After a small hiatus from blogging, I think it is time to start posting again. While the blog front may have been quiet, it sure wasn’t quiet behind the lens. With some birthdays and christenings celebrated, I was there to capture these precious memories for my clients. Throw in there a workshop with a bridal session, plus some personal projects, it makes for some great entries that I can’t wait to share with you.

Let me start with this birthday party for one excited 6 year boy. The party was fabulous. Hosted at Paint Pot People, I highly recommend going here if you are stuck for birthday party ideas. Each child completed two projects, one painted canvas and clay to make their own unique sculptures.

Boys will be boys!

I love how she pokes her tongue out while concentrating.

Who can resist these party favourites! Chocolate crackles have been around since I was a kid. No kids birthday party is complete without these!

Time for cake!

My favourite.

All the guests where so adorable.

Another favourite

If only you could bottle up the energy of these children and sell it! Even though I  needed a nap after this event, I loved every minute of it! Thank you Mr K for letting capture this special day for you.

This year I decided to go the paperless Christmas card route. Wishing you all a wonderful time with your loved ones. We are all due for a well deserved break, to kick it back and relax with good food, love and laughter.  Thank you to everyone for being so supportive and I look forward to an awesome new year!

Now that the gallery is up for the bride and groom to view, I wanted to post my favourite shot from the wedding.

This was a moment captured in between taking some serious, moody couple shots. The groom was having a little trouble keeping it together (being serious that is). The bride said something funny to him and they burst into laughter and I captured that moment. This picture truly captures what this couple is about. Always laughing, always happy. I love the in between moments. That is why I never relax when something isn’t planned, because you never know what your going to get!

We welcomed with open arms the newest addition to our family. Esme is a Scottish Fold and our hearts melted when we met her for the first time. So round and cuddly and possessing a beautiful loving nature, she fits so perfectly into our lives. A stressful day at work is diminished when we walk through the door to be greeted by this gorgeous face.

I couldn’t just stop at one photo, but I had to control myself from posting 100! How could you not love this face!

The day started off hot and humid, then throw in a dust storm for good measure and you would think you had a recipe for disaster for a wedding day. Not so! This  did not deter anyone from celebrating one of the best weddings of 2009! You couldn’t meet a more beautiful couple(inside and out) than Bernie and Vanessa. The location, The Abbotsford Convent in Melbourne.

It’s all in the details. Vanessa’s dress was to die for! The beading was exquisite!

What do you get when you mix awesome light with a stunning couple? You get THIS!

How stunning is this wedding ring!

Bernie and Vanessa thank you so much for letting me document your special day! It was a blast and I would do it all over again in a heartbeat!

On the last Sunday of October, my daughter Madelyn celebrated her First Holy Communion. By popular demand (by her grandparents) I am posting a photo of for them to see. More to come later.  Sorry mum! I hope this helps for now! My work load is quite high at this time of year, finalising client orders before the Christmas deadline!

How did I miss this one! This is the little boy with the long incredible eyelashes. This child was so full of life and ran non stop from the morning all the way into the evening. If you could bottle up his energy and sell it, you could make a killing!

So as promised here are a few images from the retreat. These were also posted on my facebook page, but they loaded up small. I love this blog for allowing me to post big. I love BIG photos!

First my most favourite of the whole weekend. This little boy was absolutely beautiful. I stole this image of him while he was playing with his markers. This photo was not part of the planned shoot. I became curious and followed him to our workshop room, where he thought drawing on the white board was much more interesting. Look at those delicious eyelashes!

These twins were simply delightful, but seriously hard work! The only way I was able to get these shots was to mention that I had a frog in my lens (works every time!) With blue eyes to die for, I must make a disclaimer that no retouching was made to their baby blues.

And one with Mum!

This adorable little girl was ever so shy. It took a while for her to warm up to the camera, but I can confidently say that she knows how to work it once she let her wall down a little. I think the bike had something to do with it too.

We certainly were not short of beautiful of children. This little cutie pie wasn’t sure of the crib we put him in, but he let us snap away regardless.

Three gorgeous sisters that would do anything for you, provided you gave them an ice cream and let them get messy.

To complete the magic of the weekend, we had a pony! A pony with wings!

I would like to that this opportunity to thank Barb Uil of Jinky Art who made this magical weekend possibly. Thank you for providing us with these magnificent set ups! This woman is one amazing artist. You can check out her work here, www.jinkyart.com.au

Heaven on earth does exist and I found it in Bugendore NSW. A quaint little country town 30 minutes from Canberra and a population of 2000 people, this was the ideal place to be inspired and host a magical weekend retreat. 20 photographers from around the country came together to learn, absorb and practice the words of Barb Uil of Jinky Art. This world renown child and family portrait photographer, shared her visions and talents with us so we could have the opportunity to expand our ever growing thirst for knowledge in this industry. As a photographer, my education will never stop. There is always something more to learn, to explore and certainly always room for growth both as a person and an artist.

We stayed at the beautiful Old Stone House Bed and Breakfast. Where gardens were full of whispering secrets, rooms that told a tale or two and a kitchen that brimmed with mouthwatering homemade food that left you wanting more. It really was the perfect setting for our weekend.

As you can see it was very hard to leave. I will definitely be back to introduce my family to this stunning part of the country. In the next blog post I will share the photos taken of the wonderful children that graciously modelled for our paparazzi cameras.

When you think your daughter has done a really great job thus far in her 8 years of life, she raises the bar yet again that has brought tears to my eyes. On Sunday the 18th of October, Madelyn won the 2009 Sensei award for demonstrating fair play and compassion to a new recruit. Let me explain further…..

One category that the children love to participate in is called Gladiators. Here are some photos I took from a couple of tournaments ago. Unfortunately I didn’t bring my camera to this tournament (I know shame on me!) I wish I had captured the moment that won her this award.

Madelyn’s opponent was a little 4 year old boy that just started his Karate journey. The category is for children 8 and under.  Madelyn made the choice to be gentle with the little boy. Instead of pushing him hard off the mat, she crouched down to his level, let him push with all his might and gently walked with him around and around until one of them went out of the designated lines. Everyone applauded her efforts to make this newcomer feel welcome and important enough to be able to participate, despite his size and age. I am proud that my daughter displayed wonderful sportsmanship without anyone instructing her to do so. This was her choice to do what she did. Madelyn later told us that if she were this little boy, that she would want to be treated the same way.

I love you Madelyn. I have so much confidence  that you will grow up to be  very well respected by your peers.

xx Mama.