BEHIND THE SCENES WITH SILVER ROSE CORSETRY
Not too long ago, I had the privilege of working with Sophie, the designer behind Silver Rose Corsetry. I had been a fan of her work for a while, and reached out and asked if I could take one of her gorgeous pieces with me when I learnt I would be visiting the Yorkshire Dales. Much to my delight, Sophie told me she had just finished working on her latest creation, the Onyxia dress.
Usually when working with brands, I put forward a list of concepts before going out to shoot. With Sophie's permission however, I decided to use this little retreat as an exercise in creativity. What could I create on the spot? How would the landscape, combined with the dress design, influence story generation?  
The retreat had been organised by another designer (whose designs I was also shooting on this trip) and little did I realise the focal point of the weekend was an all-day hike through the Dales! So we donned our hiking boots and packed up our weights in camera equipment, props, a giant ballgown and a replica sword!
About an hour and a half into walking, we had climbed our first peak when we came across this beautiful bleached log. I've always been inspired by my surroundings, and I knew the log would be perfect for lying across or sitting on. The terrain was incredibly rocky, and I was very fortunate to be there with three other women to lend a helping hand! One played my human tripod, and after setting up the shot and giving her instructions, another friend of mine helped me into the ballgown and onto the log, which required a lot more manoeuvring than I had first imagined!
As we continued to the bottom of the peak, we made a stop for lunch. I turned around to see how far we'd come, and was blown away by the astonishing view I looked out on. 
From the moment I had laid eyes on Onxyia, I had known I needed to do a princess shot. The lace detailing was delicate and feminine, but the black and grey tulle gave the sense of being daring and strong. It was a dress as beautiful in the back as the front, so it did not take long after being captivated by the view to come up with my second concept: a runaway princess, wanting to find freedom outside the walls of her kingdom.
My third and final piece with this dress was taken towards the end of our hike. By this point, we were getting very tired. We had hiked up and down two peaks, done a separate editorial shoot at a nearby natural pool and, rather incredibly, scrambled up the side of a waterfall (I definitely thought I was going to die as we squeezed behind wet rock and jumped over ominous gaps).  
Despite the tiredness however, I felt incredible! I love going for long walks, and exploring incredible hillsides and rocky areas – but most of my day to day life is spent editing at a computer. If someone had told me beforehand what we would accomplish that day, I would have called them crazy! But we did it. 
And so, at the top of our last peak before we were to head back down, I was feeling empowered. I had put my body through it's paces and come out, quite literally, on top. My friend Hannah had ever so kindly carried around a huge Game of Thrones replica sword during our hike, and in that moment I knew my third image had to echo the victory I was feeling. A queen readying for a battle – prepared to fight and win back her throne. 
Credits:
Photography & model: @joannaclairesellick
Dress design: @silverrosecorsetry
Human tripods & assistants: @eiko_costume & @bubosi_feather