Hello, I’m Irma - an award-winning Brighton family photographer. My story starts in a small town in the Netherlands - which is just how you'd imagine it to be, picturesque, flat and lots of windmills, cows and bikes!

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When I finished school I spent the summer working on a campsite in Italy - which I think must have awoken my adventurous soul. I went on to study in Costa Rica, volunteer in Guatemala, write my MA thesis in Buenos Aires, and live and work in Australia and then Sri Lanka.

My itchy feet (I hate socks and am almost always in my beloved Havaianas!) finally took me to London. This is where I met my husband, gave birth to our daughter, and kissed goodbye to lie ins. In October 2021 we moved to Brighton & Hove to live by the sea. 

Since becoming a mum my life has changed quite a bit - but although there is a lot less travelling involved, there are definitely still lots of adventures! Only now they are no longer solo, but with the three of us, as a family.

I love meeting new people,  travelling (can you tell?) and good food. I'm also really good at playing MarioKart. Seriously, challenge me any time!

Documentary Family Photographer Irma Arrowsmith and her brother when they were children. Family photo taken in the Netherlands, where Irma grew up. Family documentary photography.
Irma as a baby with her dad in a caravan during a Summer holiday in Zeeland, the Netherlands. Irma Arrowsmith is a documentary family photographer based in Brighton & Hove, East Sussex.
Irma and her dad on a campsite in Holland. Family photo taken in the eighties. Irma Arrowsmith is a professional family photographer working all over Sussex.
Mother bathing toddler girl outside in the garden. Family documentary photo taken in the 80ies of Irma Arrowsmith and her mum. An award winning family photographer based in Brighton & Hove.

I have always loved photography and I am so grateful that I was able to turn my passion into a profitable business. Back in the Netherlands I started my photography journey at the “Fotovakschool” in Amsterdam - where I basically learned how to navigate my digital SLR.

Once I left that school my mind was totally set on traveling and that’s when I started getting interested in street photography. I still absolutely love taking portraits of people in different countries. I must have thousands and thousands of travel pictures, still waiting to be printed!

My heart definitely lies with portraiture - taking photos of human connections, emotions and real life is what I love the most. Hence my choice to become a documentary family photographer! If you would like me to photograph you and your family then I would love to hear from you.

CONTACT IRMA

Brighton Family Photographer | Hove Family Photography | Documentary family Photography

  • Top 10 UK Family Photographer
  • Irma Arrowsmith is a published family photographer in Photovogue.
  • Documentarian Awards badge for Community Choice Single Image Finalist from Documentary Family Photographers (DFP).
  • Irma Arrowsmith is featured in Juno Magazine.