Yana Skakun
Journal
Photography Blog
Tips, guides, venue spotlights and behind-the-scenes stories from my photography sessions across England.
Venue Spotlights
2 April 2026·9 min read
Clare College Cambridge Wedding Photography: The Backs' Most Beautiful College
Clare College is arguably the most beautiful college in Cambridge for wedding photography — the elegant baroque gate, the oldest bridge in the city, the riverside Fellows' Garden, and the incomparable view from Clare Bridge looking up the Cam toward King's. A complete guide.
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Venue Spotlights
2 April 2026·8 min read
Jesus College Cambridge Wedding Photography: Cloisters, Courts & Cricket Pitch Views
Jesus College has some of Cambridge's most characterful wedding photography settings — a medieval nunnery cloister, red-brick courts, the Chimney lane entrance, and sweeping views over the playing fields. A photographer's guide to weddings at one of Cambridge's oldest colleges.
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Venue Spotlights
2 April 2026·8 min read
Pembroke College Cambridge Wedding Photography: Wren Chapel & Rose Garden
Pembroke College is one of Cambridge's most beautiful and intimate wedding venues — Christopher Wren's first architectural commission, the exquisite Pembroke Chapel, nestled within stone courts and a walled rose garden. A complete photographer's guide to Pembroke College weddings.
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Photography Tips
1 April 2026·7 min read
How to Prepare for Your Brand Photography Session
A brand photography session is an investment. Preparation determines whether you get 40 usable images or 140. Here's exactly how to get ready.
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Photography Tips
1 April 2026·5 min read
Pet Parent Gifts: Give the Gift of a Dog Photoshoot
For the person whose dog is basically a family member — a professional pet portrait session as a gift genuinely surprises and genuinely lasts.
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Photography Tips
1 April 2026·5 min read
Wedding Gift Registry Ideas: Contributing to Wedding Photography
Contributing to a couple's wedding photography is one of the most meaningful things guests can do — a way to invest in something the couple will look at for the rest of their lives.
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Photography Tips
1 April 2026·5 min read
Unique Anniversary Gift Ideas: Couple Photography Session England
An anniversary portrait session does what most anniversary gifts cannot — it creates images the two of you will still have in 30 years. Here's how to plan one.
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Photography Tips
1 April 2026·5 min read
Gift a Portrait Session: The Most Personal Present
A portrait session gift voucher is one of the few presents that creates something permanent — an experience that produces images the recipient will keep for life. How to gift a session thoughtfully, and the occasions where it works best.
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Photography Tips
1 April 2026·7 min read
Engagement Photography in the Lincolnshire Wolds: Rolling Hills & Open Skies
The Lincolnshire Wolds are an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty of rolling chalk hills, deep valleys, and wide open skies — an area of extraordinary peacefulness and photographic beauty that feels entirely remote from modern England. A guide to engagement photography in the Wolds.
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Photography Tips
1 April 2026·7 min read
Southend-on-Sea Engagement Photography: Pier, Beach & Sunset
Southend-on-Sea has one of the world's most remarkable photographic landmarks — the world's longest pleasure pier at 1.33 miles, stretching into the Thames Estuary with extraordinary sunset views, plus Thorpe Bay's golden sand and the wild marshes of Two Tree Island.
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Venue Spotlights
1 April 2026·9 min read
Best Barn Wedding Venues in Essex (2026)
Essex has an outstanding collection of converted barn wedding venues — Gaynes Park's ancient tithe barn, Reid Rooms' contemporary conversion, Hyde Great Barn's medieval timbers, and dozens more across the county's rural north and west. A photographer's guide.
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Photography Tips
1 April 2026·8 min read
Epping Forest Engagement & Family Photography Locations
Epping Forest is one of England's most ancient Royal Forests — 6,000 acres of ancient pollarded hornbeam and beech woodland stretching from east London into Essex. A guide to the best photography locations within the forest for engagements, families, and portraits.
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Photography Blog — Tips, Guides & Inspiration
Welcome to the photography blog by Yana Skakun — a professional photographer based in Cambridge, England. This journal covers everything from practical wedding planning guides and engagement session advice to family photoshoot tips, newborn photography guides, portrait session prep, and venue spotlights across Cambridgeshire, London, and East England.
Whether you're a couple planning your wedding, a family getting ready for a seasonal portrait session, or a professional preparing for a headshot shoot — you'll find honest, experience-based advice here. Every article is written from real sessions and years of capturing life's most meaningful moments across England.