Well, where has the year gone?!

 

It’s hard to believe we’re already heading towards the end of November, and what a busy, varied and enjoyable year it’s been behind the camera at Paul Groom Photography, with a big surprise in the middle of the year which will all be revealed towards the end of the post!

I’ve had the pleasure of working with some fantastic people, businesses and organisations over the past year, visiting some interesting locations and photographing all sorts of things along the way. No two assignments are ever quite the same, which is one of the things I love about what I do.

I thought it was about time I shared a little selection of photographs from the year so far. It’s only a small snapshot, but hopefully it gives you a flavour of the variety of work I’ve been involved in during 2026.

 

A Little Bit of Theatre – Living Spit’s Omlet I’ve had the pleasure of working with the wonderfully entertaining theatre company Living Spit again, producing promotional photography for their stage production, Omlet. A light hearted (but no less thought-provoking)) version of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. The show is currently touring around the UK, and the promotional photograph features Stu holding the lead character, Omlet. Theatre photography is always a thrill, and I particularly enjoy working with performers and creative people who have a strong visual identity and a story to tell. If you haven’t come across Living Spit before, they’re definitely worth investigating! Have a look at the Living Spit website to see where you could see this superb show.

Omlet by Living Spit – ON NOW!

Renishaw at the epic and really rather wondrous Concorde.

A Big Night Out with Renishaw Another interesting assignment was photographing a large group for an event organised by Renishaw, the hugely successful engineering company based in Wotton-under-Edge (where my office is based). I’ve worked with Renishaw on various occasions over the years, so it was lovely to be asked to photograph them again. The photograph was taken underneath the rather impressive Concorde at Aerospace Bristol, which certainly provided a spectacular backdrop! Getting a large group of people together for a photograph is always an interesting challenge, particularly when there’s a party going on, but it’s always rewarding when you get that one photograph that brings everyone together. The rest of the evening involved party pictures with a nice mix of networking, posed smaller groups and speeches.

First Dates – Back on Channel 4! Another highlight of 2026 has been photographing the new series of First Dates for Channel 4. I’ve been fortunate enough to undertake all the photography for the new series, which has meant another opportunity to work with the wonderful team behind the programme, not to mention meeting some rather interesting characters along the way! See my dedicated blog post about the new series which includes a few surprises. the new series has now hit our screens, and it’s always a little surreal seeing photographs I’ve taken appearing on television and across the programme’s publicity. It’s certainly one of those jobs that reminds me just how much fun photography can be!

Hindles, Bristol.

Corporate Photography – New Faces and New Offices One of my corporate assignments this year was photographing the team at Hindles Law Firm, following the opening of their new Bristol office. Hindles, an Edinburgh-headquartered law firm, has been expanding its presence into the Southwest, and it was great to be involved in capturing some photographs to mark this new chapter for the business. It’s always enjoyable working with professional teams and helping businesses put a face to their name. You can read more about Hindles’ Bristol expansion, here.

Commercial Photography – Behind the Scenes at Bristol Hospital I’ve continued to undertake commercial and interiors photography this year too. One particularly interesting project was working with Koddis Construction, photographing the newly completed emergency maternity ward at St.Michael’s Hospital, in Bristol. This was mostly an interiors photography assignment, capturing the finished environment and the facilities created by the construction team. It’s a slightly different discipline to portrait or event photography, but one I really enjoy. Good interiors photography is about showing a space at its very best, paying attention to the light, composition and detail, while giving the viewer a real sense of the environment. We also took some corporate portraits for the company’s website. It’s also a great example of how professional photography can help businesses showcase the quality of their work.

Koddis Construction’s new space at St.Michael’s Hospital.

Seb Braun artwork

Working with Artists – Seb Braun I’ve also continued my longstanding relationship with the exceptionally talented artist Seb Braun. Seb is a superb artist, and I’ve been lucky enough to photograph a great deal of his work over the years. In fact, I’ve taken the majority of the photographs featured on his website. Photographing artwork requires a slightly different approach, with colour accuracy, lighting and detail all being particularly important. The aim is to reproduce the artwork as faithfully as possible, allowing people to appreciate the colours, textures and finer details just as they would if they were standing in front of the original. It’s been a pleasure working with Seb over the years, and I’m always impressed by his creativity and the quality of his work. Do take a look at his website – there’s some fantastic artwork to discover: https://www.sebastienbraun.com

Supporting a Worthwhile Cause – Inflammatory Neuropathies Another event I’ve had the pleasure of photographing is the annual Inflammatory Neuropathies get-together and conference. This brings people together for an opportunity to meet, share experiences and learn more about inflammatory neuropathies. It’s an important event for the organisation and the people it supports, and it’s a privilege to be able to help document these occasions through photography. Events like this are a reminder that photography isn’t always just about producing attractive images for businesses. Sometimes it’s about capturing people, bringing communities together and recording occasions that genuinely matter to those involved. You can find out more about the organisation and the work it does here: https://www.inflammatoryneuropathies.uk

And That’s Just a Small Selection!

Looking back through the photographs from this year, I’m reminded how much I enjoy the variety of my work… from television and theatre to corporate portraits, commercial interiors, artwork, conferences and large group photographs. It’s that variety that keeps things interesting, and I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to work with so many different people and organisations.

So, why were you surprised, Paul?

As promised, here’s the big reveal!

On my last First Dates shoot, I had a rather unexpected surprise. The amazing Cici Coleman, who is normally busy working as one of the First Dates waitresses, was actually there for a date of her own! It was a little unusual seeing her on the other side of things, and it made for a rather different photo shoot.

I had the pleasure of taking some portraits of Cici, but there was another surprise in store. On the day, she asked if she could take a photograph of me!

I’m very pleased to say that the portrait of me that’s been appearing on my website for the past six months was actually taken by the one and only Cici Coleman! So, if you’ve been wondering who was behind the camera for that one, now you know. I wasn’t allowed to reveal this until this week when her episode went live as it was a closely guarded secret that she’d had a date!

A big thank you to Cici. It was great fun, and it’s not every day that one of the stars of First Dates turns the tables and takes the photographer’s photograph!

If you haven’t seen the episode, I can thoroughly recommend watching it. You can find out how Cici’s own date went here.

	Screenshot

Looking Ahead to 2027

With the end of 2026 fast approaching, there’s still plenty to do before the year is out, and I’m already looking forward to seeing what 2027 has in store.

If you’re a business looking for some fresh corporate photography, need professional portraits, want to showcase your premises or have an event coming up that needs photographing, I’d love to hear from you.

Whether it’s a one-off assignment or an ongoing working relationship, I’m always happy to have a chat about how I can help.

Finally, a huge thank you to everyone who has booked me, recommended me, worked with me or supported Paul Groom Photography throughout the year. It’s very much appreciated.

Here’s to finishing 2026 on a high and looking forward to another year of interesting people, places and photographs!

Paul Groom

Paul Groom Photography

 

Website: https://paulgroomphotography.co.uk

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PaulGroomPhotographerBristol/