Personal Journey and Adventures of Nina

Definitely Looking Comfortable!! Little kids are always most comfortable in their own surroundings which is why I enjoy shoots at the clients home. It helped that this gorgeous garden had lots of beautiful chairs, trees and plants to use. I began my photography life as a black and white film shooter (TMX100 girl) so my heart still goes toward the black and whites. The lack of colour allows the image to be less distracting and the focus on the subject. It also provokes a mood that the colour does not. They also work well in any situation so easy to print and place around the home or office because they do not impose their colour identity on to a room. I still like the colour. It is just a different feel. The other great thing about shooting little ones is that I get to be a kid again. I get to be playful and have a fun time hanging out. Love it! Cracks me up!!

What I liked about this shoot was the planning and preparation on behalf of the client and I ( mostly the client ). I like being prepared but its not always possible with the craziness that is my life! We booked a date months in advance to take advantage of all of our busy schedules giving us time to prepare our vision for the final images. This included finding the perfect location and preparing a wardrobe and hairstyle ideas. When my usual location ideas did not match the clients expectations, I went on a quest to find the ideal place to shoot.  Luckily for me, I mentioned it to a few people and one of them came up with these glorious gardens. Stone pathways and steps, beautiful colour and best of all privacy. Now all we had to do was relax and take some great shots! TECH TALK... It was late afternoon so the sun made a lovely backlight as well as casting glorious colour.  As we were using the sun as backlight, we had to fil...

What did you say? Working with children and pets is a nightmare. Not quite, but very challenging. Usually one or the other is ok but put the two together and you will definitely be in need of a calming cup of tea afterwards! 

What do you do when the dog has had enough...photograph the children!  Today we were photographing for a pet magazine, ( Pet Industry News )  but Missy, the Labradoodle decided to take a break alas Miss Em was not finished.  It's autumn in Oz right now and the leaves and flowers are all over the ground...such a pretty backdrop (for a short while at least). Em decided herself that she would like to be photographed and had set her pretty dress and shoes out the night before. This always makes for the best shoots. Children that actually enjoy the camera as opposed to those who require bribes or treats!!!

This is going to be fun. Truely, if you just look happy in front of the camera for a few shots, we can go home. Really, this is fun. Maybe we can get you a treat on the way home. How about extra game time. This is getting tiring. Are you certain you don't want to loose your iPad privelages? We are losing patience. OK, your iPad has gone for the week. A typical day around here! Hey, I remember saying the exact same things to my own child a few years back whilst tears ran down his face! I think we did ok. Actually, the boys were very sweet, albeit shy!

What do you do when your studio is all set and your client postpones?? Grab your daughter and her girlfriend and make them model for you...or not! Please...not another photo shoot! Really not working for me! Model becomes photographer... You can imagine that the daughter of a photographer can, be less than enthusiastic (i.e. when not being bribed with toys or money), about spending yet another  minute behind the camera so I asked her to become the photographer...she took some pretty cool shots. I love it when children take over the camera. It gives me a perspective that I wouldn't have normally considered! The reactions they receive are also different to what I might get. Altogether it worked out pretty well.

Christmastime brings family together, sometimes from different States, even different countries so it is an ideal opportunity to capture the togetherness with a portrait. This past Boxing Day, we did just that. Mother Nature threatened a dreadful storm with softball sized hail stones but we went ahead with the shoot in any case because who knows when this opportunity may arise again as part of the family had travelled from Adelaide to be here for the shoot... A fabulous location, chosen by the family. We were actually at a point where we could see back toward the city skyline.

I had a great shoot with two lovely, polite boys who clearly enjoyed each other's company which makes my job entirely easy! The portrait session was in my home studio and as it was a lovely day, we were able to photograph outside as well as inside, giving us a large variety of shots!