the sort of details that also make amazing memories. This is my favourite - the family's slippers lined up in a row!

Mum was also happy for me to take discreet pics of Harriett breastfeeding - I love the way she is soothing her daughter by stroking her temples.

When babies do take a while to settle, which is more often than not, I like to take pictures of mum and dad interacting with their baby, often catching very intimate and natural moments that reflect what it's like to be a new parent.

And when Harriett finally fell asleep the magic really started to happen. With the aid of a screen and fake flooring I'd created a simple backdrop with a lovely comfy bed for her in a vanity case and we'd got the heating set on tropical. Harriett's parents couldn't believe how it was possible to get such lovely images without them having to tidy up their lounge!

If you're expecting a baby and would like to enquire about a newborn shoot in the comfort of your own home, then please get in touch. I'd love to hear from you.

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!