A Jane Austen Inspired Bookish Photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Cate Alldred
Dec 5, 2025
3 min read

Woman with long hair reads a book outdoors, leaning on a stone railing. Sunlight filters through trees, creating a serene mood. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

That morning, it was absolutely pouring.

The kind of rain that makes the sky feel heavy and dull, where every plan suddenly feels a bit… optimistic. Kyra and I had been messaging back and forth, watching the forecast, and eventually landed on the sensible decision:

“Let’s call it. We’ll reschedule.”

This was supposed to be our Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot – soft, romantic, a little bit dreamy, a little bit dramatic. Not soaked and shivering under an umbrella. So I made a coffee, sat down, and mentally moved the shoot into “another day”.

And then the weather did what British weather does best.

Fifteen minutes later, the rain stopped.

The clouds thinned. And just like that, the sun broke through.

Five minutes later we were both throwing outfits, books and camera gear into bags, racing the light and heading straight for Royal Holloway.

Woman in a white shirt holds a blue patterned book in a sunny forest, with fallen leaves around. Mood is contemplative. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Woman with long hair in a white shirt, holding an open book, stands in a sunlit forest with autumn leaves on the ground, appearing thoughtful. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Chasing the Light at Royal Holloway

If you’ve ever seen Royal Holloway, you’ll know why it’s perfect for a Jane Austen-inspired photoshoot.

Red-brick towers. Arched hallways. Long, sweeping corridors that feel like they’re hiding a story. It’s the kind of place where you can easily imagine a heroine wandering the grounds with a book in her hands, completely lost in her own world.

When we arrived, the paths were still slick from the rain, catching little pockets of light. Kyra stepped out of the car in high-waisted trousers, a crisp white shirt and an oversized blazer, two hardback books tucked into her hand.

She looked like she’d just walked out of an old university library – part literature student, part quietly powerful main character in her own story.

Woman with long hair gazes pensively outdoors, wearing a dark jacket and white shirt. Sunlight creates soft contrasts and a serene mood. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Creating a Jane Austen Inspired Bookish Photoshoot

We wanted this shoot to feel like a quiet love letter to stories and the women who read them.

No big staged poses. No stiff, formal portraits. Just that feeling of being wrapped up in a fictional world and letting everything else fall away.

We wandered through the courtyards and cloisters, using the architecture to frame Kyra in ways that felt cinematic but still soft and intimate. Some of my favourite moments:

Woman with long hair leans on a stone ledge, resting hand on cheek. A closed, ornate book is beside her. Sunlit garden background. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Woman in a dark blazer leans on a stone railing, surrounded by sunlit foliage. Her expression is contemplative. Warm, natural light. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Woman with long hair in autumnal garden setting, wearing a brown coat. Soft light filters through trees, creating a serene mood. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Woman outdoors, holding a blue book, looking upwards thoughtfully. Background shows blurred trees and grass with dappled sunlight. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Woman holding a dark book with gold patterns, titled "Goodnight & You." She leans on a park bench, with sunlight filtering through trees. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

We weren’t trying to recreate specific scenes from Austen, but to capture the feeling of her worlds – quiet yearning, independence, wit, softness without weakness.

If you’ve ever wanted a main character photoshoot that feels like a cross between your favourite period drama and your bookstagram feed, this was exactly that.

Woman in a white shirt and dark jacket holds a book, eyes closed, in a sunlit park with autumn foliage. Book titled "Goodnight, You". - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Woman with long hair holds a patterned notebook in a sunlit garden, wearing a dark jacket and white shirt. Background has trees and stone railing. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Why I Love Bookish & Main Character Photoshoots

As a photographer and a reader, bookish photoshoots are one of my favourite things to create.

They’re not just about “pretty pictures”. They’re about capturing:

Your love for stories
The way reading makes you feel – safe, powerful, escapist, romantic
The version of you that exists in your favourite fictional world

A main character photoshoot is for:

Readers who want to be the heroine of their own story for a day
Bookstagrammers and authors who need book photography that reflects their aesthetic
People who simply want photos that feel a little bit magical and deeply personal

And honestly? They’re just a lot of fun. We get to play, wander, explore, and create something that feels uniquely “you”.

The Magic of Imperfect Plans

If the morning’s rain taught me anything, it’s this:

Sometimes the best shoots aren’t the ones that go perfectly to plan. They’re the ones where you nearly cancel, then decide on a whim to go anyway.

Kyra and I could’ve easily moved the date. But instead we trusted that tiny gap in the clouds – and we ended up with a gallery full of images that feel like stills from a story we almost didn’t tell.

Wet cobblestones, sun bursts through gaps in stone buildings, hair whipped by the wind, pages fluttering in a breeze that came out of nowhere… it was messy in the best way. Real. Alive. Story-soaked.

That’s what I want my bookish photoshoots to be: not staged perfection, but lived-in, honest, romantic moments that feel like they belong to you.

A woman with long hair, eyes closed, holds books while sitting on stone steps next to a balustrade in a serene outdoor setting. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Let’s Tell Your Story

If you’re ready to feel like the main character for a day, or you’re dreaming of a bookish photoshoot that looks like it belongs on your favourite bookish feed:

✨ Get in touch via my contact form✨ Tell me all about your favourite books, your dream setting, and the mood you’re imagining✨ We’ll bring it to life – rain, shine, and everything in between.

Because your love of stories deserves to be part of your story too. 📖✨

Woman with long hair holds a gold-patterned book on a stone railing. Autumn trees and sunlight create a serene, thoughtful mood. - Jane Austen inspired bookish photoshoot at Royal Holloway

Cate Alldred - Bristol Photographer