Lavender Love: Nnastia Photography's beautiful Disability Awareness Styled Shoot
What an honour to feature this beautiful shoot on our blog today.
July is Disability Pride and we are delighted to show this fantastic collaborative piece of creative work engineered by Nastia Nizalova of Kent -based Nnastia Photography, that not only showcases a disabled real life couple but is intentionally formed solely from the input and inclusion of disabled and disability friendly suppliers. This in itself sets it apart as something special and noteworthy, and something so important, even before the camera took its first click! So we had no question about whether we would love to include it when our coalition member Kathryn Palmer Skillings wondered whether we might like to show it. Obviously the fact that the images are an absolute lavender sprig, velvet ribbon, embroidered place cards, macaroon dream is a wonderful bonus! Kathryn merges her work as a humanist celebrant with being one of the leading champs, specifically in our industry championing disability inclusivity in the wedding industry and weddings themselves, so make sure you follow her for more, and do catch her MC insta takeover at the end of the month too!
I will let Nastia and the team take it from here. But we recognise that Most Curious is only just taking it some of its first steps into disability inclusivity after 11 long years and there’s lots of great insight and generous advice here on how to do that too.
What was your brief for the project?
Creating a beautiful wedding shoot that brings together disabled and disability-friendly suppliers highlighting the very big need of making the wedding industry accessible. We wanted to show that by supporting disabled suppliers and catering to disabled spouses-to-be you can have the wedding of your dreams.
Would you feel comfortable talking about your own disability or experience with disability and how they intersects with this shoot and the industry too? As briefly or as in depth as you would like.
My whole life I've been searching for answers as to why I can't keep up with everyone else. Physically and mentally I've experienced many difficulties, until last year I've finally received my ADHD diagnosis and learned about the co-morbidities that come with it, such as PMDD which essentially rendered half of my life useless, pain-ridden and boosted my ADHD symptoms.
That meant that full-day shoots that would happen on bad days would knock me completely out. I always have an assortment of pain medication to get me through. I've had trouble remembering basic things about working my camera, so had to come up with hacks like a checklist of things that I might want to go over if something isn't working out as I want it to. I heavily rely on scheduling apps and CRM systems to keep everything organized and neat. While I'm very much a people person and client experience is a high priority in my business, some days my brain works against me, which makes everything just a little (lot) harder.
What are your thoughts on disability inclusion in the wedding industry and how did this shoot support that?
I think there's not enough representation and that needs to change. Some blogs and suppliers might include a token disabled person or shoot, but that's nowhere near enough. In fact we've tried to submit to other blogs which have said that they already published a disability-friendly shoot. In the meantime features with able-bodied models and neutral concepts get published all the time. As long as disabilities are seen as something inconvenient or "other", we will not achieve true inclusivity. Disabled couples shouldn't fight for being seen and featured once a year. According to Scope 21% of working age adults are disabled, the real number is likely higher. Yet we definitely aren't seeing over a fifth of wedding features including disabled people.
When searching for an accessible venue I used different directories. Yet even when a venue would be categorized as accessible, it really wasn't. For instance mansions where the bridal suite would be up several flights of stairs or there were no toilets for disabled people. Or the venue was simply in a field. Sure, that ticks the box of there being no stairs, but would it really be wheelchair-friendly? What if it rains? And moreover, not all disabilities are mobility related. It just shows that in the industry it's become normalized to tick a box and say something is accessible, when in reality clearly disabled people haven't actually been consulted or properly considered.
In the end I asked for real couples' experiences and was recommended Winters Barns. It had everything we were looking for and the staff were very open to suggestions.
I think it's important for us, disabled suppliers, to be vocal about our experiences when we're able to. And make sure our businesses are inclusive. It might seem like a small step, but it will have a ripple effect on the industry.
Shortly before this shoot I've started taking medication for both ADHD and PMDD which made a huge difference. I still struggle with many symptoms, but it's definitely more manageable. I was worried that I might lose my spark or creativity, but it didn't!
Since discovering more about my conditions, I realized that so many disabled folks start their own (often creative) businesses to be able to cater to their needs. And the wedding industry is chock-full of amazing disabled suppliers, which isn't visible at all. This is what we want to change. We want our clients to know we can relate and cater to their needs. Whether anyone has a visible or invisible disability, they should have the same beautiful experience planning and celebrating their wedding.
What was the experience of shooting it like?
It was such a whirlwind of emotions. When we first talked with Emma from White Petal Cakes about creating a styled shoot that isn't the standard able-bodied wedding fairytale we're sold by all the media, I never thought we'd actually pull it off. This is my first styled shoot and it would have been so much easier to go for a theme of "boho chic" and roll with it, but no, there was a message we felt was too important to pass on. So all these wonderful suppliers came together and made it possible. Everyone brought their absolute best to the table and it was so reaffirming to be surrounded by fellow suppliers who just get it.
What was the vibe like throughout the day?
It was super chill and friendly. We had lots of laughs and banter throughout the day, and everyone got along so well. It didn't feel rushed, we managed to have enough breaks and order some lunch, and still get all the photos we wanted to. The entire day was lovely throughout.
Who would you like to signpost to - people to follow or resources to use - who are raising awareness and making a difference, spreading good/useful info around this - whether that's in the industry or the wider community?
I would definitely recommend following Kathryn, @kps_celebrant, she regularly posts on disability and inclusion in the industry!
Other people to follow are Nina Tame, Disgaybled, ItsKatouche, @disabledtravelwithgeorgina, @disabled_eliza, @luckyfinproject, Campfire & Compass, Reach, @disruptorofnorms
And of course all of the suppliers on this shoot are avid supporters of the cause.
What was your favourite moment and why and/or favourite shot and why?
Probably making sure the dress is fully covered so that our model Jenny could eat her subway sandwich too :) And my favorite shot is probably the confetti shot because it encapsulates all the joy we experienced throughout the day. But the handfasting shot is also my favorite, because our celebrant Kathryn created such a sweet and beautiful ceremony, I feel honored to have captured that moment.
Who are your big shout outs?
Honestly, every single supplier brought an essential ingredient to the shoot. Everyone knew what we're working for, and their talents and professionalism really elevated the whole experience.
This shoot was a wonderful opportunity to meet beautiful people that have since stayed in touch. I've learned a lot from this experience and we hope that we can spread our message and make our tiny impact on the industry we love and work in.
[Nastia also wanted to add this about her fantastic team as well as some words from them]
As well as having the privilege of being a Humanist Wedding Celebrant, Kathryn Palmer-Skillings is also a proudly Disabled Woman and have been active increasing awareness of the lack of accessibility & representation of Disabled People as couples and suppliers in the Wedding Industry and Wedding Media from the start of her career as a celebrant.
"I am a bridal designer who specialises in dresses for brides with various disabilities. I campaign to bring equality and representation to the disabled community within the wedding industry. I have recently opened a fully accessible bridal boutique in South Yorkshire and welcome brides from all over the UK. No appointment is necessary but is advised if you're coming from afar.
When Nastia asked me to be a part of the shoot, I couldn't say no. The concept and theme was dreamy and I knew exactly how I could help. The dress used for the shoot is my Ava dress from my first collection.”
White Petal Cakes is luxury cake artist, serving Kent, Sussex, London and Paris.
Renowned for her expertise in sugar flower creation and outstanding service, Emma creates all her cakes with the upmost professionalism but more importantly she pours her heart into her creations. Emma Joined the disability awareness shoot, as she has multiple disabilities of her own. The main being - Behçet’s disease which effects everything from her eye sight to mobility, it is important to Emma for other people to see that disabled people are not held back by their added day to day struggles.
Lily Jones is a multi award-winning Wedding & Event Planner and Stylist.
Lily focuses on encouraging their clients to make their weddings as unique to them as possible, throwing out outdated traditions that don't fit with their vision. Lily was so excited to style this shoot as not only is it an essentially important issue, but it is also one that is close to my heart. And a special thanks to Lily ffor picking up the slack when just shortly before our shoot I had to take a step back from the planning. The dress, hair and makeup suited Jenny, our model and close friend of mine, so perfectly, I teared up when we were shooting the bridal prep and the first look. Really looking forward to working with all of the suppliers again, because they all smashed it!
“The under representation of disability in the wedding world is something I have been campaigning against for a while now,” describes Lily, “so I was very excited to be invited on board with this shoot to help bring some awareness to the disabled community within the wedding industry as well as help to create some inclusive images.”
Can you pin point 3 action points for the wedding industry and its suppliers, that would make a big difference, when it comes to disability inclusion? A big question, I know!
But perhaps some quick wins, people can do today for their website or services, language? Or do let us know more broadly as well.
As a supplier, definitely try to make it clear on your website and in any content you publish that you use inclusive language. Personally, I speak about my experiences and struggles so that both clients and fellow suppliers know there's a person behind the business and disability is part of that. Some people truly don't know about various needs, and speaking out about them helps fill in the gaps.
Of course, we can't be 100% accessible for everyone at the same time. The celebrant in our shoot, Kathryn Palmer-Skillings holds Instagram lives with other disabled suppliers, and I've heard one of the most important, in my opinion, things to remember about inclusivity. We probably can't create an experience that caters to every need of every person, so no, there wouldn't be such a thing as 100% accessible venue for instance, but the key is to be open to catering to the needs of our clients. If I have a client that needs to be able to see "on paper" everything we speak about, they will receive a full overview of our conversation with bulletpoints. Although who am I kidding, all of my clients get that because that's my need and I am absolutely terrible at retaining audial information, so it's gonna be there in black and white!
Working with disabled suppliers is also extremely important. By creating a supportive network, we will be able to learn more about different experiences and be able to recommend the best person for the job when clients enquire.
And now! Let’s meet the gorgeous couple and hear about the experience of being such a key part of this brilliant shoot and how they think the wedding industry can level up when it comes to making the wedding industry accessible?
Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Jennifer-Louise Read. Jen for short, Daniel Stewart is my partner. Dan for short. I’m a pet/wildlife photographer. He’s a security guard.
How did you meet?
North School 6th form.
If you are comfortable please do let us know what your disabilities are orrr alternatively if it feels better, what your needs are that you would have to consider for planning a wedding in terms of disability inclusion?
Jen: Phocomelia affecting right arm, left and Fibromyalgia.
Dan: ADHD, Tourette’s and memory loss.
Fave thing about each other?
There’s a few from Dan; he says humour and confidence. Also brashness.
I love about him, his hair and his humor.
What was the experience of being featured in this shoot like?
AWESOME. We had the most amazing time and worked along side some incredible people. Both me and Dan have not modelled to this extent before and we learnt so much!
Was the shoot similar to how you would envisage your wedding day?
No, but only because I want my wedding to be full Halloween, gothic etc! This experience was opposite but still very much enjoyable.
Did you enjoy the shoot? :) What was your favourite part?
Absolutely did! I loved the first look and getting ready part. Was so fun!
Any advice for the wedding industry and suppliers on how they can be more disability inclusive?
Although I’m not in a wheelchair, we need more ramps, disabled toilets and washrooms. Braille options, megaphones for those with hard of hearing.
What was the experience of working with the team - anyone you want to particularly shout out?
Everything was extremely well done from timing to photos, to design and layout. Nastia gets a huge shout out as she had her hands full. Best photographer ever!
FULL CREDITS:
VENUE | @wintersbarns
CONCEPT & PHOTOGRAPHER | @nnastia.photography
STYLIST & FLORALS | @lilyjonesevents
MODELS | Jen & Dan @felinedoggeous
MAKE UP | @makeup_with_emmac
HAIR | @hair_by_tel
CELEBRANT | @kps_celebrant
CAKE & FAVOURS | @whitepetalcakes
STYLING ASSISTANT | @posypatou
DRESS | @quinlancouturebridal
BOUQUET | @fauxeverblooms
STATIONERY | @thisispurplenib
SUIT | Model’s own