Friday, April 27, 2012

Indiana ~ "Babies are always more trouble than you thought - and more wonderful." {Melbourne Newborn Photographer}

I was warned ahead of the session that gorgeous little Indiana {nicknamed 'Jonesy' ~ Indiana Jones ~ by her great grandmother who travelled interstate to meet her great grandaughter} would give me a run for my money. How right her mother was... This sweet little girl was so alert and so strong willed you could've been tricked into believing she was 12 weeks old, not 12 days.

She was most content in her daddy's arms {and clearly he's besotted with his baby girl}, or getting snuggles from her adoring family so we went with a lot of images of her being held, which in itself is precious, but it just meant we weren't able to get the sleepy dreamy baby poses. It just shows how much the baby dictates the session, and how as a photographer you have to be willing to change the 'plan' for the session and work within the constraints dictated by the mood of this sweet and precious little creature.

I always find it interesting to see just how much character a child so young has... clearly little Indiana is not going to sit back and let the world come to her... she's going to meet it head on.

Enjoy. xo
















Thursday, April 26, 2012

Double the Love ~ One Boy, One Girl. {Shepparton Twin Newborn Photographer}

There are two things in life for which we are never truly prepared: twins. ~Josh Billings

What a perfect quote for this post. Months ago I made a call out for some multiples to photograph, little did I expect to be so blessed. Only a few days earlier I photographed triplets so being able to photograph these adorable little twins I was still riding on a high.

It was clear to see the exhaustion on their mum and dad's face, but also the love. Sweet baby Eliza and Lincoln settled easily into their session, giving their mother some much needed quiet time to take a nap.

I was given free range to photograph the day away, and was able to play with a few poses I'd wanted to try, but also, newborns, being newborns... sometimes it's all about thinking on your feet and perfecting and altering your ideas to suit each baby.

Again I found that with twins it was easier to settle them together, they feed off each others calm, so it made the session flow beautifully. I'm sure they'll grow to fuss and fight enough when they're older, best to enjoy these moments of calm and peace while they last.

Enjoy. xo















Saturday, April 21, 2012

SILVER



The nerves were running high as I waited on the judging of my prints entered in the AIPP Victorian awards... There is always an anxiety, this is where peers and colleagues (and in my case even an old Uni lecturer) judge the competence of not only the composition, but the printing and 'story' of the image. I watched as some of my images "bombed" - there's always different opinions, and what a client or even I think is perfection a third party may not see it as a stand out image. One judge explained it like this "a gold image has to be printed to perfection for tonal quality and the image itself must stay with me forever... It has to stand out."

So as I watched online to get an idea of how I was scoring I somehow happened upon all the images that were missing out on awards... It wasn't until I watched the replay of my category the following morning that I saw my image of Bailey, Miley, and Tyler judged... (I'd had to try and fit in watching the judging with chasing after my children and getting them to bed etc... So I'd missed this images being scored.)

It was 7am and I was eager to see how I did... I watched as the scores came up, and heard the comments (all of which were really constructive) ... "this print has won a silver award." - golf applause.... I beamed, my children looked at me oddly, and my heart was racing.



Now on to the national awards... The APPA's in late May. A few edits and tweaks and perfecting of some details and I go through the nervous anxiety all over again.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Here's a little baby, 1, 2, 3..... as cute as three buttons {Triplet Newborn Photographer}

I've been playing out this blog post in my head for a while, I feel there are so many elements to it, aside even from the fact that photographing triplets has been a career highlight.



I met this gorgeous family through Heartfelt, answering the call to photograph thier triplets born just shy of 29 weeks and in NICU.

{It is with the permission of the family that I am sharing a few images from that Heartfelt session and their story as a background to their babies 'newborn' session.} If you want to know my journey and why I am a Heartfelt photographer check out my earlier Blog Post.

Bailey, Miley and Tyler were fighters, it was clear from the moment the first message was sent out. Miley was breathing on her own, and her two brothers were growing stronger by the day, but having been born so early and in NICU they were candidates for the services Heartfelt provide, I kept contact with the family and photographed them in the Special Care Nursery, when they could all be together. Their story is one with a happy ending, a real pleasure to be a part of.

I met them for their Heartfelt session only one day after they'd all been allowed out for a 'group cuddle' for the first time, and was priveleged to be able to capture the moments, though brief of mum and dad holding their three little 'miracles' together for one of the first times. It almost makes me tear up just thinking about it.

I knew I wanted to offer more for the family, and asked to if they'd like some more images taken when Bailey, Miley and Tyler came home, whenever that may be... we stayed in contact and around 6 weeks later plans were made and session times booked... it was hard to say who was more excited, Bailey, Miley and Tylers parents, or me and my assistant/colleague who I'd asked to help out with an extra set of hands.
Which brings me to the next element, Elise.

Elise is a successful and talented photographer in her own right, and we had done the Baby As Art workshop together in November last year, so something like a triplet session was right up her alley and I knew we'd work well together having shot weddings together and having worked in her studio.

The session took place when the triplets were around 8 weeks old, though still technically a couple of weeks shy of their official "due date" had they made it full term. (A session like this is very much an exception to the rule of photographing newborns in the first 14 days.) It was incredible to see how they reacted to each other and snuggled in, settled so easily with each other and seemed more restless for their solo shots. Watching them we could see their little characters emerging, but clearly their bond with each other is strong.

From the moment we'd set up the first pose with Bailey, Miley and Tyler it's fair to say all the women in the room were "having a moment"... to know the journey travelled, and the sweetness of seeing all three of these precious little babes together, snuggled and so calm, it was a moment that sent shivers up my spine... just simply a career highlight, and not only because triplets are so rare to be able to photograph in such a way, but because along the journey I'd been able to share with the family, my heart was full of love too.

I couldn't have been happier with the session, in all it's elements; where it started, the friendships created through it, and the experience itself.

Enjoy. xo























A huge thanks to Elise for photographing 'action shots' throughout the session also, it wasn't too scary being on the other side of the lens (especially when I had no idea I was the subject.) xo