Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Tea with Hanna and Margot


These two little love bugs are at such a delightful age right now with all the make believe worlds they inhabit and reading together so their parents were keen to capture their special relationship. Big sister Hanna takes such good care of sweet little Margot, teaching her new things and helping her get dressed and the tea party is such a great way to freeze frame the day to day life of these sisters.


This is a shoot I think I will never forget for as long as I live. Not only because it was so deliciously adorable with the set up and the dresses, but more for what I did that day. First of all, as I left the house and was driving, I realised I didn't actually know where I was going which was a first. When I tried to ring, I realised, I did not have their phone number so left a desperate email saying I was driving around waiting for a direction to go! When at last I arrived, I emptied the car of all my mad props and we took the time to set up the dreamy scene for the girls to play. Finally, it was ready and I went back to the car to collect my cameras when I remembered, I had not put them in the car. This may sound utterly mad, for I had spent the morning charging batteries and packing my case carefully, but with Sacha Surprise shoots, there is so much that goes into my car, I can see how I forgot it. That said, it really was one of my worst nightmares come true - literally. I have anxiety dreams about showing up for a wedding without memory cards or with dead batteries. And here I was at an actual shoot where I had already arrived late as I didn't know where it was, and now I had to leave to go home to gather my equipment - it was an all time low for me in my career as a professional photographer. Why am I even admitting to this? I suppose to show that I am human, albeit an occasionally stupid one! Thank goodness, I was blessed with utterly lovely and understanding clients who took my foolishness in stride. In fact, when the girls' mum wrote to me about the shoot, she told me that her favourite part of the day was while I was away and Hanna kept helping her position everything for the shoot, all the while Margot was slowly taking it apart and playing with all the tea sets. It was a wonder the girls were not bored of the scene by the time I returned from home 20 minutes later. But thank my lucky stars, they themselves were stars and the pictures are beautiful - a lesson I won't be forgetting in a hurry.

  










When the girls started climbing tress in their gorgeous dresses, it just demonstrated the reality of their adventurous spirits which completely contrasted with their attire.




Love the different moods of the girls captured below in these portraits.







You may recognise this sweet little house from this shoot, but this lucky family inherited it when the others left the island.



The other best part of the day was when the girls started feeling tired of playing for me, they were rewarded for their patience with the chance to devour their gingerbread house. It was hilarious how the girls ate every single candy decoration off the outside and didn't touch the gingerbread.






Thank you Hanna and Margot for such a sweet shoot, and in particular for being so patient while I had to disappear to fetch the very equipment I needed for the shoot. Happy childhoods! xxx

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Sarah's Beautiful Baby Bump


You may recognise Sarah from her marriage to Ian which I was lucky enough to photograph two years ago. The couple are very excited to be expecting their first baby, as are the rest of the family as it is the first grandchild on either side so all the parents and siblings are eagerly awaiting the new addition. Even though Sarah and Ian have known since September that they are having a boy, they are still struggling with a name and are hoping they figure it out sometime soon. Aside from the lack of narrowing down a name, the two are ready for their baby's arrival and are really looking forward to becoming parents.


Sarah feels very lucky to have had a happy and easy pregnancy and has enjoyed the experience. She was keen to have some photos to remember this special time and liked the idea of a pregnancy shoot that was soft and dreamy. Originally, we had planned to go to the beach at dusk to get the right sort of light and feel but at the last minute, she decided to come to my home for a mini session instead.


 

 

 I have been in this house for almost six months now and I am finally figuring out the best light and times for shooting. The day Sarah came, the sun was shining so we really scored on the gorgeous glowy light front and I was thrilled to be able to incorporate the swing that Ben had recently hung with an old rope he and the children had found at the beach. The rope wasn't quite long enough so the swing is about five feet off the ground so at first, I was annoyed with him, for how could I possibly shoot children on a swing so high up, but now I realise it is perfect for adult shoots and we will have to find another spot for a littles swing using longer rope!


 

 

Sarah had popped into Petals on Queen Street the day before and selected this delicate selection of pastel blooms which really added to the romance of the shoot.

 


Thank you Sarah for a lovely shoot - I am so glad you didn't give up on the idea after all as it is such a beautiful time in a woman's life and should be honoured and these memories captured - good luck with the birth and look forward to meeting the new little man in your lives! xxx