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A collage of images containing the author, Al Topping and his adventurous family.
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Hi! I'm Al.

I'm your man for commercial and adventure-themed photos and videos, particularly if you're based in the Lake District - as I am!

The engineer in me (my first career) and the meticulous planner (my second career) have become the foundation of the way I work and features in everything I do - commercial or adventure. I enjoy the variety of my work and the people I meet and especially the opportunity for creativity.

I've been shooting for almost 20 years and it has allowed me to become proficient in a number of genres.

I don't believe in just turning up and 'pressing the button' - I like to have a thorough understanding of what you want to achieve and go with a plan which guarantees excellence - because that's what you're paying for.

So whether you're in it for the spirit of adventure or to step up your next marketing campaign to the next level, there's something I can and would love to offer.

A man in a checkered shirt and blue jeans stands holding a professional camera. He's standing in long grass with a large hill behind him.
Photo credit: Ben Shakespeare
How it started

Commercial Photos & Film conceived from a place of adventure

I

started going on my own adventures when I turned 16. It all began when I started climbing with a school friend. My weekend trips away to a new place were the highlight of my time at school before I left to go to university.

Weekends haven't changed much since then, but as I've grown up, the focus has a little.

The author and his family sat in long grass in an alpine meadow
A young boy in a red coat cowers in the rain while secured in a child carrier on his mum's back.
A man, woman and child wearing shorts, t-shirts and buoyancy aids paddle a green canoe to shore.
A woman kneels with a young boy on a jetty overlooking a lake at sunset.
A young girl in a climbing helmet reaches the karabiner at the top of her climb. Her mum belays from below
A man with a young child in a backpack walks up a steep slope with a mountainous scene behind them in the distance.
A decent picture should include emotion, context and maybe a wee bit of drama and it should always tell some kind of story.

On my honeymoon, I walked through a kilometre long tunnel in the pitch black with my new wife... stay with me here, it's not what you might think. We were trying to explore the far side of a reservoir on the French/Austrian border and the tunnel was the only way to get there.

There was an open rickety door at the start which had a padlock dangling from it but all signs on our tourist map pointed through this tunnel to get to the other side. With no-one else around to seek the comfort of a group decision, we said 'sod it' and went through anyway hoping we'd not get stuck on the way back.

We didn't have a torch and the lighting in the tunnel barely showed the floor in front of us. Around half way, we were met by this guy, lurking in the darkness.

A black and white photo of a man running away from a dinosaur with sharp teeth bearing down on him.

Fortunately, it was only a statue and as the initial shock from the encounter subsided we realised it was all a hoax - strangely enough and we continued on our way.

Why am I telling you this story? Well because as a newly-wed couple who had gone to Chamonix to go climbing, trail running and walking for 10 days, the thrills of doing something exciting which we weren't used to made the headlines for the trip.

This photo sums that up for me as it captures all it needs: emotion, context and drama. These are things I hope to capture for you in my photos and film.

Al Topping has a high level professionalism, he is full of great ideas and has a lot to offer whether you are experienced or a newbie looking for high level service.
Owner of the Doi Intanon Thai Restaurant, Kim Kaengrit
Kim
Restaurant Owner
A woman wearing a red suit jacket with black hair stands at a pedestal on a stage speaking into a microphone.
Jackie Lerm
Head of Social Media - BFBS

"We asked Al to be the photographer for our live event in Harrogate, #SMSpousesLive. He was very professional, extremely thorough in his planning, made sure he understood exactly what we'd like, and was relentless when taking photos of the event. He snapped away until the very last person left. When we got the photos back, we were blown away by how great they looked. Al captured the day for us perfectly, and we'll definitely use him again in the future."

A woman in a white top is interviewed by a man in a blue top while holding a microphone with BFBS written on it.
A man and woman, both wearing black sit on the bonnet of one of a fleet of black sports cars. They are smiling at the camera.

What I Do

I've tried being the vanila, bog standard family and wedding photographer and, to be frank, that sucked! So, I thought I'd do things a little differently.

Here are some of the headlines to what I do, and why I like doing them.

If there's something you're interested in but do not see it on this website do drop me a message as I'm sure I can provide it or make a referral to someone who may be able to.

The icon of the PolicyBee insurance company

I'm an Insured Professional

One likely difference between professional and non-professional photographers/videographers is that they're insured. 

Simply confirming that your photographer, whoever they are, is insured is an easy way to determine if the person you're looking to work with is serious about the services they offer.

I'm currently insured for 3rd Party Liability (currently covered for up to £2m) and for Professional Indemnity (insured for up to £10,000) through PolicyBee.

If you'd like to know more about how this may affect us working together, contact me for more details.

Not ready yet?

Why not get to know me a bit?

In the meantime, why not get to know me and my work a bit more opt in to receive my monthly emails. No sales talk, just an update on what I've been doing, articles on how to get the best from using photos & videos in your marketing and some exclusive pdf's to make your work life easier.

At any time, if it isn't right for you the unsubscribe button will always be there to enable you to unsubscribe.

It's ok to want to know more before picking up the phone. I got it. And so that's what this option is for.
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Lake District photographer, Al Topping leaning on a white wall, holding his camera while smiling.