Documentary, Event and Architectural Photography
I use photography and short films as an effective and engaging way to visually communicate, document and share urban design, built environment, and people-focussed project work to inspire a wider audience, as part of a creative participatory process, or for clients’ reporting and summary purposes.
An Urban Designer by training, I specialise in providing high-quality documentary, architectural, city or street photography to capture the essence of different places, tell their stories, and/or communicate built environment project processes and outputs.
Supporting clients with photography documenting events, design projects and processes
As a freelance photographer with a background in landscape architecture, built environment design and user engagement, I help clients document key events, workshops, stakeholder meetings and design stages of their projects, with a particular emphasis on visual documentation of creative, design and sustainability projects.
Leading and curating creative participatory photography projects
I am experienced curating and leading creative projects. These often combine photography, short film, curated exhibitions and/or other visual outputs. Given my background in co-design, participation and neighbourhood planning, these are often part of a wider stakeholder engagement or user research strategy to provide insights, collaboration and inspiration to feed into design or urban planning decisions or increase project awareness and support.
Previous clients include Sustrans, City of Edinburgh Council and Testing Grounds, Melbourne.
Self-directed creative photography projects have focused on the hidden stories of everyday places, documentary portrait photography, and ways to bring people together. around local places For example, Looking for Rainbows doorstep portrait photography series from lockdown in 2020, or Hold Me Dear.
Exhibited street photography
I have been fortunate to have had exhibitions of my street and documentary photographs at galleries and site-specific installations in the UK and Australia. These include as part of the ‘Hope’ exhibition at the Menier Gallery, London and at Testing Grounds in Melbourne, Australia,
Short films to capture people, places, design processes and projects
I create short documentary films that highlight urban design, sustainability, community engagement, and creative projects. Scroll down to see my film portfolio, including project summaries from my work as co-Founder and Director at Here+Now landscape architects, during The Bothy Project artist residency, and self-initiated short films documenting local stories, people, and places in Edinburgh. My film services provide clients with impactful visual content to capture the essence of their projects and engage audiences in meaningful ways.
Photography Portfolio
The photography portfolio of Edinburgh photographer, urban designer and illustrator Jenny Elliott, including examples of documentary, architectural and event photography. Clients including University of Edinburgh, Here+Now, AndThen, Sustrans and City of Edinburgh Council as well as self-initiated photography work.
Photography Portfolio
The photography portfolio of Edinburgh photographer, urban designer and illustrator Jenny Elliott, including examples of documentary, architectural and event photography. Clients including University of Edinburgh, Here+Now, AndThen, Sustrans and City of Edinburgh Council as well as self-initiated photography work.
Documentary Film Portfolio
The documentary short film portfolio of Jenny Elliott. This includes examples of short films created to document and share urban design, sustainability, community engagement and creative focussed projects in Edinburgh. This includes creating short project film summaries of urban design projects I was involved in leading whilst co-Founder and Director at Here+Now landscape architecture and design consultancy, films produced as part of The Bothy Project artist residency and self-initiated film projects documenting local stories, people and places in Edinburgh.
Short business marketing film created by Jenny Elliott, showcasing the work of HERE+NOW (of which Jenny was Co-Founder/Director 2014-2019).
Short film created for the launch of Translation by Tissø Lake, ITLAN records during an artist residency at The Bothy Project in Inschriach, Aviemore, Scotland.
Film by Jenny Elliott, documenting HERE+NOW’s use of the Scottish Government’s Place Standard wheel, as part of ‘People and Places: Make Leith Better’ project with Leith Creative
In 2019 Jenny Elliott created the graphic design, branding and web-design for Edinburgh Living Lab, including creation of a short introductory film.
Film created by Jenny Elliott to document community engagement, design and build project ‘Space to Sit’ by Here+Now at The Grove in Fountainbridge’s temporary urban meanwhile space. This event brought urban growing communities around Edinburgh together through a volunteer design and build day creating seating to be homed in community garden projects around Edinburgh. This culminated in a bike tour to visit each community growing space, where informal talks and opportunities to speak with those involved in urban growing from around the city helped to inspire and share learnings. The project was supported by Sustrans, City of Edinburgh, The Grove and the many community gardens involved.
A local social history and conversation with local legend - Joyce of Joyce's Cake Shop, Canonmills, Edinburgh. Originally made through interviews with Joyce in her cake shop to enable her to be included as a speaker at HERE+NOW’s 'PEP Talk' event in 2015 which she could not attend, this film by Jenny Elliott shows a rare insight into the stories and memories of local places that are often passed down by word of mouth.
Film and videography commission for client Living Streets Scotland in 2022 including assembling audio and visual user interview footage of everyday walking UX. Launched at the Living Streets Big Walking Seminar and featured on their website.
Film created during Jenny Elliott and Ian Humberstone’s collaborative artist residency with The Bothy Project. As a musician, Ian used field recordings to create the film’s audio, and Jenny, a visual designer and landscape architect used photography and film to provide the visuals. Together these auditory and visual senses that combine with other experiential qualities to help define a sense of place. During our days at Inshriach Bothy we explored this beautiful landscape whilst the weak winter daylight lasted, and found visual senses dominated. As dusk turned to pitch black inky night, auditory clues took over to translate the world around us.
