A Portrait of Holly – [Growing Up Deaf]

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This is the first episode in my new youtube series entitled ‘A Portrait of..’ featuring my wonderful and warm friend, Holly-Ann Dennis.
I knew when I first met Holly I wanted to do a photo shoot with her… but I felt like I needed more than just a photo shoot with her.

Holly has been deaf all her life and I just fell in love with her approach to life and needed to show this to the world and inspire others as she has done me. When I post a photo, I often like to give you their name, age, tell you about their past (as well as the #GEEKPART of course). In this case, I wanted you to hear it directly from Holly herself rather than from me.

This project takes the focus off me for a change. As a freelancer, it’s so easy to be stuck inside your own head: How am I going to market myself? Did we get enough footage of me photographing the subject or HOW AM I GOING TO FEEL CREATIVELY FULFILLED?

When I filmed the James documentary, ( that wasn’t something to make myself look good, it wasn’t a way of marketing anything or a promo to improve my business… It was doing a good deed and feeling like it was something I had to do… and I’ve honestly NEVER felt more creatively fulfilled. So thats why I decided to start this series of mini versions of a ‘James Documentary’ if you like and share real people and their real stories. Nothing is sugarcoated. This is real. That hug at the end, for me is what photography is all about. Connecting with people and if I can do that with my camera… then I’ll look back on a very fulfilling and happy career.
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CREDITS
Model – Holly-Ann Dennis

Cinematographer – Michael Mowbray
www.mmcinematography.com

Assistant – Graham Bewley

Assistant – Dan Baugh

Director & Editor
Tommy Reynolds
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Song featured:
‘Prayer’ by One Hundred Years
sourced by MusicBed.com – Get a 30-day free trial below

#deafgirl #inspire

34 Comments
  1. Daniel Cockram says

    Such a beautiful video, inspirational and empowering. Well done Tommy.

  2. Giovanni Faldetta says

    Hi Tommy, you did make a great job and also she is an amazing woman and a wonderful subject.

  3. Fie Franciska says

    amaziiiing 🙂

  4. tom morgan says

    Inspiring to say the least. Holly deserves all the luck in the world.

  5. WENDELL SMITH says

    Beautiful. Well done

  6. Alexandre Piché says

    Almost got me crying on this one. Amazing video Tom, very inspiring! Thank you for that.

  7. Robert Schulting says

    A lot of respect for this woman. Great video, good story and wonderful images. Tommy, I think your videos are great, it inspires a lot and you bring pictures and videos well.

  8. Andy Miles says

    Great images Tommy. I love the way the video itself paints a “portrait” of her and the challenges she has overcome in life. She is very inspirational.

  9. Fernando Fresco says

    Fantastic!! Loved it!

  10. Jason Blake says

    What a beautiful piece of work with 2 beautiful people!!

  11. Makers Telemark says

    I think it would be great if this video defaulted to closed captioning and a bit of framing to get it in. Such a nice portrait. Thanks to both for sharing.

  12. Jonty Photography says

    Great video (and images). Thank you for sharing Holly's story.

  13. TheYeti InOz says

    Nice work Tommy!

  14. Brian Chen says

    A beautiful story, video and photos.

  15. RJVR Photography says

    Magical, emotional and truly inspirational. Your bts videos are always amazing and filled with all the small details, also got me all teary-eyed (small bonus). Keep doing what you do, because you not only inspire photographers but everyday people to.

  16. Jenny Yip says

    Tommy, This is a WOW moment! Beautifully captured and shows your ability to 'narrate a story' by the individual. Confident enough not to plaster your face or voice as a marketing tool on your own shoot. Steven Spielberg doesn't do it too, he uses every second to showcase his subject. Penny dropping moment.

  17. George Castro says

    Your post was absolutely phenomenal! So inspiring! You deserve an award!👍👍

  18. Alex says

    Good portraits, nice project but
    i cant look at that location without feeling the absolute crushing existential dread of Children Of Men (2006) which was partially shot there.
    Not your fault!
    Nicely done.

  19. Dany J. Mendez says

    Dude, your work is inspirational….!!!!!

  20. nigel west says

    What an amazing girl

  21. Stukenborg Photo says

    When I saw the images of Holly on Instagram and that Tommy interviewed her, I could hardly wait for this YouTube video to come out. And you both are as amazing as I imagined! Holly you are remarkable and an advocate for all those who face challenges…Thank you for sharing your story with us!
    #okrid

  22. Saman Shariati says

    wow. I'm blown away by the quality of this interview.

  23. Garry Murphy says

    Truly inspirational young lady and awesome photography Tommy 😍

  24. James A Photography co uk says

    Great video.

  25. Paul Bruce says

    Brilliant work. Such a powerful piece. Id love to see more of portraits with a background of the person being photographed. Amazing photographer.

  26. GoodSnapPhotography says

    This was fabulous Tommy! Holly – Ann is an inspiration and your photographic skill is next level! Was fab to see you at the photo show again after our one to one session and can't wait for future videos! All the best,
    James 🙂

  27. Hu Ko says

    Great woman!

  28. Kavan Lake says

    Tommy, this was amazing. You’re not only a great photographer, and storyteller, you’re a fantastic human being. Thank you.

  29. Matthew Pullen says

    Brilliant to hear your view Holly and well done for showing everyone what they are missing too. As we are both Deaf the daily struggle is real but we are still human. You deserve a lot for your efforts! Can't wait to see what project you do next!

    Tommy, this was a fantastic piece of work. 👍 New fan here!

  30. George Kamau says

    Beautifully done!

  31. springerspanielful says

    Top class video again Tommy,keep smiling.Tipperary George.

  32. Scott Mentink says

    Brilliant!

  33. Geoffrey Mackrill says

    Inspirational, it's so nice to hear people say " You can be whatever you want" and then just get on and do it. Well done, and thank you.

  34. Barry Mountford says

    Awesome work man, great inspiration!

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