About Nicolas Challenor
Leicestershire wedding photographer
Passionate about film, photography and capturing memories.
My love for photography initially grew from my experience within filmmaking. I studied filmmaking at the University of Bolton, but what I really began to understand in the film world was how photography was the essence of the picture. Film is moving image, and the only way to understand visual storytelling is to delve into the depths of what makes a great picture.
This intrigue grew early on with landscapes. Masters such as Ansel Adams, Bruce Percy, and Michael Kenna showed me the power, energy and timelessness of a photograph. As my interest in photography grew so did the different genres I wished to experience. It wasn't long before portrait photography and event photography became a strong interest to me. I strive to captivate the elegance of a person, allowing them to be seen as their best version of themselves. Capturing moments, this is the soul of it all. Witnessing other peoples joy, and being able to save that moment for them for an eternity, is extremely rewarding. Timing is integral, but being able to understand light and modifying it to create a depth and mood is an important element to what I do. Living back in Leicester I now do various types of photography, from portraits to events, and can be hired for private or commercial use.
Witnessing people coming together, seeing a loved one embrace one another, and capturing that split second is what I do. My love for creating a beautiful image and telling a compelling story stems from my background and passion for film, and as they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.
My Style
The best way to describe my style is by referencing what others have said. Emotional, energetic and timeless. My goal is to give clients beautiful, artistic, and energetic photographs, whilst keeping the experience light and enjoyable. I work hard to give individual attention to all of my clients, respecting their wants and needs whilst continuing to deliver the best attention to detail and high quality that they truly deserve.
Fun Facts
Before photography I was a filmmaker and during my first year of studies I directed a short film called Mobius which was heralded as a "great short film from a talented filmmaker" by Academy Award, BAFTA and Grammy winning director Asif Kapadia.
I taught myself how to play the guitar and this tool became extremely useful to me during my years in filmmaking where I would compose my own music.
I can juggle, which is an extremely useless talent for me, but kids kinda like it!
It took me less than 10 minutes to learn to swim when I was 9, shame I still swim like a drowning fish.
I'm an avid sportsman, and get a kick out of activities that require extreme hand-eye coordination.
Created two Tai Chi instructional DVD's for the world renowned Master Wang-Hai Jun
Back in school people always got confused with my last name, so I was often referred to as "Challenger" and only with many years of hard work, relentlessly reminding people my name is Challenor not Challenger. To this day people still make the mistake of calling me "Mr Challenger".
I love to travel and explore new places. Visiting the snowy glaciers of Switzerland or the vast alpine peaks of Austria, to the wondrous woodlands of the Harz Mountains in Northern Germany. These adventures have shown me how much beauty and vastness there is in the world.
One of my all time favorite movies is Memento as I am fascinated with how memories work, fade, and can be distorted.