NORFOLK WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER
Your Ethical Wedding Photographer
ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER. WE LIVE IN A SYSTEM THAT LOOKS FOR INFINITE GROWTH – BUT WE EXIST ON A FINITE PLANET.
I have always had an acute awareness for protecting the British landscapes and environment for most of my adulthood. I’ve been revisiting my business plan for where I would like to be in 5 years’ time and know I could be doing more to protect the environment around me, my family, and friends.
As most of you know, I already pledge 2% of my profits in support of British rewilding and Norfolk charities that protect the local wildlife.
We live in a system that looks for infinite growth – but we exist on a finite planet. We are now seeing the serious implications of our actions, only today the British Isles recorded the highest temperature on record since 2019! The local duck pond is drying up, our beloved dogs are suffering heat stroke, the elderly and vulnerable have been warned to stay indoors wherever possible. We only have one earth; we must protect it.
How much of England is woodland?
Only 4% of Britain’s woodland has native tree specious. A dire 13% of the whole 243,610 km² of Britain is covered in any type of woodland. Those trees would have provided much needed shade in the upcoming days, they are a rich array of wildlife habits. In Norfolk, this figure is even lower, with only 9% of the county wooded. This is having a devastating impact on our wildlife – right now a third of all woodland species are in decline.
Is this talk about national bird declines hot air?
Everyone knows in my spare time one of my hobbies is birdwatching, there has been a serious, countrywide, decline in the numbers of many birds, including many well known and loved species such as the song thrush, skylark, lapwing and house sparrow.
This decline has been gradual. However, declines may have started in woodland habitat also, with lesser spotted woodpecker and willow tit now red-listed because of their severe declines.
THE FOLLOWING LISTS PERCENTAGE DECLINES OF SOME BIRD SPECIES RECORDED IN THE COMMON BIRD CENSUS BETWEEN 1970 AND 1999.
TREE SPARROW – 95 PER CENT
CORN BUNTING -88 PER CENT
WILLOW TIT -78 PER CENT
SPOTTED FLYCATCHER -77 PER CENT
WOODCOCK -74 PER CENT
STARLING -71 PER CENT
TURTLE DOVE -71 PER CENT
SONG THRUSH -56 PER CENT
BULLFINCH -53 PER CENT
SKYLARK -52 PER CENT
CUCKOO -33 PER CENT
I’ve travelled the whole world with my couples BUT the global rise in temperatures is very real at home.
As both a birdwatcher and photographer, I am aware that I cover a lot of travel miles, burn up a lot of electricity with all the editing and charging of equipment, and have taken appropriate steps to reduce my carbon footprint over time, with the ultimate intention of becoming carbon neutral.
So here are some of the actions I strive to take in the next 5 years, with the ultimate aim of making myself carbon-neutral, and a sustainable wedding photographer. Every year from 2022 I will be Planting Trees I have chosen to donate the necessary funds to the Woodland Trust to plant enough trees to offset my carbon footprint and plant native trees in my county, the project is the “Green Farm”. Norfolk is my home. However, this beautiful part of the country has just 9% of woodland cover, which is significantly lower than the England average.
IMAGE CAPTURED BY NEIL SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHY OF THE LOCAL BRANCASTER, NORFOLK WILDFIRE 2022.
We can do more together – here are my sustainable business goals.
1. Going Paperless
All my contracts, invoices, other business documents are all done online.
My album suppliers (Folio) are UK based which reduces the transport distances involved in the delivery and therefore CO2 emissions created, all of the packaging my photographic prints and your vegan friendly USBs are supplied in are either recyclable or compostable. Even the folio your prints arrive in is made from recycled paper.
2. Video calls for client meetings
If there is one thing that 2020 really gave us, was a wider acceptance of Zoom calls (other video chat providers are available) as a staple of the way we communicate – especially in a business setting. I aim to continue to use video calls for client meetings to keep the number of miles and CO2 I’m burning as low as I can
3. Rechargeable Batteries
A lot of photography equipment is powered by batteries. All the batteries I use are rechargeable. I use Eneloop which hold their charge and don’t require the constant recharging some more familiar alternatives do.
4. Hybrid Car
Photographers can cover a lot of miles, and it isn’t possible for us to use and rely on public transport, which likely accounts for my biggest carbon output. My next car purchase will be hybrid and factors heavily in my 5-year plan.
