In a cove on the coast, at the edge of the land…

Back in October of 2024, as a marketing professional with Tempest Photography, I became aware of the struggles some children were facing around school photo day. As a parent of children who had endured similar worries, I made a decision to tackle the issue.

I reached out to families in a bid to hear their personal experiences and understand the tools that might ease some of the pressures for their children. The response was overwhelming.

On the back of these discussions, I created a number of tools and introduced changes aimed at helping children’s anxieties. These included short form and long form video highlighting the studio setup and photography equipment, the introduction of basic Makaton sheets to help photographers bridge potential communication gaps, and two little fish named Timmy and Tilly.

The two piscine stars of a children’s picture book highlighted similar worries and offered insights into school photo day. The book was a hit with schools and families.

I led on this project, wrote the book and briefed the design team, edited the studio setup video and scripted the dialogue, and introduced Makaton for photographers. All these tools were delivered free to school and families.