Pair a picture of happiness as they mark 20th anniversary of launching Hawick photography business

Photography remains both a profession and passion for Hawick couple John and Sandra Parris as they celebrate the 20th anniversary of the launch of their business.
John and Sandra Parris, of Hawick's Parris Photography, are celebrating 20 years in business.John and Sandra Parris, of Hawick's Parris Photography, are celebrating 20 years in business.
John and Sandra Parris, of Hawick's Parris Photography, are celebrating 20 years in business.

Parris Photography, now run from a studio at the pair’s home in the town’s Hislop Gardens, has received lots of accolades for the quality of its wedding and portrait photography over those two decades.

The couple’s work takes them all over the world for assignments across Europe, the US, Australia and Indonesia.

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It was in January 1999 that they opened their first studio at the Station Buildings in Hawick, remaining there for almost five years.

They moved on to a base in the town’s Crown Business Centre for another few years before realising it would be better to work from home.

John taught Sandra the ropes when they met, and he says they both still love their work with a passion.

Hawick-born John, who originally studied at Borders College, said: “I taught Sandra all about photography at the beginning, and we used to do weddings together. She developed such a great eye for photography herself and just went for it and became a full-time, qualified photographer.”

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The industry has changed dramatically over the years, a fact John acknowledges.

He said: “We started in the dark-room process, with our own film, hand-printing in colour, and then digital came along and the technologies changed and social media changed things.

“Anybody with a camera can call themselves a photographer now and set up a Facebook page.

“That’s the hardest part because the only way you can survive in this industry is to actually have a product that’s better than anyone else has.

“It may sound a bit arrogant, but it’s the truth.”

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The couple, parents to Luci, 25, and Kieren, 23, say photography remains a passion for them.

John added: “We both love the business, and it’s given us a great life, having been able to travel the world taking pictures of people. It’s a fantastic experience, but we are still learning.

“I have achieved a fellowship in portrait photography, one of the few in Scotland to have that title, and Sandra is a qualified master photographer as well.

“It’s our passion as well as our profession. We just love it. It’s in our blood.”